Science Art: Plate IV. Tapeworms by William Miller, after P. Syme
Another engraving by the Scotch Quaker, mentioned here previously. Image from Wikimedia Commons.
zoology
Auroch returns.
The Telegraph hails the promise of herds of elephant-sized cattle returning to Europe’s plains:
… Read the rest “Auroch returns.”Now Italian scientists are hoping to use genetic expertise and selective breeding
Extinct bird alive and well.
That, according to the Telegraph, is the good news. The bad news is that it’s in war-torn Afghanistan:
… Read the rest “Extinct bird alive and well.”The birds were then spotted again in June last year by workers from the Wildlife
Science Art: Cormorant, by Bob Hines.
These are cormorants – the birds that swim underwater to catch fish. I fell in love with cormorants reading Ping as a little boy (on the mighty Yangtse, boat-dwellers put rings around… Read the rest “Science Art: Cormorant, by Bob Hines.”
Science Art: Chinchilla, Webster’s New International Dictionary, 1911
Behold a crepuscular rodent. In this case, I suppose, a fractional crepuscular rodent. (That means they like going out at dusk and dawn… creatures of what photographers call “the… Read the rest “Science Art: Chinchilla, Webster’s New International Dictionary, 1911”
Birdfeeder evolution.
Wired reveals one strange way humans are changing the natural world – by accidentally creating new species:
… Read the rest “Birdfeeder evolution.”“This is reproductive isolation, the first step of speciation,” said
The Crocodile Goat of Majorca
Discovery tells the strange story of the island-dwelling goat that was more like a reptile than a mammal:
… Read the rest “The Crocodile Goat of Majorca”The tiny goat, which stood about 19 inches tall at the shoulder, took on characteristics
Scandal On The Beach! Extortion! Sex!
New Scientist tells the SHOCKING UNTOLD STORY of the steamy, sordid sex lives of fiddler crabs:
… Read the rest “Scandal On The Beach! Extortion! Sex!”Males have one giant claw, sometimes as heavy as the rest of their body, which they use in fights.
Science Art: Food chain-2, Nordisk familjebok
The circle of life, seen as a straight line. With a bird of prey at the top.
There’s something totemic about it, I think… King Bird looking over his food subjects.… Read the rest “Science Art: Food chain-2, Nordisk familjebok”
Science Art: Flying Lemur, Webster’s New International, 1911.
This is the flying lemur, or colugo, also known as the order Dermoptera – the “skin-wings.” They’re related to shrews and bats moreso than real lemurs, which … Read the rest “Science Art: Flying Lemur, Webster’s New International, 1911.”
Bats in daylight.
This may just be a behavioral curiosity, but I can’t help wonder if the devastation from white-nose fungus is playing more havoc than we realize. I don’t see a connection, but… Read the rest “Bats in daylight.”
Human see. Chimps do.
We’ve been watching chimpanzee’s faces. Why not? They can be funny to look at, often, and they can help us understand how we communicate emotions and why we do what we see.
… Read the rest “Human see. Chimps do.”Irish
How do geckos drop their tails?
ABC Science (the Australian network, not the American one) is taking a long look at lizards – specifically, the medical information we can get from geckos’ wriggling tails… Read the rest “How do geckos drop their tails?”
Last of the BIG cats.
The BBC reports that the largest species of cat, the Amur tiger, has an effective population of less than 50 animals:
… Read the rest “Last of the BIG cats.”They sampled nuclear DNA found within the scat samples of an estimated
Komodo dragons: venomous after all. And how.
I’ve always reveled in the way Komodo dragons killed their prey – by having dirty mouths, chomping on quicker-moving prey and letting septicemia slowly finish them off. Well,… Read the rest “Komodo dragons: venomous after all. And how.”