Wild Biology News - June 2009 Archives

Mice run faster on high-grade oil (6/30/2009)

Between the 1932 and 2008 Olympic Games, world record times of the men's 100m sprint improved by 0.6 seconds. Scientists at the Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology in Austria have shown that an equivalent improvement can be achieved in mice by feeding them a diet high in a certain type of polyunsaturated fatty acid. Dr. Christopher Turbill will present the research at the Society for Experimental Biology meeting on Monday, June 29. ...> Full Article

Corals stay close to home (6/30/2009)

New DNA analysis reveals that corals are more closely related than previously thought, and these results have significant implications for coral conservation. ...> Full Article

Evolution of a contraceptive for sea lamprey (6/29/2009)

In addition to providing fundamental insights into the early evolution of the estrogen receptor, research by a team at the University of California - San Diego School of Medicine may lead to a contraceptive for female lampreys -- a jawless fish considered an invasive pest species in the Great Lakes region of the United States. This could prove important to the Great Lakes region, where lampreys aggressively consume trout, salmon, sturgeon and other game fish. ...> Full Article

Good males are bad fathers (6/28/2009)

Contrary to predictions, males of high genetic quality are not very successful when it comes to fertilizing eggs. A new study on seed beetles by Swedish and Danish scientists Goran Arnqvist and Trine Bilde shows that when a female mates with several males, the males of low genetic quality are the most successful in fertilizing eggs. The study is published in this week's issue of Science. ...> Full Article

Dolphins get a lift from delta wing technology (6/27/2009)

Dolphins are supremely agile swimmers, but it wasn't clear how their fins help them maneuver though water. Building scale models of whale and dolphins' fins, a team of US scientists has found that some dolphins' fins work just like delta wing aircraft. ...> Full Article

Rhesus monkeys discriminate faces much as humans do (6/27/2009)

Humans' ability to easily distinguish among many faces and recognize people they know goes way, way back, say researchers reporting online on June 25 in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication. That assertion stems from new evidence that, like us, rhesus monkeys tell their friends from foes by picking up on the precise layout of facial features. ...> Full Article

Researchers see evidence of memory in the songbird brain (6/27/2009)

When a zebra finch hears a new song from a member of its own species, the experience changes gene expression in its brain in unexpected ways, researchers report. The sequential switching on and off of thousands of genes after a bird hears a new tune offers a new picture of memory in the songbird brain. ...> Full Article

Disappearing dolphins clamour for attention at whale summit (6/26/2009)

Small whales are disappearing from the world's oceans and waterways as they fall victim to fishing gear, pollution and habitat loss -- compounded by a lack of conservation measures such as those developed for great whales, according to a new WWF report. ...> Full Article

Toxic molecule may help birds 'see' north and south (6/25/2009)

Researchers at the University of Illinois report that a toxic molecule known to damage cells and cause disease may also play a pivotal role in bird migration. The molecule, superoxide, is proposed as a key player in the mysterious process that allows birds to "see" Earth's magnetic field. ...> Full Article

Geographic profiling applied to track hunting patterns of white sharks in South Africa (6/24/2009)

A paper coming out in the Journal of Zoology describes the use of geographic profiling to examine the hunting patterns of white sharks of the coast of South Africa. The study was conducted by scientists at the University of Miami and University of British Columbia, using technology designed to locate criminal offenders of the two-legged variety by Texas State University. ...> Full Article

Changes in brain architecture may be driven by different cognitive challenges (6/24/2009)

Scientists trying to understand how the brains of animals evolve have found that evolutionary changes in brain structure reflect the types of social interactions and environmental stimuli different species face. The study is the first to compare multiple species of related animals, in this case social wasps. ...> Full Article

Competition may be reason for bigger brain (6/23/2009)

MU researchers find that competitive ancestors may be blamed for today's big brain ...> Full Article

Discovery of a water snake that startles fish in a way that makes them flee into its jaws (6/22/2009)

Forget the old folk tales about snakes hypnotizing their prey. The tentacled snake from South East Asia has developed a more effective technique. The small water snake has found a way to startle its prey so that the fish turn toward the snake's head to flee instead of turning away. ...> Full Article

To protect threatened bat species, street lights out (6/21/2009)

Slow-flying, woodland bats -- which tend to be at greater risk from extinction than their speedier kin -- really don't like the light, according to a study published online on June 18 in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication. Lesser horseshoe bats will stray from their usual flight routes to steer clear of the artificial glow from lights that are similar to everyday street lights, the new report shows. ...> Full Article

Mate selection: How does she know he'll take care of the kids? (6/21/2009)

Throughout the animal kingdom brilliant colors or elaborate behavioral displays serve as "advertisements" for attracting mates. But, what do the ads promise, and is there truth in advertising? Researchers at Yale theorize that when males must provide care for the survival of their offspring, the males' signals will consistently be honest -- and they may devote more of their energy to caring for their offspring than to being attractive. ...> Full Article

Individual primates display variation in general intelligence (6/20/2009)

Researchers demonstrate differing cognitive abilities within a single primate species ...> Full Article

Common fish species has 'human' ability to learn (6/19/2009)

Although worlds apart, the way fish learn could be closer to humans' way of thinking than previously believed, suggests a new research study. ...> Full Article

The straight poop on counting tigers (6/19/2009)

New study shows that fecal DNA sampling provides extremely accurate estimates of tiger populations ...> Full Article

Exploring the evolutionary consequences of same-sex sex: Lessons from the animal kingdom (6/18/2009)

Scientists have documented thousands of examples of same-sex sexual behavior in nonhuman animals and have put forth many intriguing theories to explain why such behaviors are so prevalent. ...> Full Article

Not 1, but 2 kinds of males found in the invasive round goby (6/17/2009)

New research could help scientists tackle infestation of Great Lakes ...> Full Article

Zebra mussels hang on while quagga mussels take over (6/16/2009)

The zebra mussels that have wreaked ecological havoc on the Great Lakes are harder to find these days -- not because they are dying off, but because they are being replaced by a cousin, the quagga mussel. But zebra mussels still dominate in fast-moving streams and rivers. ...> Full Article

Newly discovered snow roots are 'evolutionary phenomenon' (6/15/2009)

It may not be the Yeti, but in a remote region of the Russian mountains a previously unknown and entirely unique form of plant root has been discovered. Lead Scientist Professor Hans Cornelissen and his Russian-Dutch team describe this finding today in Ecology Letters. ...> Full Article

Hidden genitalia in female water striders makes males 'sing' (6/15/2009)

In a study published in the open-access, peer-reviewed journal PLoS ONE, Chang Seok Han and Piotr Jablonski at Seoul National University, Korea, report that by evolving a morphological shield to protect their genitalia from males' forceful copulatory attempts, females of an Asian species of water strider seem to "win" the evolutionary arms race between the sexes. Instead, females only expose their genitalia for copulation after males produce a courtship "song" by tapping the water surface. ...> Full Article

First ever worldwide census analysis of caribou-reindeer numbers reveals dramatic decline (6/15/2009)

Caribou and reindeer numbers worldwide have plunged almost 60 percent in the last three decades. The dramatic revelation came out of the first ever comprehensive census analysis of this iconic species carried out by biologists at the University of Alberta. ...> Full Article

Biologist discovers pink-winged moth in Chiracahua Mountains (6/14/2009)

University of Arizona biologist and amateur insect collector Bruce Walsh has published his discovery of a new species of moth. The moth has distinct bright pink wings, which prompted Walsh to name it after his wife. ...> Full Article

Manatees can probably hear which directions boats approach from (6/13/2009)

Endangered manatees are often at risk from collisions with boats, but no one knew if the mammals could tell which directions sounds come from to escape injury. In a series of ground breaking experiments published in the Journal of Experimental Biology, Debborah Colbert and colleagues from the Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium in Florida show that manatees can localize the directions that sounds are coming from, which is crucial information for manatee protection programs. ...> Full Article

Wildlife Conservation Society supports world's first study of egg-laying mammal (6/13/2009)

Study on Papua New Guinea's long-beaked echidna reveals elusive habits ...> Full Article

The secret of a snake's slither (6/12/2009)

Mathematicians uncover the hidden patterns and movements that snakes use to move without legs ...> Full Article

Close social ties make baboons better mothers, study finds (6/12/2009)

Baboons whose mothers have strong relationships with other females are much more likely to survive to adulthood than baboons reared by less social mothers, according to a new UCLA-University of Pennsylvania study. ...> Full Article

Researchers shed light on trading behavior in animals - and humans (6/11/2009)

Georgia State's Sarah Brosnan, assistant professor of psychology, and research scientist Michael Beran conducted a study to see if chimpanzees spontaneously bartered foods among each other, using tokens which represented those foods. While results indicated that the animals were cognitively able to understand trade, without enforcement from human experimenters, trade disappeared. ...> Full Article

Siberian jays use complex communication to mob predators (6/10/2009)

When mobbing predators, Siberian jays use over a dozen different calls to communicate the level of danger and predator category to other members of their own group. A Swedish study from Uppsala University, published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society Biological Sciences, shows birds have evolved call systems that are as sophisticated as those of primates and meerkats. ...> Full Article

Elevated water temperature and acidity boost growth of key sea star species (6/9/2009)

New research by UBC zoologists indicates that elevated water temperatures and heightened concentrations of carbon dioxide can dramatically increase the growth rate of a keystone species of sea star. ...> Full Article

Bats recognize the individual voices of other bats (6/8/2009)

Bats can use the characteristics of other bats' voices to recognize each other, according to a study by researchers from the University of Tuebingen, Germany and the University of Applied Sciences in Konstanz, Germany. The study, published June 5 in the open-access journal PLoS Computational Biology, explains how bats use echolocation for more than just spatial knowledge. ...> Full Article

Boy or girl? In lizards, egg size matters (6/8/2009)

Whether baby lizards will turn out to be male or female is a more complicated question than scientists would have ever guessed, according to a new report published online on June 4 in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication. The study shows that for at least one lizard species, egg size matters. ...> Full Article

Scientists unravel the mystery of white-nose syndrome (6/7/2009)

The mysterious disease that has killed more than 90 percent of wintering bats in caves and mines from Vermont to Virginia during the last three years has raised numerous questions about its nature and how to control it.Experts in bat physiology, fungal ecology, ecotoxicology, disease and environmental modeling, will gather at the National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis, June 29 to July 1, at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, to explore the disease and to develop solutions to manage it. ...> Full Article

Trading energy for safety, bees extend legs to stay stable in wind (6/6/2009)

Turbulence hampers flight for various bee species, and possibly other insects ...> Full Article

Reconstructing the evolution of laughter in great apes and humans (6/5/2009)

Like human infants, young apes are known to hoot and holler when you tickle them. But is it fair to say that those playful calls are really laughter? The answer to that question is yes, say researchers reporting online on June 4 in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication. ...> Full Article

When evolution is not so slow and gradual (6/5/2009)

What's the secret to surviving during times of environmental change? Evolve... quickly. A new article in the American Naturalist finds that guppy populations introduced into new habitats developed new and advantageous traits in just a few years. This is one of only a few studies to look at adaptation and survival in a wild population. ...> Full Article

Mosquito evolution spells trouble for Galapagos wildlife (6/4/2009)

The Galapagos giant tortoise and other iconic wildlife are facing a new threat from disease, as some of the islands' mosquitoes develop a taste for reptile blood. ...> Full Article

When hosts go extinct, what happens to their parasites? (6/3/2009)

Hands wring and teeth gnash over the loss of endangered species like the panda or the polar bear. But what happens to the parasites hosted by endangered species? And although most people would side with the panda over the parasite, which group should we worry about more? ...> Full Article

Temporary infidelity may contribute to the stability of ancient relationships (6/2/2009)

Partner switching between fungus farming ants and their fungal clones during nest establishment may contribute to the stability of this long-term mutualistic relationship. ...> Full Article