http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/animal-science-blog.html Animal science blog from biology-blog.com, the place for information. Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT en-us http://www.biology-blog.com/images/blogs/animal-science-blog.jpg http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/animal-science-blog.html 153 97 http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/with-a-beam-of-light.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/with-a-beam-of-light.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT In an advance with overtones of Star Trek phasers and other sci-fi ray guns, scientists in Canada are reporting development of an internal on-off "switch" that paralyzes animals when exposed to a beam of ultraviolet light. The animals stay paralyzed even when the light is turned off. When exposed to ordinary light, the animals become unparalyzed and wake up. Their study appears in the Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS). It reports the first demonstration of such a light-activated switch in animals........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/evolution-of-highly-toxic-box-jellyfish.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/evolution-of-highly-toxic-box-jellyfish.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT With thousands of stinging cells that can emit deadly venom from tentacles that can reach ten feet in length, the 50 or so species of box jellyfish have long been of interest to researchers and to the public. Yet little has been known about the evolution of this early branch in the animal tree of life........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/right-handed-chimpanzees-origin-of-human-language.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/right-handed-chimpanzees-origin-of-human-language.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT Most of the linguistic functions in humans are controlled by the left cerebral hemisphere. A study of captive chimpanzees at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center (Atlanta, Georgia), published in the January 2010 issue of Elsevier's Cortex, suggests that this "hemispheric lateralization" for language may have its evolutionary roots in the gestural communication of our common ancestors. A great majority of the chimpanzees in the study showed a significant bias towards right-handed gestures when communicating, which may reflect a similar dominance of the left hemisphere for communication in chimpanzees as that seen for language functions in humans........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/new-atlas-by-tracking-penguins.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/new-atlas-by-tracking-penguins.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT Recording hundreds of thousands of individual uplinks from satellite transmitters fitted on penguins, albatrosses, sea lions, and other marine animals, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and BirdLife International have released the first-ever atlas of the Patagonian Sea a globally important but poorly understood South American marine ecosystem........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/give-life-to-coral-reefs.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/give-life-to-coral-reefs.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT Coral reefs support some of the most diverse ecosystems on the planet, yet they thrive in a marine desert. So how do reefs sustain their thriving populations? Marine biologist Fleur Van Duyl from the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research is fascinated by the energy budgets that support coral reefs in this impoverished environment. As per van Duyl's former student, Jasper De Goeij, Halisarca caerulea sponges grow in the deep dark cavities beneath reefs, and 90% of their diet is composed of dissolved organic carbon, which is inedible for most other reef residents. But when De Goeij measured the amount of carbon that the brightly coloured sponges consumed he observed that they consume half of their own weight each day, yet they never grew. What were the sponges doing with the carbon? Were the sponges really consuming that much carbon, or was there a problem with De Goeij's measurements? He had to find out where the carbon was going to back up his measurements and publishes his discovery that sponges have one of the fastest cell division rates ever measured, and instead of growing they discard the cells. Essentially, the sponges recycle carbon that would otherwise be lost to the reef. De Goeij publishes his discovery on November 13 2009 in The Journal of Experimental Biology at http://jeb.biologists.org........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/first-aquarium-to-breed-dwarf-cuttlefish.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/first-aquarium-to-breed-dwarf-cuttlefish.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT Anchored to an algae-covered rock in a 120-gallon tank at the California Academy of Sciences' Steinhart Aquarium, a cluster of inky-colored cuttlefish eggs is beginning to swellevidence of success for the Academy's new captive breeding program for dwarf cuttlefish, Sepia bandensis. The program, pioneered by Academy biologist Richard Ross, is the first of its kind in a U.S. aquarium, and offers the Academy and other institutions the opportunity to study and display a species that is both captivating andat 2-4 inches in lengthless resource-intensive to keep than its larger relatives. "By establishing a stable breeding population," Ross explains, "our hope is to make it easier for aquariums to showcase cuttlefish and their remarkable characteristics without impacting wild populations"........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/gorilla-blood-pressure-reading.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/gorilla-blood-pressure-reading.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT Zoo Atlanta recently became the first zoological institution in the world to obtain voluntary blood pressure readings from a gorilla. This groundbreaking stride was made possible by the Gorilla Tough Cuff, a blood pressure reading system devised through partnership with the Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech and Emory University........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/eyeless-mouthless-worms-lurk-in-the-dark.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/eyeless-mouthless-worms-lurk-in-the-dark.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT It sounds like a classic horror story-eyeless, mouthless worms lurk in the dark, settling onto dead animals and sending out green "roots" to devour their bones. In fact, such worms do exist in the deep sea. They were first discovered in 2002 by scientists at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI), who were using a robot submarine to explore Monterey Canyon. But that wasn't the end of the story. After "planting" several dead whales on the seafloor, a team of biologists recently announced that as a number of as 15 different species of boneworms may live in Monterey Bay alone........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/fig-wasps-travel-hundreds-of-miles.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/fig-wasps-travel-hundreds-of-miles.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT They may only be 1.5mm in size, but the tiny wasps that pollinate fig trees can travel over 160km in less than 48 hours, as per research from researchers at the University of Leeds. The fig wasps are transporting pollen ten times further than previously recorded for any insect. The fig wasps travel these distances in search of trees to lay their eggs, which offers hope that trees pollinated by similar creatures have a good chance of surviving if they become isolated through deforestation........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/white-sharks-in-the-north-pacific.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/white-sharks-in-the-north-pacific.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT The white shark appears to be the ultimate loner of the ocean, cruising thousands of miles in a solitary trek, but a team of scientists has discovered that the sharks have maintained such a consistent pattern of migration that over tens of thousands of years the white sharks in the northeastern Pacific Ocean have separated themselves into a population genetically distinct from sharks elsewhere in the world........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/cultured-pearls-from-the-queen-conch.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/cultured-pearls-from-the-queen-conch.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT For more than 25 years, all attempts at culturing pearls from the queen conch (Strombus gigas) have been unsuccessfuluntil now. For the first time, novel and proprietary seeding techniques to produce beaded (nucleated) and non-beaded cultured pearls from the queen conch have been developed by researchers from Florida Atlantic University's Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute (HBOI). With less than two years of research and experimentation, Drs. Hctor Acosta-Salmn and Megan Davis, co-inventors, have produced more than 200 cultured pearls using the techniques they developed. Previous to this breakthrough, no high-quality queen conch pearl had been cultured. This discovery opens up a unique opportunity to introduce a new gem to the industry. This significant accomplishment is comparable to that of the Japanese in the 1920s when they commercially applied the original pearl culture techniques developed for pearl oysters........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/north-atlantic-fish-populations-shifting.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/north-atlantic-fish-populations-shifting.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT About half of 36 fish stocks in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean, a number of of them commercially valuable species, have been shifting northward over the last four decades, with some stocks nearly disappearing from U.S. waters as they move farther offshore, as per a newly released study by NOAA researchers........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/moose-eat-plants-wolves-kill-moose.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/moose-eat-plants-wolves-kill-moose.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT Moose eat plants; wolves kill moose. What difference does this classic predator-prey interaction make to biodiversity? A large and unexpected one, say wildlife biologists from Michigan Technological University. Joseph Bump, Rolf Peterson and John Vucetich report in the November 2009 issue of the journal Ecology that the carcasses of moose killed by wolves at Isle Royale National Park enrich the soil in "hot spots" of forest fertility around the kills, causing rapid microbial and fungal growth that provide increased nutrients for plants in the area........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/researchers-sequence-swine-genome.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/11-2009/researchers-sequence-swine-genome.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT A global collaborative has produced a first draft of the genome of a domesticated pig, an achievement that will lead to insights in agriculture, medicine, conservation and evolution. A red-haired Duroc pig from a farm at the University of Illinois will now be among the growing list of domesticated animals that have had their genomes sequenced. Scientists will announce the achievement Monday (Nov. 2) at a meeting at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Hinxton, England........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/10-2009/a-heat-sensor-for-body-clock-synchronization.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/10-2009/a-heat-sensor-for-body-clock-synchronization.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT New research on the fruit-fly brain points to a possible mechanism by which temperature influences the body clock, as per researchers from Queen Mary, University of London. Eventhough much is known about how light affects the body clock - also known at the circadian clock - it is not well understood which cells or organs sense daily temperature changes or how temperature signals reach the part of the brain that contains the circadian clock........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/10-2009/environmental-impact-of-marine-fisheries.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/10-2009/environmental-impact-of-marine-fisheries.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT An Australian method for assessing the environmental impact of marine fisheries has caught the eye of fishery management agencies worldwide. Aspects of the 'ecological risk evaluation' (ERA) method have been adopted in the US, Canada, Ecuador, and the Western and Central Pacific, and by the international eco-labelling organisation the Marine Stewardship Council........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/10-2009/the-skeleton-size-matters.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/10-2009/the-skeleton-size-matters.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT Vertebrates have in common a skeleton made of segments, the vertebrae. During development of the embryo, each segment is added in a time dependent manner, from the head-end to the tail-end: the first segments to be added become the vertebrae of the neck, later segments become the vertebrae with ribs and the last ones the vertebra located in the tail (in the case of a mouse, for example). In this process, it is crucial that, on the one hand, each segment, as it matures, becomes the correct type of vertebra and, on the other, that the number of vertebrae in the skeleton, and therefore the size of the spine, are minutely controlled........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/10-2009/mantis-shrimps-inspire-technology.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/10-2009/mantis-shrimps-inspire-technology.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT The remarkable eyes of a marine crustacean could inspire the next generation of DVD and CD players, as per a newly released study from the University of Bristol published recently in Nature Photonics The mantis shrimps in the study are found on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and have the most complex vision systems known to science. They can see in twelve colours (humans see in only three) and can distinguish between different forms of polarized light........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/10-2009/family-tree-for-cattle-other-ruminants.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/10-2009/family-tree-for-cattle-other-ruminants.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT Pairing a new approach to prepare ancient DNA with a new scientific technique developed specifically to genotype a cow, an MU animal scientist, along with a team of international researchers, created a very accurate and widespread "family tree" for cows and other ruminants, going back as far as 29 million years. This genetic information could allow researchers to understand the evolution of cattle, ruminants and other animals. This same technique also could be used to verify ancient relatives to humans, help farmers develop healthier and more efficient cattle, and assist researchers who are studying human diseases, as per the research, which is being published in this week's edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)........ ]]> http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/10-2009/being-a-standout-has-its-benefits.html http://www.biology-blog.com/blogs/permalinks/10-2009/being-a-standout-has-its-benefits.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:19 GMT Standing out in a crowd is better than blending in, at least if you're a paper wasp in a colony where fights between nest-mates determine social status. That's the conclusion of a study by University of Michigan scientists published online this week in the journal Evolution. "It's good to be different, to wear a nametag advertising your identity," said graduate student Michael Sheehan, who collaborated on the research with evolutionary biologist Elizabeth Tibbetts........ ]]>