biology
evolgen | January 8, 2007I'm become quite obsessive about the false dichotomy between humans and animals, but that's what blogs are for. Anyway, you can probably guess why this gets under my skin:
jlynch | January 7, 2007
This strange gelatinous ball - approximately 20 inches in diameter - was seen in the ocean off Norway last October. Apparently, it has been identified as a squid egg sack.
And this may be the only post about squid I have ever made. Blame my recent encounter with PZ.
grrlscientist | January 7, 2007
Recently emerged Eastern Pondhawk dragonfly, Erythemis simplicicollis.
Image: Bev Wigney.
I am receiving so many gorgeous pictures from you, amigos bonitos, and I am overwhelmed by the beauty of these images and the creatures and places depicted. If you have a high-resolution digitized nature image (I prefer JPG format) that you'd like to share with your fellow readers, feel free to email it to me, along with information about the image and how you'd like it to be credited.
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tags: Eastern Pondhawk dragonfly, entomology
grrlscientist | January 6, 2007
Following (below the fold) are a few of the bird posters that I saw yesterday at SICB.
Class. Substantial data exists on the behavioral endocrinology of temperate-zone birds, yet ornithologists are just beginning to examine and compare tropical birds to temperate zone birds. In a recent comparative study, tropical birds had lower mean peak testosterone levels on average than temperate birds. However, several tropical species in the study had comparable or higher peak testosterone levels than temperate species. In contrast, in a study of peak testosterone levels in three species of the…
grrlscientist | January 6, 2007
I also managed to see a lot of posters today -- some of which I will tell you about below the fold (I primarily focused on those posters that discussed birds or molecular evolution of certain characters);
Albers. The mosquito larvae of the genus Ochlerotatus actively regulate of the osmotic pressure of their body fluids so as to maintain homeostasis of the body's water content, a process known as osmoregulation. For this reason, some species are restricted to freshwater habitats while others can successfully osmoregulate in saline waters that greatly exceed the concentration of seawater.…
grrlscientist | January 6, 2007
The internet connection was down for nearly 24 hours at the hotel, so I was unable to update you all on the talks I attended yesterday afternoon, which caused me to express much crankiness. Hopefully, I will be able to get that done sometime within the next 24 hours (i.e.; before I return to NYC). Today is the third day of the conference and I am getting tired and overwhelmed by the intense flood of presentations and posters, so now I am attending only presentations that focus explicitly on evolutionary biology or ornithology. Below the fold are the bird presentations that I attended;
Beck…
grrlscientist | January 6, 2007
Caterpillar of the Pandora Sphinx Moth Eumorpha pandorus,
strikes a defensive pose. Photographed along the Cataraqui Trail in eastern Ontario.
Image: Bev Wigney.
I am receiving so many gorgeous pictures from you, amigos bonitos, and I am overwhelmed by the beauty of these images and the creatures and places depicted. If you have a high-resolution digitized nature image (I prefer JPG format) that you'd like to share with your fellow readers, feel free to email it to me, along with information about the image and how you'd like it to be credited.
.
tags: caterpillar, entomology
evolgen | January 6, 2007
There is currently much debate over the ethics of chimeras -- organisms that are partially one species and partially another. This debate is especially heated when humans are one of the species involved. Nature has published an editorial on the controversy. I don't intend to comment on the position of the editorial, but rather on the sloppy use of language by the unattributed author.
I don't know enough about the research and clinical applications of chimeras involving humans to make any claims about the ethics of such creations, but I do know enough about biology to get all hot under the…
grrlscientist | January 5, 2007
I spent my morning going to presentations in the Hormones, Brain and Behavior section, which is the area that I studied for my doctoral degree before I switched fields to evolution and phylogenetics. Some of the presentations I saw included;
Hau. Evidence from studies in temperate-zone male vertebrates has accumulated that the endocrine regulation of aggressive territorial behavior differs seasonally. During the breeding season a combination of androgenic and estrogenic mechanisms appear to regulate male aggressive behavior, while during the non-breeding season either only estrogenic or…
grrlscientist | January 5, 2007
Prince Baskettail dragonfly, Epitheca princeps, resting in shady spot.
Image: Bev Wigney.
I am receiving so many gorgeous pictures from you, amigos bonitos, and I am overwhelmed by the beauty of these images and the creatures and places depicted. If you have a high-resolution digitized nature image (I prefer JPG format) that you'd like to share with your fellow readers, feel free to email it to me, along with information about the image and how you'd like it to be credited.
.
tags: Prince Baskettail dragonfly, entomology
omnibrain | January 5, 2007This is a pretty darn cool study :)
To investigate, the researchers recruited 28 pooches and their owners. In each experimental session, the dog's owner or another familiar person positioned the dog about a meter away from a computer monitor hidden behind a screen. Then, the researchers played a recording of either the owner or a stranger saying the dog's name five times through speakers in the monitor. Finally, the researchers removed the screen to reveal a still image of either the owner's face or the face of a stranger. Video cameras recorded the dogs' reactions.
When the owner's voice…
ksharpe | January 5, 2007
New maps put out by the National Arbor Day Foundation, depicting plant "hardiness zones" that gardeners use as a guideline for figuring out which species they can plant, and how early, shows evidence of real climate change in the United States over the past 15 years.
Has your region changed?
Don't miss the Foundation's animation of the migrating zones.
revere | January 5, 2007Since I started cogitating on the apparent dominance of H1 subtypes this flu season instead of the more common H3, I've continued to look at some previous papers on the subject. The take home message I am getting is that there is quite a bit we don't know about this disease, influenza, despite its long history and the interest of the medical and scientific community. We've commented on this before. Some problems are like that. Cancer is another example. A particularly interesting paper that illustrates the point by Hay et al. was published in 2002 (hat tip to a loyal reader who sent the link…
tfk | January 4, 2007This t-shirt, despite the various forms of awesomeness Preshrunk describes, is unacceptable.
It shows blood moving out from the atria. The pulmonary artery is flowing into the heart (and possibly also out from it!). Blood is shown going backwards into the aorta! This sort of biological inaccuracy should not grace anyone's chest.
grrlscientist | January 4, 2007
A juvenile Eastern Milk Snake Lampropeltis triangulum triangulum,
photographed near Mississagagon Lake in eastern Ontario.
Image: Bev Wigney.
Happy Holidays to everyone.
I am receiving so many gorgeous pictures from you, amigos bonitos, and I am overwhelmed by the beauty of these images and the creatures and places depicted. If you have a high-resolution digitized nature image (I prefer JPG format) that you'd like to share with your fellow readers, feel free to email it to me, along with information about the image and how you'd like it to be credited.
.
tags: Eastern Milk Snake,…
evolgen | January 4, 2007Jacob appears to be an enemy combatant in the War on ManateesTM. They are attacking the Northeast United States via our inland waterways. Jacob, who lives west of the continental divide, is safe from the attack. Many of us are not so lucky. Quit being such an enabler, Jacob.
evolgen special feature: We have obtained an exclusive photograph from a manatee training camp located near Sarasota, Florida. The picture can be found below the fold.
Click to enlarge.
grrlscientist | December 31, 2006
Dogday Harvestfly cicada. Tibicen canicularis
Found along the K&P Trail near Snow Road Station in eastern Ontario.
Image: Bev Wigney.
I love cicadas because they are so interesting and also because they remind me of Tokyo, Japan, where I first was introduced to them.
Happy Holidays to everyone.
I am receiving so many gorgeous pictures from you, amigos bonitos, and I am overwhelmed by the beauty of these images and the creatures and places depicted. If you have a high-resolution digitized nature image (I prefer JPG format) that you'd like to share with your fellow readers, feel free to…
grrlscientist | December 30, 2006
Turritella perattenuata fossil, next to a nickel (for scale).
Caloosahatchee fm[1]., Brandtley quarry, near Highway 31, Florida.
This is a Caloosahatchee fossil, the remarkably elongate and now-extinct Turritella perattenuata. The Caloosahatchee is said to straddle the Plio-Pleistocene boundary, which, according to the Geological Society of America Geological Time Scale, occurs at 1.8 Myr. The Caloosahatchee fauna is tropical, but the Lower Pleistocene Bermont formation above it in the South Florida section shows temperate elements.
Image: Biosparite.
I am receiving so many gorgeous…
jlynch | December 29, 2006
Over at Tetrapod Zoology, Darren Naish has a great series of photos of a golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) taking on a red fox (Vulpes vulpes) over a carcase.