Adaptable lizards illustrate key biological process planned a century agone

Posted on September 10, 2018September 10, 2018Categories ANIMALS   Leave a comment on Adaptable lizards illustrate key biological process planned a century agone

Side-blotched lizards in most of the Mohave have tan and brown markings that mix in well with their desert surroundings. On the Pisgah volcanic rock Flow, however, one finds a awfully completely different population of side-blotched lizards, as black because the rocks they live to tell the tale. How do animals invade new environments completely different from those that evolution has equipped them with finely tuned adaptations? palish lizards on a volcanic rock flow ought to be straightforward choosing for … Continue reading “Adaptable lizards illustrate key biological process planned a century agone”

New pesticide may harm bees as much as those to be replaced

Posted on August 16, 2018August 16, 2018Categories ANIMALS   Leave a comment on New pesticide may harm bees as much as those to be replaced

A new class of pesticides positioned to replace neonicotinoids may be just as harmful to crop-pollinating bees, researchers cautioned Wednesday. In experiments, the ability of bumblebees to reproduce, and the rate at which their colonies grow, were both compromised by the new sulfoximine-based insecticides, they reported in the journal Nature. Colonies exposed to low doses of the pesticide in the lab yielded significantly less workers and half as many reproductive males after the bees were transferred to a field setting. “Our … Continue reading “New pesticide may harm bees as much as those to be replaced”

Trump overhaul of Endangered Species Act could shrink protections for many animals

Posted on July 21, 2018Categories ANIMALS   Leave a comment on Trump overhaul of Endangered Species Act could shrink protections for many animals

The Fish and Wildlife Service and NOAA Fisheries today unveiled what some bill as the most significant changes to Endangered Species Act regulations in several decades. Consultations with other agencies would be streamlined. There would be a tighter definition of “foreseeable future,” crucial in ESA decisions. Critical habitats could shrink, and threatened species would no longer automatically receive the same protections as endangered species. Taken together, the proposed rule changes would more closely align the two agencies that share responsibility … Continue reading “Trump overhaul of Endangered Species Act could shrink protections for many animals”

Human cancers aren’t contagious, but dogs and other animals aren’t so lucky

Posted on July 18, 2018Categories ANIMALS, HEALTH & MEDICINE, HUMANS   Leave a comment on Human cancers aren’t contagious, but dogs and other animals aren’t so lucky

Whenever Máire Ní Leathlobhair visits a new city, she calls up vets in the area. She wants to know if they’ve seen any dogs harboring ugly genital tumors, contagious lumps that contain one of the more bizarre cancers in the world. Back in her lab, a map hangs on the wall, dotted with pins where her team has tracked down cases of the cancerous tumors, known as canine transmissible venereal tumors, or CTVT. The cancer isn’t triggered by a virus, the way Human … Continue reading “Human cancers aren’t contagious, but dogs and other animals aren’t so lucky”

Next-generation robotic cockroach can explore under water environments

Posted on July 10, 2018Categories ANIMALS, Technology News   Leave a comment on Next-generation robotic cockroach can explore under water environments

In nature, cockroaches can survive underwater for up to 30 minutes. Now, a robotic cockroach can do even better. Harvard’s Ambulatory Microrobot, known as HAMR, can walk on land, swim on the surface of water, and walk underwater for as long as necessary, opening up new environments for this little bot to explore. This next generation HAMR uses multifunctional foot pads that rely on surface tension and surface tension induced buoyancy when HAMR needs to swim but can also apply … Continue reading “Next-generation robotic cockroach can explore under water environments”

Forgotten Memories Brought Back in Mice

Posted on July 9, 2018Categories ANIMALS, HEALTH & MEDICINE, MIND & BRAIN 1 Comment on Forgotten Memories Brought Back in Mice

By stimulating specific neurons in mouse brains, researchers demonstrate that memories from infancy are not lost, but merely difficult to access. Like humans, mice experience a period of amnesia when they lose their memories of experiences from infancy. Now, researchers report that these memories are not entirely forgotten by mice but simply difficult to recollect—and can be brought out of storage. These findings were published today (July 5) in Current Biology. According to this study, early life experiences “leave very long-lasting … Continue reading “Forgotten Memories Brought Back in Mice”

Worms may hold the secret to longer life

Posted on July 5, 2018Categories ANIMALS, NEWS   Leave a comment on Worms may hold the secret to longer life

Research into the remarkable regenerative powers of worms and the insights they can give into battling diseases could help humans live longer and healthier lives. Humans have long dreamed of finding the secret to eternal youth, but despite the benefits of better living conditions and modern medicine, time still takes its unrelenting toll on our bodies. While people today live longer than ever before, age-related diseases such as dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions rob people of the chance of living … Continue reading “Worms may hold the secret to longer life”

A New ‘Vantablack’ Bird-of-Paradise Has Been Discovered, And It’s Absolutely Mesmerising

Posted on May 15, 2018Categories ANIMALS   Leave a comment on A New ‘Vantablack’ Bird-of-Paradise Has Been Discovered, And It’s Absolutely Mesmerising

Ornithologists have classified the Vogelkop superb bird-of-paradise as its own species after recognizing differences in two similar-looking kinds of the birds. These birds-of-paradise are famous for evolving super-black feathers that absorb nearly all light, and their haunting courtship dances (see video below). But now scientists have discovered there are actually two species. For years, people mistook the Vogelkop superb bird-of-paradise for the wider spread and closely related superb bird-of-paradise. “After you see what the Vogelkop form looks like and acts like in … Continue reading “A New ‘Vantablack’ Bird-of-Paradise Has Been Discovered, And It’s Absolutely Mesmerising”

Compound Derived from Immune Cells Treats Psoriasis in Mice

Posted on May 9, 2018Categories ANIMALS   Leave a comment on Compound Derived from Immune Cells Treats Psoriasis in Mice

A modified form of a compound called itaconate suppresses an inflammatory pathway that is overactive in many autoimmune diseases, suggesting that it may be effective against psoriasis as well as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and lupus, according to a study published in the journal Nature. Inflammation is the body’s defense system against infection. The redness and swelling you see around an infected cut represents the mobilization of a powerful arsenal of cells and molecules in response to injury and invading microbes. But when … Continue reading “Compound Derived from Immune Cells Treats Psoriasis in Mice”

Emerging infectious disease threatens Darwin’s frog with extinction

Posted on May 3, 2018Categories ANIMALS   Leave a comment on Emerging infectious disease threatens Darwin’s frog with extinction

The Darwin’s frog (Rhinoderma darwinii) is the latest amphibian species to face extinction due to the global chytridiomycosis pandemic, according to an international study published today in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B. The study has found that Darwin’s frogs are infected with the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), and despite an absence of obvious mortality researchers have noted population declines, leading them to believe that these infected populations are at a serious risk of extinction within 15 years … Continue reading “Emerging infectious disease threatens Darwin’s frog with extinction”