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New Video/Images of Walrus Haulout

By Guest PostSeptember 14, 2011Naturecontinental shelf, walrus haulout, walrus studies, young walrus

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – The USGS Alaska Science Center has released new high-resolution video of Pacific walruses hauling out near Point Lay, Alaska, in late August, 2011. (more…)

A Tale of (More Than) Two Butterflies

By Guest PostSeptember 14, 2011Natureappalachian tiger, hybridization, poisonous butterfly, species formation, swallowtail butterfly, two butterflies

Appalachian tiger swallowtail butterfly is hybrid of other swallowtails

Flitting among the cool slopes of the Appalachian Mountains is a tiger swallowtail butterfly that evolved when two other species of swallowtails hybridized long ago. (more…)

Are New England’s Iconic Maples at Risk?

By Guest PostSeptember 5, 2011Naturealb eradication, alb infestation, alb outbreak, asian longhorned beetle, longhorned beetle, maple trees

Invasive Asian longhorned beetle has potential for wide reach in region’s forests

Are new England’s iconic maple trees at risk? If a beetle has its way, the answer may be yes. (more…)

Re-emergence of Salmon in The Thames ‘Not From Restocking’ Say Exeter Academics

By Guest PostSeptember 4, 2011Natureatlantic salmon, exogenous fish, indicator species, irish hatchery fish, riparian habitat, thames salmon

The recent returns of Atlantic salmon in the Thames are more likely to be a result of fish straying from nearby rivers rather than a consequence of expensive restocking efforts, according to new research by the University of Exeter

A team of University of Exeter bio-scientists, in collaboration with the Environment Agency, Westcountry Rivers Trust and Oviedo University, Spain, have been collecting genetic data from returning fish, which suggests that habitat restoration was more effective than re-introductions. The findings will be published in the journal ‘Biological Conservation’. (more…)

Fossil Discovery Represents New Milestone in Early Mammal Evolution

By Guest PostAugust 26, 2011Nature, Scienceancestors of mammals, carnegie mammalogist, carnegie museum of natural history, China, chong xi yuan, chuck lydeard, dna based methods of dating evolution, earliest known fossil of eutherians, eomaia, eutherian mammals, evolutionary hypotheses, fossil, fossil record, genetic data, john wible, juramaia sinensis, jurassic, jurassic mother from china, kangaroos, mammal evolution, marsupials, metatherians, molecular clock, monotremes, national science foundation, northeast china fossil, nsf, paleontologist, placental mammals, platypus, qiang ji, qing jin meng, shrew like mammal, zhe xi luo

*Northeast China fossil provides new information about earliest ancestors of today’s mammals*

A well-preserved fossil discovered in northeast China provides new information about the earliest ancestors of most of today’s mammal species–the placental mammals. (more…)

Ancient Whale Skulls and Directional Hearing: A Twisted Tale

By Guest PostAugust 25, 2011Natureancient whale skulls, asymmetric skulls, asymmetrical ear openings, biological sonar, direction of sounds, directional hearing, water

Skewed skulls may have helped early whales find direction of sounds in water

Skewed skulls may have helped early whales find the direction of sounds in water and are not solely, as previously thought, a later adaptation related to echolocation. (more…)

Hyenas’ Ability to Count Helps Them Decide to Fight or Flee

By Guest PostAugust 23, 2011Nature, Scienceafrica, animal behaviour, beacon researcher, chimpanzees, evolution of big brains, kay holekamp, Kenya, lions, michigan state university, sarah benson amram, sean dryer, spotted hyenas, study of evolution in action, virginia heinen, zoology

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Being able to count helps spotted hyenas decide to fight or flee, according to research at Michigan State University.

When animals fight, the larger group tends to win. In the current issue of Animal Behaviour, Sarah Benson-Amram, an MSU graduate student studying zoology, showed that hyenas listen to the sound of intruders’ voices to determine who has the advantage. (more…)

Pacific Walruses Studied as Sea Ice Melts

By Guest PostAugust 20, 2011Environment, Nature, Sciencearctic basin, bering, chad jay, chukchi seas, continental shelf, native village, northwest of barrow, northwestern alaska coast, pacific walrus, point lay, russia, satellite radio tags to walruses, sea, sea floor, sea ice, usgs, usgs alaska science center, walruses

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — USGS Alaska Science Center researchers, in cooperation with the Native Village of Point Lay, will attempt to attach 35 satellite radio-tags to walruses on the northwestern Alaska coast in August as part of their ongoing study of how the Pacific walrus are responding to reduced sea ice conditions in late summer and fall. (more…)

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