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Mass Extinction Victim Survives! Snail Long Thought Extinct, isn’t?

By Guest PostJune 9, 2011Environment, Naturealabama aquatic biodiversity center, coosa river in alabama's, diarmaid o foighil, dropping dead, ecology and evolutionary biology, envision dinosaurs, exotic tropical creatures, freshwater limpet, global hotspot of temperate freshwater biodiversity, kentucky state nature preserves commission, mass extinction, rhodacmea filosa's, species of mollusk, u-m museum of zoology, university of michigan

ANN ARBOR, Mich.—Think “mass extinction” and you probably envision dinosaurs dropping dead in the long-ago past or exotic tropical creatures being wiped out when their rainforest habitats are decimated. But a major mass extinction took place right here in North America in the first half of the 20th century, when 47 species of mollusk disappeared after the watershed in which they lived was dammed.

Now, a population of one of those species—a freshwater limpet last seen more than 60 years ago and presumed extinct—has been found in a tributary of the heavily dammed Coosa River in Alabama’s Mobile River Basin. Researchers from the University of Michigan, the Alabama Aquatic Biodiversity Center and the Kentucky State Nature Preserves Commission reported the rediscovery May 31 in the online, open-access journal PLoS One. (more…)

Again, but Faster! The Spectacular Courtship Dance of a Tiny Bird

A small male bird called a golden-collared manakin performs a difficult, elaborate, physically demanding courtship dance. In new research, life scientists report that female golden-collared manakins select mates based on subtle differences in motor performance during these dances.

“The male jumps like he’s been shot out of a cannon,” said study co-author Barney Schlinger, professor and departmental chair of integrative biology and physiology and a professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at UCLA. “It’s exquisite. He sails like an acrobat and lands perfectly on a perch, like a gymnast landing a flawless dismount. Not only is there power to his muscle contractions but incredible speed as well.” (more…)

Tag Archives: ecology and evolutionary biology

Mass Extinction Victim Survives! Snail Long Thought Extinct, isn’t?

Again, but Faster! The Spectacular Courtship Dance of a Tiny Bird