Zoological Investigations

I am a biologist with an M.Sc. (ecology & evolution stream) from McMaster University in Hamilton Ontario. I studied the beautiful Smooth-billed Ani (Crotophaga ani), a gregarious cooperatively breeding bird. As a volunteer science writer for the University of Manitoba newspaper, The Manitoban, I developed the series this blog archives. These are articles as I wrote and envisioned them, and they differ slightly from the versions printed in The Manitoban.

The Coqui Frog (Eleutherodactylus coqui)

Originally published in The Manitoban , 2011 This week I have been bitten by fire ants, termites and a cactus. Now I...

The Puerto Rican Parrot (Amazona vittata)

Originally published in The Manitoban , 2012 The Puerto Rican Parrot ( Amazona vittata ) is the only endemic parrot species in Puerto ...

Dinocampus coccinellae

Originally published in The Manitoban , 2011 Ah, time to go back to school. If you're anything like me you've probably boug...

African Crested Rat

Originally published in The Manitoban August 17, 2011 I hereby nominate the African crested rat, Lophiomys imhausi , for entry into...

Hercules Beetle

Originally published in The Manitoban , November 10, 2010. Love 'em or hate 'em, insects are arguably the most important anim...

Water Boatman

Originally published in The Manitoban summer ?? 2011. Ah – summer in Winnipeg; muggy heat we can't stand after 8 months of zero ...

Ogopogo

Originally published in The Manitoban , March 30, 2011 (April Fool's special edition) In British Columbia they have a lot of la...

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About Me

Leanne Grieves: I created Zoological Investigations with the idea of developing a regular newspaper series that could be easily followed by a general audience as well as those more scientifically and zoologically inclined. I originally wanted to present these articles from the perspective of a fictional character - the zany scientist/detective, Mace Detective. Unfortunately, The Manitoban did not allow publication under an alias and I had to partially drop this idea. I did manage to keep a pretty strong base of bad and somewhat smutty jokes interspersed in my primarily on-line researches, though! The goal? To learn and write about animals from a wide variety of taxa with a focus on organisms I hoped would be: a) unknown to most people; b) uncommon or little known to most people; and c) unique in life history strategies or physiological capabilities. Hope you enjoy!

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