tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-74162961233729487462024-03-21T12:30:20.262-07:00Zoological InvestigationsI 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.
Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-8777264747254169752015-02-05T14:07:00.001-08:002015-02-05T14:07:52.857-08:00The Coqui Frog (Eleutherodactylus coqui)<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i>, 2011<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">This
week I have been bitten by fire ants, termites and a cactus. Now I've got all
that out of the way, I hope to spend the rest of my stay in glorious Puerto
Rico in perfect harmony with nature. I would especially like to harmonize with
the common coqui frog, <i>Eleutherodactylus
coqui</i>. They have a very pretty song.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">While
I have not yet seen one, they are the first thing I heard when I set foot on
this fascinating island. Male coquis start singing as soon as the sun begins to
set, currently around 6pm, and they continue singing until the sun comes up
around 6:30am. Males sing to advertise to females and announce their territory
to other males.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Named
onomatopoeically for their song (ko-kee, ko-kee), the coqui belongs to the
genus <i>Eleutherodactylus</i>, a long Greek
name lending itself to over 600 species, meaning “free toes”. This refers to
the fact that members of this genus do not have webbed feet, but have
individual and unattached toes with large pads adapted for climbing. As you
might guess, coqui frogs are arboreal, climbing trees as the sun sets to hunt
insects until dawn, at which time they retreat to their hide-outs for the day.
Just like teenagers and goths.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Coqui
frogs are very small, ranging from 15 to 80mm in length. In fact, <i>coqui</i>
means “little frog”. Unlike most frogs, fertilization is internal and coquis do
not lay their eggs in water but terrestrially in moist areas. The young develop
within the egg over a period of about 17 to 26 days and hatch as miniature adults
with very small tails that disappear shortly after hatching. The tadpole stage
occurs within the egg so there is no free-living larval stage as in most frogs.
There are also developmental differences; some of the stages that free-living
tadpoles pass through are absent in the coquis. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Coquis
reproduce year-round but the majority of breeding takes place during the rainy
season from about September to December. Male coquis guard the eggs and remain
at the nest for the first few days after their eggs hatch, but by that time, the females are
long gone. Females usually lay between four and six clutches of
anywhere from 16 to 41 eggs per clutch – with a schedule like that, it's no
wonder she doesn't stick around!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">For
the taxonomically inclined, coquis belong to the order Anura and family
Leptodactylidae. In Puerto Rico there are 17 species of coqui frog; however,
only two of them actually have the 'ko-kee' song for which they are named.
Three species of coqui, web-footed, mottled and golden, are believed to be
extinct. The golden coqui, <i>E. jasperi</i>, is (was?) the only member of the
family Leptodactylidae that gives birth to live young. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Common
coquis are found on St. Croix, St. John and St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands,
Dominican Republic, Vieques, and Florida. They are considered an invasive
species in Hawaii, where efforts to eradicate the little guys are under way.
The common coqui is doing quite well on the island of Puerto Rico, and Puerto
Ricans like it that way – the coqui symbol is used by many local businesses and
institutions and is advertised as a source of local pride. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">In
fact, in my tireless efforts to bring you only the most well-informed articles,
I drove all the way to Rincon to check out an Oktoberfest (yeah, I know,
right?) celebration sponsored by one of Puerto Rico's two local breweries, Old
Harbor Brewery based in San Juan, so that I could sample their Coqui Lager.
Coquis are great, but I liked the pale ale better. At that point, I didn't know
what animal that ale was named after, but there is a Puerto Rican boa that's
endangered, so stay tuned next week for the low down on that lovely creature.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-77223217316216934172015-02-05T13:49:00.000-08:002015-02-05T13:55:24.774-08:00The Puerto Rican Parrot (Amazona vittata)<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i>, 2012</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The
Puerto Rican Parrot (<i>Amazona vittata</i>) is the only endemic parrot species
in Puerto Rico. The Taino Indians referred to this parrot as Higuaca or Iguaca
(the "h" is silent), and so shall I throughout this article.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Higuaca
are about 12 inches long. They are emerald green with blue primary feathers, a
white eye ring, red forehead and a short, blunt tail. The Hispaniolan Parrot (<i>Amazona ventralis</i>), an
introduced species, are often mistaken for Higuaca. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Higuaca
reach sexual maturity between three to five years of age and form long-lasting
pair bonds. Pairs remain together year round, breeding once a year during the
dry season (February to June). Females incubate the eggs while males forage for
themselves as well as for the incubating female. Both parents feed the chicks.
Once fledged, the young (two to four on average) remain with the parents for
several months or even into the next breeding season.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Higuaca
are primarily frugivorous (fruit eaters) and live in the old-growth rainforests of Puerto Rico. Unfortunately very little rainforest remains,
as most of it has been cut down to make way for agriculture. Yes that's right
folks, that old beast habitat loss through deforestation (via massive human
population increase) is back to haunt us again in this, the last Puerto Rican
edition of Zoological Investigations.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Higuaca
are one of the most endangered birds in the world today. Back in the 1400s, the Higuaca population was estimated
at anywhere from 100 000 to one million (based on field observations). Spanish
colonization in the 1600s led to massive human population increases and deforestation. This drastically diminished
the amount of suitable habitat and Higuaca numbers were reportedly declining as
early as 1836. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">By
1900, the human population on the island was about 1 million. About 76% of the forest had
been converted to agriculture and less than 1% of the old-growth forest
remained. In 1937 the Higuaca population was estimated at only
2000 individuals and could only be found in the Luquillo Mountains, the last suitable habitat available to these beautiful parrots. Rigorous population estimates were carried out in
the mid-1950s (200 birds) and in the late-1960s the estimate was reduced to 14! Imagine trying to find a date (let alone start a
family) with only 13 people to choose from, roughly 50% of which were the wrong
sex for procreation. Ouch, hey?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Finally,
in 1967 the Higuaca were declared endangered and in 1968 the Puerto Rican
Parrot Recovery Plan was initiated. This was a joint effort of the Puerto Rico
Department of Environmental and Natural Resources (DNR), the Caribbean National
Forest and International Institute of Tropical Forestry (USFS), the United
States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Puerto Rican Parrot Field Office and
the National Biological Service. A captive breeding program was set up in 1987
and by 1989, the wild population had increased from 14 to 47 birds. Great news, right? Well, it's tough love in the jungle
and in the same year, Hurricane Hugo wiped out about 50% of the slowly recovering population.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">If
I might detour away from habitat loss for a paragraph, Higuaca are also
threatened by the introduction of exotic parrots such as parakeets and other species of amazon parrot. This includes birds that were introduced into the wild on a large scale in the
past ("Hey, parrots are cool, let's get more!"), as well as by pet owners who release domesticated birds into the wild
(never, ever do that!). These birds compete (and often out-compete endemic
species) for food and precious, scarce habitat. Higuaca have also been (and may
still be) killed by collectors and farmers to prevent crop damage. They have
also been caught for sale in the pet industry (never, ever buy wild-caught
animals!). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Ongoing
genetic research uses DNA fingerprinting to improve the parrots' genetic diversity. This is done by mating genetically distinct pairs to reduce inbreeding depression (reduced biological fitness as a consequence of breeding between closely related individuals).
This is both difficult and important for species that have gone through
severe bottlenecks in which the
population has become drastically reduced. This is an extremely important
method used in reintroduction programs, often with great success. Yet for the
Higuaca, another factor comes into play - “behavioural compatibility”. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">As I pointed out in the example of choosing a
procreation partner from the last 6 or 7 humans on earth, Higuaca will not mate
just because you throw them in a cage with a genetically distinct bird of the
opposite sex. They have to actually like each other. Sucks for science, bonus for
freedom of choice. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Currently, there are two captive breeding programs in Puerto Rico (Luquillo and Rio Abajo)
that focus on maintaining a healthy, viable captive population and successfully
reintroducing captive bred birds into the wild. The goal is to establish two free-living wild
populations that will be stable at about 500 individuals each. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">So,
with all the thrill and bustle dedicated to the fight to save a beautiful,
gregarious and intelligent animal such as the Puerto Rican Parrot, I think the
Higuaca have a decent chance. Yet, I would like to point out that it does not
always go so well for what we think of as ugly, useless, irritating, un-cuddly
and/or anti-social species. I think it is important to remember that we are the
most successful species currently inhabiting this planet and we are making life
very, very difficult for most of the species we share this very limited space
with. I think we should view ourselves as stewards of this environment and
strive to repair the damages we have done to all of the species we have
negatively impacted, not simply the pretty and cute ones we feel we can relate
to! I am now done preaching. Stay tuned for more Z.I. coming to a <i>Manitoban </i>near you in January, 2012. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">For
more on the Puerto Rican Parrot research, status, and conservation plans, see
Brock and White (1992; <a href="http://www.pnas.org/content/89/23/11121.full.pdf">http://www.pnas.org/content/89/23/11121.full.pdf</a>) as
well as the Puerto Rican Parrot Population Viability Analysis and
Recommendations (IUCN;
<a href="http://www.cbsg.org/cbsg/workshopreports/23/puerto_rican_parrot_pva_final_report_1989.pdf">http://www.cbsg.org/cbsg/workshopreports/23/puerto_rican_parrot_pva_final_report_1989.pdf</a>).</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuTKyhAguaWP3IEBkXi1QhQxL_lEeasa_pi5QWpb6RPzRPnHODNkVWLbaVKAiJHoqPuzSDDRoon4dH1idjrxUAH6TkrGyy0golLY_aRuoXUFv3Xf0K1lnc-K2K39jV-4kFOWi0UHkr1nv3/s1600/PR2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuTKyhAguaWP3IEBkXi1QhQxL_lEeasa_pi5QWpb6RPzRPnHODNkVWLbaVKAiJHoqPuzSDDRoon4dH1idjrxUAH6TkrGyy0golLY_aRuoXUFv3Xf0K1lnc-K2K39jV-4kFOWi0UHkr1nv3/s1600/PR2.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo courtesy of Mike Morel</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGuVs7_OA8IF1l6k78NlEuQ4MLksLQsAFAAjUnOVXLrw-F3jTI_h4sjEmzGP7bb0SdVG8RSjdEuVjVVEK0QNYYCVYnaV5Oy2zo7e3vwF8xAYJBTH5XPJd9Ns7Xz0xULW9Wm0A6wwCQDaBB/s1600/PRPA081808BRAJM(3).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGuVs7_OA8IF1l6k78NlEuQ4MLksLQsAFAAjUnOVXLrw-F3jTI_h4sjEmzGP7bb0SdVG8RSjdEuVjVVEK0QNYYCVYnaV5Oy2zo7e3vwF8xAYJBTH5XPJd9Ns7Xz0xULW9Wm0A6wwCQDaBB/s1600/PRPA081808BRAJM(3).JPG" height="320" width="256" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo courtesy of Mike Morel</td></tr>
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Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-85221805009804869952012-04-24T13:26:00.002-07:002012-04-24T13:26:17.987-07:00Dinocampus coccinellae<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
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<span style="font-size: small;">Originally published in<i> The Manitoban</i>, 2011</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;"> Ah,
time to go back to school. If you're anything like me you've probably
bought a bunch of new pens and stationary you don't really need and
have resolved to read your textbooks and class notes every day, maybe
even get up extra early before classes to do something physically
healthy. Soon enough though, as the first 2011 semester kicks into
high gear, most of us are bound to feel as exhausted as though the
life were being sucked right out of us. That's why I have chosen to
begin the first fall issue of </span><span style="font-size: small;"><i>The Manitoban</i></span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">
by telling you about the parasitic wasp </span><span style="font-size: small;"><i>Dinocampus
coccinellae</i></span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">. </span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i> D. coccinellae</i></span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">
is found throughout Eurasia and North America and parasitizes
numerous species of lady beetles (your friendly, aphid-eating, garden
variety “lady bug”)</span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">. Females mate with males as infrequently as possible. A queen will store the sperm from a single mating for up to one year, using this sperm to fertilize eggs and produce sterile female workers which she uses to build her colony. When the sperm begins to run out, fertile males and females are produced and these disperse to form new colonies. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">Thus, males are rarer than females, although they are
produced every once in awhile so they can disperse, mate, and contribute to the genetic diversity of the species via sexual
reproduction.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;"> The
wasps preferentially parasitize female lady beetles and do so by
injecting an egg directly into the beetle's body cavity. Once the egg
hatches, the larva eats the lady beetle's own eggs in order to
nourish itself and eliminate competition for nutrients. Once the eggs
have all been eaten, the larva begins to eat it's lady beetle host's surrounding body
tissue, including her reproductive structures</span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">.
</span>
</div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;"> After
about 20 days the larva is ready to emerge. This is achieved by
chewing a hole through the lady beetle's body. Then, the larva is
ready to spin a coccoon inside which it will metamorphose into an
adult wasp. The larva spins its coccoon within the hind limbs of the
lady beetle, who is paralyzed, still alive and probably very
miserable</span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;"> Currently
unidentified venoms secreted by the wasp larva are believed to be
responsible for the next stage in this ghastly business</span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">.
The lady beetle, paralyzed with a wasp coccoon under her body, is now
also a victim of behavioural modification courtesy of the wasp—the
beetle begins to twitch and grasp erratically. This behaviour, along
with the familiar red and black colouration of the lady beetle,
serves to ward off predators</span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">,
thus protecting the developing larva. </span>
</div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;"> Many
species of parasitic wasps lay eggs in a variety of host species;
however, most of these lead to the death of the host. Not so with </span><span style="font-size: small;"><i>D.
coccinellae</i></span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">, although I bet the
lady beetles wish they were dead. After the adult wasp emerges from
its coccoon, the effects of paralysis wear off, as does the
behavioural control exerted by the larva. Approximately 25% of
parasitized lady beetles survive this process and presumably amble
off to continue their regular lady beetle duties</span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">, albeit with gored reproductive organs and a pretty wicked hole in the undercarriage.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;"> Yet
leaving the host alive is not without costs of its own. After all,
nothing in life is truly free, right? Researchers at </span><span style="font-size: small;">Laboratoire
Maladies Infectieuses et Vecteurs: Ecologie, Génétique, Evolution
et Contrôle (CNRS/IRD/Université Montpellier) and the Université
de Montréal were able to show that while wasp larvae guarded by lady
beetles are less likely to experience predation, they also lay fewer
eggs
(Maure et al. 2011). The developing larvae lose resources by keeping
the lady beetle alive, resulting in the observed reduction in
fecundity of the adult wasps. Maure et al. (2011) showed that while
larvae without lady beetle protection are more likely to experience
predation, those that survive lay more eggs on average than wasps
with a lady beetle bodyguard.
</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">So when the term
hits full swing remember—you don't have it half as bad as the
spotted lady beetle does!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-78112053432607129442012-04-24T13:11:00.001-07:002012-04-24T13:11:13.776-07:00African Crested Rat<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Originally published in The Manitoban August 17, 2011</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
</div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> I hereby nominate the African crested
rat, <i>Lophiomys imhausi</i>, for entry into the Baddest-Ass Mammals
In the World Hall of Fame. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Here's why: when these reckless rodents
are faced with a ravenous predator ready to rip them to shreds for
breakfast they don't even care.
They just stand there daring anyone to mess with them. And for good
reason—you totally might die if you try eating a crested rat. They
are really poisonous!</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> Crested rats actively seek out
<em>Acokanthera schimperi </em><em><span style="font-style: normal;">trees,
the so-called poison arrow trees traditionally used by certain African
tribes for lacing spears and arrows</span></em> with deadly,
elephant-killing poison. The rats chew the bark of the poison arrow
tree and lather the poison-rich spit over a specific region of their
body. This organic poison contains a compound called <i>ouabain</i>, which
inhibits the sodium/potassium pumps embedded in the cell's plasma
membrane. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">The sodium pump maintains the electric resting potential of
a cell and is essential to normal physiological function. Ouabain is
a cardiac glycoside, increasing the force of heart contractions and
cardiac output. Left unchecked, ouabain causes death by heart attack.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> It is not yet known how the African
crested rat is itself able to resist the normally deadly effects of
the poison it has usurped for its own defensive purposes. The rats
have enlarged salivary glands and stomachs, which may help to
process, dilute and detoxify the poison. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">In the medical world, ouabain has been used in
small doses to stimulate weak hearts to contract and beat more
strongly. Ongoing research exploring the resistance of the rats to <i>A.
schimperi</i>'s toxic effects may someday be used to treat humans
suffering from heart-related illnesses and to better understand the
effects and potential uses of other cardiac glycosides.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> The African crested rat, native to
northeastern Africa, is the only known mammal on earth which actively
seeks out and acquires toxins from a plant for use in its own
physical defense. Further, the crested rat advertises its borrowed
toxicity by performing a specialized display behaviour when
confronted by potential predators.
</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> When exposed to a threat, the rat will
hold its ground and expose specialized hairs along its flanks by
parting the grey fur that normally covers all of its body, revealing
a patch of hairs surrounded by strikingly black and white striped fur.
These specialized hairs are highly modified and unique to the African
crested rat. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">When viewed under a microscope, it can be seen that the
hair shafts contain numerous perforations throughout their length,
creating a wicking effect which draws the toxin into and along the
full length of the hairs. This allows for maximum retention of the
deadly poison-laden spit the crested rats coat these hairs with after
chewing the poison arrow tree bark. No other animal is believed to
possess hairs of this type.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> Other taxa, both vertebrate and
invertebrate, have shown comparable poison-stealing behaviours. Some
sea slugs steal the poisonous stinging cells of cnidarians, which I
wrote about in an article on nudibranchs back in August 2009, for
example, but this is the first documented instance of a toxic poison theft in
a placental (eutherian) mammal. The only other mammal known to
perform a similar behaviour is the hedgehog, which applies toxins
from the poison glands of certain toads to its quills; however, this
merely causes pain and irritation for potential predators, a long way
short of the heart-stopping death which can ensue from messing with
the African crested rat!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
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</div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-8903607426562502072012-04-24T13:02:00.000-07:002012-04-24T13:03:21.249-07:00Hercules Beetle<div style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i>, November 10, 2010.</span></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: black; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Love 'em or hate 'em, insects are
arguably the most important animals on earth. They are often viewed
as the most successful animals on the planet. Many insects are
essential for the continuation of life on earth as we know it
due to their roles as plant pollinators and degraders of waste
products left by other organisms, which prevents massive build-up of
organic wastes that would otherwise bury the planet in filth. In fact, about
two-thirds of all flowering plants are pollinated by insects. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Insects
are also among the most important carriers of and vectors for
diseases that kill millions of humans and other economically
important mammals annually. Insects are frequently used as models in
scientific research—due to their (often) small size and rapid
generation times, many can be bred quickly and in large numbers in
laboratories for experimentation in various areas, including genetics
and medicine. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Insects have been around for a long time, too—at
least 400 million years. For comparison, the first mammals appeared
roughly 225 million years ago. Man are there lots of insects!
Estimates vary, but it is thought that there are anywhere from six to
ten million living species of insects alive today, and these species
are grouped into 29 different orders.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Beetles make up the order Coleoptera
which, I don't mind telling you, with over 360, 000 described
species, is the largest order of insects in the world. In fact, at
least 25% of all species rambling about the planet today are beetles.
How will you know if you are looking at one of these wonderful,
wildly abundant beetles or just some other type of insect, you might
want to know? </span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Beetles are perhaps most easily recognized by their two
sets of wings. One set is the kind of wing you think of when you
imagine insects flying (I'm sure you imagine insects flying quite
often), while the other set of wings, called <i>elytra</i>, are hardened
into a protective, leathery sort of cover that protects the more
delicate wings underneath, and may also act as aerofoils. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">The order Coleoptera is amazingly diverse and contains both the largest and
some of the smallest insects on the planet today. It is about one of
the largest living insects that you, the enthralled reader, are going
to learn—the Hercules beetle.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">The Hercules beetle, <i>Dynastes hercules</i>, is a type of
rhinoceros beetle (subfamily Dynastinae) and is a member of the
family Scarabaeidae, the scarab beetles. These Hercs, as I'll call
them, are native to South and Central American rainforests and the
Lesser Antilles. They range from 50 to 170mm (over 6 inches) in body
length—making them one of the world's largest beetles</span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">1</span> and the largest of the six beetles in the genus <i>Dynastes</i>. As
if their size weren't impressive enough, male Hercs have two big
horns that can be even longer than their body; one that comes from
the lower (ventral) portion of the head, curving upward, and another
that comes from the thorax at the base of the upper (dorsal) region
of the head curving downward, like a pair of pincers or pliers. When males
fight, they try to pick one another up with their horns and slam them
headfirst to the ground. Females lack horns.
</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Hercules beetles are not poisonous and they do not attack humans.
They mostly just hang out in leaf litter trying to survive the
decimation of the rainforest while still managing to look really cool and menacing. They
are herbivorous, the larvae eat rotting wood and dung while adults
feed on decaying fruit and vegetable matter. Again, just cleaning up
the garbage. Really, they are humble civil servants of the
rainforest, never complaining about their smelly job or asking for
recognition, even though they deserve it.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Hercs can live for about 1.5
years, only 3 to 4 months of which are spent as adults. They are
primarily nocturnal and are strongly attracted to light.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">My favourite thing about Hercs is that if you correct for size,
Hercules beetles are, proportionally, the strongest animals on the
planet. They are able to lift up to 850 times their own body weight!
</span></div>
<div id="sdfootnote1" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><a class="sdfootnotesym" href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7416296123372948746#sdfootnote1anc" name="sdfootnote1sym"></a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">1</span>. The record for world's largest beetle is held by the aptly named
Titan beetle, <i>Titanus giganteus</i></span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">,
which</span><span style="font-size: small;"><i> </i></span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">is a member of
the family cerambycidae or longhorn beetles, and reaches 170-175mm in
length.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsEz7uN6DYEImybBLSBa1Sh1G3CGwiQstr5HEc-F35phaJ6l26RnbbC5ghnMA2LDkelq0au8HP43HLAJtIMKMx6SUi2gKuEpjRn6nFOQ8jiaSHZyBTzBHcJIwAUrRNMS2jQG8aW87pJeHh/s1600/D-hercules-L.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsEz7uN6DYEImybBLSBa1Sh1G3CGwiQstr5HEc-F35phaJ6l26RnbbC5ghnMA2LDkelq0au8HP43HLAJtIMKMx6SUi2gKuEpjRn6nFOQ8jiaSHZyBTzBHcJIwAUrRNMS2jQG8aW87pJeHh/s320/D-hercules-L.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>please ignore the pin</i></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-1445064372657651892012-04-24T12:51:00.000-07:002012-04-24T12:51:05.437-07:00Water Boatman<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i> summer ?? 2011.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> Ah – summer in Winnipeg; muggy heat
we can't stand after 8 months of zero humidity and freakishly cold
winter, freak storms, flooding, mosquitoess, canker worms, <i>E.
coli-</i>infested eutrophic lakes – we love it all and by George
we'll take it! This sweltering mid-summer issue I would like to tell
you about a really cool bug. A bug you can respect: the Water
Boatman.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> The Water boatman belongs to the
insect order Hemiptera, the true bugs (a cold virus is not a bug, a
bacterial infection is not a bug, a fly is not a bug). Whether an
insect is truly a bug depends on specific details of the wings and
mouth parts, which are modified for piercing and sucking, oh my.
</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> Water Boatmen are aquatic and have
oar-shaped hind legs used for paddling. They typically inhabit lakes
and ponds. These insects do not have gills and must breathe air from
the water's surface; however, they frequently carry an air
bubble with them during their lengthy underwater adventures and
breathe oxygen from within the air bubble!</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> Over 500 species of water boatman have
been identified, more than 100 of which are found in North America.
Amazingly, one species in particular, <i>Micronecta scholtzi</i>, has
just been credited as the loudest animal on earth! Water boatmen are
only about 2.5 millimeters long and yet they create sound at volumes
similar to that of a passing freight train
or what you would hear sitting front row during a loud orchestra
performance.
This brain-boggling volume is produced during <i>stridulation</i>,
sound produced by rubbing the differently sized ridges of two body
parts together. In the case of the water boatman, stridulation is
performed by rubbing the penis against the abdomen,
which in a sense means the water boatman has the loudest penis in the
world (hard to believe, I know).</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> A recent study by Sueur et al. (2011)
reports a peak value of <i>M. scholtzi</i> calls at 100dB SPL (a log
ratio between measured sound pressure level and a reference point
defined by the threshold of audible hearing for humans). <i>M.
scholtzi</i> thus has the highest ratio of dB (decibel) to body size
ever recorded, making this water boatman the loudest animal on the
planet!
</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> Why do water boatmen need to be so
loud? The song produced by stridulation is used to attract females.
The males produce a three part song and it is the third part which is
the loudest, meant to drown out the songs of competing males.
Sueur et al. (2011) propose that the extreme volume achieved by <i>M.
scholtzi</i> during stridulation may be the result of runaway sexual
selection via intra-male competition.
</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> The idea is this: females localize the
acoustic signals produced by loud males more easily than those of
quieter males whose songs are masked by the loudest males. Typically,
there is a balance between signal volume (high volume = more females)
and predation (higher volume = more predators) but in this case, it
is possible that the water boatmen either have no predators that use
acoustics to find prey or the boatmen are so effectively able to evade these
predators that the volume of their signal is not regulated by the
negative selection pressure normally imposed by predation (Sueur et al. 2011). In
short, the male with the loudest penis gets the most females. 'Nuff
said.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-67489459570719731872012-04-24T12:43:00.001-07:002012-04-24T12:43:44.596-07:00Ogopogo<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i>, March 30, 2011 (April Fool's special edition)</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> In British Columbia they have a lot of
lakes. The one you should be most concerned with is Lake Okanagan,
the home of Ogopogo. Formally recognized by a prominent B.C.
scientist in 1872, Ogopogo is a charming aquatic serpent some 20 to
50 feet long and 1 to 3 feet wide with a gruesome horse-shaped head.
This serpent-like animal has a long, undulating body with many large
spinous processes. These might have evolved to serve as extra sites
of muscle attachment for flexion of the long trunk, which would
require significant strength to turn quickly in such a viscous medium
as water. Ogopogo has dark brown, black, or blue skin and uses
counter-shading similar to many fish and other aquatic species. Counter shading is characterized by a lighter epidermal (skin) colouration on
the underside of the body and a darker pigmentation on the dorsal
surface. This functions to camouflage the animal because, when viewed from
above, the dark skin blends in with the dark, deeper waters and when
viewed from below, the light skin blends in with the lighter colour
of the shallower waters that can be penetrated by the sun’s rays.
</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> Ogopogo is respectfully known to the
Aboriginal peoples of the Okanagan area as “N’ha-a-tik”, which
roughly translates to “water god” or “water demon”. Those
who have encountered this fearsome and secretive animal report
escaping near death by boat tippings and general goring by the
sacrifice of any other animal they might have with them at the time. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">So let it be known that Ogopogo takes bribes, folks and that is
definitely good news for humanity, but bad news for designer dogs
going on vacation to “Beautiful British Columbia” this summer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> Ogopogo is still seen today, but less
frequently than in the past. This may be due to the animal’s
reported penchant for eating horses, which are no longer a popular
mode of transportation and hence are less common in the Okanagan
region in these technologically advanced times. Of course,
environmental factors other than food availability may be playing a
role in Ogopogo’s apparent decline. The ever-bearing crush of
human development may be partly responsible, as well as nutrient
loading and water pollution. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">While the exact reasons for Ogopogo’s
decline are not yet known, this beautiful monster’s conservation
status is, at least for the time being, quite certain. Ogopogo is
protected under provincial legislation and has been so since 1989,
“It is illegal to harm, kill, capture or disturb” Ogopogo in
British Columbia.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Copyright Edward Fletcher</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;">http://www.bcscc.ca/ogopogo.htm
</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;">(this website rules! So does the site
“fuck you, penguin” check it out)</span></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-4406100446174813482012-04-24T12:37:00.004-07:002012-04-24T12:38:32.247-07:00Crested Gecko<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i>, March 2, 2011</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> They say it is better to have loved
and lost than never to have loved at all and in general, I agree.
After all, Alzheimer's aside, memories are forever right? So let's
let the good times roll and get on with it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> You may not know why, but that brief
yet significant introduction brings me to this week's subject: the
crested gecko, <i>Rhacodactylus ciliatus</i>. </span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Crested geckos are
endemic to New Caledonia, an island located just about halfway
between Australia and New Zealand (Dear New Zealand, I am sorry about the
earthquakes). I've talked about the unique situation islands pose for evolution and speciation before, so I'll just point
out that roughly 86% of New Caledonian reptiles are not found
anywhere else in the world (they are endemic).
</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> Originally described in 1866,
the crested gecko was believed extinct until it was rediscovered by
science in 1994.
Since that time, and due to the relative ease with which they can be
bred in captivity, crested geckos have become widely popular as household pets.
</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> Permit me, if I may, to briefly state
that captive crested geckos require full spectrum UV lighting, at
least 50% average humidity, and temperatures between 20 and 26°C.
Their enclosures should be tall enough to permit climbing, they
should have things to climb on, you cannot keep mature males
together, and they do best with a variety of live invertebrates and
fresh fruits supplemented with commercially available vitamins and
calcium. Don't let anyone tell you any different.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> There are six species in the genus
<i>Rhacodactylus</i>, all of which are found only on the island of New
Caledonia.
One species, the New Caledonian giant gecko, <i>R. trachyrhyncus</i>,
is listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation
of Nature (IUCN)
and is also the largest known gecko on the planet! In gecko
terms, the 34 centimetres length <i>R. trachyrhyncus</i> can
reach, definitely warrants giant status.
<span style="font-style: normal;">In contrast, </span><i>R. ciliatus</i><span style="font-style: normal;">,
the species most often sold in stores,</span> generally reaches
lengths of 10 to 26 centimetres, about half of which is tail.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> Crested geckos are nocturnal,
predominantly arboreal, and very cute. They can be various shades of
brown, grey, and red and their colour may become more or less vibrant
depending on the environmental conditions and time of day. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Their name
derives from the fact that they have lightly spiked fringes on either
side of the head which run from the base of the eye, over the dorsal
surface of the orbit (eye socket), and down towards the neck.
This gives them the appearance of having long, flirtatious eyelashes,
enhancing their popularity in the pet trade, but more importantly
acting to deter potential predators.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> Crested geckos do not have eyelashes.
They have a thin, transparent layer of skin called a nictitating membrane
which can be drawn across the eye to protect and moisten it. One of my
favourite things about crested geckos is that they often just sit and
lick their eyeballs, especially after eating. Their tongue is very
long and soft, with a widened spatula-like tip. Nothing else that can
lick its own eyeball has ever looked so endearing while doing it, let
me tell you.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> Unlike other lizards, crested geckos
have a prehensile tail, which helps them grip branches whilst
roaming about the lush rainforests of New Caledonia. In addition,
their tail is flattened at the tip and equipped with minute
transverse folds called lamellae. These lamellae are further divided
into many tiny bristles, or setae, made of a hard organic protein
called keratin. The setae get even more complex under a microscope;
they are further sub-divided into minute hairs, only 200 nanometers
in diameter.
The broad toe pads of the crested and many other gecko species have
these same features, which vastly increases their surface area and enables
the gecko to climb vertical and very smooth surfaces with great skill
and agility.
Part of this adhesive magic involves the weak van der Waals forces
you may have tried to ignore in chemistry class.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: small;"> Crested geckos are currently being
reviewed by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES) for classification. Only two
of the six species </span><span style="color: black; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">have
so far been classified, with </span></span></span></span><span style="color: black; font-size: small;"><i><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">R.
auriculatus</span></span></i></span><span style="color: black; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
listed as least concern </span></span></span></span><span style="color: black; font-size: small;"><i><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">R.
trachyrhyncus</span></span></i></span><span style="color: black; font-size: small;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">
endangered.</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i>This article dedicated
to the memory of Mr. Twist</i></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-4Hs2YPIAtu_bHSBGaEiLejiQA9vDfx7IGzq3a2tWFqoUM_jbALCg9dbne0Y4NVpIsjoO4_TeQddX0YJWap78btQYhvrYPVRNirNiWtnhDsj5aEE-qC4ISNb27NQMA8dhh4PmDp0mvJbx/s1600/beaconia+004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-4Hs2YPIAtu_bHSBGaEiLejiQA9vDfx7IGzq3a2tWFqoUM_jbALCg9dbne0Y4NVpIsjoO4_TeQddX0YJWap78btQYhvrYPVRNirNiWtnhDsj5aEE-qC4ISNb27NQMA8dhh4PmDp0mvJbx/s320/beaconia+004.jpg" width="240" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Mr. Twist (2004 - February 16, 2011)</span></td></tr>
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<br /></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-13875076646757953512012-04-24T12:22:00.001-07:002012-04-24T12:23:31.027-07:00Cassowary<div style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i>, February 2, 2012</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Zoological Investigations: Cassowary</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The cassowary is a large flightless
bird that along with ostriches, emus. kiwis, and rheas is a proud
member of the ratite group. The term ratite refers to the shape of
the breastbone or sternum; these birds are flightless because the sternum
lacks a keel, the site for flight muscle attachment.
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<span style="font-size: small;">There are three species of cassowary:
the northern cassowary, <i>Casuarius unappendiculatus</i>, the
dwarf cassowary, <i>C. bennetti</i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">;
and the southern cassowary, </span></i><i><i>C.</i></i><i>
casuarius johnsonii,</i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">
(a.k.a. the double-wattled cassowary). All are found in different
regions of New Guinea, but only the southern cassowary can be found
in Australia</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">.
This article will focus on the southern cassowary, mostly so I can
type the word 'double-wattle' a lot.</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-style: normal;"> So
picture an ostrich, but with shaggy-looking black feathers, a bald
blue neck with bright red 'wattles' (flaps of skin) hanging off each
side, and a bald, bluish coloured head with a big, brownish thing
that looks like a blade-shaped crest or flattened horn on top</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">.
This thing is called a 'casque' and it is pretty awesome and mysterious. </span></i></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-style: normal;"> The
outer layer of the casque is made of keratin (the stuff of
fingernails), while the inner portion is made of an odd, foam-like
cellular material</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">.
The best guess going regarding the function of the casque is that it
is used for protection. When cassowaries run through the rainforested jungle, they stretch out their necks and really give 'er.
Cassowaries can reach speeds of up to 50km/hr</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">
and the resilience of the casque, along with its elastic properties,
are believed to efficiently absorb the shocks of getting whipped in
the head with branches and occasionally running head-long into
trees</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">.</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-style: normal;"> The
cassowary's feathers appear shaggy because their structure differs from that of
birds capable of flight. They do not have tail feathers or the uropygial (preen)
gland</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;"> used by other birds to keep the feathers clean, water
resistant, and their bodies well insulated.</span></i><i> </i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">The
flight feathers are reduced to only five or six elongated, quill-shaped feathers that apparently help protect the birds
while they are running madly through the bushes</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">.</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-style: normal;"> The
double-wattled cassowary is the second heaviest bird in the world;
weighing in at up to 128 pounds, only ostriches are heavier! The
double-wattle also has the honour of being the third-tallest bird in
the world. Yet another impressive cassowarian feature is the
double-wattle's ability to jump up to five feet high in the air</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">.
They are terrifyingly strong, with long and powerful legs
equipped with huge claws up to 10 centimetres long. The cassowary is
not afraid to run full tilt at a potential predator and
kick and slice its body right open</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">.
There are reports that humans and dogs alike have died as a result of
the double-wattle's cutting blow.</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-style: normal;">Cassowaries,
like me, usually like to hang out on their own; except, like me,
during the mating season. At such times, they will tolerate the
company of another cassowary for awhile</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">,
at which point they do what a cassowary must to keep the species
alive. This is important because cassowaries are endangered. </span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-style: normal;">The
double-wattled cassowary is listed by the government of Australia as
endangered under the </span></i><i><i>Environment Protection and
Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999</i></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">
(EPBC Act)</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">.
It was estimated in 2001 that fewer than 1500 individuals remain
alive in the wild</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">,
making these guys rarer than giant pandas in China</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">.
As usual, habitat loss due to deforestation; development; and
urbanization are mostly to blame. Vehicular traffic, dogs, and wild
pigs are also responsible for cassowarian decline, as are humans that
attempt to feed the double-wattles. A tamed double-wattle makes an
easy target for cars, dogs, and pigs alike</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">.</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-style: normal;"> Female
cassowaries mate with one male, lay eggs in his nest, and then leave
in search of other males and other nests in which to lay their eggs.
The males incubate the eggs and care for the chicks, which stay with
him for between nine and 18 months</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">.</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-style: normal;"> Cassowaries are basically the coolest, and for so many reasons! In addition to being the second heaviest and third tallest bird in
the world, really fast, really strong, really weird looking, great
swimmers, and the possessor of a not-so common breeding system,
cassowaries are also considered a keystone species. Basically, this
means they play an crucial role in their ecosystem, even though they are not the most populous species within that ecosystem. Without the
cassowary, many other organisms would suffer or die out completely.</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-style: normal;"> Cassowaries
are primarily frugivorous, which is fancy-talk for fruit-eating, and
many plant species can not germinate unless they have first passed
through the digestive tract of a cassowary. Their digestive tract is
short, so food passes rapidly through the system, and hence ingested seeds are not destroyed. This partial digestion removes the
tough, protective seed coat and speeds the process of germination of those seeds</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">.
Currently, up to 70 plant species have been identified which have seeds so large
that no other animals can eat them. The cassowaries, by eating seeds
from these plants, help disperse those seeds far and wide, increasing
the likelihood those plants will survive and reproduce</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">.
As if that wasn't enough, another 80 plant species have been found
which are toxic, and only the cassowary, with their </span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">rapid-acting digestive system,</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">
can consume them without harm. Again, this is crucial for the dispersal of these toxic plants</span></i><i><span style="font-style: normal;">. </span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="font-style: normal;"> I
bet you there are some pretty crazy videos on the internet where you
can watch a double-wattled cassowary run and kick some stuff with
it's huge, powerfully clawed feet. Just sayin'. </span></i></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipeC1xLI2G7kTdIQEvs24KOGeXmeyFJ7Rt4FRGlvHGsUJKagDyvngTGPi3LNyHBCmPAtG_RCpodbhc9rm4KOjqm_aG31hLkd_kCw-4nbRfwSFeu2znJaPcwA6Dnlwme190uOqtqSseL1-3/s1600/scass.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipeC1xLI2G7kTdIQEvs24KOGeXmeyFJ7Rt4FRGlvHGsUJKagDyvngTGPi3LNyHBCmPAtG_RCpodbhc9rm4KOjqm_aG31hLkd_kCw-4nbRfwSFeu2znJaPcwA6Dnlwme190uOqtqSseL1-3/s320/scass.jpg" width="236" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Southern Cassowary with young.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-57918146159706767322012-03-25T19:07:00.000-07:002012-03-25T19:07:46.674-07:00Wood Frog<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i>, January 26, 2011.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> Hello and welcome to January, 2011. I was looking out the window earlier, enjoying the hoar frost, when it occurred to me that really, Winnipeg isn't so bad in winter. We give ourselves a lot of credit for how tough we are out here on the prairie, boldly heading out to party and bullshit in windchills that bring the mercury plummeting to -40°C but really, we don't know what tough is. We would not stand a chance in a Winnipeg winter without all our scarves, sweaters, Uggs, Emus, Fox Racing jackets, and opposable thumbs. If you wanna see some serious winter survival, look to those who must breathe through their skin, I say. Look to <i>Rana sylvatica</i>, the humble North American wood frog.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> The wood frog is a small anuran, two to six centimetres in length, found throughout Canada and much of the mid-eastern United States. In fact, the wood frog is the only amphibian in North America that can live north of the Arctic Circle. It is that brownish little frog you have very likely seen before; the one wearing the cute little black mask. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> During the spring breeding season, male wood frogs congregate in small ponds, working day and night to attract females. Their call, which sounds a bit like the 'quack' of a duck, is produced by inflating the lungs and expelling air at high pressure across the vocal chords. The neck pouch, or vocal sac, acts as a resonating chamber to amplify the frog's call. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Tadpoles hatch in late spring and feed primarily on algae and plant materials, while the adult diet consists of invertebrates such as insects, worms, and snails. Adults have also been known to eat other small frogs on occasion. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">In order to deter would-be predators such as shrews and aquatic insects, adults and older tadpoles produce repulsive skin secretions. Adults also make a defensive call, more grotesquely referred to as a “mercy scream,” if they find themselves under attack by shrews; tiny but ruthless mammalian predators. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">This is all pretty great stuff, yet the coolest thing about the wood frog is arguably their capacity for freeze tolerance.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> Freeze tolerance is the ability to survive the formation of ice crystals within the body. This is typically a bad state of affairs for living organisms as ice crystals can puncture delicate yet important tissues such as blood vessels and cell membranes, causing all the vital stuff inside to spill out—at which point, as you can imagine, chaos and death will ensue. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">There are all kinds of other negative side effects associated with ice crystal formation in the body. Forming ice will draw water out of cells, causing them to shrink and become damaged. If blood cells were to freeze, the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to vital organs would be interrupted, spelling out bad times for the future of said organs. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> With all these crazy, deadly drawbacks, how can freeze tolerance be a good winter survival strategy, you ask? Why does the wood frog not simply borrow some fur from a fox, or some fat from a bear, you want to know? How the hell does the bloody frog just go and freeze until spring thaw like it ain't no thang?! I will tell you, of course.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> Animals such as our hero the wood frog successfully engage in the practice of freeze tolerance by combining the ability to allow fluids <i>outside</i> of the cells (extracellular fluids) to freeze with mechanisms that prevent the fluids <i>inside</i> the cells (intracellular fluids) from freezing. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">The wood frog hibernates on land under leaf litter and produces special ice nucleating proteins that allow the frog to seed (start) ice crystal formation early; typically when the temperature reaches just below 0°C. By starting the freezing process at a higher temperature, the frog can freeze slowly, allowing time to make the metabolic changes necessary to survive the freeze. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">While frozen, the metabolic, breathing, and heart rates slow dramatically. The organs and tissues are well adapted to survive in spite of very low and slow rates of oxygen and nutrient delivery. In order to prevent the insides of the cells from freezing, wood frogs build up high concentrations of glucose sugar in their tissues. Water will be drawn out of the tissues and everything around the organs and tissues will freeze, while inside the cells and organs, the highly concentrated sugar solution will remain liquid, thus preventing freeze damage. In fact, wood frogs can tolerate blood sugar levels 100 times their normal amount, without ill effect. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> There are many unknowns about the freeze-abilities of the wood frog, <i>Rana sylvatica</i><span style="font-style: normal;">. The chemical signals which allow the frog to respond to its metabolic needs throughout the winter are not well understood, nor are the ways in which the frog can fine-tune the freezing process. For example, ice sometimes begin to form within the blood, an event that would be deadly, and yet the frog is able to make subtle changes in the concentrations of its bodily fluids that quickly break apart these unwanted ice crystals, leaving the remarkable wood frog frozen solid and ready to face another cold, winter day.</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
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</div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-56203170108005909562012-03-25T18:58:00.000-07:002012-03-25T18:58:02.613-07:00Extinction Edition: Labrador Duck and Steller's Sea Cow<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i>, December 1, 2010.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> Creationists be damned; I insist that we are all creatures of the sea. Look in your heart of hearts and I think you'll agree. Regardless of your personal beliefs, how else can you possibly explain the salinity of tears or the grains of sand in our ears? Don't question it. And on that note, I would like to force upon you the tragic tales of two wonderful inhabitants of the sea that are, alas, no more. First, the Labrador Duck.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> Described as a striking sea duck on many a website, the Labrador Duck (<i>Camptorhynchus</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> <i>labradorius</i>) once inhabited the east coast of North America but was probably never very abundant. Males in breeding plumage had attractive black and white patterning on the head while females and juveniles were a mottled brownish-grey. Both males and females had bright white wing patches. Little is known about the breeding biology of these ducks and no nests have ever been described, but it is supposed that they bred along the Gulf of St. Lawrence and possibly along the coast of Labrador and elsewhere further north along the east coast. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Labrador Ducks had a unique bill structure, different from that of most ducks. The bill was wide and flat, with numerous lamellae (long, thin, hair-like projections) on the inner surface, suggesting that these animals sieved through silt and sediments for shellfish, and small molluscs such as snails.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> The Labrador Duck is considered the first bird to have become extinct in North America after the year 1500. The last observation of a Labrador Duck is reported to have been in Elmira, New York on December 12, 1878, while the last specimen collected (i.e. shot) was taken in 1875 on the coast of Long Island, New York. There are likely only 55 remaining specimens hanging around museums and in cupboards worldwide.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> It is not fully understood why the Labrador Duck went extinct. They apparently rotted quickly and did not taste good to human hunters, so over harvesting wasn't likely a major cause. Their eggs may have been over harvested (but not by scientists since no nests were ever described) and all you feather-wearing folk may be shocked and appalled to hear that another proposed contributing factor to the extinction of the Labrador Duck was harvesting for the feather trade. Perhaps it is time to consider just where the feathers we buy are actually sourced from. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Other factors leading to the extinction of the Labrador Duck may have included declines in the food upon which these ducks were heavily reliant, such as the aforementioned molluscs and shellfish. These declines occurred largely as a result of increases in human population, pollution, and industry as settlement along the east coast of North America continued to develop during the late 1800s.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="rg_ctlv">Painted by Louis Agassiz Fuertes in 1922-1926</span></td></tr>
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</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> The second tale of woe I shall recount regarding extinct oceanic species is that of the Steller's sea cow (<i>Hydrodamalis gigas</i>). Once the largest member of the order Sirenia, which includes such fat and fun-loving creatures as the manatees and dugongs, the Steller's sea cow appears to have become extinct in 1768, a mere 27 years after its initial discovery by shipwrecked explorers of the North Pacific in 1741.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> The sea cows were huge. They grew up to 8 or 9 metres in length and existing information on their weight puts them anywhere from 5400 to over 11 0000 kg, expressed in such endearing terms as 'puds' and 'hundredweights'. In contrast, manatees weigh in at anywhere from 400 to 550 kg and dugongs 150 to 300kg. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">While impressive in size, the Steller's sea cow was apparently a gentle giant. They were herbivorous, lived in groups, were slow moving and provided stupidly easy targets for human hunters (due to a combination of their slow speed, low ability to submerge, and lack of fear of their new discoverers, the humans). </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">They did not have teeth but ground sea grasses, algae, and kelp between large mandibular (jaw) plates made of keratin (the stuff of fingernails). They had small heads and horizontally fluked tails, similar to that of whales. Their large size was primarily due to the fact that, unlike other sirenians, they inhabited cold water,. Their large size and generous helping of blubber (fat) were adaptations designed to keep them warm. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> Steller's sea cows were found exclusively around the Kamchatka (Commander) Islands, in particular the Bering, Copper and Medney Islands. They apparently tasted delicious, a bit like veal or beef (if you like that sort of thing), and their fat was reported to have resembled that of almonds in flavour. According to reports of the time, the meat of the Steller's sea cow had the additional virtue of being slow to rot (unlike that of the ill-fated Labrador ducks still holding out over on the east coast back in the 1750s). </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Being so slow and edible, the Steller's sea cows were hunted to extinction; largely for human consumption but also for making lamp oil and implements such as boots, belts and skin-covered boats. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">The indiscriminate hunting of sea otters may have also contributed to the extinction of Steller's sea cows due to the keystone relationship between otters, sea urchins, and kelp. Otters are one of the few animals that eat sea urchins, which in turn eat kelp. Upon removal of large numbers of otters, urchin populations begin to increase and can decimate kelp forests. The sea cows were vulnerable due to their small population size, estimated at around 1500 individuals, and perhaps the additional pressure of not being able to find enough kelp to eat was simply too much for them to bear. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> During the short time the Steller's sea cow was known to us humans here on earth they fed and clothed us, gave us light and warmth, and inspired writings by influential authors of the day including Rudyard Kipling and Jules Verne. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
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</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> Rest in peace, <i>Camptorhynchus labradorius. </i><span style="font-style: normal;">Rest in peace,</span><i> Hydrodamalis gigas. </i><span style="font-style: normal;">No one left alive on this planet today ever got to see either of you, but I for one wish I'd had the chance. </span> </div><div align="RIGHT" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: normal;"> </span><i>This author is definitely going to pour some libations </i> </div><div align="RIGHT" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><i>out in the snow tonight to honour dead friends from the sea.</i></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-4696595854272969282012-03-25T18:49:00.000-07:002012-03-25T18:49:08.770-07:00Hercules Beetle<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i>, November 10, 2010. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Love 'em or hate 'em, insects are arguably the most important animals on earth. They are often viewed as the most successful animals on the planet, too. Many insects are essential for the continuation of life on earth (as we know it) through their roles as plant pollinators and degraders of waste products left by other organisms, which prevents massive build-up of organic wastes that would otherwise bury the planet. In fact, about two-thirds of all flowering plants are pollinated by insects. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Insects are also among the most important carriers of and vectors for diseases that kill millions of humans and other economically important mammals annually. Insects are frequently used as models in scientific research—due to their (often) small size and rapid generation times, many can be bred quickly and in large numbers in laboratories for experimentation in various areas, including genetics and medicine. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Insects have been around for a long time—at least 400 million years. For comparison, the first mammals appeared roughly 225 million years ago. And boy are there lots of insects! Estimates vary, but it is thought that there are anywhere from six to ten million living species of insects alive today, and these species are grouped into 29 different orders.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> Beetles make up the order coleoptera which, I don't mind telling you, with over 360, 000 described species, is the largest order of insects in the world. In fact, at least 25% of all species rambling over the planet today are beetles. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">How will you know if you are looking at one of these wonderful, wildly abundant beetles or just some other type of insect, you want to know? Beetles are perhaps most easily recognized by their two sets of wings. One set is the kind of wing you think of when you imagine insects flying (I'm sure you imagine insects flying quite often), while the other set of wings, called elytra, are hardened into a protective, leathery sort of cover that protects the more delicate wings underneath, and may also act as aerofoils. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">The order coleoptera is amazingly diverse and contains both the largest and some of the smallest insects on the planet today. It is about one of the largest living insects that you, the enthralled reader, are going to learn—the Hercules beetle.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> The Hercules beetle, <i>Dynastes hercules</i>, is a type of rhinoceros beetle (subfamily dynastinae) and is a member of the family scarabaeidae, the scarab beetles. These Hercs, as I'll call them, are native to South and Central American rainforests and the Lesser Antilles. They range from 50 to 170mm (over 6 inches) in body length—making them one of the world's largest beetles<sup>1 </sup>and the largest of the six beetles in the genus <i>Dynastes</i>. As if their size weren't impressive enough, male Hercs have two big horns that can be even longer than their body; one that comes from the lower (ventral) portion of the head, curving upward, and another that comes from the thorax at the base of the upper (dorsal) region of the head curving downward, like pincers or pliers. When males fight, they try to pick one another up with their horns and slam them headfirst to the ground. Females lack horns. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> Hercules beetles are not poisonous, and do not attack humans. They mostly just hang out in leaf litter trying to survive the decimation of the rainforest while looking really cool and menacing. They are herbivorous; larvae eat rotting wood and dung while adults feed on decaying fruit and vegetable matter. Again, just cleaning up the garbage. Really, they are humble civil servants of the rainforest, never complaining about their smelly job or asking for recognition, even though they deserve it. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Hercs live for about 1.5 years, only 3 to 4 months of which are spent as adults. They are primarily nocturnal and yet are strongly attracted to light.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> My favourite thing about Hercs is that if you correct for size, Hercules beetles are, proportionally, the strongest animals on the planet. They are able to lift up to 850 times their own body weight! </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div id="sdfootnote1" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> <a class="sdfootnotesym" href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=7416296123372948746#sdfootnote1anc" name="sdfootnote1sym">1</a> The record for world's largest beetle is held by the aptly named Titan beetle, <i>Titanus giganteus</i><span style="font-style: normal;">, which</span><i> </i><span style="font-style: normal;">is a member of the family cerambycidae or longhorn beetles, and reaches 170-175mm in length.</span><br />
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</div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-50708746092621268312012-03-25T18:32:00.000-07:002012-03-25T18:32:50.412-07:00Woolly Flying Squirel<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i>, October 27, 2010.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> The woolly flying squirrel, <i>Eupetaurus cinereus</i>, is the largest known squirrel alive today. This massive sciurid, as the scientific family containing squirrels is known, measures around 53 centimetres (two feet) in length, not including the massive fluffy tail, which is an additional 53cm long. It is the largest gliding animal known, majestically flinging itself out into open air amongst the boulders and Himalayan mountains of northern Pakistan. Never having seen a woolly flying squirrel before, I'm just assuming it's majestic but come on, it has to be. Think about it. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> The woolly squirrel has a unique dentition among sciurids, affectionately referred to by anatomists and veterinarians as hyposodont, which means that the teeth have a high crown and enamel that extends past the gum line. This suggests that the squirrel eats highly abrasive plant material, probably the needles of coniferous pine trees found in the animal's known habitat. It is primarily this unique dentition which makes the woolly squirrel the only member of its genus, <i>Eupetaurus</i>. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> The woolly flying squirrel is huge. Imagine a two foot squirrel roaming around the streets of Winnipeg. That's the stuff of so-bad-it's-good science fiction/horror films. I know I'd flee in terror if I ran into one. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Squirrels bigger than ravens! Big and mean, I'll bet! Can you imagine?! Lucky for us Winnipeggers, who've got enough of our own problems, these squirrels like mountains and not prairies. Clearly there is a serious lack of mountain in Winnipeg (“Garbage hill” does not count). </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Well anyway, getting back to the squirrels: despite their absolutely huge size, woolly flying squirrels were believed extinct until just over a decade ago. Originally described in 1888, there had not been a confirmed sighting since 1924, and the species was known from only a few skins collected in the late 1800s. It was rediscovered by science in 1994 by Peter Zahler, a freelance editor and writer, and Chantel Dietemann, a math teacher. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> Some locals of northern Pakistan believe that the dried urine of <i>E. cinereus</i> is an aphrodisiac. In this form, the sqiurrel's urine is known as <i>salagit </i>and sold in the bazaars of Gilgit, Pakistan. Two local men, collectors and retailers of <i>salagit</i>, were paid by Zahler to find him a woolly flying squirrel, which they did. They brought it to him in a sack for $150 USD. Zahler and Dietemann did not find anymore woolly squirrels during their trip, but they found lots of disembodied squirrel bits under the nest of a huge raptor, the eagle owl.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> While little is known about the woolly flying squirrel at this time, and what is known has mainly been based on museum skin specimens, it is known that the squirrels are nocturnal and roost in caves and crevices on steep cliffs at elevations of between 2400 and 3800m. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">The woolly flying squirrel is currently listed by the International Union on the Conservancy of Nature (ICUN) as endangered, which means that it is believed to face a very high risk of extinction in the wild. The total population of these squirrels is estimated at between 1000 and 3000 individuals and as is so often the case, habitat loss via deforestation is the main factor responsible for its endangered status.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> The cry of the woolly flying squirrel is believed by some to herald the death of a loved one. Spooky. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: right;">Never trust a squirrel, I've always said...Never trust a squirrel.</div><br style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;" /><span id="goog_1705695348" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span><span id="goog_1705695349" style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span><br style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;" /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8PBS0IpGviMJYn5N25dPW5xHquu2QxuVCBphq6OZ22kXwKbSqLPp0feRrgdbOzuW3VxiwVJQr7gPCE1lCdb10XTk4yjQ3EYFhTlw9QqoFOElaRyg68If4zJ8Qlt9-CyePX-L__0V0XLYy/s1600/wfs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8PBS0IpGviMJYn5N25dPW5xHquu2QxuVCBphq6OZ22kXwKbSqLPp0feRrgdbOzuW3VxiwVJQr7gPCE1lCdb10XTk4yjQ3EYFhTlw9QqoFOElaRyg68If4zJ8Qlt9-CyePX-L__0V0XLYy/s1600/wfs.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
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</div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-75987446135556096072012-03-25T18:24:00.000-07:002012-03-25T18:24:34.217-07:00Desert night lizard<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i>, October 20, 2010</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> I'm tired. I'm getting sick, I have exams coming up, papers due, grant applications to write, I had to cook my own Thanksgiving dinner, and I just want to curl up on the couch until January. Sound familiar? Well anyway, I read this great article about whale poop and my friend told me about Pacific barreleye fishes and I felt a lot better. The sun is still shining, after all. We've got until at least December 2012 and I am not going to write about whales or barreleyes just yet. I am going to write about lizards instead.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> The desert night lizard, <i>Xantusia vigilis</i><span style="font-style: normal;">, lives in the Mojave Desert, which occupies portions of California, Nevada, Utah and Arizona, and spends a lot of its time hiding under logs.</span> They feed on invertebrates such as caterpillars, moths, termites, ants and beetles and are what is referred to as a 'sit and wait' predator—they don't hunt actively but tend to remain in hiding and then pounce on their unsuspecting prey when it comes near their hide out. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">They are viviparous (“live-bearing”), and females give birth to an average of two young per year. They are small, measuring between 1.5 and 2.75 inches long, not including the tail; which, when threatened, is very likely to break off and wiggle around as a distraction so the lizard can escape from potential predators. I wonder what would be the best appendage for humans to lose when confronted by late-night muggers or street gangs of ten-year-olds? Perhaps the wallet hand? I see potential for esoteric stem cell research grants...</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> So far the most interesting thing I've learned about the desert night lizard pertains to its complex social structure. A graduate student at UC Santa Cruz named Alison Davis, now a post-doctoral researcher at UC Berkeley, led a five-year study of the lizards and found out a bunch of really cool stuff. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Unlike many lizard species, <i>X. vigilis</i> live in groups, often hanging out under the same log for years on end. Young lizards remain with their parents and siblings for several years. Genetic testing using DNA microsatellite markers confirmed that separate aggregations of the lizards were composed of related family groups, the largest so far tested being a group of 13 members. For the less genetically savvy, microsatellites are short segments of DNA that have a repeating sequence of base pairs (CACACA for example). These segments can be passed on from parents to offspring and eventually, populations will retain a characteristic set of microsatellites distinct from those of other populations. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> Aside from the fact that most lizard species are solitary, the sociality of the desert night lizard may provide future insights into the evolution of more complex social behaviours, like those seen in primates (including humans). </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">There are only about twenty known species of lizards that live in family groups and of these, only two give birth to live young, implying that viviparity may be critical for the evolution of cooperative behaviour in animals. Insight into the social interactions of reptiles such as the desert lizard can provide valuable information about the evolution of kin-based groups and cooperative behaviour across a wide variety of taxa, including birds and mammals, and may help provide a means of reliably predicting other species that might be predisposed toward complex social and group behaviours. Such information could provide insight into our own evolutionary past and reveal a common evolutionary ground for social and family interactions throughout the animal kingdom. Neat!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
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</div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-3149902080624472042012-03-25T18:17:00.000-07:002012-03-25T18:17:03.662-07:00Fer-de-lance<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i>, September 29, 2010</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> In addition to Cuba and the Bahamas, the Caribbean island chain contains an unassuming little island called St. Lucia. A rainforested, mountainous, volcanic island roughly 43 by 23 kilometers, it was first inhabited by Indigenous peoples from South America early in the 2<sup>nd</sup> century. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">“Discovered” by good old Christopher Columbus in 1499, British attempts at colonization begain in 1605 and French attempts in 1667. The island changed hands between British and French 14 times before achieving independence in 1979. Sugar plantations manned by African slaves made up the bulk of St. Lucia's economy in the 19<sup>th</sup> century, whereas today the main economic boons consist of banana plantations and tourism. The island is mainly inhabited today by descendents of the early African slaves and has a population of about </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">200, 000.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"> What does beautiful St. Lucia have to do with another great <i>Zoological Investigations</i> article, you ask? Interested readers might pass the hours by reading about theories of <span style="font-style: normal;">Island Biogeography and related concepts, perhaps even a little of Darwin's </span><i>On the Origin...</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> for good measure or, they might simply choose to take my word that islands, by virtue of their remoteness from the mainland, tend to harbour uniquely adapted, endemic (those which aren't found naturally elsewhere in the world) species and provide a rich grounds for evolutionary processes to take hold, leading to interesting and sometimes really weird organisms and community interactions. Often, island species evolve in a relative vacuum, until oh, let's say European settlers introduce hordes of ship rats ready to devour unsuspecting creatures that have never before faced predation. This, as you might guess, usually has disastrous results for island wildlife and let's not forget what happens when us humans begin settling in and ripping up the land for natural resources and hotels-- habitat loss and destruction, oh my</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">.</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: normal;"> So now you want to know what the hell is a fer-de-lance, eh? Well, my Canadian friends, that is a lovely french word for 'spearhead' (or the more literal and less poetic, “iron of the lance”) and refers to an extremely venomous snake that lives, you guessed it, on St. Lucia island in the sunny Caribbean. Also known by it's less beautiful sounding scientific name, </span><i>Bothrops caribbaeus</i><span style="font-style: normal;">, the fer-de-lance is one of five species of snake found on the island (one of which is now extinct) and belongs to the family Viperidae</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;"> (fancy talk for, “it's a viper”).</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: normal;"> The fer-de-lance is viviparous, which means that it incubates eggs internally and gives birth to live young; around 60 at a time</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">. Gestating females move in and out of the sun in order to regulate their body temperature and incubate the developing young</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">. They mainly eat birds and mammals</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">, and have even been known to eat those crazy vicious carnivores, the mongooses</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">. Hunting takes primarily at night and the snakes will rear into an S-shape, strike quickly and then retreat while their prey dies a horrible, venomous death. </span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: normal;">Pit vipers such as the fer-de-lance have unique structures called pits that are found in grooves on the head which can detect infra-red radiation (i.e. heat) emanating from their prey. This allows the snakes to quickly and accurately locate their prey in the dark and what's more, the position of the pits is such that it allows for a type of “binocular scent” similar to how our human vision gives us depth perception and helps us to correctly gauge distances (most of the time).</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: normal;"> The fer-de-lance is extremely venomous, and is considered by many to be the most dangerous snake of Central and South America. It can inject 105 mg of venom in a single bite (milking the snakes for venom has yielded up to 310 mg) and causes more human deaths than any other reptile. In case you wondered, the lethal dose of venom for humans (based on some undisclosed average weight, I assume) is a mere 50 mg</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">.</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: normal;">The venom contains seven different toxins, including stuff that breaks down cell membranes (allowing that precious content to spill out all over the place and cause general mayhem in your poor, dying body) and proteins. The toxins also cause hemorrhage, internal bleeding, painful swelling, and blood clot formation in humans</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">.</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: normal;"> Studies of the fer-de-lance undertaken by the National Forest Demarcation and Bio-Physical Resource Inventory Project have shown these vipers to be at a significant risk of extinction, primarily due to that old beast habitat destruction, coupled with the introduction of invasive species such as opossum (manicou), rats, dogs, cats, feral pigs and mongoose, as well as hunting and chemical pollution from agricultural processes. Fer-de-lance populations have declined significantly in beautiful St. Lucia over the last 50 years, and populations are now restricted primarily to two fragmented portions of the island. </span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: normal;">These snakes are not protected by St. Lucia's Wildlife Protection Act, which was implemented in 1980</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">. Three other species of Fer-de-lance native to islands of Brazil, </span><i>Bothrops alcatraz</i><span style="font-style: normal;">, </span><i>B. insularis</i><span style="font-style: normal;">, and </span><i>B. pirajai</i><span style="font-style: normal;">are listed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as critically endangered and vulnerable (</span><i>B. pirajai</i><span style="font-style: normal;">) but the St. Lucia fer-de-lance </span><i>B. caribbaeus</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> has not yet been assessed by the IUCN.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1-892HDc4ISaeOvdsTBB6sz_KgB_DhgwKMqZ5Kw5B6MMUpES0lz1jjdWTDZhg4UrdXWcT_X_DNjKUr5g-mlCafy5l2OD7gHeal8Zn5DfQBU5VZyqL_lZIh1o0xoJ33oQCN0cDHi7gQk5i/s1600/fdl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1-892HDc4ISaeOvdsTBB6sz_KgB_DhgwKMqZ5Kw5B6MMUpES0lz1jjdWTDZhg4UrdXWcT_X_DNjKUr5g-mlCafy5l2OD7gHeal8Zn5DfQBU5VZyqL_lZIh1o0xoJ33oQCN0cDHi7gQk5i/s1600/fdl.jpg" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
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</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"> </div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-27218189345222692832012-03-25T18:08:00.001-07:002012-03-25T18:09:42.629-07:00Zoological Investigations Double Back-to-School Feature: Cormorants & Nighthawks<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">Originally published in <i>The Manitoban</i>, September 15, 2010</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">The Double-crested Cormorant</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;">The Double-crested Cormorant (<i>Phalacrocorax auritus</i>) is a large, fish-eating waterbird reaching 2.5 to 3 feet in length with a wingspan of almost 4 feet. They are found in Manitoba and throughout the Great Lakes region. They are one of the birds most frequently rescued by the Prairie Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre, or PWRC (see the science feature article). <i>P. auritus </i><span style="font-style: normal;">spends its winters in the Gulf of Mexico, flying north to breed during our balmy Manitoba summers. They nest in colonies and incubate their clutch by wrapping their webbed feet around the eggs,</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;"> which is unusual because most birds incubate eggs by ruffling their feathers around them and developing a brood patch, a featherless area where blood vessels close to the skin's surface provide warmth by bringing arterial blood into contact with the eggs. </span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: normal;">Double-crested cormorants often incorporate garbage and beach junk into their large nests, including parts of dead birds</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">! Not the smartest of birds, </span><i>P. auritus</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> will sometimes mistake large pebbles for eggs and tries its darndest to hatch them! Those nesting in full sun help keep their chicks hydrated by carrying water in their bills to give to the young, which often leave their nest to hang out in a sort of Cormorant daycare called a creche (pronounced cree-sh), returning to the parent nest at feeding time</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">.</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: normal;"> Numbers of </span><i>P. auritus</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> declined severely throughout the 1950s through 70s as a result of high levels of environmental contaminants such as DDT responsible for the thinning of eggshells in these and other bird species but, you'll be glad to know, their numbers have since rebounded marvelously</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;"> and the Cormorants no long appear to be in any danger from population declines. </span> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: normal;"> Also of note according to Lisa Tretiak, board member and founder of the PWRC, young Double-crested Cormorants are very, very mean and not at all afraid to use their large, hooked bills in combat with would-be human rescuers! For more information on the wacky behaviour of rescued Cormorants, check out this link to the PWRC blog: </span><span style="color: navy;"><span lang="zxx"><u><a href="http://pwrc.wordpress.com/2010/07/21/double-trouble/"><span style="font-style: normal;">http://pwrc.wordpress.com/2010/07/21/double-trouble/</span></a></u></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhljzXDMJLuXy3oWY0NUwWumxCqW6BV6ve3K8oFACtRhXrLyEll9dmMKr7noAlXRvR4OpekFJACHW4KDKGvfltSJaSyoaP7VOUGKvcpO9shUr9oQZXBhCOBSioOIkTpBuSpvVAh81sBETqH/s1600/dcc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhljzXDMJLuXy3oWY0NUwWumxCqW6BV6ve3K8oFACtRhXrLyEll9dmMKr7noAlXRvR4OpekFJACHW4KDKGvfltSJaSyoaP7VOUGKvcpO9shUr9oQZXBhCOBSioOIkTpBuSpvVAh81sBETqH/s320/dcc.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="color: navy;"><span lang="zxx"><u><span style="font-style: normal;"> </span></u></span></span><span style="font-style: normal;"> </span> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;">The Common Nighthawk</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: normal;"> The Common Nighthawk (</span><i>Cordeiles minor</i><span style="font-style: normal;">) is not a hawk but a member of the Goatsucker or Nightjar family</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">, which includes other nocturnal birds such as whippoorwills, frogmouths, and oilbirds. In addition to having really cool names they refuse to build a nest but instead lay eggs straight on the ground (or on city rooftops) without even bothering to conceal them</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">. Perhaps as a defense against this shoddy parental care, nestling Nighthawks are able to fly as early as 18 days after hatching and can capture insects on their own within 25 to 30 days</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">. Nighthawks have large mouths lined with sensitive bristles to aid them in catching insect prey during cool-looking aerial dives. They have a reflective structure in their eye called the t</span><i>apetum lucidum</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> (the same structure responsible for making nocturnal mammals' eyes like your cat's glow when a light is shined on them) that improves vision in low-light conditions. They are about 9 inches long with a wingspan of around 20 inches, and spend their winters in South America unlike the rest of us (goat)suckers. </span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-style: normal;">Common Nighthawks are also brought to the attention of the PWRC rather frequently</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">, but they are often uninjured. The Common Nighthawk undergoes a daily period of inactivity called torpor, in which the body temperature and metabolism are reduced to conserve energy. Many a concerned naturalist has phoned the PWRC thinking these birds are in need of assistance when really, they are just resting up for an evening of insect massacre! </span><i>C. minor</i><span style="font-style: normal;"> populations have been in decline, probably due to the combination of heavy insecticide usage, habitat destruction, and increased numbers of predators such as cats, skunks, racoons, and crows</span><span style="font-style: normal;"></span><span style="font-style: normal;">. They are currently listed by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) as threatened, and are a species of special concern under Ontario's Endangered Species Act as of 2007. </span> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
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</div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-4093023548747596842011-09-27T17:47:00.000-07:002011-09-27T17:47:24.251-07:00Mimic Octopus<div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Originally published September 8, 2010 (The Manitoban, Vol. 98, No. 4)</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"> </div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Today is the day: back to school. Some of us might be filled with excitement and hope for the thrill of a new year of learning and higher education. Others might be devastated and frightened by the stresses of too many courses and heavy workloads. I am filled with both excitement and dread and the back of my mind is crying out, “I'm not ready!”, but what can you do? Take a deep breath, jump in with both feet and just hope for the best. Perhaps this issue's Z.I. creature of choice can be some form of inspiration to us all. It is the intelligent, industrious, devious and graceful mimic octopus.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> The mimic octopus, <i>Thaumoctopus mimicus</i>, was unknown to scientists until its discovery in Indonesian waters in 1998. Mimic octopuses tend to get about two feet long and are a modest brown and white striped sort of colour but like many of their cephalopod friends, they have the ability to change colour by altering the distribution of pigment in their skin. This is a form of communication that can be used to interact with members of the same species or to warn off potential predators. It is also a strategy used to camouflage the animals and avoid being spotted by predators. Many cephalopods can also modify the texture and consistency of their skin in order to appear flat and smooth like sandy bottoms, or rough and bumpy like a rocky area or coral reef. The mimic octopus takes these abilities to the next level by using a combination of pigmentation and strategic movement and limb positioning to actually mimic other organisms found in its highly diverse environment. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">The mimic octopus imitates many highly toxic animals such as lionfish, flatfish, and even sea snakes. These animals have bold, high contrast colouration that is used to warn potential predators of their toxic nature. The idea for the mimic octopus is that if it can pass itself off as one of these dangerous animals, it will not be chased and eaten by its own predators. Seems like a reasonable thing to do, kind of like wearing those t-shirts with the really buff and sexy body type to fool unsuspecting potential dates at bars, right? The thing is that there is a pretty low risk for humans; if the individual you are trying to fool into going on a date with you realizes that it is not your true buff bod but just a t-shirt, at worst you just won't get a date but, for the mimic octopus, if the poisonous animal imitation is a failure, the mimic octopus gets eaten. Game over.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"> </div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Surprisingly, scientists haven't yet come up with any really fancy explanations for how this high risk strategy evolved, but there are some fresh ideas going around. New research by scientists from the California Academy of Sciences and Conservation International Indonesia looked at DNA sequences of 35 different species of octopus related to <i>T. mimicus</i> in an effort to shed light on this unique adaptation. Their research suggests that the use of bold colour patterns evolved first in order to shock and frighten potential predators away should the more passive camouflage technique fail. Then, the swimming techniques and arm positioning used to mimic the movements of different species seems to have evolved. Finally, the two appear to have been combined; bold colour patterns while swimming like a lionfish, sea snake, or flatfish, as seen in the mimic octopus today.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> This is also the first known example of an organism that mimics multiple different species and what's more, observations have been made of mimic octopuses impersonating the specific type of predator that would be most dangerous to whatever species happens to be threatening the octopus at that time! The high level of intelligence suggested by this strategic mimicry definitely places the mimic octopus in the “smarter than the average bear” category, in this writer's humble opinion.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Much remains unknown about the life history strategies of the mimic octopus. They live on the bottoms of muddy estuarine areas in the Indo-Pacific region and their relatively recent discovery means that there is much more to be learned about these amazing little cephalopods. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">mimic octopus as flounder</span></td></tr>
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</span></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-23377950138481574432011-09-27T17:39:00.000-07:002011-09-27T17:39:37.025-07:00Andean Condor<div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Originally published August 18, 2010 (The Manitoban, Vol. 98, No. 3)</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"> </div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">The Andean Condor is the largest raptor in the world. Adults weigh between 20 to 30 pounds and reach a shocking 4 feet in height with a wingspan of up to 10 feet! Condors are a type of vulture and thus feed primarily on dead or dying animals. They will also feed on young or injured animals and raid nests for eggs. Eating is not just a disorganized mess of gut-pulling; the dinner table is remarkably structured with the oldest, dominant male feeding first, followed by all other males, then females and young. Scavenging for a meal by poking your head into rotting carcasses whenever possible is not conducive to good hygiene and this is why the heads of vultures are bald. The Andean Condor may travel over 300 kilometers per day looking for food. They can soar at altitudes of up to 18 000 feet using thermals to save energy. They also save energy by allowing their body temperature to drop several degrees below normal at night. Keeping one's body temperature up to snuff is shockingly expensive. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Andean Condors are New World vultures that are more closely related to storks than to African vultures. They are the only new world vulture to show sexual dimorphism; the males are larger than females and have big, fleshy crests on top of their heads as well as a white collar of feathers around the neck. Females have bright red eyes. This condor does not have a “voice box” and so is usually silent. They make weird hissing, clucking, or barking type sounds during courtship, at which time males try to impress females by prancing around with their massive wings outstretched. They mate for life and may live as long as 75 years in captivity. Both parents take turns incubating the eggs and raising and feeding their young. Breeding usually takes place every second year (or not at all if food and/or weather conditions are poor) and only one egg is laid. Young do not leave the parents until their second year and do not reach sexual maturity until about 6 or 7 years of age. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">How about a simple mathematical problem to ponder? Assume a 100% survival rate where all young birds survive to adulthood and are themselves able to reproduce. Assume that the point of reproduction is not in fact for pleasure but to replace one's self and spread 'dem lovely genes. If two birds produce one bird every other year, how long would it take to guarantee they replace themselves and thus maintain a stable Andean Condor population? The answer, in a perfect world, is four years and last I checked, it was not a perfect world. Andean Condors have fallen upon hard times. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> The Andean Condor is thought to be hands down the largest flying bird that exists in the world today. What have we got to compete against that? Big brains, pah! Perhaps then jealousy is the reason for this incredible animal's addition to the U.S. Endangered Species list in 1973. More practical reasons might suggest things like over hunting, deforestation, loss of habitat, and pollution. Andean Condors breed relatively well in captivity and many young have been released back into the wild since the 1990s. Radio tracking has shown that many of the released birds have survived to maturity and have themselves begun to reproduce in the wild, yet they are still listed as endangered. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Andean Condor feathers have been harvested for many purposes: for cigarette holders, warding off nightmares, and by harpsicord makers for...something. Various other body parts have been used by various other people for various other reasons at various times: their bones have been ground to soothe rheumatism, their stomachs have been eaten to cure breast cancer, and their eyes have been roasted to improve human sight.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Now let's all dig out our Much Music Dance mix cds of the 90s and celebrate tentatively. Or you might want to look up the San Diego zoo for more information on their captive breeding and wildlife reintroduction programs.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
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</span></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-85588738919080809512011-09-10T12:31:00.000-07:002011-09-10T12:31:48.089-07:00Dragonflies<div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Originally published July 21, 2010 (The Manitoban, Vol. 98, No. 2)</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Do you remember how much you loved Filmon Fridays when you were a kid? A whole day off school?! Man, it was incredible. What have we got that can compare these days? Lackluster dreams of bringing back the Winnipeg Jets? Perfectly good streets quietly and without fanfare being renamed after football players? Come on, Katz-- I want action. I want novelty. I want good ideas. I want a political platform that includes the introduction of a 'Dragonfly Appreciation Week'.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">You might think this a departure from the vision of Zoological Investigations, to write about a common and typically well known animal such as the dragonfly, but there are many wonderful facts about dragonflies that I am willing to bet whole packages of Popeye cigarettes the average person on the street just simply doesn't know. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">For starters, dragonflies have been gracing this lovely old rock with their presence for the last <i>300 million years</i></span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;">! They are thought to be one of the first insects that evolved wings (which are derived from the integument or skin, not the limbs) and the ability to fly. The ancestors of today's dragonfly species had wingspans of 20 to 50 centimetres! Just think about that for a second, will you? Popular belief tells us they were able to grow so freakishly huge because the atmosphere during that period (the Carboniferous) contained way more oxygen than it does today, enabling dragonflies to ventilate such a massive body (no lungs for insects, only spiracles and a tracheal system, thank you). Today there are about 5 000 described species of dragonflies and their close relatives the damselflies. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;"> </span> </div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;"> Next up on the list of Odonatous wonders: those four lovely wings. They can beat them synchronously or individually, allowing such elegant flight maneuvers as hovering, taking off backwards, unbanked turns, rapid acceleration (up to nearly 40km/hr) and basically as far as flight goes, they just own the sky. They can fly in tandem while mating, kind of like those crappy love scenes in the old Superman movies. Dragonflies have compound eyes made up of repeating units of a simplified visual receptor called an ommatidium. They have up to 30 000 ommatidia per eye that receive light from whichever direction they are pointing in, giving them an almost 360 degree viewing field. Their vision is binocular, allowing them to judge distances accurately and they see in colour (except red), UV, and detect polarized light. The eyes are also highly sensitive to motion and can detect movements separated by up to 1/300</span><span style="font-size: small;"><sup><span style="font-style: normal;">th</span></sup></span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;"> of a second, which would make watching a movie look like a series of still photos. The main downside to this masterpiece of an idea is that because the focus cannot be changed near images appear blurred but with all those other great features, who cares? Most things tend to look worse up close anyhow, except perhaps lady dragonflies. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;"> </span> </div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;"> As most of us know, dragonflies are voracious predators of other insects in the adult stage, but they are also magnificent killers during their juvenile, or nymph phase of life, which can last anywhere from months to several years in different species. Dragonfly nymphs hang out in the water, eating most anything they can catch with their big, nasty </span><span style="font-size: small;"><i>extensible</i></span><span style="font-size: small; font-style: normal;"> jaws (think Alien). They've even been known to bite humans. They breathe through gills in their rectum, which makes me giggle but don't get me wrong, I respect the hell out of dragonflies. On the subject of rectum, the nymphs can propel themselves suddenly by rapidly ejecting water out of their anus, like some kind of super-fart sneak attack.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Is this sampling not enough to convince you of the merit Dragonfly Appreciation Week holds? Well, dragonflies are all over the place in folklore because they are historically known for being super badass and way cool. In Romania, dragonflies were said to be horses possessed by a devil and in Sweden, folklore states that the devil uses the dragonfly to weigh people's souls. With the number flying around in my backyard these days I can't tell if it's a good or a bad sign, but I am a bit nervous after hearing that one.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; font-style: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQFOlLic4hHbkGoyz_CcbGVnpfug08MSFMc6SuqlMQ5bO9HkroOsM895nCdwTtHvdZovdjwRbmok2HT1CkFdFoKzAwdvvvMgUeHcKbtl-EEHqGHTg0O_Dqb_3KXzR2djJhknbbmLOVrhjO/s1600/larva.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQFOlLic4hHbkGoyz_CcbGVnpfug08MSFMc6SuqlMQ5bO9HkroOsM895nCdwTtHvdZovdjwRbmok2HT1CkFdFoKzAwdvvvMgUeHcKbtl-EEHqGHTg0O_Dqb_3KXzR2djJhknbbmLOVrhjO/s320/larva.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Dragonfly larvae are aquatic</span></td></tr>
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</span></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-1840134978651872852011-09-10T12:23:00.000-07:002011-09-10T12:24:19.760-07:00Northern short-tailed shrew<div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Originally published June 23, 2010 (The Manitoban, Vol. 98, No. 1)</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Hello again readers of the Manitoban and welcome to late June. It is just about that time to start planning your doom — I mean future — for this fall and what better way to get back into the swing of things but by learning a little about something even smaller and more insignificant than most of us generally think ourselves to be. Let us examine <i>Blarina brevicauda</i>, the northern short-tailed shrew. This little buddy is only about 120 mm long and weighs no more than 30 grams.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Whilst backpacking about the scenic Canadian countryside this summer, you might expect to meet <i>Blarina </i>in any one of the southern parts of the provinces, from breathtaking Saskatchewan all the way east to balmy Nova Scotia. As usual with any summer vacation, it is best not to get too friendly with strangers, especially considering the Northern short-tailed shrew is the only poisonous mammal in North America.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">These shrews use venom produced by the salivary glands along grooves in their teeth to subdue their prey, which are primarily invertebrates but also include small mammals and amphibians. The venom keeps the prey alive yet immobilized for convenient, hassle-free meals. Shrew venom contains both neurotoxins that cause paralysis as well as hemotoxins that prevent blood clotting, destroy red blood cells and generally make a big mess out of the internal organs. One “highly reliable” source — Wikipedia — states that the venom of <i>Blarina</i> <i>brevicauda</i>, when intravenously injected, is enough to kill 200 mice. What kind of mice and how many died in quest of that most valuable information remains a mystery to me.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">In general, shrews are small, terrestrial mammals that forage almost continuously for food to satisfy their raging metabolic needs. They must eat up to 90 per cent of their own body weight each day in order to survive, especially in the frigid wasteland us Winnipeggers call home. In fact, these little buggers are so dedicated that they don’t even bother to hibernate. They just run around like mad all winter in a desperate search for food.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Next to eating, the shrew’s favourite pastime is, you guessed it, sex. Females can have up to 10 litters per year, assuming they manage to survive that long. Shrews live to around 30 months of age but just over 10 per cent of individuals manage to make it past their first year. They have poor vision but excellent senses of smell and hearing. In fact, our friend <i>Blarina </i>uses a form of echolocation — just like your friends the bats and whales — in order to travel speedily along the burrows it digs under grasses and packed snow. The only other terrestrial mammals known to use echolocation are tenrecs but you’ll have to look them up for yourself because this is usually just a one-animal-per-issue kind of deal.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">It turns out that shrews and I have a lot more in common than I thought. But I still don’t know what the hell Shakespeare was talking about!</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-58558068878153999352011-09-10T12:19:00.000-07:002011-09-10T12:19:27.611-07:00Valentine's Day Double Feature<div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Originally published February 10, 2010 (The Manitoban, Vol. 97, No. 21)</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Kissing Bugs</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"> </div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i>Rhodnius prolixus</i> is one of several species of blood sucking insects belonging to the order hemiptera that can be found from southern Mexico to northern South America. With strong jaws, a powerful bite, and sucking mouthparts specialized for drinking blood, this fiend also produces and secretes proteins into the wounds it makes that function to increase blood flow to the wound site. This allows the animal to get more blood more quickly (kind of like pulling up at a drive-thru and ordering extra-large...or maybe it's more like holding up the drive-thru). </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> "So the jerks drink blood, but why call them kissing bugs", you want to know. The clever little devils get the name because they often bite humans and other victims such as cats, dogs, rats, and other hapless mammals on the lips or face (and while they're sleeping to boot). However, unlike your typical fantasy Romeo (or Juliet, or Prince Charming, or Ted Bundy, or whoever), these six-legged freaks also defecate as they kiss (bite). The wound swells, becoming itchy and irritated, and what do you do? Exactly what you shouldn't you fool, which is to scratch the damn thing and rub poop all into your love-bite. Aside from being totally gross (and this is really important, especially if you are planning a budget South American holiday this "spring break"/"reading week") these kissing bugs are discourteous enough to leave you with a little surprise in their fecal matter that goes by the name of <i>Trypanosoma cruzi</i>, perhaps better known as Chagas disease or American sleeping sickness. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Once infected with this flagellated<sup>1</sup> protozoan parasitic disease you might at first notice only swelling around the wounded area, perhaps a bit of fever--in short, nothing much to write home or see a doctor about. Yet things get sinister once chronic symptoms start to develop: malformation and inflammation of the intestines and heart, and damage to the nervous system occur. There is not yet an effective cure for Chagas disease but there are also educational programs and vector control measures (i.e. spaying insecticides) in place where Chagas disease is common.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"> <span style="font-size: small;"><i>R. prolixus</i> gets a pretty bad rap overall, what with killing thousands of humans each year and causing much pain and suffering, but there is something to be admired in an animal so stealthy and ingenious as this one. At least, this writer thinks so. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> If you are planning a holiday this winter, keep in mind that a date with <i>Rhodnius</i> is kind of like having unprotected sex with a stranger folks; there's no telling how much trouble you might get into--so pull down your mosquito net, buckle your pants up extra tight, and watch out for that bad old <i>Rhodnius</i> this Valentine's day!</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><sup>1</sup> </span><span style="font-size: small;">A flagellum is kind of like a tail.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: inherit; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheisYffcm4g-chTiMx6sKc7Lt2jYa1I7Rk6DjsPDGt5yrVEGpMbt5KszBo8eK4j9hTHnJ2JyHYTDXkPa9tpzkiup-YApSilPDeT3oCwv8h-ltF8sapYlTvh9y7_XQtkWU4gKEgqzw3Ln0r/s1600/R.prolixus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheisYffcm4g-chTiMx6sKc7Lt2jYa1I7Rk6DjsPDGt5yrVEGpMbt5KszBo8eK4j9hTHnJ2JyHYTDXkPa9tpzkiup-YApSilPDeT3oCwv8h-ltF8sapYlTvh9y7_XQtkWU4gKEgqzw3Ln0r/s320/R.prolixus.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
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</div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Venus Flower Basket </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span> </div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"> </div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">The stunningly beautiful venus flower basket is nothing like a kissing bug. The venus flower basket, <i>Euplectella aspergillum</i>, is a type of glass sponge that lives anchored to the sediments in deep ocean waters anywhere from 40 to 5,000 metres deep in the tropics of the South Pacific. It belongs to the class of sponges called Hexactinellida because its skeleton is made of long filaments of silica called spicules that have a six-pointed radial geometry. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">The fine silica fibres produced by <i>Euplectella</i> are of particular interest for fibre optics research because of their ability to transmit light in a similar (but superior) fashion to that used in modern telecommunications fibre optics. Commercial fibre optics require manufacturing under high temperatures but because the glass sponges create fibres under lower temperature they contain ions such as sodium that enhance their fibre optic properties, something we humans haven't yet figured out how to do. The fibres of the sponges are stronger than those used in modern fibre optics as well. The construction of the sponge is also of interest because of the unique arrangement of the fibres, which are laid down in concentric horizontal, vertical, and diagonal layers of varying thickness (from nanometres to centimetres). The result is an incredibly strong but delicate frame that is highly resistant to cracks and breaks. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Fibre optics might only romantic in the form of those flashy Valentine's cards and construction workers might be sexy to some, but I'll bet their bosses (the ones who nerd about on computers and in labs with sponges looking for stronger ways to erect office buildings) aren't, so why are you reading a Valentine's special on Venus flower baskets and what am I talking about? Shrimp. And I don't mean those cheap rings you get from Safeway.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> While <i>Euplectella</i> is busy growing up into a strapping young adult sponge, a young pair of shrimp belonging to the family Spongicolidae sometimes move into the base of <i>Euplectella's</i> cone as it grows. The shrimp graze on particulate food matter that the sponge wafts in through it's flagellated (there's that word again) water chambers, do a bit of cleaning, and generally just loaf about, happily in love. <i> Euplectella </i>keeps growing, and eventually a covering or cap is formed at the top of the cone, trapping the shrimp within the sponge. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Nonplussed, the happy couple proceed to mate and release their young larvae, which are small enough to fit between the latticework of the sponge, out into the great blue deeps. A mated shrimp pair thus spends their entire life within the sponge and for this reason, Venus flower basket carcasses were traditionally given as wedding presents in Japan and the Philipines, to symbolize either eternal love, eternal imprisonment, or both!</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
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</span></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-8125648398075536382011-09-09T21:18:00.000-07:002011-09-09T21:18:33.706-07:00Pangolins<span style="font-size: small;">Originally published January 27, 2010 (The Manitoban, Vol. 97, No. 19)</span><br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Ever wake up in the morning and just ask yourself, "Why"? This volunteer science writer does not profess to have all the answers to that question by any means but, I do think that one of them is the possibility of someday meeting such animals as those I write about and others that you only dream of. For this week, we aspire to meet the pangolins.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> There are only eight extant species of pangolin (most of which are endangered), four in Asia and four in Africa. While not actually related to anteaters, they are also called scaly anteaters because, similar to anteaters, they are edentate (lack teeth) with long tongues (up to 16 inches in larger species) and have strong, thick claws used to burrow for insects such as ants and termites. </span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">They produce a special sticky mucous from salivary glands on the tongue to help catch and trap wily insects. Where to put this grossly elongated tongue you ask? Well, it retracts right down into the abdominal cavity near the pelvis! Without teeth to chew up ant-y food, the pangolins have developed a gizzard-like stomach (as seen in birds), ingesting small stones and sand to help grind their meals once inside the stomach. They have excellent hearing but do not have external ears, and they have a well-developed sense of smell.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Several species are arboreal, some live in burrows and almost all species are nocturnal. Many arboreal species, such as the tree pangolin (<i>M. tricuspis</i>), have strong prehensile tails which they use when climbing. The giant pangolin (<i>Manis gigantea</i>) of Africa can grow to five feet in length and is too large to climb trees. </span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> These crazy mammals are most notable for their complete covering of overlapping, armored scales made of keratin, that same material responsible for human fingernails. If threatened, pangolins roll up into a tight ball with the head tucked under the tail. They have well developed muscles which makes them very hard to pry apart and the outer edge of the scales are very sharp, so you would not be wise to attempt to unroll an upset pangolin. If that isn't convincing enough, they also have anal scent glands that produce a noxious odour, similar to our North American friends, the skunks (but again, no relation). </span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Pangolins are secretive and solitary and not much is known about their reproduction, but they are placental (eutherian) mammals, as are humans, and give birth to between one and three young at a time (most give birth to just one but it depends on the species). Young are born with soft scales that take a couple of days to harden. Young survive by hanging on to the mothers tail or back, or remaining in the burrow for several weeks, depending on the species. If danger approaches the mother will tuck up the baby under her belly as she rolls up, protecting them both.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> The first pangolins known in the fossil record are from the Eocene period, about 50 million years ago. For comparison, the first recognizable <i>Homo sapiens</i> showed up about 200 000 years ago.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJdfZ-A1LqYwdppdY94qTQZjldMSMrNdmyxITIwj0GgNnVzjvTlf_CkDdZwXsw_mfuzAQHviPQPK3janaMpVu26Dbx5vvQ_sMvgPddII38TNfgKKYEuRzyfnCt07GvHMhSp6dFNx4Y4dgx/s1600/p1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJdfZ-A1LqYwdppdY94qTQZjldMSMrNdmyxITIwj0GgNnVzjvTlf_CkDdZwXsw_mfuzAQHviPQPK3janaMpVu26Dbx5vvQ_sMvgPddII38TNfgKKYEuRzyfnCt07GvHMhSp6dFNx4Y4dgx/s320/p1.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span> </div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-18748964118945657952011-09-09T21:10:00.000-07:002011-09-09T21:11:07.213-07:00Oxpeckers<div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Originally published January 13, 2009 (<i>The Manitoban</i>, Vol. 97, No. 18)</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">That’s right I said oxpecker and no, I am not just gearing you up for Valentine’s Day folks, I am talking about birds. Vampiristic birds! What a way to get back into the swing of things, waking up and going home in the dark while the sun rises and sets with you stuck behind four walls that are most probably very insufficiently punctured by windows. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Speaking of puncture, the oxpeckers belong to the family Buphagidae and are considered distant evolutionary relatives of the mockingbirds, thrashers, and starlings. There are two species, Red-billed and Yellow-billed oxpeckers. Native to Africa, they make their living primarily by hitching rides and feeding on large hoofed mammals such as wildebeest, impala, giraffe, rhinoceros, water buffalo and others. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Oxpeckers feed heavily on parasites living off mammalian blood and tissues. They especially enjoy ticks but will also eat lice, mites, fleas, small insects and other organisms attempting to lodge within open wounds. They will also consume dead skin cells. Once thought to be a symbiotic relationship, with mammals benefiting by removal of the external parasites and birds benefiting by a nutritious (albeit disgusting) meal, that viewpoint no longer so certain. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Instead, it may be that the oxpeckers are themselves a type of parasite. There are many observations of these birds actively feeding on the blood of their host mammals. Observations have been made of oxpeckers actively keeping wounds open, of using their bill to exert pressure around wounds to increase blood flow, and of drinking blood from wounds made by ticks without consuming the ticks themselves. Observations of the birds inflicting wounds themselves are apparently some combination of absent, rare, and/or unreliable. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">While some evidence exists to show that oxpeckers can actually weaken and stress their mammalian hosts by keeping wounds open, they also keep wounds free of bacteria and other infectious agents; so, while they may be riddled with open sores, they are at least clean sores. Most animals tolerate the oxpeckers, and many have learned to respond to oxpecker alarm calls and thus gain protection in the form of an early-warning system for predators. Not all of our hoofed friends appreciate these offers however; elephants and some species of antelope actively and effectively avoid, resist, and remove the oxpeckers from their body.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">What is certain is that oxpeckers rely heavily on large African mammals. They feed, sleep, court, and even mate on their backs, and use their hair and dung to build nests. They also eat ear wax!</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: inherit; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikACKswKZLIw5QIcZ88vMGDhzy4AvMJT8nwzXd6BDJcezFIBzuvh5M67zmauXv5lV4Kl9Gbq3sq4ZtrAPnHKeG9UaGoVzF8Fpv6c1rjwYE_pe5m8yx9pdhS5Pg8rj81QnL2GyLRwOtbRgc/s1600/ox2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikACKswKZLIw5QIcZ88vMGDhzy4AvMJT8nwzXd6BDJcezFIBzuvh5M67zmauXv5lV4Kl9Gbq3sq4ZtrAPnHKeG9UaGoVzF8Fpv6c1rjwYE_pe5m8yx9pdhS5Pg8rj81QnL2GyLRwOtbRgc/s1600/ox2.jpg" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Red-billed Oxpecker</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXj-htUBFEdZ1g4xNsEj-K2kNM3LkN2Ws1uc-eZGsurg2uOFNbClsE9ct1YoIp3azVGFUZaARP7EQUnZ5LRh3IpfUOood0CprIl8ob9DO-tjpTHbkrsVYxAUtD7RqSpija53mnGmiR0lBP/s1600/ox1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXj-htUBFEdZ1g4xNsEj-K2kNM3LkN2Ws1uc-eZGsurg2uOFNbClsE9ct1YoIp3azVGFUZaARP7EQUnZ5LRh3IpfUOood0CprIl8ob9DO-tjpTHbkrsVYxAUtD7RqSpija53mnGmiR0lBP/s1600/ox1.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Yellow-billed Oxpecker</span></td></tr>
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</span></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-76102149103669117012011-09-09T21:01:00.000-07:002011-09-09T21:03:31.578-07:00Antarctic Icefish<div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Originally published December 2, 2009 (<i>The Manitoban</i>, Vol. 97, No. 16)</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><span style="font-size: small;">It is written (at least it is now): "</span><span style="font-size: small;"><i>As you sow procrastination, so shall you reap procrastination…"</i></span><span style="font-size: small;"> You should be glad to know, if you haven't guessed already, that I am procrastinating. Right now. Sacrificing</span><span style="font-size: small;"> valuable study time and perhaps even entire letter grades to tell you about yet another of the under-appreciated creatures inhabiting our planet. I suggest you return the favour</span><span style="font-size: small;"> (and fulfill the italicised</span><span style="font-size: small;"> proverb above) by procrastinating about your own studies in order to read this.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Winter is coming and we can learn a lot from the icefish</span><span style="font-size: small;">. If you want to impress your friends, I suggest you refer to them as Notothenioids</span><span style="font-size: small;">, which is the suborder they belong to. If you'd like to refer to them as a family call them Channichthyidae, but just make sure you can pronounce this stuff before you go making a fool of yourself over it. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span> </div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><span style="font-size: small;"> There are over 120 described species of icefish living in the frigid Southern Ocean waters surrounding the Antarctic. These fish are primarily benthic (they live on the bottom) and all lack a swim bladder (that thing that helps other fish move vertically in the water column). Buoyancy is instead regulated by deposition of lipids in the tissues, by reduced ossification of bony structures, and reduction in the amount of skeletal elements they possess. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><span style="font-size: small;">Icefish are able to survive in the below freezing Antarctic waters (-1.5 to -2.0 C) that are not frozen thanks to salt. How do they do this you ask? Well, I am glad you asked because that is the second neatest thing about these fish. Their body fluids have antifreeze proteins in them that bind to ice crystals, should they begin to form, and prevent them from spreading throughout the body. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><span style="font-size: small;">The first neatest thing about icefish is that they have no erythrocytes (red blood cells) or hemoglobin in their blood (you know that protein that carries oxygen to your starving tissues? No big deal...). Aside from being a great statistic to brag to your distant evolutionary relations about--they are the only vertebrates in the world that don't make hemoglobin--it looks really cool because without hemoglobin, blood is colourless! How do they get away without hemoglobin? This is made possible by one of the many mysterious and wonderful properties of water: cold water has higher concentrations of dissolved oxygen, allowing the icefish to meet all their oxygen needs through the skin and at the gills. If only life were so easy for us frigid, pathetic humans, just waiting for the big freeze. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><span style="font-size: small;">At least there's hockey to look forward to over the next 6 months!</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-family: inherit; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglzPvCiY_-ItQDGYmUO6pAuqppdG6rgbQ4LaQpjWxKmdaiOyQx4YMmxh1zoBHpg8Wqu4MYR178zt5yv34MTnMshNtEDLf4MFCNhoFUS59595hVxji-AzKMiyCozSFe5bfVw4gIaUyBzaVN/s1600/antarctic+icefish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglzPvCiY_-ItQDGYmUO6pAuqppdG6rgbQ4LaQpjWxKmdaiOyQx4YMmxh1zoBHpg8Wqu4MYR178zt5yv34MTnMshNtEDLf4MFCNhoFUS59595hVxji-AzKMiyCozSFe5bfVw4gIaUyBzaVN/s320/antarctic+icefish.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7416296123372948746.post-64510485949014720422011-09-09T20:56:00.000-07:002011-09-09T21:01:51.531-07:00Caecilians<div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Originally published November 11, 2009 (<i>The Manitoban</i>, Vol. 97, No. 13)</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">While my long-term goal as a volunteer science writer does include developing a ravenous cult following at least the size of Winnipeg, I am not yet so megalomaniacal as to expect that just 5 articles spanning 3 months will have generated a base of regular readers. However, just in case any of you happen to be riding on the leading edge of my wave (so to speak), I want you to know that I really wish this article hadn’t taken so long. The thing is…I really wanted to talk about <i>Archelon</i> but to my utter dismay, I just couldn’t find enough information. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">This is what I could find out about <i>Archelon</i>: <i>Archelon</i> was a marine turtle alive during the late cretaceous period 80-odd million years ago that looked pretty similar to marine turtles alive today with the exception that it was the largest turtle that ever existed (as far as we know). </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i> Archelon</i> was the size of a small car, but bigger than a Smart car because they don’t count.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;">So without further ado, I will now talk about caecilians because they are really cool too and they are not extinct. And unlike that nasty trick I pulled last time, they are not about to become extinct (largely because most of them live underground and no one really knows very much about them and with the exception of one species that is in fact endangered). I also won’t include any bad jokes about Sicilians but this is mostly just because I don’t know any, so if you have some that you find relevant, you can just add them in wherever you like. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Caecilians! They, along with frogs and salamanders, are amphibians. They do not have limbs (i.e. they are legless), they are either aquatic or burrowing, some lay eggs but the majority are viviparous (give birth to live young), and many exhibit parental care. Some caecilians have scales (no other living amphibians have scales as far as anyone who’s talking about it knows) and all caecilians have tentacles, which are likely an adaptation to living under low-light conditions.</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Some structures that are associated with eyes in other vertebrates are instead associated with tentacles and the eyes, which are reduced or even covered with thin flaps of skin, are located on the tentacle itself in some species. They are thought to have a chemosensory (“smelling”) function. Roughly 75 percent of known caecilian species give birth to fully formed young that may be between 30 to 60 percent of their mother’s body length (yikes). </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;">Initial growth of the fetus is supported by a yolk but this is used up before development has completed, meaning the remaining energy needed has to be supplied internally by the mother. Nutritious materials and secretions are scraped from the walls of the mother’s oviducts with specialized teeth! In caecilians which do lay eggs, the female often broods and guards the eggs until they hatch. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;">If you are a geek like me and think that David Attenborough is just the cat’s meow, you may be familiar with a newish series called <i>Life in Cold Blood</i>. The film crew and science team were able to stick a fancy little camera into a caecilian’s burrow and made a really neat discovery: oviparous (egg-laying) caecilians must provide food for their under-developed young once they hatch and the spy camera found that mother caecilians begin to slough off a specialized outer layer of skin, high in fat and other nutrients, upon which the baby caecilians feed every 3 nights or so! Talk about giving the shirt off your back. </span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;">The young show a 10-fold increase in growth in just a week of this, so even though it might sound disgusting, it is a great way fatten your kids up and get them the heck out of the house (or burrow as it were) already. Be sure to tune in next time for… something else obscure and intriguing and worth waiting for!</span></div><div style="font-family: inherit; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div>Leanne Grieveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04427155168115840830noreply@blogger.com0