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“Toadzilla” Discovered By Australian Rangers
It’s not gonna go out to cities to destroy them though, so don’t worry!Rangers stationed at a national park in Queensland were shocked to discover an enormous toad, to the point that they claimed that it probably was the largest in history. The amphibian was given the nickname “Toadzilla,” to honor its massive size. The toad was found near Airlie Beach in Conway National Park, according to the Queensland Government's Department of Environment and Science. Park ranger Kylee Gray did not notice the amphibian at first, instead stopping because she saw a snake across the path. This Toadzilla is a cane toad, one of the worst invasive species in the world. They were released in Queensland in 1935 to control cane beetle populations. However, they also spread quickly in the region as there are no natural predators in the area that can hunt them down. These amphibians can lay between 8,000 and 30,000 eggs. That’s a lot. The toad will be able to break the previous record held by another cane toad named Prinsen, who lived in Sweden. Unfortunately, Toadzilla will not be able to celebrate if they do manage to break the Guinness World Record, as they had to be euthanized due to the damage they can cause to the environment. Image credit: Queensland Department of Environment and Science#invasivespecies #animals #amphibians #toad #canetoad #Austrialia #Queensland
Oxytocin AKA The Love Hormone Makes Lions Mellow and Friendly
Lions have long been known as the "King of the Jungle", because of their strength, power, and fierceness. Researchers working on a wildlife reserve in Dinokeng, South Africa, however, discovered that an intranasal administration of oxytocin, the "love hormone" might make lion encounters less dangerous. Their findings were published in the journal iScience on March 30.The author, Jessica Burkhart, said that by spraying the oxytocin up the lion's nose, it can travel to the trigeminal and olfactory nerves straight to the brain. Burkhart and her colleagues found that the 23 lions administered oxytocin were more tolerant of other lions in their habitat and demonstrated less alertness towards intruders after these treatments. This gives some people look hope that through Science, they might finally be able to pet lions in the future.Image credit: Jessica Burkhart#Lions #Animals #Wildlife #Oxytocin #Science
Amazing Photos of Cold-Water Invertebrates by Marine Biologist Alexander Semenov
These are absolutely stunning!At first glance, one might think that the images were taken by a drone or a robot during an expedition and then edited or processed for better quality. Nope.It was all the work of marine biologist Alexander Semenov. In an article he wrote for Nature, he explained how he started taking these awe-inspiring photos. Semenov got obsessed with the beauty of the animals living in the waters of the White Sea in Primosrskiy, Russia. Semenov then decided to start taking photos of them to capture their unique beauty and strangeness. The marine biologist shared that he pulled invertebrates out of the water and took pictures of them in the laboratory without special lighting. After a few experimental setups to further enhance the quality of his images, he was able to find his groove. Semenov now has the compilation of cold-water invertebrates, some of the least-photographed creatures in the world. Check out more of his stunning work below!Image credit: Alexander Semenov#marine #animals #invertebrates #photography #science
Great White Shark Social Club Found Near Guadalupe Island, Mexico
It’s a special gathering spot for great whites only.Experts discovered a secret shark social club in the waters of Guadalupe Island, near Mexico. According to the research, which was published in Biology Letters, the band of great whites formed their elite group during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Some of the members of the clique were observed hunting and patroling around the waters with another of the same sex. The longest time that a pair of sharks were observed to be together was for about 70 minutes. "Seventy minutes is a long time to be swimming around with another white shark," marine scientist Yannis Papastamatiou, the lead researcher of the study, explained.The observed social network had their “meetings” near a seal breeding ground, which suggests that the sharks could be hanging out where their prey is near. This means that they both socialize and use each other as backups during hunting. "They aren't working together but being social could be a way to share information," Papastamatiou said. Image credit: Jakob Owens#sharks #greatwhites #animals #biology #marinebiology #GuadalupeIslang #Mexico
Geese - Not Chicken - Were the First Birds Domesticated by Man 7,000 Years Ago
It turns out that chickens didn’t come first, huh! A new study of preserved goose bones revealed that these animals were domesticated as early as 7000 years ago in China. This means that they are the first bird to be taken care of. Hokkaido University Museum’s Masaki Eda and a team of experts excavated Tianluoshan, a Stone Age village between about 7000 and 5500 years old in east China. Out of the total of 232 bones at the location, four of them belonged to immature geese, which suggests that they hatched at the village. In addition, the adult geese bones were observed to have been locally bred and were all almost the same size. This implies captive breeding. The evidence suggests that the geese were the first bird to be domesticated, while the chicken is a strong contender, there has been a dispute over when and where this happened (and no direct evidence to suggest the timeline for chicken domestication). Image credit: Pedro da Silva#geese #history #domestication #animals
Can We Bring the Dodo Back from Extinction?
The dodo is a sad story of how quickly a species can be gone due to human irresponsibility. Discovered at the turn of the 17th century, the flightless bird quickly went extinct after only 100 years as it fell victim to hunting by humans and became prey to dogs, cats, and pigs brought by the explorers. But now, there is hope in the de-extinction of the species, as scientists have finally fully sequenced the species' genome. However, it is not yet published, but one of the people behind the sequencing, Beth Shapiro, says it will be soon.Despite the fully sequenced genome, we might still not see a living dodo soon because birds have intricate reproductive pathways. Editing cells and turning them into actual mammals is easier, Shapiro remarks. In other words, we need a new approach for birds.A potential method could be editing a Nicobar pigeon's DNA. As the dodo and this pigeon are closely related genetically, scientists could edit the pigeon's DNA to include the dodo DNA. But it will probably look a bit different compared to the extinct dodo.(Image Credit: 123rf via NZ Herald)#GenomeMapping #DNA #GeneticEngineering #Dodo #Animals
Argas brumpti Tick Survived for 8 Years Without Feeding
Living without eating for years is possible– if you’re a tick, at least!An East African species of tick, called Argas brumpti, was able to survive for eight years without eating. Julian Shepherd, an associate professor of biological sciences at Binghamton University discovered the insect’s abilities after running out of a food source for the said species. After initially receiving these creatures as a gift in 1976, Shepherd was surprised to find out that they survived for a very long time without eating any food. The set of ticks he acquired was composed of six adult females, four adult males, and three nymphs of the species. He fed them lab rabbits, mice, and rats until 1984 when the professor decided to stop feeding them due to a lack of source. The male ticks died four years after they weren’t able to eat. The females survived for 8 years and even managed to reproduce asexually, a behavior Shepherd noticed for the very first time. After 45 years of researching and studying the insects’ behaviors, he published his findings in the Journal of Medical Entomology.Image credit: Jonathan Cohen#food #survivial #animals #insects #ticks #research #Argasbrumpti
"Boops", "Honks", and "Hoots": Fish are Surprisingly Chatty by Communicating Underwater with Sound
Researchers from Cornell University discovered that fish actually communicate with each other through sound. It is not new knowledge that fish actually emit different kinds of sound. However, with the development of technology, scientists have now confirmed that these aquatic creatures produce sounds for communication.Aaron Rice and his team analyzed the sound-producing physical characteristics (eg. swim bladder musculature) across different species and concluded that ancient sturgeons first started chatting around 155 million years ago. That is right around the same time that mammals began speaking with each other, too! Image credit: Hiroko Yoshii#fish #talk #animals #biology #sound #research
Chimpanzees Apply Insects to Heal Wounds
Researchers from Osnabrück University and the Ozouga Chimpanzee Project observed chimpanzees applying insects to their wounds. The team, led by Dr. Tobias Deschner and Prof. Dr. Simone Pika, investigated the behavior of a group of chimpanzees. The team aimed to record and observe the social relationships, hunting behavior, tool use, and cognitive and communicative skills of the animals.This is the first time that chimpanzees were observed to apply animal matter on open wounds. "Our observations provide the first evidence that chimpanzees regularly capture insects and apply them onto open wounds. We now aim to investigate the potential beneficial consequences of such a surprising behavior," said Dr. Deschner.The authors of the study who documented this behavior have suggested that the insects might have anti-inflammatory or antiseptic properties. Another proposed explanation for this behavior is that it could be part of the local chimpanzee culture.Image credit: Tobias Deschner/ Ozouga chimpanzee project#animals #behavior #chimpanzees #medicine #externalapplication #insects #research #animalbehavior
Liquid Blood Found in the Heart of a Prehistoric 42,000-Year-Old Foal Mummy Preserved in Siberian Permafrost
This is the oldest blood in the world, ever!A prehistoric foal mummy was discovered in Siberia. The animal, estimated to be around 42,000 years old, had beautifully preserved internal organs and liquid blood thanks to its favorable burial conditions and the Siberian permafrost. According to Semyon Grigoryev, head of the Mammoth Museum in Yakutsk, the liquid blood was extracted from the animal’s heart vessels. The foal’s excellent condition makes it the best-preserved Ice Age animal ever found in the world.Scientists are now looking forward to cloning the animal to revive its species, the Lenskaya breed, which went extinct a long time ago. “Hopefully, the world will soon meet the clone of the ancient foal who lived 42,000 years ago.” Mickhil Yakovlev, editor of the North-Eastern Federal University’s media said to the press. Image credit: North-Eastern Federal University#paleontology #Lenskaya #foal #mummy #permafrost #siberia #cloning #animals
Kunga: "War Donkey" Bred 4,500 Years Ago by Ancient Mesopotamians was the Oldest Known Hybrid Animal
It seems that our penchant for making, or breeding, hybrid animals started a long, long time ago. Experts discovered the remains of a Kunga, the earliest known hybrid animal bred by people. This ‘war donkey’ is from Syro-Mesopotamia, and existed around 4,500 years ago.The animal is a combination or cross between a donkey and a hemippe, a type of Asiatic wild ass. According to the researchers, these animals were highly valued and priced. This can be seen through the location where the remains of this hybrid were discovered. Skeletons of the animals were found in a royal burial complex dating back to 2600 B.C.According to paleogeneticist Eva-Maria Geigl of Institut Jacques Monod in Paris, the Kungas were probably created for warfare, as they could pull wagons. Image credit: Glenn Schwartz/Johns Hopkins University#animals #ancienttimes #history #mesopotamia #hybrid #science
Scientists Reversed Paralysis in Mice with Spinal Cord Injury by Injecting Synthetic Nanofibers Gel That Promotes Regeneration of Severed Nerves
Researchers from Northwestern University in Chicago created a self-assembling gel that helped in regenerating severed nerves in animals. Samuel Stupp and his colleagues created the gel out of monomers-- protein units that self-assemble into long chains of fibers in water.The gel was injected into paralyzed mice, and after four weeks, the animals were able to walk again. In addition, the researchers discovered that the gel helped regenerate the severed ends of neurons.“The extent of functional recovery and solid biological evidence of repair we observed using a model that truly emulates the severe human injury makes the therapy superior to other approaches,” said Stupp.Image credit: Samuel I. Stupp#NerveTreatment #Regeneration #Biology #Animals #NorthwesternUniversity #SelfAssemblingGel #Research
Secret Lives of Baby Octopuses: They Develop Temporary Structures of Unknown Function Called the Kölliker’s organs that Look Like Tiny Brooms on Their Skin
Experts from the Mesoscopic Imaging Facility (MIF) at EMBL Barcelona studied a unique feature found in octopuses called the Kölliker’s organs. These organs are present on the skin of baby octopuses, but they disappear once the soft-bodied cephalopods reach their adult stage. To learn about the function of these temporary structures, the MIF examined specimens of hatchlings and juveniles of Octopus vulgaris, or common octopus.Roger Villanueva, the lead researcher in the study, described the unique organs as “mini brooms on the surface of the baby octopuses.” After a long period of observation, researchers noted that Kölliker’s organs were roughly the same size and were evenly distributed on the skin. As for the function of these organs, Villanueva stated that the “organs could be used by the young octopuses to increase their surface-to-volume ratio.” He also added that ““The distribution of these organs on the surface of the arms, head, and mantle of the octopus and their ability to refract light in two directions suggest that they might also have a role in camouflage.”#Octopus #KollikerOrgans #Camouflage #Animals image credit: Roger Villanueva/ICM-CSIC
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