Nature News
New Caledonian crows and their tools
Posted Sat, 17 Dec 2011 09:18:29 GMT by Dave ArmstrongTool using has now been observed in several species since the chimpanzee showed us that we are not alone in the use of implements. The New Caledonian crow has joined the rook, the Eurasian jay and the Egyptian vulture in the bird tool users club.
New Caledonian crows and their tools
Arboreal ant wars
Posted Thu, 15 Dec 2011 21:40:00 GMT by Dave ArmstrongDistance warfare has been thought to be a human development. Ants have beaten us to it long ago, though! Interspecific competition and wide ranging predations have helped both defence and offence mechanisms.
Arboreal ant wars
Hominids, orangutans, and really hard seeds
Posted Thu, 15 Dec 2011 01:11:00 GMT by Ines MoralesNew research on orangutans can shed light on the evolution of the human species. Sometime in the deep past, one or more hominid species started down an evolutionary path that would eventually lead to us: how exactly did that happen? Now, a recent piece of research on hungry orangutans has contributed something to the discussion.
Hominids, orangutans, and really hard seeds
The petal of the buttercup
Posted Wed, 14 Dec 2011 23:18:00 GMT by Ines MoralesScientists have finally discovered the anatomical secrets of the buttercup flower. Put a buttercup flower under your chin and it will shine. Everyone knows this - at least, everyone who has tested it - and children have gone so far as to turn it into a game.
The petal of the buttercup
When great white sharks attack - and how seals try to get away
Posted Sat, 10 Dec 2011 20:45:00 GMT by Colin RickettsWhy great white sharks are such bad news for Cape fur seals. A pair of scientists have put the ocean's greatest killing machines under the spotlight to find they rely on cunning, speed and stealth to get their prey.
When great white sharks attack - and how seals try to get away
Eye fossil proves ancient sea predator had strong vision
Posted Thu, 08 Dec 2011 21:47:00 GMT by Adrian BishopThe giant shrimp-like Anomalocaris that lived 515 millions years ago had superb vision, paleontologists have found after discovering a fossilised eye.
Eye fossil proves ancient sea predator had strong vision
Guppies, mating and the social group
Posted Thu, 08 Dec 2011 14:22:00 GMT by Ines MoralesNew research on female guppies and their responses to mating. A recent study from the universities of Exeter and Copenhagen examined the mating behavior of the Trinidadian guppy, a species of freshwater fish you might know very well if you're one of those people who like to keep aquariums at home.
Guppies, mating and the social group
Earthquakes and 'wise toads' predicting them
Posted Sun, 04 Dec 2011 00:30:00 GMT by Dave ArmstrongA study recently published looks at the possibility that toads can predict earthquakes. A toad breeding lake emptied a few days before the much-reported Italian M6.3 earthquake on April 6th 2009 and was only revisited by its former occupants after a series of aftershocks.
Earthquakes and 'wise toads' predicting them
Chimp throwbacks
Posted Thu, 01 Dec 2011 10:11:47 GMT by Dave ArmstrongHuman evolution seems to have begun with tools, language and hunting. Now it seems the silver medallist in these events is catching us up. Chimpanzees have long been recorded throwing with great accuracy in zoos as well as in the wild.
Chimp throwbacks
Osteoderms storing minerals helped huge dinosaurs survive
Posted Wed, 30 Nov 2011 18:33:00 GMT by Adrian BishopSome of the biggest dinosaurs on earth used minerals stored in bones under their skin (osteoderms) in times of crisis or hardship, a study shows.
Osteoderms storing minerals helped huge dinosaurs survive
The whales are calling you
Posted Tue, 29 Nov 2011 19:44:00 GMT by Dave CollierGet involved in a project to help categorize whale calls. The crowdsourcing Whale Project is intended to help confirm researcher's whale song categorizations while also raising interest and awareness for the work that has been undertaken to understand these wonderful creatures.
The whales are calling you
Colobus chorus
Posted Tue, 29 Nov 2011 18:12:00 GMT by Dave ArmstrongThere is nothing more delightful than waking in South East Asian forests to the gibbon dawn chorus, but South America Howlers and African Colobus seem to compete more loudly. In an intriguing and difficult investigation by Anne Schel and Klaus Zuberbuhler, communication in animals reports a dawn chorus from insect, amphibian and bird.
Colobus chorus
Long live the queen bee
Posted Tue, 29 Nov 2011 16:21:00 GMT by Dave CollierVitellogenin, a protein important for the health of bees has been studied to give a greater understanding of its role in their lives.
Long live the queen bee
Spider 'Repell-Ant'
Posted Wed, 23 Nov 2011 22:02:00 GMT by Dave ArmstrongOrb web spiders are able to coat an alkaloid on their threads that prevents hordes of ants from raiding the larder, or even eating the owner. As they grow larger, the Golden Orb Web spider coats the web with the repellent and no intruder can pass over.
Spider 'Repell-Ant'
Grey seals have real personality
Posted Wed, 23 Nov 2011 18:15:00 GMT by Adrian BishopGrey seals have very different personalities that influence how they protect their pups, say researchers. Mother grey seals in Scotland choose very different approaches to nurture and protect their pups according to their personality.
Grey seals have real personality
Horses look back
Posted Wed, 23 Nov 2011 16:01:00 GMT by Dave ArmstrongScience has advanced now to the extent that we can look back in history through the mitochondrial DNA of humans and now the rest of our fauna. Horses are such a major part of history that perhaps there are even better stories to be winkled out of the chromosomes before another new technique delivers a magic mirror to view our past.
Horses look back
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Recent News
How can the tiny capacity of a bee brain store memory as capably as that of our own? The 2 are very similar in performance, according to this research, despite the disparity in size.
More on the pack of lies that emerge on logging worldwide. Maybe this time, the destruction can be slowed down to a stop, after these revelations on satellite-tracking the real damage to our forests.
Who can stomach the great environmental costs of growing cotton? It has destroyed seas and bankrupted many farmers . It is now down to manufacturing brand names to support their growers in ways they have not managed before. In the modern tradition, fair trading has reached the clothing industry.
Recent Blog Posts
Need to save money after the spending boom to end them all? Here are 2 sets of opinions on how to pull out the plugs at night at least.
When dolphins are 'rescued' in various countries, the car given seems to be ill-considered. We are simply looking at the success rate which is reported to be low, in most places. They could even end up in commercial aquarium shows, but they certainly rarely make it back to the sea.
What is killing bees? Chelsea has the answer here.
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