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I am a science writer, natural history illustrator, and ecologist.
Nature Notes
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About Animals / Wildlife
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- October 18, 2010
- 10:12 AM
- 485 views
Florida Panthers - Revived, with a Texan Twist
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
Florida panthers are healthier and fitter than they were fifteen years ago. They have higher genetic diversity, better immunity to disease, and fewer genetic abnormalities. They suffer fewer heart defects, enjoy higher fertility and are better able to climb trees. This is wonderful news for a population of panthers that was recently on the brink of extinction.
Like most populations of large carnivores, panther populations are divided between habitat islands and isolated in protected areas such ........ Read more »
Johnson, W., Onorato, D., Roelke, M., Land, E., Cunningham, M., Belden, R., McBride, R., Jansen, D., Lotz, M., Shindle, D.... (2010) Genetic Restoration of the Florida Panther. Science, 329(5999), 1641-1645. DOI: 10.1126/science.1192891
Packer, C. (2010) A Bit of Texas in Florida. Science, 329(5999), 1606-1607. DOI: 10.1126/science.1196738
- September 14, 2010
- 08:22 AM
- 808 views
Moonlight and Mild Temps Inspire Owl Monkeys
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
Azara's owl monkeys move to the rhythm of the moon. On nights when a full moon floods the evening sky with light, Azara's owl monkeys cannot sit still. They are so active that by dawn the next morning, they are worn out. But when the lunar cycle wanes and the moonlight fades, Azara's owl monkeys grow less active at night. On mornings after moonless nights, they are more active during the dawn hours.
The owl monkey genus is unique among anthropoids (monkeys, apes and humans) because it is the onl........ Read more »
Fernández-Duque, E., de la Iglesia, H., & Erkert, H. (2010) Moonstruck Primates: Owl Monkeys (Aotus) Need Moonlight for Nocturnal Activity in Their Natural Environment. PLoS ONE, 5(9). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0012572
- September 12, 2010
- 06:52 AM
- 671 views
Female Finches Reap the Benefits of Being Unfaithful
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
Female Gouldian finches don't always stand by their man. Given the opportunity, they'll indulge in a promiscuous tryst with another male. But this infidelity is not merely cold-hearted cheating. It's an evolutionary ploy that enables the female finches to bolster their offsprings' odds of survival.
The benefits of promiscuity in monogamous animals such as the Gouldian finch are straightforward for males but less clear for females. Promiscuity offers male finches a way to increase the number of o........ Read more »
Pryke, S., Rollins, L., & Griffith, S. (2010) Females Use Multiple Mating and Genetically Loaded Sperm Competition to Target Compatible Genes. Science, 329(5994), 964-967. DOI: 10.1126/science.1192407
- September 7, 2010
- 06:58 PM
- 795 views
How Christmas Island Red Crabs Fuel Their Migration
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
For most of the year, Christmas Island red crabs can be classified as pretty lazy crabs. During the dry season, these small land crabs spend long hours resting in their burrows. They emerge at dawn to feed for about 10 minutes and then return underground to escape the heat of the day. But when the dry season ends and the monsoons turn the island soggy, the crabs abandon their hermitic lifestyle. ...Read Full Post... Read more »
Morris, S., Postel, U., Mrinalini, ., Turner, L., Palmer, J., & Webster, S. (2010) The adaptive significance of crustacean hyperglycaemic hormone (CHH) in daily and seasonal migratory activities of the Christmas Island red crab Gecarcoidea natalis. Journal of Experimental Biology, 213(17), 3062-3073. DOI: 10.1242/jeb.045153
- August 11, 2010
- 05:00 AM
- 785 views
Bearded Gobies to the Rescue
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
The bearded goby is an ecological superhero. In less than five decades, this six-inch fish managed to revive an entire marine ecosystem—one that had careened to the brink of collapse. Now scientists are beginning to unravel how the bearded goby stabilized the communities around it and capitalized on conditions seemingly too harsh for life.... Read more »
Utne-Palm AC, Salvanes AG, Currie B, Kaartvedt S, Nilsson GE, Braithwaite VA, Stecyk JA, Hundt M, van der Bank M, Flynn B.... (2010) Trophic structure and community stability in an overfished ecosystem. Science (New York, N.Y.), 329(5989), 333-6. PMID: 20647468
- July 28, 2010
- 03:21 PM
- 797 views
Climate and the Lion's Magnificent Mane
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
A lion's mane is more than just a bushy bunch of fur framing its face. It's a declaration of a lion's vitality, fighting prowess and dominance as well as an acknowledgement of the climate in which the lion lives. This is the conclusion made by scientists who studied nearly 300 lions in Tanzania's Ngorongoro Crater and Serengeti National Park.
Only male lions (Panthera leo) grow manes—females lack the long fur around their face and neck. This difference in appearance between the sexes mean........ Read more »
West, P. (2002) Sexual Selection, Temperature, and the Lion's Mane. Science, 297(5585), 1339-1343. DOI: 10.1126/science.1073257
- June 21, 2010
- 07:58 AM
- 684 views
How Caribbean Anoles Filled So Many Niches
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
↑ Click to enlarge image
Imagine a hungry group of youngsters bursting into a candy store where sweets are free for the taking—no cashiers asking for money, no one at the counter putting lids on the candy jars. Children flock to all corners of the store, spreading out evenly so each can claim an entire row of candy jars as their own. As more and more children flood into the shop, they fill the open spaces, packing themselves ever tighter until each child claims just a single jar of ........ Read more »
Mahler, D., Revell, L., Glor, R., & Losos, J. (2010) ECOLOGICAL OPPORTUNITY AND THE RATE OF MORPHOLOGICAL EVOLUTION IN THE DIVERSIFICATION OF GREATER ANTILLEAN ANOLES. Evolution. DOI: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.2010.01026.x
- May 11, 2010
- 07:25 AM
- 678 views
Three Teeth: The First Fossil Remains of Chimpanzees
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
Until recently, there were no known fossil remains of chimpanzees. Then in 2005, anthropologists Sally McBrearty and Nina Jablonski published a paper in the journal Nature describing three fossil chimpanzee teeth that had been unearthed from the Kapthurin Formation, a basalt outcrop west of Lake Baringo in Kenya. This discovery offered new insight into the lives ancestral chimpanzees.
Today, chimpanzees inhabit the tropical forests of West and Central Africa and are absent from the dryer habit........ Read more »
McBrearty, S., & Jablonski, N. (2005) First fossil chimpanzee. Nature, 437(7055), 105-108. DOI: 10.1038/nature04008
- May 11, 2010
- 01:19 AM
- 100 views
The First Fossil Remains of Chimpanzees
by Laura Klappenbach in Nature Notes
Until recently, there were no known fossil remains of chimpanzees. Then in 2005, anthropologists Sally McBrearty and Nina Jablonski published a paper in the journal Nature describing three fossil chimpanzee teeth that had been unearthed from the Kapthurin Formation, a basalt outcrop west of Lake Baringo in Kenya. This discovery offered new insight into the lives ancestral chimpanzees.
Today, chimpanzees inhabit the tropical forests of West and Central Africa and are absent from the dryer habit........ Read more »
McBrearty, S., & Jablonski, N. (2005) First fossil chimpanzee. Nature, 437(7055), 105-108. DOI: 10.1038/nature04008
- May 2, 2010
- 03:38 PM
- 610 views
The Basics of Chimp Technology
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
"The chimpanzee uses the objects of his environment as tools to a greater extent than any other living animal with the exception of man himself." ~ Jane Goodall, In the Shadow of Man
It's been nearly 50 years since Jane Goodall made the observations that inspired these words. Today, they are still true—chimpanzees are second only to humans in the variety of tools they use and the innovative ways they employ those tools.
Since Jane Goodall's pioneering work began in the early 1960s, she ........ Read more »
McGrew, W. (2010) Chimpanzee Technology. Science, 328(5978), 579-580. DOI: 10.1126/science.1187921
- April 15, 2010
- 06:07 AM
- 697 views
Ancient Snake Dined on Dinos
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
↑ Click to enlarge image
A fossil unearthed from a remote corner of western India reads like an ancient crime scene. The fossil depicts a dinosaur nest containing two unhatched dinosaur eggs and the broken pieces of shell from a third egg. Next to the shattered shell lies the remains of a hatchling dinosaur. The fossil also features the remnants of a rather more sinister creature: an ancient snake lies coiled around the broken egg, as if caught in the act of raiding the nest.
The fossil........ Read more »
Wilson, J., Mohabey, D., Peters, S., & Head, J. (2010) Predation upon Hatchling Dinosaurs by a New Snake from the Late Cretaceous of India. PLoS Biology, 8(3). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.1000322
- March 30, 2010
- 01:52 PM
- 1,043 views
Chilly Chameleons Don't Miss Meals
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
For cold-blooded animals, the colder it gets—the harder life gets. As temperatures fall, lizards sprint slower, fish swim slower, and frogs jump shorter distances. Life-sustaining skills such as outrunning predators and foraging for food become insurmountable challenges. So it's not surprising that most cold-blooded animals, also known as ectotherms, remain inactive during the cooler parts of the day or avoid frosty habitats altogether. Most cold-blooded animals that is, except for ch........ Read more »
Anderson, C., & Deban, S. (2010) Ballistic tongue projection in chameleons maintains high performance at low temperature. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 107(12), 5495-5499. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0910778107
- February 15, 2010
- 05:00 AM
- 737 views
Leaf-Cutter Ants Dabble with Nitrogen Fixation
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
Leaf-cutter ants are crafty cultivators. They tend vast gardens of fungus that they harvest to feed their minions. In return, the ants care for the fungus. They constantly clip and compost bits of leaves to form a rich substrate on which the fungus thrives. When the fungus is attacked by pathogens, the ants fight back, armed with bacteria that counteract the pathogen.... Read more »
Pinto-Tomas, A., Anderson, M., Suen, G., Stevenson, D., Chu, F., Cleland, W., Weimer, P., & Currie, C. (2009) Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation in the Fungus Gardens of Leaf-Cutter Ants. Science, 326(5956), 1120-1123. DOI: 10.1126/science.1173036
- December 14, 2009
- 11:15 AM
- 980 views
Bird Calls: Scolding Predators or Warning Fellow Birds?
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
When approached by a predator, birds often cry out—they produce what is known as a 'call'. But why would a bird do such a thing? A call draws attention to the caller and might reveal it's location, making it more vulnerable to attack. What is the purpose of such a risky vocal outburst? And when a bird calls out, to whom is the bird communicating? Predators or fellow birds?
A team of scientists from the University of California Davis conducted a series of experiments to find out more about ........ Read more »
Yorzinski, J., & Patricelli, G. (2009) Birds adjust acoustic directionality to beam their antipredator calls to predators and conspecifics. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2009.1519
- December 3, 2009
- 09:04 PM
- 921 views
The Decline of the Megafuana
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
Something dramatic happened to a lot of very big animals between 20,000 and 10,000 years ago. During this time period, 34 major groups of large animals died-out. Among those that disappeared, were ten species that weighted more than a ton. Giant sloths, mammoths, mastodons, giant kangaroos, and moa were just a few of the fast-vanishing fauna.
It has long been clear that these large animals, also known as "megafauna", perished in a short period of time. But scientists disagree about what caused t........ Read more »
Gill, J., Williams, J., Jackson, S., Lininger, K., & Robinson, G. (2009) Pleistocene Megafaunal Collapse, Novel Plant Communities, and Enhanced Fire Regimes in North America. Science, 326(5956), 1100-1103. DOI: 10.1126/science.1179504
Johnson, C. (2009) Megafaunal Decline and Fall. Science, 326(5956), 1072-1073. DOI: 10.1126/science.1182770
- November 29, 2009
- 12:28 PM
- 838 views
Leaf-cutting Ants Tend Vast Fungal Gardens
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
Leaf-cutting ants have the power to slice, dice, and pilfer the foliage of an entire grove of trees in a matter of days. With impressive efficiency, swarms of leaf-cutters clip and carry leafy material in vast quantities back to their subterrainean colony. There they process the clippings into compost piles, atop which the ants cultivate crops of fungi. The ants tend these fungal gardens and in return the fungi provide a constant source of food for the ant colony.
Leaf-cutter ants and their fun........ Read more »
Schultz, T., & Brady, S. (2008) From the Cover: Major evolutionary transitions in ant agriculture. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105(14), 5435-5440. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0711024105
- November 23, 2009
- 05:00 AM
- 679 views
Introducing the Magombera Chameleon
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
Attention all chameleon fans! It's official: there is now one more species of chameleon known to science. Meet the Magombera chameleon, aka Kinyongia magomberae, a small chameleon with a long tail and a delicate spattering of colors. Although most of its body scales are a soft grey-brown hue, this little lizard is far from dull.
... Read more »
MICHELE MENEGON, KRYSTAL A. TOLLEY, TREVOR JONES,, FRANCES COROVERO, ANDREW R. MARSHALL, & . (2009) A new species of chameleon (Sauria: Chamaeleonidae: Kinyongia) from the Magombera forest and the Udzungwa Mountains National Park, Tanzania. African Journal of Herpetology, 58(2), 59-70. info:/
- November 19, 2009
- 10:00 PM
- 829 views
Scorpionflies: The Oldest Known Animal Pollinators
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
A new study suggests that scorpionflies that lived during the Jurassic Period fed on the nectar-like juices of seed ferns, conifers, and other primitive plants. As the scorpionflies feasted on the sweet liquid from these plants, they may have also acted as animal pollinators—couriers of pollen grains that are vitally necessary to the reproductive cycle of their host plants. If this scenario is true, scorpionflies represent the earliest known animal pollinators.... Read more »
Ren, D., Labandeira, C., Santiago-Blay, J., Rasnitsyn, A., Shih, C., Bashkuev, A., Logan, M., Hotton, C., & Dilcher, D. (2009) A Probable Pollination Mode Before Angiosperms: Eurasian, Long-Proboscid Scorpionflies. Science, 326(5954), 840-847. DOI: 10.1126/science.1178338
Ollerton J, & Coulthard E. (2009) Paleontology. Evolution of animal pollination. Science (New York, N.Y.), 326(5954), 808-9. PMID: 19892970
- September 22, 2009
- 05:30 AM
- 815 views
Photo Monitoring Ningaloo's Whale Sharks
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
Whale sharks are anything but camera shy. Between 1995 and 2006, scientists, tourists, divers, and tour guides snapped more than 5100 underwater photographs of these gentle giants at Ningaloo Marine Park, off the coast of Western Australia. The photographs weren't random portraits of fish. They were all captured as part of a long-term survey of the region's whale sharks.... Read more »
Holmberg J, Norman B, & Arzoumanian Z. (2008) Robust, comparable population metrics through collaborative photo-monitoring of whale sharks Rhincodon typus. Ecological applications : a publication of the Ecological Society of America, 18(1), 222-33. PMID: 18372568
- September 17, 2009
- 12:45 AM
- 1,114 views
Scanning DNA Barcodes in Sea Turtles
by Laura Klappenbach in About Animals / Wildlife
Little chunks of DNA can act as unique barcodes that enable scientists to identify an organism. This fact, which underpins a scientific technique known as DNA barcoding, is now helping conservationists who want to better understand sea turtles, a threatened group of marine reptiles. Since sea turtles are pelagic (they roam the open ocean and migrate vast distances), they are notoriously challenging study subjects. DNA barcoding of sea turtles offers clues about their diversity and in turn reveal........ Read more »
NARO-MACIEL, E., REID, B., FITZSIMMONS, N., LE, M., DESALLE, R., & AMATO, G. (2009) DNA barcodes for globally threatened marine turtles: a registry approach to documenting biodiversity. Molecular Ecology Resources. DOI: 10.1111/j.1755-0998.2009.02747.x
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