So, which is it? A mantis? Or a fly? (Image by kind permission of Daniel Llavaneras) In fact, the creature shown in this gorgeous image by Daniel Llavaneras is neither mantis nor true (Dipteran) fly, although its common name is 'mantisfly'. Instead, it belongs to the insect family Mantispidae (a group that includes lacewings and antlions). Like real praying mantids, matisflies walk […]
Continue readingTag: evolution
a tale of two tails
Lizards, like us, are chordates. One of the defining characteristics that all chordates share at some point in their development is the presence of a notochord: a stiff rod of tissue that runs along the dorsal side of the animal, just beneath the hollow dorsal nerve cord. (Yes, hollow. This is the result of its […]
Continue readingfrom small beauties to a big one
Is it a peacock? Is it a turkey? Another in the occasional series of gorgeous creatures: the ocellated turkey 🙂 Image credit: backyardchickens.com Over on Tetrapod Zoology, Darren Naish provides the detailed story of this species' biology & evolution. Apparently they are difficult creatures to keep in captivity, so they won't be appearing on the Christmas menu […]
Continue readingsticky little lizard feet
Evolutionary change can be fast – Peter and Rosemary Grant's long-term & ongoing research project on the Galapagos finches documented rapid responses to environmental changes, for example, as does the recent work on cane toads in Australia. And biologists have known since Darwin's time that competition can be a strong driver of evolutionary change. (Take […]
Continue readingrapid evolution in cane toads
In her book Paleofantasy, Marlene Zuk discusses cane toads (Bufo marinus) as an example of just how rapidly evolutionary processes can work. These amphibian pests were introduced into Australia in 1935 to control borer beetles in sugar cane. Unfortunately the toads never got the memo about this expectation, and have spread rapidly across the continent, […]
Continue reading‘paleo’ diet? or paleofantasy?
The 'paleo' diet story on Campbell Live tonight spurred me to finish my review of one of the most entertaining popular books on genetics that I have read for some time. Entertaining, and informative, in equal measure. I wonder what author Marlene Zuk would have made of the TV story. Marlene Zuk (2013) Paleofantasy: what […]
Continue readingfluffy the dinosaur
Over the last 20 years quite a bit of evidence has accumulated indicating that at least some dinosaurs were feathered, much of it in the form of beautiful fossils from China. Up until now all the feathery dinos have been members of the carnivorous theropods, but this new paper by Godefroit et al (2014) extends that […]
Continue readinghuman facial features the result of being used as a punching bag? somehow I don’t think so
I saw this story in the newspaper yesterday, & again today on one of the science feeds: Researchers in the US have studied the skulls of ancient human ancestors and concluded that fist-fighting may have played a role in shaping the male face. You can read the paper itself here (Carrier & Morgan, 2014). I’m sorry, […]
Continue readingan entertaining take on plants & plant cells
The new semester kicks off tomorrow & right now I'm adding resources to my first-year bio moodle page & running through the powerpoints for the week's lectures. After a couple of introductory sessions we're diving into the section of the class that focuses on plants, and I'm giving some serious thought to how I present […]
Continue readinga glorious (but deadly) cephalopod
Every now & then the husband goes on a fossil-fossicking expedition, in order to add to his collection of things long dead & turned to stone. There are a number of good sites in the Waikato region, and one of them has yielded quite a few belemnite remains: specifically, the bullet-shaped fossilised internal shells of […]
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