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Science with Sophie: Dogs

September 11, 2018March 25, 2019 Science Connecteddogs, genetics, health, science experiments, Science with Sophie

Do dogs really exist? Okay, we know dogs really exist. But how do you know if something really exists if you can’t see it? On this episode of Science with Sophie, Sophie explores why it’s so important to do your own research, as well as how genetic traits as passed down. And as a bonus, you’ll learn all about the history of dogs, complete with at least five different canine cameos. Do the science experiment with Sophie To do the science experiment, you’ll need these things: something to write on something…

Animals Environment

Fortune Favors Bold Lizards

June 28, 2018June 29, 2018 Science Connectedlizards, mating

By Kate Stone It has been said that the brave don’t live as long, but the timid don’t live at all, so this one is for the brave. Bold lizards, regardless of size or sex, have the most success finding mates. Ecologists have found a valuable life lesson to be learned from lizards: a bold personality—not body size or sex—correlates with the mating success of yellow-spotted monitor lizards roaming the remote Oombulgurri floodplains of tropical Western Australia. But boldness has a cost: bold individuals expose themselves to a much higher…

Animals Paleontology

Another Early Toothed Bird Raises Its Head

June 5, 2018 Science Connectedavian evolution, beaks, birds, dinosaurs

By Kate Stone @GotScienceOrg Sometimes what you seek is right under your nose. Using fossils found in the 1870s, paleontologists have pieced together the skull of a toothed bird that represents a pivotal moment in the transition from dinosaurs to modern birds. “Right under our noses this whole time was an amazing, transitional bird.” Ichthyornis dispar is a key member of the evolutionary lineage that leads from dinosaurian species to today’s birds. It lived nearly 100 million years ago in North America and looked like a toothy seabird—like a gull…

Animals Biology Science Videos

Squids’ Shells: From Armor, to Vehicle, to Ghost

April 24, 2018April 24, 2018 Science Connectedcephalopods, evolution, shells

Shells made their first appearance between 635 and 541 million years ago, especially after the first predators had shown up. How have cephalopods’ shells evolved from armors to means of transportation? How have they adapted to further suit these animals’ needs? Watch this video from the PBS Eons series. The ancestors of modern, squishy cephalopods like the octopus and the squid all had shells. Shells helped mollusks move through water, giving them an advantage over similar animals without a shell. Over time, some cephalopods internalized their shell like a backbone, some…

Animals Biology

Why Are Eggshells So Strong?

April 17, 2018April 17, 2018 Science Connectedeggshell strength, eggshells, nanostructure

By Kate Stone @GotScienceOrg Anyone who has a tried to squeeze a chicken egg from end to end knows how strong eggshells are. Not much in nature mineralizes as quickly as a bird egg. How is it that fertilized chicken eggs manage to resist fracture from the outside while, at the same time, can be broken open from the inside by a tiny chick? It’s all in the eggshell nanostructure, according to a new study led by McGill University scientists and published in the journal Science Advances. For millions of…

Fire Management in California's Chaparal: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Sacramento District conducted a controlled burn of central marine chaparral at Fort Ord, Calif., Oct. 15, to expose unexploded ordnance at the formerly utilized defense site. The burn, carefully coordinated with local agencies, lasted less than two hours and was timed so that prevailing winds would help blow the smoke away from population centers. The controlled burns are part of a comprehensive ordnance removal program at Fort Ord, which closed in 1994 under recommendation from the Base Realignment and Closure Commission. (U.S. Army photo/Released)

Animals Biology Environment

Fire Management in California’s Chaparral Harms Birds

April 2, 2018April 5, 2018 Science Connectedbiodiversity, biology, birds, california, chaparral, ecology, fire, plant sciences

By Neha Jain @lifesciexplore California suffered its largest and most destructive wildfires in 2017. Victims included hundreds of wild animals. When the blazing fires were finally extinguished, the surviving animals—including birds—were forced to find new homes. Now, for the first time, researchers investigating the effect of fire management practices on birds in California’s chaparral have found that one practice known as mastication, which consists of mechanically crushing vegetation to remove fuel, threatens bird communities. “The best available science tells us that managing chaparral imperils wildlife and increases fire risk,” says…

Animals Environment

Honeybees Are Attracted to Fungicides and Herbicides

February 8, 2018February 9, 2018 Science Connectedagriculture, environment, food, glyphosate, honeybees, pesticides

By Neha Jain @lifesciexplore Whenever you eat fruits, vegetables, and nuts, take a moment to thank honeybees for their pollination services that contribute $17 billion to the US economy each year. In fact, almonds are almost solely dependent on honeybees for pollination. Populations of these much-needed pollinators have mysteriously plunged over the past decade, and many studies suggest a link to the use of neonicotinoid insecticides among other factors such as climate change and disease. Recently, scientists found that honeybees prefer sugar water laced with the fungicide chlorothalonil and the…

Do Humans Influence Jellyfish Populations along Coasts?

Animals Environment Oceanography

Do Humans Influence Jellyfish Coastal Populations?

January 11, 2018 Science Connectedacidification, climate change, coasts, human impacts, jellyfish

By Laura Treible @aqua_belle Jellyfish are a common nuisance to beachgoers in the summertime, but why certain years have massive jellyfish blooms while others do not is often a mystery. In recent years, some areas appear to have larger and more frequent blooms, so it is important to determine the causes of blooms in general, as well as whether jellyfish blooms are increasing. How humans impact jellyfish Human activities such as changing our global climate, fishing, and increasing pollution or nutrients entering waterways influence the oceans in many ways. Some…

Animals Environment

Sumatran Tigers Clinging to Survival

January 2, 2018January 2, 2018 Science Connectedendangered tigers, Sumatran tigers, tigers

By Kate Stone @GotScienceOrg For the past year, a research expedition has tracked endangered tigers through the Sumatran jungles and found the animals barely clinging to survival in low-density populations. The expedition findings have reawakened fears about the possible extinction of these elusive apex predators. What is the key to saving the Sumatran tigers? Protecting their habitat, researchers say. Tigers on the neighboring islands of Java, Bali, and Singapore went extinct in the twentieth century. Their extinction led to new antipoaching efforts by people hoping to help Sumatran tigers avoid…

Animals Paleontology

Vadasaurus Fossil Shows a Reptile in Transition

December 12, 2017December 11, 2017 Science Connectedaquatic reptile, archaeology, evolution, fossil

By Kate Stone @GotScienceOrg A small fossil—just a foot long—is revealing secrets of how some land-dwelling reptiles moved back into the water. After studying the 155-million-year-old reptile fossil, scientists at Johns Hopkins University and the American Museum of Natural History report they have filled in some important clues to the evolution of animals that once roamed land and transitioned to life in the water. Vadasaurus, the Latin term for “wading lizard,” was discovered in limestone quarries near Solnhofen, Germany. The area was once part of a shallow sea that has…