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UrduScientists have developed a ‘nanobody’ – a small fragment of a llama antibody – that is capable of chasing out human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) as it hides away from the immune system. This then enables immune cells to seek out and…
Tag: ZOOLOGY/VETERINARY SCIENCE
Cattle losing adaptations to environment, MU researchers find
Researchers pave the way for genetic tests of cattle that can look for the presence of specific adaptations, such as heat resistance
To save a species, check its ID
New tool differentiates endangered salt marsh harvest mouse from abundant look-alike
Inheriting mother’s friends key to hyena success
EAST LANSING, Mich. – In the wild, inheriting advantageous physical traits may be the difference between a long life and a short one. But for the spotted hyena, another kind of inheritance, one that has nothing to do with genetics,…
Genome editing meets marsupials
Researchers at the RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (BDR) have succeeded in creating the first genetically engineered marsupial. This study, published in the scientific journal Current Biology , will contribute to deciphering the genetic background of unique characteristics observed…
Why weren’t New World rabbits domesticated?
Archaeologists find the answer in rabbit social behavior
DNA assay aids in identifying and protecting North American wolves, coyotes
Forensics specialists can use a commercial assay targeting mitochondrial DNA to accurately discriminate between wolf, coyote and dog species, according to a new study from North Carolina State University. The genetic information can be obtained from smaller or more degraded…
New alpine moth solves a 180-year-old mystery
Butterflies and moths (order Lepidoptera) are one of the most diverse animal groups. To date, scientists have found as many as 5,000 species from the Alps alone. Having been a place of intensive research interest for 250 years, it is…
Human action, key to antibiotic resistance in giant tortoises of Galapagos
UCC-UCM, 13 July. The Giant Galapagos tortoises which live in contact with human farming and tourism activities, or in urbanised zones, have more bacterial resistance to antibiotics than those that live in more isolated ecosystems. This is the main conclusion…
First 3D simulation of rat’s complete whisker system acts as a tactile ‘camera’
Model gives rare insight into how rats use whiskers to actively sense their natural environments
When fawns perceive constant danger from many sources, they almost seem to relax
Researchers use trail cameras to study animals’ interaction, behavior in human-dominated landscapes
Among spotted hyenas, social ties are inherited
Massive study of data collected over 27 years sheds light on social networks, rank, and survival of this African species
Fossil rodent teeth add North American twist to Caribbean mammals’ origin story
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Two fossil teeth from a distant relative of North American gophers have scientists rethinking how some mammals reached the Caribbean Islands. The teeth, excavated in northwest Puerto Rico, belong to a previously unknown rodent genus and species,…
Sperm migration in the genital tract: computer simulations identify factors for success
During mating in wildlife species, males transfer millions of sperm into the female genital tract. On the way to the egg cell the sperm have to pass through the genital tract. Very few of the sperm cells actually succeed in…
How spiders distinguish living from non-living using motion-based visual cues
Ability to identify other animals from relative positioning of the joints not unique to vertebrates
New system for tracking macaws emphasizes species’ conservation needs
Researchers with Texas A&M’s Macaw Society used satellite telemetry to track the movements of 10 birds over a period of 8 years.
Detecting wildlife illness and death with new early alert system
Network of wildlife rehabilitation organizations helps track emerging threats
You can snuggle wolf pups all you want, they still won’t ‘get’ you quite like your dog
You know your dog gets your gist when you point and say “go find the ball” and he scampers right to it.
Stopping illegal trade of Aussie lizards
Australian reptiles face serious conservation threats from illegal poaching fueled by international demand and the exotic pet trade. In a new study in Animal Conservation , researchers from the University of Adelaide and the Monitor Conservation Research Society (Monitor) investigated…
New evidence of menopause in killer whales
Scientists have found new evidence of menopause in killer whales – raising fascinating questions about how and why it evolved. Most animals breed throughout their lives. Only humans and four whale species are known to experience menopause, and scientists have…
HKU ecologists develop a novel forensic tool for detecting laundering of critically endangered cockatoos
Ecologists from the Conservation Forensics Laboratory of the Research Division for Ecology and Biodiversity at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) have applied stable isotope techniques to determine whether birds in the pet trade are captive or wild-caught, a key…
Songbirds like it sweet!
A research co-developed by HKU Evolutionary Biologist found that Songbird ancestors evolved a new way to taste sugar
You can snuggle wolf pups all you want, they still won’t ‘get’ you quite like your dog
After 14,000 years of domestication, dogs have some of the same cognitive abilities as human babies.
Red Dead Redemption 2 teaches players about wildlife
Players of the popular game Red Dead Redemption 2 learn how to identify real American wildlife, new research shows. The game, set in the American West in 1899, features simulations of about 200 real species of animals. The new study,…
‘Smart collar’ could prevent tapeworms in dogs
Dogs infected with echinococcosis play a major role in spreading tapeworms across human populations around the world. Now, researchers have developed a “smart collar” which gradually delivers a steady dose of a deworming drug to dogs. The collar successfully reduces…
UCF study finds smaller turtles are nesting on Florida beaches
The findings give clues to the health and status of the threatened species
Researchers overcome winking, napping pigs to prove brain test works
URBANA, Ill. – If you’ve ever been to an eye doctor, there’s a good chance you’ve felt the sudden puff of air to the eye that constitutes a traditional test for glaucoma. It’s no one’s favorite experience, but the puff…
Zoo amphibians were on display while humans were locked away
While the UK was in lockdown, certain species of captive amphibians became more visible, a new study suggests. The COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of zoos across the UK for several months from March 2020, with gradual re-openings from summer…
Arctic seabirds are less heat tolerant, more vulnerable to climate change
The Arctic is warming at approximately twice the global rate. A new study led by researchers from McGill University finds that cold-adapted Arctic species, like the thick-billed murre, are especially vulnerable to heat stress caused by climate change.
New method lets researchers rapidly monitor snow leopard stress levels in the wild
The newly developed method lets researchers rapidly and accurately measure stress hormones in snow leopards without the need for bulky equipment or specialised knowledge. It uses widely available equipment that can be carried into the field, allowing hormone extraction from…
For female vampire bats, an equal chance to rule the roost
Researchers observe an egalitarian approach to living together
Castration delays DNA aging
New research shows that castration of male sheep delays aging of DNA compared to intact males
Light pollution has complex effects on animal vision
Changes in the colour and intensity of light pollution over the past few decades result in complex and unpredictable effects on animal vision, new research shows. Insect attraction to light is a well-known phenomenon, but artificial lighting can also have…
An ‘instruction’ to the crocodylian skull
Scientists from St Petersburg University described for the first time all structures in the animal’s braincase, having studied more than 70 of their 3D models
Freshwater methamphetamine pollution turns brown trout into addicts
Human pollution is often evident from oil slicks and plastic drifting on shore, but many of the drugs that we consume also end up washing out into our water and current effluent treatment isn’t equipped to deal with them. Drugs…
Personalized medicine for cats with heart disease
Study finds genetic makeup influences response to common feline heart disease medication
New species of pseudo-horses living 37 million years ago
Researchers at the UPV/EHU-University of the Basque Country describe two palaeotheriidae mammals that lived in the subtropical landscape of Alava
More filling? Tastes great? How flies, and maybe people, choose their food
Flies have discriminating taste. Like a gourmet perusing a menu, they spend much of their time seeking sweet nutritious calories and avoiding bitter, potentially toxic food. But what happens in their brains when they make these food choices? Yale researchers…
Hunting and hidden deaths led to 30% reduction in WI wolf population
MADISON, Wis. — About 100 additional wolves died over the winter in Wisconsin as a result of the delisting of grey wolves under the Endangered Species Act, alongside the 218 wolves killed by licensed hunters during Wisconsin’s first public wolf…
The same neural pathways promote maternal and paternal behaviors in voles
Connection between hypothalamus and reward areas crucial for fatherly behavior
How can ‘shark dandruff’ contribute to coral reef conservation?
For 400 million years, shark-like fishes have prowled the oceans as predators, but now humans kill 100 million sharks per year, radically disrupting ocean food chains. Based on microscopic shark scales found on fossil- and modern coral reefs in Caribbean…
Seabird colony creates ‘halo’ of depleted fish stocks
A vast seabird colony on Ascension Island creates a “halo” in which fewer fish live, new research shows. Ascension, a UK Overseas Territory, is home to tens of thousands of seabirds – of various species – whose prey incudes flying…
Male dragonflies lose their ‘bling’ in hotter climates
Less pigmentation keeps them cool, but could make it difficult to find a mate
Microbes in cow stomachs can break down plastic
Bacteria found in the rumen, one of the compartments that make up the cow stomach, can break down plastics, representing an eco-friendly way to reduce litter
Guadalupe fur seals continue to recover as new colony discovered
Guadalupe fur seals ( Arctocephalus townsendi ) have established a large resting colony in the Gulf of California–bringing the total number of sites where this endangered species now occurs to just four. This new haul-out was discovered on El Farallón…
Neurobiology: How mice see the world
Researchers based in Munich and Tuebingen have developed an open-source camera system that images natural habitats as they appear to rodents. During the course of evolution, animals have adapted to the particular demands of their local environments in ways that…
UMass Amherst research pinpoints role of dopamine in songbird’s brain plasticity
Neurotransmitter shown to be a key driver in sensory processing
Why are some fish warm-blooded? Predatory sharks gain speed advantage
New research from marine biologists offers answers to a fundamental puzzle that had until now remained unsolved: why are some fish warm-blooded when most are not? It turns out that while (warm-blooded) fish able to regulate their own body temperatures…
Better predicting how plants and animals will weather climate extremes
Leading scientists argue the need to consider biomechanics