White terns (Gygis alba) don’t build nests for their eggs! They usually find a fork in a branch and stay on their egg during incubation (Miles 1986). The chicks are born with adapted feet to cling to the branch while the mom goes searching for fish dinners. [Photo by Nick Chudeau; Caption by Karli Chudeau]…
Author: Karli Rice Chudeau
Sunday Sketch: Manatee Mammaries
Armpits may be a ticklish place for humans, but for manatees (Order: Sirenia), armpits are good for nursing young! Manatees are mammals and nurse their offspring with mammary glands that are located under the pectoral flippers for over a year. Sketch and fact contributed by Karli Chudeau Source: Berta, A. (2012). Diversity, Evolution, and Adaptations…
Sunday Sketch: Goats and Smiles
If you want to befriend a goat, better say cheese! New research shows that goats can distinguish between human happy and sad faces, and prefer the pictures of humans that smile! When presented with images of the two facial expressions, goats spent 50% more time approaching and nudging the happy-face photos. This has important implications…
Field Frame Friday: Living that island life
Native to Aldabra Atoll in the Seychelles, Aldabran Giant Tortoises (Aldabrachelys gigantea) don’t have to deal with predation, and with an abundance of tropical food, warm weather, and environmental protection, they spend their days grazing vegetation in the morning, and snoozing on beaches in the afternoon, taking dips into shallow pools of water to regulate their temperature. These tortoises are one way that local land plants disperse their seeds (Hnatiuk, 1978).
Creature Feature: Ocean sunfish
Coolest fish in the ocean? Sunfish researchers are pushing for the evolutionary-unique sunfish to gain the unofficial title of “coolest ocean fish.”
Sunday Sketch: Marmoset Fathers
Even among nature’s best dads, some are better than others! Marmoset dads who respond to infant distress calls quickly and early in their offspring’s life are more likely to have offspring that survive beyond 30 days and are also more likely to gain weight quicker than babies of less attentive dads. Researchers indicate this comes…
Enrichment is in the Eye of the Beholder
What is Enrichment? Animals have evolved and adapted to live in complex environments with a wide variety of engaging stimuli: diverse plants, other animals, sounds, smells, problem-solving scenarios, and dynamic space, just to name a few. The natural history of animals has resulted in the development of species-specific repertoires of highly motivated behaviors, which are…
Sunday Sketch: Long Distance Penguins
Does your long distance relationship have you pining for your partner? Well, at least you aren’t a southern rockhopper penguin (Eudyptes chrysocome). These marine birds mate for life, but don’t spend much time together other than during the mating season, which is only 20-30 days long. Talk about difficult travel logistics: GPS trackers show that penguins…
Sunday Sketch: Dung Beetle Navigation
In addition to birds, seals, and humans, the nocturnal dung beetle (Scarabaeus satyrus) uses the stars as orientation and navigational cues. The dung beetles may not be able to discriminate between individual stars, but can use clumps of bright stars and the Milky Way for nocturnal migration. Sketch and fact contributed by Karli Chudeau Source: Dacke,…
Sunday Sketch: Anemone Piggyback
Did you know that some animals get by with a little help from their “friends”? Certain species of marine hermit crabs have a symbiotic relationship with sea anemones, meaning they mutually use each other for their own benefit. Riding along the hermit crab shell, sea anemones get the opportunity to be mobile and have more…
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