Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) are migratory ungulates and often their migratory routes intersect with human developments and urban areas. Development and urbanization have greatly impacted the migration routes of many migratory ungulates and have ultimately lead to the population decline of many of these animals. Mule deer do not adjust their migration routes to avoid…
Ask a Scientist: Cat-chy
Why does my cat catch bugs and bring them into my bed?
Creature Feature: Grass carp
Grass carp, originally brought to the U.S. as lawnmowers for aquatic plants, can eat up to 100% of their body weight in vegetation every day.
Sunday Sketch: A little eye roll
The Chambered Nautilus (Nautilus pompilius) is one of 6 extant species of nautilus, the closest living relative of coleoid cephalopods (octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish). Considered by many to be living fossils, nautiluses have experienced little morphological change over millions of years and are more similar to ancient cephalopods than modern coleoid cephalopods. Nautiluses have numerous…
Field Frame Friday: To know the seal, one must BE the seal!
When data collection is cancelled because of the pandemic, one must get creative to stay connected to their study species. For me, this means free-diving in Monterey Bay. Harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) are often found in the kelp forests, using different strategies for foraging and hunting. One strategy is called the sit-and-wait, where seals can…
Arts & Crafts: Jellyfish
Check out this young explorer’s watercolor jellyfish!
Scholar Holler: Sabrina Mederos
It’s 2020 and this year has been full of surprises and lessons. In fact, one news site (The Atlantic) deemed 2020 as the “second-most traumatic year in American history”, and yet we still have months to go. While quarantining at home, attempting to get work done, I find myself reminiscing about simpler times, and reflecting…
Newsroom: In-air hearing in walruses
Check out this week’s newsroom on a study that was conducted by scientists at the University of California, Santa Cruz and Oceans Initiative in Seattle, WA, in collaboration with animal care specialists at Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium in Tacoma, WA and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo, CA.
Sunday Sketch: Color me intrigued
Stump-tailed macaques (Macaca arctoides) are a vulnerable species of macaques found in South and Southeast Asia. These monkeys are known for their interesting color patterns. The infants of this species are born with white fur which gradually darkens with age. Older individuals are identified by their dark-colored faces with black or brown patches. Fact and…
Field Frame Friday: Moose? Mooses? Meese?
Moose (Alces americanus) will dive in lakes for aquatic plant species despite the fact that there is ample, accessible, nutritious, woody vegetation on land and swimming and diving is a more costly form of locomotion. This behavior used by moose to supplement terrestrial vegetation was a mystery until scientists discovered that aquatic plants are much…
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