Duhdum. Duhdum. Duhdumduhdumduh-move over Jaws soundtrack, the long (wrongly) vilified white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) is now being replaced with a top predator that you may not expect: killer whales (Orcinus orca)! White sharks and transient (i.e. marine mammal eating) killer whales have similarly preferred food sources, and in the northeastern Pacific, there is regional overlap…
Field Frame Friday: Dimethylsulfoniopropionate: what a mouth full… of food.
Bluefin trevally (Caranx melampygus) or ‘omilu in Hawaiian are able to detect dimethylsulfoniopropionate (say that 5 times fast, or just say DMSP). DMSP is a chemical produced by phytoplankton (marine algae) that is an indicator of food productivity. This chemosensory adaptation is important for foraging success! [Photo and caption by Karli Chudeau] DeBose, J.L., Nevitt,…
Field Frame Friday: Garibaldi neighbors respect the “no trespassing” signs.
Garibaldi (Hypsypops rubicundus) are territorial fish. Males will clear bottom territories and combat other fish and even SCUBA divers that come too close to their territory. However, it is uncommon that there is intraspecfic aggression; Garibaldis generally “respect” each other’s territories, so there is no need for aggression within species. [Photo by Nick Chudeau and…
Newsroom: A Bee of All Trades
Check out our newest piece by ABGG grad student Adrian Perez, telling us all about the task repertoire of honeybees!
Sunday Sketch: Convict Cichlid
Did you know that the convict cichlid (Amatitlania siquia), a monogamous fish species that forms long-lasting pairs, can exhibit pessimism? In a recent study, female fish selected male partners and were then paired with preferred or non-preferred partners. The fish that were paired with non-preferred partners did not spawn as quickly as the others. Furthermore,…
Field Frame Friday: This is my ‘Don’t mess with me’ face
This lone male clearly wants to range alone as he is trying to scare us off by displaying aggressive behaviors. Aggression in macaques, and in this example long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis), can be identified via the intense direct stare, raised eyebrows and round “open threat face”. [Photo and caption by Josephine Hubbard] Reference Van Hooff, J. A. R. A. M. (1967)….
Field Frame Friday: No, its not facial recognition technology, its facial recognition GOATS!
Goats (Capra aegagrus hircus) have the ability to recognize the emotional state of other familiar goats just by viewing pictures of them! Since goats are social animals, facial expressions might be a major mode of communication between individuals. [Photo by Nick Chudeau and caption by Maggie Creamer] Reference Bellegarde, L. G., Haskell, M. J., Duvaux-Ponter,…
Creature Feature: Zebra finch
The zebra finch is arguably in the running to be the world’s next top model….organism, that is
Field Frame Friday: Solar powered skink!
The brown tree skink (Dasia grisea) shown here is catching some afternoon rays in the warm Malaysian sun. Since reptiles are cold-blooded animals, they capitalize on the energy of the sun to maintain an optimal body temperature (known as thermoregulation). [Photo and caption by Josie Hubbard] Cox, van Dijk, Nabhitabhata, Thirakhupt, 1998. A photographic Guide…
Newsroom: Deciphering Courtship Tactics
Check out our newest Newsroom piece! It outlines the most recent discoveries of Anna C. Perry and colleagues on how to make a more accurate model of male Sage-Grouse mating behavior.
theethogram.com 