Monthly Archives: October 2018

Karate kicks keep cockroaches from becoming zombies, wasp chow

Rick Grimes has nothing on the humble American cockroach when it comes to avoiding zombification.

Far from being a weak-willed sap easily paralyzed by the emerald jewel wasp's sting to the brain -- followed by becoming a placid egg carrier and then larvae chow -- the cockroach can deliver a stunning karate kick that saves its...

Read more

Lifespan and sexual maturity depends on your brain more than your body

New Vanderbilt research finds how long humans and other warm-blooded animals live -- and when they reach sexual maturity -- may have more to do with their brain than their body. More specifically, it is not animals with larger bodies or slower metabolic rates that live longer; it is animals with more neurons in the...

Read more

How to feed a cat: Consensus statement to the veterinary community

The American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) today released the AAFP Consensus Statement, "Feline Feeding Programs: Addressing Behavioral Needs to Improve Feline Health and Wellbeing" and accompanying client brochure to the veterinary community. The Consensus Statement, published in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, explores the medical, social, and emotional problems that can result...

Read more

Hidden costs of disease to greater Yellowstone elk

For decades researchers have known that a bacterial disease in elk, bison and cattle in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem causes periodic abortions in these animals and chronic illness in humans drinking infected cow's milk. The disease, called brucellosis, poses a financial concern for dairy producers and cattle ranchers, but its effects on the wild elk...

Read more

Chimpanzees react faster to cooperate than make selfish choices

When it comes to cooperation, there's no monkey business in how some chimpanzees respond.

These primates often make decisions faster that benefits others than themselves, according to a newly published University of Michigan study.

For decades, social scientists and biologists have sought to study primates because they are humans' closest living relatives. Chimpanzees can also be very...

Read more

Scientists describe 17 new species of sea slugs

This National Sea Slug Day, celebrate the addition of 17 new species of nudibranch to the tree of life. Adorned in lavish patterns and colors that range from yellow polka dots to shades of mauve and neon blue, the new marine invertebrates hail from coral reefs across the Indo-Pacific region. Researchers from the California Academy...

Read more