Why are some animals committed to their mates and others are not? According to a new study led by researchers at The University of Texas at Austin that looked at 10 species of vertebrates, evolution used a kind of universal formula for turning non-monogamous species into monogamous species -- turning up the activity of some...
'DeepSqueak' helps researchers decode rodent chatter
Many researchers realize that mice and rats are social and chatty. They spend all day talking to each other, but what are they really saying? Not only are many rodent vocalizations unable to be heard by humans, but also existing computer programs to detect these vocalizations are flawed. They pick up other noises, are slow...
New bat-borne virus related to Ebola
Researchers from Singapore's Duke-NUS Medical School, in collaboration with scientists in China, have identified and characterised a new genus of filovirus from a Rousettus bat in China. Their findings were published in the journal Nature Microbiology. Bat-borne viruses around the world pose a threat to human and animal health. Filoviruses, especially Ebola virus and Marburg...
Forest soundscapes monitor conservation efforts inexpensively, effectively
Recordings of the sounds in tropical forests could unlock secrets about biodiversity and aid conservation efforts around the world, according to a perspective paper published in Science.
Compared to on-the-ground fieldwork, bioacoustics -- recording entire soundscapes, including animal and human activity -- is relatively inexpensive and produces powerful conservation insights. The result is troves of ecological...
Surprise discovery reveals second visual system in mouse cerebral cortex
The visual system is probably the best understood part of the brain. Over the past 75 years, neuroscientists have assembled a detailed account of how light waves entering your eyes allow you to recognize your grandmother's face, to track a hawk in flight, or to read this sentence. But a new study by UC San...
Does mountaintop removal also remove rattlesnakes?
On the Cumberland Plateau in eastern Kentucky, surface coal mining is destroying ridgelines and mountaintops, and along with them, the habitat of a surprisingly gentle reptile species -- the timber rattlesnake.
"Timber rattlesnakes may be the most docile, calm animals of their size in eastern US forests," Thomas Maigret, a researcher from the University of Kentucky,...