Beautiful Biology

This blog will highlight biology & ecology-related things that I find particularly interesting. If you have anything to contribute, need me to change links, edit a citation, update a fact etc, please contact me.

[pauldavidgibson]

Orcas Island, WA April 2019

[quiet-nymph]

All rights reserved by twurdemann on Flickr

[saddlepatchkid]

NEW ECOTYPE NEW ECOTYPE NEW ECOTYPE

[respectthewolf]

[boy-warbler]

Seeing lots of white-throated sparrows around the city.

[carryon-myway-wardson]

Fall in Wisconsin

[boy-warbler]

October is kinglet month here in the city. Ruby-crowned & golden-crowned kinglets from this weekend. Hope to have a shot in focus eventually. They are hyperactive, tiny and fast!

[respectthewolf]

[montereybayaquarium]

It’s a baby bat ray brunch! Using plate-like teeth to grind and chew their sustainable seafood, these youngsters will grow quickly into their role as majestic sea flap flaps.

[newtonpermetersquare]

why have i been disgraced

[probablyasocialecologist]

Around 50-85% of the oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere comes from phytoplankton

[xwxda-m1n3n-g035-nyahxwx]

phytoplankton appreciation post 💚

[unculture]

theyre not used to being noticed…..

[falseficus]

had to watch a sea urchin fertilization lab for school and the way they dispose of the fertilized urchins is putting them in a tub labeled “used” lmao

[falseficus]

cruelty

[vietnyamese]

slutty urchins banished to the whore chamber

[anxietyproblem]

[americasgreatoutdoors]

Soft clouds and distant rain set a stunning mountain scene at Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma. A hike to the top of Elk Mountain Trail offers spectacular views and a rewarding glimpse of the valley. The refuge has 15 miles of designated hiking trails that wind along rocky stretches, scrub oak forest and over grass prairie. Wildlife abounds along these trails. Bring plenty of water, a map and a sense of adventure. It’s national wildlife refuge week and we’re happy to celebrate the vast diversity of the amazing land and waters that make up the National Wildlife Refuge System. Photo by Kim Isaac (www.sharetheexperience.org).

[mindblowingscience]

Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to scientists who discovered CRISPR gene editing tool for 'rewriting the code of life'

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer A. Doudna for the development of a method for genome editing.

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer A. Doudna for the development of a method for genome editing.

They discovered one of gene technology’s sharpest tools: the CRISPR/Cas9 genetic scissors. Using these, researchers can change the DNA of animals, plants and micro-organisms with extremely high precision.Before announcing the winners on Wednesday, Göran K. Hansson, secretary-general for the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, said that this year’s prize was about “rewriting the code of life.”

The CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing tools have revolutionized the molecular life sciences, brought new opportunities for plant breeding, are contributing to innovative cancer therapies and may make the dream of curing inherited diseases come true, according to a press release from the Nobel committee.

There have also been some ethical concerns around the CRISPR technology, however.

Charpentier, a French microbiologist, and Doudna, an American biochemist, are the first women to jointly win the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and the sixth and seventh women to win the chemistry prize.

Continue Reading.

[mindblowingscience]

Biologists Find Spectacular Bird That's Both Male And Female, Split Down The Middle

"One of them described it as 'seeing a unicorn' and another described the adrenaline rush of seeing something so remarkable."

A super rare bird showing both male and female plumage has scientists in Pennsylvania counting their lucky stars.

Split down the middle, with one side flaunting yellow ‘wing pits’, and the other side rocking a pink underwing, researchers say this spectacular-looking songbird is one for the record books.

While we can’t be sure without a blood test or an autopsy, the team says this rose-breasted grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus) is probably the product of a genetic anomaly known as bilateral gynandromorphy, one we’ve seen in birds before.

Unlike true hermaphroditism, which refers to having both male and female reproductive tissues, gynandromorphs display contrasting sexual characteristics on each side of their body.

Continue Reading.

[currentsinbiology]

‘Ghost fleas’ bring toxic mercury up from the depths of prairie lakes

How toxic mercury moves through the environment—and accumulates in the fish that people eat—has been known for decades. Now, scientists have discovered an unexpected way that the neurotoxin circulates in lakes, hitching a late-night ride inside small predatory crustaceans dubbed “ghost fleas.” The finding helps explain why some lake fish contain surprising amounts of mercury. It also suggests researchers who sample lakes only during the day might be missing important clues to how those ecosystems work.

[currentsinbiology]

Hummingbirds can count their way to food

Tiny, feisty rufous hummingbirds are known for their long migrations, which take them up and down the length of North America each year. Now, they have a new claim to fame: They can keep track of particularly juicy flowers depending on where they appear—first, second, or even fourth—in a line-up of blooms. Although this understanding of “numerical order” may sound simple, it’s a complex skill that may help hummingbirds remember the easiest routes between nectar-rich flowers. It’s also the first time researchers have seen the ability in a wild vertebrate.