Here’s a closer look at the four divisions of Mammal March Madness 2015 - a tournament created by Harvard evolutionary biologist Katie Hinde. Instead of basketball teams - it’s species!
Hinde and three co-organizers determine the outcome each imaginary match based on the strengths and weaknesses of the competitors (with some chance thrown in, so there are upsets) and then they invent a scientifically supported play by play of each battle.
This year, they’ve got a whole division of tiny animals, so something cute is guaranteed to make it to the final four. They’ve got a division of rare animals that are on the IUCN’s endangered species list. They’ve got some mammals from mythology (an excuse to talk the human mind that created such beasts) and finally, a group of mammals that were shaped by sexual selection. This last category has a lot of species where males compete for mates - should be interesting!
Print out a bracket, research the competitors, make your predictions, and then follow the tournament on twitter with the hashtag #2015MMM. First (wildcard) match is on Monday.
Who do you think will win? I am of course rooting for the wolverine (go skunk bear)!!
