AgnosticWeb.com - Nature\'s wonders

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

David Turell — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 02:07:08 +0000

Here is a crazy example of symbiosis. Two different species of bacteria live inside of a mealy bug, with a marked loss of gene structure. The truly amazing part is one bacteria is inside the other!-http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/08/110811121328.htm

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

David Turell — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 17:40:35 +0000

Squirrelling away food for the babies:-Embalming wasps -European beewolf paralysing a bee.Wikipedia, Alvesgaspar Female digger wasps (Philanthus triangulum, commonly known as European beewolves) take great care in preparing the food their young eat, and with good reason. The paralyzed honeybees that a beewolf feeds her offspring often get infected with fungal strains that can kill the wasp larvae. In order to prevent this, beewolf mothers coat the honeybees with an oily secretion from their postpharyngeal glands that deters fungal growth and slows the desiccation of the bees. Throughout their lifetimes, beewolf females can embalm up to 100 honeybeesâ€”each bee receiving a coat of secretion that's up to 8 percent of the beewolf's weight. Not surprisingly, this protective embalming comes at a cost to the mothers and their future offspring, according to research published this month in Animal Behavior. Over time, females are able to produce less embalming fluid per bee, putting future generations of wasps at a greater risk for fungal infections.

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

David Turell — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 17:31:49 +0000

Symbiosis: this flat worm has no mouth or gut, but lives with a sulfer digesting bacteria that feeds it!-http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110627151722.htm

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

David Turell — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 17:27:52 +0000

Using a lady bug as a nursery. Clever wasp:-http://the-scientist.com/2011/06/30/behavior-brief-4/

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

David Turell — Wed, 18 May 2011 20:13:01 +0000

Here is a discussion of a family of amoebas that farms bacteria, and when the crop is finished moves the bacteria to another area to start farming again. Just how did Darwin arrange this setup? Amoebas with teleological foresight?-http://www.the-scientist.com/article/display/58129/

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

David Turell — Thu, 05 May 2011 17:16:01 +0000

Cooperative behavior in orcas, killer whales. In catching seals they are like a Navy Seal Team. Very clever wave washing system.-http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/04/slideshow-killer-whales-devise-l.html-How did Darwin teach them this trick?-http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2011/04/slideshow-killer-whales-devise-l.html

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

David Turell — Tue, 03 May 2011 14:04:56 +0000

Another chapter in nature's wonders and how did evolution do this one? A flatworm injests a Hydra to incorporate the Hydra's defense stingers, carefully encapsulates them and transports them to the outer surface for its own protection. Can't make it so steal it!-http://www.nature.com/scitable/blog/creature-cast/thou_shalt_covet_thy_neighbor8217s

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

David Turell — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 13:07:46 +0000

> Once more, many thanks for these fascinating articles. As regards the second, the author refers to these as different species of pupfish. Are they really different species, or are they varieties? This causes immense confusion in the discussion of evolution, as pointed out by Leif A. Jensen. The question is whether varieties can or can't turn into new species, but it would seem from the article that all the pupfish remain pupfish. So whence cometh speciation?-Exactly, one of the major considerations. And also, how to define a species? When wolves and dogs are easily crossed. And think of ligers and tigrons!

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

dhw — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 10:02:50 +0000

DAVID: Resuming wonderful examples of how nature creates solutions for its problems, First an orchid which attracts insects, even though entering the flower has no value for the insect!-http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-04-rare-orchids-mimic-fungus-flies.html-Next, extremely fast evolution by pupfish, faster than standard Darwinism.-http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-04-explosive-evolution-pupfish.html-The point of all this is the research in epigenetics which shows that this is all very possible well outside Darwin's theory. Random mutation and natural selection cannot do either of these events, in my opinion. the first is extremely complex and needs adaptation in two organisms, and in the second case, evolution moves at lightning speed, requiring epigenetic (Lamarkian) mechanisms.-Once more, many thanks for these fascinating articles. As regards the second, the author refers to these as different species of pupfish. Are they really different species, or are they varieties? This causes immense confusion in the discussion of evolution, as pointed out by Leif A. Jensen. The question is whether varieties can or can't turn into new species, but it would seem from the article that all the pupfish remain pupfish. So whence cometh speciation?

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

David Turell — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 17:30:08 +0000

Resuming wonderful examples of how nature creates solutions for its problems, First an orchid which attracts insects, even though entering the flower has no value for the insect!-http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-04-rare-orchids-mimic-fungus-flies.html-Next, extremely fast evolution by pupfish, faster than standard Darwinism.-http://www.physorg.com/news/2011-04-explosive-evolution-pupfish.html-The point of all this is the research in epigenetics which shows that this is all very possible well outside Darwin's theory. Random mutation and natural selection cannot do either of thse events, in my opinion. the first is extremely complex and needs adaptation in two organisms, and in the second case, evolution moves at lightning speed, requiring epigenetic (Lamarkian) mechanisms.

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

xeno6696 — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 01:59:08 +0000

I surmise that robins can simply see elecromagnetic fields. > > Magnetic iron depoits-Someday I'll subscribe to nature again....

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

David Turell — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 01:56:16 +0000

I surmise that robins can simply see elecromagnetic fields.-Magnetic iron depoits

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

xeno6696 — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 19:06:17 +0000

I surmise that robins can simply see elecromagnetic fields.

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

David Turell — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 17:51:54 +0000

Robins have compasses in their eyes!- http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v471/n7340/full/nature09875.html?WT.ec_id=NATURE-20110331

Nature\'s wonders (reply)

David Turell — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 22:37:17 +0000

Loggerhead turtles can use longitude in their migrations:-http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn20172-loggerhead-turtles-have-a-magnetic-sense-for-longitude.html

Nature\'s wonders

David Turell — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 13:10:01 +0000

There is more than one way to skin a cat. Please read 'false alarm': - http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/science-shots/ - How did the flower learn to imitate a foreign chemical? - A gallery of our nastiest viruses: - http://www.newscientist.com/gallery/mg20327200-virus-killer/1