jchosy

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June 30, 2010
We here at Zooillogix balked at the idea of 'Zombie day' on ScienceBlogs (and secretly loved it, too). What better example than the animal world to show TRUE zombie-ism at its best? Parasites. Need I even say more? We've posted and posted again and posted another time about zombies before this…
June 28, 2010
Try this quiz. Pick out the titles of actual published scientific articles versus ones generated by a mad-libs-style algorithm.... Post your scores for bragging rights. In case you need some cheering up after being squashed by this test of your mental acumen, check out these cuties at ZooBorns...
May 25, 2010
One chrysalis is bursting at the seams! This is what is about to happen... The newly emerged butterfly will spend its first two hours pumping hemolymph into its wings. In this way, the soft, folded wings will straighten out and become more solid, more flight-ready.
May 19, 2010
Since we last checked in, all 5 of our caterpillars made their transformation to chrysalis! Unfortunately, one of the Georges settled in too close to the side of the container. As he began to pupate, the forming chrysalis touched the plastic side, which must have been enough to cause a small tear…
May 14, 2010
By DAY 7, the little guys aren't so little anymore... Now that we can see some details on these guys, let's learn a little about what we're looking at. Painted lady caterpillars have three pair of true legs, located closest to the mandible. The remaining five pair are called pro-legs or false…
May 13, 2010
When you lose your job, you find yourself taking on new hobbies and projects. Some of them are productive. Some are fun. And some just satisfy the kid in you. So, say hello to my painted lady caterpillars! These cuties will be spending the next three weeks of their lives with me before being…
April 29, 2010
All my life I assumed hermit crabs deal with moving house the same way us humans do. When our living space gets a bit too cramped, we find a better-suited one, vacate the old one, and move. It's a fairly self-centered process and we rarely think about who ends up in our old space. Well, I was…
April 20, 2010
Following up on the previous white-nose syndrome blog, WNS has now been confirmed in Missouri. The article is about their monitoring program and does not mention the find, but our sources tell us there was recent PCR-confirmation of Geomyces destructans in samples taken from suspect bats in…
April 16, 2010
Researchers at the University of Hull, UK, recently published a paper about chemical signaling in reproductive behavior in crayfish. Yep, crayfish. Apparently, the female must release urinary cues in order to initiate courtship behavior in males. No pee, no sex. Unfortunately (and…
April 8, 2010
I hate to get all serious, but this is a topic near-and-dear to me, and one that needs more publicity. And while Zooillogix readers are intelligent and well-informed (and smoking hot, I might add), I want to be sure everyone is aware of the progress and potential of this epidemic. Plus, I know I'…
January 3, 2010
There's a really good point that has been brought up many times about scientists. We suck at sharing our results with the public. Or sometimes we share, but in a way that very few people (scientists included) could understand. One of the problems may be a lack of emphasis on the big "So what?"…
August 6, 2009
The folks at PNAS have been biting their nails to the quick, anxiously awaiting the release of their groundbreaking news- Mutts are more genetically diverse than purebreds! The article had been under embargo until yesterday, forcing the researchers and journal editors to keep the valuable…
July 14, 2009
According to a paper to be released in the September issue of the journal "American Naturalist", the number of sperm a male ejaculates may be correlated to his attractiveness as measured by the females in the population. The idea came forth after scientists at University College London and the…