Adventure Ausrama Blog

While new animals are regularly identified, all species of seadragons were thought to be known. Indeed, it has been 150 years since all were classified. A surprise was on hand for Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the Western Australia Museum. A new type of seadragon was found off the WA coast. A sample had been in a lab untested since 2007. The latest DNA testing system enables new kinds of creatures to be singled out. Named Phyllopteryx dewysea , the new seadragon is bright red in color. This is an ideal color for camouflage in deep water. No one expected a new type, so it remained undetected until the new technique made 5,000 X-ray slices of the sample. The Ruby Seadragon has a distinct skeletal structure. It increases the number of known seadragon species by 50 per cent, because there were only two other kinds of this mysterious animal previously. ✴ Technology by Ty Buchanan ✴ http://www.adventure--australia.blogspot.com/ http://www.tysaustralia.blogsp

The discovery of new species in Australia is no longer a surprise. However, it is extremely interesting. Jumping (peacock) spiders,  Salticidae, are the largest family of the Araneae . Peacock spiders are so called because of their bright colors. Two new species have been identified. They are named Skeletorus,  Maratus sceletus, and Sparklemuffin,  Maratus jactatus . The former is black with white stripes and some blue in the background. It does look like a skeleton. Sparklemuffin is blue with a unique red pattern. Peacock spiders jump and dance around showing off their colorful abdomens. Due to prevalent predators males need to be seen by females to successfully breed and continue their existence. They have adapted well and have diversified into many types. ✴ Science by Ty Buchanan ✴ http://www.adventure--australia.blogspot.com/ http://www.tysaustralia.blogspot.com/ http://adventure--australia.blogspot.com/atom.xml . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Man is not the only animal to dominate the Earth. Pheidole ants have spread over all the livable continents. They are so common that a walk in a tropical forest means some are killed by just stepping forward. There are 1,200 species of the genus Pheidole . Each has developed to exist in a particular niche of the ecosystem. In a study of 300 species it has been found that certain species evolved similar characteristics independently. Species proliferated dramatically - from one to 600 species in the Americas. The evolutionary goal was to dominate all niches, first in the New World then in the Old. Expansion across one was independent of the other. Evolution took its own course. Ants are essential for healthy ecosystems. They aerate the soil, disperse seeds and help move nutrients. In biomass they equate with all vertebrates. Their study is indeed important ✴ Biology by Ty Buchanan ✴ http://www.adventure--australia.blogspot.com/ http://www.tysaustralia

You may stop fearing an asteroid colliding with the Earth. Man himself could be the cause of the next mass extinction. People who harp on about climate change being a religion and an article of faith are like those who ignored Noah. Remember that humans got down a few hundred individuals in the past. We are very lucky to be here today. Of course the world would have gone on without us: it would be a very different world. There would be no pollution anywhere. Ebola is out of control. Antibiotics are failing. A world-wide plague could be on the cards. Danger to Man is not the only issue. Twenty five per cent of mammals could soon disappear. Forty per cent of amphibians are at risk. Because species are already dying off, a mass extinction could have already begun. The hottest decade on record shows that life is declining. When animals die off the food supply for other creatures also goes. So the path of extinction of predator species becomes real as well. Carbon is the maj

There may be alien creature "out there" - Well many believe that there is - but some weird things live on this planet. In the ocean depths of Australia odd living organisms have recently been discovered. At first glance they look like floating mushrooms. They are not related to fungi though. The creatures are actually flowering plants and vertebrates. Dendrogramma mostly consist of a stomach surrounded by jelly-like skin. Scientists believe they are the remnants of early life forms which appeared before the life that went on to dominate the Earth. In other words they were a dead end. They are unique, not related in any way to life that eventually became successful across the globe. There are a lot of new things still continuing their existence at the bottom of the oceans. Many are very specialized living off toxic substances that would kill other organisms. Don't bother to look for life in the stars. Much still awaits discovery beneath our feet. ✴

Carfish are fairly mundane creatures. If you are fishing and you hook one thinking it is a big pike you are annoyed when you drag it in, and "drag" it the defining word. They are usually a dead weight on the line. On the other hand if you are a biologist all animals are of interest. A combined US, Australia team has discovered a new catfish species in North Queensland. It has a tail like an eel, not the usual fish-like tail. Apparently, people knew of its existence for many years and just assumed it was like any other catfish. Tandanus tropicanus is cylindrical in body shape. It has a large head and tiny eyes. DNA tests showed that the fish is a distinct species. Overall, its body configuration is different from other catfish. Unlike many catfish it is good to eat. Fishermen have been catching it for many years for food not knowing how unique it was. Despite the accumulation of human knowledge about the world there is a lot we still do not know abo

New research tells us that the dingo is a uniquely Australian dog. This is despite the strong evidence of Asian dogs looking exactly the same and in Asia they are domesticated. This silly "mythification" of animals in Australia says something about Australians generally. Are they seeking something to make themselves unique? Australian academics have revived the name Canis dingo a term coined in 1793 by German naturalist Friedrich Meyer. Skulls examined by researchers showed the dingo had a long snout and a broad head. A look at a modern dingo in the bush shows it to be exactly the same as Asian specimens living today. There is nothing special about them. Because they are inter-fertile with ordinary dogs shows that they cannot possibly be a different species. Their offspring in this case are also fertile. Unlike the donkey which when mated with a horse gives birth to an infertile mule. Saying they are not descended from wolves is total rubbish - all dogs ar

There are many species of dolphin. To most people they look much alike. We know that they are very intelligent and like to be in the presence of Man, even if it is only following boats A new species has been identified off northern Australia. It could have always been there or moved there from somewhere else. They are in the "hump" class, having a raised portion below the dorsal fin. Scientists are treating the dolphin as a new species which makes three species of Indo-Pacific humpback. There are four kinds of humpback in total including the eastern Atlantic type, Sousa teuszi l.   Apparently, naming of the "new" species is a complex process based on the previously used naming practice, behavior of the animal itself and its habitat. Discovery of the northern Australian dolphin came about by the first intense study into the humpback genus. It involved examination of 180 skulls and 235 tissue samples. http://www.adventure--australia.blogspot.

It's a tough time for the orange-bellie. This species of parrot is about to become extinct. It is estimated to have five years left to live. A few years ago there were 70 pairs. Now only 50 birds remain. The last species of bird to go extinct in Australia ceased its existence 70 years ago. For the most part, people don't seem to care. However, there are more close to extinction. A fight ensues to keep the orange-bellie alive. In 1984 the Orange-Bellied Parrot (OBP) Recovery Team was created to monitor and protect the bird. A protected breeding program was established in south-west Tasmania. Fifteen years of drought has seen the birds' supply of seeds dwindle to almost nothing. Water has been allocated for irrigation and piped away from the region. A last throw of the dice involves catching 10 pairs then breeding them in a caged area. This kind of action is unusual. It would be expected that eggs be taken from nests of wild birds, with hatching done in an incubator then