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When marine biologist Josh Stewart saw a manta ray in the water above him, he immediately realized that it wasn’t as big as an adult manta ray should be. It was, in fact, a very young one and from his experience, they are not commonly-seen around. This is why Stewart and a few colleagues decided to conduct a study and present the world’s first manta ray nursery, full of young specimens, from newborns to teenagers. The journal Marine Biology has recently published this new and very interesting study.

Andrea Marshall, a National Geographic explorer, says that it’s extremely important for experts to be aware of the exact location of these sites. It’s crucial to know where baby manta rays are so that the teams can target their protection strategies in those areas. These strategies are very important, mainly because manta rays take a lot of time to fully grow up. For example, females usually have their first babies after the age of eight or ten. This is late considering they live up to 40 years. So, it’s normal for every baby manta ray swimming around the Flower Garden Banks nursery area to be considered extremely valuable.

The first manta ray nursery in the world

Moreover, the U.S. Endangered Species Act lists manta rays as threatened, which is why young specimens should be protected at all costs. There are few giant manta rays out there, and the number is continuously decreasing. When it comes to the main threat for them, experts think it’s fishing. People are looking to obtain their gill plates through which they filter food from seawater.

The Chinese use the gill plates for medicinal purposes. However, there is no evidence that they can indeed help and are not present in traditional Chinese medicine. Now, experts want to understand what makes the Flower Garden Banks area so incredibly attractive. Especially to all of these young mantas.

Image source: wikimedia

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Most people know the famous Cretaceous period of prehistory thanks to the giant dinosaurs that lived back then. Like the deadly beast that everyone knows, the Tyrannosaurus rex. However, during the same period, a lot of other less known but very important creatures also lived. Like the small but very interesting tropical frogs that were running and hopping around. Proof of this stands the extinct Electrorana limoae frog that was recently discovered in Myanmar, stuck in sticky amber for about 99 million years.

The team of scientists that stumbled upon the fossil now have a very valuable and extremely well-preserved proof that these prehistoric frogs lived in tropical forests back then. The journal Nature has recently published more details about this interesting discovery. It’s also interesting that experts believe frogs to be as old as 200-million years, so that “early” period is only like that for us. The problem is that early amphibians are extremely difficult to analyze because of their biology and very small size. They do not fossilize very easily, and a large part of the extinct frog remains are gone. So, experts had no idea where these frogs lived back then, during that period.

An early tropical frog caught in amber

99-million-year-old rain forest frogs beautifully preserved in Cretaceous amber from Myanmar https://t.co/9zTSQf35M9 Image: CHEN HAI-YING pic.twitter.com/rLhVpJnEnu

— The Ice Age (@Jamie_Woodward_) June 14, 2018

In present times, it’s clear that frogs are an established tropical species. It may also sound easy to assume that they have always been like this. However, this frog that’s been caught in amber is the first clear evidence of this fact. A team of scientists found it in a tropical area and apart from this, it’s almost complete. Its body, skull, arms and hands are almost intact.

This offers experts an incredible chance to observe how these frogs adapted to their environment. There are still a lot of questions left unanswered about frogs. Like why are their closest living relatives, the midwife and fire-bellied toads, only living in temperate environments? Experts surely need to do more research.

Image source: pixabay

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On Monday, a mysterious, 150-million-year old, almost intact dinosaur skeleton went to auction in Paris. It eventually sold for over $2 million to an unnamed buyer. However, it’s interesting that if certain paleontologists are right, the winning bidder may get the unique chance to name a previously undiscovered dinosaur species. The remains of this ancient predator were discovered back in 2013 in the Wyoming area, at the Morrison Formation Site. It measures 30 feet in length and 9 feet in height, making it a true beast of the ancient times.

According to paleontologist Eric Mickeler who observed the remains, the skeleton is about 70% complete, which means that it’s almost intact. To have such a high amount of fossilized bones in such great condition is truly remarkable. Mickeler, the valuation expert for the French auction house Aguttes, said that experts have never documented this particular dinosaur species before. At first, experts thought that it had belonged to an allosaurus. However, upon further examination, they realized that they had it wrong. This dinosaur had more teeth and different bones.

The mystery dinosaur skeleton that sold for $2 million

SOLD 2 019 680 € (incl. tax) !!!
ADJUGÉ 2 019 680 € ttc @CAguttes !!! @LaTourEiffel #auctionupdate #auctionresult #aguttes #paleo #paleontology #dinoaguttes #instadino #jurassic #theropod #allosaurus pic.twitter.com/0QvNjC3ush

— Aguttes (@Aguttes_) June 4, 2018

No matter what species the dinosaur turns out to be, it certainly lived a long life. This was a carnivorous beast that died of old age most certainly. However, according to Mickeler, experts need to conduct more research to confirm that the skeleton truly belongs to an unknown species.

What’s even more interesting is that the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology in Bethesda, Maryland wrote a letter to Aguttes seeking the cancellation of Monday’s action. Their worries had to do with valuable dinosaur remains falling into private hands and possibly being lost. Mickeler admitted that he hopes the new owner will put it on display in a museum somewhere. It would truly be a shame to lose it forever before even documenting it.

Image source: maxpixel

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If HBO has a fictional Mother of Dragons in their popular Game of Thrones TV show, it seems that the real world also has a Mother of Lizards. A 240-million-year-old fossil that has been recently discovered had the honor to receive this special title. This ancient lizard, scientifically called Megachirella wachtleri, is the ancestor of at least 10,000 different species alive today. Initially, paleontologists described this fossil back in 2003. However, some recent scans have revealed certain hidden details. This allowed experts to identify this fossil as the oldest ancestor in the squamate lineage which includes both lizards and snakes.

According to a new study which the journal Nature recently published, this fossil might fill the gap between the oldest squamates and their origins which experts have derived from molecular data. Experts discovered this ancient fossil somewhere in the Italian Alps, in the northern part of the country. Initially, judging from its age, experts thought that it belonged to a lepidosaur, a very primitive reptile. However, because it had clear lizard-like features, scientists wanted to take a second look at it. According to Tiago Simões, the lead author of the study, the fossil deserved scanning once again, for details.

The real Mother of Lizards has finally been discovered

It was important to establish this species’ place in the evolutionary tree of reptiles. It seems that the team was not wrong to look again. In order to reveal these details, they used CT scans and built computer models of the fossil. This way, the team managed to find certain aspects, very significant for squamates.

It seems that the evolutionary puzzle is now even more complete, after the discovery of this important missing piece. Squamate origins is a very interesting subject, one that should receive a lot more attention, especially now.

Image source: maxpixel

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Coyotes have been a common sight on the land that is now western United States for ages. When the European settlers came in, they cut down forests to build farms and killed the biggest enemies of the coyotes. This was the perfect opportunity for them to expand and up to this day, they still live in a deforested land. According to a new study, which the journal ZooKeys recently published, coyotes are now established in every state, including in certain Canadian areas and are now moving into Central America too.

Camera traps stand proof of their expansion in those areas. But coyotes are dangerous and have numerous times attacked pets and rarely, even humans. Federal wildlife manages think that by instructing hunters to kill, poison or trap them, the problem will be solved. But they fail to acknowledge the fact that this behavior, which targeted the coyotes’ enemies, provoked this situation. The study also says that coyotes have been living around these areas since forever. The species that roam these lands today originate from their ancestors that were once contemporary with saber-tooth tigers and mastodons.

Coyotes and the reason why they are so many

In order to gather more information about coyotes, the team mapped the historic range of coyotes. For this, they used archaeological and fossil records. As for their range expansion, the team also used museum specimens, game department records and reports. But biologists still do not understand why coyotes like open land more than forest.

A reason could be that bigger predators can kill them for territory and forests are more dangerous because of this. However, now, coyotes also roam lands where there are still forests because there are no more predators to hunt them. And unlike mountain lions or bears, coyotes are survivors and won’t give in that easily.

Image source: maxpixel

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A group of scientists from the United States reached the unexpected conclusion that octopuses might have originated from aliens. According to them, they might have arrived on our planet as frozen eggs about 250 million years ago. Moreover, they might have also evolved on a completely different planet, and the experts believe that the proof lies in the extraordinary power that octopuses possess. Cephalopods, the class that octopuses are also part of, have the incredible ability of editing their bodies. This is so impressive mainly because experts are still to figure out how this process actually works. Evolution as we know it is not based on body-editing processes.

Now, biologists have claimed that this power is an “advanced biological capability” which must have originated from an alien world. In April last year, a group of researchers discovered that cephalopods, including octopus, cuttlefish and squid, can rephrase their RNA with regularity. This characteristic makes them completely unique among all the living beings on planet Earth. It seems that it may not be a coincidence at all. Just like DNA, the RNA has genetic codes on it. However, the big difference is that the DNA is double stranded while the RNA only has one single strand.

Octopuses, the aliens living among us?

The RNA triggers protein protection and according to experts, in ancient times, the RNA in early organisms on Earth might have worked exactly as the DNA now. The researchers also studied members of the cephalopod class and discovered something unusual. About 60% of their RNA, especially in the nervous system, was edited after the DNA programmed it. These changed allowed them to adapt to the temperature changes in oceans.

Experts now believe that octopuses might have arrived on Earth from space in the form of frozen eggs which then evolved. This is why they possess this unusual ability, unlike any other being on our planet.

Image source: flickr

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An 11-year old girl, Ryleigh Taylor, was walking on the shoreline of an East Tennessee lake when she stumbled upon a very rare sight. Something strange was lying on a rock. She had no idea what that thing was and took it with her back home. A professor of paleobiology, Colin Sumrall, finally got to analyze the bizarre structure and discovered that it was a fossil. It actually belonged to a 475-million year old sea creature known as trilobite. This creature is not long extinct, but the discovery is surprising nonetheless.

According to Sumrall, it is extremely unusual for someone to walk on a shoreline and find such an old fossil. It seems that trilobites appeared on Earth about 521 million years ago. They lived and thrived throughout the lower Paleozoic era and went extinct about 250 million years ago. This was well before the very first dinosaurs even began to exist. According to fossil record, trilobites were extremely successful early marine animals which survived for about 270 million years on this planet, which is a very long time.

11-year old stumbles upon 475-million year old fossil

Girl finds 475-million-year-old fossil near Tennessee lake https://t.co/T07A2IDBu9 pic.twitter.com/FEcJ3WyyVm

— KMBC (@kmbc) May 3, 2018

Colin Sumrall also explained that to find such an old fossil is no ordinary thing. The girl might have found it there because the creature might have roamed these waters around what is now East Tennessee. Moreover, this fossil is in almost perfect condition, unlike other trilobite fossils previously found. Usually, a trilobite fossil disintegrates into many tiny pieces which are difficult to analyze. But the great condition of the fossil that the girl found amazed everyone.

According to experts, trilobites developed the sense of vision first, and lived mostly in shallow waters. Until now, researchers have discovered about 600 different species of trilobites. This extraordinary find is the kind that makes a child want to follow a certain career. But Ryleigh now hopes that her discovery will make other kids get out of their houses and explore nature more.

Image source: wikimedia

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Coral reefs beneath the oceans around the world are dying off at an alarming rate. It is a dire situation that has alarmed marine biologists because they understand the complex role these formations play in the overall health of undersea ecosystems.

Among the most significant causes is the warming of the oceans brought on by climate change. The acid content of the oceans is also rising. Coal mining, pollution, over-fishing, blast fishing, and the digging of canals are also contributing to the devastation of coral reefs.

 

Gene Editing, the Best Way to Save Coral Species?

 

The urgency to get a handle on the problem has led scientists to adopt a new method of understanding what coral species need to survive. They’re looking to genetics, or more specifically, into the possibility of employing genome editing as a way of bolstering the defense of coral organisms.

A technology called CRISPR is a way to do just that. CRISPR is the acronym of Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats. This makes it possible for genetic material to be added, removed, or edited within the genome of any organism.

By using CRISPR, it may be possible, someday, to “edit” the DNA of coral species to make them adapted to warmer waters with higher acid content. But before scientists can use this gene-editing tool to save coral species, they will have to learn a lot more about the DNA and RNA of corals. This is still not very well-understood today.

What makes this even more hard to recreate is the exotic coral reproduction system. Corals breed only during specific times of the year. They do this by using a method called “broadcast spawning.” This involves the release of eggs and sperm into moving water columns. Its goal is to get them to randomly connect with each other.

The good news is that preliminary tests using the gene-editing tool have shown that scientists could create a modified coral species with superior survival skills. Still, this it’s just a first step in the complex challenge that lies ahead.

 

Image Source: Wikimedia

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Everyone probably knows the story of the dinosaurs, a species of dominant reptiles that roamed our planet before the human race even existed. We also know how they perished, when an asteroid hit the Earth about 65 million years ago. That major catastrophe triggered a series of other environmental changes which, in time, wiped out about 75% of all life on the planet. However, we don’t know much about how these beasts came to be, and how did they end up dominating the animal kingdom.

Insufficient scientific evidence has failed countless times to tell us more about the genesis of dinosaurs. Experts only know that they came to be about 245 million years ago. However, the greater questions are how and why? Well, according to a new study which the journal Nature Communications recently published, their rise to prominence might be linked to another major extinction event. That one cleared all previous life on Earth clearing up the path for the dinosaurs to rise.

The initial mass extinction event

According to study co-author Mike Benton, about 232 million years ago, some massive volcanic eruptions took place where now is Western Canada. These eruptions triggered a series of earthquakes, bursts of acid rain and global warming. These wiped the majority of life on the planet. Experts call this event the Carnian Pluvial Episode and according to them, it allowed dinosaurs to evolve and strive. Before that, their numbers were very small.

It’s interesting that this initial extinction event didn’t only clear the path for dinosaurs, but for many species that we still have today. Among them being turtles, lizards, crocodiles and finally, mammals. The team of expert reached this conclusion after discovering evidence for climate change in the Dolomites, in northern Italy. This is how they figured out that repeated extinctions must have taken place, not only the one we know of. Moreover, similar prof was discovered in Brazil and Argentina too.

Image source: pixabay

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A team of scientists recently took a closer look at the fossils of a reptile. This is how they discovered that it actually didn’t have only two eyes, but four. The name of this unusual izard is Saniwa ensidens, and experts discovered its remains about 150 years ago in southwestern Wyoming. However, according to a study which the journal Current Biology recently published, experts only now discovered its unusual trait, thanks to a computed tomography scanner. This creature is the only jawed vertebrate with four eyes that ever roamed the Earth.

According to Bhart-Anjan Bhullar, the co-author of the study, this discovery reveals how easy it is to assemble a new organ under specific circumstances. The general idea is that eyes are very complex structures. In reality, the brain can create more of them at all times. Researchers are now suggesting that these four eyes actually prove that lizards evolved in a completely different way than other vertebrates like fish and frogs. According to the study, that fourth eye only confirms that the third eye is actually a parapineal derivative.

The mysterious and fascinating four-eyed lizard

Here’s Why an Ancient Lizard Had 4 Eyes https://t.co/BE1B7S9nDB pic.twitter.com/fSwRElMhKa

— Live Science (@LiveScience) April 2, 2018

Jawed vertebrates usually have a pineal organ. Its other name is ‘the third eye” and acts as an internal clock. According to lead author Krister Smith, this lizard’s third eye evolved from the organ called parapineal. In this lizard’s case, both the pineal and parapineal formed on top of its head. This means that it’s third eye is something completely different than other vertebrates’ third eye.

The tests through which the team reached this conclusion helped them understand that the pineal and parapineal eyes are not a pair of organs. Now, their plan is to conduct further research in order to find out how did that third eye develop. It’s an interesting discovery, and one that came completely out of nowhere.

Image source: pixabay