Biology

Jaw-some wombats may be great survivors

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Flexible jaws may help wombats better survive in a changing world by adapting to climate change’s effect on vegetation and new diets in conservation sanctuaries. An international study, co-led by The University of Queensland’s Dr Vera Weisbecker, has revealed that wombat jaws appear to change in relation to their diets. “Scientists had long suspected that … Read more

Complex society discovered in birds

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Multilevel societies have, until now, only been known to exist among large-brained mammals including humans, other primates, elephants, giraffes, and dolphins. Now, scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior in Konstanz and the University of Konstanz report the existence of a multilevel society in a small-brained bird, the vulturine guineafowl (Acryllium vulturinum). The … Read more

Using probiotics to protect honey bees against fatal disease

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Probiotics, beneficial microorganisms best known for promoting gut health in humans, are now being used by Western University and Lawson Health Research Institute scientists to save honey bee colonies from collapse. A new study published in the Nature journal ISME J demonstrates how probiotics could potentially stave off a common bacterial hive infestation called American … Read more

Scientists invent animal-free testing of lethal neurotoxins

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Animal testing will no longer be required to assess a group of deadly neurotoxins, thanks to University of Queensland-led research. Associate Professor Bryan Fry, of UQ’s Venom Evolution Lab, said a new technique could replace conventional methods of testing paralytic neurotoxins, which previously required euthanasia of test subjects. “The old method, while extremely efficient, is … Read more

After release into wild, vampire bats keep ‘friends’ made in captivity

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Vampire bats that share food and groom each other in captivity are more likely to stick together when they’re released back into the wild, find researchers in a study reported on October 31 in the journal Current Biology. While most previous evidence of “friendship” in animals comes from research in primates, these findings suggest that vampire … Read more

Disease-causing protein in cystic fibrosis has ancient roots in sea lamprey

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The oldest known ortholog of the ion channel that is defective in patients with cystic fibrosis arose approximately 450 million years ago in the sea lamprey, researchers report October 31st in the journal Developmental Cell. Many differences between lamprey and jawed vertebrate orthologs of this protein, called the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR), are vestiges … Read more

Genetic history of endangered songbird could inspire an encore

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Researchers from The Australian National University (ANU) used DNA samples from museums around the world, dating back to the 1800s, to study the genetic impact of severe population decline on the regent honeyeater. Their study shows that while the birds’ genetic diversity remains intact, giving it a fighting chance, the best way to save the … Read more

Detection dogs and DNA on the trail of endangered lizards

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Detection dogs trained to sniff out the scat of an endangered lizard in California’s San Joaquin Valley, combined with genetic species identification, could represent a new noninvasive sampling technique for lizard conservation worldwide. That is according to a study published today from the University of California, Davis, in partnership with the nonprofit Working Dogs for … Read more

Classic energy theory fails to explain coral distribution across depth

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Coral species richness at different depths is unrelated to energy availability, according to a new study analysing diversity across an Australasian reef. Research from James Cook University, Lancaster University, the University of Copenhagen and Queensland University of Technology, published in Biology Letters, reveals neither energy availability alone, nor in combination with other local factors, accounts for … Read more