Tag Archives: koalas

Science discovers the point of the "dishrag pose"

Koala bears have to stay cool, and it turns out one way to do so is to flop on a tree branch. It's not only cute, but the branch is cooler than the koala, bringing their body temp down in high heat. This explains a lot about my squirrel subjects on hot days. Read about it!

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Gratuitous squirrel flopping photo.

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Climate change changing frogs

Warming trends are changing these male Puerto Rican coqui frogs - like its effects on other animals, they are getting smaller, and their calls are getting squeakier. The summary article did not comment on how this might impact their ability to attract mates, but the manuscript suggests that changes in male frogs' calls without corresponding changes in the females' frequency-dependent detection system could have dire effects.

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Every Friday (more or less), sharing some of my favorite news stories of the week!

What are dog farts made of?
Wherein scientists put fart suits on dogs in order to determine the chemical composition and stinkiness of dog farts. What I'd like to know is: what makes some dogs more "fart-prone" in the first place? How did they choose subjects for the study? ("Wanted: Highly Flatulent Dogs")? Read all about it here:

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