Can a snake be a service animal? Yes, but rules are getting a new review Oct 20, 2009
But the Department of Justice (DOJ) again is trying to define service animals, and Redrock may lose his status, which at least in theory allows him to accompany Greene into stores, restaurants, theaters and other public places ... rs5 wrote on Oct 19, 2009 11:31 AM:" The Seattle Times has a video of the "Snake Man of Shelton" as he prefers to be called, he only wants respect for him and his snake. " ... sammy wrote on Oct 19, 2009 12:33 PM:" I, too, shall require a grocery horse to reach my... (Longview Daily News, WA)
Trouble in Eden Oct 19, 2009
A fox lies bleeding in the long grass, which rustles like the suburban lawn at the start of Blue Velvet ; a startled doe runs off with a half-born fawn still swinging from her rump; a chick, splayed on the ground but not yet dead, swarms with marauding ants. The humans, too, are under siege: first from acorns that rifle onto the roof like bullets and from weird spores is that what they are. (New Yorker)
Scientists discover a vegetarian spider, upending a longstanding assumption Oct 19, 2009
Scientists had known for decades that a stinging species of ants and a type of acacia tree had a symbiotic relationship: One could not survive without the other. The ants feed primarily on small nutritious pellets, called Beltian bodies, that develop at the tree s leaf tips ... The ants, in return, defend the tree from other plant eaters so successfully that researchers believed few other insects lived on - or even visited - the tree. (Boston Globe)
Being A Standout Has Its Benefits, Study Shows Oct 18, 2009
House-hunting rock ants collectively manage to choose the best nest-site without needing. (June 25, 2009) Scientists trying to understand how the brains of animals evolve have found that evolutionary changes in brain structure reflect the types of social interactions and environmental stimuli different. (Science Daily)
Officer Arrested Oct 18, 2009
pancho wrote on Oct 8, 2009 10:28 PM:" Cops break the law, firemen commit arson, doctors overbill medicare,exterminators put ants in your kitchen. Like my momma said you got to take the good with the bad. I support good law enforcement and thank the honest cops for what they do. ". D. Hertz wrote on Oct 8, 2009 9:43 PM:" Hey MeMeG, they break traffic laws all the time. Its become a real joke. ". (New Iberia, LA)
Nigerian Children Deemed Witches Tortured Oct 18, 2009
(AP) The nine-year-old boy lay on a bloodstained hospital sheet crawling with ants, staring blindly at the wall. His family pastor had accused him of being a witch, and his father then tried to force acid down his throat as an exorcism. (CBS News)
• Woodpeckers boast unique adaptations Oct 17, 2009
Most of its foraging is done on the ground (for ants, if there are any), using a long, sticky tongue. It also eats a fair amount of fruit, at least in some areas, more than the other species. (Juneau Empire)
Boric acid mixture will rid home of pesky black ants Oct 16, 2009
Question: Is there any low price homemade recipe to put on the kitchen counter to get rid of or kill those pesky black ants found in my sink, counter or trash can ... "If ants do not readily take to the bait, use a toothpick, dab into the mixture, and make a small trail of droplets leading to the container," he said ... "Keep in mind that this is a relatively slow-acting ant poison, and that the worker ants must be allowed to lap it up and take it back to the nest to feed the rest of the... (Honolulu Star-Bulletin)
Do Three Meals A Day Keep Fungi Away? Oct 16, 2009
By contrast, an estimated 270,000 fungal species are pathogenic to plants and 50,000 species infect insects ... Fungi are also important in the decomposition of plants ... Leaf-cutting ants, one of a few groups of social insects to cultivate crops and live in dense colonies. (Science Daily)
Culture Is More Important Than Genes To Altruistic Behavior In Large-scale Societies Oct 16, 2009
Altruism presents them with a difficult line to argue: behaviors that help unrelated people while being costly to the individual and creating a risk for genetic descendants could not likely be favored by evolution: at least by common evolutionary arguments ... Immigrants to a new culture tend to "do as Romans do" after assimilating ... (June 13, 2007) How social or altruistic behavior evolved has been a central and hotly debated question, particularly by those researchers engaged in the study of... (Science Daily)
New repellent foils cling-on bugs Oct 14, 2009
It is hoped the coating could restrict the movement of pests such as termites, cockroaches, ants and locusts. Such pests can cause damage to homes, crops and people's health. (BBC News -- Science)
Kolkata: Rat bites patient in hospital Oct 13, 2009
In November 2005, 55-year-old Gouri Rani Chakraborty died at Shambhunath Pandit Hospital after ants ate away her recently operated eye. On April 20, 2008, a newborn's eyes were nibbled by rats, leaving the baby scarred. (India Times, India)
Opportunity To Usurp Reproductive Power Of Royal Throne Keeps Worker Termites Home Oct 13, 2009
12, 2009) A new study by researchers at the University of Maryland suggests termite offspring stay in their birth colony to help their queen and king parents rather than leave to try and start their own family because their chance of inheriting the reproductive throne is higher than their chance of successfully dispersing, finding a mate, and surviving to produce fertile offspring on their own. In research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition (October 5,... (Science Daily)
Energy crisis postponed, new gas rescues world... Oct 13, 2009
The US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission said America may not need any new coal or nuclear plants "ever" again ... There are many small coal plants that have shut down and just need permits and a willing buyer ... There is new technology for these smaller plants and the US has lots of coal and it's easy to get to. (The Drudge Report)
No insects for this spider, its leaves only Oct 13, 2009
Central American spider is the first known to specifically hunt plants ... "This is really the first spider known to specifically 'hunt' plants; it is also the first known to go after plants as a primary food source," said study researcher Christopher Meehan of Villanova University in Pennsylvania ... In return, the ants get a comfy place to live the plant's hollow spines and food in the form of acacia nectar and the shrub's leaf-tips. (MSNBC -- Environment)
First 'Mainly Vegetarian' Spider Oct 13, 2009
There, the spider inhabits several species of acacia shrubs involved in a co-evolutionary mutualism with certain ants that has long been a staple of ecology textbooks: the ants fiercely guard the plants against most would-be herbivores, while the acacias provide both housing for the ants via swollen, hollow spines and food in the form of nectar (excreted from glands at the base of each leaf) and specialized leaf tips known as Beltian bodies ... The spiders get the job done through active... (Science Daily)
Unusual Spider Species Passes Up Live Prey for Plants Oct 13, 2009
Of the 40,000-plus spider species known, only a few nibble on plants typically, as a dietary supplement of nectar or simply as an accidental ingestion of pollen. A new paper, published online today in , details the natural history of Bagheera kiplingi, a jumping spider that has vegetarian leanings, and its interesting arrangement with a plant and the ants that protect it ... Certain acacia plants (Vachellia collinsii) and ants (Pseudomyrmex peperi) have developed. (Scientific American)
In Amoeba World, Cheating Doesn't Pay Oct 13, 2009
In work appearing in Nature, Rice evolutionary biologists Joan Strassmann and David Queller join forces with BCM geneticist Gad Shaulsky to determine how altruistic mutants help preserve cooperative behavior by single-celled amoebas ... The researchers found that cheater cells inserted into a population of mutants would "select" Dictyostelium strains that contained a particular resistor gene ... By the sixth cycle of spore production and germination, the resistant mutants had increased their... (Science Daily)
Beware the bugs Oct 11, 2009
ANT - Ants sting and inject their formic acid into animals or humans that threaten them or their nests ... BEE - Bees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants, and are known for their role in pollination. (The Star Online, Malaysia)
When removing leaves, rake judiciously Oct 11, 2009
A. Yes, raking is good, but you should rake the lawn and garden - or actually anywhere there are plants that sleep in winter and come back in the spring. Leaves left on these plants will smother them ... Q. I have had ants in my house, and powder post beetles. (Boston Globe)
Culinary Ecotourists Turn Wilderness Foraging into Dinner Oct 10, 2009
The here is a laboratory for many of evolution s flamboyant experiments: hundreds of garish bird species such as toucans and scarlet macaws; astonishing leaf-cutter ants marching in flotillas 300 feet long to nourish the fungi they cultivate in their subterranean nests. There are formidable snakes--the eyelash palm viper and the terciopelo--and rare amphibians like the gaudy strawberry poison dart frog. (Scientific American)
A first XI doing their country proud Oct 10, 2009
Blackburn, one of seven children to two doctors, had her interest sparked by caring for a menagerie of pets, including guinea pigs, and a rebellious fascination for picking up dangerous animals like jellyfish and stinging ants, according to her biographer Catherine Brady. She loved to hold them and even sang to them. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Australia)
His Endowment Is Cocktail Chatter Oct 9, 2009
And add that since she so values your endowment, if she wants it to grow, not shrink, she needs to protect it better ... He can't stay extra long in the sandbox or look at ants, because everyone has to stick to a schedule. (Slate)
Vampire Weekend, Paisley head to Valley Oct 8, 2009
Place an obit: (559) 441-6228. Web Search powered by YAHOO. (Fresno Bee)
Ants blamed for fire that kills 9 cats Oct 7, 2009
DAYTONA BEACH -- In a tale worthy of Ripley's Believe it or Not, officials are blaming carpenter ants for igniting a fire in a Vine Street home Tuesday morning, killing nine cats ... They pulled away the drywall and found a nest of carpenter ants surrounding the electrical box ... Apparently, Godawa said, the insects came in contact with the energized wiring, grounding the current and causing the ants to ignite. (Daytona Beach News Journal)
* World News Quick Take Oct 7, 2009
One in five said they used bees to sting their aching parts in order to cure the pain while others said they had drank urine or eaten crushed ants ... The tape shows politician Pleasant Bridgewater telling Travoltas lawyer that a paramedic who treated the actors son wants at least US$20 million as payment to not release a private document to the media. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
Microbiology: Free-for-all On The Leaf Surface Oct 6, 2009
They are even on the surface of plants, and lots of them at that: one to ten million of the unicellular microorganisms live on every square centimeter of stem and foliage ... For the layman, it is all the more astonishing that biologists still know so little about this habitat and its inhabitants ... The scientists began by collecting leaves from soy and clover plants and mouse-ear cress (Arabidopsis thaliana), then washed the bacteria off and skillfully processed the samples using specifically... (Science Daily)
Boll Weevils: No Mistaking This Bug With New Insect ID Technique Oct 6, 2009
Trapping, aided by the use of chemical insect attractants called pheromones, is a key component of the program that can tell where, when, and to what degree boll weevils are present, including those re-invading zones previously cleared of the pest. Field scouts checking pheromone traps sometimes encounter other weevil species, or pieces of trapped weevils that have been partially eaten by insect predators like ants, raising the risk of misidentification ... 2, 2008) Boll weevils don't hibernate... (Science Daily)
That's your excuse, not your problem Oct 6, 2009
I recently discovered ants in my guest bedroom -- more of a scouting party than an infestation, but still ... If insect pests were my designated issue, the ants would have absorbed much more mental focus ... But her mood fluctuated even on antidepressants. (CNN)
FYI, the latest in As the Birthers Turn Oct 6, 2009
I claimed I was Christian to win the election, now the mullahs wants me dead for sedition ... One of the guys would stuff the seat of his pants with the brown bags we took our lunches in, do something wrong, get paddled, then rub his backside and grin at her and say oooh, that smarts ... This topic is fun you know like fun when you pick the wings off flies and watch them flop around or when you burn ants with a magnifying glass. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Opinion)
Court sides with schools on seclusion rooms Oct 4, 2009
Anna20 wrote on Oct 3, 2009 10:54 AM:" What everyone should be asking their selves is what did this child learn? What did throwing him into a seclusion room when he became upset teach him? Why isnt everyone asking why the child became so upset? Everyone wants to assume the child just out of the blue became angry for no reason. Who ever is working with this child should ask their selves what they can do differently because what you are doing isnt working! Why are we so quick to put the blame on a... (Columbia Daily Herald, TN)
Ancient Fungus: World's Forests Were Wiped Out Oct 2, 2009
Traditionally, scientists had thought that land plants weathered the catastrophe without much loss ... 25, 2008) It turns out ants, like humans, are true farmers ... The difference is that ants are farming fungus. (Science Daily)
Where Have All the Stickers Gone? Oct 2, 2009
They used to be as ubiquitous as ants at a picnic ... McDonnell has obeyed dumb Republican consultants and apologized a few times. (Townhall.com)
A perfect ending to 'Tastes of Thailand' trip Oct 1, 2009
On offer were also bamboo caterpillars, ants and ant eggs, water roaches and little frogs. We also came across live shrimps served in a bowl topped with roasted rice, ground chilli and fish sauce. (India Times)
Fire ants march into Benton County Sep 30, 2009
Jimmy Lumpkin with the UT Ag Extension Office in Camden states he has been tracking fire ants in the Benton County area for 5-6 years ... A typical fire ant colony will produce large mounds in open areas where they feed on young plants, seeds, and sometimes crickets ... These ants will bite to get a grip and then they will sting their victim by injecting toxic venom into their prey. (Camden Chronicle, TN)
Ants Vs. Worms: New Computer Security Mimics Nature Sep 30, 2009
Unlike traditional security devices, which are static, these digital ants wander through computer networks looking for threats, such as computer worms self-replicating programs designed to steal information or facilitate unauthorized use of machines. When a digital ant detects a threat, it doesn t take long for an army of ants to converge at that location, drawing the attention of human operators who step in to investigate ... In nature, we know that ants defend against threats very... (Science Daily)
Dessert before death: the life and times of yellow jackets (32) Sep 30, 2009
But enough evidence now exists that larvae function as a communal stomach for the nest and that this is probably a widespread phenomenon in wasps and ants, if poorly known even among entomologists. OK, so now on to why picnics get wrecked. (Sioux Falls Tri-State Neighbor, SD)
Without Bush, media lose interest in war caskets... Sep 30, 2009
Now that "the true human cost of war" will fall directly on Obama's shoulders, the media wants to ignore it ... The so called Media are nothing but a bunch of overpaid sycophants ... It's also telling that our intellectually challenged immigrants (you know the ones)escape their country of suppression, lack of freedom and liberty, to come to America - the land of the FREE, only to arrive and elect and support those who are intent on turning this country into what they escaped from. (The Drudge Report)
Butterflies carry 'GPS clock' in their antennae Sep 25, 2009
The paper also suggests that other insects such as foraging honeybees and ants may use their antennae in a similar way. Bookmark with. (BBC News -- Science)
The case of the headless ant Sep 24, 2009
Fire ant venom attracts the flies to the ants, scientists report ... Consider the case of fire ants and phorid flies ... Fire ants are venomous pests that roam the southeastern United States and pack a powerful punch with their bite. (Science News for Kids)
Where to Buy Bug Halloween Candy On... Sep 24, 2009
Creep out Halloween party guests and trick or treaters with fun novelty candy treats like edible insect candy containing real ants or scorpions or gummy candies shaped like everything from slimy worms to hairy tarantulas ... Ant Candy, hard candy with real ants stuck inside to make each creepy bug candy treat look like a miniature ant farm. (Suite101.com)
Alien lizard invaders Sep 22, 2009
Campbell estimates as many as 62,500 bugs are in the stomachs of brown anoles per acre the lizards occupy, potentially shifting the ecological balance of bugs and plants ... They gorge on ants, spiders, roaches and beetles, but Campbell sees no upside to the booming browns. (Florida Today)
World's weirdest hotels Sep 18, 2009
Each guest room is built around a different animal theme: the Eagle Room has a big-beaked bird standing atop a huge egg, while another has arm-sized ants crawling up the wall. The animal theme continues outside -- a large giraffe statue on the property contains a teahouse, and human-size "spider webs" are set up here and there. (CNN)
Heeeere's Glenn! When the Lunatic Fringe Tries Comedy Sep 18, 2009
"There are already too many things we don't want on our soil: carmakers, soccer, nuclear power, Roman Polanski, ants, Mexicans and French soil." I also gave him a spelling-bee riff. "I assume that in India, nothing is misspelled. And have you noticed that none of these seemingly genius kids go on to do anything? When will parents figure out that turning your kid into a Microsoft Word function is not great training for the modern world? Learning to scream and cry into a camera is the ticket.". (Time.com)
• Kimberly Public Library has new materials Sep 18, 2009
"How in the World" by Reader's Digest Association, "The Year of Living Biblically" by A. J. Jacobs, "More Natural Cures They Don't Want You to Know About" by Kevin Trudeau, How to Teach Your Baby to Read" by Glenn DomanJuvenile fictionEndymion Spring" by Matthew Skelton, The Siege of Macindaw" by John Fanagan, A Good Night for Ghosts" by Mary Pope Osborne, "A Certain Kind of Treasure" by Kellene Despain, "Great Bear Lake" by Erin Hunter, "Bunny Bonanza" by Ben M. Baglio, "Once When I Was Scared"... (Burley South Idaho Press, ID)
Campground cockroach claim seeks $107 Sep 17, 2009
"When you go camping, you expect ants and mosquito bites. You don't expect an invasion of cockroaches.". The extended family, from various points in California, enjoys meeting up at campgrounds around the state. (Modesto Bee, CA)
It's good not to be skunked Sep 17, 2009
Flying ants, bees, flies and lace wings swarmed along the shorelines while trout in the back eddies and pools waited patiently for dessert. Gene waded to the slick rocks, and I chose to bank fish. (News & Observer -- Sports)
New York band Tiny Animals takes new spin on music Sep 16, 2009
"Occasionally I daydream about seeing small animals in the palm of my hand, but not animals that are supposed to be small like frogs and ants. Rather, large animals such as giraffes and gypsy horses that have been shrunken down as a result of some magic spell," says Chris, who plays the guitar. Hopefully Chris' answer gives everyone the clue that these guys are kind of silly. (The Loyola Greyhound, MD)
Kauai Komedy Sep 14, 2009
Perhaps, but I wonder how insects such as ants might view the event if they had their own newspapers. The headlines would probably read something like, thousands killed in stampede. (Lihue Garden Island, HA)
Move over, zombie fire ants: 'Crazy' ants are taking over Sep 14, 2009
Crazy ants, so named because they move in all directions rather than in a straight line, first surfaced in Houston seven years ago and had previously been confirmed in 14 Southeast Texas counties as far north as Huntsville. Now the ants have been seen beyond the Houston area, with confirmed sightings in San Antonio and in Jim Hogg County in the Rio Grande Valley ... This discovery is viewed as "a significant change" by researchers who have long feared that the ants would move to other parts of... (The Pantagraph newspaper)
'Death Stench' Universal Ancient Warning Signal Sep 12, 2009
Furthermore, they found that the same fatty acids not only signaled death in ants, caterpillars, and cockroaches, they were equally effective in terrestrial woodlice and pill bugs that are actually not insects but crustaceans related to crayfish and lobsters ... 27, 2008) Ecologists have discovered that subterranean and aboveground herbivorous insects can communicate with each other by using plants as telephones. (Science Daily)
Smell of death is ancient for some creatures Sep 12, 2009
Dead ants no longer smell like live ants, for example, and the result is they get , a study earlier this year found ... The chemical turned out to involve fatty acids that are also found in the death stench of insects ranging from ants and caterpillars to woodlice and pill bugs, plus crustaceans related to crayfish and lobsters. (MSNBC -- Environment)
Biologists discover 'death stench' is a universal ancient warning signal Sep 12, 2009
Furthermore, they found that the same fatty acids not only signaled death in ants, caterpillars, and cockroaches, they were equally effective in terrestrial woodlice and pill bugs that are actually not insects but crustaceans related to crayfish and lobsters. Because insects and crustaceans diverged more than 400-million years ago it is likely that most subsequent species recognize their dead in a similar way, that the origin of such signals was likely even older, and that such behaviour... (EurekAlert!)
Worker Bees In 'Reproductive Class War' With Queen, New Research Discovers Sep 12, 2009
(July 3, 2007) Insect queens were thought to have an egg-laying monopoly, but nine wood ant species revealed widespread reproductive activity by worker ants ... 6, 2006) Worker bees, wasps and ants are often considered neuter. (Science Daily)
What does 46.3 million uninsured mean? Sep 11, 2009
Is this what everyone wants ... My guess is that many of the uninsured are spening their money on wants instead of needs ... Throughout the last few months congressional Democrats as well as the President have been put on the defensive trying to rebut claims illegal immigrants would be able to get coverage. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Opinion)
Chimps pack specialized tool kits, scientists say Sep 11, 2009
An adult male chimpanzee standing bipedally while using a tool to dip for ants in the Goualougo Triangle ... Chimpanzees in the wild have developed specialized tool kits for foraging army ants, scientists now reveal ... "In other studies based across Africa, chimpanzees have been seen to prey on army ants both with and without tools, and it was inexplicable why some chimpanzees used different techniques to gather the same prey," explained researcher Crickette Sanz, a biological anthropologist... (MSNBC -- Environment)
Patience a hard pill to swallow regarding Afghanistan Sep 9, 2009
Today, Bush desperately wants to convince the American people that he is making a fresh start in Iraq ... Meanwhile, Nikolai Kovalyov, the former head of the Russian FSB security service, warned the US that an attack on Afghanistan would fail to capture Osama bin Laden, the alleged mastermind of the atrocities, and would backfire on the US. In Afghanistan s mountainous terrain it takes a trainload of explosives to destroy three militants, he said ... We can t even erraticate red ants in our own... (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Opinion)
Extinction of bat highlights critical ecosystem failure Sep 8, 2009
But a captive breeding program was our last chance of preserving this critically endangered species," he said. Mr Garrett said the decline of pipistrelle bats emphasised his call last month for national policy to shift from trying to save single species to protecting larger areas of the environment. Captive breeding is really a policy of last resort marking decades of failure to maintain healthy ecosystems where species thrive, Mr Garrett said. The pipistrelle bat is a victim of the... (Sydney Morning Herald -- Australia)
Maui residents criticize planned state ag layoffs Sep 6, 2009
She said the layoffs would increase the risk of brown tree snakes, West Nile virus and red imported fire ants. Without the necessary number of inspectors in place, Maui faces the risk of decreased quality of food and increase in prices to consumers. (Honolulu Advertiser)
* Rough roads to luxury Sep 5, 2009
Almost everyones called by: beetles who gather dew on their backs; lizards that can plunge through the sand as if it were surf; prehistoric crickets, small harmless snakes, and tiny armored sand lions (insects that make booby traps for ants) ... Now their descendants ran free, a living memorial to war. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World Business)
Bugging out: Keep critters at bay without harsh chemicals Sep 3, 2009
Ants and cicada killer wasps are more intrusive during warmer months. Earwigs show up in late spring and early summer. (Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier)
Ant-Sized Microbots Travel in Swarms Sep 2, 2009
According to this concept, a large number of these robots, interacting with their environment and able to communicate with each other using infra-red sensors, could mimic the swarm intelligence of insects like ants ... Top defense contractor wants patriotic nerds to defend America in cyberspace ... Online pranksters conning people into destructive acts at hotels, restaurants nationwide. (Fox News)
Tiny insects cause big headaches for California fruit growers Sep 2, 2009
Findings this year in San Diego, Orange County and, most recently, Los Angeles have officials on high alert, although none of the bugs found carried the disease that causes citrus greening, which ruins the taste of fruit before killing the plants ... They hang inconspicuously off lemon, orange, tangerine, and calamondin trees, often attracting a mix of dust, gnats, flying ants, and ladybugs. (Boston Globe)
Casino keen to get its rock off Sep 2, 2009
Elmer Funke Kupper wants Sydney swingers to join in. Illustration: John Shakespeare. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Business)
HOH’s One-Minute Recess: Bug Off Sep 1, 2009
Aside from those annoying tourists and naive interns, it seems Capitol Hill also is home to cockroaches, indoor populations of ants and flies, indoor winged termite swarmers, spiders [and] rodents, according to the original request for proposal. There s also the potential that crews will find nests of stinging insects and mosquito larvae in all exterior locations, and an entomologist will be at the ready to help identify strange and unusual insects. (Roll Call)
