Decided to be more active here, so let me reintroduce myself! I'm a zooarchaeologist researching #Farming and #Food of the past. I study animal and plant remains 🐐🌾, apply biochemical analyses 🧪, and want to use this knowledge of the past to contribute to #Sustainability today 🚜 #Archaeology#SciComm#WomenInScience#Animals
A bull #moose wandered through my backyard yesterday, browsing the #winter twigs for his dinner. Curious whether I could assess his age by his antlers, I did a little research. Turns out that's an unreliable gauge (he was either around three years old, or elderly) but I learned something else AMAZING.
Moose antlers aren't just for mating displays. They also function as a giant hearing trumpet. The broad palms amplify sound waves to boost the animal's hearing an estimated 20%. Researchers think this helps males locate female mates calling from afar...
...and maybe female photographers stalking them across a frozen pond. We stared at each other through the snow for a moment, but I kept a respectful distance, and he went back to foraging. A magnificent sight, well worth a wet camera!
I spent yesterday in shock and grief over the death of primatologist and animal-behavior scientist Frans de Waal, and that continues today. Here are only some of his books that revolutionized my thinking, research, and teaching about animal cognition and emotion. #FransDeWaal#animals#ethology#chimpanzees#animalbehavior#animalcognition#books
With its obvious case of convergent evolution, the Hummingbird Hawk-moth is an insect that has evolved the same tools as a hummingbird in order to feed on the nectar of tube-shaped flowers: a long proboscis and the ability to hover. It even makes a similar audible humming noise when hovering. Found across temperate regions of Eurasia, from Portugal to Japan, this species reaches a wingspan of 1.6 to 1.8 inches. It is particularly fond of nectar-rich flowers with a long and narrow calyx, since it can then take advantage of its long proboscis and avoid competition from other insects.