crudmonkey - Slashdot User

Submission + - Elephant is first case in dwarfism in the wild (mongabay.com)

Submitted by crudmonkey on Friday December 20, 2013 @10:30AM

crudmonkey writes: Biologists in Sri Lanka have published the first documented evidence of dwarfism in an adult wild animal. A male Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) measuring just over 1.5 meters in height was seen in an aggressive encounter with another male of average size. The elephant's small stature was due to disproportionately short legs, according to the findings published in the journal Gajah.

Submission + - Apes suffer mid-life crisis too (mongabay.com)

Submitted by Damien1972 on Monday November 19, 2012 @05:47PM

Damien1972 writes: Humans are not alone in experiencing a mid-life crisis — great apes suffer the same, according to new research in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. A new study of over 500 great apes found that well-being patterns in primates are similar to those experience by humans. This doesn't mean that middle age apes seek out the sportiest trees or hit-on younger apes inappropriately, but rather that their well-being starts high in youth, dips in middle age, and rises again in old age.

Submission + - Global Warming On Pace for 4C: World Bank Worried (washingtonpost.com)

Submitted by

iONiUM

on Monday November 19, 2012 @02:19PM

iONiUM writes: "From the article: "Over the years at the U.N. climate talks, the goal has been to keep future global warming below 2C. But as those talks have faltered, emissions have kept rising, and that 2C goal is now looking increasingly out of reach. Lately, the conversation has shifted toward how to deal with 3C of warming. Or 4C. Or potentially more."
Overall it seems that poorer, less developed nations will be largely impacted negatively, while some countries (like Canada and Russia) will actually experience benefits. Where does that leave the rest of the 1st world countries?"

Comment Re:Better idea? (Score 1) 2

by crudmonkey on Thursday November 01, 2012 @07:15PM (#41848141) Attached to: Artifical misting system allows reintroduction of extinct toad

Agreed, except that in this case humans caused this species to go extinct in the wild by building a dam that destroyed their habitat.

Submission + - Artifical misting system allows reintroduction of extinct toad (mongabay.com) 2

Submitted by terrancem on Thursday November 01, 2012 @05:51PM

terrancem writes: The Kihansi Spray Toad went extinct in the wild in 2005 when its habitat in Tanzania was destroyed by a dam. However conservationists at the Bronx Zoo managed to maintain a captive population which is now large enough to allow a bold experiment to move forward: reintroducing the toad into its old habitat. To make the once tropical gorge moist again, engineers have designed an artificial misting system that should allow toads to survive in the wild. The effort marks what may be the first time conservationists have ever re-established an "extinct" species in a human-engineered ecosystem.

Submission + - 80,000lbs Of Walnuts Purloined In Northern California (huffingtonpost.com)

Submitted by Penurious Penguin on Thursday November 01, 2012 @05:31PM

Penurious Penguin writes: While not quite as epic or bitter as losing 600 barrels of maple syrup — in two separate heists, 80,000lbs of walnuts have been stolen in Northern California since last week. The heist was discovered after the walnuts failed to reach their destinations in Miami, FL and Dallas, TX. If you happen to see a large man (approximately 6' 2") driving a white semi-trailer and munching on $300,000 worth of walnuts, it may be the villain. Officers with highly trained squirrels have yet to be posted at interstate weigh-stations.

Submission + - NYC Data Center Needs Focus on Fuel (slashdot.org)

Submitted by

Nerval's Lobster

on Thursday November 01, 2012 @01:22PM

Nerval's Lobster writes: "Who knew that the most critical element of operating a data center in New York City was ensuring a steady supply of diesel fuel? In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, the challenges facing data center operators in the affected zones include pumping water from basements, waiting for utility power to be restored, and managing fuel-truck deliveries. And it’s become increasingly clear which companies had the resources and foresight to plan for a disaster like Sandy, and which are simply reacting. Here’s the latest on providers around the New York area."

Submission + - Giant crab invasion looms in Antarctica (mongabay.com) 4

Submitted by Damien1972 on Sunday November 27, 2011 @11:31AM

Damien1972 writes: A 0.12 degree C rise in temperature will spur giant King Crabs to invade the Antarctic continental shelf, causing havoc for its unique ecosystem, reports a study published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B. Temperatures are currently rising 0.01-0.02 per year, meaning it could be less than a decade before the crabs chow down on the soft-bodied invertebrates that currently rule the shelf. “It's much more reminiscent of the Paleozoic era before all those shell-crushing crabs and bony fish and bottom-feeding sharks and rays evolved," said marine biologist Richard Aronson. “The bottom communities in Antarctica are anachronisms. They're a window to the past. They're going to get modernized when these crabs show up.”

Submission + - Paul Allen lent personal ROV to study old fish (mongabay.com)

Submitted by crudmonkey on Thursday November 24, 2011 @11:24AM

crudmonkey writes: It took a custom-made submarine, billionaire Paul Allen, and a tenacious desire lasting well beyond two decades to unveil enigmatic details about the life of the coelacanth—the primitive fish that invariably hooks researchers. A study published earlier this year in the journal Marine Biology summarizes 21 years of coelacanth population research.

Submission + - Scientists Uncover Free-Floating, Starless Planets (ibtimes.com)

Submitted by

gabbo529

on Wednesday May 18, 2011 @06:06PM

gabbo529 writes: "A group of researchers have discovered a new class of planets in the Milky Way Galaxy and they don't have an orbital home. According to a study done by a group of international researchers, the planets are dark, isolated Jupiter-mass bodies located far away from any host star. The researchers, led by Takahiro Sumi of Osaka University, say the planets were most likely ejected from developing planetary systems. The researchers' study will appear as part of a paper appearing in the May 19th issue of the journal Nature."

Submission + - FBI leaves paperwork behind after raid on anti-war (stopfbi.net)

Submitted by Sprouticus on Wednesday May 18, 2011 @05:47PM

Sprouticus writes: An interesting development has occured in the case of some anti-war activists who had their house raided by the FBI. Apparently in their hurry to take the photos, computers and phones of the people involved, the FBI left their raid paperwork, including the raid plan and the interrogation questions, behind. This information has been posted oon a website put up to support the activists. It gives some real insight into the FBI mindset.

Submission + - Rodent thought extinct for 113 years reappears (mongabay.com)

Submitted by Damien1972 on Wednesday May 18, 2011 @01:14AM

Damien1972 writes: The red-crested tree rat had not been recorded since 1898 and was thought possibly extinct—that is until one showed up at 9:30 PM on May 4th at a lodge in El Dorado Nature Reserve in northern Colombia. About the size of a guinea pig, the red-crested tree rat had only been known from two skins previously.

Submission + - Escaped Bronx Zoo cobra recpatured (mongabay.com) 1

Submitted by Damien1972 on Thursday March 31, 2011 @04:37PM

Damien1972 writes: The missing Bronx Zoo cobra that quickly became a pop culture sensation has been found in the zoo's Reptile House. The escaped serpent was found in a non-public, off-exhibit area in the Reptile House, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society, which runs the zoo. The Egyptian cobra was said to be in good condition, but it will be placed under observation and evaluated.

Submission + - Google Earth undermines 'no deforestation' claim (mongabay.com) 3

Submitted by rhettb on Tuesday March 29, 2011 @12:50PM

rhettb writes: A Malaysian minister's claim that 70 percent of his state's forests remain "intact" has been undermined by Google Earth images showing large-scale logging operations. Sarawak's Chief Minister Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud, who is under pressure from campaigners who say he illegally pocketed more than $1 billion during his 30 years of rule, claimed that his government only practices sustainable logging despite considerable evidence (including the Google Earth images) to the contrary.

Submission + - New population of mini snow leopard found (mongabay.com) 1

Submitted by rhettb on Thursday March 17, 2011 @09:27PM

rhettb writes: The elusive Andean cat, which until the late 1990s was only known to scientists by a couple photographs, has been discovered beyond the Andes mountain range. According to researchers, the wild Andean cat resembles Asia's snow leopard, both in appearance and its habitat above altitudes of 3,000 meters, only in this case the wild cat is about the size of a domesticated feline. But, scientists have now discovered that the cat also inhabits the Patagonian steppe at elevations as low as 650 meters (2,100 feet).

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