(via nykida.net)
(Also on FtB)
Pharyngula
Evolution, development, and random biological ejaculations from a godless liberal
It turns out to be true, at least for bustards, that the fast, flashy life leads to earlier burnout. So what’s my excuse? I dunno.
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This is one beautiful plesiosaur, Polycotylus latippinus.
The unique aspect of this specimen is that it’s the only pregnant plesiosaur found; the fore and hind limbs bracket a jumble of bones from a juvenile or embryonic Polycotylus. It’s thought to actually be a fetal plesiosaur, rather than an overstuffed cannibal plesiosaur, because 1) the smaller skeleton is still partially articulated, and it’s large enough that it is unlikely it could have been swallowed whole, 2) the two sets are of the same distinctive species, 3) the juvenile is incompletely ossified and doesn’t resemble a post-partum animal, 4) the bones aren’t chewed, etched by acids, or accompanied by gastroliths. I think we can now confidently say that plesiosaurs were viviparous, which is what everyone expected.
There are other surprising details. The fetus is huge relative to the parent, and there’s only one — so plesiosaurs had small brood sizes and invested heavily in their offspring.
The authors speculate beyond this a bit, but it’s all reasonable speculation. That degree of parental investment in fetal development makes it likely that there would have been extended maternal care after birth, and rather more tenuously, that they may also have lived in larger social groups. The authors suggest that their lifestyle may have resembled that of modern social marine mammals — picture a pod of dolphins, only long-necked and lizardy.
O’Keefe FR, Chiappe LM (2011) Viviparity and K-Selected Life History in a Mesozoic Marine Plesiosaur (Reptilia, Sauropterygia) Science 333 (6044): 870-873.
(Also on FtB)
Tomorrow, I’ll be on a plane for Norway, and I’ll be spending the weekend in urban Oslo. Wouldn’t it be nice if the World Humanist Congress could be held in Kongsvinger Forest?
(via National Geographic)
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Start your day with a gallery of images of the Colossal Squid.
(via Offshore Fishing Videos and TONMO)
(Also on FtB. Maybe. If the damned thing is working for you yet)
My wife sent me this photo, and was intrigued. The water boatman sings through its penis, and sings very loudly — 105 decibels from an animal that’s only a few millimeters long (no word on the length of its penis). I have received subtle signals that I am…inadequate. Does anyone have any suggestions? Should I get an implant of one of those mini-iPods? Or perhaps even an iPod Touch?
(via National Geographic)
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Have you ever witnessed a cat in heat? Yowling, hissing, screaming, tearing at each other…or at best, moping about the house, trying to get intimate in unseemly ways with you, pressing their butts up against everything and responding to every touch with lordosis. They are tacky and obnoxious. It’s no wonder that pet owners get the randy little beasts neutered — it’s not just to prevent them spawning more of their creepy kind, but to suppress their repulsive sexual demonstrations.
Now molluscs, on the other hand — if we had them as pets, we’d be putting hormones in their food to induce more frequent balletic copulations. We’d want a pair elegantly and silently writhing in a corner of the living room all the time, and we’d applaud in wonder and stroke them when they were done, murmuring “Beautiful boy/girl, lovely boy/girl, well done.”
(Also on FtB)
