ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

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• Declines in whales, fish, seabirds and large animals disrupt Earth's nutrient cycle
• Common chemical makeup at largest cosmic scales
• Large, violent animal packs shaped the ecosystems of the Pleistocene epoch
• How ants and ketchup are alike: Both solid-like and liquid-like
• Capacity to regenerate body parts may be the primitive state for all four-legged vertebrates
• Traces of enormous solar storms in the ice of Greenland and Antarctica
• What was killing the young right whales? New research finds a suspect
• Harbingers of Halloween spin smart system for scientists to mimic, create new products
• Siberian jays can recognize unfamiliar, distant relatives
• Earth’s first bacteria made their own sunscreen
• Male mosquitoes lured to traps by sounds of female wing-beats

Declines in whales, fish, seabirds and large animals disrupt Earth's nutrient cycle Posted: 26 Oct 2015 02:20 PM PDT In the past, whales, giant land mammals, and other animals played a vital role in keeping the planet fertile by transporting nutrients via their feces. However, massive declines and extinctions of many of these animals has deeply damaged this planetary nutrient recycling system, threatening fisheries and ecosystems on land, a team of scientists reports.

Common chemical makeup at largest cosmic scales Posted: 26 Oct 2015 02:14 PM PDT A new survey of hot, X-ray-emitting gas in the Virgo galaxy cluster shows that the elements needed to make stars, planets and people were evenly distributed across millions of light-years early in cosmic history, more than 10 billion years ago.

Large, violent animal packs shaped the ecosystems of the Pleistocene epoch Posted: 26 Oct 2015 02:14 PM PDT Intense, violent attacks by large packs of some of the world's biggest carnivores -- including extinct lions much larger than those of today, and sabertooth cats -- limited the population sizes of mammoths, mastodons and other species, and prevented widespread habitat destruction in the Pleistocene Epoch.

How ants and ketchup are alike: Both solid-like and liquid-like Posted: 26 Oct 2015 10:21 AM PDT Collections of ants have a remarkable ability to change shapes and tasks based on the demands of their environment. When floodwaters hit, they self-assemble and form rafts to stay alive. They can also use their bodies to build bridges and span gaps. What are the properties of these ant aggregations that allow for this wide range of abilities? New research says it's because the insects are actually liquid-like and solid-like simultaneously.

Capacity to regenerate body parts may be the primitive state for all four-legged vertebrates Posted: 26 Oct 2015 09:50 AM PDT A team of paleontologists shows in a new study of fossil amphibians that the extraordinary regenerative capacities of modern salamanders are likely an ancient feature of four-legged vertebrates that was subsequently lost in the course of evolution.

Traces of enormous solar storms in the ice of Greenland and Antarctica Posted: 26 Oct 2015 08:21 AM PDT Solar storms and the particles they release result in spectacular phenomena such as auroras, but they can also pose a serious risk to our society. In extreme cases they have caused major power outages, and they could also lead to breakdowns of satellites and communication systems. According to a new study solar storms could be much more powerful than previously assumed. Researchers have now confirmed that Earth was hit by two extreme solar storms more than 1000 years ago.

What was killing the young right whales? New research finds a suspect Posted: 26 Oct 2015 08:14 AM PDT Scientists found a close relationship between a sudden surge in whale deaths at Peninsula Valdes, Argentina, and the toxic algae Pseudo-nitzschia. The finding demonstrates that some of the largest creatures in the ocean can be vulnerable to algal blooms projected to increase with climate change.

Harbingers of Halloween spin smart system for scientists to mimic, create new products Posted: 26 Oct 2015 06:36 AM PDT Researchers found that the webs of sun-soaked spiders were far more resistant to UVB rays than the webs of those that hunt in the dark or shade, perhaps indicating an important adaptive trait.

Siberian jays can recognize unfamiliar, distant relatives Posted: 26 Oct 2015 06:32 AM PDT Can animals recognize distantly related, unfamiliar individuals of the same species? Siberian jays possess this ability as evolutionary biologists recently could demonstrate for the first time. This bird species belongs to the crow family and is able to accurately assess the degree of kinship to unfamiliar individuals. This ability provides advantages when sharing food and other forms of cooperation.

Earth’s first bacteria made their own sunscreen Posted: 26 Oct 2015 06:30 AM PDT Earth in the days when life was just beginning had no protective ozone layer, so light-dependent, iron-oxidizing bacteria formed iron minerals around themselves to protect them from damaging ultraviolet rays. In this way, living beings were able to survive in the rough environment of 3-4 billion years ago.

Male mosquitoes lured to traps by sounds of female wing-beats Posted: 26 Oct 2015 06:28 AM PDT Male mosquitoes have been found to zero in on inexpensive traps that broadcast sound that is similar in frequency to the sound that is produced by the wing-beats of female mosquitoes -- a discovery that may lead to better mosquito control in developing countries.

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