Leaf-cutter ants are named for their Herculean feats: they chomp foliage and carry unwieldy pieces, like green flags many times their size, long distances to their colonies. There they chew up the leaves to feed underground fungus farms. Along the way, the insects brave all manner of predators — and regularly engage in wars with other ants. But these insects are…
Tag: crabs
Watch titan triggerfish jump out of the water to catch and eat crabs
Titan triggerfish that live in the Red Sea will deliberately launch themselves onto the beach to catch and eat ghost crabs crawling along the shore Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2254613-watch-titan-triggerfish-jump-out-of-the-water-to-catch-and-eat-crabs/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
Gulf of Mexico dead zone: Summer 2020 forecast
NOAA scientists forecast that this summer’s dead zone would measure roughly 6,700 square miles – bigger than the long-term average recorded since 1985, but lower than 2017’s record-high extent. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/gulf-mexico-dead-zone-summer-2020-forecast…
Seabird-eating ‘monster’ crabs are chatty during sex
Enormous and powerful coconut crabs are known for their extreme size. They also have an unexpectedly diverse “vocabulary.” Source: https://www.livescience.com/coconut-crab-clicking.html
Acid in the Pacific Ocean is literally eating away crabs’ shells
Researchers found that baby Dungeness crabs living in the most acidic coastal waters are smaller, weaker and at risk of losing their shells. Source: https://www.livescience.com/ocean-acidification-corrodes-crab-shells.html
Will sea otters return to San Francisco Bay?
A new study shows that, if they can be returned to San Francisco Bay, California’s southern sea otter population can be tripled. There are now only about 3,000 of the otters left. But, first, they’ll need some help getting past the great white sharks. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/southern-sea-otters-reintroduction-san-francisco-bay…
Crabs can learn and remember their way through a complex maze
Shore crabs can learn to navigate their way through a complex, underwater maze and remember it two weeks later Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2220790-crabs-can-learn-and-remember-their-way-through-a-complex-maze/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
Crabs are being found in the Thames with stomachs full of plastic
Crabs in the Thames are ingesting “shocking” amounts of plastic and may be passing it on in high doses to other species in the river, researchers have found Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2219687-crabs-are-being-found-in-the-thames-with-stomachs-full-of-plastic/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
Microplastics may stop hermit crabs from choosing the best home
Life in plastic is not fantastic. Microplastics disrupt the ability of hermit crabs to choose the best shells. Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2216395-microplastics-may-stop-hermit-crabs-from-choosing-the-best-home/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
Ghost crabs use teeth in their stomach to growl at their enemies
Many crustaceans have teeth inside their stomachs but ghost crabs are the first to be found to use them for making a growling sound for warning off threats Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2215997-ghost-crabs-use-teeth-in-their-stomach-to-growl-at-their-enemies/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…