(Source: enfant-symptome, via feeshed)

(via ghosti)

foxwolf333:

wolfatdusk:

Doing my usual yearly Thylacine research and giving myself the sads.

80 years since the last known capture, 77 since the last known death. What I wouldn’t give to see this marsupial brought back from extinction.

It’s eerie to see the video of an animal you can no longer ever see

(via feeshed)

rifa:

tokyoghettopuppy:

From ZooBorns.com:

Nashville Zoo Keepers Administer Emergency Mouth To Snout CPR To Save a Baby Tapir

“It was very tense for the first few minutes, but because of our preparation and training, we were able to intervene and rescue the baby,” said Brown. “Mother and calf are now bonding and doing great. The baby loves being scratched and discovering how fast he can run around the barn.”

Photo credits: Amiee Stubbs / Nashville Zoo

This baby tho

(via manafromheaven)

dodgy-mermaid:

groundspeed:

Piebald moose!!!!  I’ve seen (pictures of) deer like this before but not a moose!

Sources: [x]  [x]  [a couple more pictures!]

i almost SHRIEKED at the sight of this beauty :O

(via lifelike81)

oldmanyellsatcloud:

geneticist:

A cat that has been genetically modified glows green This cats marks an advance in AIDS research, as its cells are able to resist the FIV virus that causes AIDS in cats (Read more)

If you’ve ever wondered WHY DO THEY DO THIS, it’s because the gene that links to the jellyfish gene that enables the glow is also ‘linked’ to the gene they’re trying to get to express fully in the organism. It’s an easy and cost-effective way to achieve this without additional (and potentially harmful to the experiment itself) testing. 

(Source: thetemperamentalgoat, via manafromheaven)

vastderp:

thesciencellama:

Cephalopods - Chameleons of the Sea

Cuttlefish, Octopus and Squid all have pigment cells - called chromatophores - consisting of yellow, red and brown pigments which allow them to change their appearance. There are up to 200 of these cells per square millimeter and each of them are controlled through muscle contractions - instead of hormones like other marine organisms - allowing them to consciously control them.

When signaling to change colors, the chromatophores can be rapidly expanded and then relaxed to hide the pigments and can even stay camouflaged while asleep. Chromatophores, however, only one type of cells. Other cells are layered below, made of white and iridescent pigments to reflect other wavelengths of light like blue and green.

Using all of these pigments, the cephalopods typically use 3 major pattern types; Uniform, Mottle (small light/dark splotches) and Disruptive. One of the coolest patterns is the Passing Cloud pattern which is used to hypnotize their prey. Among all of these amazing attributes, they can also change their skin texture voluntarily to match the object they are trying to hide next to and they do this through visual perception rather than touch.

Videos:
Insane in the Chromatophores - playing the chromatophores to a beat 
Octopus Camouflage 
Passing Cloud Pattern
Info:
Chromatophore Signaling
Cuttlefish - DiscoveryNetworks

Images: 1, 2

babies ;____;

(Source: the-science-llama)

sergeant-repo:

This is part of a series of reference posts I’m making for all you frosties out there.

How frost works: If a solid surface is chilled below the dew point of the surrounding air, and the surface itself is colder than freezing, frost will form on the surface. Conditions are…

pulmonaire:

Broken Flower by Jon Shireman is created by soaking various kinds of flowers in a liquid nitrogen bath for up to 30 minutes before using a special spring-loaded contraption to slam them against a surface at high speed. 

(via lifelike81)

(Source: heavypetter, via lifelike81)

theblackship:

myserendipities:

“Hidden away, deep within a forest in central Africa, is something quite special. But the Pollia berry’s name doesn’t quite do it justice, because this thing is shiny. In fact, it’s the shiniest living thing in the world. These fruits, which look a bit like something you might hang on a Christmas tree, owe the title to their microscopic physical structure. In fact, it might shock you to hear that they contain no blue pigment whatsoever. The surface of the berries is actually made of four layers of thick-walled cells, each layer itself containing more layers made of cellulose fibers. All those fibers run parallel in their own layer, but crucially the layers are all slightly rotated relative to each other, forming a spiral when you look from the top down. That means that when light hits the structure, some light is reflected by each layer of fibers in such a way that the light bouncing back is amplified—a concept known as constructive interference—to produce remarkably strong colours. The result is very shiny—shinier than any other living thing on the planet.”

(Source: Gizmodo, via lifelike81)

staceythinx:

Some of the crazy creatures from Claire Nouvian’s 2007 book The Deep

About the book:

On dry land, most organisms are confined to the surface, or at most to altitudes of a hundred meters—the height of the tallest trees. In the oceans, though, living space has both vertical and horizontal dimensions: with an average depth of 3800 meters, the oceans offer 99% of the space on Earth where life can develop. And the deep sea, which has been immersed in total darkness since the dawn of time, occupies 85% of ocean space, forming the planet’s largest habitat. Yet these depths abound with mystery. The deep sea is mostly uncharted—only about 5 percent of the seafloor has been mapped with any reasonable degree of detail—and we know very little about the creatures that call it home. Current estimates about the number of species yet to be found vary between ten and thirty million. The deep sea no longer has anything to prove; it is without doubt Earth’s largest reservoir of life.

Combining the latest scientific discoveries with astonishing color imagery, The Deep takes readers on a voyage into the darkest realms of the ocean. Revealing nature’s oddest and most mesmerizing creatures in crystalline detail, The Deep features more than two hundred color photographs of terrifying sea monsters, living fossils, and ethereal bioluminescent creatures, some photographed here for the very first time. Accompanying these breathtaking photographs are contributions from some of the world’s most respected researchers that examine the biology of deep-sea organisms, the ecology of deep-sea habitats, and the history of deep-sea exploration.

(via squidinktea)

thingsorganizedneatly:

Bones of a sparrow, by Dennis Spelt

(via dagontreadswater)

rhamphotheca:

The Deadly Thumbs of Japanese Flick Knife Frogs

by Amy Briggs

The Japanese Otton frog (Babina subaspera) may look harmless, but don’t be fooled by its ordinary green, warty appearance. This frog carries concealed weapons.

A new study has discovered that the Otton frog has sharp retractable claws that shoot out of its thumbs. The rare frog, native to the Amani islands of Southern Japan, uses these “switchblades” to fight and to mate. Conducted by Dr. Noriko Iwai from the University of Tokyo, the new study is published in the Journal of Zoology.

Since 2004, Dr. Iwai has been studying rare frogs to understand the species’ distribution, breeding habits, and range in order to craft sound conservation strategies. Frogs with five digits on their front limbs are uncommon (most have four); the Otton frog’s shares this rare trait with the five-fingered Hypsiboas rosenbergi frogs of Latin America.

“Why these ‘fifth fingers’ exist in some species remains an evolutionary mystery, but the extra digit of the Otton is in fact a pseudo-thumb,” said Dr. Iwai. “The digit encases a sharp spine which can project out of the skin, which fieldwork demonstrates is used for combat and mating.”…

(read more: National Geo)         (photos: N. Iwai)