Antibiotics: A Thing of the Past?

Acclaimed scientist and Nobel laureate Kary Mullis details a possible alternative to antibiotics.

Absolutely incredible!

Only about 4 min long:

Taking a Bite out of Niche Conservatism

In efforts to quash assumptions associated with niche conservatism, scientists from the Florida Museum of Natural History and the New York State Museum have enlisted the teeth of several fossil mammals to better understand the ecology of climate change.

Recently published at PLoS One, the research holds critical the idea that niches remain constant over extended periods of time. This idea, called niche conservatism, essentially holds that niches are highly specialized, ancestrally –linked, relatively inflexible and are therefore exceedingly susceptible to disturbance and rapid degradation in the face of change - particularly climate change.

While biologic response to environmental change is assumed, often such conservatism is overemphasized and is presented in a manner inconsistent with understanding gained through modern ecology and the insights of paleontology, which have both demonstrated incredible plasticity within the Earth’s biota.

Undoubtedly, the changing climate is of great concern and poses tremendous challenges to all organisms, but at the same time life is flexible and extinctions are not entirely unavoidable. As evidence to life’s flexibility, the currently discussed paper uses the testimony of change documented in the isotopic signatures of mammalian tooth enamel to show that the obstacle of climate change has been successfully negotiated in the past. More specifically, glacial-interglacial transitions during the Pliocene and Pleistocene are marked by substantial alterations in plant communities; however the contemporaneous uptake of vegetative food-stuffs by mammals seems to have fluctuated little.

The article is worth a read:
DeSantis, L., Feranec, R., & MacFadden, B. (2009). Effects of Global Warming on Ancient Mammalian Communities and Their Environments PLoS ONE, 4 (6) DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0005750


Vertebrates, and in particular mammals, are highly responsive to changes in the environment. Climate fluctuation can lead to an incredible amount of variation in the diet choice, distribution, and even the morphology of vertebrates.

Natural selection is a reflection of the biological and physical environment as transcribed into the genes of flora and fauna; however, the DNA found within living cells functions only as a recipe for ecological fit, the actual ingredients – the building materials - required to construct living tissue are harvested from surrounding chemistry. Because of variability inherit to this chemistry, the isotopic constituents that compose individuals may differ with respect to climate, diet, or a number of other variables.

For example, carbonate apatite - a primary constituent of both skeletal bones and dentition in vertebrates - is incorporated into organisms through diet and water uptake. Some conservationists use the isotopic signatures recovered from this apatite to better decipher the life histories of contemporary species in expectation of aiding in their continued preservation. As a case in point, remains from the world’s largest cavefish (Milyeringa veritas) have been used by Australian conservationists to better examine and comprehend the environment and ecosystem inhabited by the fish. The cavefish resides in deep water columns that are rich in dissolved limestone. Due to relative densities and variable solubility, different depths in the water column are correlated to specific concentrations of dissolved materials. By examining the isotopic signatures of the cavefish’s skeletal apatite, conservationists were able to discover the exact depth the fish occupies.

As demonstrated by the cavefish, uptake of elements within vertebrates (O, C, Sr & others) generates a highly detailed record of the environmentally available isotopes at a given point in time; this availability can even be indicative of climate.As another illustration of application, Thure Cerling and others at the University of Utah have refined the technique of laser ablation to such quality and precision that they can use it to vaporize the apatite found in teeth. They then analyze the resulting gas via spectrometry to determine its isotopic components. The teeth can be examined to such resolution as to be able to report the dietary preferences of mammals between C3 and C4 plants. A similar isotopes-from-enamel strategy was employed by the folks from the University of Florida to expound several fallacies of niche conservatism…

Examinations of isotopic records are commonplace for many paleontologists. Uncountable volumes have been written on Foram O-18 isotopes and their relationship to periods of increased glaciation, and similar correlations of speleothems and C-13, but accurate isotopic records of both of these elements can be obtained from other sources as well - including mammals.

As a side note - skeletal tissues, which possess apatite, are very susceptible to diagenic processes that can cause recrystalization and alter results, but dental samples seem to be far more reliable when it comes to maintaining their original isotopic signatures. This coupled with the knowledge acquired in the past few decades in regarding incorporation of specific O-18 and C-13 isotopes into biological entities has brought to light a highly accurate record of climate change – and the critters that adapted to it.

Megacephala in my yard

I was pretty excited to run into this brilliantly colored tiger beetle yesterday evening; just four genera of tiger beetles are found in the United States as a whole - and only two in Florida!

The aptly named Megacephala bears large mandibles which it uses to catch and ravage prey. A nocturnal and opportunistic predator, Megacephala carolina is fleet-of-foot, and as agile as a… Well… As agile as a tiger!

Three varieties of Megacephala are found in Florida: Megacephala virginica, Megacephala carolina floridana (found in South Florida), and of course, Megacephala carolina as shown here from my backyard in Tallahassee.

Wetland Plant of the Week #24

Sarracenia leucophylla

White top pitcher-plant

The white top pitcher-plant is an Obligate insectivorous member of the Sarraceniaceae Family. It displays alternate and erect green leaves with the upper most tubes/hoods colored white with purple veination; the flowers are dark red or maroon in color.

These were photographed last Thursday in Bay County, near Point Washington Wildlife Management Area.

Cretaceous Billabong Yields New Dinosaurs

Hocknull, S., White, M., Tischler, T., Cook, A., Calleja, N., Sloan, T., & Elliott, D. (2009). New Mid-Cretaceous (Latest Albian) Dinosaurs from Winton, Queensland, Australia PLoS ONE, 4 (7) DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0006190

Two newly identified sauropods and a new theropod have been excavated from the base of the Winton Formation near central Queensland. Fossilized pollens in-strata with the vertebrate remains indicate a Phimopollenites pannosus palynomorph Zone sequence and are thought to be Albian in age - about 100 million years old. In regards to ecology, cursory examinations of taphonomy and sedimentology show that the depositional conditions associated with the finds are akin to those found in modern oxbow lakes, or as the Aussies call them “billabongs”.

Although all three dinosaurs represent significant finds, the predatory theropod in particular is sure to bring publicity to the Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum of Natural History and the Queensland Museum, which jointly worked on the excavations and diagnoses of the dinos. There’s nothing quite like a giant predatory allosauroid in terms of stirring the public’s interest in paleontology and stimulating museum attendance numbers.

According to Ben Kear of La Trobe University in Melbourne, "Australia is one of the great untapped resources in our current understanding of life from the Age of Dinosaurs. The discoveries...will definitely reinvigorate interest in the hitherto tantalizingly incomplete, but globally significant record from this continent..."


Meet “Matilda”

Named for the Diamantina River and one of Austrailia’a National songs (“Waltzing Matilda”), Diamantinasaurus matilda was a 16-meter long (52-foot) sauropod.


Nicknamed Matilda, she is the more stout of the two new sauropods and left behind a variety of fossils, including a pelvis:

Left reconstructed pelvis in lateral (A) view. Left ilium in anterior view (B) showing the position of the sacral vertebrae. Right pubis and ischium in medial (C), proximal (D) and lateral (E) views. Right ischium in lateral (F) and medial (G) views. Reconstructed right and left ischia in dorsal view. Abbreviations: ip, ischial peduncle; iip, iliac peduncle of ischium; of, obturator foramen; pa, pubio-ischial contact; pip, iliac peduncle of pubis; ppd, pubic peduncle; ppp, preacetabular process of ilium; s, sacrum; sym, fused ischial symphysis.

Meet “Clancy”

Wintonotitan wattsi, or “Watts' Winton Giant" was also around 16-meters in length, but sported a more elongate neck than Matilda.


Nicknamed Clancy, he was diagnosed from a variety of fossils, some partially articulated, including several vertebra:

Partial dorsal centrum in lateral (A) and posterior (B) views. Isolated neural spine in anterior view (C). Anterior caudal vertebrae of Wintonotitan wattsi. Anterior caudal vertebra in lateral (D) and anterior (E) views. Anterior caudal vertebra in posterior (F), lateral (G) and ventral (H) views. Anterior caudal vertebra in anterior (I), lateral (J) and ventral (K) views. Abbreviations: plc, pleurocoel; pcdl, posterior centrodiapophyseal lamina; prel, prespinal lamina; spl, spino-prezygopophyseal lamina.

Last, but not least - Meet “Banjo”

Called “Banjo” after Australian bush poet Banjo Patterson, Australovenator wintonensis was a 5-meter long (16-foot), 500 kilogram (1100 pounds) predator with three slashing claws.

"The cheetah of his time, Banjo was light and agile," "He's Australia's answer to Velociraptor, but many times bigger and more terrifying," said the article’s lead author Scott Hocknull of the Queensland Museum.

As evidence of his ferocity, here are a few of Banjo’s teeth:

Isolated teeth in labial (A, C, E, F, G, I, J, L) and labial (B, D, F, H, J, K) views. A–B. Anterior dentary tooth or premaxillary tooth. C–L. Dentary teeth.

Hocknull, S., White, M., Tischler, T., Cook, A., Calleja, N., Sloan, T., & Elliott, D. (2009). New Mid-Cretaceous (Latest Albian) Dinosaurs from Winton, Queensland, Australia PLoS ONE, 4 (7) DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0006190

All Images from Referenced Article

Associated Press News

Reuters News

Field Photo: Buprestis rufipes

Buprestis rufipes - a jewel beetle - munching on a young oak tree next to the Ochlocknee River near Tallahassee, Florida.

This beetle’s iridescence (sort of washed-out in these pics) isn’t due to pigmentation in the exoskeleton, but rather microscopic textures in its cuticle which reflect and scatter particular frequencies of light.

Wetland Plant of the Week #23

Woodwardia virginica

"Virginia Chain Fern"

Chain ferns are Facultative Wet members of the Blechnaceae Faimily. Their leaves are bright green and display a characteristic "chain like" venation pattern on each pinnule. They are deciduous ferns with an affinity for acidic wetlands with plenty of sphagnum in the groundcover.

These were photographed a couple of weeks back near Big Shoals State Park in Florida.

Latest Kung-fu Science Video

The latest edition of Kung-fu Science is imbedded below. In this episode, a faulty study examining the links between personality and drinking behavior is called-out and Richard Wiseman’s Psychic Twittering Experiment is discussed.

The Priesthood of Science Journalism

Toby Murcott, writer, broadcaster and former BBC science correspondent, has written a three part essay series on the topic of improving science journalism. In his first piece (available HERE) he makes an argument for creating transparency in the peer-review process.

Murcott believes that an improved public understanding of the publication process may be an important step in fostering a genuine appreciation of science as both a profession and as a human endeavor – a process fraught with enticing drama and plot-twists. He further suggests that improved access to peer-review by journalists may pave the way to better reporting. This improved access - he believes - will enable writers to go beyond the mere summarizing of findings and may open the door to stories with greater historical context and more gripping storylines.

On the whole I find myself in agreement with Toby; although improved access may be used by a few shady journalists for generating confusion and hype, most writers would apply the access towards positive objectives. Further, by making referee comments available reviewers will have greater enticement to be thorough, clear and balanced.

The essay is worth a look:

Murcott, T. (2009). Science journalism: Toppling the priesthood Nature, 459 (7250), 1054-1055 DOI: 10.1038/4591054a

Wildlife Photos: A Hunter of Hunters?

Took these snapshots in my backyard yesterday - this bird was watching me like a hawk!

Recently a paper was published in The Southwestern Naturalist discussing red-tails, such as this one, hunting down and feeding on American kestrels and barn owls!

I wonder what could be motivating these guys to take on such high risk prey items?

Bahm, M., & Sullivan, B. (2009). Interspecific Depredation of Raptors by Red-Tailed Hawks (Buteo jamaicensis) on San Clemente Island, California The Southwestern Naturalist, 54 (1), 85-87 DOI: 10.1894/MH-27.1

Conservation Decisions – The General Patton Approach

It was General George Patton who originally said, “A good plan executed now is better than a perfect plan later.” Though Patton was referring to military planning, some scientists and policy makers believe that such a strategy should also be applied to ecology and conservation.

Recently, a paper from the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences proposes that decision making, in regards to natural resource conservation, should be undertaken with consideration to both science and social impact. More specifically, the paper proposes that climate change is hastening the need for sound conservation strategies with respect to the managed relocation of species. Furthermore, they argue that despite a past hesitation to intervene, biologists should consider human-facilitated migrations as a viable option.

A myriad of authors from a variety of universities and governmental agencies participated in the study which qualitatively examined three cases where managed relocation was conducted or considered. From these case studies, the group developed a decision-making model that considers such action from the Focal impact, Collateral impact, Feasibility, and Acceptability to both ecology and public perception.

Image from Article, 3D Evaluation of decision to Relocate Species

My opinion in the matter is that although the model may, or may not, be an adequate tool in achieving desired policy outcomes, the science of species introductions and relocations tends to demonstrate that the practice is wrought with unknown variables and is a high-risk endeavor. Because of this, I don’t like that the paper – though well intentioned – “pushes” managed relocation when it should only be “pushing” a decision making process. In my experience, those species found admirable to the public are not always the best candidates for relocation, and when public opinion enters into science, decisions can be made based on perception and misconceptions as opposed to on fact.

Just my opinion, I could be wrong…

Richardson, D., Hellmann, J., McLachlan, J., Sax, D., Schwartz, M., Gonzalez, P., Brennan, E., Camacho, A., Root, T., Sala, O., Schneider, S., Ashe, D., Clark, J., Early, R., Etterson, J., Fielder, E., Gill, J., Minteer, B., Polasky, S., Safford, H., Thompson, A., & Vellend, M. (2009). From the Cover: Multidimensional evaluation of managed relocation Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 106 (24), 9721-9724 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0902327106

Wetland Plant of the Week #22

Osmunda regalis

Royal fern

The royal fern is an Obligate member of the Osmundaceae Family, they have thick creeping rhizomes and roots that are black, wirily and clump into large masses. Leaves are bipinnately compound with alternating leaflets and display finely toothed margins.

This one was photographed about a week ago near the Suwannee River in Columbia County, Florida.

Panamanian Treasure Trove

Scientists with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI), the Florida Museum of Natural History and the University of Oregon’s Geology Department seem to be having one heck of a good time down in Panama!

During the last few months, there’s been a variety of paleontology related research coming out of the Panama Canal's spoils; I’ve seen articles on paleoclimate, paleobotany and now vertebrate paleontology.

As copied from STRI materials (PDF available HERE):

Aldo Rincón, STRI paleontology intern, unearthed a set of fossil teeth in the Panama Canal that Bruce MacFadden, curator of vertebrate paleontology at the Florida Museum of Natural History, describes as belonging to Anchitherium clarencei, a three-toed browsing horse the size of the modern donkey, living 15 to 18 million years ago.

Expanding the Panama Canal to make way for super-sized ships is providing geologists and paleontologists with rare finds. Carlos Jaramillo, STRI stratigrapher, has, in collaboration with the University of Florida and the Panama Canal Authority, organized a team of researchers and students who move in following dynamite blasts to map and collect exposed fossils.

"This is one of very few places in the tropics where we have access to fresh outcrops before they are washed away by torrential rains or overgrown by vegetation, and we expect the fossils that we have been salvaging to resolve some major scientific mysteries," said Jaramillo. "What geological forces combined to create the Panama land bridge? Were the flora and fauna of Panama before the land bridge closed similar to those of North America, or did they include other elements?"

The latest finding appears in the Journal of Paleontology, vol. 83: 489-492.

Rincón, MacFadden, Jaramillo

Good stuff…

Gregory Retallack (University of Oregon) and Michael Kirby (STRI) have also been actively publishing on materials from the Canal’s excavations. I plan to post about some of their work over the next few days - so keeping it brief for now.

Anchitherium Image Credits: FMNH

Biomimetics and Gecko-tech

Biologist Robert Full studies the amazing gecko, with its supersticky feet and tenacious climbing skill. But high-speed footage reveals that the gecko's tail harbors perhaps the most surprising talents of all.

Wetland Plant of the Week #21

Gordonia lasianthus

Loblolloy Bay

Facultative Wet, evergreen tree with alternate, leathery leaves with toothed margins; the lower sides of leaves are a shade of green lighter than that on the top surface. As shown in the picture, the flowers have five petals and display numerous yellow stamens at center.

This one was photographed earlier this week near Big Shoals State Park in Florida.

Field Photos: A Hyla's Hiney and Tremella fuciformis

A couple of snapshots from this week’s fieldwork in north central Florida:

First, Hyla versicolor a “gray treefrog” – this guy was about twelve feet up; couldn’t convince him to turn and smile…

Take a look at Amphibiaweb’s Hyla versicolor page for follow-up: http://amphibiaweb.org/cgi/amphib_query?where-genus=Hyla&where-species=versicolor&account=lannoo




And second, Tremella fuciformis, a.k.a. “snow fungus” – a variety of jelly fungi often used in Chinese cooking.

For more info on snow fungus checkout Kuo’s Tremella fuciformi page here: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/tremella_fuciformis.html

Are There Still Big Discoveries to be Made in Biology?

Rob Dunn's March 31, 2009 presentation at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. "Life After Darwin: Are There Still Big Discoveries to be Made in Biology?"

A Predator with Young - Having a Ball

Lycosa gulosa and family - two nights ago near my front door.

I think there's a family resemblance to this one from back in March.