Two new species of tiny symbiotic shrimps were described, illustrated and named by a biology student at Leiden University. The new shrimps do not reach sizes above a centimetre in length, and were found inside tunicates. It is believed that these symbiotic crustaceans are fully adapted to live inside the cavities of their hosts, which explains their small-sized and smooth bodies. Unlike most Odontonia species, which live inside solitary tunicates, the new species were the first…

Continue reading

Within national jurisdiction, the Nagoya Protocol protects countries from exploitative bioprospecting, and is meant to foster greater equity. But there's a huge missing piece, because two-thirds of the ocean exists beyond national jurisdiction. That's roughly half the Earth's surface with no regulations on accessing or using genetic resources.Marine organisms have evolved to thrive in various ocean environments, resulting in unique adaptations that make them the object of commercial interest, particularly for biomedical and industrial applications.…

Continue reading

The family Ceraphronidae consists of some 360 known species of wasps. Scientists do believe that a great many species are yet to be described. In general little is known about this group. Most species are believed to be parasitoids of flies, but a few hyperparasitoids (parasitoid of a parasitoid) are also known. Many species are found in the soil, and of these, a good number are wingless.The new species was collected in Germany and named…

Continue reading

This technology lets us accurately, unobtrusively and inexpensively collect wildlife data, which could help catalyze the transformation of many fields of ecology, wildlife biology, zoology, conservation biology and animal behavior into 'big data' sciences. This will dramatically improve our ability to both study and conserve wildlife and precious ecosystems.Motion sensor camera trap' unobtrusively take pictures of animals in their natural environment, oftentimes yielding images not otherwise observable. The information in these photographs is only useful once…

Continue reading

The relatively unknown genus Hemiboea contains about 23 species of exotic plants all native to China and neighboring countries. Hemiboea is in the Gesneriaceae family making it a cousin to African violets, Gloxinia, and Sinningia.The new species is named after the type locality, Suiyang County, Guizhou, China.For the experts: The limestone areas in south China are a major biodiversity hotspot for terrestrial biomes. Hemiboea, with 34 species and 5 varieties, mainly distributed in south China, is…

Continue reading

Azorella selagoUnderstanding the full impact of an invasive species on an environment is very difficult as it involves many factors, one of which is generally a long timescale. A team of researchers from France, Italy and Norway has found a natural historical record of the impact of an invasive species of rabbit on a remote Indian Ocean island. They used an environment with few interacting variables and a natural historical record - DNA found in a…

Continue reading

Springtails, or collembola, are tiny arthropods. Their size ranges from 0.25 to 6 mm. Springtails normally live in damp soil. They eat mold and fungus.They get their name from a spring-loaded structure, called the furcula, located on the underside of their abdomen. Most species have an tail-like appendage, the furcula, that is folded beneath the body to be used for jumping when the animal is threatened. It is held under tension by a small structure…

Continue reading

Wow - who would have thought back in 2012 that I will ever reach such a high number of posts. The prouder I am to have reached this milestone. The blog is still alive and kicking and I have all intentions to keep it that way. A big shoutout to all my readers. Without them there would be no blog. Thank you!Off to the next thousand.

Continue reading

Rapa Nui (Easter Island) is the most isolated inhabited island in the Indo-Pacific, located approximately 3,700 km west of Chile and 2,000 km from the nearest inhabited island, Pitcairn. This isolation led to a very unique fauna surrounding the island. The likelihood of finding never before encountered and endemic species such as today's fish is very high.Perchlets of the family  Anthiadinae are small beautiful fish. Their relatives (e.g. genus Anthias) are very famous in the…

Continue reading

This week a hopefully eclectic collection of reads. I  also hope I posted something for everyone.DNA metabarcoding reveals that 200-μm-size-fractionated filtering is unable to discriminate between planktonic microbial and large eukaryotesMicroeukaryotic plankton (0.2-200 μm) are critical components of aquatic ecosystems and key players in global ecological processes. High-throughput sequencing is currently revolutionizing their study on an unprecedented scale. However, it is currently unclear whether we can accurately, effectively and quantitatively depict the microeukaryotic plankton communities…

Continue reading