You are here: Home

Archives: All features

Africa's rarest monkey had an intriguing sexual past, DNA study confirms

Date published: November 16, 2009

The most extensive DNA study to-date of Africa's rarest monkey reveals that the species had an intriguing sexual past. Of the last two remaining populations of the recently discovered kipunji, one population shows evidence of past mating with baboons while the other does not. The results may help to set conservation priorities for this critically endangered species, researchers say.A shy tree-dwelling monkey with a black face and long brown fur, the kipunji was unknown to science until 2003, when it was discovered in a remote region of southern Tanzania. A Wildlifewatch report on the finding published recently.

Why do animals, especially males, have so many different colours?

Date published: November 16, 2009

Why do so many animal species — including fish, birds and insects — display such rich diversity in coloration and other traits? In new research, Gregory Grether, UCLA professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, and Christopher Anderson, who recently earned his doctorate in Grether's laboratory, offer an answer. Find out more in this Wildlifewatch report.

Male sabertoothed cats were pussycats compared to macho lions

Date published: November 9, 2009

Despite their fearsome fangs, male sabertoothed cats may have been less aggressive than many of their feline cousins, says a new study of male-female size differences in extinct big cats. The researchers report that while male American lions were considerably larger than females, male and female sabertoothed cats were indistinguishable in size. The findings suggest that sabertooths may have been less aggressive than their fellow felines, researchers say. A Wildlifewatch report.

Global warming cycles threaten endangered primates

Date published: November 3, 2009

Two Penn State University researchers have carried out one of the first-ever analyses of the effects of global warming on endangered primates. This innovative work by Graduate Student Ruscena Wiederholt and Associate Professor of Biology Eric Post examined how El Niño warming affected the abundance of four New World monkeys over decades. The research was published on 28 October 2009 in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters, a fast-track journal of the Royal Society of London. Wildlifewatch brings you more about this research.

Northern brown bears discovered feeding on whitefish runs

Date published: October 28, 2009

Brown bears in the Mackenzie Delta face several challenges. Not only are food sources scarce, the bears are often active for just five months of the year. This creates extreme pressure for them to find adequate nutrition. A researcher says the fall run of whitefish could be playing a significant role in the diets of some Mackenzie Delta brown bears. He would like to see more research conducted on the bears and their feeding habits, in order to mitigate the impacts of development activities. A Wildlifewatch report.