Hoots Discover
2009
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Hoots Discover
What Can We Learn From Animals?
Demand for detection canines has increased dramatically as the U.S. government focuses on homeland security. According to the North American Police Work Dog Association, there are 35,000 dogs trained to do detective work. For each drop of odor detected by a dog’s nose, a human nose would need 1,000-10,000 drops. Dogs begin training as puppies and are chosen for training by purity of breed, confidence, sociability and temperament. Most law enforcement agencies use Belgian Malinoises or German shepherds; but labs, bloodhounds and beagles are used too. Although honeybees are better at detecting TNT particles, they are more suited for sting operations.
English researchers discovered that rooks – members of the crow family – are capable of making and using tools in captivity. In one experiment rooks learned to get food by collapsing a platform with a stone. Without training they would select the right size stone to accomplish the task. When they couldn’t find the right size stone, the rooks modified sticks to use instead. In another experiment rooks not only got food with a hooked tool from a tube, but they also bent wire into a hook when it was necessary. It seems rooks can make habitual tool users like chimpanzees look like rookies.
A study in the journal “Current Biology” determined that the hoots and pants made by apes when tickled are related to human laughter. Researchers analyzed 11 acoustic features in a recording of tickled apes and discovered a revealing pattern of similarities and differences compared with a tape of 5 related species – orangutans, gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos and humans. The results suggest evolutionary origins of human laughter can be traced back 10-16 million years to the last common ancestor of humans and modern great apes, with the sounds evolving as apes emerged. Obviously, evolution can be a laughing matter.
Scientists accidentally discovered how to find lost penguins – follow their poop. In remote parts of Antarctica researchers, unable to find colonies of emperor penguins, didn’t know if they were in danger. Emperor penguins spend months breeding on ice – which global warming is expected to reduce by one-third by the end of this century. The good news is stains of penguin poop on ice can be seen from space. Using satellite data, scientists found 10 new colonies of emperor penguins, 6 colonies that had moved and 6 colonies that seem to have disappeared. At least that’s according to the latest poop.
About the Author
Knight Pierce Hirst has written for television, newspapers and greeting cards. Now she writes a 400-word blog three times a week. KNIGHT WATCH, a second look at what makes life interesting, takes only seconds to read at http://knightwatch.typepad.com
Moose loose aboot this bothy
