Category: Curiosities of Nature

Meet the Four-Eyed Frog

© 2014 Danté Fenolio / www.anotheca.com
Pleurodema thaul © 2014 Danté Fenolio / http://www.anotheca.com

“You’ve got something on your butt. . .my eyes!”

WORST PICK UP LINE EVER, but amazing group of frogs.

The genus Pleurodema contains 15 species and is within the family Leptodactylidae and subfamily Leiuperinae. These so-called four-eyed frogs live in South America and possess a pair of inguinal poison glands that resemble eyes.

What is the purpose of having poison “eyes” on your bum? First of all, why not? I would do it if I could. Seriously…..

© 2014 Danté Fenolio / www.anotheca.com
Pleurodema thaul © 2014 Danté Fenolio / http://www.anotheca.com

More importantly, we look to the behavior to answer this question. When the animal is threatened it raises its rear (which then appears like the head with eyes and whatnot!) and if the predator attacks it will get a taste of some poison. The damage from the attack will be mitigated and as we all know it is easier to deal with a bite to your hindquarters than the face.
Check out these frogs calling below:

“Meet the…” is a collaboration between The Finch & Pea and Nature Afield to bring Nature’s amazing creatures into your home.

Fiber, not just for your guts!

Soybeans are a great source of dietary fiber. Image courtesy of Wikipedia.
Soybeans are a great source of dietary fiber. Image courtesy of Wikipedia.

Allergies have been on the rise in the last few decades – not just the highly publicized increase in peanut and gluten allergies, but also allergic asthma caused by allergens in the air (like dust mites, mold, or pollen). Poorly controlled asthma and asthma emergencies result in many ER visits. What is causing this trend of increasing allergies?

The hygiene hypothesis – lack of exposure to potential allergens due to homes that are too clean leads to kids being hypersensitive is popular with many folks.

A new paper, however, tests an alternative  hypothesis about the increased rate of allergies. Could low fiber consumption in Western diets be to blame?

Continue reading “Fiber, not just for your guts!”

Meet the Giant Oarfish

Picture credit: kalambo http://kalambo.deviantart.com/art/Giant-Oarfish-365262027
Picture credit: kalambo
http://kalambo.deviantart.com/art/Giant-Oarfish-365262027

Warning: you might want to quit your job immediately to go out and find a giant oarfish (Regalecus glesne).

This fish is beyond huge and crazy looking. Also, these guys are thought to predict earthquakes. Please sit down in case you faint from this dose of amazing.


Video Credit: Mark C. Benfield

“Meet the…” is a collaboration between The Finch & Pea and Nature Afield to bring Nature’s amazing creatures into your home.

It’s Boxing Day. What are you going to do today?

Letter and drawing from Mary Anning announcing the discovery of a fossil animal now known as Plesiosaurus dolichodeirus, 26 December 1823 (Public Domain)

Mary Anning described the discovery of a plesiosaur to the world in a letter from 26 December 1823. You were probably hungover.

*For the unfamiliar, Boxing Day is the day after Christmas.

From Wikipedia via Kind of A Menace via Scientific Illustration

The Red Nose Gene [Repost]

Rudolph's Family

Originally posted on 24 December 2012 when my now 5 year old was 4.

Tis the season…for my 4 year old to ask me to sing Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer repeatedly during any car trip longer than 30 seconds. My apologies to anyone who gets caught in the crossfire. My singing does not get better with repetition.

My kids also love the Rankin/Bass stop animation classic film Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. As you probably have come to expect, I have had a lot of time to wonder about how two seemingly normal reindeer could have a child with a glowing nose. Classic genetics is well-equipped to deal with this problem.

Both Santa and we should be very concerned about the genetics of red reindeer noses. According to Wikipedia, the Rudolph story dates back to 1939. There have probably been quite a few foggy Christmas Eves in the intervening years. According to the Pittsburgh Zoo, reindeer typically live for 10 years in the wild. While we can expect that Santa’s reindeer do a bit better than those in the wild, it is clear that Rudolph alone would not be able to “guide Santa’s sleigh” today. Given their success breeding flying reindeer, it is not hard to imagine that Santa’s elves could generate a stable of red-nosed reindeer. How they would go about doing so would depend on how, genetically, Rudolph wound up with that first Red Nose. Continue reading “The Red Nose Gene [Repost]”