Wiki World: whale

Showing posts with label whale. Show all posts

DNA From Mucus Shows the Sex of Whales

Genetics: Scientists work on whales instead of cattle.
Work on cattle genetics has shown the way to determine the sex of whales using a sample taken from blow holes. Specimens are composed of water and mucous membrane material. They are collected from the sea by people in dingies, canoes and kayaks. The process involves scooping with a six-metre long carbon-fibre pole.

A team of researchers has enjoyed the chance to get away from working with cattle. They have also done a genetic study of koalas. Improving cattle and meat are their priorities, however. A few hundred samples are to be taken. This compares to a half a million already collected from cattle.

While blow hole samples are used for whales, hair is taken from cattle. Researchers have identified favourable traits for cattle from DNA. The real problem is getting these into cattle. Farmers are the ones who breed animals, not researchers. It is no surprise to find the more direct work on whales a welcome change.

◆ Genetics by Ty Buchanan ◆

Australian Blog

Adventure Australia
Funny Animal Photos
Funny Weird Things
Articles News Reviews

●

Vista Computer Solutions Blog

Australian Blog ★ Adventure Australia
ALL BLOG ARTICLES· ──► (BLOG HOME PAGE)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Genetics dna collecting whale mucus in the sea people in small boats articles news politics economics society anthropology historiography history sociology people nations country asia europe africa u.s. south america central Mediterranean eastern western interesting funny technology free news sex

Beached Beaked Whale in Australia

Many animals have not been seen for a long time. Indeed, it is not known whether they have become extinct. Some, of course, live in places not usually visited by humans. Recently a beaked whale was washed up on a beach Australia. It is rare and lives deep in the sea.

The actual species cannot be verified by manual examination of the body, Part of the body will be sent to the Australian Science Museum in Sydney for DNA tests and X-ray scans to determine the correct species.

Not much is known about beaked whales because they live so far down in the sea. Only stranded and beached specimens have been found. They do come to the surface to breath but do not linger there for very long.

Many scientists have never seen a live beaked whale. A beaching of this kind is very rare indeed. Parts of the body will be thoroughly examined to shed more light on how the mammal lives. We will never know everything about fellow animals. The more we know the better.

Science by Ty Buchanan

http://www.adventure--australia.blogspot.com/

http://www.tysaustralia.blogspot.com/

http://adventure--australia.blogspot.com/atom.xml

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Vista Computer Solutions Blog

Australian Blog★
ALL BLOG ARTICLES· ──► (BLOG HOME PAGE)

Whale Culture in Japan

Japan plans to resume whaling in the Antarctic next year. It will modify its "scientific"research system to fit in to what the International Court of Justice (ICJ) wants, although the court stated that scientific whaling per se was illegal and would always be illegal.

Japan's Institute of Cetacean Research (ICR) says it will take the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS) to the ICJ to stop it harassing Japanese whaling ships when they carry out future legal scientific whale hunting in the Antarctic, in short the resumption of killing of whales for food.

Just why Japan is so pig-headed about continuing to wastefully kill whales says something about Japanese culture - they are arrogant. Japanese consumers want whaling despite not actually buying whale meat. This nation has tonnes of whale meat in storage because it doesn't sell, despite being highly subsidized.

I am about to get personal about this issue. Those readers easily offended should stop reading now..........

Cultures do not change suddenly. It takes centuries for societies to change. The way people think and what they believe in continue, even though rational circumstance prove that things cannot possibly be as people believe.

Because a war ended and countries apparently got back to normal didn't mean societies changed their ways. Japanese culture is the same today as it was in the 1930s. Arrogance prevails despite bowing to this, bowing to that. This bowing custom came about because Japanese were terrified of samurai - frightened of losing a head or half body.

The truth of the matter is that Japan will continue to hunt whales because of the silly custom of saving-face. They perceive a court order as a blemish on their character. People of other countries do not see it this way at all.

Conservation by Ty Buchanan

http://www.adventure--australia.blogspot.com/

http://www.tysaustralia.blogspot.com/

http://adventure--australia.blogspot.com/atom.xml

http://www.technorati.com/blogs/

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Vista Computer Solutions Blog

Australian Blog★
ALL BLOG ARTICLES· ──► (BLOG HOME PAGE)

Wax Ear Plug Illuminates a Whale's Life

Who would have thought that ear wax would add to scientific knowledge. A wax ear plug from a dead 12 years old whale has shed more light on its life. Traditional research involved blubber, faeces and blood.

Lipids, keratin and waxes built up by two layers a year. This was used to tell the age of the whale. When sliced ultrafine, 24 separate rings were identified.

Closer analysis was done and various industrial chemicals and pesticides were found. Some of the chemicals persisted in the wax despite being banned world wide ten years before. There is no doubt that these chemicals were stored in the females fat and passed onto the young.

Mercury was high at two periods in the whale"s life. Testosterone level rose when the whale reached maturity at ten years of age. The high chemical rate is believed to have an indirect effect on the high cortisol level, the stress hormone. However, a 12 year old male would have been driven to compete with other males for females and form social bonds.

http://www.adventure--australia.blogspot.com/

http://www.tysaustralia.blogspot.com/

http://adventure--australia.blogspot.com/atom.xml

http://www.technorati.com/blogs/

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Conservation by Ty Buchanan

Vista Computer Solutions Blog

Australian Blog★
ALL BLOG ARTICLES· ──► (BLOG HOME PAGE)

Fossil Find Shines Light on an Ancient Whale

A fossil find in Victoria, Australia, throws light on the origin of baleen whales. The artifact is 25 million years old. It is the 45 cm long skull of Mammalodon colliveri. Information about it has remained open since its discovery in 1932.

Though it had teeth it spent its time sucking mud in the search for prey on the seafloor. A short, blunt snout made this possible. This type of feeding led to the filter method of modern whales. The baleen whale was only three meters long, a far cry from the monsters that followed. Its ancestors though were also very large.

Other fossils have been found in Torquay, Victoria, notably Janjucetus hunderi which was unique to the area. This region is believed to be the cradle of tiny whales. Some form of isolation must have occurred for this to happen.