Rediscovered creature
Scientists just rediscovered a mouse-sized elephant shrew—an animal that is neither an elephant nor a shrew. The Somali sengi went missing nearly half a century ago, according to Global Wildlife Conservation. The tiny mammal has a long nose, a tuft of fur on its tail, and huge eyes for its small size.
Researchers previously thought the mammal lived only in Somalia but received tips last year that an ecologist and some of the locals in the neighboring country of Djibouti had seen a few of them.
In a study published on Aug. 18, researchers described how they analyzed dung piles at various sites that provided the right kind of habitat and set 1,259 traps with a tasty mix of peanut butter, oatmeal, and yeast. They caught one of the mammals in the first trap they set. The elephant shrew lives in a dry area inhospitable to farming and development, so its habitat doesn’t face any looming threats, the researchers noted.
The Somali sengi mates for life and uses its long nose like an elephant’s trunk to devour insects.
“They are not well-known animals, but when you see them, it’s impossible not to adore them,” said Steven Heritage, a research scientist at the Duke University Lemur Center and lead author of the study. —J.B.
Comments
Janet B
Posted: Thu, 08/27/2020 06:10 pmBlanchette noted that the birds, without knowing it, formed into an almost perfect arrangement: “We tried to think of a better way [penguins could huddle], but it always involved an omniscient being who would tell them where to go.”
Ya think? LOL
MIZ MARLE
Posted: Sat, 08/29/2020 01:03 amJanet B, my thought exactly ;-)
Janet B
Posted: Thu, 08/27/2020 06:16 pmThe other bookend contains an exciting view of the creative curiousity that the "omniscient being" created to subdue the earth. Imagine the future!!
Cdh
Posted: Thu, 08/27/2020 08:03 pmI guess the phrase, "Dumb as a pile of bricks!" may need some modification. :)
momof 13
Posted: Mon, 08/31/2020 12:14 pmIs anyone else having trouble accessing the link to the aticle sited at Quanta magazine? https://www.quantamagazine.org/math-of-the-penguins-20200817/ I keep getting an error privacy warning.
HANNAH.
Posted: Mon, 08/31/2020 05:09 pmAble to access the linked article on both Microsoft Edge and Google Chrome. I pray that you've been able to overcome whatever glitches are preventing you from doing the same.