Jeanna Bryner
LiveScience Staff Writer
LiveScience.com
Mon Jan 28, 1:16 PM ET
A new species of beetle that appears as if wearing a tuxedo has been named in honor of the late rock 'n' roll legend Roy Orbison and his widow Barbara.
Entomologist Quentin Wheeler of Arizona State University announced the discovery and naming of the beetle, now dubbed Orectochilus orbisonorum, during a Roy Orbison Tribute Concert on Jan. 25.
The ending of the species name, "orum," denotes it was named after a couple. If the beetle were just named after Roy it would end in "i," and for just Barbara, the name would end in "ae."
Barbara Orbison, who attended the concert along with Orbison's sons Wesley and Roy Kelton Orbison Jr., remarked on her appreciation for the new species name. "I have never seen an honor like that," she said.
To mark the occasion, Wheeler presented Barbara with an original work of art titled “Whirligig." Completed by ASU scientist and artist Charles J. Kazilek, the painting included nine images of a whirligig beetle on cotton watercolor paper.
"The style of the print is [Andy] Warhol meets Carl Linnaeus," Wheeler said, referring to the pop art icon and the father of taxonomy (the method of classifying living things).
Less than a quarter-inch long (five millimeters), O. orbisonorum belongs to the Gyrinidae family, a group of beetles that typically live on the surface of the water.
Called whirligigs because they swim rapidly in circles when alarmed, the beetles have "divided" eyes that can see both above and below the water. A band of material separates the eyes so that on first glance you'd think the insect were four-eyed.
Unlike other members of the Indian Gyrinidae, however, this one has a white underbelly due to a clear cuticle through which the white internal tissues are easily visible. Its top surface is shiny black with dull patches covered with dense, tiny hairs. "The contrast between the two areas is visually very stunning," Wheeler said.
The beetle's elegant appearance is one reason for the naming. "It almost looks like it's wearing a tuxedo," Wheeler said.
In 2005, Wheeler, Kelly Miller of the University of New Mexico and taxonomist Paolo Mazzoldi of Brescia, Italy, discovered 65 new species of slime-mold beetle in the genus Agathidium. They named one of the beetles after Darth Vader and others for President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.
The new species will be detailed in an upcoming issue of the journal Zootaxa.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
This Beetle Really Rocks
WWF Calls for boycott!
Praising several retail chains that have taken the lead in refusing to sell bluefin, WWF said it was time for "retailers around the world to emulate their courageous decision... until this fish is out of danger."
Last November, European Union (EU) fisheries ministers agreed to restrict the fishing of bluefin tuna in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean under a 15-year plan to revive dwindling stocks.
The French supermarket giant Auchan, as well as the Italian subsidiaries of Coop and Carrefour, have already stopped selling bluefin
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Mysterious reptile deaths puzzle scientists
LUCKNOW, India (AP) -- Cons
Conservationists believe there are only about 1,500 gharials left in the wild.
Everything from parasites to pollution has been blamed for the deaths of the gharials -- massive reptiles that look like their crocodile relatives, but with long slender snouts.
The bodies, measuring between five and 10 feet long, have been found washed up on the banks of the Chambal River since early December, according to conservationists and officials.
The precise number of gharials that have died remains unclear, with the Gharial Conservation Alliance saying 81 bodies have been found since early December, but Chief Wildlife Warden D.N.S Suman put the number of dead animals at 50.
Conservationists believe there are only about 1,500 gharials left in the wild, many of them in a sanctuary based along the Chambal, one of the few unpolluted Indian rivers. The Chambal contains the largest of three breeding populations in the world.
In early December, officials found the bodies of at least 21 gharials over three days. The bodies have continued washing ashore in the weeks since.
The latest clue to what's killing the rare reptiles is an unknown parasite that scientists found in the dead gharials' liver and kidneys, according to Dr. A.K. Sharma of the Indian Veterinary Research Institute.
"We can say that liver and kidney of these gharials were badly damaged," said Sharma. "They were swollen and bigger than their usual size."
Others believe the gharials may have died after eating contaminated fish from the polluted Yamuna river, which joins the Chambal in the state of Uttar Pradesh. Pathological tests confirmed lead and cadmium in the bodies of the dead gharials, said Suman, the wildlife official.
"The Chambal river has clear water free from heavy metals. The only possibility seems that these gharials might have migrated from heavily polluted Yamuna river where they might have eaten fish," said Suman.
The gharial, also known as the Indian crocodile, was on the verge of extinction in the 1970s, but a government breeding program that has released several hundred into the wild has raised their numbers.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/01/22/rarereptile.deaths.ap/index.html
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Pair accused of stealing, eating dog pet
Wed Jan 23, 8:30 PM ET
HONOLULU - Two former golf club employees have been charged with theft and cruelty to animals in the death of a pet dog the owners say was cooked and eaten.
An Oahu grand jury indicted Saturnino Palting, 58, and Nelson Domingo, 43, both of Kalihi, after the Moanalua Golf Club fired them as maintenance workers.
They are charged with stealing a dog owned by Frank Manuma and his wife, Debbie Weil-Manuma. The 8-month-old German shepherd-Labrador mix named Caddy had been tied up near a maintenance shed on Dec. 16 while Frank Manuma played a round of golf.
Manuma said police told him the two men butchered and ate his pet.
The charges are both felonies punishable by up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
"We're delighted that it's moving forward," Manuma said when told of the grand jury indictments.
He said the club had given him permission to bring the dog to the club.
Witnesses told golf club officials they saw the workers load the dog into a car and drive away at the end of their shift on Dec. 16. Both were fired after the incident.
Manuma said he and his wife considered the dog like a child they never had. When the arrest was first reported, they received expressions of sympathy and offers of new dogs from as far away as Colorado.
He said they now have a 3-month old mixed German shepherd-Golden retriever named Caddy 2.
SPCA 200 Animals Rescued from Home
Sat Jan 26, 12:49 AM ET
MARSHALL, Texas - An animal protection group on Friday rescued more than 200 animals, including 26 hissing cockroaches and two bearded dragons, from an eastern Texas home.
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said the animals were still being counted Friday night.
The group was acting under the authority of the Harrison County Sheriff's Department and had gone to the property on a warrant regarding medical neglect.
Besides the cockroaches and bearded dragons, the animals included 68 dogs, 16 rabbits, 15 guinea pigs, 13 gerbils, seven doves, two dwarf hamsters, two hedgehogs, an opossum and a pink toe tarantula.
The SPCA said some animals were found in outdoor pens while others were in sheds scattered around the property. Others were in a doublewide trailer living in filth.
The SPCA said many of the dogs were very thin and appeared to be suffering from eye and ear infections. One dead frog and a dead guinea pig were found. The saved animals were to be taken to an animal care center.
A sheriff's department spokesman said he had no information on the raid and didn't know if any arrests were made.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Dog Hospitalised for Being Over the Limit
VIENNA (AFP) - A dog was admitted to a veterinary clinic in Austria at the weekend, barely able to stand on his own four paws and reeking "like a beer hall," a newspaper reported on Monday.
Dingo, a three-year-old labrador weighing 40 kilogrammes (88 pounds), was a pitiful sight when his owner, a hunter, brought him in to the surgery in the Salzkammergut region, the Oberoesterreichische Nachrichten quoted vet Karl Hofbauer as saying.
"The dog had dreadful wind and diarrhea, and was vomiting a lot," Hofbauer said.
"When I got him up on the table, it smelt like a distillery."
Tests indicated that the dog had a blood alcohol content of 1.6 milligrams per 100 millilitres.
But that was not the result of Dingo having one drink too many, the owner insisted.
The hungry pooch had stolen and secretly devoured half a kilogramme of fresh yeast dough from the kitchen. Alcohol had formed inside his stomach as a result of the fermentation process, leaving poor old Dingo stone drunk.
"Nasty-minded people said that we hunters are often drunk. With me, it's my dog," joked the owner.
Tyson Foods to Investigate Claims of Chicken Abuse
Thu Jan 17, 5:38 PM ET
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Tyson Foods Inc., the largest U.S. meat company, said it will investigate allegations by the animal-welfare group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) that chickens were abused and tortured at two of its chicken processing plants.
PETA said an undercover investigator for the group had video documentation of workers throwing live chickens, hitting them with fists, and urinating in an area where the live birds were shackled.
"We're committed to proper animal handling in all aspects of our operations and are conducting our own investigation into the claims by PETA, which is well known for its anti-meat agenda," Tyson said in a statement on Thursday.
Tyson said it also is cooperating with USDA's investigation of the matter.
"Some of the videotaped activities we've seen on-line do warrant investigation; however, others are being misrepresented and sensationalized by PETA," Tyson said.
Dog Tossed from MO Overpass.
ST. LOUIS - A pit bull terrier that suffered two broken legs and nerve damage when it was thrown 30 feet from an overpass has been euthanized, the Humane Society of Missouri said Friday.
Humane Society veterinarians made the decision Thursday night after consultation and examination, veterinarian Melinda Fleming said.
"This dog was in severe, nearly uncontrollable pain and it was questionable whether he would be able to walk again," she said. "That someone would allow a pet to be abused in this way is unthinkable and heartbreaking."
The organization got a call Wednesday evening from a witness who saw the pit bull terrier and a large golden retriever or Akita mix falling from the overpass in north St. Louis. Authorities believe the dogs were thrown.
The other dog ran away but may have been seriously injured, the Humane Society said. A team from the Humane Society along with city Animal Control and police are looking for the missing dog. So far, they have no confirmed sightings.
The Humane Society has offered $2,500 for information leading to an arrest and conviction. Witnesses were urged to call the Humane Society or police with information.
