In my class yesterday I reviewed a paper selected by my students that explored the sweet tasting abilities of bats. We learned that most, but not all, bats can taste sugar like other mammals.  I did not know much about mammalian taste receptors (that is one problems with letting students pick the topics!) and I... Continue Reading →
I have been thinking about Elephants the last couple of days and may write more about elephant following in the vein of my recent posts on horses. For now I just want to introduce you to one really weird extinct elephant. I call it an elephant because of its obvious similarities but just like with... Continue Reading →
Plants aren't just helpless victims of herbivory. They find ways to fight back against those voracious animals that can ravage them in short order.  Plants can produce toxins, spines, thorns, glass crystals in their cells and many other defenses but all of these defenses require a significant allocation of energy.  That energy could be spent growing new... Continue Reading →
Naturalis Historia 