A glowing Lampyris noctiluca larva in spring or another bioluminescent invertebrate species entirely? (May 3, 2024)

There are only two glowing insect species that I know of in Latvia and those are both glow-worms, i.e., the European common glow-worm (Lampyris noctiluca) and the lesser (or short-winged) glow-worm (Phosphaenus hemipterus). The latter species is less prevalent and I believe that any observations of glow-worms in our area are those of the common …

Do animals use magic?

Many of my observations include animals producing vocalizations the contexts of which are varied and, according to official science, frequently ascribed to territoriality or other types of communication with affiliates or competitors. The tawny owl male whom I keep observing, often hoots while on the hunt. I have wondered if this could assist in provoking …

Scent is in the nose of the besmeller. Neighbours as affiliates

This is the third and concluding post in the series where I attempt to discuss the importance of physiochemical effects of scent in fitness with regard to both health and sociality (see Scent signal transduction via chemical-neural pathways (remedial benefits) and Familiar scents as safe havens and golden standards). In the previous post, I addressed …

Scent is in the nose of the besmeller. Familiar scents as safe havens and golden standards

Yesterday I published the first article in this two-post series on the potential differences among species who can perceive or cannot perceive certain odours (Scent signal transduction via chemical-neural pathways (remedial benefits)). I will not repeat the ideas and conclusions discussed in the earlier post. In this post, I would like to continue analyzing the …

Scent is in the nose of the besmeller. Scent signal transduction via chemical-neural pathways (remedial benefits)

I have been fascinated by the animal ability to experience world through scent and how it is impossible for humans to even begin to imagine what such world might feel like. It has also seemed curious to me how animals apparently enjoy and are highly attracted to smells that we find repulsive or that suggest …

Social learning opportunities in polygamous species (from kids)

This is a brief post to write down the thought I had today regarding social learning in species in which mother takes care of the offspring but the father does not participate in the rearing of the kids and the association between the mates is not very close (they only meet during the mating period …

Seasonal gut microbiota changes in omnivores (brown bears as an example)

As I have been reading about the many different microorganisms (but also enzymes) that are involved in the digestion of food in mammals, I have come to understand that different organisms and compounds are involved in digesting materials in which either sugars, proteins, starch, cellulose, lignin etc. dominate. Many mammals have evolved symbiotic associations with …

Climate change effects on bird nesting material

My dog has started shedding her winter fur early this year due to the warm weather. Typically, I place the combed-out fur in the backyard for the birds to pick if they wished so. This year, as I brought the fur out in the garden, I began noticing that there were not yet as many …

Rolling in scent – aromatherapy? (plus types of cognitive processing)

Scent marking and scent signal readings in mammalian species have so many functions and expressions that it is difficult to tackle these intricate correlations in one post. However, I would like to address an aspect of scent processing behaviour which is that of rolling in scent which might have been deliberately (with communication purposes) left …

Could intraspecific learning result in similar genotypes?

In order to discover how the extant species have come about and what extinct relatives they had and who their ancestors were and how these species are related to one another, phylogenetic trees are produced which are based on the similarities and divergence among genotypes. Usually, it is assumed that the genotype has been inherited …