Wild Things: Piranhas, Nazca Boobies, Glowing Millipedes
Elephant Seals, Neanderthal evolution and more news from the world of science
- By T.A. Frail, Joseph Stromberg, Abigail Tucker, Erin Wayman and Sarah Zielinski
- Smithsonian magazine, December 2011
Big Southern elephant seal bulls (Mirounga leonina) fighting for females on beach during breeding season in spring. (© Momatiuk - Eastcott / Corbis)
Among southern elephant seals, four-ton alpha males lord over harems ashore and block other males from mating with the hundreds of females. But P.J.N. de Bruyn of the University of Pretoria has found that the top seal’s control is not ironclad: The timing of pregnancy indicates some females mate at sea, possibly escaping the alpha.
Additional Sources
“The effects of distal limb segment shortening on locomotor efficiency in sloped terrain: Implications for Neandertal locomotor behavior,” Ryan W. Higgins and Christopher B. Ruff, American Journal of Physical Anthropology, November 2011
“Sex at sea: alternative mating system in an extremely polygynous mammal,” P.J.N. de Bruyn et al., Animal Behaviour, September 1, 2011
“Maltreated nestlings exhibit correlated maltreatment as adults: Evidence of a "cycle of violence" in Nazca boobies (Sula granti),” Martina S. Muller et al., The Auk
“Sound production in red-bellied piranhas (Pygocentrus nattereri, Kner): an acoustical, behavioural and morphofunctional study,” Sandie Millot et al., Journal of Experimental Biology, November 1, 2011
“Bioluminescent aposematism in millipedes,” Paul Marek et al., Current Biology, September 27, 2011
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