Stories tagged mating
Up up down down left right left right B A start!: or was it IDDQD? Yes! Infinite lives and ammo.
Courtesy bramblejungleA single gene has been isolated in male fruit flies that seems to somehow make them skilled at videogames, Dungeons and Dragons (all versions), and Star Trek trivia.
Scientists are not yet able to fully explain this phenomenon, but they believe that the gene may govern a pheromone receptor, and causes it to block or misinterpret chemical signals normal fruit flies receive as stimuli towards good hygiene, snappy dressing, and social interaction.
So skilled are these fruit flies at games and trivia, they are able to actually beat games that don’t exist, and answer questions about Next Generation episodes that never made it to filming. Likewise, these flies have often been observed “rolling” for everyday actions and commenting derisively on the stats of peers.
Read all about it here, friends.
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Phintella vittata: All upside-down and ready for love
Courtesy spiderman (Frank)Okay, maybe this isn't as titillating as a big flippered mammal trying to have its way with a bird in a tuxedo, but - hey - it's still about sex.
Scientists have determined for the first time that male jumping spiders (Phintella vittata) are using ultraviolet B (UVB) rays (medium wave) to communicate with their girlfriends and/or potential mates. The use of ultraviolet A (UVA) rays (long wave) in the animal world has been documented before but not UVB. Either way, since ultraviolet light is invisible to the human eye, this tricky technique isn't going to be much use next Saturday night at Larry's Bar and Disco.
But it seems to work as a successful mating strategy for the jumping spider. The researchers doing the study discovered that the male Phintella reflected the UVB rays from their bodies, and that the female objects of their affection were more likely to get it on with those sweet-talkers who could do so in the UVB wavelength. There is a video accompanying the source of this story but I found it neither prurient nor even revealing of the UVB ray method.
However, I did find some really great video of spider courtship behavior that’s worth watching. I’m not sure it’s the same species of jumping spider, but it doesn't matter. What's really interesting is how the audio has been amplified making spiderboy's love tango seem much more mechanical than biological.
I don't know how any of this helps those of you using Match.com or any other dating service, but if you think you need more information about ultraviolet spider love, go here.
You can also check out the journal Current Biology where the study results have been published.
That's one horny dinosaur, alright: Teen-aged triceratopses may have jousted to impress the ladies.
Courtesy wallyg
Scientists digging in central Mexico have uncovered the bones of a previously unknown dinosaur. The species, not yet named, had three horns and a massive neck frill, similar to the familiar Triceratops. The scientists peculate that these dinosaurs used their neck frills for display, to attract mates. Adolescent males may have used their horns in head-butting contests, like some modern sheep do, to establish dominance.
Looking for love: According to new research, male chimps prefer older females over young females when they're looking for a partner to mate with. That's actually not so surprising, as in many other mammal species females reach their peak in fertility at middle age.
Remember that TV show from a few years ago - Are You Hot?
Well, in the world of chimpanzees, who's hot isn't the same as what most human males classify as hot.
The latest issue of Current Biology includes research findings that most male chimps find the older females of their species more attractive for mating than younger female chimps.
"Although it's easy to imagine that male chimps would like to mate with whatever female is available, it turns out they really have strong preferences" for the older females, says anthropologist Martin Muller of Boston University, the lead author of the study. "We've seen them just ignoring younger females who are all over them."
The findings are based on eight years of watching chimps in Uganda. Chimp males are not too subtle in their courting rituals, so researchers clearly knew what was going on when they were selecting their mates. In the majority of cases, they'd prefer an older female over a younger female if they had a choice among who to mate with.
Why to they have such different tastes than their male counterparts of the human species?
One big difference is that female chimps never go through menopause, which could lead male chimps to consider them to be more experienced mothers and better caregivers for their offspring. And among many mammal species, fertility rates tend to be higher among middle-aged females than younger females.
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