-
-
Scientists discover fish in act of evolution in Africa’s greatest lake
In what could be a first in the world, a fish species in the cichlid family has been observed by scientists in the act of splitting into two distinct species in Lake Victoria, Africa’s largest lake and one of the world’s biggest fresh water bodies.
This may be remarkable because what is causing them to diverge are adaptations to their vision as animals and plants try to cope with increased pollution and the effects of climate change. The change is also happening without geographical isolation, which was thought to be a precursor for evolution.
The Pundamilia nyererei is a haplochromine type cichlid native to areas in the Mwanza Gulf region of Lake Victoria. This region consists of many islands where each island region has its own color variant of the fish.
In a report published in the journal Nature, researchers from Tokyo’s Institute of Technology and the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology have observed the cichlid evolve into a new species better adapted in sighting its prey and predator.
But the scientists have also tabled evidence indicating that it is not pollution and over-fishing alone that are responsible for the disappearance of some fish species in Lake Victoria and the evolving of others like the cichlid into new species.
The report summarizes that new species may be born because of vision differences and what fish see at least in one African lake could be the driving force that causes them to evolve into new species.
This may explain the very rapid loss of pundamilia in Lake Victoria over the past 30 years. The study says the eye adaptations have also affected mating patterns.
Researchers looked at two species, conspicuous by their red or blue colours. They determined through lab experiments that certain genetic mutations helped some fish adapt their vision at deeper levels to see the colour red and others in shallower water to recognise shades of blue.
The researchers showed that the eyes have adapted to this difference so that fish that live in deeper water have a pigment in their eyes that is more sensitive to red light, while shallow-water fish were sensitive to blue.
Generally, the evolutionary process of speciation (the formation of new species) occurs when one species is split by a physical distance or barrier, allowing each group to develop different traits. The observations of Lake Victoria’s cichlids provide evidence of an unusual form of evolution known as sympatric speciation, which occurs without the physical separation of a population group. In what could be a first in the world, a fish species in the cichlid family has been observed by scientists in the act of splitting in... more -
Giant Catfish Develop Taste for Humans?
" A fearsome fish has started killing people after feeding on human corpses, scientists fear.
They reckon that a huge type of catfish, called a goonch, may have developed a taste for flesh in an Indian river where bodies are dumped after funerals.
Locals have believed for years that a mysterious monster lurks in the water. But they think it has moved on from scavenging to snatching unwary bathers who venture into the Great Kali, which flows along the India-Nepal border.
The extraordinary creature has been investigated by biologist Jeremy Wade for a TV documentary to be shown in Britain.
“The locals have told me of a theory that this monster has grown extra large on a diet of partially burnt corpses,” Wade said. “It has perhaps got this taste for flesh by feasting on remains of funeral pyres. There will be a few freak individuals that grow bigger than the other ones and if you throw in extra food, they will grow even bigger.”
Wade discounted theories that crocodiles could be responsible for the carnage before turning his attention to goonches — among the world’s biggest freshwater fish.
He caught one which tipped the scales at 161 lbs and was nearly 6 feet long — a world record weight and far bigger than any landed before.
“If that got hold of you, there’d be no getting away,” he said." " A fearsome fish has started killing people after feeding on human corpses, scientists fear. ... more -
Texas bans fish pedicures
The state of Texas has decided to ban fish pedicures over health and safety concerns. As a result, salon customers will no longer have the opportunity to enjoy the sensation of hundreds of small fish nibbling away the dead skin from their feet.
Fears were raised over the safety of having the same fish clean the skin of multiple customers, leaving them open to possible infections, said Susan Stanford of the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. She also said because the foot baths and holding tanks are home to live fish, they cannot always be properly cleaned and disinfected.
A co-owner of Zen Luxury Nail & Beauty Bar, in Frisco, a Dallas suburb, said she was disappointed to learn she could no longer offer the service and said she did not know what to do with the 500 guppy-like fish she bought for $2,500 (£1,500). "I guess we will either keep them as pets, or send them back," she said. The state of Texas has decided to ban fish pedicures over health and safety concerns. As a result, salon customers will no longer have... more -
Giant fish in India develops taste for human flesh
The enormous goonch, a type of catfish, is said to have developed a taste for human flesh after feeding on corpses thrown into the river after funeral ceremonies.
Locals rumours have held for years that a mysterious monster lurks in the water. But they think it has moved on from scavenging to targeting live bathers who swim in the Great Kali, which flows along the India-Nepal border.
My paddling days are over. The enormous goonch, a type of catfish, is said to have developed a taste for human flesh after feeding on corpses thrown into the riv... more -
No Mo Sushi? Sockeye fish decline draws global concern
A combination of ignorance and neglect by the Canadian government appears to be pushing many British Columbia sockeye runs towards extinction, according to a new report by the world's leading conservation group. A combination of ignorance and neglect by the Canadian government appears to be pushing many British Columbia sockeye runs towards ext... more
-
'Deepest ever' living fish filmed
The "deepest ever" living fish have been discovered according to scientists.
A UK-Japan team found the 17-strong shoal at depths of 7.7km (4.8 miles) in the Japan Trench in the Pacific - and captured the deep sea animals on film. The scientists have been using remote-operated landers designed to withstand immense pressures to comb the world's deepest depths for marine life.
On film, the fish, known as Pseudoliparis amblystomopsis, can be seen darting about in the darkness of the depths, scooping up shrimps. Monty Priede from the University of Aberdeen said the 30cm-long (12in), deep-sea fish were surprisingly "cute".
The deepest record for any fish is Abyssobrotula galatheae, which was dredged from the bottom of the Puerto Rico Trench at a depth of more than 8km (5 miles) in 1970. However, it was dead by the time it reached the surface. The previous record for any fish to have been spotted alive was thought to have stood at about 7km (4 miles). The "deepest ever" living fish have been discovered according to scientists. ... more -
"Extinct" Frog Found in Honduras, Experts Say
A rough-skinned frog species thought to have gone extinct more than 20 years ago has been found alive in a Honduran rain forest, experts said.
Craugastor milesi—also called the miles' robber frog—was considered "locally abundant" in Honduras until the 1980s, when attempts to find the frog proved unsuccessful.
The culprit was thought to be a chytrid fungus called Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), which now threatens to wipe out numerous frog species worldwide. A rough-skinned frog species thought to have gone extinct more than 20 years ago has been found alive in a Honduran rain forest, exper... more -
New Birdlike Dinosaur Found in Argentina
A new predatory dinosaur with a birdlike breathing system found in Argentina may help scientists better understand the evolution of birds' lung systems.
The elephant-size dinosaur Aerosteon riocoloradensis lived 85 million years ago during the Cretaceous period.
The fossil provides the first evidence of dinosaur air sacs, which pump air into the lungs and are used by modern-day birds, said Paul Sereno, the project's lead researcher and a National Geographic explorer-in-residence.
Scientists have known dinosaurs used the pumplike apparatus to breathe, but the new find cements the connection between dinosaur and avian evolution, said Sereno, a paleontologist at the University of Chicago.
"This leaves little discussion that air sacs existed and that meat-eaters really do have lung structures that resemble birds," Sereno said.
More at article. A new predatory dinosaur with a birdlike breathing system found in Argentina may help scientists better understand the evolution of bi... more -
United Kingdom Talk Tuesday 30th September 2008
Tuesday's edition of my three times a week talk show.Watch the show here on CURRENT TV on Tues, Thurs & Sats.
In today's show :
A package arrives.
"Visions".
A nice smell.
Trying to find excuses.
Berkshire sounds of the countryside at http://www.chrisreardon.co.uk
Banks wanna borrow my money ! LOL.
Half in the sun, half in the shade.
A new dog.
Overwhelmed.
Richard knows these things.
A terrible waste of fish.
Does a long distance relationship work ?
Maybe this time.
Other "Disneyland's".
You could have saved £10,000 - £15,000.
London Symphony Orchestra.
He must drive his wife mad.
Strange names for dogs.
Controlled by our pets.
How do spiders attach their webs at each end ?
E.T.Phone home.
Love on the internet.
It's all wrong dear.
Your favourite Disney film ?
If you shot yourself in the head, would you feel it ?
An Icelandic event just gone.
Nothing other than earth.
chris@unitedkingdomtalk.co.uk
WWW.UNITEDKINGDOMTALK.CO.UK Tuesday's edition of my three times a week talk show.Watch the show here on CURRENT TV on Tues, Thurs & Sats. ... more -
PHOTOS: Glowing Red Fish Discovered
The reef fish Enneapterygius pusillus has found a creative way to communicate with other fish in a world dominated by blues and greens: The fish literally glows red.
At least 32 species of reef fish that live at depths below 33 feet (10 meters) possess this unique method of signaling, researchers said in a September 2008 study.
Because the color red has a longer wavelength and fish are better attuned to seeing colors with shorter wavelengths (such as green and blue), scientists had thought red was irrelevant to fish.
"Marine fish are generally assumed not to see or use red light, with the exception of some deep-sea fish," lead researcher Nico Michiels of the University of Tuebingen in Germany said in an email.
"Our discovery shows that there is a lot of red fluorescence that is very indicative of an active role of red in fish communication." The reef fish Enneapterygius pusillus has found a creative way to communicate with other fish in a world dominated by blues and greens... more -
Bloody shark bath
More than 400 sharks fight in the ten million-litre aquarium in a new Dubai shopping centre. Fears are rising that the amazing marine spectacle may become a bloodbath before shoppers' eyes on October 30th when the Burj Dubai Mall grand opening is scheduled. More than 400 sharks fight in the ten million-litre aquarium in a new Dubai shopping centre. Fears are rising that the amazing marine ... more
-
Fingers and toes evolved from fins say scientists
SCIENTIST have traced the origin of fingers and toes to fish-like creatures that roamed the seas 380 million years ago, according to a new study.
The findings, published today in the British-based science journal Nature, upend the prevailing theory on the evolution of digits.
It had long been assumed that the first creatures to develop primitive fingers were tetrapods, air-breathing animals that crawled from sea to land some 10 to 20 million years later.
The need to adapt to swampy marshlands and terra firma, the theory went, is what drove the gradual shift through natural selection from fish fins suitable only for swimming to weight-bearing limbs with articulated joints.
The study, however, reveals that rudimentary fingers were already present inside the fins of the shallow-water Panderichthys, a transitional species that was nonetheless more fish than tetrapod.
"What we have shown is that the hand and the foot emerge from pre-existing bits of the fin skeleton that were just reshaped, rather than being entirely new bits that were bolted onto the existing fin skeleton,'' said co-author Per Ahlberg, a researcher at Uppsala University in Sweden.
The discovery did not come from a new archeological find but from the reexamination of existing fossils, he said.
Previous research, it turns out, had simply overlooked what was there. SCIENTIST have traced the origin of fingers and toes to fish-like creatures that roamed the seas 380 million years ago, according to a... more -
Superfood or monster from the deep?
OFF the coast of Peru swim billions of sardines and anchovies: oily, smelly little fish, rich in nutritious omega-3 fatty acids. Their spot on the food chain is low; many will be caught, ground up, and fed as fishmeal to bigger animals.
But a few have a more exalted destiny: to be transported, purified and served at North American breakfast tables in the form of Tropicana Healthy Heart orange juice and Wonder Headstart bread. These new products promise to deliver the health benefits of fish oil without the smell and the taste — without, in fact, the fish.
The possible benefits of eating omega-3s include cardiovascular protection and improved neural development in children.
However, “People just aren’t eating salmon or sardines twice a day,” said Ellie Halevy, director for marketing of Tropicana, which is owned by PepsiCo. “But they will drink two glasses of orange juice, if it has no fishy taste and all the benefits.”
Orange juice laced with anchovies is one example of the latest way major food companies are competing for health-conscious consumers: plugging one food into another and claiming the health benefits of both. Shoppers are offered green tea extracts in their ginger ale, yogurt bacteria in their salsa, and powdered beets in their peanut butter. Market staples like blueberries (high in certain antioxidants), cherries (may have anti-inflammatory benefits) and bananas (when unripe, particularly rich in fiber) are being broken down, shaken up, microencapsulated, and put to work in new ways.
These additives are often called nutraceuticals, broadly defined as ingredients that are derived from food, and that offer health benefits associated with that food. Nutraceuticals like garlic pills and cranberry capsules became popular in the 1990s, usually taken alone in the form of dietary supplements.
Now Kraft, Dannon, General Mills and many other companies are adding nutraceuticals to existing foods: “fat-burning waffles” made from a newly developed corn flour, cheese that kills intestinal parasites, even ketchup that regulates digestion, are on the shelves or in the works. New technologies in food processing, and a landmark 1999 court decision giving the makers of supplements broad leeway to advertise their health benefits, have brought this new class of enhanced foods to supermarket shelves.
These products are known as functional foods, meaning they have been modified to make them more nutritious, like genetically modified rice or fortified milk.
“One day, we believe, you will be able to walk into a supermarket and all the products could be enriched with omega-3s: milk, yogurt, tortillas,” said Ian Lucas, head of marketing for Ocean Nutrition Canada, maker of the fish oil used by Tropicana.
Are we really that close to a world in which food functions as a nutrient delivery system, made possible by microencapsulation and fine-spray coating? And what would this mean for food and human nutrition?
“This whole area is far more complex than we thought just one or two years ago,” said Alice H. Lichtenstein, a professor of nutrition science and policy at Tufts University.
(continues at link) OFF the coast of Peru swim billions of sardines and anchovies: oily, smelly little fish, rich in nutritious omega-3 fatty acids. Their... more -
Salmon Wars: Battling Dams on the Klamath
Salmon disappeared from the upper Klamath River tribes in Oregon nearly 100 years ago when dams in Northern California blocked fish passage upriver. Today, PacifiCorp's four lower dams are up for licensing renewal and activists are hoping they'll be torn down. Salmon disappeared from the upper Klamath River tribes in Oregon nearly 100 years ago when dams in Northern California blocked fish pa... more
-
Black bear attacks man on boat
A bloody battle of man against beast on a Vancouver Island dock has left one fisherman in hospital, a bear dead and a group of quick-thinking bystanders hailed as heroes. A bloody battle of man against beast on a Vancouver Island dock has left one fisherman in hospital, a bear dead and a group of quick-t... more
-
Bass Fishing in Cornwall - At night
Tips on how to catch bass at night
-
Buying a Fishing Pole
Information on the types of fishing poles available on the market.
-
MASSIVE FISH!! Look at the size of the fish.
This is such a massive fish. Here is the description from the BBC:
"An up-close-and-personal view of the goliath grouper (Epinephelus itajara). Scientists now report there are actually two species which split when the Pacific and Atlantic oceans separated 3.5 million years ago. The finding should prove vital to conserving this critically endangered fish." This is such a massive fish. Here is the description from the BBC: ... more
-
related topics
Fish
Contributors (506)
Fish
