Free Republic

Scientists have discovered how a tiny worm-like creature with no arms, legs or wings nonetheless manages to perform stupendous leaps through the air. The acrobatic feats of these larvae were first noticed by Mike Wise of Roanoke College a few years ago, and now, in the Journal of Experimental Biology, he and some colleagues explain this critter's unusual trick. Wise studies how plants defend themselves from hungry insects, and one day he was dissecting tumor-like swellings on goldenrod that form around the maggot-like larvae of developing flies. "The larvae get as big, when they're full grown, as, say, a small...

Link only - Leaping Cockroach Gets Around on Spring-Loaded Knees

CHICAGO (AFP) – Huge Asian carp, which act like "aquatic vacuum cleaners" and leap into the air when spooked by motorboats, may have invaded the US Great Lakes despite a massive effort to block them, officials said Tuesday. Researchers analyzing water samples have discovered fragments of Asian carp DNA in Lake Michigan, although there is still no evidence that that fast-breeding fish have breached electric barriers set up along Chicago-area waterways. "Clearly this is not good news," said Major General John Peabody, commanding general of the US Army Corps of Engineers' Great Lakes and Ohio River division. The Corps is...

A picture of a hunting wolf has won the prestigious Veolia Environment Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2009 award. Jose Luis Rodriguez captured the imaginations of the judges with a picture that he had planned for years, and even sketched out on a piece of paper. "I wanted to capture a photo in which you would see a wolf in an act of hunting - or predation - but without blood," he told BBC News. "I didn't want a cruel image." With a great deal of patience and careful observation of the wolves' movements, he succeeded in taking the award-winning...

Health care is developing as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's major policy aim for 2007. Already, on Nov. 15, he called for halving the state's estimated 6 million uninsured residents to "show the rest of the nation that it can be done." The governor has not announced details, but the Nov. 19 Los Angeles Times reported that his plans "are still being formulated by a special team of advisers." This could mean that health care will be a central theme in his State of the State address in January, which he has used to unveil new efforts – such as his 2005...

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Fish that leap into passing boats may be a fisherman's fantasy, but scientists fear that hyperactive Asian carp will reach the U.S. Great Lakes, devour the base of the food chain and spoil drinking water for 40 million people. In less than a decade since escaping southern U.S. fish farms, the hardy and voracious carp have come to dominate sections of the Mississippi River and its tributaries. "It is a crisis," said Phil Moy of the University of Wisconsin and the government-affiliated water protection group Sea Grant. "We've seen some pretty significant adverse invaders in the Great...