The #rise of the #cockroach -- don"t tell the #katsaridaphobic! - http://clapway.com/2015/07/23/think-cockroaches-are-gross-japanese-zoo-invites-you-to-change-perspectives-343/

If just the thought of ‘cockroaches’ can send shivers down your spine, you’re not alone! The insect has been much reviled by people all over the world, but do they really deserve such a bad reputation? One Japanese zoo doesn’t think so. In fact, they believe that they can change the perception of the cockroach from one of disgust to something bordering on respect using their new cockroach exhibit.

Japanese Zoo Wants You to Think About Cockroaches Differently

At Shunanshi Tokuyama Zoo, a rather odd exhibition has just opened: a cockroach exhibition. The zoo, located in Yamaguchi, Japan, is trying to educate the public about the cockroach’s often-overlooked, but crucial role in the food chain consuming decaying carcasses and dead plants.

Though many readers who suffer from katsaridaphobia may already be writing the Japanese zoo on their “Nope!” lists, the zoo staff wants everyone to give the insects a chance by showing cockroaches in a different light.

Zoo Lets You Hold Cockroaches, Race Them

The exhibit features over 200 cockroaches from 15 different species. The Madagascar Hissing Cockroach can even be held by zoo-goers. Of course, if you have small hands, the 7-centimeter bug may not entirely fit.

No one will force you to hold a cockroach, but they may persuade you to stay for the cockroach race. The race pits 5 cockroaches against each other in a competition of speed and agility, which is definitely a once-in-a-lifetime event for most people.

The exhibition has already gained popularity as a spokeswoman from the zoo says nearly 80% of visitors drop in to pet, watch, squirm and–perhaps, most importantly–learn about the insects.

Cockroaches Are Insects, too!

 

Cockroaches don’t have a glamorous role in society, but they have had a number of features in popular culture, including in songs like La Cucaracha, literally translated to “a cockroach” from Spanish.

Not all appearances for the cockroach are bad in movies either, like in Joe’s Apartment where cockroaches band together to help out their friend Joe. Both in that movie and in recent hits such as Wall-E , cockroaches have been shown to be gregarious–if you can remember, the tiny robot’s best friend is an adorable little cockroach who survived all those years of planetary decay.

Cockroaches have been around since dinosaurs and will purportedly outlive us, so perhaps the Japanese zoo is right after all. Cockroaches, although still aesthetically unpleasant, should be seen in a different light and given the same regards as other insects.

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Think Cockroaches Are Gross? Japanese Zoo Invites You To Change Perspectives

Mosquitoes Track You With 3 Senses, Bite Without Guilt - http://clapway.com/2015/07/17/mosquitoes-track-you-with-3-senses-bite-without-guilt784/

We all work (or have worked) hard to afford a nice day on the beach, at the park, or just a day of ambiguous leisure. We sometimes work even harder to protect ourselves from the malheurs of pests, namely the winged sort we’ve named mosquitoes. But resistance may be futile, for a mosquito can sense heat, can smell humans, and can see you, too. That’s three senses working against you. No wonder they’re so persistent.

HELL HATH NO FURY LIKE a MOSQUITOES’ MOTHERS’ SCORN

The most ravenous mosquito is the new mother, who seeks a blood meal to feed her younglings. Her favorite host is human. A wide variety of insects including mosquitoes can detect and are attracted to the smell of carbon dioxide (CO2) that we exhale. And that’s not all; mosquitoes can also use thermal sensory data to detect a suitable host of blood, and when all else fails, there’s always old-fashioned sight. But who would imagine themselves using each one of their senses in a sequence, especially when one’s own survival depends on putting them to work together?

DO PESTS INTEGRATE SENSES?

In order to discover precisely how mosquitoes balance such a barrage of senses, a recent study was performed. In the study, researchers set hungry, mated female mosquitoes free into a wind tunnel. This wind tunnel was jerry-rigged for scientists to control which sensory cues occurred.

Each experiment featured 20 mosquitoes, who were all inserted into the tunnel and filmed with 3D tracking software. When a plume of air heavy in CO2 concentration was released, the mosquitos followed it, just as the scientists predicted. A plume with normal background air did not seem to pique the mosquitoes’ interest.

TRANSPOSING HYPOTHESES FROM OTHER FINDINGS

Floris van Breugel, a postdoctoral scholar in the lab of Michael Dickinson, professor of bioengineering at the California Institute of Technology, found that animals (specifically, fruit flies), are more attracted to visual features, even when exposed to an attractive odor.

“This was a new finding for flies, and we suspected that mosquitoes would exhibit a similar behavior. That is, we predicted that when the mosquitoes were exposed to CO2, which is an indicator of a nearby host, they would also spend a lot of time hovering near high-contrast objects, such as a black object on a neutral background.”

ARE MOSQUITOES’ SENSES BIASED?

To test Dickinson’s idea, the scientists repeated the CO2 plume experiment, with a slight change in environment: they placed a dark object on the floor of the wind tunnel. The scientists discovered that even with heavy CO2 plumes, the pests were more attracted to the dark, high-contrast set piece. But, when there was no CO2, the same insects showed no interest in the darkness.

What this means is that the effect of mosquitoes’ olfactory systems is not dissimilar to our suffering. The mosquitoes smell CO2, begin their flight, and continue on well beyond the CO2 towards visual stimulation, which is more temporary, because they carry on the memory of CO2 with them. Mayhaps we should take a matador instead of bug spray for our next camping trip.

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Mosquitoes Track You With 3 Senses, Bite Without Guilt

Centipede Discovered in Deep Cave - http://clapway.com/2015/07/01/centipede-discovered-in-deep-cave432/

Recently, a new species of centipede was discovered in the deep caves of Croatia by scientists abroad. Given its location in the Mediterranean, the specimen was aptly named after the Underworld of Greek legend and its ruler, Hades. However, the scientific name for this many-legged being is Geophilus hadesi.

Hades centipede is thus far one of only two species of centipede discovered to live underground

The members of the team of scientists found the specimen in three caves in the Velebit mountain range, among a group of species known as the geophilomorphs that sometimes surface.

But this centipede spends its entire life underground.

Just like all discoveries of cave creatures, this one shows an animal with atypical characteristics often attributed to beings of dark, dank environments.

To survive, the underground creature is equipped with powerful jaws, poison glands, long antennae, and long, curved claws in its legs that it uses to hold its prey. This centipede is carnivorous and eats other invertebrates, and it’s not alone down there.

Just as Hades has his Persephone, the centipede has its companion.

The species of centipede is considered by the scientists to be one of the top bosses of the food chain of the cave system. However, it is not alone down there.

The region the centipede was found in reaches around ninety miles in the Croatian Dinaric Karst.

Otherwise, it is a critical juncture in which underground dwelling creatures can be found. Some of them are known to science, others are waiting to be discovered. The lead author of the study, Professor Pavel Stoev of the National Museum of Natural History in Sofia, Bulgaria knew when he first saw the creature and its unique characteristics that they had found something new that was perfectly adapted to its underground environment.

It is just a reminder to everyone how little is known about deep cave systems, their habitats, and their inhabitants. In just this one region, there is still ninety miles of exploration to explore will potentially undiscovered creatures to find. The find and study about the centipede, Geophilus hadesi was published in the journal Zookeys, describing its uniqueness and other such findings.

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Centipede Discovered in Deep Cave