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  Australian Walking Stick Insects are Three Times Weirder Than You Think | PBS – Deep Look (2022)

  February 11, 2022 at 3:20 pm / Ecological Documentaries, Evolution, Natural history, PBS Nature, Short Observations

  It is a seed, no it is an ant, no it is a leaf, no it is a stick,… Actually, it is all of the above through a temporally spaced sequence of disguises (*): It is the Australian walking stick (Extatosoma tiaratum). This insect is indeed a master of deception. It is a fascinating example of a series of adaptations that maximized its survival by multiple versions of mimicry successfully fooling predators at every stage of their life cycle. (*) […]

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  Cone-headed Planthoppers (Acanalonia conica) on Passion Flower

  February 5, 2022 at 2:11 pm / Evolution, Natural history, Short Observations, Video

  This observation has been registered in the iNaturalist database with the following accession 105647409. Observed on August 9, 2014 at the Georgia State Botanical Garden in Athens, GA, USA. Here, you can see a number of cone-headed planthoppers (Acanalonia conica) feeding on a passion flower vine (Passiflora incarnata). The passion flower family (Passifloraceae) is well known for its sugar producing glands called extrafloral nectaries. These nectaries attract ants and here in this observation we see two species of ants (Formica […]

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  Ants Defending Plants

  February 4, 2022 at 11:00 am / Ecological Documentaries, Evolution, Natural history, NatureDocumentaries.org, Video, Wildlife Documentaries

  Plant eaters are called herbivores and they pose a threat for plants. Understandably, nobody would like to get eaten. In order to prevent tissue loss and damage from herbivores plants have evolved defensive adaptations such as hard to digest tissues and poisonous chemicals. Some plants however, have evolved a different solution. Plants can use nectar as drivers of beneficial behaviors such as pollination and protection from herbivores. Nectar is an attractive fluid for many animals. It is a rich calorie […]

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  Live from Geldingadalir Volcano, Iceland (2021)

  February 2, 2022 at 10:28 am / Global Patterns, Video, webcams

  Be it Mount Ararat or Mount Chimborazo, every massive stratovolcano was once upon a time a tiny little pimple on the Earth’s surface. It is most certainly very fascinating to see a baby volcano being born, a geological process that will last a very long time. The first technical description of lava flow comes from the ancient geographer Strabo of Amaseia. In his book, he describes the Katakekaumene, which means the “burnt country” referring to a region of around 1,800 […]

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