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io9Movies3 of the Squishiest, Creepy-Crawliest Cult Horror Movies Ever Made
Some movies give us monsters that are supernatural. Some hail from outer space or are so huge they just stomp anything in their way. But other movies—including the three we’re celebrating here today—spotlight those small yet vicious critters in our midst that often go unnoticed until just the right thing sets them off. Slugs: The … Continued
By Cheryl Eddy -
ScienceBiologyWorld’s Largest Frogs Are So Big, They Build Their Own Ponds
New evidence shows that Goliath frogs—the world’s largest species of frog—construct their own ponds, providing a safe space for their tadpoles to grow. New research published today in the Journal of Natural History is the first to provide evidence of pond-building behavior in an African amphibian, namely the Goliath frog. This is the largest species … Continued
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ScienceBiologyWhy Frogs Love to Lay Their Eggs in Elephant Footprints
Frogs in Myanmar are surprisingly dependent upon elephants, or rather, the tracks they leave behind. New research shows that water-filled elephant footprints provide an under-appreciated sanctuary for frogs to lay their eggs. You’d think these tiny amphibians would prefer to steer clear of the pachyderms, lest they get trampled by their enormous feet. But those … Continued
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EartherConservationMore Than 1,000 Amphibians We Barely Know Could Soon Vanish, Scientists Say
We live in a time of never-ending bad news when it comes to our natural world. The latest involves amphibians like frogs, toads, and salamanders. A new study out Monday offers further evidence of how imperiled the world’s 8,000 or so known species are. In fact, around 50 percent of them may be threatened with … Continued
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EartherConservationAlarming Study Concludes Frogs Are Undergoing a ‘Catastrophic’ Global Die Off
Scientists aren’t known for being alarmists. And that’s exactly what makes a new study released Thursday on amphibians so, well, alarming. The paper, published in Science, chronicles a “catastrophic and ongoing loss” of amphibians around the world. In the paper’s self-described “conservative” estimate, 501 frog and other amphibian species have been ravaged by chytridiomycosis, a … Continued
By Brian Kahn -
ScienceBiology
Charming, Newly Discovered Treefrog Has a Mysterious Claw
Introducing Hyloscirtus hillisi, a species of treefrog recently discovered in the eastern Andes of Ecuador. Among its many distinguishing features is an enlarged claw, the purpose of which isn’t immediately clear. H. hillisi is the latest member of the Hyloscirtus genus of frogs, of which 37 species were previously known. These frogs like to live … Continued
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io9
That Might Have Been the Most Beautifully Surreal Episode of Doctor Who Ever
Doctor Who is a surreal show. That’s sort of the point. It makes weird things happening in weird times, and weirder places, with existential crises and battles with bonkers alien beings, about as regular as you and I would breathe. But “It Takes You Away” might have pushed Doctor Who to one of its strangest … Continued
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ScienceBiology
These Are the Most Ancient Frogs Ever Found Preserved in Amber
The extraordinary discovery of four small frogs preserved in amber is providing the earliest evidence of these now-prolific amphibians living in tropical rainforests. New research published today Scientific Reports shows that frogs—an animal that first emerged some 200 million years ago—were occupying soggy forested regions at least 100 million years ago. This discovery is a … Continued
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ScienceBiology
Frog Species Breaks Record for Most Sex Chromosomes in a Vertebrate
You may have learned in school that humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes: 22 “autosomes” and their partners, which contain pretty much the same genes and in the same order, plus one pair of sex chromosomes that lead to the differentiation in sexual traits. But enough about us. The Amazonian Leptodactylus pentadactylus (smoky jungle frog) … Continued
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Tech News
Scientists Find Incredibly Well-Preserved Organs (And Frog Parts) Inside 35 Million-Year-Old Salamander Mummy
Luck doesn’t strike daily. Sometimes you lose your wallet, trip up the stairs, get into a car accident, or drop your iPhone and crack the screen. But sometimes you get lucky. Your scratch off card has a five dollar prize. You find out that your young nephew, not your dog, ate the dark chocolate bar … Continued
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ScienceBiology
You Can Probably Tell if Other Animals Are Emotionally Aroused
It is likely that you, a human, can tell when your fellow humans are upset based on the sound of their voice. You might even be able to tell when your non-human pet is upset. But what about non-mammals, like frogs? What about birds? As far back as Darwin, folks have thought that the way … Continued
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Tech News
How a Massive Asteroid Strike Helped Frogs Inherit the Earth
Frogs have been around for nearly 200 million years, but it wasn’t until a 10-mile-wide asteroid struck our planet, wiping out three-quarters of all life on Earth—including the dinosaurs—that these crafty amphibians were able to make their big evolutionary move, according to new research. A study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences this … Continued
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ScienceBiology
This Freaky Frog Is So Transparent You Can See Its Internal Organs
Introducing Hyalinobatrachium yaku, a newly-discovered species of glassfrog that lives in the Amazonian lowlands of Ecuador. Like other glassfrogs, it features transparent skin on its belly, but this tiny critter takes things to another level by exposing the entire contents of its underside—heart and head included. A new study published in ZooKeys describes the frog, … Continued
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ScienceBiology
Adorable Tadpoles Become Hungry Murder Machines When Dad Goes Away
Splash-back poison frogs (Ranitomeya variabilis) are generally devoted parents, with the amphibian dads taking on the bulk of the childcare responsibilities. But when the frog fathers skip out on their young, it’s every tadpole for themselves, and that means a horrifying cannibalistic melee from which only one young frog emerges. Like many poison frog species, … Continued
Christie Wilcox -
Tech News
Frog Slime Could Prevent the Next Pandemic
New research from Emory University School of Medicine shows that a chemical in the mucus of South Indian frogs is capable of killing certain strains of the influenza virus. It’ll take a while for scientists to translate this finding into a useful medicine, but the discovery could lead to an entirely new source of powerful … Continued
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Tech News
The First Fluorescent Frog Ever Discovered Is Ridiculously Cute
Aside from its namesake spots, the polka-dot tree frog is just about the plainest looking frog you’ve ever seen—green. That is, until you shut off your flashlight and hit it with some ultraviolet rays. Fluorescence, a glow-in-the-mostly-dark property, is mainly confined to certain species of fish, turtles and parrots. No one’s ever reported fluorescence in … Continued
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Tech News
First Scientific Account of a Tarantula Eating a Snake Is Pure Nightmare Fuel
Imagine the most elegant of dinner parties. The meal: a ground snake. Your guest: a tarantula. No silverware necessary, as your dining partner has brought its digestive juices with it. This party took place one afternoon around 1:30PM on October 23, 2015, in the beautiful Serra do Caverá in far southern Brazil. A team of … Continued
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Tech News
Scientists Hope To Foil Deadly Frog Fungus With More Fungus
It’s been called “the worst infectious disease ever recorded among vertebrates.” The devastating effect of the chytrid fungus on frog populations around the world has contributed to the extinction of at least 200 species and no one knows where it came from. But now scientists are hoping to tweak the amphibian’s evolutionary development by bulking … Continued
By Rhett Jones -
io9All Hail This Brilliant Animatronic Hypnotoad
Remember that live-action Futurama fan film someone was making? In addition to binging Bender, Fry, Leela, Zoidberg, and the professor into our world, the Fan-o-rama filmmakers are working on realizing other characters too, including the all-knowing, benevolent, hypnotoad—ALL HAIL THE HYPNOTOAD (replica). The folks at Tested got a demo of the creepy Hypnotoad prop made … Continued
