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Blue lava!
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A volcano in Indonesia produces lava that looks BLUE! Though the molten sulfur looks red in daylight, during the night, the blue flames that reach heights of 5 meters (16 feet) are highly visible. The sulfur, which is right around its melting point at 115°C (240 °F), is pumped away from the volcano so it can cool and be collected by miners for 680 rupiahs per kilogram (about 2.5 cents per pound).
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7852 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
The king of the jungle is disappearing
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Lions are now critically endangered in West Africa. Although they once ranged continuously from Senegal to Nigeria, new research has revealed only around 250 adult lions survive in the region, and only one of the four isolated populations contains more than 50 individuals.
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7081 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
The best camouflage
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The Buff-tip moth ( Phalera bucephala) is a remarkable species that has developed a unique strategy to evade predators. When at rest, this moth cleverly disguises itself as a broken stick, blending seamlessly with its surroundings. The moth's wings are intricately patterned and colored to mimic the texture and appearance of a twig, complete with jagged edges and bark-like markings. This exceptional camouflage allows the Buff-tip moth to remain virtually invisible to predators such as birds and small mammals that may otherwise consider it a potential meal. By adopting this disguise, the moth gains a significant advantage in survival, as it can confidently rely on its remarkable mimicry to go undetected in its natural habitat. This fascinating ...
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5216 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
What would a bird with a beard look like?
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Say hello to the umbrellabird! The Umbrellabird is a large, tropical species of bird that is found inhabiting the rainforests of Central and South America. There are three different species of Umbrellabird which are the Long-Wattled Umbrellabird, the Amazonian Umbrellabird and the Bare-Necked Umbrellabird all of which live in slightly different areas. All three species are relatively similar in appearance with an umbrella-like crest on the top of their heads (for which they were named) and a pendant-shaped inflatable pouch on their throats. They are the largest species of perching bird (Passerine) in South America, but populations are currently falling mainly due to habitat loss. ...
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8242 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
Invasive cockroach reach home
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An invasive cockroach species has made it to New York. The roach is native to Japan, has an unusual resistance to cold weather and thrives on ice, but researchers still don’t know if it will spread to other American cities. This is the first time that this species of cockroach has been spotted in the US.
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12873 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
Danger lies below
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An unlikely happy ending for the chemical weapon containers that were dumped in the Pacific Ocean after World War II - US scientists have discovered an array of sponges, crabs and anemones that have made them home. The barrels are still filled with unknown substances that threaten other species in the area, but these opportunistic creatures at least are thriving despite all odds.
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12555 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
Here's how to preserve the Amazon rainforest
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In 2005 Swedish millionaire Johan Eliasch purchased a 400,000-acre (1,600 km 2) area of land in the heart of the Amazon rainforest from a logging company for the sole purpose of it’s preservation. Johan Eliasch, born in Sweden, is the Chairman and CEO of Head N.V. the global sporting goods group, and is the former Special Representative of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. In 2005, Johan Eliasch created the Rainforest Trust and purchased for preservation purposes a 400,000-acre (1,600 km2) rainforest area in the heart of the Amazon rainforest near the Madeira River. Johan Eliasch co-founded Cool Earth in 2006, a charity he co-chairs, which sponsors local NGO's to conserve endangered rainforest and has over 120,000 registered members. ...
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4555 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
Zonkey?
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This is Ippo, a three-month-old Italian zonkey. She is the result of a union between a male zebra and a female Amiata donkey, which is an endangered breed of donkey native to southern Tuscany. Genetic differences between the zebra and the donkey - donkeys have 62 chromosomes and zebras have between 32 and 46 - mean that hybrids like this are most often the result of a male zebra pairing with a female donkey. So far there have only been three recorded cases of a male donkey siring a zebra hybrid. ...
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4478 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
Volcanic rings
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Mount Etna is blowing smoke rings! The volcano on the coast of Sicily, Italy, is emitting steam rings around 100 metres in diameter.
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3938 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
Meeting of the waters
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A pink Amazon river dolphin on the warm side of the "Meeting of the Waters." This is where the sandy Amazon River meets the dark waters of the Rio Negro in Manaus, Brazil. A strong density gradient contributes to their visible separation, as well as a significant temperature difference - the Amazon flows at around 22°C, while the Rio Negro is around 28°C.
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6631 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
Are street lamps a thing of the past?
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Hamish Scott from the UK has invented the Starpath, which is a special luminescent coating for roads and paths. The multi-layered, organic material collects and stores energy from light during the day and releases it as a blueish glow at night that can last for 16 hours. The technology is now being trialled at Christ's Pieces Park in Cambridge, and if successful, could slash electricity bills, plus it's 100% recyclable.
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5453 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
Massive drain plug
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The Monticello Dam holds back Lake Berryessa in Napa County, California, USA. The morning glory spillway associated with the dam is the largest in the world; it is a funnel-shaped outlet that allows water to bypass the Monticello Dam when it reaches capacity (1370 m³/s). The Glory Hole is located about 61m from the dam; the distance from the funnel to the exit point - which is situated in the south side of the canyon - is about 213m. The outside diameter is 22m, slowly narrowing to 8.5m at the exit. Water spills over the lip of the Glory Hole when the lake reaches 1,976,037,908 cubic metres (1,602,000 acre-feet). The spillway is designed to handle a maximum of 1,370,319 litres of water per second (362,000 gallons of water per second); this ha ...
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6456 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
Next time you experience acne, try not to remember this
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Demodex folliculorum and Demodex brevisare are parasitic mites that particularly favour the hair follicles of eyebrows and eyelashes and measure a mere fraction of a millimeter long. They crawl about your face in the dark to mate and then crawl into the pores to lay their eggs and die. Healthy adults have around one or two mites per square centimetre of facial skin, though people with the condition rosacea can have 10 times more. Demodex does not have an anus and therefore cannot get rid of its faeces. Instead, their abdomen gets bigger and bigger, and when the mite dies it decomposes and releases its faeces all at once into the pore. ...
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5278 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
Long middle finger
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The aye-aye lives in the forests of Madagascar. Despite looking like a very scared rodent, the aye-aye is a kind of lemur with a bushy tail and super-thin, elongated middle fingers that they use to dig grubs out of hollow branches. Aye-ayes also have huge lower incisors to chew through wood and bamboo—and in captivity they’ve been known to chew through concrete cinder blocks ...
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5389 |
duddy |
10 years ago |
These aren't snakes, people - they are lizards
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Four species of legless lizard have been identified in the sand dunes of Antioch, California. This picture introduces Anniella grinnelli, one of the recently found species. It has a bright yellow belly and a lilac back with deep purple lines, and was named after Joseph Grinnell, the first director of the Berkeley Zoology Museum.
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2602 |
duddy |
10 years ago |