Cracking the Hyena Code

26 captive spotted hyenas were part of the first ever effort to decipher hyenas' calls. The study was conducted at UC Berkeley, where the beasts' vocalizations were recorded and analyzed in a variety of social situations.

The pitch of the call indicated a hyena's age, while changes in frequency correlated to each individual's hierarchical status within the group. In all, hyena's have 10 types vocalizations.

Whoops with longer intervals signal separation between individuals (that might explain my own nearly nine hours of daily whooping, what with me being separated from my family and contained in an accounting office).

Grunts and soft growls signal close contact with members of the same clan (that, too, explains the sounds my youngest boy emits each day when he comes toddling up to me as I walk in the door from work).

Photo via BBC

Oddly, there were no vocalizations indicating proximity to pizza, a sound researchers have tabulated in my own behavior. You know: eager yelps, devouring growls, and satisfied groans.

Thanks for the article, Ida.

Famous People and Their Trapdoor Spiders

Jade sent this one to us from This Blog Rules. Many species have been named after famous people, and this article names but a few of them. I plucked out the spiders and present them to you for your viewing pleasure.

First is Myrmekiaphila neilyoungi, a trapdoor spider native to Alabama and Florida named after Neil Young. Why did Jason Bond name this spider after Neil Young? Because he admires the singer's dedication to peace and justice. And nothing says peace and justice like an ambush predator.

The second spider is Stasimopus mandelai, another trapdoor spider. It is native to South Africa and is named after Nelson Mandela. Jason Bond is responsible for this name as well, wanting to honor the man's moral leadership. And nothing says moral leadership like a creature that lurks in hidey-holes to eat passersby.

Not Made in China

Piya forwarded this link to me from NY Daily News of the top 20 ugly animal species on the planet. You folks have been so thorough in your submissions that every single species, and more than half of the actual photos, have been profiled here on Ugly Overload.

Nevertheless, I thought the beauty below needed some more spotlight. Behold the fruit-roll-up-for-a-tongue mug of a Chinese Crested Dog. This breed is the most popular of the hairless dog breeds, though it is still rare. They originate from Africa (they used to be called the African Hairless Terriers), but Chinese trade ships loaded them onto their vessels to hunt down vermin.

Photo source: Sullivan/Getty via NYDailyNew.com

Though I highly recommend buying mixed breeds and mutts and rescues for your household pet, if you must have a pure bred dog you'll find this one to be kind, lovable, and intelligent. They're great with kids. They tend toward timidity if they are babied. Remember, you hairless dog owners, these beasts were once proud rat hunters that sailed the seven seas.

Thanks for the link, Piya.

Titan Arum

Photo source: Jo Jan/US Botanic Garden via Wikipedia
There's nothing particularly ugly about the looks of this flower. It's the infamous Corpse Flower, dubbed 'titan arum' by Sir David Attenborough. You see, he didn't want to constantly refer to its scientific name during a documentary--it wouldn't have been appropriate. The scientific name is Amorphophallus titanum, and I'll let you follow this link to find out what that means.

Why is this enormous flower (the largest non-branched example of inflorescence on the planet, measuring 10 feet in circumference) called the Corpse Flower? Because it has discovered that it attracts more carrion-eating beetles and flesh flies with the stench of rotting mammal meat than it does with sweet nectar. There's a moral in that somewhere. Ask your grandma.

Rather than emit a sweet smell, it reeks of decay to attract its pollinators, the afore mentioned flies and beetles. It's believed that even its deep purple color is meant to fool its pollinators into thinking it's dead meat.

Though native only to Sumatra, the Corpse Flower is in cultivation all over the world. It was once even the official flower of the Bronx, New York. So look for one in your next run to a botanical garden. Be sure to bring your carrion-eating beetles and flesh flies with you. They'll enjoy the treat.

Thanks for the titan arum, Tom.

Star Gazing

Maybe it's because I have three little daughters, but when I imagine a fish called a stargazer, I imagine maybe an opalescent or rainbow-hued fish that sprinkles fairy dust when it swims and goes to the water's surface every night to gaze longingly at the stars above.

But no, what we have in the real stargazer is a spiny fish with eyes on the top of its head so it can lie in wait in the sand and ambush its prey. Rather than stargazing, it's more like underbelly-of-benthic-prey gazing.

They're found the world over in shallow waters. Some come equipped with worm-shaped lures that they wriggle in their mouth, but all come with highly-venomous spines and can deliver quite a wallop of an electric shock.

Thanks for the fish, Tom. Thanks for the disillusionment.

Photo source: Pengo via WikiPedia.org

The Membrane King

I received several links to these articles (1 & 2), and for once I had the good wisdom not to open them during a meal.

If you do not want to see photos of leeches feeding upon human (or canine) membranes, then proceed no further.

The Amazon river has yielded yet another monster. Stare into the face of what has been dubbed the Tyrant Leech King (Tyrannobdella rex, and the name of my next children's book). There are many leeches known the world over that attach themselves to membranes and start sucking away (see last photo). But there's something else going on with this new leech (first photo), and scientists aren't quite sure why.

They've got teeth that are five times larger than most leeches, yet genitalia that are about ten times smaller. Why the disparity? We don't know. But it will inevitably turn out to be something nefarious and nightmare-inducing.

So, next time you swim in the upper Amazon (Peru, in this instance), keep all of your orifices squeezed shut (and I mean all of them, all of them), or you might end up with what one nine-year-old girl described as a 'sliding' sensation where there shouldn't be one.

Thanks for the lovely parasite, Jennifer, Rebeca, Jeff, and Ida. You've got me clamped down tight and itchy.

Photo source: Wired and National Geographic

Pretty Blood Sucker

Photo courtesy: Sean McCann
Sabethes mosquitos live in the forests of Central and South America. This particular one was photographed in Nouragues, French Guiana. These hematophages (great rock band name) are vectors for yellow fever and have a predilection for landing on humans' noses.

Why the nose? Maybe because that orifice breathes out a lot of carbon dioxide (a supposed lure for the mosquitos)? Maybe they want to give you pause with their iridescent colors, long enough at least to take a sip and then float away?

And speaking of those colors, I appreciate that they've gone to some effort to be more visually appealing. It makes it less insulting when you catch them sucking your blood.

@*^$# -- It's What's For Dinner!

I'm eating pizza right now. I'm happy. So, why, OH WHY, do I post during my lunch break? Why do I post on a photo like this? Take a look at the plate closely. Look closer. I see frogs, tarantulas giant water bugs, and a cricket/grasshopper of some sort. Am I missing something?

Were these all cooked up in one batch? Fried, sauteed, or grilled? Steamed? Roasted? Why am I looking so close, when I've got a delicious lunch right in front of me? I'm self-abusive, that's what I am.

Photo source: Keith Kelly