| Blair in climate inaction warning Former UK Prime Minster Tony Blair warns world leaders they may pay a heavy price in history if they fail to tackle global warming. bbc.co.uk |
Rocket with secret satellite launched from Calif. By 2010-09-21T05:39:03ZVANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (AP) -- A rocket carrying classified satellite cargo has been successfully launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base on California's central coast.... hosted.ap.org |
Obama promotes clean energy; GOP hits Dem spending By ERICA WERNER 2010-10-02T15:29:26ZWASHINGTON (AP) -- Wind, solar and other clean energy technologies produce jobs and are essential for the country's environment and economy, President Barack Obama said in promoting his administration's efforts.... hosted.ap.org |
Morcombe inquest hears about persons of interest A coronial inquest on Queensland's Sunshine Coast has heard it would be an impost to DNA-test every piece of evidence in the investigation into Daniel Morcombe's disappearance in December 2003. abc.net.au |
Mystery bird: yellow-throated longclaw, Macronyx croceus This beautiful African mystery bird closely resembles the Meadowlarks which are found in North America due to a phenomenon known as convergent evolutionYellow-throated longclaw, Macronyx croceus, photographed at Mikumi National Park, Tanzania, Africa. Image: Dan Logen, 8 January 2010 [velociraptorize].Nikon D300s, 600 mm lens with 1.4 x extender ISO 500, f/7.1, 1/500 sec.Question: If you compare this African mystery bird to yesterday's North American mystery bird, you will notice that they look almost the same. Can you identify these two birds and tell me why they look so similar? Response: This is a yellow-throated longclaw, Macronyx croceus. This beautiful African mystery bird closely resembles the Meadowlarks which are found in North America due to a phenomenon known as convergent evolution, a situation where two distantly related species independently develop a very similar trait. In this case, the markings of the meadowlarks and the yellow-throated longclaw are very similar despite the fact that these birds evolved on different continents on opposite sides of the earth. But these similarly-coloured and patterned birds live in remarkably similar habitats -- dry savanna, semi-arid prairies and grasslands -- and have similar life histories -- they consume insects and nest on the ground. If you have bird images, video or mp3 files that you'd like to share with a large and (mostly) appreciative audience, feel free to email them to me for consideration.GrrlScientistguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |