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Barnacles are hermaphroditic – they contain both male and female sex organs. You’re thinking, “Well, they always have a date on Saturday night.” No, it’s a really bad idea to self-fertilize: Inbreeding results in little genetic diversity. Worms, slugs, snails – slow-moving animals with low rates of encounter – are all hermaphroditic. And you could not get any slower than an adult barnacle!
Tim Hastings wrote to us wondering about “many large round, almost ‘dinosaur-egg’ like rocks dotting the muddy sands” when he was hiking the Estero Trail. Tim’s guess is that the soft rock is susceptible to erosive shaping during the rise and … Read more
What’s a California newt’s lifespan? Surprisingly long for captive newts, and wild newts’ potent poison likely helps them live longer than other amphibians.
Are deer twins common? Turns out, yes, even though any individual twin fawn is less likely to survive than its singleton cousins. What gives, nature?
Should we worry about asbestos in serpentine rock? Yes, a bit. In California, we have North America’s largest exposures. It’s even our official state rock.
Q: What’s the largest underground-dwelling invertebrate in the Bay Area? How does it live?
Learn a few secrets of efficiency from the majestic pelican.
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Q: When I see bees and hummingbirds feasting on even tiny flowers, I wonder if each flower replenishes the nectar supply, or is it a one-time offering?
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Can bees see colors that people can’t? What about birds? How do scientists figure out what can be seen by other animals, especially small animals like insects?
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The biggest shark in the Bay is the seven-gill–with two more gill slits than the average shark. Why the extras? Well, turns out they’re probably an evolutionary accident, but these are still fascinating animals–up to 10 feet long, and swimming right out there in the Bay!
