Thursday 4 October 2012

Influence of the moon and misidentified fossil in the news



Study: Key Environmental Factors, Moon Seen Influencing Manta Ray Behavior
by Underwatertimes.com News Service - October 4, 2012 00:21 EST
BRISBANE, Queensland -- Manta rays are more likely to gather together under either a new or a full moon, according to new research published Oct 3 in the open access journal PLOS ONE by Fabrice Jaine and colleagues at the University of Queensland.
The research identifies environmental factors that predict the abundance and behavior of manta rays at Lady Elliott Island in the Great Barrier Reef. The authors comment that knowing these factors is important for conservation efforts, "especially in the context of a changing climate and with targeted fisheries increasingly threatening manta ray populations in various parts of the world."
I wonder if any cryptids are influenced by the moon. Might help when looking for them if we knew .

Scientists smell a fish — and it IS a fish, not a 'noseless lemur'
A one-of-a-kind fossil thought for more than 100 years to be a primate — wrong
By Stephanie Pappas
A one-of-a-kind fossil thought for more than 100 years to be a lemur without a nose is not a primate at all, scientists have found. It's a fish. Oops.A new analysis of the 2-inch (5-centimeter)-long fossil corrects an error first made in 1898, when a fossil collector named Pedro Scalabrini sent the specimen to Argentine naturalist Florentino Ameghino. Apparently having an "off" day, Ameghino gave the fossil a quick look and classified it as Lemuridae, or part of the lemur family. He named it Arrhinolemur scalabrinii, which translates to "Scalabrini's lemur without a nose."
Ameghino noted that the supposed lemur fossil was odd, and suggested it be assigned to a new order of bizarre mammals, which he suggested naming Arrhinolemuroidea.
It shows that there may be more fossils in archives that could be something unusual, even a cryptid.

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