Reptile Rooms

Obesity Clues From Research On How Burrowing Frogs Survive Years Without Food
Burrowing frogs can survive buried for several years without food or water. Scientists have discovered that the metabolism of their cells changes radically during the dormancy period allowing the frogs to maximize the use of their limited energy resources. This discovery could prove to have important applications in the long term for treating energy-related disorders such as obesity.

Boy Or Girl? In Lizards, Egg Size Matters
Whether baby lizards will turn out to be male or female is a more complicated question than scientists would have ever guessed, according to a new report. The study shows that for at least one lizard species, egg size matters.

Water Snake Startles Fish So They Flee Into Its Jaws
Forget the old folk tales about snakes hypnotizing their prey. The tentacled snake from South East Asia has developed a more effective technique. The small water snake has found a way to startle its prey so that the fish turn toward the snake's head to flee instead of turning away.

Illegal Trade In Vietnam's Marine Turtles Continues Despite National Ban
Marine turtles are vanishing from Viet Nam's waters and illegal trade is largely to blame says a new study.

New Species Of Phallus-shaped Mushroom Named After California Academy Of Sciences Scientist
As part of ongoing research on Sao Tome and Principe, a new Phallus mushroom has been discovered and described. Phallus drewesii belongs to a group of mushrooms known as stinkhorns which give off a foul, rotting meat odor. There are 28 other species of Phallus fungi worldwide, but this particular species is notable for its small size, white net-like stem, and brown spore-covered head. It is also the only Phallus species to curve downward instead of upward.

Newly Discovered Chemical Weapon In Poison Frogs' Arsenal
New research documents a surprising chemical weapon used by some Amazonian poison frogs. The study identified for the first time a family of poisons never before known to exist in these brightly colored creatures or elsewhere in nature: the N-methyldecahydroquinolines. The authors then speculated on its origin in the frogs' diet, most likely ants.

Snakes Use Friction And Redistribution Of Their Weight To Slither On Flat Terrain
Snakes use both friction generated by their scales and redistribution of their weight to slither along flat surfaces, researchers have found. Their findings run counter to previous studies that have shown snakes move by pushing laterally against rocks and branches.

For Different Species, Different Functions For Embryonic MicroRNAs
When evolution has lucked into efficient solutions for life's most fundamental problems, it adopts them as invaluable family heirlooms, passing them down as one species evolves into another. So it was reasonable to expect that a key regulator of embryonic development -- a strand of RNA that shepherds stem cells through the process of differentiation -- might play the same role in all vertebrates, from fish to people. New research, however, has shown that when it comes to microRNAs, what works for one animal may not work the same way in another.

Komodo Dragons Even More Deadly Than Thought: Combined Tooth-venom Arsenal Key To Hunting Strategy
The effectiveness of the Komodo dragon bite is a combination of highly specialized serrated teeth and venom, a new study shows. The authors also dismiss the widely accepted theory that prey die from septicemia caused by toxic bacteria living in the dragon's mouth.

World's Largest Leatherback Turtle Population Found
Scientists have identified a nesting population of leatherback sea turtles in Gabon, West Africa as the world's largest. The research involved country-wide land and aerial surveys that estimated a population of between 15,730 and 41,373 female turtles using the nesting beaches. The study highlights the importance of conservation work to manage key sites and protected areas in Gabon.