Zoology

• I must have been about three years old and had discovered a blackbird nest unusually accessible in our garden hedge.
• I take some small consolation from the likelihood that this encounter helped forge a lifetime of fascination and involvement with birds.
• In the hope of opening that bridge to all, the American Ornithological Society recently announced it would replace all bird species named after people in North America.
• The history of bird naming in the British Isles offers some solutions.

It takes a village to name a bird

• We know of more than 7,000 folk names in English for about 150 species of British bird.
• For example, the grey heron has 180 recorded English folk names, and the wren 164.

• Bird names evoke strong emotional connections – potentially linking us not only with specific encounters with birds, but with the context and people who experienced them.
• It indicates that whoever coined this name recognised that the bird was singing the songs of other, more familiar species – and the namer knew these songs.

Passed down with care

• Many of the folk names given to other species were probably coined by or for children.
• Names like “scribble-lark” and “scribbling schoolmaster” for bunting species, whose eggs appear to have been written on, suggests (as do many more such names) a fascination with nests and eggs.

• We know, however, that despite the plethora of local names, they were handed down from generation to generation with great precision.
• These names were largely collected by ornithologists like Little, who wanted to know what birds were present throughout the British Isles.
• But they were agreed through consent with no intention, as evidenced through numerous bird books of the time, of these superseding or replacing the local names.
• It can only be hoped that renaming birds after their own qualities will help to open the wonder and love of birds to all people.

Andrew Gosler has received funding from the UK's Arts and Humanities Research Council.

• CRANBURY, N.J., Nov. 28, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MJH Life Sciences® and Spectroscopy® are thrilled to announce the acquisition of Spectroscopy Europe and Spectroscopy World , two leading digital magazines for experts in the analytical sciences.
• The merger of the publications will expand Spectroscopy’s mission to provide valuable, practical and leading-edge information to the spectroscopy community.
• Under the direction of Editor and Publisher Ian Michael, Spectroscopy Europe, and Spectroscopy World, have been writing about the latest trends in analytical sciences since 1975.
• He served as an editor for John Wiley & Sons before founding IM Publications, the parent company of Spectroscopy Europe and Spectroscopy World.

• For me, some of the most fascinating are reptiles and amphibians.
• Collectively called herpetofauna, reptiles and amphibians are ectotherms; they rely on external sources to regulate their body temperature.
• I didn’t even know you could make a career out of working with reptiles.

Learning about snakes

• There are over 4,000 species of snakes around the world.
• Some snakes, like puff adders, are scentless as a way to camouflage themselves from predators.
• Others, like southern African pythons, show maternal care, which is very unusual for snakes and much more common in mammals and birds.
• Read more:
  The ultimate in stealth, puff adders employ camouflage at every level

  These unique adaptations have allowed snakes to thrive in different environments.

My research

• I completed my MSc in 2017 and my research focused on the evolution of diet in a group of snakes called lamprophiids.
• For my PhD, I wanted my research to have a real-world application, so I waited until 2021 to start after getting some work experience in conservation.
• I am also fortunate to work for a non-profit organisation, Save The Snakes, which allows me to educate people about snakes and do my part to conserve them by applying my research.

The circle of life

• Learning about the world of snakes has allowed me to appreciate the natural world in a unique way.
• As predators and prey, snakes are an emblem of the circle of life.
• One of my favourite activities is going out at night looking for them (called “herping”) and watching them display different behaviours.

Hiral Naik has received funding from the National Research Foundation. She is affiliated with Save The Snakes.

• CHICAGO, Sept. 25, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The SBB Research Group Foundation named Christal Mae Concepcion Dita a recipient of its STEM scholarship.
• Christal Dita, a junior, studies Biotechnology and Zoology at North Carolina State University.
• Previously, Dita worked alongside Ph.D. students at the Peng Lab at North Carolina State University's College of Veterinary Medicine to investigate how genetic variations affect immunity.
• "Christal is a dedicated and impressive young scientist, and we are thrilled to support her work with this scholarship," said Matt Aven, co-founder and board member of the SBB Research Group Foundation.