{"id":20212,"date":"2022-09-21T13:40:51","date_gmt":"2022-09-21T11:40:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/?post_type=purple_issue&p=20212"},"modified":"2022-11-07T15:52:40","modified_gmt":"2022-11-07T14:52:40","slug":"qa-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/2022\/09\/21\/qa-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Q&A"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Q &<\/span> A<\/h2>\n\n

Email your questions to wildquestions@immediate.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n\n

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Dead man’s finger coral surrounded by pink feather stars in a sea loch off the west coast of Ross and Cromarty in Scotland <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

Does the UK have any coral reefs?<\/h4>\n\n

HELEN SCALES ANSWERS: <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

Corals are certainly not confined to the shallow, sunny waters of the tropics. More than half of around 5,000 known species of corals live in cold and deep waters. The main reef-forming coral in UK waters is a bushy, white species, Lophelia <\/em>pertusa, <\/em>or Desmophyllum <\/em>pertusa <\/em>as some scientists prefer to call it. <\/p>\n\n

Mostly located off the west coast of Scotland, Lophelia<\/em>reefs are found from around 150m deep and are very slow growing. A huge reef off the coasts of Barra and Mingulay in the Outer Hebrides covers more than 100km2<\/sup>. In the Rockall Trough, 160km north-west of Scotland\u2019s Cape Wrath, the Darwin Mounds are thickets of Lophelia, <\/em>as well as another species Madrepora oculata. <\/em><\/p>\n\n

Similar to tropical reefs, coldwater reefs form important habitats for many fish and have been heavily targeted by deep-sea trawlers. Darwin Mounds were badly damaged before they were protected in 2004. <\/p>\n\n

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You stink! The ani (here a smooth-billed in Ecuador) is more pong bird than song bird <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

Are birds smelly?<\/h4>\n\n

DAVID LINDO REPLIES: <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

We don\u2019t think of birds as smelly, not in the same way that dogs have a characteristic smell, for example. But ask any bird ringer and they will tell you that their mist nests and bird bags have a particular \u2018birdy\u2019 smell that could be loosely describe as like bitter, stale perfume. This smell may emanate from feather dust and the oily secretions from the birds’ preen glands, which they use to protect and waterproof their plumage. Odours are particularly strong in seabirds. Storm petrels famously have a mustiness detectable at close quarters, and manx shearwaters are also pretty niffy. <\/p>\n\n

Further afield, the anis, relatives of the cuckoos, particularly pong. As adults they have few enemies \u2013 presumably their whiff must be off-putting. <\/p>\n\n

Finally, the skin of certain pitohui species, which hail from Papua New Guinea, contain powerful neurotoxic alkaloids that are believed to serve as a chemical defence against ectoparasites or predators like snakes and even humans. Indeed, Papua New Guineans call them \u2018rubbish birds\u2019 due to their toxicity rendering them inedible. <\/p>\n\n

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Dandelion species (and microspecies) are incredibly varied, thanks to apomixis <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

Why are there so many species of dandelion?<\/h4>\n\n

JOSHUA STYLES ANSWERS<\/strong>:<\/h5>\n\n

We\u2019re all familiar with dandelions, but did you know that here in Britain we have around 250 different species? From tiny ones scarcely bigger than a 50p piece to some that are spottier than a jaguar. But why and how do we have so many species? <\/p>\n\n

The answer is a peculiar process known as \u2018apomixis\u2019, through which plants are able to reproduce by seeds without the need for pollination \u2013 aform of asexual reproduction. These seeds produced an exact clone copy of the parent. But how does apomixis mean we have so many different dandelions?<\/span><\/p>\n\n

It all started millenia ago where the fertile ancestors of our dandelions in southern Europe interbred to create flowers that were fully apomictic. These hybrids then spread out over northern Europe to occupy all manner of different habitats where they may still be found today. <\/p>\n\n

And because these peculiar hybrid plants were fixed, plant taxonomists have described each of these different dandelions as microspecies. <\/p>\n\n

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The Virginia opossum will feign death if it is threatened and unable to flee or fight <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

Where are marsupials found?<\/h4>\n\n

MEGAN SHERSBY ANSWERS: <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

Distinctive for carrying their young in a pouch, marsupials are a group of mammals that most of us probably associate with Australasia and Wallacea, thanks to wellknown species such as kangaroos, koalas, Tasmanian devils, wombats and the now-extinct thylacine, also known as the Tasmanian tiger.<\/a><\/p>\n\n

However, although roughly 70 per cent of extant marsupial species are found there, there are marsupials in the Americas too. The most famous is the Virginia opossum, North America\u2019s only marsupial species, which spread northwards from South America in the Great American Interchange. \u2018Opossum\u2019 is derived from the Algonquian word \u2018wapathemwa\u2019, meaning \u2018white animal\u2019. <\/p>\n\n

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Staying alive: Brandt\u2019s voles must watch out for predators and trim their local grasses <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

Do any non-human animals tend lawns?<\/h4>\n\n

STUART BLACKMAN ANSWERS: <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

There\u2019s a theory that the considerable time and effort many humans put into maintaining a tidy lawn has its roots in our evolutionary past, when it might have been a good idea to keep the area around our homes free of tall vegetation so as to be able to see the approach of dangerous animals such as snakes. And we may not be the only animal species to do it. On the grasslands of China\u2019s Inner Mongolia, Brandt\u2019s voles chop down the tall, unpalatable brunchgrass for similar reasons \u2013 to increase the visibility of approaching predatory shrikes \u2013 giving them more time to take evasive action. The scientists also found that the grasses weren\u2019t being taken down into the burrows, and when biologists excluded the shrikes from an area of vole habitat using netting, the rodents saved their energies and let the grasses grow. Meanwhile, the shrikes tend to avoid manicured habitat, apparently recognising it as poor hunting ground. <\/p>\n\n

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RECORD BREAKER! <\/span><\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n
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The goliath frog is also known as the giant slippery frog <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

What\u2019s the world\u2019s largest frog?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The world\u2019s largest frog species is very aptly named \u2013 the goliath frog, or goliath bullfrog. It can grow up to 32cm in length and weigh up to 3.25kg. Despite its remarkable size, it doesn\u2019t begin with a headstart. Instead, its tadpoles are the same size as an average frog tadpole. During a recent survey, the species was seen in Equatorial Guinea for the first time in almost two decades.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section>\n\n

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FACT. <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Deemed as a harbinger of evil and death in Malagasy legend, the nocturnal aye-aye fills the same ecological niche as a woodpecker, feeding on insects and invertebrates within trees.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/section>\n\n

WHAT ON EARTH?<\/h5>\n\n

Pretty in pink<\/h4>\n\n
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Japan has its cherry trees; the Himalayas have their rhododendrons; Scotland has its heather. But plants don\u2019t come much pinker than these pink trumpet trees. The national tree of Paraguay \u2013 where it is also known as the pink lapacho \u2013 grows throughout much of Latin America, from northern Mexico to northern Argentina. This one was photographed by helicopter in Brazil\u2019s Caraj\u00e1s National Forest, spotted amongst a sea of green. The name comes from the trumpet-like flowers, which burst into life in the southernhemisphere spring before the leaves appear. If ever a tree deserved a fanfare… <\/p>\n\n

SB <\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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FAST ANSWERS<\/span><\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n
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A badger under false pretences<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Are honey badgers actually badgers? <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Also known as the ratel, the famously aggressive honey badger was once thought to be a type of badger species and so was grouped by scientists in the Melinae subfamily with species such as the European badger. However, it\u2019s since been found to be more closely related to the martens, and is now placed within its own subfamily, Mellivorinae. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

MS <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Where was the world\u2019s first botanic garden? <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The Orto botanico di Pisa was established in 1544 by the University of Pisa, making it the first botanic garden anywhere in the world. However, it was expanded and moved in 1563. The oldest to remain in tact and in place is the Orto botanico di Padova, set up a year later in the Venetian Republic town of Padova, now part of Italy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

DH <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why do films dub bald eagle calls? <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The iconic call of the bald eagle in movies and TV series is actually the dubbed scream of a red-tailed hawk. This is simply because the bald eagle doesn\u2019t actually have an impressive call. Instead, it\u2019s usually described by birders as more of a chuckle. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

MS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div><\/section>\n\n
INSTANT EXPERT<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

Speciation: sources of biodiversity<\/h4>\n\n

WITH EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGIST JV CHAMARY <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n

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The grassquits evolved into at least 13 different Gal\u00e1pagos finches <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n

EVOLUTIONARY HISTORY CAN BE represented by a tree of life on which extinction stops some branches from growing while speciation \u2013 the process that produces new species \u2013 maintains or increases nature\u2019s diversity. And although Charles Darwin\u2019s revolutionary book is titled On <\/em>the <\/em>Origin <\/em>of <\/em>Species, <\/em>it doesn\u2019t really explain how or why species might originate. <\/p>\n\n

What is a species anyway? <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

It\u2019s controversial. A species is a population of organisms whose members share common characteristics. But biologists don\u2019t agree on one definition for what a species is. Plants and fungi are typically defined by features (morphology), for instance, whilst animal species are traditionally based on whether members interbreed to create fertile offspring \u2013 and species are now often distinguished by DNA. <\/p>\n\n

Why does speciation occur? <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

Changes to an environment \u2013 triggered by factors such as climate, migration or interactions with other species \u2013 can reveal niches whose resources are ready to be exploited. Such ecological pressures or opportunities can drive a population to evolve into two potentially-distinct groups, or \u2018incipient species\u2019, if they each adapt to a niche through evolution by natural selection. <\/p>\n\n

Once survival of the fittest has pushed incipient species to be specialised for their respective niches, any hybrids formed by interbreeding would be less well-adapted and less likely to survive, reinforcing divergence. This was suggested by Alfred Russel Wallace (who co-proposed the theory of natural selection) in his book Darwinism, <\/em>and is now known as the Wallace effect. <\/p>\n\n

So what prevents interbreeding? <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

If members from two incipient species keep combining genetic material and make offspring, they share a gene pool and may not diverge into distinct populations. That outcome is prevented when a pair of sister species accumulate differences in physiology or behaviour that create reproductive barriers that block any gene flow between the two species before or after a zygote (fertilised egg) develops \u2013 in organisms with sexual reproduction, known as pre-zygotic or post-zygotic isolation. <\/p>\n\n

Post-zygotic barriers don\u2019t prevent mating but a hybrid might be infertile, for instance, whereas pre-zygotic barriers include signals such as a courtship song or dance that\u2019s essential for recognising compatible mates. Even organisms that can\u2019t move or choose partners directly have barriers that block interbreeding: in flowering plants, for example, orchid species might look identical but have subtle distinctions to attract certain pollinators.<\/span><\/p>\n\n

How do new species originate? <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

There are two main routes. Allopatric speciation occurs when sister species inhabit non-overlapping geographic ranges, after a structure \u2013 like a river or frozen water \u2013 physically separates members of a population or lets individuals migrate to new locations. The most famous example is Darwin\u2019s finches, 13 species scattered across the Gal\u00e1pagos archipelago that show striking variation in size and shape, from the small tree finch that uses its curved beak to extract insects, to the large ground finch that uses a strong beak to crack open nuts and seeds. Genetic analysis suggests the finches are descended from songbirds called grassquits that hopped onto the Gal\u00e1pagos islands from mainland South America using a glacier during the last ice age. <\/p>\n\n

The other route to speciation, known as sympatric, occurs when sister species live together (and presumably emerged) in overlapping geographic ranges. This process, sympatric speciation, seems less common across the tree of life but is also the dominant route in certain groups: in the African Great Lakes, cichlid fish evolved into thousands of species by colonising micro-habitats at various depths. <\/p>\n\n

Which organisms contribute most to biodiversity? <\/strong><\/h5>\n\n

Symbiotic bacteria will be geographically separated if they live in hosts that become new species. Because an estimated 79 per cent of speciation events occur in those endosymbiotic bacteria \u2013 which make up most living things \u2013 and most animals are insects, the majority of Earth\u2019s biodiversity is probably generated by microbes and their insect hosts. <\/p>\n\n

<\/div>
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BBC WILDLIFE EXPERTS<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div><\/section>\n\n

Photos: CORAL: ALEX MUSTARD\/NATUREPL.COM; BIRDS: KARINE AIGNER\/NATUREPL.COM; DANDELION: PETER CADE\/GETTY; OPOSSUM: ARTO HAKOLA\/ALAMY; VOLE: KLEIN & HUBERT\/NATUREPL.COM; FROG: ANDREW MURRAY\/NATUREPL.COM; TREE: JO\u00c3O MARCOS ROSA; RED-TAILED HAWK: ALAN MURPHY\/BIA\/MINDEN\/NPL; BOTANIC GARDENS: SANDOR SZABO\/ ALAMY; FINCHES: JOHN GOULD\/WIKIPEDIA\/CREATIVE COMMONS<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Q & A Email your questions to wildquestions@immediate.co.uk Does the UK have any coral reefs? HELEN SCALES ANSWERS: Corals are certainly not confined to the shallow, sunny waters of the tropics. More than half of around 5,000 known species of corals live in cold and deep waters. The main reef-forming coral in UK waters is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":20438,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ub_ctt_via":"","purple_page_number":"94","purple_custom_meta_purple_page_number":"94","purple_seq_number":"1","purple_custom_meta_purple_seq_number":"1","purple_source_article":"article_94-1.xml","purple_custom_meta_purple_source_article":"article_94-1.xml","purple_source_issue":"October-2022","purple_custom_meta_purple_source_issue":"October-2022","purple_external_id":"October-2022-94-1","purple_custom_meta_purple_external_id":"October-2022-94-1","purple_issue_code":"|0000087236||","purple_custom_meta_purple_issue_code":"|0000087236||","purple_android_product":"com.im.wildlife.496","purple_custom_meta_purple_android_product":"com.im.wildlife.496","purple_ios_product":"com.im.wildlife.496","purple_custom_meta_purple_ios_product":"com.im.wildlife.496","purple_web_product":"","purple_custom_meta_purple_web_product":"","purple_publication_id":"58d61955-0ac4-406c-83f1-ab6f21d86b70","purple_migrated":"","kt_blocks_editor_width":"","apple_news_api_created_at":"2022-09-22T08:31:07Z","apple_news_article-theme":"","apple_news_api_id":"5815aac0-758d-4880-af08-7818ee4743d7","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2022-09-23T07:27:17Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABQ==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/AWBWqwHWNSICvCHgY7kdD1w","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":true,"apple_news_is_preview":true,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_article_theme":"","apple_news_sections":"[]"},"categories":[28],"tags":[14],"apple_news_notices":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/09\/naturepl_01682124_cmyk-scaled.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"10","apple_news_title":""},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/09\/naturepl_01682124_cmyk-scaled.jpg",2551,2560,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/09\/naturepl_01682124_cmyk-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/09\/naturepl_01682124_cmyk-300x300.jpg",300,300,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/09\/naturepl_01682124_cmyk-768x771.jpg",768,771,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/09\/naturepl_01682124_cmyk-1020x1024.jpg",800,803,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/09\/naturepl_01682124_cmyk-1531x1536.jpg",1531,1536,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/09\/naturepl_01682124_cmyk-2041x2048.jpg",2041,2048,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Q & A Email your questions to wildquestions@immediate.co.uk Does the UK have any coral reefs? HELEN SCALES ANSWERS: Corals are certainly not confined to the shallow, sunny waters of the tropics. More than half of around 5,000 known species of corals live in cold and deep waters. The main reef-forming coral in UK waters is…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20212"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20212"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20212\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21620,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20212\/revisions\/21620"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20438"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20212"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20212"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20212"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}