Tag Archives: Biology

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Dr. Alex Smith

Back in May of 2012, I interviewed Dr. Alex Smith, a molecular ecologist from the University of Guelph, about his work in the campus’ Dairy Bush. I used this interview to write an article for the Canadian Foundation for Innovation, which can be accessed by clicking here.

Interviewing Dr. Smith was a great experience for me. He is an incredibly charismatic and articulate man who was kind enough to let me ask him a slew of questions for two hours while he was setting up his equipment in the Dairy Bush.

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Scientists demonstrate that it is possible to dissociate brain waves from actions, possibly identifying a new way to operate prosthetics. 

photo credit: juliaf

Roald Dahl’s Matilda was a favorite book of mine as a child, and this, long before the movie was released in 1996. Like many children, I wished I could move objects using only my mind, just like the little girl in that book. Although that specific skill probably won’t be possible in our lifetime, scientists recently revealed that we are now one step closer to harnessing the mind’s power to move objects and, more importantly, we are now also one step close to significantly improving the lives of people affected by spinal cord injuries.

In an article published in Nature, Dr. Jose M. Carmena and his team of researchers reveal that they have been able to isolate specific brain waves independently from the physical movement that they normally trigger. Thus, this innovative study opens up the possibility of prosthetics that could be completely controlled by the mind, allowing people who are completely paralyzed to use them.

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johnnyberg

Most women believe in the existence of the G-spot, a female erogenous zone thought to be located in the anterior wall of the vagina. The question as to whether this zone actually exists as a distinct anatomical entity remains controversial, however. Is there a female G-spot or has the media, combined with anecdotal evidence, convinced both women and men alike of the existence of a fictitious erogenous zone?

Dr. Amichai Kilchevsky and his team of researchers investigated this controversial issue in an article recently published in the International Journal of Sexual Medicine.

By performing a review of studies published between 1950 and 2011, Dr. Kilchevsky’s team conclude that, despite anecdotal evidence to the contrary, there does not appear to be an anatomical entity in the anterior vaginal wall that can explain past reports about the G-spot’s existence.

They are quick to temper this statement, however, by stating that the vast number of reliable reports and testimonials given by women and their partners do seem to point to the G-spot’s existence.  It is possible that the methods that have been used to investigate this question up until now have been inadequate.

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I really enjoy caring for the salamanders first thing in the morning. Instead of going straight to class or to the gym, I get to hang out with animals that fascinate me while I wake up to the world around me. I guess I’ve always enjoyed being alone in the morning. When I worked at the Montreal Bakery “Au Pain Doré”, I systematically volunteered to go down to the basement and do the morning baking at 6:30 a.m. It was a time for me to relax and reflect on my life and my most recent experiences before confronting our caffeine-and-sugar deficient customers.

Caring for salamanders is much more fulfilling. Observing animals that are so very different from myself is quite the experience. I have come to anticipate their behaviours, whether it be fright, curiosity, or hunger for that matter. I now appreciate the subtleties of their reactions to my care. Through my research, I can tell when a salamander is being submissive or dominant. Through routine care, I can tell when a salamander will strike to catch a tasty cricket. I feel lucky that I can witness and recognize these behaviours. I am careful to avoid the term “understand” however, because that would be wildly presumptuous of me.

Twice a week, for the first two hours of my day, all I have to think about are those salamanders and their needs. Needs that aren’t anywhere near those of over privileged Canadian university students such as myself.  Basic needs – the kind that keep you alive, fit, and ready reproduce so you can pass on your genes to the next generation. Morning salamander care is a time for me to visit the characteristics that unite us to all living things instead of what separates us from them. Too often I find that the media try to convince us that we are superior to beings the likes of amphibians or insects. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. Just like us, they have evolved in ways that ensure their survival in their own habitats. I wouldn’t survive in the ground or under a rock – but these little guys can.

I’m still learning. For the first time, I am handling juvenile salamanders. They range from 1 to 2 years of age and are about half the size of their mature counterparts.

A Red-backed salamander hatchling. The one-year-olds are a tad bigger than this one. Picture by Daniel Hocking.

If I was afraid of accidentally losing an adult over the summer, I am now absolutely terrified at the idea of losing sight of one of the “kids”.They are just as fast as the adults and probably twice as jumpy. Thus, I vow to be four times as vigilant, just for good measure.

Last night, I attended my second thesis course meeting, in which students enrolled in the course made a 5-minute presentation about their thesis topic. I had imagined that by the 25th presenter my attention would wane, but instead I found myself just as excited and engaged as I did when the first project was revealed. Their chosen areas of study were generally interesting but it was the passionate cases they made addressing the relevance of the science that won me over. Have you ever noticed how contagious passion can be? Moss does not electrify me. I enjoy its presence for its cushioning properties when in need of a break on a hike, but otherwise, I rarely stop to ponder its contribution to my environment. That being said, when the young woman who will spend two semesters studying this primary producer made her case, I was enthralled.

Moss was not the only interesting subject of course. Sharks, tarantulas, ants, parasites, falcons and monarch butterflies will all be observed and examined by my fellow undergrads.

I was also incredibly impressed by the innovative ideas that were being presented. Granted, all the students in the course are closely advised by a faculty member and most of them did not come up with their research ideas on their own, but I must say that, having been through the brain-storming process myself, I know that many of them put their heart and soul into the conception of these experiments. Whereas, I had entered the room with, I admit, a slightly competitive demeanor, I left it cheering my classmates on and wishing them luck.

As for my own presentation – it was, I believe, a success. I managed to explain the questions I am trying to answer and, equally important, I made people laugh. I don’t believe my experiment is the most interesting or the most complicated, but I’d like to believe that that was not the point of the exercise. Last night, I witnessed curiosity, bewilderment and the subsequent enchantment that can arise from both. For three hours, we weren’t 20-somethings trying to prove ourselves as scientists but children exhilarated by our own invention and imagination.

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The Art of Catching Salamanders in Ten Steps

A new school year has begun. The calm, empty campus that I had grown accustomed to over the summer while working in the herpetology lab is now infested with eager as well as not-so-eager young minds. I feel rather strange when I think about this being my last year of undergraduate studies. I will miss the beautiful scenery and the lovely atmosphere cultivated by the dozens of wonderful people that I have befriended in this town. That being said, I am also terribly excited about the idea of discovering a new city and campus. Already, I can feel my blood thicken with the urge to explore and relocate.

Classes started on Thursday and I am happy to report that not only am I genuinely interested in the content of all the courses I am taking this semester, but my professors also all seem to enjoy teaching and interacting with students. This is an auspicious start to the fall semester.

On Saturday morning, I met my thesis advisor at the lab so we could prepare for a day of salamander collecting. The plan was to release the 110 salamanders that we had caught in early May as well as to catch the 90 new salamanders needed for my experiment.

We set out with the goal of catching 80 males and 10 females because my research will largely focus on male salamanders. This was my second foray into the world of salamander collecting, and so, I present to you the valuable knowledge I have gained  during these two expeditions.

 

 

1. During the summer months, pick the warmest day of a week where heavy rainfall occurred.

The Red Backed salamander borrows deep into the soil in the winter months and is virtually uncatchable at that time.

2. Find a conservation area you can easily access.

3.  STOP- Makes sure you have the proper permits!

In our case, three separate permits were required to catch and transport these salamanders out of Rockwood conservation area, Ontario.

4. Find a forested area away from campsites, beaches and roads.

Red Backed salamanders avoid humans and roads because of the disturbances they cause in the environment as well as the vibrations resulting from loud noises.

5.  Once in the forest, seek out areas where there is lots of tree cover protecting the soil from direct sunlight.

Salamanders are amphibians and although Plethodon cinereus does not spend any part of its life cycle in an aquatic environment, it still requires lots of humidity in order to survive. Moisture enables this lung-less and gill-less animal to breathe through its skin (cutaneous respiration) and is essential to maintaining internal balance.

6. In the shaded area, look under rocks, logs and leaf litter.

The Red Backed salamander is a nocturnal animal. It becomes active at night and only then will it come out and actively hunt its prey. Trouble is, at night they are much harder to see. You must therefore look for them in areas where they might be hiding, such as under rocks and logs.

You might catch a salamander having a light snack during the daytime, but, in this case, the prey is caught using an ambush predation strategy. This means that the salamander will simply sit and wait for the next potential meal to come along.

What do these salamanders eat, you might ask? Well, in the lab we feed them live crickets that we raise ourselves. We feed them young crickets because they are smaller than their adult counterparts and therefore more easily ingested. In the wild, however, they eat a variety of small arthropods.  This includes mites, insects and their larvae, and spiders. They will also eat slugs and earthworms. salamanders thrust their tongue out in a quick, forward motion in order to catch their prey.

7. Act quickly!

A startled Red Back will try to wiggle away or bury itself as soon as you lift the rock or the log that was covering it. We always miss a few because they are simply too fast for us.

8. Don’t grab them by their tails!

If you do this, you might find yourself with a wiggling salamander tail devoid of an actual salamander!

Salamanders have a nifty little predator avoidance strategy called “autotomy”.  They can autotomize their tails, a self-amputation act, when they feel threatened. Not only does this allow them to get away when a predator catches them by the tail, but, because the tail continues to jerk once it is discarded, this adaptation can also be used to distract a predator from attacking the arguably more important and meaty salamander body.

A salamander that survives a predatory attack will grow a new tail. This is called regeneration. Given enough time, the new tail will be just as long as the previous one, albeit slightly discoloured.

Red Backs have numerous predators. These range from small garter snakes to birds and shrews. However, under utopian conditions in which they would never encounter such threatening creatures, they can live up to 10 years.

9. Place them in a plastic bag with humid paper towels until you are ready to put them in a cooler with ice for transport.

Remember, humidity is important!

Otherwise you will end up with dried out dead salamanders.

10. Load the cooler into the car and bring them back to your lab where you place them individually in plastic containers such as these:

Salamander containers

In the end, we managed to trap 113 salamanders in 5 hours. We had had a lot more luck in May and, unfortunately, as we approach winter, these salamanders will be harder and harder to trap.

I was hoping to be able to sex all the salamanders on site, but the equipment we brought was not suitable for such a task. You see, in order to determine the sex of a salamander, one must have 2 very simple things: a very bright light and a humid plastic bag.

The salamander is placed in the plastic bag and immobilised using one’s fingertips. One must then hold the salamander up the to light to view the abdominal contents. A male will have testes on either side abdomen that show up as small dark elongated disks. A female will have no visible testes, but may be endowed with small eggs instead. This technique is called “candling” and is described in a journal article written by Gillette and Peterson, 2001.

We had brought a flashlight in order to sex the Red Backs but, given the outdoor lighting conditions, the flashlight’s rays were not sufficiently strong to pierce through the freshly caught critters. We decided to bring the salamanders back to the lab, where I spent the following three hours determining their sex. I identified 43 males, 57 females and 13 juveniles that were too young to sex accurately. We did not, in true Pokemon style, manage to “catch em’ all”.We will have to return to Rockwood next weekend to get some more males and return the excess females that I will not be using in my experiment.

Despite not reaching our goal, I enjoyed myself immensely in Rockwood. It felt good to work hard outdoors. This kind of activity also helps me remember that there is a tremendous amount of animal biomass right beneath our feet at any given time. In the city, one forgets much too easily that humans represent but a minuscule part of the biodiversity and biomass that can be found on Earth. The way we sometimes act shows just how removed we are from such realizations.

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A year ago today, I was in the process of approaching my current undergraduate thesis advisor in order to secure a spot in his herpetology/neurobiology lab. We had corresponded multiple times over the summer and I was setting up a meeting with him to discuss research ideas. I had decided that taking a thesis course was the right path for me because I wanted practical research experience.

I had to come up with an original scientific research project that I would work on over the course of the final year of my undergraduate degree. This is taken from the course outline:

 This two-semester course is intended to provide a deeper, more focused research experience than that provided in the project courses or in typical upper-level lecture courses

and is offered for students of excellent academic standing who possess a strong interest in pursuing postgraduate training in biological research.

My thesis advisor, who specializes in neurobiology, had previously been working on amphibians, which is the main reason I approached him.  You see, the first time I asked my parents for a snake was around the age of 5. As a toddler, animals of any type fascinated me but amphibians and, more specifically, reptiles, were my first true love. My parents undoubtedly hoped that I would grow out of my obsession for such “unsightly” creatures but, alas, that day never came. My mother thought them revolting, and my father, who is Trinidadian, thought it absurd to pay and care for an animal that is considered a pest in his country of origin. I kept asking them for the privilege of owning a scaly friend or two, but they never relented.

I must say that although they would never allow me to bring a reptile into the house, they did see my curiosity about the animal kingdom as something to be cultivated and encouraged. To their credit, they took me numerous times to zoos, pet shops and even the odd reptile farm. I’m sure they never imagined I would end up working in a herpetology laboratory, however.

With the help of my thesis advisor, I came up with a research idea and question that would explore how vision and olfaction interact in Red Backed salamander conspecific interactions. This means that I would try to find out how their sense of smell and their vision contribute to their interactions with each other under certain specific conditions that will be discussed in another post.

This blog will thus serve as a forum for me to share my experience as a fourth year student exploring the world of scientific research. More importantly, however, this blog is a vessel through which I hope to hone my writing skills in order to become a science journalist. I will therefore also report on interesting new scientific research as well as science topics that I hope you will find as exciting as I do.