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27 Unknown Species Discovered
NaijaGuy writes "27 unknown species of spiders, centipedes, scorpion-like creatures and other animals have been discovered in caves beneath national parks in California's Sierra Nevada. The Texas-based Zara Environmental led the 3-year exploration and has published reports with photos of the fascinating critters. "Not only are these animals new to science, but they're adapted to very specific environments -- some of them, to a single room in one cave," said Joel Despain, a cave specialist who helped explore 30 of the 238 known caves in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks."
*RUNS* Aren't those deadly, but only aren't because their fangs are too small to pierece the skin?
Quid festinatio swallonis est aetherfuga inonusti?
Africus aut Europaeus?
so, who would like to begin the debate as to if this gives evidence of evolution in action? (and likewise, who wants to be first to disagree?)
What, no Hobbits discovered? Well, perhaps they were eaten by those spiders. ;)
"What do you think?" "I think 'What, do you think?!'"
Too many spiders and scorpions... *shudder*
:p
Anyone know what the ecosystem in those caves (and in caves in general) feeds on? What's at the bottom of the food chain? (since there's no photosynthesis...)
And no, I didn't have the patience to read TFA carefully, though I did look at all the pictures in the four reports... hence the *shudder*
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If they stay in their parents' basement? They have adapted to one room right?
That's one intelligent designer!
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I think the intelligent designer wanted us to find them now... I'm pretty sure these bugs are somehow supposed to body snatch Pat Robertson who will then become the next President by assinating any who oppose him. Donald Rumsfeld, who is also translucent w/ a yellow liver, will be his running mate. Upon hearing these plans of the intelligent designer, the flying spagetti monster was quoted "You win, I've got nothing." Its noody appendage was reported as "limp".
brandelf -t FreeBSD
Interesting. It doesn't say that experiments say otherwise; it just says that the experiments haven't been done.
So you have to make kind of a logical jump from there to saying that whoever is saying it doesn't have any proof, either. Which is almost certainly true, though it's a bit of a jump; conceivably it could be some sort of unpublished report. But as far as I know it's not based on anecdotal evidence, either; I've never heard of any small animals being bitten.
Presumably nobody's done the study because they have no reason to believe that it is true. If somebody observed a daddy longlegs biting something larger than it and killing it, there would be reason to do the research. But if it killed a mouse, it would almost certainly cause at least some reaction in humans.
That strikes me as an interesting glimpse into the difference between science and urban legend. The spiders could actually be poisonous, but from a scientific standpoint it wouldn't make the urban legend true regardless. That's because the legend appears to be based on no data, and without data it's not science even if it turns out to be factual.
Huh.
(Ice worms, another recently discovered species, can only survive in freezing or near-freezing conditions and live in glaciers. They crawl to the surface at night and feed off any organic matter that has settled on the ice. They were discovered in Washington State, I believe.)
What shocks me is that many of the species that have been discovered in the past ten to fifteen years (the Wollemi Pine, for example, as well as the Ice Worms) have largely been in very well-explored, well-documented regions that may not be exactly on the beaten track, but have certainly been visited by knowledgable experts many times over many decades. In some cases, many centuries.
Some of these discoveries (as in this case) have been through inadequate study. Other cases have been uncovered as a result of genetic studies proving physically similar organisms to actually be unrelated. (The converse has also happened.) Yet others have been through skeptisism obstructing observation. These things are all understandable and are inevitable. It's shocking only because virtually all environmental and developmental policy is based on what is known, and what is known is proving to be limited.
We'll be discovering new species for a long time to come, but if we had more scientists doing basic field-work and/or DNA mapping, we'd find them a lot faster. The problem is, basic research isn't profitable (so corporations are generally uninterested) and isn't vote-winning (so politicians don't care). The sciences don't come cheap, but if nobody is going to cough up the cash, it will be left to pure chance on the encounter and blind luck on the necessary awareness. To me, that feels utterly wrong. Knowledge should be gained, not gambled.
It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
"...they're adapted to very specific environments -- some of them, to a single room in one cave."
If that is true, then there are far more discoveries on the way.
Think about every orifice in the Earth.
Has anyone calculated the possible surface area?
Worlds within worlds.
and twenty-six of those were found at the u.s. capitol building... the other was at some old white house on penn ave.
I knew before I got up today that one of the things that would NOT make my day would be to read "WE FOUND MORE SPIDERS"!! The ones that I already knew about were plenty, thanks.
I mean, seriously, as if anyone thinks unguided physical processes can produce such intricate patterns?
Real Daleks don't climb stairs - they level the building.
1. Does the flash of the camera impair the creature?
2. It seems that life can adapt to ANY non-vaccuum (maybe even there!)
3. Maybe they evolved recently (within the last few decades). I am starting to think that Darwin's changes happen on an even faster scale than years. I am starting to think maybe changes can happen in a CURRENT generation.
Just some thoughts
-AL
TIME is the Aether...
There are 10,000 new species discovered every year. Than means 10000/365 = 27+epsilon every day. So Slashdot is now reporting when news hasn't happened?
-- SIGFPE
I wonder what kind of Phat L00tz they drop.