In the News: Bones of Blue Whales

Fig.1. Blue whale from above
(Credit: NOAA Fisheries, 2007)

What happens when a blue whale washes up on shore? This week in the news, scientists and students had the chance of a lifetime to study rare animals from around the world, from blue whales in Oregon to mysterious arachnids near the Dead Sea.

• Scorpion attacks and scorching temperatures were only some of the obstacles these scientists faced to collect and describe this group of arachnids: “The Naming of Parts,” Natural History Magazine (November 2015)

• This short piece highlights a curious new beetle found both in collections and in the wilds of Alabama and Florida: “The Adorable Alabama Whirligig Beetle That Eluded Entomologists,” Scientific American (13 November 2015)

• There is always a story behind skeletons mounted in museums, and the arrival of this blue whale on an Oregon beach is just the beginning: “What A Dead Blue Whale Can Teach Us About Life In The Ocean, And About Ourselves,” Smithsonian Magazine (18 November 2015)

• A recently discovered fossilized molar yields new information on long-lost relatives of modern humans: “DNA Sheds Light On Mysterious, Big-Toothed Human Relatives,” Washington Post (17 November 2015)