![[A black wolf stands in snow, facing left. It is looking at the camera. There is snow on its muzzle and back leg.]](https://blogs.iu.edu/sciu/files/2022/05/black-wolf-sciu-yell-pic.jpg)
Recently, a trail camera in northern Minnesota caught video of a pack of all-black wolves. The video has been viewed more than 950,000 times since it was uploaded in late December 2021. A greyish-brown wolf crosses the meadow in the shot, followed by three all-black wolves. People are fascinated. So, what affects animal coloration? And why are these wolves black?
Tag: Biology
What is a species and why should we care?
![[Many small birds are diving and floating in shallow water. There are birds floating in the foreground and background, while the middle ground is full of birds mid-flight. They all look similar and may be the same species.]](https://blogs.iu.edu/sciu/files/2022/02/Screenshot-923.png)
When you read about an animal on Wikipedia or in a textbook, one of the first things mentioned is its scientific name — genus and species. But, how do we define a species? First, why are we concerned with classification? Humans have an innate need to categorize. It’s ingrained in our minds from our days as hunter-gatherers, when we needed to remember what each plant was and whether it was safe to eat or poisonous. Taxonomy is a hierarchical system that classifies the biological continuum. It comes from Greek philosophers (including Plato and Aristotle), who ranked animals as closer or farther from God. Darwin then focused on common ancestors, and his ideas on how to draw phylogenies are still used today…
The new beast in our backyards
![[Reddish brown coywolf in the snow. It has partially turned to face the camera.]](https://blogs.iu.edu/sciu/files/2022/02/coyote-face-snow_-_virginia_-_forestwander-1.jpg)
Watch out, Hoosiers! There’s a new predator afoot. Thirty to forty-five pounds, hungry, mobile, and travelling up to 15 miles per day — coywolves are Indiana’s newest predators! A quick note on terms — since the early 1900’s, the term ‘coywolf’ has described a hybrid animal from a wolf and a coyote. The mid-2000’s saw the rise of wolf-coyote-dog hybrids across North America. These creatures are widely called ‘coywolves.’ All uses of ‘coywolf’ or ‘coywolves’ in this article refer to the latter. Scientists are still somewhat divided on whether these triple-hybrids are a separate species…
Red wolves are endangered, but how can we protect a species we can’t define?
Red wolves and grey wolves may have once been a single species. But throughout the 1900s, the interbreeding of coyotes and red wolves blurred the line between species. How can we determine whether red and grey wolves are the same or separate species? The question is a pressing one, if you consider that conservation efforts are based on species. In 1973, the Endangered Species Act was passed, creating the Endangered Species List, which mandates conservation efforts for every animal and plant on the list – based on species. Without a clear definition, conservationists don’t know what exactly they are trying to protect…
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2021
The question of how we sense the environment around us has fascinated humans for centuries. The first attempts at a theoretical understanding of the senses were discovered in the writings of early Greek thinkers in the sixth and fifth centuries BCE. However, the gap between our theories and our understanding of how our senses work is continuing to shrink. This year, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded jointly to Dr. David Julius and Dr. Ardem Patapoutian, two scientists who independently discovered mechanisms of how we sense temperature and touch…
Disney demystified: The science of magic
![[A black silhouette of Cinderella’s Castle covered in white line drawings of scientific concepts and instruments such as beakers, elements, leaves, DNA, stars, chemical structures, and arrows.]](https://blogs.iu.edu/sciu/files/2021/10/Rose-ScIU-Post-Featured-Image.jpg)
A day at Walt Disney World exceeds all expectations. Rides move flawlessly on their complex tracks, fireworks appear out of thin air, and the scent of cotton candy floats in the air. It’s as if everything happens on cue, guided by a mysterious force. It could be magic, yes, but what if it’s science? Read on for five feats of engineering, chemistry, and biology that have probably escaped your notice in the parks…
Five fascinating facts about bees
![[a photograph of a swarm of bees sitting on golden honeycomb. There are many bustling workers surrounding a significantly larger queen bee.]](https://blogs.iu.edu/sciu/files/2021/04/pexels-mostafa-eissa-3424406.jpg)
There is more to bees than what initially meets the eye! Sure, we couldn’t live without these busy pollinators, but bees are scientifically interesting beyond just the honey they create. Bees can provide insight into other areas of science, and they themselves are fascinating little creatures. Get to know bees better with the five crazy facts below…
Welcome to the Weaver Lab: An interview with Dr. Lesley Weaver
![[Dr. Lesley Weaver poses for a head shot wearing a bright, cobalt blue top, smiling facing the camera, and wearing her black, curly hair down and parted on the side.]](https://blogs.iu.edu/sciu/files/2021/01/Screen-Shot-2021-01-26-at-2.58.27-PM.png)
Dr. Lesley Weaver, an alum of IU’s Department of Biology, has returned to campus as an Assistant Professor after her finishing her postdoctoral research at Johns Hopkins University. This past September, I had the opportunity to interview her about her experience as an early career researcher, setting up her lab, navigating IU in her new role as an Assistant Professor, and how the COVID-19 pandemic shift to online has simultaneously highlighted issues with and solutions to accessibility and diversity in academia.
Cancer cells and their invisibility cloak
![[T- cells attacking a cancer cell (Illustration of an electron microscopy photo). Source: royaltystockphoto.com/Shutterstock.]](https://blogs.iu.edu/sciu/files/2020/05/Picture1.png)
I remember being mind blown when I first read about how Harry Potter was able to disappear into alleys by wearing his invisibility cloak. The idea that someone could hide in plain sight always fascinated me as a child. What if I said that this happens right in the human body, where certain cells are able to use an invisibility cloak to camouflage themselves? You read it right: cancer cells have this extraordinary ability to hide in plain sight in the body. But, scientists are working on ways to get cancer cells to come out of hiding and to target them for destruction…
Are you sure you should eat that?
Amid this pandemic, you may be having conversations with family members similar to my own. I was talking to my brother about going to the grocery store and buying some eggs for baking when I was pretty strictly told that “no, you shouldn’t because the virus can be transmitted through food.” As a scientist myself, this was intriguing advice. So, I asked him to show me where he had read it. Sadly, nowadays when we are bombarded with news at every corner we turn, we were unable to backtrack his source…