Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Bugs!

One of my coworkers is doing a pre-experiment with oak moths. She wanted to know if they weighed less, took longer to pupate, ate less or more, and died at a higher rate when eating oak leaves that grew on toxic serpentine soil versus normal soil. Short answer? Nope. They are exactly the same.

Might not make Science or Ecology, but it'll take up thirty minutes in a lab meeting.

So now we have 200 caterpillars, cocoons, and moths that are pretty much worthless. However, it's the most exciting thing in the lab right now. We pick them new leaves, watch the moths mate, and rescue caterpillars that have fallen off of their leaves. It's a communal bonding experience, much like apes grooming.

Also, for some reason there are Madagascar Hissing Cockaroaches.

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