Questions tagged [zoology]

The biological study of animals. Very broad use so be sure to add additional clarifying tags

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9 votes
1 answer
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What kind of fish is this white blue-stained fish?

This fish has been spotted at the Great Barrier Reef near Cairns (Queensland). I put a big effort to find it via Google but never could encounter anything similar. I have also made an attempt to find ...
Capo Pavel Mestre's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
74 views

How fast do hummingbirds fly?

Hhhmz! A hummingbirds flew past me while I was in the garden and yet, it still managed to halt perfectly in front of a blooming flower nearest to me. Just as soon I began to wonder, how fast do ...
aitía's user avatar
  • 151
1 vote
1 answer
56 views

What are some examples of animals who return to their group when threatened?

Based on my (limited) understanding, some types of animals use the power of numbers for protection. I assume, then, some species instinctively respond to threat by immediately seeking out and joining ...
Jonathan's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
149 views

What is the name of this insect?

This insect was found in my garden in India on the evening of August 07, 2019. It's rainy season here.
Sristi's user avatar
  • 47
0 votes
1 answer
71 views

What is this African bug?

This is an arthropod I found in an apparently abandoned mongoose burrow in the Maasai Mara game reserve, Kenya: That was the best photo I could get of it. From what I could tell, it had six legs and ...
SealBoi's user avatar
  • 241
0 votes
0 answers
49 views

What is that? Dry brown fungus? See photo please

It has appeared two days in a row on my balcony, at exactly the same place. There's nothing near that can give me a hint of what it is. The birds can access the place easily. It's an inch in size, it'...
Álvaro Mondéjar's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
561 views

Do male skunks have teats?

Simple question. Do male skunks (striped skunk, eastern US/Canada if it matters) have teats? Occasionally want to identify road-kill, but don't know if teats are diagnostic for females. I believe ...
Peggy Schafer's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
897 views

What is the function of spongin in sea sponges?

Sea sponges (Porifera) use different types of skeletons to support their structures. Some skeletons are built from minerals, some are built from proteins like spongin, and some use both. My question ...
Yang Li's user avatar
  • 71
2 votes
0 answers
38 views

Anybody know of any sources/papers on wild animals identifying birds by their calls/sounds?

I'm doing a literature review about identifying birds, and was hoping to find some examples of animals being able to identify birds by sound (eg a mouse knowing the normal call of a sparrow is not the ...
SonicBoom's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
34 views

Knee directions

art student with very little knowledge of biology here. I was thinking about the designs of mythical creatures and I got stuck on the topic of knee directions, and couldn't work out the appropriate ...
robann's user avatar
  • 11
3 votes
1 answer
647 views

(How) do horizontal pupils dialate?

I was looking at mongoose eyes in particular, but my understanding is: Circular (human-like) pupils simply get larger/smaller depending on light levels, no change in "shape" Vertical slit (cat-like) ...
Peter Chaplin's user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
39 views

Is it safe to feed the squirrels?

I hope this question fits here, I haven't found another community where it would fit. Two years ago I was in a hotel in Sri Lanka (south-western coast) and in the hotel gardens there were a lot of ...
Matthias Nicklisch's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
2k views

What are these little bugs?

I recently found at least 50 of these little bugs roaming around my window sills indoors in my bedroom right behind the head of my bed. I can’t seem to find what they are. I’d love tips on what they ...
Tayler's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
1k views

Reptiles are a paraphyletic group because?

Here is a question I am trying to find the answer to Reptiles are a paraphyletic group because... ? A) They include worm lizards, which have no limbs B) The group doesn’t include birds C) The group ...
Tatiana's user avatar
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5 votes
1 answer
381 views

Larva of Halyomorpha halys?

I just found these small insects on a Saponaria. After search, it could be Halyomorpha halys, but I am really not sure. Can anyone confirm? If so, should I kill them as they are considered as ...
NicoM's user avatar
  • 53
0 votes
0 answers
59 views

Why do leeches lose septae due to parasitism?

So I found this piece of information in my textbook without a proper explanation, and I can't seem to find the relation between the two.
user52558's user avatar
17 votes
1 answer
4k views

What is this little owl-like bird?

I was walking outside (location: Netherlands) and just saw this little bird: Unfortunately I had to take a long range picture with my cell phone so the quality is quite bad, however I hope still ...
KingBoomie's user avatar
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0 votes
1 answer
221 views

If coelocanths are more related to humans than groupers -does a Coelocanth's DNA literally have more sequences in common with a human than a grouper?

Would a coelocanth and a human still have more sequences in common than a coelocanth and a grouper? Would the coelocanth and human dna basically "look" more similar than either would to a ray-finned ...
Ronald Taylor's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
186 views

Can birds touch their wing tips together either in front or behind (not above and below)? [closed]

Can the tips of a birds wings touch so that it would form a ring if view from above or below? I suspect it might be a bird of prey and at the moment it is picking something up from the ground but I ...
Lynn Eckhart's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
307 views

Species identification. Is this a leech?

The pictured creature, shown at the bottom of a glass, was attached to a friend’s child after he was swimming in the Ottawa River today. It stretches out to roughly an inch in length but in this “...
Fo.'s user avatar
  • 133
2 votes
2 answers
466 views

Bug Identification: Tiny Bugs in Fairport NY

We have been finding a ton of these tiny bugs (pin head size or smaller) outside on our patios, outdoor tables, on the grill, etc. What are they and how do we get rid of them?
ritlax9's user avatar
  • 21
7 votes
2 answers
5k views

Bug Identification: Tiny Bugs

I have seen these on my hands recently and I am wondering what they are. Urban Setting. South Central Pennsylvania.
IanBrightblade's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
161 views

What kind of weird little insect is this?

What kind of insect is this? I found it in my work room. I live in the city of São José dos Campos, São Paulo, Brazil
LCarvalho's user avatar
  • 247
3 votes
1 answer
157 views

What kind of bird is this?

Found in southwest Michigan. It appears to have fallen from a nest.
Brent Parsons's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
113 views

Identify round, green, flying insect with spikes in South Carolina (USA)

The tables have turned -- I need some help IDing an insect: I've been unable to identify an insect that I came across about 6 years ago in South Carolina (USA). We were doing a vegetation survey in a ...
theforestecologist's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
404 views

Can mammals and/or birds see / detect infra-red light?

Wondering if there is any evidence that mammals or birds eyes can detect light emitted in the infra-red? The reason I'm asking relates to the use of nest cameras to detect predators, using infra red ...
Damon Bridge's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
137 views

is this a brown recluse spider?

What kind of spider is this? SE Michigan, light brown color, second picture less focused but w tape measure for scale. Thank you!
Bob's user avatar
  • 41
2 votes
1 answer
133 views

What about this bat?

This happened in LaGrange GA. We heard some crawling around behind one of the faux-wood shutters on our front porch. So I eased it back and saw this: If you can't make out the scale, the furry part ...
Jeff's user avatar
  • 121
0 votes
1 answer
598 views

Black and orange spider, what is it?

Found in Alexandria MN, on sidewalk. Small, fast little spider.
user52327's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
122 views

Want to know about a creature which bite me

I am Sachin from MP India. Few minutes back I have gotten bite by a creature. What is its name? Is it harmful if I got bitten by it? Feeling little pain there.
Sachin's user avatar
  • 1
0 votes
1 answer
1k views

How far can parrots fly without needing to land?

This is for a story I'm writing. I can't find any information on how far various parrot species can travel without needing to land-- the closest I could find is this page saying that a macaw flies up ...
PlutoThePlanet's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
178 views

Help with jellyfish species identification

Our research group (Evolutionary Genetics Group, University of Zurich) has received a letter from a special needs child who has kindly asked us to identify three jellyfish species. Unfortunately, the ...
Sam's user avatar
  • 31
0 votes
0 answers
58 views

Is this a Zelus luridus?

I found this little bug on my bed and I got curious to know what it was, I did some researches and then I noticed that it is very similar to Zelus Nymph but I can't be sure of it. Can you confirm it? ...
VAST's user avatar
  • 1
2 votes
0 answers
111 views

What animal is this? A bee? red mason bee? (Bee-like with brown/orange fur)

The picture was taken at the Bodensee (Lake Constance) in Southwestern Germany in June 2019. I tried to Google "Bee with brown fur", but the only thing that came up was a red mason bee, and the ...
z_eb's user avatar
  • 173
1 vote
1 answer
81 views

Are hybrid-species individuals considered to be of the same species as their parents?

This question arises given the definition of father and mother as seen in the Spanish dictionary composed by the Royal Spanish Academy. Basically it says that a father/mother is a man/woman or a male/...
Charlie's user avatar
  • 111
2 votes
1 answer
239 views

Polyandry in birds

The Wikipedia article on Bateman's principle states: Until recently, most bird species were believed to be sexually monogamous. DNA paternity testing, however, has shown that in nearly 90% of bird ...
interlocutorio's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
3k views

Can crows see in ultraviolet? If so, does their plumage look different in UV?

Apparently birds which appear identical to the human eye can look quite distinct under UV light. Additionally, drab looking birds might have more "spectacular" looking plumage when ...
hasManyStupidQuestions's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
390 views

What is this insect in a cocoon climbing a web?

I found this thing hanging from the framework of my garage yesterday: The size of the object in the picture was about .75 inches tall by maybe a quarter inch wide. This was taken yesterday in a ...
Chowzen's user avatar
  • 119
2 votes
0 answers
25 views

Is there anything that can tell me precisely how the cross sectional area/radius of a snake changes over length?

I am trying to 3D model a green anaconda which I thought would be simple, then I realized there is actually this very gradual change in thickness from a minimum around its neck to a maximum somewhere ...
askmathquestions's user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
31 views

What was the cause of some egg-laying animals evolution to animal-laying?

Is there a specific reason for this evolution? Are no egg-laying animals more complex beings so their embryonic development requires more time and better nutrition conditions?
liontass's user avatar
  • 101
-1 votes
1 answer
78 views

What is this seaside thing?

I found this on the sand and I do not know what is it? I thought it is sea devil, however I checked google and it is not. Can someone tell me what is it(its name )
THEGreatGatsby's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
179 views

Help identifying a weird creature

Okay, so there is this weird creature, which has been crawling around our house. I can hear it moving around, and it's especially active in the dark. I've however been able to take a picture of it. If ...
animal_lover3000's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
57 views

What species of butterfly/moth is this please?

What species is this please? It's really tiny. That's an oregano leaf. Location: United Kingdom
Beakie's user avatar
  • 103
7 votes
3 answers
1k views

Do birds grieve and feel emotion?

Crows are surprisingly clever with tool making/use and even understanding displacement water over sand! Clearly there's some relatively high level cognitive processes going on up in those avian brains....
Xunie's user avatar
  • 261
6 votes
1 answer
149 views

Can you identify this red insect?

Location: Lansdowne, Uttarakhand, India Date: 27 May 2017 Time: 5.33 pm The insect was found walking upwards on a plastic table. It was about 3-4cm long, as far as I remember; its been a long time ...
Rishika Sharma's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
565 views

Aquatic Snail Identification

I can’t for the life of me find an identification of these snails. They’re thriving in brackish water, but may be freshwater naturally. They’re about .8cm long at their largest. I believe they have ...
EtherealEunoia's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
554 views

Killer whale color

What purpose does the B/W killer whale color scheme serve? And what evolutionary pressure could possibly force all of them to go B/W in such a peculiar way ie with weird patches in the black. Also why ...
never took courses but why's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
104 views

What species would this be?

A common way to define species can be found on Wikipedia: A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can ...
klutt's user avatar
  • 103
2 votes
0 answers
52 views

Why does centipede keep running into my hair and bite me? [closed]

After I moved into a new house in the suburban area, I was bitten by an unknown creature near my spine at mid-night. I felt painful and dizzy. However, after 15 mins, I no longer felt dizzy and the ...
Alex Vong's user avatar
  • 121
1 vote
0 answers
56 views

Why can dogs hyperventilate without consequences like humans?

During the heat of summer, dogs usually breathes very fast, like 100 times per minute or more. If humans do so, we will experience an array of negative effects like dizziness, finger tingling or ...
longtry's user avatar
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