Tiny Water Flea Has More Genes Than You Do

This tiny, near-microscopic water flea has more genes than you. In fact, this freshwater zooplankton is the first crustacean to have its genome sequenced, and its 31,000 genes crowns it the animal with the most genes so far. For those keeping count at home, the average human has about 20,000 to 25,000 genes.

The translucent water flea is a Daphnia pulex, and lives in ponds and lakes throughout North America, Europe and Australia. It can also reproduce without sex, is the most commonly found species of water flea and is a “model organism”, meaning it’s studied extensively and provides insight into other, rarer species.

The reason for this little critters’ super-high gene count comes down to its rapid rate of gene multiplication. Scientists estimate a rate that is three times greater than those of other invertebrates and 30 percent greater than that of humans.

As well as having a massive number of genes, more than a third of them have never been seen before in other animals. In other words, they are completely new to science.

Read more in the original article here.

Insects Emit Universal Death Stench

Scientists have discovered that insects from cockroaches to caterpillars all emit the same stinky blend of fatty acids when they die, and this sinister stench sends bugs of all kinds running for their lives.

A biologist made this morbid discovery while studying the social behavior of cockroaches. When a roach locates a great new abode (like your kitchen cupboard), it gives off a chemical signal to attract its cockroach friends. To determine the chemical composition of these pheromones, the scientists and his team started crushing dead cockroaches and spreading around their body juice. Cockroaches avoided places treated with these extracts "like the plague."

The team found that their concoction repelled not just cockroaches, but ants, caterpillars, woodlice and pill bugs. And even though they’re technically crustaceans rather than insects, dead woodlice and pill bugs produced the same set of fatty acids as the other animals.

Insects and crustaceans diverged from each other 400 million years ago, so the researchers think their death mix represents a universal, ancient warning signal. Recognizing and avoiding the dead could reduce the chances of catching the disease.

The scientists hope the right concoction of death smells might protect crops against pesky invaders. For instance, a log treated with the fatty acids repelled wood beetles in a forest for a full month.

Original article here.