Navigation Links
Study reveals predation-evolution link
Date:9/10/2007

Blacksburg, Va. -- The fossil record seems to indicate that the diversity of marine creatures increased and decreased over hundreds of millions of years in step with predator-prey encounters, Virginia Tech geoscientists report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science.

For decades, there has been a debate between paleontologists, biologists, and ecologists on the role of ecological interactions, such as predation, in the long term patterns of animal evolution.

John Warren Huntley, a postdoctoral scientist in the Department of Geosciences at Virginia Tech, and Geosciences Professor Micha Kowalewski decided to look at the importance of ecology by surveying the literature for incidents of predation in marine invertebrates, such as clams and their relatives.

Today, certain predators leave easy to identify marks on the shells of their prey, such as clean, round holes, said Huntley. Such holes drilled by predators can also be found in fossil shells.

The researchers also looked for repair scars on the shells of creatures that survived an attack.

The study was conducted by looking at studies which reported the frequency of drill holes and repair scars in fossil species from the last 550 million years.

First Huntley and Kowalewski found that predation increased notably about 480 million years ago, some 50 million years earlier than previous studies have found. The earlier studies were based on changes in morphology predators with stronger claws and jaws and prey with more ornamented shells. We looked at the frequency of attacks, which increased about 50 million years before the changes in armor, said Huntley.

But the most notable discovery is the observation that the incidence of drill holes and repair scars are strikingly parallel to Sepkoskis diversity curve for marine invertebrates. This diversity curve, compiled by the late Jack Sepkoski of the University of Chicago, records the or
'/>"/>

Contact: Susan Trulove
strulove@vt.edu
540-231-5646
Virginia Tech
Source:Eurekalert

Page: 1 2 3

Related biology news :

1. Bioartificial kidney under study at MCG
2. Novel Asthma Study Shows Multiple Genetic Input Required; Single-gene Solution Shot Down
3. W.M. Keck Foundation funds study of friendly microbes
4. Yellowstone microbes fueled by hydrogen, according to U. of Colorado study
5. Emory Study Tests Bone Marrow Stem Cells to Improve Circulation in Legs
6. UCLA Study Shows One-Third of Drug Ads in Medical Journals Do Not Contain References Supporting Medical Claims
7. Study Demonstrates Gene Expression Microarrays are Comparable and Reproducible
8. Study Links Ebola Outbreaks To Animal Carcasses
9. Genome-wide mouse study yields link to human leukemia
10. Breakthrough Microarray-based Technology for the Study of Cancer
11. NYU Study Reveals How Brains Immune System Fights Viral Encephalitis

Post Your Comments:
*Name:
*Comment:
*Email:
(Date:11/26/2009)...ogists have at last worked out a way of using reco...of bird populations. This is the first time sound ...lated into accurate estimates of bird species, pop...he British Ecological Society,s Journal of Applie...ld lead to a major advance in our ability to monit...
(Date:11/26/2009)...RIDGE, Mass. (November 26, 2009) Whitehead resear...for human cells to pinpoint specific genes and pro...in Science . , In most human cell cultures gene...e father and one from the mother. Gene inactivatio...n one copy is inactivated, the second copy usually...
(Date:11/26/2009)... (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus ) a...lation as low-temperature plasma prototype devices...d unfailing bactericidal cocktails. , Two protot... disinfection of healthy skin (e.g. hands and feet...n pose a lethal threat; and another to shoot bacte...
Breaking Biology News(10 mins):Ecologists sound out new solution for monitoring cryptic species 2Knockouts in human cells point to pathogenic targets 2Plasma produces KO cocktail for MRSA 2Plasma produces KO cocktail for MRSA 3Instrumentation Laboratory Installs 2000th ACL TOP 28R 29 System 5144 1Instrumentation Laboratory Installs 2000th ACL TOP 28R 29 System 5144 2Instrumentation Laboratory Installs 2000th ACL TOP 28R 29 System 5144 3Echo Therapeutics to Present at 4th Annual JMP Securities Healthcare Conference 5139 1Echo Therapeutics to Present at 4th Annual JMP Securities Healthcare Conference 5139 2Premier Research Appoints Troy W McCall Ph D as Chief Executive Officer 5134 1Premier Research Appoints Troy W McCall Ph D as Chief Executive Officer 5134 2
...AKLAND, Calif., September 8, 2008For allergy suffe...to living without pets or curtains or anything tha...ox Company extends its Anywhere® product line ...Allergen Fabric Spray, a new product to help manag.... , Clorox® Anywhere® Anti-Allergen Fabr...
...ADISON, WI, September 2, 2008 -- A new interactive...ents and graduate students how herbicides are deve...ontana State University, has the seal of approval ...nces Education and is published in the 2008 issue... the market today were discovered by random search...
...n athlete,s ability to sweat may do more than keep...t of exercise-induced asthma (EIA), a common respi...rch appearing in the September issue of CHEST, t...f Chest Physicians (ACCP), shows that athletes wit...hose who do not have breathing problems. , Warre...
Other Biology News:The Clorox Company's new indoor allergen product reduces common indoor allergens up to 90 percent 2Athletes' 'sweat and tears' linked to asthma 2Athletes' 'sweat and tears' linked to asthma 3
(Date:11/28/2009)... The Vanuatu National Advisory Committee...onal Communication (SNC) Project in collaboration ...ystems Ltd. of New Zealand have generated prelimin... will form the background for the country’s ...ention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). , ...
(Date:11/26/2009)...YETTE, Ind. - A new generation of ultrasmall trans... structures called semiconducting nanowires are cl...rs at IBM, Purdue University and the University of...ve learned how to create nanowires with layers of ...e atomic level, which is a critical requirement fo...
(Date:11/25/2009)... , ,, BOCA RATON, Fla., Nov. 25 /...a painful year. Not so for BodyLogicMD. The natio...physicians specializing exclusively in medically s...umber of physicians in its network since Nov... progress to add more physician-owned centers, inc...
(Date:11/25/2009)...N DIEGO, Nov. 25 Ardea B...that Barry D. Quart, Pharm.D., president and chief...ray 21st Annual Health Care Conference. , ,Presen... Annual Health Care Conference,Date: Tuesday,...e,Location: The New York Palace Hotel, New York, ...
Breaking Biology Technology:Preliminary Climate and Sea Level Changes for Vanuatu Through the Application of SimCLIM 2Preliminary Climate and Sea Level Changes for Vanuatu Through the Application of SimCLIM 3Preliminary Climate and Sea Level Changes for Vanuatu Through the Application of SimCLIM 4Nanowires key to future transistors, electronics 2Nanowires key to future transistors, electronics 3Nation's Largest Network of Doctors Specializing in Bioidentical Hormones Grows at an Exponential Rate 2Nation's Largest Network of Doctors Specializing in Bioidentical Hormones Grows at an Exponential Rate 3Nation's Largest Network of Doctors Specializing in Bioidentical Hormones Grows at an Exponential Rate 4Ardea Biosciences to Present at the Piper Jaffray 21st Annual Health Care Conference 2
... approval of an emergency,contraceptive with over-...nd older provides another option for preventing un...nformed or misinformed about how emergency,contrac... should to be able,to address these questions and ...regnancy., To address this issue, OBG Management ...
...ew Drug Products to Aida Pharmaceuticals, ...A, Calif., March 27 Aida,Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (O...as signed two share transfer agreements to acquire...obiology research institutes in the People,s,Repub...., Ltd. ("JSIM").,Aida Pharmaceutical,s subsidiary...
... Progen,Pharmaceuticals Limited (ASX: PGL; Nasdaq... commercial manufacture of PI-88. The Progen,manuf...will be retained as,a stand-alone business providi...e of drug development material. Progen expects the...t 12 to 18 months., Progen will maintain the manu...
Other Biology Technology:Publication Addresses Misconceptions About Emergency Contraception 2Aida Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Acquires High-Level Research Institute in the People's Republic of China 2Aida Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Acquires High-Level Research Institute in the People's Republic of China 3Progen Restructures Manufacturing and Drug Discovery Divisions 2Progen Restructures Manufacturing and Drug Discovery Divisions 3
Rat Normal Multiple Tissue Array from BD Biosciences Pharmingen
S1 Nuclease from Invitrogen
Sperm viability Fluorometric (green) Assay Kit, LIVE/DEAD® from Molecular Probes (Invitrogen)
SlowFade Antifade Kit with DAPI from Molecular Probes (Invitrogen)
Biology Products: