Electric ray gives birth to 16 babies

A rare electric ray has given birth to 16 babies at a sealife centre.

Published: 8:00AM GMT 09 Jan 2010

It is believed to be the first time the marbled electric ray - which can give a shock almost as strong as mains power - has given birth in captivity in Britain.

The baby rays are in good health and feeding happily on slivers of squid in a nursery tank at Brighton Sealife Centre in Brighton, East Sussex.

The mother was delivered to the centre in September by a local fisherman who was surprised to find the ray among his catch.

Marbled electric rays, or Torpedo marmorata, are usually found in the Mediterranean.

Curator Alex Gerrard said: "She settled in well, but started to go off her food mid-way through December.

"We were worried she might be ill but realise now it was because she was ready to go into labour."

The mum is the size of a large dinner plate and her babies are each as big as the bottom of a coffee cup.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/wildlife/6953481/Electric-ray-gives-birth-to-16-babies.html

Dolphins Are 'Non-Human Persons'

Scientists agree on this amazing statement

By Tudor Vieru, Science Editor
5th of January 2010, 09:20 GMT

The scientific community has finally come to a consensus regarding dolphins. Experts believe that the marine animals are the second most intelligent species on the planet after humans. The creatures are so smart and bright, that they should be referred to as non-human persons, they add. Recent research has demonstrated that their brains are similar to our own in many key features that denote high intelligence. Other tests have also shown that dolphins can learn basic language, and also that they are a lot smarter than chimpanzees. The primates have been considered for a long time the second most intelligent species, but the new work disproves that, Times Online reports.

“Many dolphin brains are larger than our own and second in mass only to the human brain when corrected for body size. The neuroanatomy suggests psychological continuity between humans and dolphins and has profound implications for the ethics of human-dolphin interactions,” zoologist Lori Marino, from the Atlanta, Georgia-based Emory University, explains. The expert scanned the brains of many dolphins using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), and also conducted a number of comparative tests between the brains of the marine animals and those of primates.

Previous investigations in dolphins' routines showed that each of the animals had a unique personality that was shaped by the society it lived in, exactly as was the case with humans. They also communicate with each other via a complex language, even if not articulated. They have the ability to recognize themselves in the mirror, which makes them one of a handful of species capable of doing this. Some specialists say that a fully developed dolphin can reach the level of intelligence of a three-year-old human being, which is no small feat.

The animals also have the ability to teach each other various tricks. For example, a formerly captive dolphin that was taught to tail-walk in an aquarium, was seen teaching others to do the same thing, after it was released. Needless to say, the researchers were amazed to see this happening right before their eyes. The feat denotes a high degree of intelligence, trust and cooperation on the animals' part, which is very rare to come by in species other than humans. “The scientific research […] suggests that dolphins are ‘non-human persons’ who qualify for moral standing as individuals,” Loyola Marymount University Ethics Professor Thomas White says.

http://news.softpedia.com/news/Dolphins-Are-Non-Human-Persons-131113.shtml

Weymouth Sea Life 'dragons' fall for mistletoe

9:40am Tuesday 29th December 2009
By Martin Lea

MISTLETOE has tricked leafy seadragon creatures at the Sea Life Park in Weymouth into a mating frenzy after they confused the Christmas plant for a love-rival.

The odd-looking marine creatures bear a striking resemblance to the Christmas kissing plant.

So when the males were a little slow in getting to know the female seadragons at an aquarium, staff decided to decorate their tank with sprigs of mistletoe.

And it had the desired effect as it apparently sparked jealousy in the male seadragons who now see the plant as a love rival.

Fiona Smith, display supervisor at the Sea Life Park, said: “The males have suddenly started engaging in heated courtship with the females.

“It seems the males view the Christmas decorations as potential rivals and they are making sure they don’t lose out.

“We knew the seadragons looked like mistletoe and at first we decorated the tank as a bit of fun but it has had the desired effect.

“It looks like mistletoe can fire underwater passions so we may keep it in the tank year round.

”The Sea Life Park hopes to be the first place in Europe to breed the animals that are usually found around Australia.

The attraction has only recently taken delivery of the creatures, but were not encouraged with their initial lack of courtship.

Seadragons – phycodurus eques in Latin – are close relatives of seahorses and like them, it is the male that looks after the eggs by carrying them in a clump on his belly.

The Sea Life Park is one of the world’s most successful seahorse breeding facilities and its marine experts hope their expertise will guide them to similar success with the seadragons.

http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/4822560.Weymouth_Sea_Life__dragons__fall_for_mistletoe/
(Submitted by Mark North)