The Thin End

These are the People of the Forest - the Orangutan, natives of Indonesia and Malaysia, inhabiting the rainforests of Borneo and Sumatra.  Their long arms and short legs, and their hands and feet are adapted for agile life in the trees.  The most solitary of the great apes, they nonetheless have an acute social intelligence, with distinctive group cultures.  Their intelligence is shown by their sophisticated use of tools.  They are toolmakers, these people of the trees. If aliens from another world ever came to the planet earth, they would recognise this intelligence.  But another aspect of their intelligence would also be evident.  They communicate abstract concepts. This is particularly so when mothers are teaching their young.  Not only do they inform the young about the presence of danger, but they will also teach them that something that has happened was dangerous.  This, of course, is what we do with our children.  Learning isn't all wor...

DNA traces are being used to monitor endangered species. What animals leave behind has long been used to track them, whether it is their poo or their foot markings.   Animals leave signs intentionally or otherwise.  They mark their territory, they leave deposits, they rub, scratch, dig, muzzle, lick, and almost everything they do will leave some kind of trace for a time.  Animal tracking is forensic craft. Just as DNA traces can be left at crime scenes, so animals leave their trace too.  Forensic scientists are able to analyze smaller and smaller biological samples to develop a DNA profile - a person touched an object or weapon, skin cells may have been left behind or from their saliva. Now, DNA traces left in water are being used to monitor endangered species that would otherwise be difficult to survey. I n a study just published, the authors have used DNA traces to monitor the presence of the endangered Gouldian finch, Erythrura gouldiae, a small bird end...