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NCPR News Staff: Natural Selections
Stories filed by Natural Selections
"Whirligig" water beetles. Photo: Zen Sutherland, CC some rights reserved
Natural Selections: Whirligig Beetles
Paul Smiths, NY, Apr 04, 2013 — Watching whirligig water beetles, found in circling clumps on the surface of calm fresh water, is a favorite childhood activity of many, including one-time child Martha Foley. Dr. Curt Stager explains the method behind their madcap collective behavior. (Note: Dr. William Romey teaches at SUNY Potsdam.) Go to full article
Bunchberry flower. Photo: James Anderson, CC some rights reserved
Natural Selections: Exploding Flowers
Paul Smiths, NY, Mar 28, 2013 — Some flowers open quickly, and some are even spring-loaded--like the venus fly trap--but the floral deployment speed record belongs to the lowly dogwood relative, the bunchberry, which when triggered opens its tiny four-petal bloom in less than a millisecond. Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager discuss flower power. Go to full article
Dandelions. Photo: Ard Meerveld, CC some rights reserved
Natural Selections: Dandelions
Paul Smiths, NY, Mar 21, 2013 — Martha Foley mows her lawn just before the dandelions go to seed, hoping to keep their numbers down, but there's another whole crop right behind--why? Dr. Curt Stager dug into the story and found the answer in the sex life--or lack thereof--of dandelions. Go to full article
Exposed anorthosite on the summit of Whiteface Mountain. Archive Photo of the Day: Judy Andrus Toporcer, Pierrepont NY.
Natural Selections: Ancient Adirondacks
Paul Smiths, NY, Mar 14, 2013 — "Old as the hills" is a relative term. The Adirondacks may be relatively young mountains, but their distinctive grey granite, anorthosite, originated 1.1 billion ago, so deep in the earth's crust that only continental collision could have formed it. Dr. Curt Stager and Martha Foley discuss Adirondack geology. Go to full article
Pumpkinseed (top) vs. Bluegill. Photo: Dept. of Environmental Protection MoCo, MD
Natural Selections: Sunfish
Paul Smiths, NY, Mar 07, 2013 — A common sight is fresh water shallows, sunfish provide an excellent opportunity to observe fish behavior. Dr. Curt Stager talks with Martha Foley about the two main varieties, the pumpkinseed and the bluegill. It may be hard to tell one from another, unless of course, you're a sunfish. Go to full article
C3-class Solar Flare, Sept. 8, 2010. Photo: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, CC some rights reserved
Natural Selections: Solar Weather
Paul Smiths, NY, Feb 28, 2013 — Solar weather does more than create light shows at polar latitudes. When the sun acts up, the effects can range from communications interference on earth to lethal doses of radiation for unprotected astronauts. Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager talk about heavenly weather. Go to full article
The treeless summit of Cascade. Archive Photo of the Day by Stuart Delman, Chestertown NY.
Natural Selections: The Treeline
Paul Smiths, NY, Feb 21, 2013 — Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager talk about the timberline, the usually abrupt termination of forest growth above a certain altitude. While it results from a combination of unfavorable factors, the final straw seems to be the length of time free of hard frost. When the growing season is too short to overcome damage from the harsh climate, the trees die out. Go to full article
Wooly mammoths with other Ice Age megafauna. Mauricio Antón, from "Who Killed the Wooly Mammoth," PLOS Biology, 2008. CC, some rights reserved
Natural Selections: Ice Age mammals
Paul Smiths, NY, Feb 07, 2013 — During the last Ice Age North America was home to many varieties of "super-sized" mammals, megafauna. Giant beaver, 'possums, bears, sloths and other creatures joined the more familiar wooly mammoth in the land bridge migration. Dr Curt Stager and Martha Foley look at the question, "Why so big?" Go to full article
Natural Selections: Tryptophan
Paul Smiths, NY, Jan 31, 2013 — Martha Foley and Dr. Curt Stager talk about tryptophan, and why you may need a new excuse for falling asleep after a turkey dinner. Go to full article
Bumblebee pollinating blueberries. Photo: Athena Rayne Anderson, CC some rights reserved
Natural Selections: Native pollinators
Paul Smiths, NY, Jan 24, 2013 — With the collapse of the population of the European honeybee, introduced to North America in colonial times, many growers are looking for aids in pollinating their crops. But the honeybee may not be the most effective bee. Bumblebees and other native pollinators do a better job on crops like blueberries and cranberries. Martha Foley and Curt Stager discuss. Go to full article
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St. Lawrence University, Canton,
New York 13617 • phone: 1-877-388-6277 • email
radio@ncpr.orgNCPR is a proud affiliate of:
NPR • American Public Media • Public Radio International
