A University of Michigan-led study of penguin genetics has concluded that the flightless aquatic birds lost three of the five basic vertebrate tastes—sweet, bitter and the savory, meaty taste known as umami—more than ...
Biotechnology
Feb 16, 2015
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One key to animal survival is bitter taste——the better to avoid ingesting potentially harmful poisons or foods. The evolution of bitter taste has been a hot topic amongst evolutionary biologists, and with more and more ...
Evolution
Oct 8, 2014
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Chickens are not fussy eaters. Any object resembling food is worth an exploratory peck. But give a chicken the choice between sugary sweets and seeds, and they will pick the grains every time. This is odd. Many animals, including ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 10, 2014
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Everything about hummingbirds is rapid. An iridescent blur to the human eye, their movements can be captured with clarity only by high-speed video.
Evolution
Aug 21, 2014
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Mosquitoes not only have a sense of smell for certain insect repellents, but they also have a sense of taste for these chemicals, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists.
Cell & Microbiology
Aug 5, 2014
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(Phys.org) —A pair of researchers in China has found vampire bats have difficulty tasting bitter flavors. In their paper published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, Wei Hong and Huabin Zhao of ...
Despite the popular conception of giant pandas as continually chomping on bamboo to fulfill a voracious appetite for this reedy grass, new research from the Monell Center reveals that this highly endangered species also has ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 26, 2014
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Insects represent remarkable diversity and have adapted to all sorts of ecological nooks and crannies. For example, they have taste receptors—novel proteins—with which they taste chemicals and make important choices about ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jan 13, 2014
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Researchers are exploring new pathways into digital taste. "Instead of just looking at a cake on your screen, you can taste it." And so begins the conversation in a rather startling video that shows a man licking a cake on ...
In most animals, taste has evolved to avoid all things bitter—-a key to survival—- to avoid eating something that could be poisonous via taste receptors, known as Tas2r, that quickly spring into action and elicit the ...
Biotechnology
Nov 18, 2013
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