So, I was reading this comic book...
... not the most promising start for a science thread, I know, but I promise it's getting better from here!
I'm going to include a little background on the work in question in an addendum, but get straight to the point for now: The book features a group of...
Thanks for pointing that out! I think I may have heard about this previously, but I'd completely forgotten. Even better, the wikipedia article has a link to a more general one on venomous mammals, which further include the vampire bat (including anticoagulants under the umbrella term "venom")...
Oh, good point. I did not make that connection.
IIRC; the sub-par colour vision is believed to be the byproduct of improved low-light vision, which was of particular import for the earliest (nocturnal insectivore) mammals. Is that about right?
If so, it actually may go quite some way to...
That did occur to me, but why would mammals be any different?
As far as I know, mating display is the main intraspecific evolutionary reason for extravagant colouration. The main interspecific evolutionary reason is as a warning sign, usually in the context of poison. And there are no poisonous...
How come mammals are so "drab", compared to what is typically seen in the other major animal taxa?
In a bit more detail, what I mean is this: The feathers of birds, the skins of amphibians, the scales of reptiles and fish, the carapaces of insects and spiders, all of those seem to fundamentally...
Disclaimer: The questions below were raised by an article that's most definitely pseudoscience. The questions themselves have nothing to do with what makes it "pseudo", though, so don't let that put you off, please. :)Quoting from [crackpot link removed by mentor] (I'd advise you only to read...