From grace jellyfish mating to a spectacular view of the Milky Way, these are our favourite photos in science this week.
1. Graceful mating
With their gelatinous bodies, strand-like tentacles and other strange features, jellyfish appear to be very different from other types of animals. But are their mating behaviours also bizarre?
There are almost 4,000 species of jellyfish, according to Cheryl Lewis Ames, a jellyfish researcher at the University of Maryland, College Park. Some of these species are considered jellyfish, despite never taking the "medusa" form (free-swimming gelatinous body with tentacles) often associated with jellies.
2. Spider or bird poop?
Many animals camouflage themselves to avoid being eaten by predators, but few are as strange as a spider that disguises itself as bird poop.
The orb-web spider's silver body and the white, silken, disc-like decoration on its web give it an uncanny resemblance to bird droppings. The spiders may use this disguise to avoid being captured by predatory wasps, researchers say.
3. Spectacular Milky Way vista
Credit: Miguel Claro/www.miguelclaro.com
The Milky Way galaxy arcs across the night sky in this magnificent view from the Azores, a chain of nine volcanic islands near Portugal in the Atlantic Ocean.
Astrophotographer Miguel Claro of Lisbon took the image from São Miguel Island in the Azores on April 5.
4. Coral corridors
The string of coral reefs connecting Indonesia and Australia has protected fish from the ravages of climate change for the past 3 million years, a new study suggests.
Corals thrive in the tropics, because the tiny organisms that construct reefs, called zooxanthellae, crave warm oceans and sunlight. But if local sea surface temperatures get too high or too low, or if sea level rises or falls (cutting off sunlight), corals will die.
5. Amanda seen from space
The first named storm of the 2014 hurricane season was caught on camera on May 25, spinning southwest of Manzanillo, Mexico.
Hurricane Amanda was was churning in the eastern Pacific as a Category 4 storm when this image was taken, according to NASA's Earth Observatory. The storm's winds reached 155 mph (250 km/h) over Memorial Day weekend, securing it a place in the record books as the strongest May hurricane ever seen.
6. Antarctic ice flotilla
Antarctica's melting glaciers launched so many icebergs into the ocean 14,600 years ago that sea level rose 6.5 feet (2 meters) in just 100 years, a new study reports. The results are the first direct evidence for dramatic melting in Antarctica's past - the same as predictions for its future.
"The Antarctic Ice Sheet had been considered to be fairly stable and kind of boring in how it retreated," said study co-author Peter Clark, a climate scientist at Oregon State University. "This shows the ice sheet is much more dynamic and episodic, and contributes to rapid sea-level rise."
7. Cute wolf pups rescued
Fire-fighters rescued five wolf pups from an abandoned den Tuesday (March 27) as they battled the massive Funny Rive Fire in southern Alaska's Kenai Peninsula. The pups had not been hurt by the blaze, according to a Facebook post by fire-fighters with the Kenai Wildlife National Refuge, who discovered the den.
Medics with the fire crew fed the fuzzy brown puppies glucose (sugar water) and plucked porcupine quills from their skin. In reward, they got some excited licks from the tiny pups. With help from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, the litter was taken to Anchorage, where they await a permanent home.
8. British shark sanctuary
What's the best place to live if you're a shark? (Hint: It's also a pretty great place to live if you're a human.) The British Virgin Islands. The archipelago recently became the third Caribbean territory to declare its waters a safe haven for sharks.
The decision to establish a shark sanctuary in the British Virgin Islands was made official on May 22 by cabinet members of the British-controlled territory. The designation prohibits commercial fishing of all shark and ray species throughout the territory's 60 or so islands and islets.
9. Under A Starry Sky
U.S. Army Rangers perform training exercises at night at Fort Hunter Liggett in California on Jan. 22. In this photo, the Rangers are preparing to lead an assault by providing suppressive fire, according to Army officials. Fort Hunter Liggett is located about 250 miles (402 kilometres) north of Los Angeles. [Related: 7 Technologies That Transformed Warfare]
10. North America’s Tiniest Turtle
An adult bog turtle would fit in the palm of your hand. When fully grown, the bog turtle measures just 4 inches (10 centimetres) and weighs 3.9 ounces (110 grams), on average. This wee reptile has a black- or mahogany-coloured shell and bright yellow-orange markings on both sides of the head.
Bog turtles can be found from Vermont in the north, south to Georgia, and west to Ohio. The turtle in the above photo was found in Cherry Valley National Wildlife Refuge in Pennsylvania. This refuge was established in part to protect this federally threatened turtle, which is endangered due to habitat loss and poaching. The turtle’s compact size and appearance have made them targets for poachers who illegally sell the animals as pets.
Bog turtles can also be seen in New York City’s Bronx Zoo, which has been successfully breeding the turtles since 1973. [Related Gallery: Tagging Baby Sea Turtles]
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