Kitsu’s Afternoon “News”: Quake Kills Belizean Barrier Reef

Originally reported by Discovery News in their blog on 12 September 2011.

The Belizean Barrier Reef has been suffering for decades. El Nino caused massive die outs of the primary two coral species, then in 2009 a magnitude 7.3 quake rattled the Caribbean and scent a large section into deeper waters. Now, about half of the reefs are gone, reduced to sediment and coral skeletons.

This die off has led to consideration of how natural disasters should be addressed in conservation strategies by a team from the Florida Institute of Technology led by Richard Aronson. He urges survival planning for conservation to be not just span 3 generations (200-ish years), but to think instead on a millennial scale.

Kitsu’s Afternoon “News”: Image is Everything

Originally reported in the Daily Mail in an article posted 21 September 2011.

In proof of the fact that image is everything, the quality of a dog or cat’s adoption photograph can be the difference between adoption and euthanasia. Professional photographer Teresa Berg of Dallas Texas can’t stand the thought that “for want of a good picture, a dog goes homeless”, and donated her services as a photographer to her local adoption center. The before and after photographs speak for themselves, but so do the numbers. Adoptions went up 100% after her first batch of new photographs went up.

So, whether you’re looking for a new home for your beloved pet or trying to sell a car, never forget the value of a good photograph in making people want what you’re offering.

Kitsu’s Afternoon “News”: Genetically Engineered AIDS Fighting Phosphorescent Felines

Originally reported by Discovery News in their 12 September 2011 Blog post.

Jellyfish genes have been used to “tag” Feline Immunodeficiency virus (FIV) resistant cats bred in a laboratory. FIV is the feline equivalent of aids and these cats can be used to study FIV resistance and gain insights into fighting HIV and AIDS. The original FIV resistant gene was derived from Rhesus Macaques and inserted into this line of cats along with the Jellyfish gene for luminesense, so that cats carrying the gene would also glow when exposed to black light.

So far the gene has bred true and showed no negative effects on the effected felines. With luck the studies of these cats will result in studies that move AIDS and HIV prevention forward.

And no. You can’t have a glowing cat for a pet. They don’t sell them.

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