How Is a Lizard Like a Motorcycle?

There's No Hiding This Camouflage

sumsung submitted, created time 11 months 1 week (sciencenow.sciencemag.org)

Everyone knows what makes the chameleon so special: its rapid color-changing camouflage. But the bug-eyed lizard's reputation as a master of disguise is being challenged by new research published today in PLoS Biology. Its flexible pigmentation may actually be a sexy, albeit dangerous, way to stick out.

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Global Survey of Lizards Reveals Greater Abundance of Animals on Islands Than on Mainland Ecosystems

channel submitted, created time 1 year 8 months (ucsdnews.ucsd.edu)

A comprehensive survey of lizards on islands around the world has confirmed what island biologists and seafaring explorers have long observed: Animals on islands are much more abundant than their counterparts on the mainland. Besides confirming that longstanding observation, the study signals an alarm for island populations in a rapidly warming world. It suggests that climate change may have devastating consequences for lizards and other animals that inhabit islands because their ecosystems are much more sensitive than those on the mainland to change.

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