Mammals

What's cute and furry and has a name only a paleontologist could love? A tiny theoretical creature dubbed the "hypothetical placental mammal ancestor" is stealing the hearts of some evolutionary biologists - and annoying others - as it raises new debate over just when our early mammal ancestors began diversifying across the globe. In a paper published this week in the journal Science, an international team of researchers described how they used a vast database of fossil and anatomical data, as well as DNA evidence, to reverse-engineer an ancestor to the largest group of living mammals.

A boating accident off the Philippines coast has exposed Chinese poaching of a protected species of scaly anteater, or pangolin, prized in traditional medicine. A 500-ton Chinese fishing vessel, the Min Long Yu, crashed into a coral reef April 8. When the boat was inspected, authorities found more than 2,000 butchered pangolins rolled up and packed into 400 boxes. It is one of the largest hauls of the species, which is subject to an international trade ban. Pangolins are long, lizard-like land mammals covered with scales, which make them look like pine cones when they roll themselves up for protection.

Sixty-five million years of history meets cutting-edge interactive technology in the exhibit "Age of Mammals," opening Sunday at the Natural History Museum. The new permanent exhibit, housed in the museum's renovated northern wing, chronicles the evolution of mammals via skeletons, taxidermy, hands-on kiosks and multimedia displays. Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, 900 Exposition Blvd., L.A. 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Sun. $9 for adults; $6.50 for students, seniors and children 13-17; $2 for children 5-12; free for children under 5. (213)

A sea lion stranded on the boardwalk in Newport Beach was safe Thursday after residents helped the animal by pushing it away from bicycle traffic and giving it water, officials said. Resident Fred Levine spotted the adult female sea lion leaning against his home's wall about 10 p.m. Tuesday about 1,500 feet from the ocean on the Balboa Peninsula. He left a Scooby Doo pail of water outside for the thirsty animal. Residents called police for help and the city posted signs that read, "Marine mammals rest on shore.

For all their sharp teeth, many meat-eating mammals lack a sweet tooth, a genetic analysis of a dozen species has shown. The study, published this month in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, shows that carnivorous mammals whose diets don't feature much in the way of sugar may lose the ability to taste it at all. Study coauthor Gary Beauchamp, director of the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia, wasn't sure...

Marine mammal "hot spots" in areas including Southern California's coastal waters may become off limits to testing of a type of Navy sonar linked to the deaths of whales under a plan announced this week by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. NOAA also called for creating a system for estimating the "comprehensive sound budget for the oceans," which could help reduce human sources of noise -- vessel traffic, sonar and construction activities -- that degrade the environment in which sound-sensitive species communicate.

It was about six inches long from head to tail, a furry, shrew-like tree-climber that ate insects and maybe worms, and probably hid out during the day to stay away from marauding dinosaurs. This small creature lived 125 million years ago in northeast China. It is the oldest fossil of a placental mammal yet discovered. Scientists from Pittsburgh's Carnegie Museum of Natural History who made the find have dubbed the creature Eomaia scansoria, or "climbing dawn mother."

In an unprecedented feat, Scottish scientists have cloned an adult mammal by inserting DNA from a single sheep cell into an egg, implanting it in a surrogate mother and raising it to adulthood. They now have a healthy, 7-month-old sheep named Dolly--an exact genetic duplicate of the animal from which the single cell was taken. Six other clones have been produced using the same technique.

The specialized teeth that enabled ancient, shrew-like creatures to flourish and gave rise to all modern mammals evolved independently in two animal groups living continents apart, researchers from the Carnegie Museum of Natural History report in today's Nature. The finding could dramatically alter theories about the pace of early mammals' global advance in the waning days of the dinosaurs, more than 65 million years ago.

Spurts in the size and diversity of mammals have occurred most commonly in periods marked by high concentrations of atmospheric oxygen, researchers reported this week in the journal Science. Paul G. Falkowski of Rutgers University and colleagues estimated the amount of oxygen in the atmosphere at various times in the past. They found that the air contained about 10% oxygen when dinosaurs dominated the Earth. Those reptiles required one-third to one-sixth as much oxygen as mammals.

The sea lion pups jostled with one another in the small pool, diving for the herring and capelin being thrown at them and popping up with fish tails poking out of their little mouths. "The difference a month makes!" JoAnn Smith, a volunteer at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach, remarked as the pups tangled in the water. "Amazing!" The months-old sea lions had come to the care center starving and struggling to survive. They were malnourished, lethargic, ribs and hip bones showing through their smooth dark fur. Their mothers had left them to forage for food, and they were stranded, fending for themselves.

What's cute and furry and has a name only a paleontologist could love? A tiny theoretical creature dubbed the "hypothetical placental mammal ancestor" is stealing the hearts of some evolutionary biologists - and annoying others - as it raises new debate over just when our early mammal ancestors began diversifying across the globe. In a paper published this week in the journal Science, an international team of researchers described how they used a vast database of fossil and anatomical data, as well as DNA evidence, to reverse-engineer an ancestor to the largest group of living mammals.

What's cute and furry and has a name only a paleontologist could love? A tiny theoretical creature dubbed the hypothetical placental mammal ancestor is stealing the hearts of some evolutionary biologists -- and annoying others -- as it raises new debate over just when our early mammal ancestors began diversifying across the globe. In a paper published Thursday in the journal Science , an international team of researchers described a project in which they used a vast database of fossil and other biological data, as well as DNA evidence, to reverse-engineer a hypothetical ancestor to the largest group of living mammals.

It made for a wild tale three years ago when a Santa Monica sushi restaurant abruptly closed after it was disclosed that the hipster hangout was selling illegal whale meat. The chef and the parent company of the Hump at the Santa Monica Airport initially were charged with misdemeanors after a sting operation was captured by a documentary crew. But now the stakes have been raised. A federal grand jury has indicted the owners of the parent company and two of its onetime chefs, charging them with felonies that carry lengthy prison terms.

A tree may be able to live and grow in Brooklyn, but a dolphin is a whole other matter. As fellow mammals looked on from the frigid shore, a dolphin tried to extricate itself from the heavily polluted  Gowanus canal, which borders the legendary neighborhoods of Red Hook and South Brooklyn. The canal has been known for more than a century for the high level of pollution caused by industrial and other wastes. According to video shot at the scene, the dolphin appears to be about 7 feet long.

LA JOLLA - There's a political stink rising in this seaside community, blown ashore from the rocks of La Jolla Cove, where myriad seabirds and marine mammals roost, rest and leave behind what animals leave behind. The offal accumulation is offending noses at trendy restaurants, tourist haunts, and expensive condos perched on some of the most pricey real estate in the country. But finding a solution to the olfactory assault has proved elusive. Environmental regulations have thwarted proposals to cleanse the rocks with a non-toxic, biodegradable solution.

Only about 10% of the birds and mammals that seem to mate for life are actually faithful to their partners, according to new studies based on genetic testing techniques. The studies show that even the most apparently devoted of partners often mate around, visiting nearby nests or dens or clans to enjoy the sexual company of strangers. Birds do it, apes do it, and, of course, so do some people, researchers say in reports being published today in the journal Science.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has decided to allow sea otters to roam freely down the Southern California coastline, abandoning its program to relocate the voracious shellfish eaters from waters reserved for fishermen. Federal officials determined that their sea otter trans-location program had failed after 25 years and thus they were terminating it, according to a decision published in the Federal Register on Wednesday. "As a result, it allows sea otters to expand their range naturally into Southern California," the notice said.

Pacific Gas & Electric Co. was scrambling Monday to salvage plans to conduct seismic surveys using sonic blasts off the coast near the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant after a state regulatory agency staff report concluded it would disturb more than 7,000 marine mammals. The California Coastal Commission staff, in a report released Friday, recommended that the commission deny PG&E's application for a coastal development permit needed to begin the project. The staff cited "significant and unavoidable impacts to marine resources," including threatened and endangered whales, porpoises and sea otters.