Feathered dinosaurs probably had lice

(The feathered dinosaurs of Sinornithosaurus, Wikimedia Commons image)

Non-feathered dinosaur may have spent much of their time nibbling from insects and scratch, a new study that suggests suggests that some dinosaurs were the first animal hosts of lice.

"Our analysis suggests that bird and mammal lice before the extinction of the dinosaurs, began diversifying" was quoted as principal investigator Kevin Johnson in a University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign press release. "And given how lice are common on birds, in particular, and also to some extent in the area of the mammals probably insisting on a variety of hosts in the past, possibly including dinosaur."

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This view is strengthened in the journal paper itself. The researchers to write: "these data give an early - to mid - Cretaceous origin (115-130 million years ago) for lice, which suggests that these parasites infect pinnate probably theropod dinosaurs."

Johnson, an ornithologist at the State concludes natural history survey at the University, and his colleague Dino lice after a partial family tree for lice. They did this by comparing the DNA sequences of genes of 69 today's power transmission lines. Changes in gene sequence are believed to a reliable measure of solidarity between different species in the same basic animal group can. Because these changes in the course of time to accumulate, they can also be used to create a rough timeline of the evolution of the related groups of organisms.

Family tree lice specifies that the wingless insects to have been, long before want-the ultimate dust 65 million years ago bit.

During each, which with dealt lice, such as such as head lice on children, know how persistently and hearty these insects can be, it is still surprised to learn that lice have been around as long. The oldest fossils found so far, which are similar to modern bird and mammal groups are less than 65 million years ago, Johnson said. That believe the previous, that big bird and mammal lineages-as well as their body flat insect-led to which appeared only after the dinosaurs went extinct.

But the lice DNA findings indicate that modern birds and mammals were already up, than not dinosaurs extinct. The researchers see because special trains according to one specific any can host animal develops. Wing have lice, for example, long bodies, which allow them, blend between the barbs in a spring and thus evade preening. Gopher-lice have grooves in the tops of their heads on a single wave of hair of clasp.

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These special characteristics make difficult for lice shift to other hosts. As a result, their is evolutionary history very closely with that of their hosts. This story provides evidence of the existence of mammals and birds, 65 million years ago.

United States investigator Vincent Smith "Lice as living fossils, are," explained the former postdoc in the lab of Johnson's was and is now in the natural history museum in London. "The record of our past is written in these parasites and of reconstruction of their evolutionary history, we can lice as a marker to determine the evolutionary history of their hosts."

If dinosaurs actually, how much the researchers suspect said lice Johnson, "perhaps birds only their lice of inherited dinosaurs."

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Fukushima: Sea contamination probably local

Algae easily absorbs radioactive iodine, but as the element has no long-term contamination may pose risk of only a half-life of 8 days current levels. A greater concern is whether caesium or plutonium Contaminiatng of the seabed, but even then would likely to remain a zone local though it may take years.

Radioactive contamination of the sea of Fukushima is probably just a local problem, but could a zone, if there is a major release of long-term pollutants, the scientists say.

So far, the largest polluter has been marked by Japanese officials radioactive iodine-131.

Samples of water taken, the plant have been near as high as 1,850 times of the permitted are fallen back of iodine, but levels, Japanese officials said Tuesday.

Radioactive iodine capture due to algae, which easily absorbs this element of the marine food chain.

"The possibility, if you talk about certain types of seafood, you can Reconcentration,", said Ed Lyman of the Union of concerned scientists (UCS), a prestigious US NGOs, focusing on nuclear safety.

"Even dilute levels of contamination in certain marine life can be improved so that you know how focused mercury in large fish such as tuna." "Plants such as algae is known that certain isotopes focus, and so are certain types of shellfish."

Radioactive elements are dangerous in food because if taken their radiation can in cells, with the potential, DNA damage cause cancer.

The contamination by iodine-131 is only short-lived, as the element a half-life-the pace has where it half of its Radioaktivit?t--loses just eight days.

"This means that after a few months it harmless, in fact,", said Simon Boxall, lecturer at the British National Oceanography Centre at the University of Southampton, southern England, early action, to stop disaster fishing around the plant after the March 11 praised.

"What concerns me more is if cesium and plutonium in the system", he said, on two radioactive heavy metals, whose half-lives are about 30 years and potentially thousands of years or.

"This is more than, since that can build in the sediments" of the seabed in Fukushima, Boxall said.

At a high level, this could be the introduction of a zone of catches of fish, and which was seafood, a measure "Years and years" most recently, he said.

"It's hard to know (how long) until they start the measurements and determine how big is the pollution."

"You would fish period basically not in a zone." "And Furthermore, the exclusion zone there is an additional zone, where they come from time to time and see whether it radioactivity."

Fukushima plant operators, the co. which reported on the Saturday Tokyo electric power (TEPCO), levels of caesium almost 80 times the legal maximum. On Monday, he also said that plutonium, to very low and harmless was found levels, at five locations in the soil in the plant.

Given the magnitude of the Pacific-world's vastest body of Wassers--radioactivity in the sea at Fukushima is flushed from the local area of currents and tides, and on very low dilute, Boxall said.

"Get it in the food chain (Ocean), but only in the environment," he said. "People in Hawaii and California must be worried?" The answer is not. "

The Pacific, thanks to its size is one of the cleanest seas in the world for radioactive contamination, according to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts.

1990 Radiation in the North Pacific surface was four becquerels of cesium 137 per cubic meter, it was while 1.6 Bq/m3, in the South Pacific it says. Most of them came from atmospheric nuclear tests before these blasts were finished.

The most polluted seas were the Baltic Sea hit by fallout from Chernobyl, 1986, 125 Bq/m3; the Irish Sea, with 55 Bq/m3 of radioactive releases from the British Sellafield plant due to; and the Black Sea, also contaminated by Chernobyl, with 52 Bq/m3.

Compared to the set of the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) maximum of 3,700 Bq/m3 in the caesium in drinking water.

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