Pop Science Report

By: Angel Maravilla

Block: 2
 We’ve lost almost 3 billion birds in the U.S. and Canada since 1970

● Blackbirds are one of the 12 bird families that are in steep decline Bee
Calder/Unsplash
● Some types of birds are having a much harder time than others. Grassland
birds had the greatest loss, with their population going down by 53 percent
since 1970—more than 700 million fewer animals.
How some fish are adapted to thrive after catastrophic hurricanes

Extreme flooding during Hurricane Maria in 2017 was hazardous for the Puerto Rican people. But a new
study finds that it helped native fish populations rebound after years of drought.

The native Caribbean mountain mullet (top) has evolved to survive floods. The sedentary red devil cichlid,
a fish native to Nicaragua but now present in Puerto Rico’s lakes and rivers, is better suited to drought.
Turns out there’s a shocking number of electric eels, and some could give
off 1,000 volts

Do you know what that sound is, Highness? Those are the electric eels. They lurk
in the freshwater basins of South America, paralyzing prey with bioelectric shocks
that function almost exactly like tasers.
New DNA evidence may prove what the Loch Ness Monster really is

Scientists claim to have finally found a "plausible theory" for sightings of the Loch
Ness Monster. She's not an aquatic reptile left over from the Jurassic era or a
circus elephant that got in the water to bathe with her trunk aloft. If Nessie ever
existed at all, she was most likely a giant eel, according to a new scientific survey
of the loch.
How to survive a mountain lion encounter
For starters, don’t run. Running makes you look like prey, which is the last thing you want.
Besides, mountain lions can bound up to 40 feet when running, leap 15 feet, climb trees, and
sprint up to 50 miles per hour—you won’t outrun one. Not even Usain Bolt, the greatest
sprinter ever, could. Your best chance to escape unscathed from such an encounter is to
stand your ground and make yourself look as big and formidable as possible, maintain eye
contact with the animal, speak loudly and firmly at it, and slowly back away.
10 most powerful animal bites on the planet
1. Saltwater Crocodile- 3,700 PSI
2. Great White Shark- 4,000 PSI
3. Hippopotamus- 1,800 PSI
4. Jaguar- 1,500 PSI
5. Gorilla - Bite Force 1,300 PSI
We don’t know what a happy chicken looks like, and that’s a big problem

When animal welfare campaigner Ruth Harrison published a book in 1964 called
“Animal Machines,” there was a public outcry. Her vivid descriptions of post-war
intensive farming started a discussion about animal welfare that led to new guidelines
for safeguarding animals in human care. From this, the “Five Freedoms” were born.
They stated that animals should have:

1. Freedom from hunger and thirst

2. Freedom from discomfort
3. Freedom from pain, injury or disease
4. Freedom to express normal behaviors
5. Freedom from fear and distress
Everything you need to know about shark bites

Sharks elicit outsized fear, even though the risk of a shark bite is infinitesimally
small. As a marine biologist and director of the Florida Program for Shark
Research, I oversee the International Shark Attack File—a global record of
reported shark bites that has been maintained continuously since 1958.
What to do if you encounter a bison

Bison may look like big, cuddly, slow-moving animals; they are anything but. The herbivorous
ruminants can weigh as much as 2,000 pounds, but will run at speeds up to 35 mph (three times
faster than humans), and jump over objects up to 5 feet tall. They’re agile, good swimmers, too,
and have exceptional vision, hearing, and sense of smell. They’re most aggressive during their
mating season in late July and August, and calving season in April and May.
How do deer grow antlers so quickly?

When you stop and think about it, antlers seem like the stuff of science fiction rather than real life. They're
bones that grow extremely fast outside of a mammals body, and every year they fall off and grow back.
For whitetails, at the peak of development, antlers will grow a ¼ inch per day; for bull elk it's more like an
inch.