Shrew Loo

[mimitabby]

http://www.naturalhistorymag.com/samplings/241526/shrew-loo



Shrew Loo
Pitcher plants supplement meat with manure.
By Stéphan Reebs
tree shrew

Tree shrew pauses mid-meal to use the facilities.
Ch’ien C. Lee

In the mountains of Borneo, the pitcher plant Nepenthes lowii sports traps shaped like broad toilet bowls with lids agape. Now, in a tidy twist, new research shows that the pitchers’ form fits their function. Tree shrews defecate in them, and the plant assimilates the feces’ nitrogen.

more at

http://www.naturalhistorymag.com/samplings/241526/shrew-loo

[Glorfindel]

1. Proof of creationism!! That couldn't possibly happen by chance!!

:rofl:

[bear425]

2. Ain't nature grand?!

That is very interesting and k/r
because I give a sh*t.

[On the Road]

3. K&R

This should all the way to the top of the greatest page.

On Edit: Am looking at that picture now wondering if the photographer actually got a shot of the facilities in use, or whether they had to stage it or photoshop it.

[mimitabby]

4. i think it's real

considering the shrew is behind that pink stalk, it looks real to me.

Natural History Magazine is the only one I still subscribe to, it's full of gems like this one.

[On the Road]

6. The Picture of That Small Mammal Taking a Dump

in a natural latrine is both funny and interesting.

We know what the plant gets out of it. The inevitable question now is what does the shrew get out of the practice to make it an adaptive behavior?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

7. The shrew licks the plant's nectar off the "lid" of the potty

while doing its business. Clever of Mother Nature, I'd say, though most of us prefer not to lick the inside of our toilet lids...

[Mira]

5. Fascinating! Recommended so we all learn something N/T

[AsahinaKimi]

8. In some alternate reality

There is a world where Human beings have bio~engineered giant Pitcher plants and made them available for human use, thus saving their planet from green house gases...


Its too bad Michael Crichton has passed away... (sigh)