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Interactive effects of leaf age and inoculum concentration on downy mildew of cucumber plants and the implication of nutrients.
Anastasia Papadaki 4228 Views	Dec-2018	67 Downloads	26 Likes
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Anastasia Papadaki.
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Anastasia A. Papadaki*, Kalliopi Ladomenou
Department of Agriculture, School of Agriculture Food and Nutrition, Technological Educational Institute of Crete, 71004, Heraklion, Greece.
Anastasia Papadaki, Interactive effects of leaf age and inoculum concentration on downy mildew of cucumber plants and the implication of nutrients. (2018)SDRP Journal of Plant Science 3(1)p:140-149
Background: Artificial fungal inoculation of plants is known to be affected by numerous factors as leaf age, inoculation method and inoculum density. Concentrations of nutrients in soil and plant tissues are also implicated in disease incidence. This study examined how inoculum concentration and leaf age levels affected response of cucumber plants to Pseudoperonospora cubensis, under natural conditions along with the potential impact of soil and leaf nutrients to downy mildew development.
Methodology: Two different aged cucumber leaves were inoculated with three concentrations of a sporangia suspension of P. cubensis in a pot experiment established in a factorial design with five replicates. Measurements of leaf and infection area at various intervals as well as determination of nutrients in both soil and cucumber tissues were conducted. Data were subjected to analysis of variance and covariance.
Results: Disease symptoms emerged on cucumber plants grown under greenhouse conditions regardless of leaf age. Moreover, no significant differences observed on both types of leaves, relative to P. cubensis growth in all the samplings. Main effects showed that leaf area developed independently of the amount of inoculum. However, an interaction between the development of the younger leaf and high inoculum load at the primary stage of the infection was observed. High inoculum loads increased the disease severity on both leaves, while the lowest concentration resulted in higher lesion area on the old leaves compared to the young. Leaf Fe, Zn and Ca content had statistically significant effect on disease emergence at p<0.05, after covariance analysis.
Conclusion: Downy mildew severity was similar on both type of leaves. The size of young leaves was inhibited by the high fungal load whereas their infection had lower progress under limited inoculum density. Leaf but not soil nutrient status was implicated in disease incidence. The findings of this study will be useful for artificial inoculations of cucumber leaves with P. cubensis under greenhouse conditions.
Key words: infection area; greenhouse conditions; leaf size; pot experiment; Pseudoperonospora cubensis; old plant tissue.
Downy mildew of cucumber, caused by P. cubensis, is considered one of the most damaging diseases of cucurbitaceous crops worldwide [1]. As obligate parasites cannot be cultivated on artificial nutritive media, investigations regarding artificial inoculation on living host, is of great scientific interest due to novel knowledge provided about pathogen cycle and management control of the disease. However, downy mildew of cucumber can be screened more effectively in natural epidemics rather than artificial screening [2]. Therefore, directly inoculation of plants grown in pots under greenhouse environment combines the above benefits. Defined inoculum load permits thoroughly comparable results concerning infection, moreover the study area allows pathogen development under natural conditions.
Many studies showed that inoculum concentration is an important factor for successful artificial inoculations [3,4,5]. Inoculum density may influence the period from penetration until visible external symptoms [1] or the accurate assessment of susceptibility to various plant pathogens [6]. Failed attempt for optimum infection due to low concentration of zoospore suspension or high spore content which did not permit the differentiation of environmental effects, reported by researchers [7]. It has been suggested that inoculum concentration for artificial inoculation of cucumber plants with P. cubensis should be adjusted to 12x104 sporangia ml-1 [8]. Similar fungal densities have been widely used since then [9]. However, differences relative to zoospore content depended on the inoculation method used were recorded. Cucumber leaves where sprayed with 1x105 sporangia ml-1 of P. cubensis though five times higher load was used when placing suspension droplets on the leaf surface [10]. Nonetheless, artificial inoculations with lower spore concentrations of P. cubensis sporangia ml-1 (2.5x104) [11], (5x103) [12] or even lower 1.5x102 [13] and 1.4-0.8x103 [2] resulted in successful plant inoculations.
Furthermore, leaf age is quite important for infection [14]. Artificial inoculation of cucumber parts, with other pathogens was hardly achieved [15] or susceptibility to disease increased with leaf age of cucumber cultivars [16]. Although, cucumber plants may be infected at all developmental stages, symptoms on young developing leaves are rather rare under natural infection conditions and cotyledons are actually more susceptible than true leaves [1].
Plant nutrition has also a considerable influence in disease development [17] due to relationship between nutrients availability and growth of the pathogens. Reduction of P. cubensis growth was observed under unbalanced N, P and K while balanced levels of nutrients resulted in disease development in Cucumis melo. Besides, nutrients supply from the surrounding healthy leaf tissue is considered to be responsible for the density of sporangiophores of P. cubensis on small-area lesions [1].
Unlike the effects of inoculation methods in relation to ideal environmental conditions on disease development, reproduction of various sporangia densities of obligate parasites on differed aged leaves of cucumber plants, have not been widely studied, under natural environment. This study attempts to achieve homogeneous P. cubensis attack on leaves with comparable and specific inoculum density under natural conditions. More specifically, the objectives of the current research were (a) to examine the main effects and interactions between inoculum concentration of P. cubensis and leaf age of cucumber plants on the disease spread under greenhouse conditions and (b) to investigate the content of nutrients in soil and cucumber leaves relative to downy mildew development.
The experiment consisted of a factorial arrangement of cucumber leaves (young or old), and spore concentrations of P. cubensis. Treatments were arranged according to a randomized block design and replicated five times with eight plants per plot. Three levels of spore concentrations were used (1.5 x102, 1x103 and 1x104 sporangia ml-1) in all possible combinations with the two cucumber leaves of different age.
Soil analysis was conducted prior to establishment of the experiment with the following results NO3-N 110 mg kg-1, Ρ 42 mg kg-1, K 175.8 mg kg-1, pH 8.02, E.C. 4.38 S m-1, total CaCO3 34.44%. Cucumber plants (Cucumis sativus L. cv. Knossos) were grown in 7 L plastic pots under greenhouse conditions. Balanced fertigation consisted of phosphorus (P) 50 mg L-1, nitrogen (N) 100 mg L-1 and potassium (K) 200 mg L-1 and supplied to crop a week after transplantation by adding 500 ml nutrient solution in each pot. Recommended cultivation practices were applied uniformly to all the treatments.
The third leaf (young) and the seventh (old) from the plant apex were inoculated with sporangium suspension of P. cubensis. The inoculum was obtained from a local greenhouse. The infected leaves were collected and placed for incubation on a wet filter paper in petri dishes for 2 days. Zoosporangia which formed on leaves were gently brushed in a container with distilled water, containing two drops of Tween-20. The concentrations of suspension were adjusted to 1.5 x102, 1x103 and 1x104 sporangia ml-1 with a hemocytometer. Four droplets (10μL each) of the above suspensions were applied on the upper surface of the leaves according to the experimental design. The cucumber plants were grown afterwards under natural greenhouse conditions with average minimum12 oC and maximum 34 oC air temperature.
Leaf and lesion area were measured digitally performing four series of photos of all the inoculated leaves. To study plant and soil nutritional status, samples were collected for nutrients analysis to determine concentrations of NH4-N, NO3-N, Ca, Mg, P, K, Fe, Mn, Cu and Zn on a leaf dry weight basis as well as NH4-N, NO3-N, P and K in soil. From each plant, most recent fully developed leaf was selected as suggested by Jones et al [18]. Six leaves were taken from each plot combined to form a mixed sample. Olsen method for used for soil P whereas K was ammonium acetate extracted from the soil. Leaf NH4-N and NO3-N were extracted with KCl and concentrations was determined using the Kjeldahl wet digestion method. Leaf P concentration was determined by spectrometry. For the rest macro- and micro- nutrients, the samples were dry-ashed in a muffle furnace at 515 ◦C for 5 h and dissolved in 3 mL of 6 N hydrochloric acid and the concentrations were determined by Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry while K was determined using Flame Photometer [19].
Statistical analysis of data was done after checking normality of each variable using Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Shapiro-Wilk tests. To detect main effects and interactions between leaf age and inoculum concentrations, analysis of variance was performed. For comparison of the means Duncan's multiple range test and the least significant difference, for P ≤ 0.05, was employed. The potential effect of nutrients on disease spread was examined after covariance analysis between leaf, lesion area and leaf, soil nutrient.
Effect of leaf age on infection area
The results of this research indicated that there were statistically significant differences relative to size between the young and the old leaf, in all the samplings (Figure 1A). The younger leaves obviously not fully developed, were smaller than the older ones which had reached their maximum size, regardless of the spore concentration. Disease incidence was noticed in all inoculated leaves. Figure 1B depicts that there were no significant differences between the two leaves with regard to infection area in all the samplings.
Figure 1. Leaf (A) and lesion (B) area of young and old age cucumber leaves, during the samplings (day 11, 13, 16, 20 post inoculation with P. cubensis).
Leaf size and downy mildew incidence under inoculum levels
The effect of inoculum content on leaf size of cucumber plants revealed no significant differences (Figure 2A). However, in day 13 post inoculation with P. cubensis, the highest sporangial load led to significantly larger leaf with regard to the rest inoculum levels.
Figure 2B shows the infection area caused by P. cubensis on leaves of cucumber as affected by the inoculum doses. All artificial inoculations resulted in disease incidence. Significantly elevated infection with increasing pathogen levels was recorded, at the day 11 and 13 post inoculation. Two higher spore levels had not statistical difference between them relative to infection, at day 16 and 20, only with regard to the lower inoculum concentration (day 20).
Downy mildew symptoms on cucumber leaves observed even at the lowest spore level (1.5x102 sporangia ml-1), 11 days after infection. Artificial inoculations with similar sporangia doses of P. cubensis on cucumber plants [13] or other vegetables [2] have been reported. Optimal rates of P. cubensis inoculum that were used in most researches seem to be around 103 to 104 sporangia mL-1 [9, 12, 20, 21] or much higher [11, 22, 23]. However, most of them performed inoculations by spraying a sporangium suspension on cucumber leaves although this method is in contrary to the natural properties of the fungal sporangia dispersal [20]. In the current investigation, where droplet method was used for accurate monitoring of downy mildew development, dominated environmental conditions possibly favoured even the few spores to germinate before the droplet dried.
It was apparent that disease severity significantly increased with the increasing fungal load at the initial infection stages. Nevertheless, when downy mildew developed, no significant difference observed between two higher inoculum loads, as reported for other pathogens [24,25].
Figure 2. Effect of inoculum concentration (sporangia of P. cubensis ml-1) on leaf (A) and lesion (B) area, during the samplings (day 11, 13, 16, 20 post inoculation with P. cubensis).
Leaf age x Inoculum load interaction
Statistical analysis of the data obtained showed significant interaction between leaf age levels and inoculum doses for leaf area, at the first sampling (Figure 3A). The area of the young cucumber leaf was increased in the medial sporangium level with regard to the rest concentrations. In contrast, the same inoculum dose led to lower size of the old leaves in comparison with the others. Thus, the higher fungal load reduced the size of the young leaf whereas the corresponding area of the old leaf was not affected. This indicated that the development of the new leaves was prevented by the high inoculum load.
Although main effects of leaf age on infection area revealed no differences, an interaction of leaf age x inoculum level was obtained for this variable (Figure 3B). Therefore, the lower sporangial concentration led to significantly reduced infection area on the young leaves than the old ones. No statistical significant differences observed for the higher pathogen doses in relation to their affect to lesion area of both aged cucumber leaves. A possible explanation could be the unfavourable microclimate conditions for sporangia germination due to the small size of the young leaves and their higher position on the plant which might resulted in limited dew periods and good air circulation. Field resistance is known to occur with low inoculum levels and be remarkably dependent on environmental conditions rather than the pathogen itself [1].
Figure 3. Interaction of leaf age x inoculum concentration with regard to the leaf and lesion area (day 11 and 13 post inoculation with P. cubensis). The least significant difference (P=0.05) among inoculum concentrations is presented with LSD bars.
Soil and leaf nutrients as covariates
Means of macro and micro nutrients are shown in Table 1. It can be concluded from the results obtained in this research all the nutrients were at sufficient to high levels in the cucumber leaf samples [18]. In general, there were not clear statistically significant differences in the nutrient concentration in cucumber tissue and soil. Although, the content of the primary nutrients and Mg tend to increase in young leaves probably due to their mobility. An opposite trend was observed for the rest immobile nutrients in new aged cucumber tissues. Nutrient soil content did not result in statistical significant differences (Table 1).
Table 1. Effect of treatments on macro and micro nutrients in cucumber leaves and soil.
Macronutrients in cucumber leaves
Inoculum Concentration
NH4-N
NO3-N
Sporangia
ml-1
mg Kg-1
6.5b*
129.2ab
146.4a
104.5bc
Micronutrients in cucumber leaves (mg Kg-1)
Macronutrients in soil
mg Kg-1 in soil
7.0bc
*Means within columns followed by different letters are significantly different (Duncan, P=0.05).
Plant nutrient status is already known to affect the physiology of the plant host, which eventually influences the microclimate and reduces infection by pathogens [26]. Moreover, differences in nutrient availability could be responsible for observed differences in virulence [27]. Since the availability of nutrients to plants affects the inoculum potential of the pathogens, it could be concluded that under high nutrient status of the cucumber leaves, the infection success was favourable in all inoculums levels of this obligate foliar pathogen.
Covariance analysis of the obtained data showed that infection caused by P. cubensis was affected by nutrient content in cucumber leaves, only at the early stage of the disease development. Therefore, the nutrients Fe, Zn and Ca of the leaves significantly influenced the total lesion area at P<0.05 in the day 11 post inoculation with P. cubensis (Table 2). The important role that nutrients play with regard to inoculum concentration has also been reported for other diseases [24]. Besides, a study by Amand and Wehner about the effect of various factors such as leaf age, stomata opening on cucumber gummy stem blight stated that nutrients provided by guttation were more important in the infection process than other factors [16]. Moreover, the high leaf content of Fe, Zn and Ca found in this study has been associated with host response to fungal diseases [28,29,30].
Table 2. ANCOVA for lesion area of cucumber plants in the day 11 post inoculation with leaf nutrients content of Fe, Zn and Ca, as covariates.
Mean square
Leaf age
Replicates
Fe*Inoculum Concentration
Leaf age * Inoculum Concentration
Fe* Leaf age
Zn* Inoculum Concentration
leaf* Inoculum Concentration
Zn* Leaf age
Ca* Inoculum Concentration
Ca* Leaf age
The current study concluded that all tested spore concentrations resulted in successful infection of both young and old cucumber leaves, after artificial inoculation with P. cubensis in greenhouse conditions. Moreover, the pathogen attacked plant leaves regardless of age, causing the same infection area. The high spore contents led to equable emergence of downy mildew, as the disease increased with time. Leaf nutrient content of Fe, Zn and Ca was implicated in the early stages of infection. High sporangial load inhibited the size development only of the younger leaves while disease progressed rapidly on the old aged leaves of cucumber plants even under low P. cubensis inoculum.
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tv Way Too Early MSNBC November 7, 2013 2:30am-3:01am PST
our souls? it's okay, chris, you had us at hello. for all of you shrugging at the fact we're already talking 20 16, i think you better get used to it. and let's face, it a chris christie presidential run would be a lot of fun. we'll catch you up on all the chatter surrounding the popular new jersey governor. here's a hinted -- not everyone is happy about it. also while you catch up on us and on twitter, today's the day you can actually own a piece of the company. we'll look at whether it's a good investment on the day it goes public. and the worst hit-and-run you've probably ever seen. we can show you because no one got hurt except probably someone's pride. this is "way too early." good morning. brian shactman. we really need to start the story surrounding the miami dolphins because it's what
everyone seems to be talking about. it's transcending sports. as the bullying case involving two players unfolds, the general manager of the team reportedly offered one way jonathan martin could have handled the situation -- punch richie incognito. multiple sources say that was the gm's response when martin called complaining of his treatment by incognito. the sun-sentinel says they asked the now-suspended incognito to toughen martin up a little bit. martin left the team amid claims of bullying and voice mail. commissioner roger goodell has appointed a special counsel. dolphins' head coach joe philbin says his team and coaches exemplify respect. >> jonathan martin came in here and worked hard every single day. we have men in the locker room that care about one another,
that set a great example for one another. i told you, i believe in the guys in the locker room. the type of culture i've championed since the day i walked through these doors has been one of honesty, respect and accountability to one another. i consider those to be hallmarks of this program. and i believe our locker room reflects those beliefs. >> well, what remains is a complicated portrait of these two players. jonathan martin had reportedly been asked to pay for lavish dinners, which often happens to rookies, no longer a rookie, called big weirdo and was required to wear an embarrassing haircut. incognito had a reputation in the league of being a nasty player at times but seems to be a well liked player of the team. dolphin teammates have come down on one side saying the two players were close friends. incognito looked out for martin and he's not a racest. they say there's a process for
rookies to be trusted by the team. it's wrong to describe that as hazing. we'll dig into it in sports. didn't take very long. just hours after landslide re-election victory new jersey governor chris christie already facing questions about running for president in 2016. but the republican was coy about its plan saying he's flattered by the talk but ignoring it, at least for now. >> i'm a better executive today than i was when i answered those questions about two years ago. and so you think that would make me better prepared to be president but i'm going to be really clear about this. i got a job to do. i got re-elected to do a job and that's the job i'm going to do. if i change my mind, i want to do something else, i'll tell the people in new jersey i want to do something else. >> so, you have christie's strong win, the loss of
cuccinelli and a lot of republicans asking whether it's time to limit the tea party. but someone to challenge christie in the primary, apparently not getting the memo. ted cruz and marco rubio both downplaying the victory. >> there are factors in new jersey individual to that race. clearly, he was able to speak to that and to the hopes of aspirations and people within new jersey. >> senator cruz said, quote, i think it's terrific that he's brash, that he's outspon and that he won his race. but i think we need more leaders in washington with the courage to stand for principle and in particular, obama care is not working, end quote. strange. senator rand paul launched an attack during superstorm sandy recovery, criticizing christie with ads entitled, stronger than the storm for tourism. >> some people for office put their mug all over the ads while
they're in the middle of a political campaign. in new jersey $25 million was spent on ads. you think there might be a conflict of interest there. that's a real problem. that's why when people who are trying to do good and trying to use taxpayers' money wisely, they're offended to see our money spent on political ads. >> president obama phoned governor christie to congratulate him on the victory. the white house says the president was glad to make the call after they worked together on sandy relief efforts. let's turn our attention to obama care now. terry mcauliffe's two-point victory in virginia's gubernatorial race has some democrats worried about their future. yesterday the president met with 16 senators frustrated about the rollout of obama care and they are worried the troubled launch may come back to haunt them during next year's midterm elections. cuccinelli was able to narrow the gap after focusing on obama
care during the campaign. exit polls show 53% opposed obama care and of those, 81% voted for cuccinelli. the president flew to texas yesterday where he was critical of the state's lawmakers for not opting into obama care. >> one thing that gets me frustrated, although i understand it because i'm in politics, is folks who are complaining about how the website's not working and why isn't obama fixing this and all these people are underinsured, and yet they're leaving a million people right now without health insurance. that they could immediately fix. there's not a lot of logic. >> meanwhile, on capitol hill it was the senate's turn to question hhs secretary kathleen sebelius. >> this is unacceptable. it has been disappointing to
hear members of administration say they didn't see the problems coming. >> as someone who has fought and bled for this and who sincerely thinks it's going to work in the long run, i want you to hold them account, bun their fingers and make them pay. >> this is a false statement made to the american people that this administration has consistently doubled down on and repeated time and time again. and the only thing i can conclude is that it's impossible to do something in this administration that gets you fired. it's impossible. >> let's turn to pole politics. martin walsh, one popular guy in boston and not even mayor-elect. former aide to ted kennedy. received a few unexpected calls of congratulations yesterday. one was from vice president joe biden who reportedly roared, you son of a gun, matter y yrty, di.
dnc share debbie wasserman schultz reportedly made the error, so did the mayor of minneapolis. the wrong marty walsh told ""the boston globe"" we're a dime a dozen. i probably not eight marty walshes. we get a look at new economic data. yesterday stocks were mixed but the dow jones industrial average closed at an all-time high. it seems virtually ignored because twitter's gone public. steve sedgwick live for us in london. do people think this is going to pop huge at the open or what? >> reporter: well, it's popped huge before the open as well. they raised the price twice, brian. what's interesting is what led the dow higher yesterday, really old tech, microsoft trading at highest level in 12 years. now it's all about twitter, which upped its price target twice. $26 per share is the ipo price. they could have sold this twice over. it's valuing the company pretty highly.
$18 billion is the valuations. there are caveats out there. some people slightly concerned. it doubles its revenue to 168 million u.s. dollars. year on year tripled its losses. a company very high valued still losing $164 million in the last quarter. in other struggling websites looking at potential merger, henry blodget, nothing coming out of it yet. would they like a full collaboration? they were just having breakfast, denton and blodget. >> two big brands and names in the business. when was the last time you walked out of your flat and went to the movie store and went a movie? >> do you know what? i know where this is going, brian. very recently. >> recently? >> recently. >> what was it? >> it was blockbuster, it was in
east sussex. we still have a couple of black busters. i know it has problems stateside. >> do you have like flinstones where your feet run underneath it? >> yes, yes. >> talk about -- >> i've tried the streaming. it's so new age. just like my vinyl, brian. don't tell me you lost your vinyl. >> vinyl is hip again. what's going on with the company? >> yeah, it's tragic. basically what we're talking about, internet streaming. cable company downloading movies down the pipe, plus the likes of netflix sending dvds per post. this iconic brand will close last 300 stores by early january. another 28 00 people will lose their jobs. 50 blockbuster franchisees left in the states. it's an endangered brand on the high street but the owners still think it has way to go.
>> steve sedgwick who sends smoke signals to his neighbors. let's stick to twitter. let's talk about twitter. we want to know if you would invest in the ipo and why or why not? tweet your best and most creative answers using t the #waytoometa. that's our way of being witty. we'll have the best answers later in the show. after weeks of speculation, google finally breaking its silence about that mystery floating barge out in san francisco bay. the company says it's exploring using the site as a place where people can learn about its new innovations in technology. the structure raised eyebrows, even provoking the coast guard to take a lack. another mystery barge was spotted across the country in portland, maine. some speculation is spaces could rival apple stores in showcasing products. it is huge. from the bad but unavoidable pun department, this story is
nuts. literally. sorry, folks. made that joke. thieves last week stole $400,000 worth of walnuts in central california. if you want to know what that translates into, that's 140,000 pounds of nuts. a local reporter says the thieves basically cut through a fence, hooked up their own tractor to three double trailer sets and just drove off with the nuts. the price of walnuts, by the way, they have tripled in the last few years. there's a black market in nuts, they went from 60 cents to two bucks. there's a lot of walnut robberies laterally. more on harassment accusations surrounding miami dolphins. surprising comments from martin's teammates about his relationship with he incognito. and jimmy kimmel's exclusive
interview. that and a check on weather. this huge storm approaching the philippines. we'll talk about that with bill karins. magic job johnson has tested positive for the hiv virus. >> because of the hiv virus that i have attained, i will have to retire from the lakers. the day we rescued riley was a truly amazing day.
he was a matted mess in a small cage. so that was our first task, was getting him to wellness. without angie's list, i don't know if we could have found all the services we needed for our riley. from contractors and doctors to dog sitters and landscapers, you can find it all on angie's list. we found riley at the shelter, and found everything he needed at angie's list. join today at angieslist.com look! one select-a-size sheet of bounty is 50% more absorbent than a full size sheet of the leading ordinary brand. use less with bounty select-a-size.
want to get back to that miami dolphin story for a second. one of the questions that has emerged from the dolphins hazing investigation is whether it's a locker room culture problem whether simply two a player's s isn't thick enough. dolphins say it's grossly yshg
characterizing the team. >> i know richie personally, so i've been around this guy for four years. and i know he don't mean it in a people are saying it. >> we have a system of basically it's just a big joke. it helps comraamaradericamarade. keeps things light in the room. everyone participants. en no one is extemperature. >> you see pictures of them on the plane, playing around. the group, we're family. >> i think if you would askon martin a week before who his best frebd on the team was he would say incognito. anything that went down on the field, richie was first guy there. hanging out outside football, who was together? richie and jonathan. >> if they asked to toughen up
martin? why would they ask a racist, bully of a person to do so? we never felt we put him in harm's way. if we did, i'm sorry. but we did not. to challenge the leadership and character of this locker room. >> we don't have the time to talk about nuances of this story, it's like pro sports cultu culture, modern sensibilities of how we treat people. >> perception from inside the locker room is different from outside. i never heard those comments from them before and i'm shocked. >> it shows you a lot of the stuff without the comments probably goes on in a lot of these locker rooms all the time. we just don't get it in the public. >> yeah. where this goes, it will be fascinating. >> interesting. how about this storm, by the way? >> oh, yeah, this is devastating. i mean, when you see a storm -- i mean, look at the eye, the center circle there. that's incredible stuff. this is being called, and it is the strongest storm we've had on this planet this year. unfortunately, it's going to hit
a land area in about 12 hours from right now, in through the central philippines. doesn't look like up north where it's more populated, manila. but 175-mile-an-hour wind. this is like a category 5 hurricane. about 12 hours away from the philippines. 24 hours from now we'll probably start getting pictures out of that area just how devastating it is. nothing that bad across the u.s. we still have leftover rain. moving through central new york and central pennsylvania. eventually it will work its way through new england today. we will see heavier rains even up from boston, new york city, and some lighter rain, philadelphia to d.c. the timing of that around noon to 2:00. most will all be gone about the time we get through 6 p.m. compareded to what they're going through in the philippines, we don't have a lot of bad weather. thoughts and prayers to them, because they're about to go through a horrible tragedy. coming up at the top of the hour on "morning joe," some are calling it the beginning of chris christie's presidential
campaign. some fellow republicans are not hopping on the band wagon yesterday. when we come back, we'll huddle around the cooler. there's bad driving and then there's this. it's a hit and hit and hit and eventually run. we'll be right back. [ man ] adventure, it means taking chances.
it means trying something new. [ woman ] that uncertainty of what's to come. ♪ ♪
at the top of the show we talk about twitter and highly anticipated ipo which starts trading today. if you want to sound smart, tell your friend, on average people send 500 million tweets per day. the most tweeted tv is not "breaking bad" but "pretty little liars" with 1.9 million tweets. that's lewis' favorite show. >> i was going to say the same. we have come across bad drivers with questionable skills but this one may set a new low. this captured horrible driving as well as poor choices. the part we don't see is the driver of the suv is apparently involved in a fender-bender with this taxi. the cabbie gets out of the car and the driver of the suv wants out of the situation, obviously, after a few attempts at escape in reverse, the cabbie hits the driver's window. that's when the suv driver
decides he's got to go. now, watch this. let's count. one collision. two collision in reverse there. we got three and four. there you go. and that's a double collision into the original cab. another suv. now, including the initial accident, that is a total of five collisions. the police say that was a stolen car and the driver is in police custody. now, i think if you're actually a car thief, you'd be a better driver than that, but that's insane. for all you lady gaga fans, you better get ready. the pop star will be performing in a galaxy near you. "time" magazine reports she's planning a concert in 2015 in souter space. she'll have to train her vocal
chords for change in atmospheric pressure. she'll be able to avoid the paparazzi up there. i'll be turning into nasa-tv for that one. steven colbert -- >> today we're taking kids on the best field trip they could wish for and they don't even know for. hi, guys. i'm ranger brad. welcome aboard. let's not waste any time. let's play, name that leaf. what's this one. he says oak leaf. it's a field maple. i'm a big fan of trees. but we're not going to the forest today. we're going to toys "r" us, guys. welcome to the world's greatest toy store. >> toys "r" us has really captured the magic of having a stranger take your kids on a bus, lie about where they're going and then take off his clothes and promise them toys.
>> i love toys "r" us, man. let's go to jimmy kimmel who got an exclusive interview with embattled mayor ford. who was accused of smoking crack. >> have you ever been in a drunking stupor? >> well, i've never smoked crack -- >> have you ever been in a drunken stdrun drunken stupor? >> no. >> i was in a drunken stupor. why am i being held accountable for something i did in a drunken stupor. does that sound fair? >> yeah, it does. >> what happens in a drunken stupor stays in a drunken stupor, unless some [ bleep ] take it. >> he was just on the radio and said, i was hammered. thank you. still ahead on "way too
early," you want in on the twitter ipo? i'm beth... and i'm michelle. and we own the paper cottage. it's a stationery and gifts store. anything we purchase for the paper cottage goes on our ink card. so you can manage your business expenses and access them online instantly with the game changing app from ink. we didn't get into business to spend time managing receipts, that's why we have ink. we like being in business because we like being creative, we like interacting with people. so you have time to focus on the things you love. ink from chase. so you can. yes. cup your hands together for me. rub it all the way up your hands. any exposed skin. and get the backs of your hands too. put some just around your neck. [ bell rings ] you're good to go. okay great thanks, here. can you hold him? [ bell rings ] [ female announcer ] by their second kid, every mom is an expert and more likely to choose luvs than first time moms. and new luvs with nightlock
offer our largest absorbent area ever. they lock away wetness better than huggies, even overnight. live, learn, and get luvs. of providing a free world-class education for anyone, anywhere. if you look at a khan academy video, they cover everything from basic arithmetic to calculus, trigonometry, finance. you can really just get what you need at your own pace. and so, bank of america came and reached out to us and said, "we are really interested in making sure that everyone really understands personal finance." we're like, "well, we're already doing that." and so it was kind of a perfect match. to share with family. [ woman 2 ] to carry on traditions.
[ woman 3 ] to come together even when we're apart. [ male announcer ] in stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy and more, swanson makes holiday dishes delicious.
would you want to buy in on twitter ipo? >> marks, i love twitter on my t not my portfolio. >> let's see how this company trades. steve rattner and a whole bunch of chat on it on "morning joe," which starts right now. ♪ it would be speculating about somebody who wasn't doing their job well. speculating about me means i'm continuing to do my job well. if i'm doing my job well it's good for people here. i don't see it as a burden. you got to have a huge ego to say oh, please it's a burden for you speculating on me to be the leader of the free world. that's a pretty huge
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Taxteaparty
Is social science scientific
Published on : July 7, 2019 Published by : admin
Is Social Science Scientific?
Sociology is undoubtedly a logical science; it has the characteristics that other sciences have, its own theories that can be proved, as well as having systematic theories and laws. John Maynard Keynes refuted the many statements made by Auguste Comte and Friedrich Engels, simply he described social sciences as "illogical" and "dull." Thus, without providing any sufficient evidence, he had not proven that, in fact, sociology is not scientific. Auguste Comte regularly compared sociology to other familiar forms of science, like biology, physics, and chemistry. In doing so, he made the assumption that others believed sociology to be scientific. Comte, unintentionally, provided adequate evidence as to why sociology is scientific, while at the same time simply describing sociology as a whole. Much like Comte, Friedrich Engels also found social sciences to be scientific, Engels was able to apply Comte's beliefs and the basis of sociology to practical situations and groups of people. His strong belief in the science of sociology helped him form the basic idea that knowledge is what makes a person free; thus, ignorance is what restricts people. John Maynard Keynes is considered the challenger of Friedrich Engels, because he often disputed Engels' work, especially his work on social sciences. Keynes found socialism to be a utopianism ideal, which caused people to be easily influenced without really being aware of all the facts. He didn't believe that there was any science involved at all, and thus people were being misinformed and history was influenced in a negative way. Without Keynes providing specific evidence as to why social science is not scientific, Comte and Engels' ideas on sociology cannot be debated.
Auguste Comte, who is credited with being the founding father of sociology, strongly believes that this form of knowledge is in fact scientific. He provides evidence such as his specific stages of awareness; these stages are comparable to other scientific laws, like the different stages in physical, human development in the science of Biology. The three different stages; mythopoetic, metaphysical and positive, can all be observed in the maturation of a child into an adult; everyone progresses through these three phases. Comte held social sciences to the same "natural laws" that other sciences are held to, however he also described how sociology is different. He believed the key difference in social sciences, is that the causes of "phenomena" and specific behavior is investigated, rather that overlooked. Comte went as far as to compare his third stage of knowledge, positive (also known as scientific) to a type of religion, because he believed that positivism holds the whole truth, and one day this whole truth will replace what is not real in theology. His strong beliefs and descriptions of sociology provide others with evidence that there is a scientific system in this knowledge.
Friedrich Engels further supported statements made by Auguste Comte, and also added his own beliefs and findings to maintain the belief that sociology is scientific. Engels took Comte's findings and applied them to groups of people. He said that ignorance is a sign of someone who is not freedom; freedom comes with the knowledge gained. He is known for applying Marxists beliefs to sociology. Many considered Engels radical because of his ideas on how social science is logical and because of his application of his sociological beliefs to common people. His primary objective in his teachings was to prove how external nature affects internal laws. Also, Friedrich is credited with discovering a scientific pattern inside of social sciences; this only provides more evidence that sociology is scientific. Friedrich Engels ability to see the science inside of sociology and further build upon Comte's findings helps to illustrate the scientific pattern.
Unlike Auguste Comte and Friedrich Engels, John Maynard Keynes found sociology to be anything but scientific, in fact, he believed that it was completely irrational and it falsely led people to follow its beliefs. It is hard to understand Keynes point of view because he doesn't openly state his findings that guided him to believe this. Keynes doesn't particularly attack Comte's views, however he critiques Engels' findings strongly, especially Engels' and his associate Carl Marx's "Marxian Socialism." Keynes, like many other critics, believed that Engels misunderstood many of Marx and Comte's findings, leading socialism into a non-scientific field. Unfortunately, due to Keynes lack of supporting evidence, it is hard to understand his beliefs against sociology, thus he doesn't derive any proof that social science is not scientific.
Sociology is in fact scientific because it is very systematical, methodical, and logical. The two most sustaining pieces of evidence to support this is the three stages of knowledge, as found by Comte and Engels' scientific pattern in Sociology. John Maynard Keynes was not able to further prove that there was no science involved in sociology; he simply tried to diminish its validity. Overall, Sociology is considered a science by most; this is due to Auguste Comte and Friedrich Engels' strong evidence supporting it.
Is sociology value free
Mark ,karl
Comprehensive Notes on "Marxist Theory"– (With Contemporary Views and Criticism)
Important Reasons Behind the Emergence of "Political Sociology"
5 Major difference between "Ethics" and "Sociology" – Explained!
Life Of Arthur Conan Doyle
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Panama and Costa Rica by Sea: The Natural Wonders
7 Nächte Le Bellot
Route Colon, Panama - San Blas (Panama) - Crossing the Panama Canal (Panama) - Fuerte Amador, Panama - Fuerte Amador, Panama - Playa Muerto - Auf hoher See - Quepos, Costa Rica - Puerto Caldera, Costa Rica
Colon, Panama
Colón is the second largest city in Panama, at the Caribbean entrance of the Panama Canal. Colón is today an important port, and the free trade zone created in 1953 contributed greatly to the development of the city. Colón was founded in 1850 by Americans working on the Panama railroad connecting the Atlantic and Pacific coasts through the isthmus of Panama; the city rapidly overshadowed the older Caribbean ports of Panama when the canal opened.
San Blas (Panama)
The San Blas Islands of Panama is an archipelago comprising approximately 365 islands and cays, of which 49 are inhabited. They lie off the north coast of the Isthmus of Panama, east of the Panama Canal. A part of the comarca Guna Yala along the Caribbean coast of Panama is home to the Kuna people.
Crossing the Panama Canal (Panama)
Fuerte Amador, Panama
An artificial peninsula situated at the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal, Fuerte Amador is the gateway to several noteworthy sites. Right near there, the impressive Miraflores Locks are a shining example of the engineering feats deployed during the construction of the Panama Canal. Further north, in villages nestling amid dense vegetation, lives the Embera tribe, guardian of the forest and of the Chagres River. This proud people have successfully preserved their traditions and their ancestral way of life, which predate the colonisation of the region by the Spanish.
Playa Muerto
Quepos is a town on Costa Rica's central Pacific coast. It's known as a gateway to Manuel Antonio National Park. The park's mangroves, lagoons and beach-lined rainforests shelter howler, white-faced and squirrel monkeys. Nearby sandy stretches include Playa Espadilla and Playa Biesanz.
Puerto Caldera, Costa Rica
Caldera Port, in Spanish Puerto Caldera, is the main freight port in the Pacific side of Costa Rica, located in the Esparza canton of the Puntarenas province.
7 Nächte mit der Le Bellot - - Abfahrt 11.02.2023


The RICS, one of best UK housing economic departments has produced its independent view of the commercial market. Falling occupier demand and increasing availability drove down commercial property rental expectations in the final quarter of 2011, says the RICS UK Commercial Market Survey (11th January 2012).
The RICS survey states that overall tenant demand continued to fall in the final three months of last year, with 13 per cent more surveyors reporting decreases rather than increases in interest from prospective tenants. Notably, demand for commercial space in London also began to waiver for the first time in over a year.
The survey went on to say that falling demand and rising availability continued to impact on overall rental expectations which weakened over the quarter, moving further into negative territory (-29 per cent). The more adverse trend was visible in all parts of the UK with the headline rent expectations net balance even in London recording a negative result. However, the report suggests that rents are still projected to nudge up in the capital's prime office sector.
Simon Rubinsohn, RICS Chief Economist, said: "Rental expectations have predictably become a little more negative in the face of the recent run of grim economic news. While this seems to be the case across almost all of the UK the one area that continues to buck the trend is prime London offices. However even here our indicators suggest that demand for space is a little less strong than it was. Meanwhile, the on-going shortage of mortgage finance is set to dampen investment activity."
The full RICS Q4 2011 Commercial Market Survey can be read here.


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You are here: Home / Adventure / Truberbrook
Truberbrook
»Trüberbrook« is a thrilling mystery-sci-fi adventure game.
Enjoy an adventurous vacation to a 1960's parallel universe! A Sci-Fi-Mystery Adventure Game with handmade scenery.
Imagine yourself on a vacation to Europe in the late sixties. Now, picture yourself as a young American scientist; Hans Tannhauser. Yes, that's your name in this scenario. While you're at it, think of Trüberbrook, a remote village in rural, mountain-sloped and densely forested cold-war Germany. Because, that's where you somehow end up after hitting the continent. But who cares, you won the trip in a lottery! Or at least, that's how it seems. But don't fear, instead of getting some rest, you could find yourself having to save the world …
Suspense! Mystery! Thrills! After all, it's a single player sci-fi mystery adventure game. We want to keep you entertained!
Join American student Tannhauser, stranger in a strange land
Set in cold-war rural Germany in the late 1960s
Inspired by Twin Peaks, The X-Files, Stranger Things & Star Trek
Indulge in universal themes such as love, friendship, loyalty, self-discovery and dinosaurs
Handmade miniature scenery!
Full voice acting in both English and German!
Atmospheric, moody soundtrack
Up to 10 hours of super exciting gameplay!
OS: Windows 7 / 8 / 8.1 / 10
Processor: i3 4th generation / i5 2nd generation / A6 series
Graphics: Intel HD 4000 / AMD Radeon 5800 series / nvidia 550Ti
Sound Card: DX11 compatible
Filed Under: Adventure Tagged With: Truberbrook


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MOTTY AS AN ADULT? – IS THIS WHAT THE WORLD'S ONLY INTERGENERIC HYBRID ELEPHANT WOULD HAVE LOOKED LIKE HAD HE SURVIVED TO MATURITY?
Motty as a calf (above) and a photo-manipulated image (below) of what he may have looked like had he survived to adulthood (photo courtesy of Derek G. Lyon/Chester Zoo; photo-manipulation by Paul Willison of public-domain photograph of adult bull African elephant)
For 11 days, a little elephant calf called Motty was the world's first (and remains its only) intergeneric hybrid elephant, resulting from an unanticipated mating between a male African elephant Loxodonta africana and a female Asian elephant Elephas maximus at Chester Zoo, England, in July 1978. In my previous ShukerNature article (click here), the second of two documenting this truly unique animal (click here for my first one), I mentioned that I had often wondered what Motty would have looked like if he had survived to maturity, and I mourned the fact that we shall never know. This is of course perfectly true, we can only speculate – but now, I'm delighted to reveal that such speculation has acquired an astonishing and thoroughly fascinating visual form.
Facebook friend and computer art enthusiast Paul Willison shares my interest in what the adult appearance of Motty might have been. Consequently, after reading both of my Motty articles and noting that in overall body form (especially with regard to his long slimmer legs and large triangular, pointed ears) Motty seemed somewhat closer to Loxodonta than Elephas, Paul used his photoshop skills to transform the adult bull African elephant present in each of two public-domain photographs into what may conceivably be accurate images of Motty as a fully-mature elephant. Paul utilised as his morphological guides the photographs of Motty as a calf that appear in my articles, plus my detailed verbal description of him, which was based in turn upon an official account of Motty prepared by Derek G. Lyon, who was Chester Zoo's chief veterinary surgeon at the time of this remarkable little elephant's existence there.
And here they are.
Photoshopped adult bull African elephant #1, now exhibiting the unique complement of morphological characteristics possessed by Motty as a calf (public domain image photo-manipulated by Paul Willison)
If these two photographs are directly compared with their respective original, non-photoshopped versions (see below), it can be readily seen how Motty's composite, intergeneric morphology might well have yielded when translated into adult form an elephant that looked dramatically different from any that had ever been seen before, one that was singularly imposing and impressive.
For although he is likely to have retained the overall stature and body proportions of his African elephant father as well as his single large frontal skull dome, Motty would also most probably have retained his paired posterior skull domes inherited from his Asian elephant mother, as well as her species' very distinctive convex back, greater number of toes per foot, and her single trunk-tip digit – features that do not occur in African elephants (the latter possess two trunk-tip digits).
Original, unmodified African elephant photo #1 (above), and the 'Motty-fied' version (below) (public domain; public domain image photo-manipulated by Paul Willison)
Nor is this the end of the story. As Paul swiftly recognised and brought to my own attention after completing his photo-manipulations, the resulting images predicting the possible adult appearance of Motty bear more than a passing resemblance (aside from shorter tusks and larger ears) to a certain proboscidean that is spectacularly different from anything alive today – nothing less, in fact, than the gargantuan Columbian mammoth Mammuthus columbi, one of the most awe-inspiring prehistoric mammals of all time.
Native to North America and traditionally believed to have become extinct around 12,500 years ago (but possibly a few millennia later, due to the existence of certain contentious fossil remains that have yielded more recent dates), adult males of this stupendous creature stood 13 ft tall at the shoulder, even overshadowing all but the most exceptional of today's African elephants. It also sported enormous tusks, almost 14 ft long in some instances.
Yet due to this species' very close taxonomic affinity to the woolly mammoth M. primigenius (indeed, DNA evidence suggests that the Jefferson mammoth M. jeffersonii of North America might actually have been a naturally-occurring hybrid of the Columbian mammoth and woolly mammoth), it may well have possessed characteristics recalling Elephas, because the woolly mammoth is certainly more closely related to the modern-day Asian elephant genus than to the African one.
Model of the Columbian mammoth on exhibition last year at the Natural History Museum, London (© Dr Karl Shuker)
Also worthy of note here is that some mammalian hybrids, ligers (lion x tigress hybrids) being a well-known example, actually attain dimensions exceeding those achieved by both of their progenitor species. Is it possible, therefore, that an adult Motty might have surpassed even his African elephant father in stature, thereby providing yet another parallel with the mighty Columbian mammoth?
Of course, all of this is speculation – entertaining, certainly, but completely speculative nonetheless. Even so, perhaps we should not be too surprised after all to discover that Motty, a hybrid deftly combining the African elephant's basic build and proportions with the more specific idiosyncrasies of the Asian elephant, may in adulthood have superficially recalled the Columbian mammoth – a fascinating outcome that, if correct, makes his demise even more tragic than ever, our modern-day world possibly having lost the nearest morphological evocation of the majestic but long-bygone Columbian mammoth that anyone will ever see.
My sincere thanks to Paul Willison for so kindly preparing and making available to me for inclusion here the photo-manipulated images of Motty's possible adult appearace.
Life-sized model of the Columbian mammoth on exhibition last year at the Natural History Museum, London (© Dr Karl Shuker)
Labels: animal hybrids, Columbian mammoth, cryptozoology, hybrid elephant, hybrids, karl shuker, Motty, mystery elephants, ShukerNature, woolly mammoth
THE RETURN OF MOTTY, THE MIRACLE HYBRID ELEPHANT - UNVEILING SOME NEVER-BEFORE-SEEN PHOTOGRAPHS OF HIM!
Motty and his mother at Chester Zoo, July 1978 (© Mike Poustie, c/o Chris Poustie)
In an earlier ShukerNature article (click here). I documented the birth and tragically-short but zoologically-immortal, never-to-be-forgotten life of a truly unique animal – a little elephant called Motty. He has been referred to as the miracle elephant, and for good reason, because he was something that science had previously rejected as an outright impossibility – a hybrid between an African elephant Loxodonta africana (Motty's father) and an Asian elephant Elephas maximus (Motty's mother). No intergeneric elephant hybrid had ever been recorded before, and none has since, and almost certainly never will be ever again.
Motty was born at Chester Zoo, England, on 11 July 1978, but his arrival was totally unanticipated by everyone at the zoo, because although a male African elephant was being maintained together with some female Asian elephants there and had been seen mating with them, no-one had expected any offspring to result from such liaisons, because the genetic differences between the two genera that the African and Asian elephants respectively represent were deemed too great for such an event to occur. But somehow, incredibly, an offspring did result – Motty. Sadly, however, just 10 days after his zoologically historic birth, little Motty died, and a post-mortem revealed that he had been suffering from an unsuspected outbreak of necrotic enterocolitis plus E. coli septicaemia.
Motty was subsequently preserved as a taxiderm specimen and has been held ever since in the vast stores of London's Natural History Museum, but he has never been publicly displayed, which is a great shame, because such an extraordinary animal would surely attract considerable attention and interest.
Head-and-back view of Motty with his mother (© Mike Poustie, c/o Chris Poustie)
Due to his all-too-brief existence, very few images of Motty exist. However, he was photographed by Derek G. Lyon, who was Chester Zoo's chief veterinary surgeon at that time, and Derek has very kindly made his photos of Motty available to me to incorporate in any of my writings. Some of these pictures were duly included, therefore, in my previous Motty article on ShukerNature. As seen when viewing them (click here), they readily reveal the complex intermingling of morphological characteristics drawn from Motty's two very different progenitor species and embodied in his own singular appearance.
Now, moreover, I am delighted and very excited to announce that some additional Motty photographs have been brought to my attention – photos that have never previously been seen in public, but which, once again, have very kindly been made available to me by their owner for inclusion in my writings.
On 24 May 2013, a reader who identified himself only as Chris posted a short message beneath my original Motty article on ShukerNature informing me that he had actually seen Motty alive during a visit to Chester Zoo in mid-July 1978 with his father and brother when he was 6 years old, and that his father had snapped some colour photos of Motty. Chris promised to scan and email the photos to me if I'd like to see them. I swiftly confirmed that I would definitely like to see them, and on 3 January 2015 Chris sent them to me, revealing that his full name was Chris Poustie and his father's was Mike Poustie. Moreover, in a follow-up email, he stated that both of them were happy for me to utilise the photos as I wished in my publications and researches.
So now, officially unveiling them as a ShukerNature world-exclusive, here are some of the Poustie photos of Motty, interspersed throughout this present ShukerNature article – thanks very much, Mike and Chris!
Detailed view of Motty with his mother (© Mike Poustie, c/o Chris Poustie)
Once again, as with Derek's photos, they perfectly capture for all time Motty's fascinating intergeneric morphology, a composite creation unlike any other, and proof that whatever the odds, however implausible the prospect, somehow life will always find a way to express itself.
Whenever I think of Motty, I always wonder what he would have looked like had he survived to maturity. Would he have retained his unique combination of characters from both species, or would those inherited by him from one species have largely obliterated those inherited by him from the other? Might he have attained the huge size of his father – indeed, might he have even surpassed it, just like ligers (lion x tigress hybrids) often exceed the dimensions of both of their progenitor species?
Sadly, we will never know, and can only ever speculate. However, I feel sure that whatever appearance Motty would have assumed as an adult, it could not have been anything other than magnificent and marvellous – just as marvellous, in fact, as his very existence had been, and always will be.
UPDATE - 16 February 2015
I mentioned earlier in this present ShukerNature article how sad it was that we shall never know what Motty would have looked like had he survived into adulthood, only that whatever form his appearance may have taken, it would certainly have been unique, marvellous, and magnificent. But now, in another ShukerNature world-exclusive, thanks to a couple of amazing illustrations we may finally have an idea after all of just what the mature Motty could have looked like. And as if that were not extraordinary enough, what makes this new insight even more astonishing is a totally unexpected similarity to one of the world's most spectacular prehistoric mammals. Intrigued? Confused? Excited? Click here, and all will be revealed!
Full view of Motty with his mother (© Mike Poustie, c/o Chris Poustie)
Labels: animal hybrids, cryptozoology, hybrid elephant, hybrids, karl shuker, Motty, mystery elephants, ShukerNature
ARNOLD'S GIANT TORTOISE AND THE HOLOLISSA OF SEYCHELLES - LONG FORGOTTEN, BUT NO LONGER GONE
Aldabra giant tortoise (left) and hololissa (right) at Cotswolds Wildlife Park, showing shell differences (© Dr Karl Shuker)
The New World giant tortoises famously inhabiting the Galapagos Islands off Ecuador in the Pacific Ocean were once rivalled for size by several huge Old World species native to the Indian Ocean's granitic Seychelles group, the coral atoll of Aldabra, the Mascarene islands, and Madagascar. Of these, only the Aldabra giant tortoise Aldabrachelys [=Dipsochelys] gigantea [=dussumieri, =elephantina] is traditionally thought to have survived into the present day, the remainder having been killed for their meat during the 1700s and 1800s - or so it was thought, until Arnold's giant tortoise and the hololissa unexpectedly reappeared in modern times.
There has been much debate concerning the precise number of giant tortoise species native to the Seychelles. Four are currently recognised (although some researchers deem them merely to be subspecies of a single species), one of which was formally described in September 1982, by Dr Roger Bour from France's National Museum of Natural History. He based his description upon three old taxiderm specimens (two at the above museum, the third at the British Museum). They possessed various skeletal modifications that seemed to be adaptations to browsing, and originated from the granitic Seychelles islands. Bour named their species Dipsochelys [now Aldabrachelys] arnoldi, but as there did not seem to be any giant tortoises (other than Aldabra's) in the Seychelles today, he naturally assumed that it was extinct - belatedly recognised as a distinct species, yet irretrievably deceased.
Aldabra giant tortoises (© Dr Karl Shuker)
Imagine, then, his surprise when, while still preparing his paper, Bour was shown some photos by film producer Claud Pavard (who had taken them in August 1981) depicting two living giant tortoises that seemed to belong to his supposedly extinct species A. arnoldi. Nor was this the only surprise. The tortoises, males and very old, were living in semi-captivity at a sugar estate, but not in the Seychelles - instead, on Mauritius! Naturally, Bour hoped to visit Mauritius, to ascertain conclusively these potentially significant specimens' identity.
And that is where this most promising saga seemed to come to an abrupt end. During my preparation of my book The Lost Ark, published in 1993 and the first in my trilogy of volumes documenting new and rediscovered animals from 1900 onwards, I was unable to locate a single publication carrying any further news regarding these tortoises, and none of my zoological colleagues and correspondents had any details (sadly, I never succeeded in eliciting a reply from Dr Bour himself), though they were all as intrigued by it as I was. Happily, however, the mystery was finally solved in May 1992, when I learnt from British Museum herpetologist Dr Nick Arnold (after whom A. arnoldi had been named) that Dr Bour had indeed visited the two Mauritius specimens, but had found that they were not representatives of A. arnoldi after all.
The Lost Ark: New and Rediscovered Animals of the 20th Century (HarperCollins: London, 1993) (© Dr Karl Shuker)
Moreover, Dr Ian Swingland, Founding and Research Director of the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology (DICE), informed me that giant tortoises reared in captivity sometimes have shells that have become distorted in shape, due to the way in which these animals have been fed. In some cases, therefore, it is possible that they may even resemble the shells of quite unrelated species, and this is presumably what had happened in the case of the two Mauritius specimens, which were probably individuals originating from Aldabra. Captivity-induced distortion of shell shape can cause problems for tortoise taxonomists too, especially if they are dealing with specimens whose life histories are unknown (and which, therefore, may have been reared in captivity).
Of course, one objection that could immediately have been raised in relation to this entire episode is the fact that supposed specimens of A. arnoldi were discovered not in the Seychelles, but instead in Mauritius. As it happens, however, this objection can be effectively countered - because a number of giant tortoises from the Seychelles are known to have been introduced there after that island's own indigenous species had been exterminated during the 1700s. In particular, the French explorer Marion de Fresne transported five such specimens in 1776 from the Seychelles to his military barracks on Mauritius. What was assumed to be the last of this quintet died there in 1918, but there may have been others too, whose records have failed to survive to the present day.
A pair of Aldabra giant tortoises mating - intriguingly, the top specimen has a markedly flat-backed shell, resembling the saddle-backed shell of Arnold's giant tortoise (public domain)
In any event, what did seem clear at the time of writing The Lost Ark was that none of the long-lost species of Seychelles giant tortoise had been resurrected after all. During 1995, however, another discovery was made - one that added a new and much more dramatic chapter to this long-running saga of mistaken and incognito identities.
In January of that year, the Nature Protection Trust of Seychelles (NPTS) learnt of two very large, and very old, male tortoises living in the garden of a Seychelles hotel. When examined by Dr Justin Gerlach and K. Laura Canning, chief scientists with the NPTS, they were found to exhibit pronounced flaring, flattening, and scalloping of the carapace, especially over the hind legs - characteristics that distinguished them from the Aldabra giant tortoise but corresponded closely with those of Arnold's supposedly long-extinct species.
Arnold's giant tortoise (© Editha@emys-home.de /Wikipedia)
Enquiries revealed that these and one other male specimen had been purchased in 1994 from an old local man, in whose family they had been throughout living memory. The third had died in December 1994, but its skeleton was preserved and donated to the NPTS's scientific collections. Cranial studies subsequently determined that it was indeed distinct from the Aldabra species. Genetic studies were also set in motion, to bypass any possible misclassification based solely upon morphological characteristics - which can, as already ably demonstrated with the earlier episode of the Mauritius specimens, be very deceptive.
By early 1997, several additional specimens of unusual giant tortoise had been discovered in various Seychelles localities and examined by Gerlach. Moreover, whereas some of these resembled Arnold's giant tortoise, eight others closely recalled a second supposedly long-vanished species - the hololissa Dipsochelys [now Aldabrachelys] hololissa. Previously, this latter species had been known only from two shells found in 1810, described in 1877, and destroyed in the 1940s by German bombing raids during the London Blitz. It formerly inhabited various granitic islands of the Seychelles, where it grazed vegetation on the edges of streams and marshes, but had vanished in the wild by 1840.
Hololissa at Prague Zoo (© travelviaitaly/Wikipedia)
In March 1997, Dr Les Noble conducted genetic tests at Aberdeen University on blood samples taken by Gerlach from a large selection of live Seychelles giant tortoises, including the controversial ones. These tests showed that three distinct groups could be identified, revealing that eight of the specimens were hololissas, two were Arnold's giant tortoises, and the remainder were Aldabra giants. But this was still not the end of the story.
A year later, Blackpool Zoo in England announced that Darwin, the Aldabra giant tortoise that had been living there for the past 25 years, was not a member of the Aldabra species after all. While closely scrutinising photos of recently-discovered living specimens of the hololissa, staff at the zoo were astonished to discover that they looked just like Darwin. Anxious to learn more, they duly contacted Gerlach, who visited the zoo, examined Darwin, and confirmed that he was indeed a living hololissa. This presumably explains why he has never successfully mated with Beagle, the female Aldabra giant tortoise that accompanied him when he arrived at Blackpool in 1972 - because they belong to separate species.
Hololissa at Cotswolds Wildlife Park (© Dr Karl Shuker)
Similarly, I subsequently learnt from the Cotswold Wildlife Park, also in England, that one of their supposed Aldabra giant tortoises had also been unmasked as a hololissa. Moreover, by the end of 1999 at least 12 living hololissa individuals and 18 living individuals of Arnold's giant tortoise had been revealed in various locations around the world, including a very impressive specimen at Prague Zoo in the Czech Republic.
Snapped in 1905 when its subject was still alive on Mauritius, a vintage black-and-white photograph still exists of what is now believed by some researchers to have been a hololissa, taken there from its native Seychelles homeland in 1764. Living in the Court House Garden on Mauritius, this venerable individual was therefore at least 140 years old at the time of being photographed, but was probably much older, because no-one knows how old it already was at the time of its transportation there from the Seychelles.
Possible hololissa on Mauritius, vintage 1905 photograph (public domain)
All of which invites speculation as to how many other incognito specimens of hololissa and Arnold's giant tortoise may still be awaiting identification elsewhere. By the end of 1997, the NPTS had introduced several specimens of hololissa and Arnold's giant tortoise to Silhouette Island (third largest of the central Seychelles islands) in order to initiate captive breeding programmes for both of these recently-revived species and thus ensure their continuing survival, and it continues to search for more possible examples in captive collections worldwide.
Officially known as the NPTS Seychelles Giant Tortoise Conservation Project, its patron is veteran wildlife film maker and broadcaster David Attenborough. Its long-term goal is to increase the numbers of both species in order to permit reintroduction to secure reserve sites within the Seychelles group - thereby restoring in viable form two remarkable endemics to their native island homeland after more than 150 years of 'official' non-existence.
Child riding Aldabra giant tortoise at Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy, readily demonstrating just how large these tortoises are (Wikipedia/public domain)
All that now remains to be accomplished in order for this tale of tortoise resurrection to be complete is for the fourth species of Seychelles giant tortoise – D. [now Aldabrachelys] daudinii, Daudin's giant tortoise – to be rediscovered. Known only from the Seychelles island of Mahé and named in honour of French zoologist François Marie Daudin (1776-1803), it was formally described and named in 1835, but officially became extinct in 1850.
Judging from the recent success in revealing hitherto-unrecognised living specimens of the hololissa and Arnold's giant tortoise, however, who can say with absolute certainty that there are no incognito A. daudinii individuals out there somewhere too, alive and well but in blissful ignorance of the fact that their species is officially long-extinct?! To be continued…?
This ShukerNature article is expanded and updated from my book The Encyclopaedia of New and Rediscovered Animals (2012).
Labels: Arnold's giant tortoise, cryptozoology, Daudin's giant tortoise, hololissa, karl shuker, mystery reptiles, ShukerNature, The Encyclopaedia of New and Rediscovered Animals, The Lost Ark
SURREAL SYNCEPHALI – A TRIPLICATE LAMB FROM HUNGARY, AND RIPLEY'S DOUBLE-BODIED DONKEY
Engraving of an extraordinary triple-bodied, single-headed lamb that reputedly existed in Hungary in 1620
Many years ago, a correspondent sent me a photocopy of the remarkable engraving that opens this present ShukerNature article. It depicts what was allegedly a living lamb with three fully-formed bodies united by a single head. According to the caption included in the engraving, this extreme developmental monstrosity (the study of such freaks is known as teratology, which translates as 'the study of monsters') had been seen in Klausenburg, Hungary, during July 1620. (Incidentally, I have never been able to trace the original source of this engraving, so if anyone reading my article has any information concerning it, I'd welcome all details. Also: Klausenburg was technically part of Transylvania during the 1600s, which in turn was assimilated into Hungary before eventually becoming part of present-day Romania.)
A developmental monstrosity born with a single head but two bodies is known technically as a syncephalus or monocephalus, and is basically a pair of incompletely-separated (conjoined) twins in which, during embrogeny, the head (cephalic) portion of the originally-single embryo has not differentiated into two separate heads but has instead remained as a solitary undivided unit, thus developing into only a single head, whereas the body portion of the originally-single embryo has split into two halves with each half developing into a body. (Less common and more deleterious to survival is the reverse derivation of a syncephalus, in which a pair of separate twins originally develop but the heads of the two twins subsequently fuse during embryogeny with one head becoming reabsorbed into the other.) There is, however, a great deal of variation on record with regard to the degree of body-portion splitting occurring, so that in some cases the two bodies remain joined together rather than separating from each other – as seen with the following syncephalic lamb, illustrated in an early engraving of unknown origin (at least to me).
Engraving of a syncephalic lamb displaying incomplete separation of its two bodies
Examples of syncephaly have been recorded from many different animal species, including our own Homo sapiens. However, because of internal anatomical complications, not to mention the physiological strain of a single head attempting to maintain full neurological control and metabolic functioning of two bodies, syncephalic individuals possessing totally discrete bodies rarely survive for very long following birth. (In contrast, bicephalic or dicephalous individuals, possessing a single body but two heads, do sometimes survive to maturity, especially in certain creatures such as terrapins and snakes – click here for more information concerning two-headed snakes.)
Consequently, the concept of a surviving syncephalic lamb that possessed not just two but three completely separated bodies seemed too surreal, let alone too implausible, to warrant even the most cursory of considerations. So I simply filed away the engraving in one of my folders of teratological material and forgot all about it – until last Friday, 6 February 2015. For that was when I paid a visit to a very special attraction and saw something there that totally challenged my previous assumptions concerning syncephalic animals and their likelihood of surviving for any notable length of time following birth – and, in turn, made me think again about that anomalous triplicate lamb from Hungary.
Robert Ripley, founder of the Ripley's Believe It Or Not! franchise (public domain/Wikipedia)
The attraction in question was Ripley's Believe It Or Not! Odditorium London (click here to visit its official website). Situated on the corner of London's Piccadilly Circus, this is a spectacular six-storey exhibition centre that is packed throughout with bizarre curiosities and interactive displays celebrating the famous books, TV shows, and newspaper strips documenting all manner of incredibly weird yet wonderful people, animals, buildings, creations, and much much more that were originally compiled, collected, and drawn by entrepreneur-cartoonist Robert Ripley (1890-1949) for his countless publications.
Experiencing some Mesozoic mayhem at Ripley's Believe It Or Not! Odditorium London (© Dr Karl Shuker)
As a zoologist, it was obviously the various –and extremely varied – animal attractions that particularly interested me, and I was certainly not disappointed in the array on display. There are many Ripley's Believe It Or Not! Odditoriums worldwide, especially in the USA (but with London's being the largest one of all), and they have become synonymous with teratological animals. There was certainly a goodly selection here in London (some of which were actual taxiderm specimens, others models of real specimens), including several two-headed creatures, animals with extra (supernumerary) limbs (a condition known as polymelia), and other equally curious caprices.
One such creature was a rooster with three separate legs that had been found in 1998 in England (exact location not specified), and was on display alongside a five-legged lamb (its right hind limb was a double leg), again from England and found during the early 1990s.
A three-legged rooster and a five-legged lamb – two polymelic animals at Ripley's Believe It Or Not! Odditorium London (© Dr Karl Shuker)
The two-headed lamb standing close by had been born in Shandong, China, in 2006, and both of its heads were fully functioning, with separate personalities.
Ripley's two-headed lamb from Shandong, China (© Dr Karl Shuker)
Just behind it was a pair of conjoined ('Siamese') piglets, joined back-to-back but with separate necks and heads (thus constituting a lesser version of the controversial rachipagus condition, in which conjoined twins are joined dorsally from the back of their heads down the entire length of their backs). These conjoined piglet twins were apparently similar in form to a pair possessed by the eminent Russian tsar Peter the Great (1672-1725), who famously owned a sizeable collection of scientific curiosities (click here for more information concerning this).
The conjoined piglets at Ripley's Believe It Or Not! Odditorium London (© Dr Karl Shuker)
Just inside the entrance to the odditorium was a taxiderm specimen of an adult black-and-white Friesian cow, which looked totally normal – until I realised that a fully-formed fifth leg complete with hoofed foot was growing outwards and upwards from between its shoulders! This bizarre teratological condition is called notomelia, and indicates that during this cow's embryogeny a supernumerary, aberrantly-located limb bud had developed. Alternatively, but more dramatically, as an example of what could be termed pseudonotomelia it is possible that the cow had originated as a pair of twins but that one of these two twins had subsequently degenerated and had been almost totally reabsorbed into the other one during their embryonic development, with only the single limb providing external evidence of the absorbed twin's former existence as a separate entity. (A very similar instance of notomelia, featuring a male Friesian calf, was published in the July 2014 issue of the Canadian Veterinary Journal.)
Ripley's notomelic Friesian cow possessing a dorsally-sited supernumerary leg, plus the heads and forequarters of a small white two-headed calf (© Dr Karl Shuker)
Here's another two-headed calf that was on display:
Two-headed calf at Ripley's Believe It Or Not! Odditorium London (© Dr Karl Shuker)
And here's an albino alligator, complete with ruby-red eyes:
Albino alligator at Ripley's Believe It Or Not! Odditorium London (© Dr Karl Shuker)
There were also a number of life-sized models of famous human curiosities. At one extreme was a model of Alypius, a dwarf from Alexandria during ancient Egyptian times, who was only 43 cm (17 in) tall, and whose fitting punishment for committing treason was imprisonment inside a parrot cage!
Model of Alypius at Ripley's Believe It Or Not! Odditorium London (© Dr Karl Shuker)
And at the other extreme, standing in front of a full-sized American mastodon skeleton that only served to emphasise his truly exceptional stature, was a full-sized model of Robert Wadlow (1918-1940), immortalised in the record books as the world's tallest man. Suffering from pituitary-induced gigantism, when he died aged just 22 years old he was already a little over 8 ft 11 in tall, and was still growing. Indeed, had he grown just under one inch more, he would have been the only confirmed 9-ft-tall human ever recorded. Standing alongside this real-life giant's model, even at a respectable 5 ft 10 in tall I still felt totally overshadowed by him, and overawed too.
Standing alongside the life-sized model of Robert Wadlow at Ripley's Believe It Or Not! Odditorium London (© Dr Karl Shuker)
Equally eyecatching was a full-sized bust of a man exhibiting hypertrichosis, also known as werewolf syndrome as persons displaying this condition of extreme hairiness were once believed by the superstitious to be lycanthropes.
Bust of a man exhibiting hypertrichosis at Ripley's Believe It Or Not! Odditorium London (© Dr Karl Shuker)
Also well worthy of attention was the conical, elongated skull of an ancient Peruvian, its extreme shape having resulted from the practice prevalent then and there of using tightly-wrapped cloth, boards, and rope to distort the shape of a child's growing skull via rigorous binding.
Manually-distorted conical skull of an ancient Peruvian at Ripley's Believe It Or Not! Odditorium London (© Dr Karl Shuker)
Yet despite all of these wonders and marvels, the specimen that startled me most at Ripley's Believe It Or Not Odditorium London was not actually on physical display there. Instead, it appeared – and even then only very fleetingly – on a video being played in loop format on a screen close to most of the teratological animal specimens. The video showed a selection of teratological animals that were on display at various odditoriums around the world, and also included some footage of certain of these animals when they were still alive. Watching this video, I was astonished when a couple of seconds of film was shown of a living, seemingly adult, and clearly perfectly healthy syncephalic donkey, which consisted of a single head to which were connected two completely separated, fully-formed bodies!
By the time that my mind had registered this astonishing image, the video had moved on to showing other specimens, so I waited until it looped back to the beginning and then looked out for the donkey footage. After studying it intently when it reappeared, there was no doubt in my mind about what I had seen. It was indeed as I'd thought it to be on first viewing, both in form and in condition, though even now I struggle to comprehend how such a creature could survive to maturity – two independent four-legged bodies linked to a single controlling head.
After then waiting for the footage to come round a third time, when it did so I snapped a photo of this amazing donkey-in-duplicate, which although of poor quality would serve as a visual record of it for my files, and I vowed to investigate the matter further when I returned home. After all, if such a creature could truly exist and survive to adulthood, even the ostensibly impossible triplicate-bodied syncephalic lamb of Hungary suddenly seemed less implausible.
My photographic record of the syncephalic donkey as featured in the video shown at Ripley's Believe It or Not! Odditorium London (© Dr Karl Shuker/Ripley's Believe It or Not! Odditorium London)
And sure enough, my online researches have indeed confirmed the donkey's reality. Named Rascal, he was a miniature donkey owned by farmer Paul Springer whose farm is situated near Mineral Point, Wisconsin, USA. Paul's longstanding interest in teratological livestock has led him over the years to purchase a number of specimens that exhibit some anatomical peculiarity but are otherwise healthy and not suffering in any way, and allow them to live out a full, happy life on his farm instead of being slaughtered by their original owners either for their meat or simply because they were different.
Paul's first purchase was a six-legged calf called Boldegard during the 1970s, who went on to enjoy a long 14-year life on Paul's farm, followed by a range of other animals with extra legs, additional horns, two heads, or, in Rascal's case, one head and two bodies. Following their eventual deaths, half a dozen of the most striking individuals have been sold by Paul to the Ripley's Believe It Or Not! franchise for exhibition in various of their odditoriums. So it is possible that Rascal is on display in one of them, somewhere in the world. Consequently, if any of my readers have seen him, and can send me details, I'd very much like to receive them here – many thanks indeed in advance!
How uplifting it is to read of Paul Springer's compassion for all of the out-of-the-ordinary creatures that he has rescued from certain premature death. When asked in a media interview (WSAW.com 15 November 2009) what compelled him to rescue and care for animals with abnormalities, his answer was as inspirational as it was direct:
"There's something about them that maybe I feel sorry for. I give them a life. Most people will put them down and sell them. I am proud of them. People who see them, it gives them a chance to realize that everything isn't [normal], whether it be human beings or pigs or people or cats or dogs, we're not all born normal. Just because somebody has a handicap, they shouldn't be shunned. They should be given every chance, and love and attention that's possible."
Rascal when alive (© Paul Springer)
Labels: albino, bicephaly, conjoined twins, cryptozoology, dwarves, giants, hypertrichosis, karl shuker, notomelia, polymelia, Ripley's Believe It Or Not!, ShukerNature, syncephalus, teratology, two-headed animals, werewolf
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