Blue Whales Singing Deeper

The largest animals on the earth manage to be covered by a great shroud of mystery. In the 1960s scientists studied the whale's behavior by analyzing recordings of their underwater songs. Over the years it has been noticed that the blue whales are not singing the same way they used to. According to the data, it appears as if these massive creatures are singing in deeper voices each year. This puzzling abnormality was initially realized when marine biologists off the coast of California needed to continuously recalibrate their automated song detectors used to track the whales. These detectors are triggered by songs matching a specific waveform. As of late, these detectors have to be reset every year.

The results have been published in Endangered Species Research, and show song data gathered from thousands of blue whale populations since the 1960s from the North Atlantic, to the South Pacific, to the East Indian Ocean. In all regions, results indicate that the songs' tonal frequency is falling by a few fractions of a hertz every year. There are some theories floating around which attempt to explain this mystery, including shifting population dynamics, new mating strategies, or increased ocean noise pollution. Another theory involved the recovery of blue whale populations, which were almost extinct in the first half of the last century. Since only male blue whales sing, the answer might involve sexual selection.

Abracadabra Chupacabra

This picture is a still taken from the recent video capturing the legendary animal rumored to wander parts of the Americas. The name Chupacabra comes from the Spanish word chupar (to suck) and cabra (goat), because the animal apparently has a habit of attacking and drinking the blood of livestock, especially goats. Although there have been numerous sightings over the past 20 years, everywhere from Puerto Rico to Maine, and even as far south as Chile, most biologists and wildlife specialists still view the Chupacabra as nothing more than an urban legend.

On August 8, 2008, deputy Brandon Riedel used his dashboard camera to film an unidentifiable animal along some back country roads near Cuero, Texas. The animal was similar to a coyote in size, but was hairless and had a very long snout. There was brief coverage regarding the video on FOX, check it out:

Back To The Line

If you happen to be flying in a plane over western Peru, between the towns of Palpa and Nazca, make sure you look down. Chances are you will see some of the hundreds of Nazca lines, a series of geolyphs ranging in complexity from simple lines to stylized creatures. These include hummingbirds, spiders, fishes, sharks, llamas, lizards, and monkeys, as shown above. The figures exist within an area of 500 square kilometers, and the largest figures are nearly 270 meters long.

Small stones coated with iron oxide cover the surface of the Nazca desert. The lines are created by removing these pebbles, revealing the lighter-colored earth underneath.

These lines were created by the Nazca culture between 200 BC and 700 AD. However, the real questions to be asked are how and why, rather than when. Nobody really knows the answers, but there are always theories.

How?

Some suggest that the Nazca people made the lines using simple tools and surveying equipment. Using the technology available to the Nazca Indians of the time, a team of researchers lead by Joe Nickell managed to reproduce the figures without any aerial supervision.

Why?

1. The Nazca lines can only be recognized as coherent figures from an aerial vantage point. For this reason, many believe that their motivation was to make images for gods to see from the skies.
   
2. Others hypothesize that these lines suggest the Nazca Indians had some form of manned flight, specifically a hot air balloon, from which to view the lines themselves.
3. Another theory suggests the lines were "walking temples," where a congregation of worshipers walked in the predetermined pattern of that particular holy entity.
4. Lastly, in his book Chariots of the Gods, Erich von Daniken claimed that the lines were landing strips for alien spacecraft