“One of the unique things about my dad’s long legs is the ability to roll the ends of their legs,” said Vanessa L. Gonzalez, a computational genomicist at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.
Caitlin M. Baker
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Caitlin M. Baker
“One of the unique things about my dad’s long legs is the ability to roll the ends of their legs,” said Vanessa L. Gonzalez, a computational genomicist at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.
Caitlin M. Baker
To get an idea of why scientists want to study my dad’s long legs, the next time you see one, play the “One of these things is not like the other” game.
“If you saw a father with long legs moving, he would effectively walk on only three pairs of legs,” Gilmy Giant said. He is a graduate student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The remaining pair of legs, he adds, are swinging through the air and exploring the spider’s surroundings.
And if they find something interesting, they can have it.
“One of the unique things about Daddy’s long legs is the ability to roll the ends of their legs, which was achieved by breaking them up into dozens of tiny articulated pieces called tarsomers,” Vanessa L. Natural History, he told NPR.
Gonzalez said you can think of emojis as being like the part between your knuckles.
A single leg can hold dozens of logs, making it incredibly versatile. To find out how the spider developed this ability, Gonzalez, Genet, and their fellow researchers sequenced the genome of the long father—and eventually were able to create a short-legged father by manipulating his genes.
It’s another step in understanding the spiders’ genome and how they grow their bodies, including their unique legs, Gonzalez said. She and Jennette co-authored the study, which was recently published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
Evolution depends on the type of bike
The researchers found that papa’s long legs, also known as harvesting machines, evolved their legs, not through a genetic secret component, but by reusing parts of the same genetic recipe found in other arthropods, such as genes that affect trussers. the leg.
Other arthropods have a heel bone. “But only mowers use them for such a wide range of behaviors — feeling, climbing, fighting, making love,” said researcher Prashant Sharma, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
The scientists arrived at their findings by disrupting or “taking down” the genes of the Hox spider. It is a kind of homeopathic gene – which determines the body schemes of animals. To visualize how this works, Gonzalez suggests considering a dim light on a lamp. Rather than trying to turn the gene off completely, the researchers wanted to tune it to a very low level.
When the researchers refused to express two specific genes, the father developed long legs that were much shorter than normal. Instead, the legs became clasps – appendages used for eating.
Similar studies in the future could look at the genes responsible for other interesting traits, such as canines, Gonzalez said.
The father’s long leg contains dozens of body parts – tiny joints that allow the spider to wrap around and wrap its legs around objects like twigs. Since it has dozens of trunks, a tall dad can wrap his leg very tightly.
Caitlin M. Baker
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Caitlin M. Baker
The father’s long leg contains dozens of body parts – tiny joints that allow the spider to wrap around and wrap its legs around objects like twigs. Since it has dozens of trunks, a tall dad can wrap his leg very tightly.
Caitlin M. Baker
The trot helps the father catch her long leg
“The skeleton is the small joints in the distal part (limbs) of the legs that allow the tall daddy to bend and wrap his legs around objects, like twigs or even the legs of daddy’s other long legs,” Gonzalez said.
“Having more slices on your fingers allows you to bend your finger more forcefully,” she added. “If your toe has a lot more cut and it’s also longer, you can grab just about anything. These stem cells help legs achieve pre-workout strength, like a coiled marsupial tail.”
Legs also have another special feature, the survival style that scientists refer to as cutting automatically. Gonzalez said the spider’s legs can “break away from the body, a trick used to distract predators while the dad escapes with his remaining legs.”
What would you do if you met a long-legged father?
People in the United States are probably familiar with the father’s long leg. When asked what to do if they encounter one, Gonzalez said they are harmless.
“Oleo Battalion It is one of the most common types of crops in the world and can be easily seen in cities. One of the biggest misconceptions, she said, is that they are venomous, but that they are “too weak to catch,” adding that spiders have no venom and do not bite.
“If you come across one in the woods or in your house,” she said, “look at it in amazement and let it run its course cheerfully.” “If you feel you need to remove it from the inside of your house, gently hold it and put it outside.”
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