In the red corner, spanning a wee 0.1 of an inch from tip to tip, the common cabbage aphid! Found world-wide, though more common in temperate regions; today's contender for the world light light light light light weight championship belt is armed to the teeth with... a soft body (too many beers, tsk tsk), long thin legs (wolf whistles) with two-jointed, two-clawed tarsi!!!
And in the blue corner, at four times the contender's size of 0.4 inch, our returning champion, Coccinella septempunctata a.k.a. the L~a~d~y B~i~r~d (and the crowd goes wild)! Dressed up in his crowd pleasing customary costume of black spotted red armour, this lean, mean, fightin’ machine is the natural enemy of today's upstart contender.
*ding ding ding* and Round One begins!!!
Back to the ring, WHAT do we see here? Who can believe their eyes?! Today’s contender, the wee little aphid, has turned tail and retreated to his corner; can’t say I blame him though. He's huddled trembling in the corner, with his BACK facing our champion… it has nowhere to run, and nowhere to hide. The ladybird is moving ever so much closer, closing the gap between them with every step. Poised to strike, the champion is almost upon the timid contender and.....BOOOOM!
What in the world has happened, the ring has exploded with a great big puff of smoke... and LOOK! There, in the center of the ring, the champion! OH MY GOD, he's not breathing, what did the aphid do?!
Read on to find out =p
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070711105844.htm
Survival Adaptations Score Board:
Prey 1 Predators 0
Adaptation of predators in increasing efficiency and success rates of catching their prey has been known far and wide, and often to the astonishment of many researchers. Sharks have adopted efficient and strength conserving prey searching movement patterns as they scour the vast expanse of the oceans, Cheetahs and other larger cats have learnt to observe herds of their prey, waiting patiently for that special individual that dares to stray away from the security of their family. However successful the predatory behavior and adaptations of the aggressor, the apparent prey is still rather prevalent in each and every habitat, suggesting that the prey too, perhaps has developed some clever behavioral patterns to outwit its predators and survive their dangerous encounters.
Siberian Jays featured in the following article; seem to have taken a leaf out of Sun Tzu’s “The Art of War” by learning their predator’s behavior. However, this as expected, is never enough. Hence, the Siberian Jays have built on this and created their own way of keeping themselves safe from harm, read on at
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080109100221.htm
Survival Adaptations Score Board:
Prey 2 Predators 0
And the score is out! The prey are the new champions! Better luck next time, predators!
References:
Imperial College London (2007, July 12). Aphids Make 'Chemical Weapons' To Fight Off Killer Ladybirds. ScienceDaily. Retrieved March 20, 2008, from http://www.sciencedaily.com /releases/2007/07/070711105844.htm
Uppsala University (2008, January 11). Some Birds Can Communicate About Behavior Of Predators. ScienceDaily. Retrieved March 20, 2008, from http://www.sciencedaily.com /releases/2008/01/080109100221.htm