Darwin in Chile, Reforesting Haiti, Promiscuity in Female Fruitflies

This week: Chile continues to deal with the aftermath of last Saturday’s quake. You’ll hear about a famous scientist who witnessed a similar earthquake in Chile in 1835.  You’ll also hear a story about making Haiti more resilient to natural disasters. Then we have some good news about protecting marine species, and some fascinating news about the sex lives of frogs and flies. Oh, and you have until March 10th to take our ONLINE SURVEY. So please give us your feedback.

Darwin Witnessed 1835 Earthquake in Chile: Chile has a long history of powerful earthquakes like the one that struck last Saturday. A massive quake occurred there in 1835, and among those who witnessed its aftermath was none other than Charles Darwin. At the time, he was traveling around the world on the HMS Beagle. What did Darwin see, and what lessons did he draw from his observations? Harvard biologist Edward O. Wilson explained that to The World’s Marco Werman.
Guest: Edward O. Wilson
From So Simple a Beginning: Darwin’s Four Great Books.
The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online.
More on Chile’s history of earthquakes from the BBC.

Restoring Haiti’s Ecology: The January earthquake in Haiti wasn’t as powerful as the one in Chile, but it was far deadlier. Haiti was more vulnerable partly because of rampant environmental degradation. Development experts say a key to making the country more resilient to natural disasters is restoring Haiti’s ecological infrastructure.
Report by: Marina Giovanelli
Check out an audio slide show of Haiti’s rural landscape.

Elsa’s Favorite Stories:

• Marine Reserves Help Ocean Health: Setting up marine reserves – swaths of ocean where no fishing is allowed – is thought to improve ocean health.  Marine scientists at the AAAS annual conference in San Diego presented new findings that explained how and where these reserves can be most helpful. One study found that heavily fished species benefited the most from the reserves. Another unpublished study found the increase in fish stocks within reserves can have a spillover effect on areas outside.
  The study about heavily fished species.
  More coverage of marine news from the AAAS meeting from Science News and the San Diego Union-Tribune.
• Promiscuity in Female Flies: Monogamy in female Drosophila could lead to extinction, according to a new study. The findings offer a new explanation for why female promiscuity is so common in Drosophila and perhaps in other animals (and plants), as well. Listen to Elsa explain the evolutionary forces against monogamy in this species.
  The study.
  Queen bees have another good reason to mate with lots of males.
• A Rare Monogamous Frog Species:Promiscuity can’t always ensure the survival of a species. A new study reveals that, for a particular poison dart frog in Peru, monogamy is the only way to keep the offspring alive.
  The study.

Music in Science: Sorry folks! This segment is on holiday and will return soon.

Tags: Charles Darwin, Chile, deforestation, Drosophila, earthquake, Haiti, marine reserve, monogamy, oceans, Peru, promiscuity, reforestation, sex