Antibiotic-resistant bacteria represent an extraordinary threat to public health. Now, Michelle Power is finding these superbugs among the gut flora of wildlife.
Just after sunset each night, little penguins waddle to their nests in the breakwater by St Kilda Pier in Melbourne, Australia. The iconic – and downright adorable – sight attracts tourists, but for parasitologist Michelle Power, the penguins can also reveal important information about the marine ecosystem.
“They’re an iconic species, but they’re declining in parts of Australia,” Power says. “They’re at the top of the food chain, so they give an indication of what’s going on in the overall ecosystem.”
This story is from the February 2021 edition of BBC Wildlife.
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This story is from the February 2021 edition of BBC Wildlife.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
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Spiders eat flies, right? everyone knows that the 45,000 or so spiders in the world are all obligate carnivores, more or less – eating other animals, mainly invertebrates. Nature, however, loves an exception, and one particular spider missed out on that ecological memo. It goes by the wonderful scientific name of Bagheera kiplingi, and its claim to fame is that its diet is – at least mostly – vegetarian.
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