In a heartwarming rescue operation off the coast of Houston-Galveston, a U.S. CoastGuard team discovered an unexpected passenger during a routine inspection of shipping containers. The team, led by Petty Officer 2nd Class McMahon, were astonished when they heard barking and scratching coming from one of the containers.

As they cautiously opened the container, they were greeted by the sight of a small, furry face — a dog trapped inside the dark space. The dog seemed remarkably calm and happy to be liberated from her limited quarters.

“As soon as we opened it, we could see the little dog’s face poking out,” McMahon said. “She just seemed happy more than anything, to be out of that dark space and in the arms of people that were going to take care of her.”

Further investigation by Coast Guard officials revealed that Connie had been trapped in the container for at least eight days, deprived of food and water. The container, filled with deserted vehicles intended for overseas sales, had likely originated from a junkyard.

“So based on that, they think that the dog most likely was in a junkyard, in a car. And that how she accidentally got put in the container,” Chief Petty Officer Corinne Zilnicki said.

Grateful for being in the right place at the right time, McMahon expressed the urgency of the situation. “It would take at least another week to get to where she was going and two weeks without food or water. I don’t think she would have made it,” he said.

Forever Changed Animal Rescue has taken her in, diligently working to nurse her back to health and prepare her for adoption.

A mysterious killer has been destroying sea stars. Scientists had thought an infection was to blame. A new study does point to bacteria as the killer. But the bacteria appear to make those sea stars unable to breathe, not infect them.

In 2013, a disease known as sea-star wasting broke out off the U.S. Pacific Coast and the sea stars there died in massive numbers. “It is hard to figure out the complex disease,” says Ian Hewson, a marine biologist at Cornell University. First, Hewson and his group found a virus in unhealthy sea stars in 2014, but later studies found no connection between it and sea-star deaths. They then explored other factors, such as differences in water temperature. They also tried exposing the animals to bacteria. But nothing reliably caused the wasting disease.

However, when comparing bacteria living with healthy sea stars with those living with unhealthy animals, the scientists found higher levels of certain types of bacteria around sick sea stars. Some bacteria were copiotrophs, which grow rapidly in areas with lots of nutrients (营养). And some were the bacteria that survive only in environments with little to no oxygen.

To re-create these conditions in the lab, the researchers added nutrients to stimulate bacterial growth in the tubs with sea stars. Sure enough, the animals got sick. When they reduced the oxygen in the water, similarly, it caused wounds in three out of every four sea stars. However, no sea star getting normal oxygen levels got sick. The study shows that copiotrophs are stealing oxygen from the water, causing sea-star wasting. Dying sea stars produce more nutrients, which may help bacteria to grow on nearby animals. “It’s a bit of a snowball effect.” Hewson says.

“The problem may worsen with climate change, because warmer waters can hold less oxygen than colder waters. Bacteria such as copiotrophs also grow rapidly in warm water. But knowing the likely cause could help experts better treat sick sea stars,” Hewson says.

Researchers recently discovered that mosquitoes who have their sleep disrupted would rather get rest than go looking for their next meal. “【小题1】. Sleep deprived (睡眠不足) or not, a blood meal should appeal to them.” said the lead author of the study.

To study mosquitoes, researchers spent more than a year developing ways to analyze and quantify their amount of sleep. It was particularly challenging because of something researchers call the “observer effect”.【小题2】. In the case of mosquitoes, they’re able to sense that people are nearby due to their body heat, movement, smells and breath.

To deal with those circumstances, researchers set up the experiment in a quiet lab where the mosquitoes were several rooms away from anybody who might pass by. 【小题3】. Researchers found that the mosquitoes in the lab slept between 16 and 19 hours each day. They moved their enclosures regularly at night or during the day to make them suffer sleep deprivation. 【小题4】. But less than one-quarter wanted to eat after asleep less night.

【小题5】. By understanding the circadian rhythms of insects, researchers hope to find new methods to prevent the spread of infections. In fruit flies, a link between sleep and immunity (免疫力) has been established. And immunity is an important factor for disease transmission in mosquitoes. Based on this, this research would provide us with an understanding of the role of sleep on the disease transmission in mosquitoes.