Finish that crayfish paper!

Jim Fetzner, the managing editor for the journal Freshwater Crayfish, recently sent an email indicating that they are hoping to publish the next volume, number 19, in December.

The deadline for submissions for the next volume is 1 October 2012.

As noted before, the International Association of Astacology is making efforts to get this journal published more frequently. I applaud this, as having the journal on such irregular schedule that people don’t know whether it’s a journal, or conference proceedings, or something else, does nobody much good. But the journal will only improve if they get submissions.

As in the cage, so in the wild

Brian Switek (a.k.a. Laelaps) reports on a new case of parthenogenesis in the wild, in not one, but two species of snakes this time: copperheads and cottonmouths.

(I)n zoos and aquariums, zoologists have begun to document the strange phenomenon of facultative parthenogenesis: females of species that usually reproduce sexually, delivering offspring without mating. Surprise pregnancies have been documented among birds, sharks, snakes and Komodo dragons (Varanus komodoensis), but until now, only in captivity.

Very interesting stuff. Clearly some implications for the various reports of parthenogenesis in crayfish...