Word: tails
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Males have paired sex organs--each called a hemipenis, or half penis--hidden in the base of the tail. Some species, such as common king snakes, deploy these alternatively in successive matings--perhaps, says Greene, to allow more frequent copulation. When Borneo's yellow-lipped sea- kraits breed, as many as half a dozen males may pile on a lone female. Copulation is usually brief but can last more than a day for Western diamondbacks (probably to reduce the female's exposure to rival males). Female snakes too deploy cunning reproductive strategies. North American pit vipers, for example, store sperm...
...second week in a row, however, Harvard played a far poorer tail end of the game. After breaking out for over 200-yards passing in the first half, Linden completed only four-of-13 passes for 26 yards in the final two quarters. The primary reason for the slump was the complex scheme of zone blitzes thrown in by the Bison...
...order to understand how much impact a hammerhead has on the bay ecosystem, Lowe is trying to learn how much energy it expends and how much food that takes. He has designed a miniature sensor that attaches to the baby shark's back and registers every beat of the tail as the shark swims along. By feeding the babies a precise amount of fish, then putting them in a tank with constantly flowing water--a sort of shark treadmill--he can determine just how many calories they burn in swimming a given distance...
...second part of the experiment, Lowe puts a sensor-equipped shark into the open bay and follows it as it darts back and forth. After two days of nonstop tracking, he and his exhausted crew have a precise record of where the baby has gone and, by counting its tail beats, how much energy it has used. "We still have a lot of data to gather," he says, "but once we really understand what role the hammerhead pups play here, we can use that to begin understanding how adults fit into the ecosystem of the open ocean...
...about a tiger shark bobbing in the preternaturally clear Hawaiian sea. I am now in the water, and Meyer has released the measured, tagged shark. Another student stands by to help it get moving, but that turns out to be unnecessary. With an almost imperceptible flick of its muscular tail, the massive fish is suddenly ten yards away, a graceful, pale white torpedo gliding effortlessly down into the measureless blue depths. In the face of such beauty, dignity and grace, I almost forget my fear...