tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5821098719340852065.post7216957080069763174..comments2024-03-25T09:31:36.926+01:00Comments on Furahan Biology and Allied Matters: The woolly-haired Shuffler: Splendid InsulationSigmund Nastrazzurrohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16449461215427527447noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5821098719340852065.post-63278714890907749712011-01-31T20:51:03.752+01:002011-01-31T20:51:03.752+01:00Hello Anonymous,
I do think that hair is one of t...Hello Anonymous,<br /><br />I do think that hair is one of the things that are like to evolve elsewhere. <br /><br />The main conditions for it to be useful is probably the need to conserve body heat (leading to other assumptions). It will be easier to evolve hairs for animals in air than in fluids.<br /><br />Air is actually a good insulator; air close to the body will warm up a bit no matter what you do, so the trick is to keep it there and to keep it from mingling with other air. So that are the best ways to keep that layer of air? <br /><br />The 'hair' need not be mammal-like. as far as I know mammal hairs do not split, but a feathery plume would work just as well as lots of separate hairs. Arranging the 'hairs' into thin overlapping plates might also work ('feathers'). You could think of three-dimensional lattices in which individual filaments are connected to one another on more than one point, in contrast to mammal hairs. Felt mats, if you like. <br /><br />There are furs with specialised types of hair. If you had an interlocking outer layer that prevents wind getting into the fluffy inner layer, you would have a good insulator too.Sigmund Nastrazzurrohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16449461215427527447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5821098719340852065.post-51186769484730601602011-01-31T19:18:42.719+01:002011-01-31T19:18:42.719+01:00This is a good creature. So you think alien life w...This is a good creature. So you think alien life will develop the same fur as mammals on Earth? Do you think that fur is a trait of convergent evolution? Please explain.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5821098719340852065.post-4883585811590418402010-12-26T13:32:35.332+01:002010-12-26T13:32:35.332+01:00Thanks for alerting me to the type (I switch lette...Thanks for alerting me to the type (I switch letters all the time in any language I write in). As for the shovel, that is indeed supposed to have been formed out of the upper jaw. I rephrased that sentence as the jaws aren't what the shuffler is about.Sigmund Nastrazzurrohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16449461215427527447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5821098719340852065.post-44776222841775951252010-12-26T02:37:27.265+01:002010-12-26T02:37:27.265+01:00ps: the text reads _allows it to find any remanin...ps: the text reads _allows it to find any remaninig plants_...I think you mean _remaining_.<br />easy typo to make.Anthonynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5821098719340852065.post-37878814288299216522010-12-26T02:14:51.125+01:002010-12-26T02:14:51.125+01:00all Furahan land verts have four jaws (or descende...all Furahan land verts have four jaws (or descended from four-jawed ancestors), right?<br /><br />because part of the description of the Shuffler (a very smart-looking creature) makes me wonder.<br /><br /><br />Mr. Black - the Jingo or the Jango, I think it was.Anthonynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5821098719340852065.post-33041370248919736592010-12-24T14:34:06.599+01:002010-12-24T14:34:06.599+01:00Hi Evan,
Your pangolin option in which modified h...Hi Evan,<br /><br />Your pangolin option in which modified hairs form a plate would work as well as my folded skin option, I should think.<br /><br />One of the next posts will be about Nereus, so let's see if that helps.Sigmund Nastrazzurrohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16449461215427527447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5821098719340852065.post-37753663175815793052010-12-24T06:50:58.156+01:002010-12-24T06:50:58.156+01:00Fascinating new creature! It's a shame that t...Fascinating new creature! It's a shame that the other one disappeared (sadly, I can't remember the name of it) but all the more reason to look forward to the inevitable book I will indeed buy.<br /><br />Another option that just sprung to mind for a wind-breaking layer over fur is a pangolin-like fusing of fur into plates that cover deeper fur layers. Just an idea...<br /><br />And I'm honored to see Nereus linked from your site! I wonder if the traffic to my site will change as a result... :)Evan Blackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10493966209787828900noreply@blogger.com