dna samples

In Britain, redheads are known as gingers and are often treated as second-class citizens. The news that some Neanderthals may have been redheads probably wont help.

When a team of European research scientists looked at DNA samples from two Neanderthal specimens, they found a gene that affects the body's production of melanin, resulting in red hair and pale skin. The finding is reported in the forthcoming issue of the journal Science. The scientists say that the Neanderthal gene sequence is different from the sequence in modern humans that produces red hair, so they probably arose separately.

Although some people have theorized that modern redheads are descended from Neanderthals, scientists disagree about whether there was any interbreeding between Neanderthals and the ancestors of modern man. They coexisted for many years, but Neanderthals disappeared from Europe more than 24,000 years ago.—Dawn Stover

Image: Michael Hofreiter and Kurt Fiusterweier/MPG EVA

The second shark-reproduction mystery in as many months (read about the May virgin shark birth here) has surfaced at a U.S. aquarium—this time, at the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center. According to an Associated Press report, the aquariums veterinarian Bob George observed that there might have been "hanky-panky in the shark tank.

During an autopsy of a deceased female blacktip reef shark named Tidbit, George found a 10-inch-long shark pup poised for birth. But with no male blacktips listed on the aquariums roster, George was clueless as to the baby-daddy's identity. DNA samples of both Tidbit and her fetus were sent to one of the co-authors of last month's purported parthenogenesis occurrence in Omaha, NE. Researchers hope to learn whether the pup was a rare hybrid of two similar species (an event never before seen in captive sharks), or another instance of asexual reproduction.

Genetic tests will reveal how the chromosomes line up, but until then, George has his eye on one of Tidbits tankmates—a sandbar shark. Apparently, this species is known for jawing it up with the ladies and then high-tailing it to the nearest sandbar when its time to assume a more proactive parental role. —Dave Prochnow

When nature calls, canines tend to disregard the law, and their owners often fail to deal with the messy aftermath. The situation is particularly dire in Germany, where an estimated three million pounds of “Hundekot” are deposited daily on public property.

Now cutting-edge forensics makes it possible to trace the offending matter back to its source. A citizen commission in Dresden, Germany, has overwhelmingly recommended a scheme in which DNA samples would be collected from all dogs when their annual license came up for renewal.