Darwin's Finches Take On Alien Parasites

University of Utah biologists have found that finches – the birds Charles Darwin famously studied – develop antibodies against two parasites (a pox virus and a nest fly) that moved to the Galapagos, suggesting the birds can fight the alien invaders. With the discovery that the medium ground finches produce antibodies aimed specifically at the parasites "the next step is to determine if this immune response is helping the birds or hurting the birds," says University of Utah biology Professor Dale Clayton, who led the new study published online Wednesday, Jan 6. in PLoS ONE. read more

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