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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 19, 1984)
Thursday, January 19, 1984/The Battalion/Page 11 A&M professors on the lookout for washed-up marine mammals : tea® y skait. oustinj )stly in 'e sayi | in blw. drivioj 't mini eyiuni; feel lit ressutt, mselve npada, yattrao N'obod', to knon iouth; J reali jyshavt ifordrt' atingE was ini : time. P c ’ t )' erpuni id,‘Hot i to ge thiscof A'nton asses - kill p- Or ja' ook ro thetani my sod' Jod, ;r some areat o ilmeas the am t injun errecal Presto: eindia broke jht, bu and so' i in tki isays.1 it dom' jut wilt :ause In ildthinl By ROBIN BLACK Staff Writer There was a time when no ne took much notice of any thing that washed up on ~exas beaches. In the recent past, however, the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network has been keeping a more watchful eye on such in cidents. The network, which was created under the National Marine Fisheries Service in 1980, watches for any dol phins or whales that beach ‘themselves or are washed ishore. Because marine mammals ire protected by federal law, he network not only is a way to help the mammals, but it Uso is a vital research outlet for scientists at universities md museums since specimens cannot be obtained from aiological supply houses. The Texas program is one of the regions of the national tranding network. In order to make residents md others who frequent the reaches aware of the network md what can be done to help a beached animal, notices that tell what to do if an animal is found are posted by the net work in coastal cities near the jeaches. Instructions range from what to do and who to call if a dead mammal is found to giv- ng first aid to a whale or dol phin that is still alive. The Texas program is coordinated by Texas A&M professors Raymond Tarpley md David Schmidly, and the tmlkof the work of salvage or, f the animal is alive, rehabili-" tation is done through Texas A&M University at Galveston. Whale and dolphin carcas ses are usually transported to College Station for further identification and research. Although most mammals are discovered after they have died, live whales were found in November and again in January. The whales that beached in “If we drive down to the coast to pick up an animal and bring it back, that much of the cost comes out of our own pockets. But we are able to use the re sources here at the University for necrop sies, identification, and further research. ” — Texas A&M wild life professor David Schmidly November at Port Aransas, some of which were found alive but could not be saved, belonged to a rare species of pygmy killer whales. This spe cies is especially rare in the Texas Gulf region. Tarpley pointed out the important role the network can play in research in a case such as this. “It was very unusual that we would be able to observe a mammal as rare as the pygmy killer whale, especially a live specimen,” he said. Tarpley said the network provides the opportunity for scientists to study the mam mals first-hand, hopefully enabling them to learn more about the animals and why they beach themselves. The network is operated on a volunteer basis, most of the volunteers being profes sors and students, and gets no direct support from the feder al or state government or from the University. Texas A&M does, howev er, provide its facilities for the network’s research. Schmidly, a wildlife science professor, said the cost of the majority of the work is co vered by the volunteers. “If we drive down to the coast to pick up an animal and bring it back, that much of the cost comes out of our own pockets,” he said. “But we are able to use the resources here at the University for necrop sies, identification, and furth er research.” Schmidly and Tarpley work as a team with the net work. Tarpley does the initial identification and necropsy, which is the animal equivalent to an autopsy, and Schmidly does the in-depth research and classification. “Ray (Tarpley) is con cerned with finding out what happened to the animal; why it died,” Schmidly said. “When he’s through, I identify and classify the animal.” After the initial research on each animal is completed, Schmidly collects as many spe cimens from it as possible. The specimens are then placed in the archives in the basement of the Sterling C. Evans library. “Since we have one of the largest collections of speci mens anywhere — specimens of birds, fish, reptiles and land mammals as well as marine mammals — we will loan them to other universities and scien- tists if they so request,” Schmidly said. SIGMA ALPHA EPSILON ANMOUNCES SPRING RUSH FOR INFORMATION CALL OR COME BY The SAE House 823-5909 600 EAST 29TH BRYAN,TEX. Photo by ERIC EVAN Texas A&M professor Dr. Raymoi Tarpley examines the brain of pygmy killer whale, which was found November on a beach at Port Aransas. Prosecutors punishment United Press International Animalli DALLAS — The prosecution cott sJIill not review the case of a oupledB oma n serving a life prison id mujP rm even though her accom- | ast tn plice now says the woman was th e Giinot involved in the robbery mur- raisir,; I derand was unjustly punished, a nerici l* rosecutor sa >d Wednesday. ■ Norman Kinne, Dallas Coun- t) assistant district attorney, agreed the case of Joyce Ann Brown was similar in some aspects to that of Lenell Geter, a black engineer sentenced to life ^jl and later released on bond for a UH pew trial on armed robbery, but added there were also “a num ber of dissimilarities.” | “We don’t have any plans in . the Brown case, and we don’t Qjt believe the wrong person was |sentenced to life,” Kinne said. This new thing doesn’t affect lbs.” Rene Taylor, who pleaded w ( guilty in 1981 to the slaying of T „ North Dallas furrier Rubin Dan- (Zinger during a robbery in May |980, said Tuesday Brown, her leged accomplice, was inno- nt and that she was prepared to sign an affidavit and testify so in a court. Taylor, who was also sent- ced to life, said she pleaded ilty because she was afraid she ight be sentenced to death on e murder charge. dgeagi® Taylor said another woman, jxicanjwhom she did not identify, was j the'{her accomplice in the robbery psiitiiiffand that accomplice and not she |resumably shot the man. Brown, whose appeal of her jlpnviction has been rejected, lid her case is similar to the Ce lt case but she has not received same publicity. Brown sad ffie passed a private polygraph CHECK THE national: , the inoiiR 1 jes,» addib close case, still stands test before her trial but was con victed largely on the testimof Mrs. Danzinger. Another similarity to the Ge ter case is that Brown’s fellow employees said she was at work at the time of the robbery. But, there was a 33-mintue time gap when Brown could have pulled the robbery. “Mrs. Brown has a lengthy police record,” Kiqne said. “She got up on the stand and admit ted so. There are a number of dissimilarities, but that is the main one because Geter doesn’t have a prior police record.” Kinne said Taylor also has a lengthy police record and used at least eight different names throughout the country. Taylor’s testimony is ex pected Friday when a Dallas judge will decide whether to order prison officials to give Brown a polygraph test. The Latter-Day Saint Student Association (L.D.S.S.A.) announces the beginning of L.D.S. Institute courses January 24 - April 17 Daytime Tuesday Wednesday Friday Evening Tuesday Wednesday Wednesday Sharing the Gospel Israels Major Prophets 6:50 - 7:45 a.m. 9:30 - 10:45 a.m. 12 noon - 12:45 p.m. Forum (Sandwich Seminar) 7:00-8:15 p.m. 7:00-8:15 p.m. 7:00-8:15 p.m. Israel's Major Prophets From Casual Date to Celestial Mate - On preparing for Celes tial Marriage JOY: Special Evenings for Young (or Older) Marrieds All classes held at Institute Building. Dexter Drive in College Station. For more information, visit or call 696-8202. Richsunls Restaurant SOI Wellborn Road College Station “A True Dining Experience In A Relaxed Atmosphere 1 ' Starting January 23rd Fish Kichartrs is serving Lunch 11:30 - 2:30 Monday - Friday Soups, Salads, Sandwiches, Crepes, Quiche, Prime Rib Daily Special Dine With Your Favorite Star! MATINEE LUNCH (served until 5:00 p.m.) Box Office Attractions - *^ \ Fried Catfish . . . . t .. . . . ■ . Fried Shrimp ...... . . . . . 1. . 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