Dunbar's Number bites the dust!

With Social Media being the flavor of the year ( and rightly so), Robin Dunbar and his number (150) needs to be rethought.

His theory suggests that the cognitive power of the brain limits the size of the social network that an individual of any given species can develop. Extrapolating from the brain sizes and social networks of apes, Dr Dunbar suggested that the size of the human brain allows stable networks of about 148. This is rounded off to 150.

The problem is that the primates have thousands in their social networks. People with 200 friends on Facebook are not exceptional anymore.

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Ancient Hounds

The Caravan Hound is an ancient breed that is native to the Deccan Plateau of India. They were  introduced to the region by Central Asian traders and invaders. In Karnataka, the Caravan Hound is  called Mudhol Hound,  named after al town in Bijapur district. 

The long haired variants are called Pashmi. 

The Tibetan Mastiff

  The Tibetan Mastiff has several characteristics which are unique in the dog world. This is still a primitive breed, as marked by the fact that the Tibetan Mastiff bitch has a single estrus per year, which normally occurs during the fall months. Tibetan Mastiffs mature slowly, with females reaching fill maturity between three and four years, and males between four to five years of age.

Animal Smarts

• Dogs bark before earthquakes
• Chimpanzees know what herbs to chew on to get rid of intestinal worms. 
• Cattle predict rainfall by sitting on the ground 
• Cows know which way is north