GoMom

Did you know that deer mice who are infected with deadly parasites give birth to larger--and therefore, fitter--offspring than healthy mice. In allotting resources to reproductive survival, rather than to immediate survival they're doing something kinda unusual. I had never felt such kinship with the animal kingdom as when I became a mother. I resented it at the time, having a high opinion of myself that placed my worth above that of the common breeding cow. But now I like to check out the lives of my sisters in the Anamalia kingdom and compare them with my own mysterious experiences as a mom. If you are similarly curious, here's some more news: Female albatrosses who live Hawaii pair up with other females to take turns raising their young when there aren't enough males around. "Female pairs raise fewer chicks than male-female pairs, but given the shortage of males, fewer chicks are better than none." This is also unusual, but it's allowed the Laysan albatross to re-populate the islands!