Unchecked gillnetting has pushed the world’s smallest porpoise to the brink of extinction: there are roughly 10 vaquitas remaining in the Gulf of California in Mexico.
Squid, octopus, and cuttlefish – even to scientists who study them – are wonderfully weird creatures.
Cornell University researchers have identified a shift that occurs in canine coronavirus that may provide clues as to how it transmits from animals to humans.
A new study published today in Animal Behaviour shows for the first time that brilliant iridescence and gloss found in some animals can have a protective function by working as a form of deceptive warning colouration, and that it is the key feature of iridescence, its changing colours, that is important for this effect.
New research published today in eLife by researchers from the Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP) and the University of Bristol (UB) moves back the moment of the radiation of squamates ―the group of reptiles that includes lizards, snakes and worm lizards― to the Jurassic, a long time before current estimates.
Una nueva investigación publicada hoy en eLife por personal investigador del Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP) y la Universidad de Bristol (UB) retrasa el momento de la radiación de los escamosos ―el grupo de reptiles que incluye lagartos, serpientes y lagartos gusanos― al Jurásico, mucho antes de las estimaciones hechas hasta el momento.
A new study from the Cornell University Museum of Vertebrates reveals that new additions of vertebrate specimens to natural history collections are declining precipitously. The authors suggest that it is vital to maintain collecting efforts in order to address future unforeseen ecological issues.
You may assume that metropolitan areas are devoid of wildlife, but that is very far from the truth.
The origin of complex cells started without oxygen, new research suggests.
New research shows that the increase in primate ecotourism is having a negative effect on monkey’s behaviour. The study, led by the University of Portsmouth, found that this fast-growing tourism sector where tourists can conveniently reach primates via motor boats is causing stress-related behaviours in monkeys.
Vervet monkeys are quick and clever planners of the best route to follow on foraging trips, shows a new study.
Three intercellular pathways in crickets signal the formation of dorsal wings.
The discovery of pottery from the ancient Lapita culture by researchers at The Australian National University (ANU) has shed new light on how Papua New Guinea served as a launching pad for the colonisation of the Pacific – one of the greatest migrations in human history.
Researchers in NUI Galway have shown, for the first time, that smaller species of scorpions, with smaller pincers, have more potent venoms compared to larger species with robust claws.
Flying reptiles could change the colour of their feathers, research finds.
A biologist from the Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University working with researchers from Germany and Myanmar has discovered two of the world’s newest stream frogs in Myanmar highlighting the remaining diversity of ecosystems in Southeast Asia and cautions all those involved of the need to conserve our forests before our valuable wildlife become extinct.
Crows and ravens are well known for their black color and the harsh “caw” sound they make. They are intelligent birds that use tools, solve complex abstract problems and speak a volume of words. But what is less well appreciated is how diverse they are. Their diversity is accompanied by their ability to live all over the world in a variety of habitats.
In Triceratops Traits, students work alongside paleontologists to solve an evolutionary mystery by analyzing and interpreting data from the fossil record under the premise that natural laws have operated the same throughout the history of life on Earth to fit 7th grade learning standards in Utah and 6th-8th grades around the U.S.
CSUDH Associate Professor of Biology Sonal Singhal's 2011 paper about lizard species was recognized by Evolution, the Society for the Study of Evolution's prestigious international journal.
The ancient human remains unearthed in the Bacho Kiro cave (in present-day Bulgaria) and recently genetically described were surprisingly reported to be more closely related to contemporary East Asians than contemporary Europeans.
While octopus and cuttlefish are famous for their use of camouflage to match the color of the substrate, a third type of cephalopod—the squid—has never been reported displaying this ability.
Can’t resist your pup’s adoring expression when he begs for a treat? A new study reveals key anatomical features that could explain what makes dogs’ faces so appealing. The findings also suggest that humans contributed to dogs’ ability to form facial expressions through thousands of years of selective breeding.
Like diseases affecting humans, parasites can wage a deadly evolutionary “arms race” against their hosts. But can hosts and parasites upgrade their weapons at the same rate?
A newly published study of orb-weaving spiders has yielded some extraordinary results: The spiders are using their webs as extended auditory arrays to capture sounds, possibly giving spiders advanced warning of incoming prey or predators.
Long considered exclusively male, a new study of fruit flies finds sperm become partly female after mating.
Researchers at the University of Bristol have found that beetles first roamed the world in the Carboniferous and later diversified alongside the earliest dinosaurs during the Triassic and Jurassic.
Biologists have developed a new method to measure the extent to which regional geographic features — including barriers between regions, like mountains or water — affect local rates of speciation, extinction and dispersal for species. As a test case, they successfully used their model to delineate the movement and diversification of neotropical anole lizards.
From elaborate dances to stunning plumage displays to dramatic head-butting, male animals have an array of ways to distinguish themselves from competitors while wooing a potential mate. But it’s not their only chance to prove their worthiness. Sexual selection can take place after mating, too, and new research from University of Oregon scientists suggests that it can have a surprisingly large impact on evolution.
Researchers led by the University of Bristol show that the earliest jaws in the fossil record were caught in a trade-off between maximising their strength and their speed.
Monarch butterflies, one of the most iconic insects of North America, are increasingly plagued by a debilitating parasite, a major new analysis shows.
Humans reshape the environments where they live, with cities being among the most profoundly transformed environments on Earth. New research now shows that these urban environments are altering the way life evolves.
Researchers at the University of Tokyo have for the first time been able to create an RNA molecule that replicates, diversifies and develops complexity, following Darwinian evolution.
Ruffs are characterized by three supergene variants that lead to different appearances and courtship behavior in males.
New research led by palaeobiologists at the University of Leicester has identified startling similarities between the mouths of grasshoppers and mammal teeth.
The fossil, housed in The Nat’s paleontology collection, offers a window into what the Earth was like during the Eocene Period, more than 40 million years ago.
From sunflowers to starfish, symmetry appears everywhere in biology. This isn’t just true for body plans – the molecular machines keeping our cells alive are also strikingly symmetric.
Scientists have developed a method for tracking the invasive Asian giant “murder” hornet’s presence and possibly accelerate its removal. The researchers identified the Asian giant hornet queen’s sex pheromone, an achievement that could be used as bait to trap and track the insects.
Don't miss these articles in our Staff Picks channel
Researchers in the Primate Genomics Lab at the George Washington University examined what factors drive hair variation in a wild population of lemurs known as Indriidae. Specifically, the researchers aimed to assess the impacts of climate, body size and color vision on hair evolution.
Few human adults gallop; the equine gait tends to be the preserve of little kids mimicking horses or exercise classes.
A new study reveals that the iconic extinct Megalodon or megatooth shark grew to larger sizes in cooler environments than in warmer areas. DePaul University paleobiology professor Kenshu Shimada and coauthors take a renewed look through time and space at the body size patterns of Otodus megalodon, the fossil shark that lived nearly worldwide roughly 3.6 million to 15 million years ago. The new study appears in the international journal Historical Biology.
The discovery of a new culture suggests processes of innovation and cultural diversification occurring in Eastern Asia during a period of genetic and cultural hybridization.
All life evolves: microorganisms can become resistant to drugs, viruses evade our vaccines, and species may adapt to climate change.
In a study published in Ibis, investigators combined the power of big data and machine learning, a type of artificial intelligence, to predict population declines for bird species with unknown population trends and used correlation analyses to identify predictors of bird population declines worldwide.
New research from the University of Massachusetts Amherst uncovers the negative link between flightworthiness and fight-worthiness in birds.
The asteroid which killed nearly all of the dinosaurs struck Earth during springtime. This conclusion was drawn by an international team of researchers after having examined thin sections, high-resolution synchrotron X-ray scans, and carbon isotope records of the bones of fishes that died less than 60 minutes after the asteroid impacted.
Vacation photos of zebras and whales that tourists post on social media may have a benefit they never expected: helping researchers track and gather information on endangered species.
Researchers at Cornell University have identified a species of milkweed that holds promise for planting on roadsides to improve conservation habitat for migrating monarch butterflies.
A species of tick known as Argas brumpti survived for 27 years in the lab of Julian Shepherd, associate professor of biological sciences at Binghamton University, State University of New York.
RSS
Medicine keyboard_arrow_right
Sciencekeyboard_arrow_right
Life keyboard_arrow_right
Business keyboard_arrow_right
Journal News keyboard_arrow_right
By Location keyboard_arrow_right
Meetings, Grants, and Events keyboard_arrow_right
