First Evidence That Social Interactions of Ants Affect Pathogen Competition
Sanitary care by social ants shapes disease outcome — study published in Ecology Letters. Who wins in a competition is largely dependent on the opponent…
Evolution
Meerkat Mobs Do Frightening ‘War Dance’ to Protect Territory [Video]
Meerkat clans perform a ‘war dance’ to frighten opponents and protect their territory, according to a new UCL and University of Cambridge study. Published in…
Fascinating Shark and Ray Vision Evolution Research Reveals Sharks Can’t See Colors
Vision is a crucial sense for most animals, and vertebrates have evolved a highly adaptable set of opsin genes that generate light-sensitive pigments to decode…
Researchers Discover “Ghost Worms” Mostly Unchanged Since the Age of Dinosaurs, Despite 140 Million Years of Evolution
That size, shape and structure of organisms can evolve at different speeds is well known, ranging from fast-evolving adaptive radiations to living fossils such as…
Study Shows Dogs and Wolves Are Both Good at Cooperating [Video]
Basic cooperation skills appear to be shared by dogs and wolves, suggesting that this ability was present in a common ancestor and was not lost…
Scientists Just Showed That Color-Changing Brittle Stars Can See, Even Though They Don’t Have Eyes
Scientists have shown for the first time that brittle stars use vision to guide them through vibrant coral reefs, thanks to a neat color-changing trick….
Distinctive Primal Acoustics of the Human Scream
Researchers Hone In on What Makes Screams Distinctive Screams are prompted by a variety of emotions — from joyful surprise to abject terror. No matter…
Surprising Explanation to the Mysterious Case of the Ornamented Coot Chicks
The bright colors of the chicks of American coots help their parents choose favorites, according to a new study. The American coot is a somewhat…
Breakthrough in Understanding Evolution – Mitochondrial Division Conserved Across Species
New study shows exactly how the manner in which mitochondria divide has remained the same since evolution began. Cellular origin is well explained by the…
New Discovery of 96-Million-Year Old Turtle Species and Hints at Intercontinental Migrations
New 96-million-year old turtles from Texas connect North America with Asia and the Southern Hemisphere, suggesting vast intercontinental migrations during this time. The Arlington Archosaur…
Ancient Wasp-Mimicking Fly Discovered – Named After PSY’s ‘Gangnam Style’
A newly discovered species of ancient wasp-mimicking flies was named Buccinatormyia gangnami, after a famous hit by a South Korean singer PSY. It was described…
Rare Species of Animals and Plants Organize in Ghettos to Survive
An international research team in which Spanish experts participate has shown that sparse species are associated spatially in 90% of the animal and plant communities…
Scientists Extract Complete Human Genome From 5,700-Year-Old “Chewing Gum” – Here’s What They Found
Researchers from the University of Copenhagen have succeeded in extracting a complete human genome from a thousands-of-years old “chewing gum”. According to the researchers, it…
DNA Sequencing Reveals Carolina Parakeet Extinction Was Driven by Humans
The lack of signals of population decline found on its genome points to a human-mediated, abrupt extinction. Researchers from the Institute of Evolutionary Biology (IBE,…
Anti-Predator Evolution: Lazy Moths Taste Disgusting
Scientists find that unappetizing moths make less effort to escape attacking bats. You might think that prey would invariably flee in terror from a predator….
Why Are Giant Pandas Born So Tiny? New Clues From Bones Counter Old Theory
Duke student Peishu Li ’19 remembers the first time he saw a baby panda being born, in a video for a class taught by biology…
Dinosaur Footprints Suggest That Jurassic Beasts Trotted Between Africa and Europe
Dinosaur footprints found in several European countries, very similar to others in Morocco, suggest that they could have been dispersed between the two continents by…
Mysterious Endangered Mammal Has a Venomous Bite – See the Horrifying Venom Delivery Tooth
Researchers from Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) and ZSL (Zoological Society of London) have worked with a team of scientists from institutions across the…