News tagged with bmc biology
Diversification of land plants
Researchers have reconstructed phylogenetic relationships among all 706 families of land plants.
Apr 05, 2012 |
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The Viking journey of mice and men
House mice (Mus musculus) happily live wherever there are humans. When populations of humans migrate the mice often travel with them. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Evolutionary Biology h ...
Mar 19, 2012 |
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Weightlessness weighs heavy on genes -- a fly's perspective
On Earth all biology is subjected to gravity. Some biological systems require gravity for correct orientation (geotropism: plants grow up, roots grow down). In the absence of gravity even human biology is affected: astronauts ...
Jan 31, 2012 |
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Advantages of living in the dark: The multiple evolution events of 'blind' cavefish
The blind Mexican cavefish (Astyanax mexicanus) have not only lost their sight but have adapted to perpetual darkness by also losing their pigment (albinism) and having altered sleep patterns. New research publis ...
Jan 22, 2012 |
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I wanna talk like you (oo)
The role of social structure in animal communication is hotly debated. Non-human primates seem to be born with a range of calls and sounds which is dependent upon their species. But overlying this there seems to be some flexibility ...
Dec 16, 2011 |
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Molecular barcodes -- identification of 16 new species of Caenorhabditis
Caenorhabditis are usually thought of as soil nematodes, happily living in compost heaps. The famous (scientifically speaking) Caenorhabditis elegans has provided a wealth of information about developmental processes and ce ...
Nov 21, 2011 |
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Paying for sex and 'playing dead' - the deceitful gift-giving spider
Male nursery web spiders (Pisaura mirabilis) prepare silk-wrapped gifts to give to potential mates. Most gifts contain insects, but some gifts are inedible plant seeds or empty exoskeletons left after the pr ...
Nov 13, 2011 |
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Deep-reef coral hates the light, prefers the shade
Coral reefs are among the most diverse ecosystems on the planet, second only to tropical rain forests. Bird's nest coral (Seriatopora hystrix) is common throughout the Indo-Pacific and is able to live across a range of dep ...
Oct 17, 2011 |
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A hitchhiker's guide to the Galapagos: co-evolution of Galapagos mockingbirds and their parasites
Along with the famous finches the Galapagos mockingbirds had a great influence on Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. Now, 176 years later, three of the four mockingbird species are among the rarest birds ...
Oct 03, 2011 |
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Bringing botany into the 21st Century
Botanical taxonomy, which extends to include the formal scientific naming of all plants, algae and fungi has gone through a landmark change in the procedure scientists need to follow when they describe new species. Details ...
Sep 14, 2011 |
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Salamanders spell out evolution in action
Lungless salamanders (Ensatina eschscholtzii) live in a horseshoe-shape region in California (a 'ring') which circles around the central valley. The species is an example of evolution in action because, while neighboring popula ...
Jul 06, 2011 |
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Ancestors of land plants revealed
It was previously thought that land plants evolved from stonewort-like algae. However, new research published in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Evolutionary Biology shows that the closest relatives to land plants ...
Apr 18, 2011 |
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Climate change and evolution of Cross River gorillas
Two species of gorillas live in central equatorial Africa. Divergence between the Western gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) and Eastern Gorillas (G. beringei) began between 0.9 and 1.6 million years ago and now the two species l ...
Apr 01, 2011 |
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Recognizing gibbons from their regional accents
Crested gibbons (genus Nomascus) live in dense Asian rainforest, specifically in China, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, and, because of their environment, they communicate with other gibbons by singing. Both males and female ...
Feb 07, 2011 |
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How much sex is enough?
Society has long debated the contrasting advantages of monogamy and promiscuity and, in western society at least, the long term benefits of monogamy have in general won out. However new research published in BioMed Central's ...
Jan 20, 2011 |
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