A wagging tail is often associated with dogs' emotions, but the side-to-side motion may also help them take longer strides and move faster, according to a study by researchers at the University of California, Riverside.
Plants & Animals
Sep 7, 2017
0
73
When trouble looms, the fish-scale geckos of Madagascar resort to what might seem like an extreme form of self-defense—tearing out of their own skin.
Plants & Animals
Aug 4, 2017
2
183
Evolution doesn't have to take millions of years. New research shows that a type of lizard living on man-made islands in Brazil has developed a larger head than its mainland cousins in a period of only 15 years.
Plants & Animals
Aug 1, 2017
4
640
Australian National University biologists have found the first evidence of mass extinction of Australian animals caused by a dramatic drop in global temperatures 35 million years ago.
Evolution
Mar 23, 2017
9
309
Many lizards can drop their tails when grabbed, but one group of geckos has gone to particularly extreme lengths to escape predation. Fish-scale geckos in the genus Geckolepis have large scales that tear away with ease, leaving ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 7, 2017
0
91
Researchers have discovered an ancient species of gecko in the ranges of Central Australia which may shine new light on how and when Australia's deserts began to form millions of year ago.
Plants & Animals
Nov 14, 2016
0
285
How do key innovations in the animal kingdom arise? To explore this question, gecko expert Timothy Higham, an associate professor of biology at the University of California, Riverside, led a team of evolutionary biologists ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 29, 2016
0
17
Micrometric and sub-micrometric contaminant particles—what most of us call "dust"—can cause big problems for art conservators, the electronics industry, aerospace engineers, and others. These nanoparticles can prevent ...
Materials Science
Apr 28, 2016
0
392
New research shows the fluid found on insects' feet does not help them adhere to vertical and inverted surfaces, as previously thought, but may in fact help them to unstick their feet more easily to allow greater control ...
Materials Science
Oct 7, 2015
0
58
Geckos employ dry adhesion, using a combination of microscopic hairs on their toe pads, as well as other aspects of internal anatomy, to climb vertical walls and run across ceilings, a skill that has long fascinated scientists. ...
Materials Science
Sep 2, 2015
0
29
