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Evolution news
'Heel-strike' may have allowed early humans to walk farther—at the cost of high-impact forces
The average person takes thousands of steps each day, instinctively walking heel-to-toe. Although they hardly register them, those consistent heel-first strides are more distinctive to humans than previously thought and allowed ...
Evolution
Sep 7, 2026
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277
Self-processing brain systems show both conservation and reorganization across primates
New in JNeurosci, Ning Liu, from the Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, explored whether brain structures for self-processing are conserved across primates, including humans, chimpanzees and macaques.
Evolution
Sep 7, 2026
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Reconstructed ancient protein maps how bacterial enzymes evolved distinct functions
How do related proteins develop different functions? This is the question investigated by a research team involving Kiel University, DESY and the Center for Structural Systems Biology (CSSB). Led by Holger Sondermann, professor ...
Evolution
Sep 7, 2026
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Decades-old museum specimens reveal 10 extraordinary new worms
Scientists have discovered that one of the most unusual creatures in the animal kingdom is far more diverse and evolutionarily complex than previously known. An international team led by the University of Göttingen has reconstructed ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 7, 2026
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10
The extinct American 'cheetah' was not a cheetah after all
With their slender bodies and long front legs, Miracinonyx trumani—often nicknamed the "American cheetah"—was long thought to be a North American analog of the African big cat. But in a new study published in the journal ...
Evolution
Sep 6, 2026
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149
Not a cheetah: Ancient DNA reveals the surprising Arctic life of extinct North American cat
A new study led by researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, has overturned decades of assumptions about Miracinonyx trumani, the extinct predator popularly known as the American cheetah. By analyzing nuclear ...
Evolution
Sep 4, 2026
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257
Tiny fossils reveal big insights about ant ancestors
Two tiny ant fossils recovered in southern Saskatchewan are helping scientists better understand the evolutionary history of modern ants. Ant fossils dating from 72–56 million years ago are rare. What happened to insects ...
Evolution
Sep 3, 2026
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48
How an unassuming wildflower thrives in salt-laden air that kills other plants
On the windswept coasts of Oregon and California lives an unassuming little plant that can withstand salty blasts that kill its inland counterparts. It's called the yellow monkeyflower. Now, researchers are beginning to understand ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 3, 2026
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30
Early mammals weren't all loners—some may have lived in pairs alongside the dinosaurs
About 200 million years ago, furry, little egg-laying creatures evolved the ability to feed their offspring with a secretion from special glands: milk. Their evolutionary journey continued, and by about 160 million years ...
Evolution
Sep 3, 2026
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34
Pigment found in beets linked to plants' adaptation to harsh environments
The pigments that give beets their red color may have helped a major group of flowering plants repeatedly adapt to dry environments, setting the stage for the evolution of traits that allowed plants to adapt to some of the ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 3, 2026
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8
Metabolic networks provide clues about the earliest stages of enzyme evolution
The enzymes found in modern organisms are complex proteins, often with multiple folded substructures and specialized catalytic sites. Proteins are encoded by genes. Tracing the history of enzymes across all living organisms ...
Evolution
Sep 3, 2026
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5
Ancient fossil from China reveals animal‑microbe partnerships dating back 550 million years
We often think of microbes as organisms that live around us, like the Salmonella bacteria and flu viruses that cause illness. But some of our most intimate relationships are with the microbes living inside us.
Evolution
Sep 2, 2026
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31
When biology inspires mathematics: Hidden symmetries explain why widely used evolutionary methods can give false answers
Why do some groups of organisms contain thousands of species while others have only a handful? Evolutionary biologists have spent decades trying to answer this question using mathematical models that estimate how biological ...
Evolution
Sep 2, 2026
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34
Seven new species show 250-million-year-old marine group is still evolving
Scientists believed there were only two species of hornerid bryozoans in Aotearoa New Zealand, but new research shows several more have been secretly evolving and thriving in the nation's southern waters.
Evolution
Sep 2, 2026
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13
Peacock-like displays outpace antlers and tusks in evolutionary change, model suggests
Many animal species, ranging from peacocks and birds of paradise to some lizards, fish and beetles, display physical features or ornaments that can attract potential mates. These ornaments can include colorful plumage, elaborate ...
Firelight may have sparked human storytelling by extending social hours
New research from the University of St Andrews has developed a novel hypothesis of how firelight was critical to the evolution of sophisticated storytelling.
Evolution
Sep 1, 2026
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21
In tune with nature: Human speech follows a rhythm that is also found in the animal kingdom
The temporal structure of speech rhythms resembles that of the communication signals of numerous animal species. This is shown by a study conducted by a research team from the Leibniz Center for General Linguistics (ZAS) ...
Evolution
Sep 1, 2026
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Even ancient bacteria possessed intercellular communication structures like humans today, study finds
Communication between cells in plants, animals and humans takes place via specialized connecting structures. An international team led by biologists from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU) and involving the University ...
Evolution
Aug 31, 2026
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56
Q&A: What dinosaur teeth reveal about diet and evolution
What did dinosaurs eat? Teeth provide important clues to understanding the ecology of dinosaurs, which became extinct approximately 66 million years ago. Their shape, structure and patterns of wear can help scientists reconstruct ...
Evolution
Aug 31, 2026
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12
Extraordinary immune gene diversity in Atlantic herring exceeds that of other vertebrates, including humans
Atlantic herring travel in massive schools that can contain hundreds of millions—and sometimes even billions—of fish. While this abundance is characteristic of one of the most successful vertebrates on Earth, it also creates ...
Plants & Animals
Aug 31, 2026
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15
More news
Caught right-handed: Mystery of coiling snake embryos explained
When fruits and veggies are scarce, monkeys hunt for meat
How plants evolved a molecular switch to cope with heat
How sex sheds evolutionary baggage
Other news
AI D-Day weather forecast falters under pressure
One of the oldest known 3D animal fossils found in Norwegian sheep field
Researchers rewire ribosomes to specialize in one protein
Untangling the meta-biomaterial puzzle one property at a time
Helium-3 lifts new quantum computing concept with faster tunneling rates
Evolutionary process behind live birth in lizards uncovered
How body size and habitat shape the vocal repertoires of primates
Waterlogged seeds reveal melons' ancient journey
A crystalline sponge reveals structures of large 'beyond rule of 5' molecules
