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Evolution news
Fungus gnat entombed in a 40-million-year-old piece of amber is a rare gem
A Danish amber collector's find upon a wild North Sea shore in the 1960's has proved to be of great and surprising significance. After having thoroughly examined the roughly 40-million-year-old piece of amber, University ...
Evolution
Aug 30, 2024
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Tuberculosis under the sea: A marine sponge microbe provides insights into the bacterium's evolution
The surprising discovery of a bacterium in a marine sponge from the Great Barrier Reef with striking similarity to Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the pathogen responsible for tuberculosis (TB), could unlock and inform future ...
Evolution
Aug 29, 2024
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Larger ant colonies drive the evolution of worker castes: Division of labor is key to life's complexity, says study
Just like human societies, ant societies have a division of labor. Within a colony, some individuals feed the young while others are soldiers who protect the colony from intruders. New research across 794 ant species, published ...
Evolution
Aug 29, 2024
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Lessons learned from Pennsylvania's rare chickadee 'hybrid zone' can now be accessed by students worldwide
In the hybrid zone that encompasses the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania, the habitats of the Carolina Chickadee and the Black-capped Chickadee converge, creating an opportunity for the different species to cross-breed and produce ...
Plants & Animals
Aug 28, 2024
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From smooth and button-size to spiky and giant-size, why are cacti so diverse?
Cacti are among the most diverse plants, from the giant saguaro cactus that can grow up to 18 meters in height, all the way down to the tiny button cactus which is a few centimeters tall. A new study by the Milner Centre ...
Plants & Animals
Aug 28, 2024
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Research team discovers 'impossible' unicellular organism
The origin of eukaryotes is considered one of the greatest enigmas in biology: according to current doctrine, two prokaryotes, a so-called Asgard archaeon and a bacterium, are believed to have merged. The bacterium is said ...
Evolution
Aug 28, 2024
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Some bats are surviving and thriving with blood sugar levels that would be lethal for other mammals
Humans must regulate blood sugar concentrations to stay healthy and to fuel our cells. Too little or too much can cause serious health complications, and high blood sugar is a hallmark of the metabolic condition, diabetes. ...
Evolution
Aug 28, 2024
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Exploring Darwin's longstanding interest in biological rhythms
A close reading of Darwin's work suggests a deep interest in cyclical events. Rhythmic phenomena in nature—today the subjects of the field of chronobiology—have been studied since at least the 18th century. In a perspective, ...
Evolution
Aug 27, 2024
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Plant-eating dinosaurs evolved backup teeth to eat tough food, research reveals
At the end of the Cretaceous, the duck-billed hadrosaurs were the most advanced herbivores on Earth. New research has revealed just how voracious these dinosaurs were, with their average tooth worn away in less than two months ...
Evolution
Aug 27, 2024
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Darwin's fear was unjustified: Study suggests fossil record gaps not a major issue
Fossils are used to reconstruct evolutionary history, but not all animals and plants become fossils and many fossils are destroyed before we can find them (e.g., the rocks that contain the fossils are destroyed by erosion). ...
Evolution
Aug 26, 2024
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From antiquity to adaptation: Tracing the genetic journey of east Asian chestnut varieties
Uncovering the genetic saga of Castanea trees, a study maps their evolutionary journey and local climate adaptations. This research reveals the genetic markers and molecular mechanisms that have allowed these nut fruit trees ...
Evolution
Aug 26, 2024
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Colorful fruit-like fungi and forests 'haunted by species loss': How a 30-year evolutionary mystery was resolved
Most fungi need only wind or water to disperse their spores. But some, including truffles, need a little help from animals.
Evolution
Aug 26, 2024
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Bonobo evidence suggests ancient origin of the 'common enemy effect'
In the face of threats from other groups, humans, chimpanzees, and a selection of other species get closer to their own. Now an international team led by Kyoto University has shown that even our more peaceful cousins, bonobos—who ...
Evolution
Aug 23, 2024
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Colorful traits in primates ease tensions between groups, data suggest
Primate ornamentation plays a crucial role in communication not only within social groups but also between them, according to a new study. The research, published in Evolution Letters, reveals that the males of species with ...
Evolution
Aug 23, 2024
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Into the blue: How baleen whales have adapted over the past 50 million years
The largest dataset of cetacean genes ever collated has helped Flinders University scientists deep dive into the blue to fathom the triumph of baleen whale evolution.
Plants & Animals
Aug 22, 2024
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Tarantulas' hairiness may have evolved as a defense mechanism against predatory ants
An article published in Journal of Natural History reviews the mutually beneficial ecological relationships and evolutionary adaptations of tarantulas. The study reveals that the infamous spiders are actually often on friendly ...
Evolution
Aug 22, 2024
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Ancient microbes linked to evolution of human immune proteins
When you become infected with a virus, some of the first weapons your body deploys to fight it are those passed down to us from our microbial ancestors billions of years ago. According to new research from The University ...
Evolution
Aug 21, 2024
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What the unique shape of the human heart tells us about our evolution
Mammals, from the mighty blue whale to the tiny shrew, inhabit nearly every corner of our planet. Their remarkable adaptability to different environments has long fascinated scientists, with each species developing unique ...
Evolution
Aug 21, 2024
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Newly discovered, free-living eukaryote is the first known to have lost its mitochondria
An international team of geneticists and molecular biologists has discovered the first-known, free-living eukaryote to have lost its mitochondria. In their study, published in Nature Communications, the group found the eukaryote ...
'Amazon' algae shed light on what happens to populations when females switch to asexual reproduction
Researchers at Max Planck Institute for Biology Tübingen and Kobe University discovered populations of female brown algae that reproduce from unfertilized gametes and thrive without males. In a study published in Nature ...
Evolution
Aug 20, 2024
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Other news
Researchers identify genes for low glycemic index and high protein in rice
Novel chemical tool aims to streamline drug-making process
Study identifies universal blueprint for mammalian brain shape
Old videos of chimpanzees suggest they are capable of speech
AI tool maps out cell metabolism with precision
Enhancing microbe memory to better upcycle excess CO₂
Promising antibiotic candidates discovered in microbes deep in the Arctic Sea
