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Paleontology & Fossils news
Fossil treasure chest: How to preserve the geoheritage of South Africa's Cape coast
I am standing on a dune looking out to sea. It's 2024, but I'm thinking about a very different time. Hundreds of thousands of years ago, this 350 km stretch of southern African coast looked very different. It was home to ...
Paleontology & Fossils
19 hours ago
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Rare fossil embryos show early Ecdysozoa development in Cambrian era
An international research team has made a notable discovery of fossil embryos belonging to Ecdysozoa, a diverse group of animals including roundworms, velvet worms, insects, and crabs. These fossils, dated to approximately ...
Evolution
Dec 24, 2024
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Extremely rare baby mammoth found in Siberia
Russian scientists on Monday showed off the remarkably well preserved remains of a baby mammoth found in the permafrost-covered region of Yakutia.
Paleontology & Fossils
Dec 23, 2024
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Ferns' ancient resilience aids modern ecosystem recovery after disasters
Scientists have suggested an updated framework for the role of ferns in environmental recovery from disaster. Instead of competing with other organisms, ferns may act as facilitators that ease the way for other plants and ...
Ecology
Dec 20, 2024
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Simulations of hominin Lucy help show how long distance running evolved in modern humans
A team of natural scientists, musculoskeletal specialists, and evolutionary biologists affiliated with several institutions in the U.K., working with a colleague from the Netherlands, has found via simulations, that the famous ...
Giant sloths and mastodons lived with humans for millennia in the Americas, new discoveries suggest
Sloths weren't always slow-moving, furry tree-dwellers. Their prehistoric ancestors were huge—up to 4 tons (3.6 metric tons)—and when startled, they brandished immense claws.
Paleontology & Fossils
Dec 20, 2024
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Extended chart of life shows ancient species may have evolved slower and lasted longer
If all the world's a stage and all the species merely players, then their exits and entrances can be found in the rock record. Fossilized skeletons and shells clearly show how evolution and extinction unfolded over the past ...
Evolution
Dec 19, 2024
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A family reunion 150 million years in making: Paleontologists identify nearly 50 hidden relatives of Pterodactylus
Christmas is the time for families to come together, and in the midst of the festive season, University of Leicester paleontologists have announced that they have reunited a family that has been separated for 150 million ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Dec 19, 2024
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New York man finds mastodon jaw while gardening in his backyard
Scholars are hailing the discovery of a fossilized mastodon jaw discovered by a man who spotted two giant teeth while gardening at his upstate New York home this year.
Paleontology & Fossils
Dec 18, 2024
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How a giant prehistoric elephant skull helped untangle an evolutionary mystery
About 400,000 years ago, early humans in Europe, Asia and Africa lived alongside giant straight-tusked elephants, far bigger than their modern-day cousins. Their evolution has long been a mystery to paleontologists, but an ...
Evolution
Dec 18, 2024
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Mysterious plant fossil belongs to a family that no longer exists
In 1969, fossilized leaves of the species Othniophyton elongatum—which translates to "alien plant"—were identified in eastern Utah. Initially, scientists theorized the extinct species may have belonged to the ginseng ...
Plants & Animals
Dec 17, 2024
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Were Neanderthals cold-adapted or were they just ready for anything? Ribcage reconstruction may hold the answer
Researchers at the Department of Paleobiology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales in Madrid report that analysis of a Neanderthal ribcage from a cave in Iraq exhibits a "bell-shaped" thorax configuration typical of Neanderthals ...
World's oldest mammalian ancestor discovered in Mallorca
An international research team led by the Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP) and the Museu Balear de Ciències Naturals (MUCBO | MBCN) have described a fossil animal that lived between 270 and 280 million ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Dec 17, 2024
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Paleoenvironmental study at Waterfall Bluff reveals leopard seal far from Antarctic waters
Waterfall Bluff Rock Shelter (WB) (Eastern Cape Province (ECP), South Africa) contains archaeological deposits demonstrating persistent and continuous human occupation spanning from Late Marine Isotope Stage 3 (~39ka–29ka) ...
New insights into the evolution and paleoecology of mosasaurs
Mosasaurs are extinct marine lizards, spectacular examples of which were first discovered in 1766 near Maastricht in the Netherlands, fueling the rise of the field of vertebrate paleontology. Paleontologist Michael Polcyn ...
Evolution
Dec 12, 2024
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What bone scans reveal about a tiny crocodilian from the Jurassic era
Journeying back to the Jurassic era, scientists used cutting-edge tech to uncover the secrets about Orthosuchus stormbergi, a small, early crocodile ancestor. Their results are published in the Journal of Anatomy.
Paleontology & Fossils
Dec 12, 2024
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New species of ancient fish may be smallest known vertebrate fossil in Queensland's history
Queensland Museum scientists have described a 400-million-year-old fossil, which is possibly the smallest vertebrate fossil animal known from Queensland—Palaeospondylus australis. Details about this ancient fish, found ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Dec 11, 2024
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A new species of flying reptile reshuffles the timeline of pterosaur evolution
About 230 million years ago, almost 80 million years before the first bird appeared, their distantly related cousins, the pterosaurs took to the sky, as the first group of active fliers among the vertebrates. Pterosaurs developed ...
Evolution
Dec 11, 2024
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Thylacoleo the fossil lion makes a roaring comeback
A new model of Thylacoleo, Australia's once-fearsome carnivorous marsupial lion, will be on show at the Victoria Cave visitor complex at the World Heritage-listed Naracoorte Caves.
Paleontology & Fossils
Dec 11, 2024
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Triassic reptile with unusual jaws named as a new species
A new species of ancient reptile has been named after spending more than 200 million years buried in the ground. Threordatoth chasmatos was one of the last survivors of the procolophonids, a group of lizard-like animals that ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Dec 6, 2024
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More news
Tyrannosaur teeth discovered in Bexhill-on-Sea with help of retired quarryman
Rare whitefly fossils found in New Zealand shed light on ancient forest life
Fishy fossil find points to possible polar bear ancestry for Scottish bears
Peru scientists unveil crocodile fossil up to 12 million years old
Fossil discovery reveals giant worm lizard with snail-cracking jaws
Parasaurolophus pipes: Modeling the dinosaur's crest to study its sound
Other news
How monkeys recognize snakes so quickly
Fish-friendly dentistry: New method makes oral research non-lethal
NASA probe makes closest ever pass by the sun
Researchers reveal full-gray optical trap in structured light
Human ancestor Lucy still has secrets 50 years after discovery
Ankylosaurid dinosaur, unearthed in China in 1986, identified as a new species
Paleontologists discover Saskatchewan's first Centrosaurus and Citipes elegans fossils
The megafauna mystery: Australia's 40,000-year-old cold case
Saber-toothed kitten preserved in ice for 35,000 years
Fossil finds: Footprints on South Africa's coast offer a glimpse into our ancestors' lives
Two Earth-sized exoplanets orbiting nearby star detected
Biologists studying apples discover structural cell protein also directly regulates gene transcription
