Biological adaptation is the evolutionary process through which heritable traits that enhance an organism’s fitness become more prevalent in a population over generations under specific environmental conditions. It operates primarily via natural selection acting on genetic variation, including mutations, recombination, and gene flow, and is constrained by developmental, genetic, and phylogenetic factors. Adaptations can be morphological, physiological, or behavioral and are typically characterized by increased survival or reproductive success in a given niche. The process is dynamic and context-dependent, such that traits advantageous in one environment may be neutral or deleterious in another, contributing to diversification and speciation.
A new study combines paleoanthropology and diving physiology to address a fundamental question in human evolution: Why did humans evolve their exceptional aerobic endurance? Did our ancestors begin endurance running to exhaust ...
Evolution
5 hours ago
0
0
In both biological and engineered systems, cells and sensors must make sense of noisy, changing signals to function. However, collecting and using this information consumes valuable energy. A new study, published in Physical ...
Should I stay or should I go? What determines whether birds migrate for the winter? This is one of the questions explored in a new doctoral thesis by Cassandra Ugland from NTNU's Department of Biology. The work is published ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 15, 2026
0
5
DNA repair mechanisms are essential for maintaining the integrity of our genome. When they malfunction, they can cause disease or contribute to the development of cancer. Nature, however, offers remarkable examples of organisms ...
Evolution
Sep 14, 2026
0
16
A research team from the University of Bern has shown in a large-scale field experiment that populations of the same fish species can be much more fine-tuned to their local environments than previously thought. Habitats that ...
Evolution
Sep 14, 2026
0
12
For cancer patients undergoing head and neck radiation therapy, people living with Sjögren's syndrome, people with diabetes or older people, reduced saliva production and the resulting dry mouth are far more than uncomfortable. ...
Cell & Microbiology
Sep 12, 2026
0
14
Research teams from INRAE, the University of Clermont Auvergne and the CNRS have reconstructed 10 ancient genomes (paleogenomes) that are the common ancestors of 84 botanical species of agronomic interest. Their work makes ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 11, 2026
0
33
UK gardens took a battering this summer as a heat dome settled over western Europe, and much of the green and pleasant land turned a dusty beige.
Plants & Animals
Sep 10, 2026
0
13
Learning is often thought to require a brain. But learning is a broad concept that does not necessarily depend on neurons.
Cell & Microbiology
Sep 10, 2026
0
132
The findings of a new study led by the Leibniz-IZW on Namibian free-ranging cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus jubatus) demonstrate that epigenetic mechanisms might play an important role in how animals develop different phenotypes ...
Ecology
Sep 7, 2026
0
32
