Mammals are a vertebrate class (Mammalia) characterized by endothermy, hair or fur, and the presence of mammary glands that produce milk to nourish offspring. They possess a neocortex, three middle ear ossicles, and a single-boned lower jaw articulating with the squamosal bone. Most exhibit viviparity with complex placentation (except monotremes, which are oviparous) and show determinate growth with advanced parental care and social behaviors. Mammalian physiology includes high metabolic rates, a four-chambered heart, and differentiated dentition, supporting ecological diversification into terrestrial, aerial, and aquatic niches across nearly all biomes.
The deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) of living organisms contains regulatory elements that control when, where and to what extent specific genes are turned on or off. They can be co-opted to create "gene switches" that hold significant ...
Biotechnology
Aug 17, 2026
0
15
New research suggests that no matter what we eventually determine the last common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees to be, we'll learn it was a primate that climbed trees.
Evolution
Aug 17, 2026
0
249
When people think about climate change and animals, they might picture melting sea ice, drought-stricken landscapes or species struggling in the wild. Far less attention is given to the animals living in our care. Yet as ...
Ecology
Aug 17, 2026
0
10
Cells travel through the body both individually and in collective groups during development, wound healing and diseases such as cancer. New research from the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. ...
Cell & Microbiology
Aug 17, 2026
0
56
Tick-borne diseases are on the rise in the United States. Lyme disease is the most commonly reported, with nearly half a million people diagnosed each year. Caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, it is most often spread ...
Ecology
Aug 17, 2026
0
283
A distinctive black or dark brown lesion that appears on the eyes of some cats has long puzzled veterinarians. Now, researchers have identified two elements that may help explain what is happening inside the affected cornea.
Veterinary medicine
Aug 17, 2026
0
10
By the early 1990s, there were only around 20 Florida panthers left on the planet.
Plants & Animals
Aug 17, 2026
0
7
When a dairy cow miscarries, a farmer loses far more than an unborn calf. Feed has been grown, land and water have been used, and greenhouse gases have been released during the cow's pregnancy, but milk production, a future ...
Ecology
Aug 15, 2026
0
26
Canine sarcoptic mange (scabies) is a skin condition in which microscopic mites (Sarcoptes scabiei) infest dogs' skin. The condition is contagious and zoonotic and can be difficult to detect. If left untreated, it can cause ...
Four more belugas have arrived at a Chicago aquarium as part of a plan to move Canada's last remaining captive whales from a shuttered theme park to aquariums in the United States and Spain.
Ecology
Aug 15, 2026
0
72
