Biological evolution is the heritable change in characteristics of biological populations over successive generations, driven by mechanisms such as mutation, recombination, genetic drift, gene flow, and natural and sexual selection. It operates through changes in allele frequencies within gene pools, constrained and shaped by developmental, physiological, and ecological contexts. Evolutionary processes generate adaptation, diversification, and extinction, producing hierarchical patterns from microevolutionary shifts within populations to macroevolutionary dynamics among lineages. At the molecular level, evolution involves sequence variation, genomic rearrangements, and changes in gene regulation, which collectively underlie phenotypic diversity and the emergence of complex biological organization.
Neuroscientists have uncovered new insights into a key evolutionary question: Why can humans talk when most animals can't? The journal Science published the research led by Emory University and the New College of Florida. ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 12, 2026
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58
In 1974, philosopher Thomas Nagel posed a deceptively simple question: "What is it like to be a bat?" His point wasn't really about bats. He was offering a provocative challenge about the limits of understanding another mind: ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 11, 2026
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38
Scientists at the University of East Anglia (U.K.) have uncovered a hidden link between gut health and the immune system—all thanks to a tiny island bird. Researchers studied the Seychelles warbler, a small songbird found ...
Ecology
Mar 11, 2026
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Thirteen million years ago, a group of medium-sized monkeys known for guarding their territory among the treetops with fearsome "howls" started doing something new. These monkeys, among the oldest known ancestors of the modern ...
Evolution
Mar 11, 2026
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69
A new study reveals that behavioral isolation between populations of Bahamas mosquitofish is driven primarily by the actions of females—not just through mating choice behaviors, but also through sometimes violent resistance. ...
Evolution
Mar 11, 2026
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13
A research team led by scientists at the Butantan Institute in São Paulo, Brazil, has completed the most extensive genetic sequencing of a jararaca viper to date. The focus of the study was the genome of the golden lancehead ...
Evolution
Mar 11, 2026
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42
Long before humans cultivated crops or sailed between continents, a group of plant viruses was already evolving among wild plants in Eurasia. According to a new international study published in Plant Disease, the ancestors ...
Evolution
Mar 9, 2026
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20
When closely related species mate, their offspring sometimes survive but cannot reproduce. This pattern often affects males first, with hybrid males frequently failing to produce functional sperm even when hybrid females ...
Evolution
Mar 9, 2026
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Mammals are not especially diverse. Roughly 6,800 mammal species are known to exist, compared with about 8,800 species of amphibian, 11,000 species of bird and 12,500 of reptile. Yet when most people picture biodiversity, ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 6, 2026
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82
Certain species of wasps and frogs share a pain and inflammation peptide similar to one found in vertebrates to help defend against predators—a discovery that contributes to a shifting view of how evolution works, say researchers. ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 5, 2026
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