The Miocene is a geologic epoch of the Neogene Period, spanning approximately 23.03 to 5.33 million years ago, characterized by significant tectonic, climatic, and biotic transitions. It saw continued fragmentation of continents and uplift of major mountain ranges, which altered atmospheric circulation and drove long-term global cooling and aridification trends. The Miocene witnessed expansion and diversification of grasslands and associated mammalian faunas, alongside important evolutionary radiations in marine and terrestrial lineages. It also encompasses major developments in ocean circulation patterns, including changes in thermohaline structure that influenced carbon cycling, contributing to the establishment of more modern-style climatic and ecological regimes.
Researchers have found evidence of a previously unknown branch of the marsupial family tree, a discovery that could reshape our understanding of how Australia's unique mammals evolved. Published in the Journal of Paleontology, ...
Evolution
Jun 15, 2026
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A research team with the participation of the Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP) has described a new species of extinct carnivore from fossil remains recovered at the Els Casots site (Subirats, Alt Penedès). ...
Evolution
Jun 12, 2026
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Sometime between 5.5 and 5.6 million years ago, two shell crushers squared off in the languid currents of an ancient Florida river. The fossils they left behind, discovered by paleontologists at the Florida Museum of Natural ...
Ecology
Jun 2, 2026
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New research published in Science Advances reveals that the largest expansion of coral reefs in the past 100 million years happened about 20 to 10 million years ago, between Australia and Southeast Asia.
Plants & Animals
Apr 30, 2026
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A research team from the Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA) has led the paleohistological study of Ampelomeryx ginsburgi, a giraffomorph ruminant from the Middle Miocene recovered at the Els Casots ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Apr 29, 2026
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Mark Clementz, a professor in the University of Wyoming Department of Geology and Geophysics, and colleagues have produced a compelling study that shows that an increase in volcanic activity in the Andes in the Late Miocene ...
Earth Sciences
Apr 14, 2026
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87
Weasels are small carnivores with a long body and short legs. They also have a stout skull and sharp teeth. These creatures, along with ferrets and minks, make up the Mustelinae subfamily. Until now, researchers believed ...
Evolution
Apr 14, 2026
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26
In a study published in Science, an international research team from the Mansoura University Vertebrate Paleontology Center (Egypt) and the University of Southern California (U.S.) describe Masripithecus moghraensis, a newly ...
Evolution
Mar 26, 2026
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420
The Miocene, beginning approximately 23 million years ago, represents a canonical "warm-Earth" interval characterized by elevated atmospheric CO2 and a warmer global climate. The El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), as a ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 13, 2026
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377
A study by the Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP-CERCA) with the involvement of the UAB indicates that between 12.5 and 9 million years ago, in the Vallès-Penedès basin, rainfall was twice as high as ...
Earth Sciences
Feb 2, 2026
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