In biological sciences, morphology is the branch that studies the form, external structure, and macroscopic organization of organisms and their parts, independent of function. It encompasses comparative morphology, which analyzes homologous structures across taxa; functional morphology, which relates structural features to mechanical or biomechanical constraints; and developmental morphology, which examines changes in form during ontogeny. Morphological data, including body plans, organ systems, and patterning of tissues, are central to systematics, phylogenetic inference, and taxonomy, and are integrated with molecular and genetic information to elucidate evolutionary relationships, phenotypic variation, and constraints on organismal design.
Researchers have shed new light on the features that enable tree-dwelling mammals to move effectively through their environments, providing insights into the evolution of the distinct upright postures seen in primates. The ...
Evolution
Feb 17, 2026
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Dashiell Hammett mentioned Sam Spade's jutting chin in the opening sentence of his novel, "The Maltese Falcon." Spade's chin was among the facial features Hammett used to describe his fictional detective's appearance, but ...
Evolution
Feb 11, 2026
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Pythons are a common sight across much of Asia, especially in the tropical jungles and wetlands of countries like Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia. But one curious exception has been the main island of Taiwan, where there ...
Documented for 200 years, the Iguanodontia group is expanding with the discovery of a brand-new species, the first known to bear spikes with properties never before observed in dinosaurs. Scientists from the CNRS1 and their ...
Evolution
Feb 6, 2026
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Studying the shape of tissues and organs is critical to understanding how they are formed. Embryonic development happens in three dimensions, but many studies are limited by the use of two-dimensional approaches and images ...
Biotechnology
Feb 5, 2026
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23
Flying is really hard work. Compared to walking, swimming, or running, flying is the form of movement that takes the most energy and requires the most calories. That means that birds have had to evolve specialized ways to ...
Evolution
Feb 2, 2026
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92
An international team has described Foskeia pelendonum, a tiny Early Cretaceous ornithopod from Vegagete (Burgos, Spain), measuring barely half a meter long. Led by Paul-Emile Dieudonné (National University of Río Negro, ...
Evolution
Feb 2, 2026
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A team of scientists from EPFL and Alaska Pacific University has developed an AI program that can recognize individual bears in the wild, despite the substantial changes that occur in their appearance over the summer season. ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 29, 2026
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130
A great white shark is a masterwork of evolutionary engineering. These beautiful predators glide effortlessly through the water, each slow, deliberate sweep of the powerful tail driving a body specialized for stealth, speed ...
Evolution
Jan 28, 2026
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142
When you hear the word "dinosaur," the first thing that might spring to mind is a hulking skeleton like Sue the T rex in Chicago's Field Museum or Sophie the Stegosaurus at the Natural History Museum in London. Dinosaur skeletons ...
Biotechnology
Jan 27, 2026
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