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.
In 2024, the Western Australian Museum received a donation. It was a koala skull collected from Moondyne Cave in Margaret River by Lindsay Hatcher, an avid caver. There was something a bit odd about this skull, and we were ...
Paleontology & Fossils
May 6, 2026
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A new study in Proceedings of the Royal Society B reveals the surprising neurological landscape of fish brains. Harvard researchers map the internal structures of ray-finned fishes' brains in 3D detail, discovering brain ...
Evolution
May 5, 2026
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Dinosaurs are among the most majestic and iconic animals to have ever walked on our planet. While they are now extinct, they are estimated to have inhabited Earth for over 165 million years.
New research led by Flinders University argues thick tooth enamel helped kangaroos chart an unconventional evolution story, compared to the animals of other continents. A 50-million-year natural "experiment" among Australia's ...
Evolution
Apr 30, 2026
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Amber from the Kachin region of Myanmar has preserved a wealth of fossils, offering insights into the diversity of the Cretaceous fauna of a 100-million-year-old forest ecosystem. The site continues to yield previously unknown ...
Evolution
Apr 22, 2026
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A study published in Science Advances shows that, in moss and the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, commonly known as thale cress, leaf formation relies on very similar cellular dynamics, with growth concentrated at their ...
Plants & Animals
Apr 21, 2026
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Why are flowers so different from one another? Much of the answer lies with pollinators: Their preferences and morphologies have helped generate an exceptional diversity of flowers in terms of shape, size, color and scent, ...
Evolution
Apr 20, 2026
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Georges Cuvier, the 19th-century French anatomist who first recognized pterodactyls as flying reptiles, wrote that "of all the beings whose ancient existence has been revealed to us, [they are] the most extraordinary."
Paleontology & Fossils
Apr 20, 2026
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"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet," said Juliet Capulet in William Shakespeare's famous play. And the same is presumably true for mollusks, albeit with different odors. When you think about the scientific names ...
Plants & Animals
Apr 20, 2026
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In the heart of the Middle Atlas Mountains in central Morocco, a global team of paleontologists and geologists has discovered new remains of a very unusual dinosaur. It belonged to the group called ankylosaurs, plant eaters ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Apr 19, 2026
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