Vertebrate paleontology is the scientific discipline within paleontology that focuses on the study of fossilized remains of vertebrate animals, including their morphology, systematics, evolutionary relationships, and paleoecology. It integrates anatomical analysis, comparative biology, stratigraphy, and geochronology to reconstruct the origin, diversification, and extinction patterns of vertebrates through deep time. Research in vertebrate paleontology often involves detailed examination of skeletal elements, functional morphology, and phylogenetic methods to infer evolutionary trajectories and biogeographic histories, as well as to interpret environmental and climatic conditions recorded in vertebrate fossil assemblages and associated sedimentary contexts.
Museums are supposed to be havens for the collective cultural and scientific heritage of the planet, but specimens sometimes go missing.
Evolution
Jul 3, 2026
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One of the world's most complete Tyrannosaurus rex skeletons, nicknamed "Gus," was showcased Wednesday at Sotheby's auction house in New York ahead of its sale later this month.
Paleontology & Fossils
Jul 2, 2026
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Human evolution is generally explained through changes in brain size, locomotion or tool use, but new research from Wits University suggests that gum disease and changes in facial structure may have been important factors ...
Evolution
Jul 1, 2026
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European brown bears are masters of survival: These animals have weathered Pleistocene climate fluctuations and survived the cycles of ice ages and interglacial periods to the present day. Zoologists have now investigated ...
Evolution
Jul 1, 2026
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An analysis of fossil teeth from mammals that lived in China following the most recent major mass extinction suggests size came before both shape and function as diets diversified.
Evolution
Jul 1, 2026
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Over 300 million years ago, a minnow-sized fish died and fell to the bottom of a prehistoric swamp near the village of Trawden, Lancashire, in northwest England. The remains of this tiny fish—known as Trawdenia planti—became ...
Evolution
Jun 30, 2026
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Although modern crocodiles, alligators, caimans and gharials are restricted to the tropics, their fossil record tells a very different story. Ancient crocodylians once inhabited much of the globe and exhibited a remarkable ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 29, 2026
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The first dinosaur fossil found on the Antarctic continent has been described scientifically. The fossil, a vertebra, was found on a British Antarctic Survey (BAS) expedition in 1985 but has only recently been recognized ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Jun 29, 2026
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An associated set of gigantic vertebrae belonging to the iconic extinct megalodon, or megatooth shark, that had been missing in action since the 1980s was discovered, providing new information about the shark's lifestyle. ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Jun 28, 2026
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143
Fossils tucked away in a museum drawer and identified merely as "feline" are actually from a very ancient and enigmatic saber-toothed cat that inhabited North America more than 5 million years ago. Newly identified by a UC ...
Evolution
Jun 27, 2026
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