https://phys.org/biology-news/evolution/ en-us The latest science news on evolution Chimpanzees have a reputation for being aggressive, while bonobos are often seen as their peaceful counterparts. This contrast has frequently been used to explain different sides of human nature. However, a new study by Utrecht University behavioral biologists Emile Bryon, Edwin van Leeuwen, Tom Roth and international colleagues shows that, in zoos, chimpanzees are not more aggressive than bonobos. The study was published in Science Advances. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-contrasting-reputations-bonobos-chimpanzees-similar.html Plants & Animals Wed, 11 Mar 2026 14:00:22 EDT news692446621 A long-standing debate about the evolutionary origin of the world's most widely cultivated "magic mushroom"—Psilocybe cubensis—may now have been settled by scientists from southern Africa and the United States. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-african-species-evolutionary-magic-mushrooms.html Evolution Tue, 10 Mar 2026 19:10:06 EDT news692352601 From whale songs to lion roars, animals have evolved to stretch their voices across distances so that friends—and sometimes foes—can hear them. Each sound is coded with messages like "Come here!" "Back off!" "Danger's lurking!" or "Want to hang out?" But why can some communicate over thousands of kilometers, and others mere meters? https://phys.org/news/2026-03-distance-animal.html Evolution Tue, 10 Mar 2026 18:00:01 EDT news692371616 Most lethal mutations in wild fruit flies are driven by newly transferred jumping genes, not small DNA errors, according to a new study from Duke University. The findings, published in PLOS Biology, challenge decades of assumptions in evolutionary genetics and may have implications for population health and conservation. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-lethal-mutations-persist-fruit-fly.html Evolution Tue, 10 Mar 2026 14:00:02 EDT news692293621 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 of modern tymoviruses likely emerged before the last Ice Age, reshaping scientists' understanding of the vast evolutionary history of plant disease. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-scientists-crop-viruses-ice-age.html Evolution Mon, 09 Mar 2026 16:20:13 EDT news692280182 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 remain fertile. In a new study published in Molecular Biology and Evolution, Whitehead Institute Member Yukiko Yamashita, graduate student in her lab Adrienne Fontan, and senior scientist in her lab Romain Lannes identify a cellular defect that contributes to this phenomenon in fruit flies. This finding may help explain how diverging species become reproductively incompatible. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-chromosome-species-reproductively-incompatible.html Evolution Mon, 09 Mar 2026 13:00:06 EDT news692272681 A new University of California San Diego study published in Cell challenges a long-standing assumption about how animal viruses become capable of sparking human epidemics and pandemics. Using a phylogenetic, genome-wide analysis across multiple viral families, researchers report that most zoonotic viruses—infectious pathogens that spread from animals to humans, including the cause of COVID-19—do not show evidence of special evolutionary adaptation before spilling over into humans. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-pandemic-viruses-humans-prior.html Evolution Mon, 09 Mar 2026 11:40:03 EDT news692269664 A "peculiar" ancient relative of the crocodile which experts believe began life on four legs before, in adulthood, it learned how to walk on just two has been revealed in a new study. Named Sonselasuchus cedrus, this archaic reptile was part of the shuvosaurid group, most of which had an appearance mimicking that of the ornithomimid dinosaurs that it shared the landscape with during the Late Triassic (approximately 225–201 million years ago). https://phys.org/news/2026-03-peculiar-crocodile-ancestor-life-legs.html Evolution Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:10:02 EDT news691922882 In a study published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, researchers Dr. Giovanna M. X. Paixão and her colleagues analyzed the fossilized remains of three Upper Cretaceous egg clutches. One of these clutches, totaling 47 eggs, is the largest known Mesozoic crocodyliform egg clutch ever found. The discovery indicates new evolutionary implications for one of the most diverse fossil crocodylomorph faunas, providing insight into their complex and successful reproductive habits and adaptations. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-largest-mesozoic-crocodyliform-egg-clutch.html Evolution Fri, 06 Mar 2026 14:40:03 EST news692012533 Why does a Caribbean angelfish sometimes resemble its Indo-Pacific cousin, even though they have never lived in the same ocean? Why do coral reefs harbor such a wide range of stripes, spots and patterns? A study conducted by the University of Liège reveals that this explosion of color patterns is not the result of chance. The more species that make their home in a reef, the more varied the patterns, and fish from different oceans often end up looking alike, guided by the same deep biological constraints. The study is published in the journal BMC Biology. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-evolution-diversity-coral-reef-fish.html Evolution Thu, 05 Mar 2026 16:40:08 EST news691949662 Our single-celled ancestor lived in a world without plants, animals or oxygen-rich oceans. Yet, this seemingly simple microorganism took the first steps toward complex life. From this ancestor emerged all multicellular (complex) life as we know it today: from yeast to blue whales, collectively known as eukaryotes. These organisms are built from cells containing specialized structures, such as a nucleus and other specialized structures, each performing distinct functions. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-microbial-ancestor-complex-life-sophisticated.html Evolution Thu, 05 Mar 2026 16:40:03 EST news691946033 When a species lives in two distinct types of habitats, individuals with traits better suited to each habitat will thrive and reproduce, naturally selecting descendants with those traits. But what about mobile aquatic species that live across a broad range of temperatures and latitudes? New research from Cornell University and the University of Connecticut finds that chromosomal inversions—which occur when a chunk of chromosome containing tens to thousands of genes breaks off, flips and reattaches—help these species maintain genetic differences adapted to various regions, even when they interbreed. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-flipped-chromosomal-segments-natural-atlantic.html Evolution Thu, 05 Mar 2026 16:00:04 EST news691943761 Woodpeckers are well known for striking tree trunks with remarkable force and precision. These birds deliver thousands of high-speed impacts per day, generating mechanical loads that would destabilize the skulls of most other birds. For decades, this performance has often been attributed primarily to shock absorption mechanisms or unusually resistant skull tissues. A new study led by researchers from the National University of La Plata and Johns Hopkins University suggests that this explanation is more complex than previously thought. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-woodpeckers-rarely-rattled-skulls-built.html Plants & Animals Thu, 05 Mar 2026 15:40:05 EST news691940106 All complex biological systems—like the DNA, RNA and proteins constantly being copied and built within our cells—are prone to errors. That means as life evolved to be more elaborate, it also had to evolve error-correcting strategies. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-scientists-clock-factor-evolution-error.html Evolution Thu, 05 Mar 2026 12:00:01 EST news691933381 Paleobiologist Geerat Vermeij is enthralled with mollusks. Their shells line the surfaces and fill the cabinets and drawers in his office on the second floor of the Earth and Planetary Sciences Building at UC Davis. But Vermeij's deep study of these organisms isn't just about the animals themselves, it's an avenue for deeper insights about the principles governing evolution and history. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-evolution-physical-traits-mollusks-declined.html Plants & Animals Wed, 04 Mar 2026 17:10:01 EST news691864741 New 3D reconstructions of a key sensory organ in ctenophores reveal an unexpected structural and functional complexity. The findings suggest that an elementary brain may have already appeared in our most ancient relatives, reshaping our understanding of nervous system evolution in animals. The work is published in Science Advances. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-ctenophore-earlier-brain.html Evolution Wed, 04 Mar 2026 14:00:03 EST news691777922 A research team led by Profs. Zhu Min, Lu Jing, and Zhu You'an from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences published two back-to-back cover stories in the journal Nature on March 4, reporting new discoveries about the origin of bony fishes. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-oldest-bony-fish-fossils-uncover.html Evolution Wed, 04 Mar 2026 13:20:01 EST news691850222 Walking on two legs has long been considered a milestone in human evolution and one of our most defining characteristics. Until now, researchers assumed that the first humans originated in Africa and that bipedalism developed there around 6 million years ago. However, an international team of researchers say a newly discovered fossil thighbone from Bulgaria could rewrite the history of human origins. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-human-ancestor-balkans-fossil-evidence.html Evolution Wed, 04 Mar 2026 10:40:03 EST news691839358 Crystals have repeatedly been found at archaeological sites alongside Homo remains. Evidence shows that hominins have been collecting these stones for as long as 780,000 years. Yet, we know that our ancestors did not use them as weapons, tools, or even jewelry. So why did they collect them at all? https://phys.org/news/2026-02-chimps-crystals-ancestors-fascination-stones.html Plants & Animals Wed, 04 Mar 2026 00:00:02 EST news691403281 Jackdaw chicks learn about predators by listening to adults, new research shows. Scientists played recordings of predator calls to chicks in their nests—and paired the sounds with either adult jackdaw "alarm" calls or "contact" calls that indicate no danger. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-jackdaw-chicks-adults-predators.html Evolution Tue, 03 Mar 2026 19:10:06 EST news691752062 Researchers have found that the size of the amygdala—a region of the brain involved in processing emotions—could be linked to social tolerance in macaque monkeys. Their research, published today in eLife, is described by the editors as important work with a convincing methodological approach, offering new insights into the neural basis of social and emotional processing. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-brain-volume-linked-social-tolerance.html Plants & Animals Tue, 03 Mar 2026 12:20:04 EST news691754164 Left-handers are more competitive than right-handers, according to a new study published in the journal Scientific Reports. The findings may help explain why left-handedness has persisted throughout evolution despite the majority of people being right-handed. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-left-people-psychological-edge-competition.html Evolution Tue, 03 Mar 2026 10:20:01 EST news691750495 UC College of Arts and Sciences Professor Thomas Algeo has been studying the planet's five major mass extinctions since the Ordovician Period, when global sea levels were much higher than today. In a paper published in Nature Ecology & Evolution, Algeo provides context for a study examining the process of colonization and spread of plants, known as terrestrialization. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-marine-life-earth.html Evolution Tue, 03 Mar 2026 10:00:02 EST news691750409 New minuscule fossils of Purgatorius, the earliest-known relative of all primates—including humans—have been unearthed in a more southern region of North America than ever before, and the breakthrough is providing paleontologists with fresh clues about evolution. The work appears in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-tiny-purgatorius-fossils-denver-basin.html Evolution Tue, 03 Mar 2026 00:10:01 EST news691404181 Plants are fast-tracking their own evolution by "plugging in" genetic code stolen from their neighbors, according to new research that reveals the secret to their own successful genetic engineering. The study, led by Catherine Collins, Dr. Luke Dunning and Dr. Lara Pereira from the University of Sheffield, in collaboration with researchers from Yale and Bangor Universities, examined how grasses "steal" DNA from other species. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-play-genetic-shortcuts-survive.html Evolution Mon, 02 Mar 2026 13:40:05 EST news691674482 The deep sea is a dark, cold place. It's just a few degrees above freezing, subject to immense pressure, and beyond the reach of the sunlight needed for photosynthesis. The life that does survive in such a hostile place must find a different way to thrive. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-paleontologists-life-deep-sea.html Evolution Mon, 02 Mar 2026 12:20:01 EST news691671961 The discovery of a rare fossil goose in an ancient Central Otago lake shows the evolutionary history of Aotearoa New Zealand birds is much more dynamic than once thought, a University of Otago–Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka researcher says. Associate Professor Nic Rawlence, Director of the Otago Paleogenetics Laboratory, is co-author of a new paper which analyzes the fossil and its origins. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-mother-goose-million-year-lineage.html Evolution Mon, 02 Mar 2026 09:00:10 EST news691664221 Animals of the same species don't always look the same. From birds with different beak shapes to mammals that vary in size or color, populations living in different places can often look very different. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-leopards-south-africa-cape-successfully.html Evolution Sun, 01 Mar 2026 12:00:01 EST news691324026 Early mammalian ancestors were nocturnal, sleeping during the day while the dinosaurs dominated the land. However, some mammalian lineages, including human ancestors, independently transitioned to diurnality (active during the day). Scientists have now discovered why humans are not nocturnal. A new study published in Science reveals that the answer is in the genes. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-cellular-humans-day.html Evolution Fri, 27 Feb 2026 18:20:01 EST news691418958 The human genome is a rich, complex record of migration, encounters, and inheritance written over thousands of millennia. Genomic research by members of Sarah Tishkoff's lab at the University of Pennsylvania are revisiting a particularly intimate chapter, suggesting that ancient mating patterns between modern humans and Neanderthals shaped why Neanderthal DNA is largely missing from the human X chromosome. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-neanderthal-males-human-females-ancient.html Evolution Thu, 26 Feb 2026 18:20:05 EST news691338961