https://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Some of the most beautiful creatures to grace the ancient seas, the ammonites, disappeared in the end-Cretaceous mass extinction that finished off the dinosaurs 65.5 million years ago. "It's a tragic story, because this incredibly diverse group made it through multiple mass extinctions, including the most dramatic mass extinction event in history," the Permian-Triassic extinction, which killed off 96% of marine species about 252 million years ago, says Michael Schmutzer, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Oxford in England. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-tiny-eggs-ammonites-nautiloids-survived.html Evolution Tue, 05 May 2026 15:40:05 EDT news697200661 Today's octopuses are intelligent, remarkably flexible animals that lurk in reefs, hide in crevices, or drift through the deep sea. But new research suggests that their earliest relatives may have played a far more predatory role in ocean ecosystems. A study led by researchers at Hokkaido University has found that the earliest known octopuses were giant predators that hunted at the very top of the food web, alongside large marine vertebrates. The study is published in Science. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-giant-octopuses-oceans-million-years.html Evolution Thu, 23 Apr 2026 18:30:02 EDT news696182161 Nature is a riot of color. In the animal kingdom, many species, from insects to cephalopods, use their permanent color or change it for communication, camouflage, and thermoregulation. While this type of reversible shift has been extensively studied, less is known about how the environment may passively affect coloration. In a paper published in the journal Biology Letters, scientists report that sweat bees change color as ambient humidity fluctuates. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-humidity-bees.html Plants & Animals Wed, 22 Apr 2026 13:10:01 EDT news696081165 An international team of researchers, led by paleontologists of the University of Liège, has investigated the biting capabilities of extinct predatory marine reptiles, revealing how these formidable predators could coexist within the same ecosystem. This work sheds new light on the hunting strategies of long-extinct predators that dominated the seas during the Age of Dinosaurs. The research is published in the journal Palaeontology. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ancient-marine-predators.html Paleontology & Fossils Fri, 03 Apr 2026 12:40:04 EDT news694435621 A new study by Harvard biologists reveals how octopuses feel their way to potential mates with a "taste by touch" sensory system and can even couple at arm's length without actually seeing each other. In a study featured on the cover of Science, the researchers deciphered how one male appendage serves as a multipurpose organ for seeking, sensing, and seeding—and even continues to respond to female sex hormones after being severed from the body. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-octopus-sensory-potential.html Plants & Animals Thu, 02 Apr 2026 14:00:08 EDT news694251961 From color-changing skin to jet-propelled motion, squid and cuttlefish have long fascinated scientists. To understand the origins of their unique characteristics, many attempts have been made to define their evolutionary history. However, the limited fossil record and incomplete genomic information have made it impossible to confidently order the evolution of these enigmatic creatures, until now. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-million-years-evolutionary-fuse-lit.html Evolution Mon, 30 Mar 2026 05:00:10 EDT news693828311 Many organisms leverage showy colors for attracting mates. Because color is a property of light (determined by its wavelength), it is easy for humans to see how these colors are used in animal courting rituals. Less obvious to humans is the polarization of light—a property of light related to the direction the wave is oriented in. Humans can't perceive polarization, which may be why we weren't aware of the interesting way cuttlefish use it to attract mates. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-cuttlefish-polarized-display-invisible-humans.html Plants & Animals Tue, 27 Jan 2026 13:00:02 EST news688741069 Cephalopods—the class of animals that comprises octopuses and squids—are ubiquitous throughout the ocean, including in the deep sea. However, researchers still don't know very much about the distribution, diversity and behaviors of cephalopods in areas like the abyssal plains of the ocean floor. This is mostly due to the inherent difficulty of studying the area, along with what is thought to be a low abundance of cephalopods in the abyssal plains and their avoidance behaviors. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-deep-sea-squid-caught-masquerading.html Plants & Animals Mon, 15 Dec 2025 11:37:49 EST news685020812 A new study, led by the University of Vienna and the Alfred Wegener Institute in Bremerhaven, shows how the eyes of adult marine bristleworms continue to grow throughout life—driven by a ring of neural stem cells reminiscent of vertebrate eyes. What's more, these stem cells respond to environmental light. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-functional-principles-eye-evolution-sensitive.html Evolution Mon, 01 Dec 2025 14:32:19 EST news683821921 This week, researchers reported that weight and health markers may rebound when patients stop using some of the new hormonal gastric inhibitory polypeptide drugs. A prototype device can restore lost olfactory sense. And a new universal law predicts how brittle objects shatter. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-saturday-citations-cute-squid-scary.html Other Sat, 29 Nov 2025 09:00:01 EST news683552236 White oval squid (Sepioteuthis lessoniana sp. 2), known locally as shiro-ika, are medium-sized squids naturally distributed in the Indian and western Pacific oceans, flittering in and out of a wide range of different habitats—from shallow seagrass beds, over coral reefs, to depths of 100m along coastal environments. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-ingenuity-white-oval-squid-camouflage.html Plants & Animals Wed, 26 Nov 2025 10:10:02 EST news683373802 Researchers from the University of Vienna (Austria), National Institute of Technology—Wakayama College (NITW; Japan), and Shimane University (Japan) present the largest cephalopod genome sequenced to date. Their analyses, published in iScience, show that the vampire squid has retained parts of an ancient, squid-like chromosomal architecture, thus revealing that modern octopuses evolved from squid-like ancestors. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-vampires-deep-ancient-link-octopuses.html Evolution Tue, 25 Nov 2025 08:51:03 EST news683283061 Scientists at UC San Diego have moved one step closer to unlocking a superpower held by some of nature's greatest "masters of disguise." Octopuses, squids, cuttlefish and other animals in the cephalopod family are well known for their ability to camouflage, changing the color of their skin to blend in with the environment. This remarkable display of mimicry is made possible by complex biological processes involving xanthommatin, a natural pigment. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-scientists-powerhouse-pigment-octopus-camouflage.html Cell & Microbiology Mon, 03 Nov 2025 10:31:09 EST news681388261 An international research team from Switzerland and Germany, led by Gaël Spicher (JURASSICA Museum, Porrentruy, Switzerland), has described a new ichthyosaur species based on fossils curated at the Urwelt-Museum Oberfranken (Bayreuth, Germany). The study is published in the open-access journal Fossil Record. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-ichthyosaur-species-robust-ribs-jurassic.html Paleontology & Fossils Fri, 26 Sep 2025 10:22:02 EDT news678100921 Nautiloids—a lineage of ancient, externally-shelled cephalopods that diverged from their octopus and squid relatives over 400 million years ago—once dominated our oceans. https://phys.org/news/2025-08-ancient-cephalopod-insight-nautilus-reveals.html Plants & Animals Thu, 14 Aug 2025 11:00:14 EDT news674293681 Remarkable fossils found in North Greenland have helped researchers solve a 500-million-year-old puzzle surrounding squid-like ancestors. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-reclassifies-ancient-squid-creatures-early.html Evolution Thu, 24 Jul 2025 12:42:43 EDT news672579749 A study by Dr. Martin Ebert and Dr. Martina Kölbl-Ebert examined the remains of some 4,200 Tharsis fossil specimens. They found that some of these fish, all of which were subadults, would occasionally attempt to or accidentally swallow belemnites (squid-like cephalopods), leading to the Tharsis choking to death. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-jurassic-fish-death-squid-cephalopods.html Paleontology & Fossils Fri, 04 Jul 2025 08:40:03 EDT news670754158 By examining squid skin cells three-dimensionally, a University of California, Irvine–led team has unveiled the structures responsible for the creatures' ability to dynamically change their appearance from transparent to arbitrarily colored states. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-scientists-uncover-cell-squids.html Cell & Microbiology Fri, 27 Jun 2025 10:54:03 EDT news670240441 Squids first appeared about 100 million years ago and quickly rose to become dominant predators in the ancient oceans, according to a study published in the journal Science. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-ancient-squids-dominated-ocean-million.html Ecology Thu, 26 Jun 2025 14:00:01 EDT news670138495 A team of molecular and cellular chemists and biologists from Harvard University and the University of California, San Diego, has found that at least one type of octopus has taste sensors on its sucker cups that allow it to detect harmful chemicals. In their study, published in the journal Cell, the group tested the sensing ability of California two-spot octopuses. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-octopus-species-sensors-sucker-cups.html Plants & Animals Fri, 20 Jun 2025 06:50:01 EDT news669568279 Taking a cue from ocean-dwelling species, University of Nebraska–Lincoln researchers are developing synthetic skins that will support the emergence of next-generation "soft" machines, robots and other devices. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-cephalopod-synthetic-skins-enable-soft.html Polymers Tue, 17 Jun 2025 11:24:54 EDT news669378286 Octopuses have been one of mapmakers' favorite symbols for hundreds of years—used primarily to portray threats of political movements, financial systems, warring empires and the unknown. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-octopus-conspiratorial.html Social Sciences Wed, 11 Jun 2025 08:26:34 EDT news668849187 Over the past 500 million years, nearly all evolutionary changes in octopuses and squids occurred in rapid bursts during the emergence of new species, according to research from the University of Auckland. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-punctuated-equilibrium-analysis-rapid-evolutionary.html Evolution Thu, 05 Jun 2025 09:10:14 EDT news668333401 A recent study, published in Papers in Palaeontology, discusses the reanalysis of the only known Idiorophus patagonicus specimen. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-ancient-patagonian-fossil-sperm-whale.html Paleontology & Fossils Tue, 20 May 2025 07:00:02 EDT news666869606 A new DNA probes allow for efficient surveying of the hidden lives of squids and octopuses in the deep sea. This development by Kobe University provides an effective tool for marine ecological research and conservation efforts. https://phys.org/news/2025-04-fishing-cephalopod-dna-efficient-marine.html Ecology Mon, 14 Apr 2025 11:00:12 EDT news663846781 Nature is full of masters of disguise. From the chameleon to arctic hare, natural camouflage is a common yet powerful way to survive in the wild. But one animal might surprise you with its camouflage capabilities: the squid. https://phys.org/news/2025-03-squid-nature-camouflagers-explanation.html Biochemistry Thu, 06 Mar 2025 13:27:04 EST news660490021 An international team of experts has resolved long-standing questions about the evolutionary history of mollusks, one of the most diverse zoological groups on the planet. The study, published in Science, reconstructs the family tree of mollusks and provides a genome-based perspective on their evolutionary history. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-mollusk-family-tree-evolutionary.html Evolution Fri, 28 Feb 2025 11:10:01 EST news659963228 The octopus just revealed another one of its secrets: what determines its sex. University of Oregon researchers have identified a sex chromosome in the California two-spot octopus. This chromosome has likely been around for 480 million years, since before octopuses split apart from the nautilus on the evolutionary tree. That makes it one of the oldest known animal sex chromosomes. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-octopuses-oldest-sex-chromosomes.html Plants & Animals Mon, 03 Feb 2025 11:00:01 EST news657794581 Ecologists from the School of Biological Sciences (SBS) and the Swire Institute of Marine Science (SWIMS) at The University of Hong Kong (HKU) have identified significant ecological risks associated with the release of hybrid groupers into Hong Kong's coastal waters, a practice often linked to religious 'mercy release' rituals. https://phys.org/news/2025-01-religious-mercy-hybrid-groupers-significant.html Plants & Animals Mon, 20 Jan 2025 11:54:18 EST news656596449 Octopus arms move with incredible dexterity, bending, twisting, and curling with nearly infinite degrees of freedom. New research from the University of Chicago revealed that the nervous system circuitry that controls arm movement in octopuses is segmented, giving these extraordinary creatures precise control across all eight arms and hundreds of suckers to explore their environment, grasp objects, and capture prey. https://phys.org/news/2025-01-octopus-arms-segmented-nervous-power.html Plants & Animals Wed, 15 Jan 2025 05:00:08 EST news656065644