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. Thirteen million years ago, a group of medium-sized monkeys known for guarding their territory among the treetops with fearsome "howls" started doing something new. These monkeys, among the oldest known ancestors of the modern howler monkey, started eating leaves, causing them to evolve a larger body size and differentiate themselves from other primates, says a team of researchers led by a scientist at Johns Hopkins Medicine. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-howler-monkey-ancestors-began-million.html Evolution Wed, 11 Mar 2026 18:30:09 EDT news692466061 The La Venta fossil site in Colombia is home to a rich fossil record, yielding a particularly diverse set of vertebrate fossil assemblages. The giant terror bird (phorusrhacid) and caiman—a large crocodile-like reptile—were known to be two of the apex predators roaming this region during the middle Miocene epoch. Although the terror bird was a terrestrial predator and the caiman was an aquatic predator, new evidence shows that they occasionally crossed paths, and that these meetings did not go well for the terror bird. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-ancient-caiman-preyed-apex-predator.html Paleontology & Fossils Wed, 23 Jul 2025 11:10:01 EDT news672487729 Protected areas are crucial for wildlife conservation, but many are under unprecedented pressure associated with exponential human population growth in West Africa. In Togo, two national parks that previously hosted iconic African wildlife have been almost entirely destroyed by human activities related to domestic political conflicts. However, Togo's largest protected area, Fazao-Malfakassa National Park, had managed to escape this fate—until now. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-areas-birds-togo-west-africa.html Ecology Mon, 07 Jul 2025 09:46:20 EDT news671100374 Researchers including a Johns Hopkins University evolutionary biologist report they have analyzed a fossil of an extinct giant meat-eating bird—which they say could be the largest known member of its kind—providing new information about animal life in northern South America millions of years ago. https://phys.org/news/2024-11-fossil-huge-terror-bird-wildlife.html Paleontology & Fossils Mon, 04 Nov 2024 01:00:01 EST news649670941 There's a longstanding debate simmering among biologists who study porcupines. There are 16 porcupine species in Central and South America, but only one in the United States and Canada. DNA evidence suggests North America's sole porcupine belongs to a group that originated 10 million years ago, but fossils seem to tell a different story. Some paleontologists think they may have evolved just 2.5 million years ago, at the beginning of the ice ages. https://phys.org/news/2024-05-florida-fossil-porcupine-dilemma-million.html Evolution Tue, 28 May 2024 12:10:24 EDT news636117019 It's Saturday, which means that in a universe where the arrow of time moves backward, people have to go to work tomorrow. In such a hypothetical universe, Garfield hates Fridays—tough to imagine. This week, we looked at several hundred breaking science developments, four of which I've highlighted here, including a new geoengineering study, a quantum infosec breakthrough, and listening in on the melodious dreams of birds. https://phys.org/news/2024-04-saturday-citations-bird-qubits-impossible.html Other Sat, 13 Apr 2024 08:30:01 EDT news632144179 Evolutionary biologists at Johns Hopkins Medicine report they have combined PET scans of modern pigeons along with studies of dinosaur fossils to help answer an enduring question in biology: How did the brains of birds evolve to enable them to fly? https://phys.org/news/2024-01-scientists-growth-brain-cerebellum-key.html Plants & Animals Tue, 30 Jan 2024 19:00:01 EST news625844037 A team of paleontologists at Universidad Nacional de La Pampa, working with a colleague from LA. TE. Andes S.A, has found the first known well-preserved Phorusrhacidae footprints at a site in Argentina. In their paper published in the journal Scientific Reports, the team describes the site where the prints were found, their condition and what they have learned from them. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-well-preserved-terror-bird-footprints-argentina.html Paleontology & Fossils Fri, 13 Oct 2023 08:50:41 EDT news616405837 More than 1,200 years ago, flightless elephant birds roamed the island of Madagascar and laid eggs bigger than footballs. While these ostrich-like giants are now extinct, new research from CU Boulder and Curtin University in Australia reveals that their eggshell remnants hold valuable clues about their time on Earth. https://phys.org/news/2023-02-ancient-eggshells-discovery-extinct-elephant.html Evolution Tue, 28 Feb 2023 13:07:27 EST news596812042 University of Copenhagen researchers have gotten yeast cells to brew triptolide, a substance typically extracted from a rare Chinese plant. Their research makes it possible to control rats with the substance on a large scale—both humanely and sustainably. https://phys.org/news/2023-02-contraception-future-rat.html Biotechnology Mon, 20 Feb 2023 11:10:18 EST news596113813 3-D printing is a universal process in the sense that pretty much any part that can be drawn up in a CAD program can be printed, at least within a certain resolution. Machining a part on a mill or lathe, while having the advantage of greater accuracy and material options, is a slightly less universal process in that many possible designs that exist in theory could never be machined. A hollow sphere can easily be printed, but a ball could never be milled as a single part into a hollow sphere—unless you happen to have a milling machine tiny enough to fit inside the ball. But what about biological parts, and whole animals? How universal, from a design perspective, is growth? https://phys.org/news/2021-01-chromosomes-evolve-life.html Evolution Wed, 27 Jan 2021 09:10:05 EST news530887290 A new study led by researchers from the University of Bristol has shown that not all saber-tooths were fearsome predators. https://phys.org/news/2020-06-bizarre-saber-tooth-predator-south-america.html Archaeology Thu, 25 Jun 2020 19:00:01 EDT news512297939 Deforestation is skyrocketing in the country with the world's second-highest number of species. The cause? Ineffective conservation in protected areas following decades of civil war. https://phys.org/news/2020-04-deforestation-surged-armed-conflict-colombia.html Plants & Animals Fri, 10 Apr 2020 08:27:19 EDT news505726034 Egypt revealed Saturday a rare trove of 30 ancient wooden coffins that have been well-preserved over millennia in the archaeologically rich Valley of the Kings in Luxor. https://phys.org/news/2019-10-egypt-unveils-trove-ancient-coffins.html Archaeology Sat, 19 Oct 2019 18:28:25 EDT news490728474 Little is known about how brief yet acute stressors—such as war, natural disasters and terror attacks—affect those exposed to them, though human experience suggests they have long-term impacts. https://phys.org/news/2018-08-tree-swallow-stressful-events-long-term.html Plants & Animals Tue, 28 Aug 2018 16:35:08 EDT news454692891 The new predatory dinosaur Tratayenia rosalesi crosses a stream in what is now Patagonia, Argentina roughly 85 million years ago. https://phys.org/news/2018-03-patagonian-predator-mysterious-meat-eating-dinosaur.html Archaeology Fri, 30 Mar 2018 07:00:33 EDT news441612024 An international team of scientists has developed a way to help locate fossils of long-extinct animals. https://phys.org/news/2016-04-fossils.html Paleontology & Fossils Fri, 08 Apr 2016 06:01:23 EDT news379314072 A new species of South American fossil terror bird called Llallawavis scagliai ("Scaglia's Magnificent Bird") is shedding light on the diversity of the group and how these giant extinct predators interacted with their environment. The new species, described in the latest issue of the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, is the most complete terror bird ever discovered, with more than 90% of the skeleton exquisitely preserved. The new specimen also reveals details of anatomy that rarely preserve in the fossil record, including the auditory region of the skull, voice box, complete trachea, bones for focussing the eye, and the complete palate, allowing an unprecedented understanding of the sensory capabilities of these extinct predatory birds. https://phys.org/news/2015-04-exceptionally-fossil-voice-ancient-terror.html Archaeology Thu, 09 Apr 2015 16:00:01 EDT news347799934 Did you know that the sky isn't actually blue? Perhaps in school you learned about how air scatters light, filtering out red light from the sun, but that is only half the story. While our eyes perceive a milky blue, a more optically-endowed creature, such as a bird, would actually see a colour which is more of a violet, pushing into ultraviolet. That milky blue happens in our eyes. https://phys.org/news/2015-02-mantids-stinkbugs-evolved-plain-sight.html Plants & Animals Fri, 06 Feb 2015 09:00:04 EST news342432846 The genomes of modern birds tell a story of how they emerged and evolved after the mass extinction that wiped out dinosaurs and almost everything else 66 million years ago. That story is now coming to light, thanks to an ambitious international collaboration that has been underway for four years. https://phys.org/news/2014-12-international-team-big-bird-evolution.html Biotechnology Thu, 11 Dec 2014 14:00:02 EST news337528265 Hovering like mechanical sparrows over a windswept Maryland field on a bright Saturday afternoon, small drones seem harmless—but they are at the center of an ardent dogfight over US regulations. https://phys.org/news/2014-02-small-drones-regulatory-turbulence.html Engineering Fri, 14 Feb 2014 03:42:18 EST news311571705 Analysis of fossilized remains of the two meter tall terror bird (Gastornis) indicate that was unlikely to have been a carnivore. https://phys.org/news/2013-08-terror-bird-beak-worse.html Archaeology Thu, 29 Aug 2013 18:00:01 EDT news297006742 (AP) -- "Zombie apocalypse." That blog posting headline is all it took for a behind-the-scenes public health doctor to set off an Internet frenzy over tired old advice about keeping water and flashlights on hand in case of a hurricane. https://phys.org/news/2011-05-cdc-zombie-apocalypse-advice-internet.html Internet Fri, 20 May 2011 13:40:01 EDT news225116861 Field Museum scientists used statistical analyses to determine the diet of 90 species of theropod dinosaurs. Their results challenge the conventional view that nearly all theropods hunted prey, especially those closest to the ancestors of birds. https://phys.org/news/2010-12-meat-eating-dinosaurs-carnivorous.html Archaeology Mon, 20 Dec 2010 15:29:24 EST news212081320 Boston University researchers have developed a simple diagnostic tool that can quickly identify dangerous viruses like Ebola and Marburg. The biosensor, which is the size of a quarter and can detect viruses in a blood sample, could be used in developing nations, airports and other places where natural or man-made outbreaks could erupt. https://phys.org/news/2010-11-tool-ebola-marburg-quickly-easily.html Bio & Medicine Mon, 22 Nov 2010 15:47:42 EST news209663219 (PhysOrg.com) -- There are robots that can fly, and there are robots that can swim, but so far a robot that can both fly and swim does not exist. With the goal to design an aerial/aquatic robotic vehicle, a team of researchers is investigating how nature achieves both aerial and aquatic motion in a single entity, particularly in a seabird called the common guillemot. They plan to use their calculations, models, and simulations to design a robotic vehicle with a morphing wing similar to the one used by the seabird. https://phys.org/news/2010-11-seabird-morphing-wings-robots.html Engineering Fri, 19 Nov 2010 08:30:02 EST news209370452 The ancient "terror bird" Andalgalornis couldn't fly, but it used its unusually large, rigid skull -- coupled with a hawk-like hooked beak -- for a fighting strategy reminiscent of boxer Muhammad Ali. The agile creature repeatedly attacked and retreated, landing well-targeted, hatchet-like jabs to take down its prey, according to a new study published this week in the online, open-access journal PLoS ONE by an international team of scientists. https://phys.org/news/2010-08-ancient-terror-bird-powerful-beak.html Plants & Animals Wed, 18 Aug 2010 17:00:17 EDT news201361947 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists in Uruguay studying extinct mammals called glyptodonts have discovered they used a "sweet spot" in their tails, just like baseball players use the center of percussion (CP), or sweet spot, in their bats to hit the ball with maximum power and minimum chance of injury. https://phys.org/news/2009-08-extinct-mammal-sweet-club-rivals.html Plants & Animals Thu, 27 Aug 2009 09:18:31 EDT news170583442 (PhysOrg.com) -- Unmanned helicopters could soon be a key part of emergency relief operations, as well as bringing a new dimension to filmmaking, thanks to some innovative work done by European researchers. https://phys.org/news/2008-10-bird-plane-supercopter.html Engineering Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:42:17 EDT news142861337 A University of Florida-led study has determined that Titanis walleri, a prehistoric 7-foot-tall flightless "terror bird," arrived in North America from South America long before a land bridge connected the two continents. https://phys.org/news/2007-01-terror-bird-north-america-bridge.html Archaeology Tue, 23 Jan 2007 11:09:48 EST news88772988