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. It may sound too bizarre to be true, but the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa), a fish that inhabits rivers, lakes, and swamps in Mexico and Texas, exists over much of its range in populations that are 100% female. In 1932, the Amazon molly became the first known vertebrate to reproduce by cloning itself, producing all-female populations. A new genetic study published in Nature has given scientists insights into the longstanding mystery about how and why this happens. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-asexual-lizards-virgin-births-clones.html Plants & Animals Fri, 22 May 2026 09:40:02 EDT news698661362 Anesthesia makes life-saving procedures as painless and stress-free as possible for the animals we love and care for. But not a lot is known about the effects of anesthesia on animals that we don't typically consider pets—like butterflies and other invertebrates. Insects are often valuable members of nature centers, zoos and museums, but even if they're just being evaluated in the wild, they can need anesthesia during physical examinations and injury treatment. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-anesthetize-butterfly.html Plants & Animals Fri, 22 May 2026 07:33:54 EDT news698652062 In many underwater ecosystems, seagrass meadows act as a food source, a safe haven, and an ecological lynchpin. But until now, very little was known about how these plants reproduce—critical information for conserving the meadows. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-seagrass-genetic-individuals-clone-underwater.html Plants & Animals Fri, 22 May 2026 00:00:01 EDT news698574842 From butterflies to blue whales, corals and worms, Earth is home to an incredible diversity of animals. How all of these animals evolved from earlier, simpler ancestors is one of the most exciting stories in the history book of life on our 4.5 billion-year-old planet. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-rare-567millionyearold-fossils-refine-early.html Evolution Thu, 21 May 2026 11:20:03 EDT news698578801 Researchers have uncovered a remarkable fossil site in a remote part of Canada's Northwest Territories, offering unprecedented insight into the earliest evolution of complex animal life on Earth. Findings from the site represent life from the Ediacaran biota—soft-bodied organisms that lived on the seafloor more than 500 million years ago—and push back the origins of animal movement and sexual reproduction by 5–10 million years. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-discovery-fossils-northwest-canada-view.html Evolution Wed, 20 May 2026 14:00:15 EDT news698486161 A new study of the blue button (Porpita porpita), a small and elusive sea creature which lives on the surface of the ocean, has found that it may live for several years adrift at sea, much longer than previously estimated. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-tiny-sea-creature-porpita-adrift.html Plants & Animals Wed, 20 May 2026 08:40:03 EDT news698484541 Per and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), often called "forever chemicals," are now found almost everywhere scientists look. They have been detected in rivers, oceans, wildlife, food and even human blood. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-fish-pfas-safety-limits-chemical.html Ecology Tue, 19 May 2026 07:40:03 EDT news698393342 You're cooking dinner, distracted, and your hand brushes a hot pan. Nerve signals race to your spinal cord and back to yank your arm away in a fraction of a second, with no thought required. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-billion-crickets-farmed-food-year.html Plants & Animals Mon, 18 May 2026 15:20:05 EDT news698324411 Most of the Bahamas' signature seafood stocks are being fished harder than the sea can replace them, according to a new paper led by Sea Around Us researchers and published in Frontiers in Marine Science. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-overfishing-bahamian-seafood-staples-years.html Ecology Mon, 18 May 2026 12:28:44 EDT news698326081 The top predator prowling the seas during the age of the dinosaurs 100 million years ago may have been the octopus. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-massive-kraken-octopus-prowled-seas.html Paleontology & Fossils Sun, 17 May 2026 08:00:01 EDT news696222032 Have you ever wondered how a fly manages to dodge you in a split second? Scientists have long been fascinated by the lightning-fast reflexes that help flies escape danger almost instantly. But despite decades of research, they still don't fully understand exactly how the brain coordinates these rapid reactions at the level of individual neural connections. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-flies-dodge-fast-brain-reveals.html Plants & Animals Wed, 13 May 2026 16:00:04 EDT news697905726 More than 500 million years ago, during what is known as the Cambrian period, the seas and oceans on Earth were filled with a myriad of marine animals, many of which have now become extinct. This evolutionary burst in new forms of life, referred to as the Cambrian explosion, paved the way for the evolution of many major animal groups that still populate our planet today. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-strange-million-year-marine-fossils.html Evolution Wed, 13 May 2026 08:00:02 EDT news697721762 I recently lost one of my cocker spaniels, Bobbi. She was fit, healthy and active, but had a catastrophic diagnosis of oral melanoma two months before I had to make the decision that anyone with deeply loved pets dreads. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-pet-loss-difficult-people-pets.html Veterinary medicine Mon, 11 May 2026 20:20:01 EDT news697717858 A reexamination of microfossils found in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul shows that the marks previously interpreted as traces of worms or other small oceanic animals are actually communities of fossilized microscopic bacteria and algae. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-brazilian-microfossils-animal-algae-bacteria.html Cell & Microbiology Mon, 11 May 2026 19:20:03 EDT news697736042 Biologists have long puzzled over why organisms with similar numbers of protein-coding genes can differ so dramatically in nervous system complexity. New research points to a potential link between the expanding diversity of RNA-binding proteins, which shape how genetic instructions are processed, and greater brain sophistication. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-paradox-similar-genes-brains.html Evolution Mon, 11 May 2026 11:37:23 EDT news697717929 Arctic glacial fjords are hotspots of marine life, yet their seafloor environments remain some of the least explored regions on Earth. Their extreme remoteness and the technical challenges of deep-water observation have led scientists to rely on indirect measurements like sonar. However, these methods cannot visually verify animal behavior or identify specific species. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-rare-footage-elusive-sea-floor.html Plants & Animals Wed, 06 May 2026 18:50:01 EDT news697306021 Biological invasions occur when organisms such as animals and plants are introduced by people to regions of the world where they do not naturally occur. In these new locations, these organisms are referred to as "alien species." https://phys.org/news/2026-05-biological-invasions-severe-animal.html Plants & Animals Tue, 05 May 2026 17:40:01 EDT news697206842 Heavy rains causing repeated river flood intrusions into Florida's freshwater springs are changing the function of the clear natural resource. Findings from University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) researchers Paul Donsky and Matt Cohen reveal that these intrusions can cause flow reversal, worsening already present problems. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-reveals-florida-freshwater-resources.html Earth Sciences Tue, 05 May 2026 12:00:02 EDT news697194122 A major river restoration project in Cumbria has shown that reconnecting rivers to their floodplains can slow the movement of water and improve habitats. Research led by Newcastle University and the National Trust found that restoring a straightened, engineered channel to a more natural form significantly delayed the movement of flood waters downstream. On average, flood waves took 25 minutes longer to travel through the 1.5 km long restored reach compared to pre-restoration conditions, with a maximum time of 90 minutes. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-meandered-rivers-widening-wildlife-habitat.html Plants & Animals Mon, 04 May 2026 15:20:09 EDT news697116721 In 2025, Konstanz scientists looked very closely at rotting fruit in local orchards, and observed what no one had before—worms, hundreds of them, twisting skyward into self-assembled living structures known as "towers." It was the first time anybody had seen this mysterious behavior outside of the laboratory. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-scientists-uncover-beetle-newly-towering.html Plants & Animals Mon, 04 May 2026 11:00:12 EDT news697098062 The rise in infertility is not limited to humans, as environmental stressors are quietly undermining the reproductive potential of different forms of life. A recent review published in npj Emerging Contaminants investigated how today's environmental challenges are shaping the reproductive capacity of both humans and animals. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-invisible-fertility-crisis-chemicals-climate.html Environment Tue, 28 Apr 2026 14:00:02 EDT news696602190 A new peer-reviewed study conducted by researchers at The University of Toledo and University of Missouri provides some of the first rigorous experimental evidence that goldfish—one of the world's most popular pets—can dramatically change freshwater ecosystems when released or they escape into the wild. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-pet-pest-invasive-goldfish-reshaping.html Ecology Tue, 28 Apr 2026 12:40:03 EDT news696595982 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 Florida's Indian River Lagoon has been an ecosystem in decline going back to 2011, when harmful algal blooms led to a severe decline in seagrass, the foundational component of shallow coastal ecosystems. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-hurricanes-devastated-florida-east-coast.html Ecology Tue, 21 Apr 2026 19:00:06 EDT news695997422 Bruce the kea is missing his entire upper beak. Yet he is the alpha bird of his circus (the apt collective noun for a group of New Zealand's famously playful alpine parrots). https://phys.org/news/2026-04-bruce-halfbeak-kea-weaponized-disability.html Plants & Animals Tue, 21 Apr 2026 13:40:06 EDT news695991541 Scientists have discovered that deep-water corals in the Galapagos region vanished for more than 1,000 years before eventually recovering. The findings reveal that deep-water coral ecosystems may be more susceptible to climate change than previously thought. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-lost-millennium-galapagos-deep-sea.html Earth Sciences Mon, 20 Apr 2026 15:00:01 EDT news695633581 A new report led by Conservation International and IUCN, published today in Oryx, warns that over 40% of more than 8,500 soil‑dependent species are at risk of extinction or Data‑Deficient on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-soil-species-extinction-threatened.html Ecology Wed, 15 Apr 2026 15:20:04 EDT news695476658 In a surprising new study, Australia's most famous plant-eating dinosaur has been described as a "picky eater with a nose for good food" when it roamed across the continent around 96 million years ago. After examining different parts of the skull from new bones of the large-bodied ornithopod Muttaburrasaurus langdoni, fossil experts from across Australia and the US have released several new insights in a journal article published in PeerJ. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-toothy-snout-recasts-australia-famed.html Paleontology & Fossils Tue, 14 Apr 2026 13:20:01 EDT news695385012 Every time we flush the toilet, wastewater containing more than tens of thousands of unknown substances, some of which may be toxic to animals and plants, runs into streams and the marine environment. In a study published in Science of The Total Environment, a team of researchers from the University of Copenhagen investigated what happens to antidepressant medication on its journey from our bodies into the wastewater system, and finally into the natural environment. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-antidepressants-winter-wastewater-fish.html Environment Thu, 09 Apr 2026 17:40:06 EDT news694964582 Tropical rainforests are home to almost two-thirds of all vertebrate species and three-quarters of all tree species: they are the most species-rich terrestrial ecosystem on Earth. However, over half of these diverse rainforests have already been cleared, and their area continues to decline drastically, primarily for agricultural purposes. Is there a chance of regeneration, and can not only trees but also the unique diversity of thousands of animal species return to cleared areas? https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ecuador-tropical-rainforest-biodiversity-rebounds.html Plants & Animals Wed, 08 Apr 2026 19:20:01 EDT news694880641