The shape of the mandible (the lower jaw) is influenced by the mechanical action of the jaw muscles that connect it to the skull, and mandible shape therefore reflects the diet of the animal. The lower jaw is also sufficiently ...
Paleontology & Fossils
May 18, 2022
0
380
Bloodworms are known for their unusual fang-like jaws, which are made of protein, melanin, and concentrations of copper not found elsewhere in the animal kingdom. Scientists have observed how these worms use copper harvested ...
Biochemistry
Apr 25, 2022
0
134
Baleen plates—the signature bristle-like apparatus toothless whales use to feed—reveal how these large aquatic mammals adapt to environmental changes over time.
Plants & Animals
Mar 21, 2022
0
39
The fossil, housed in the San Diego Natural History Museum's paleontology collection, offers a window into what the Earth was like during the Eocene Period, more than 40 million years ago. The specimen includes a lower jaw ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Mar 15, 2022
0
436
A set of Triassic archosaur fossils, excavated in the 1960s in Tanzania, have been formally recognized as a distinct species, representing one of the earliest-known members of the crocodile evolutionary lineage.
Evolution
Feb 10, 2022
0
164
In a new study published in Evolution, biologists laid to rest a century-old debate by confirming that a single species of frog, out of the more than 7,000 living today, has true teeth on its lower jaw. The culprit, a large ...
Evolution
Nov 10, 2021
0
203
Tyrannosaurus rex was not just a huge beast with a big bite, it had nerve sensors in the very tips of its jaw enabling it to better detect—and eat—its prey, a new study published in the peer-reviewed journal Historical ...
Evolution
Aug 23, 2021
0
1526
Australia's largest flying reptile has been uncovered, a pterosaur with an estimated seven-meter wingspan that soared like a dragon above the ancient, vast inland sea once covering much of outback Queensland.
Paleontology & Fossils
Aug 9, 2021
0
824
Researchers from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have discovered a 120-million-year-old partial fossil skeleton of a tiny extinct bird that fits in ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Jun 23, 2021
0
15382
Most fish rely on water to feed, using suction to capture their prey. A new study, however, shows that snowflake morays can grab and swallow prey on land without water thanks to an extra set of jaws in their throats.
Plants & Animals
Jun 8, 2021
0
122
