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Nature
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As grandiose as we might think our civilizations have become, we are but the latest entry in the long chronicle detailing life on Earth. We humans share this planet with fellow organisms whose vast numbers completely tower over our own. We borrowed this planet from its previous inhabitants from eons ago and whose lives were written on the soil-turned-rock on which they were laid to rest. Modern Sciences urges its readers to contemplate our planetary co-inhabitants, both past and present.
Meet kungaka – ‘the hidden one’. This ancient lizard could be the rarest reptile in Australia
Tom Parkin, CC BY-ND Warlpa Thompson, Indigenous Knowledge; Jodi Rowley, UNSW Sydney, and Thomas Parkin, Australian Museum Hidden…
Insects in the tropics are already near their heat limits – climate change could push many beyond survival
Many insects, like this malachite butterfly, face critical heat stress under future temperatures. Photo by Kim Holzmann, CC…
Meet ‘Tous’ – an entirely new genus of mammal we identified. Here’s why it’s so exciting
Erik Meijaard, University of Kent; Kristofer M. Helgen, University of Technology Sydney, and Tim Flannery, Australian Museum Mammals…
Science knows of 21,000 bee species. There are likely thousands more
James B. Dorey, University of Wollongong and Nikolas Johnston, University of Wollongong It’s a question that has sparked…
The world’s great fish migrations are collapsing – that’s a problem for millions of people
Mahseer swim in the Ramganga River, a major tributary of the Ganges River in South Asia. Zeb Hogan…
How moss could help roads cope with heavy rain and reduce air pollution
Moss grows slowly and absorbs air pollution. Herzstaub/Shutterstock Pedram Vousoughi, University of Limerick Across Europe, many banks alongside…
What was the very first plant in the world?
Once plants really got a foothold, they transformed our planet. Albert Fertl/Moment via Getty Images Erin Potter, Binghamton…
Cacti may help explain a centuries‑old mystery of evolution
Jamie Thompson, University of Reading This question of why some branches of the tree of life explode into…
What’s it like to be a bat? Scientists develop new solution to the puzzle of animal minds
Graham Holtshausen/Unsplash Cristina Luz Wilkins, University of New England; Amy Lykins, University of New England; Cathrynne Henshall, Charles…
The bacteria killing sea stars in the Pacific: How our team uncovered a decade‑long mystery
A sunflower sea star in Knight Inlet on the British Columbia coast. (Grant Callegari/Hakai Institute) Melanie Prentice, University…