Browsing Tag
evolutionary biology
17 posts
Differences in human and great ape laughter reveal clues to the origin of speech
Chiara De Gregorio, University of Warwick Humans are not the only animals that communicate. Birds sing to attract…
Why some primates have even tougher births than humans
Lia Betti, UCL and Nicole Torres Tamayo, UCL; Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont Scientists have long thought…
Seals have a unique superpower in their ears, and we finally know how it evolved
James Patrick Rule, Monash University; Ian G. Brennan, Australian National University, and Travis Park, Monash University Have you…
Spider fangs are one of their scariest features – new fossils reveal their origins
Mark Williams, University of Leicester; Lorenzo Lustri, Yunnan University; Tom Harvey, University of Leicester, and Yu Liu, University…
This tiny Australian spider uses a high‑powered web catapult to trap and eat aggressive ants
Ajay Narendra, Macquarie University There’s more than one way a spider can spin its web. Some construct large…
Turtles finally have a place in the tree of life: X‑ray study of South African fossils was a decider
Valentin Buffa, University of Zurich; Jonah Choiniere, University of the Witwatersrand; Julien Benoit, University of the Witwatersrand, and…
Ancient bones show dogs have been woven into human life for nearly 16,000 years
Reconstruction of 14,300-year-old dog jawbone from Gough’s Cave, England. Tom Anders & Longleat Andrew Fairbairn, The University of…
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…
Fern stems reveal secrets of evolution – how constraints in development can lead to new forms
The lacy frond of the intermediate wood fern (Dryopteris intermedia). Jacob S. Suissa, CC BY-ND Jacob S. Suissa,…