Browsing Tag
paleontology
149 posts
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…
129,000 years of crocodiles: what we know about Australasia’s ancient apex predators
Jorgo Ristevski, The University of Queensland; Julien Louys, Griffith University, and Nicole Boivin, The University of Queensland The…
What it would have been like to experience the dinosaur‑killing asteroid armageddon: a blow‑by‑blow account
serpeblu/Shutterstock Michael J. Benton, University of Bristol and Monica Grady, The Open University A great Tyrannosaurus rex strides…
Dinosaur ‘mummies’ help scientists visualize the fleshy details of these ancient animals
A mummy of a juvenile duck-billed dinosaur, Edmontosaurus annectens, preserved as a dried carcass. Tyler Keillor/Fossil Lab Paul…
Why 90% of Fossils Are Missing
Scientists are piecing together the past by understanding the fossils that are not there as much as the ones that are.
How Ancient Crocs Survived Two Apocalypses
While modern crocodilians are impressive survivors, their ancestors—from armored plant-eaters to swift two-legged hunters—used entirely different strategies to survive ancient apocalypses and conquer the world.
How Fire, Not Spears, Wiped Out America’s Giants
Researchers at the La Brea Tar Pits discovered that a combination of climate change and massive, human-sparked wildfires—not just hunting—led to the extinction of North America’s megafauna.
Greenland fossil jaw may be oldest known docodontan
A newly discovered fossil jawbone from Greenland, Nujalikodon cassiopeiae, has been identified as the oldest definitive docodontan, providing key insights into the evolution and dispersal of early mammal relatives.
Fossils are scientific evidence, and shouldn’t be auctioned for millions to private buyers
Jessica M. Theodor, University of Calgary; Kenshu Shimada, DePaul University; Kristi Curry Rogers, Macalester College, and Stuart Sumida,…
How Dinosaur Extinction Led to a World Full of Fruit
The cascade of changes that followed the extinction of the dinosaurs may have had one surprising effect: the evolution of a world teeming with fruit.