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ScienceBiologyThe First Dinosaur Feather Ever Found Is Still Controversial
A fossilized feather found 159 years ago in Germany has returned to the paleontological spotlight, with new research declaring the feather as having come from the bird-like Archaeopteryx, much to the chagrin of dissenting scientists. When found out of context, an isolated feather fossil presents a serious headache for paleontologists. Such is the case for … Continued
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ScienceBiologyExtremely Good Cat Learns to Copy Human Movements
Feline intelligence may be more impressive than we’ve appreciated, at least according to a new study. The research claims to present the first evidence that cats can recognize and then mimic human behavior on command—a feat that only a few other animals, including dogs, are known to do. The paper, published earlier this month in the … Continued
By Ed Cara -
ScienceBiologyHorrified Scientists Watch Snakes Feasting on the Organs of Living Toads
Biologists in Thailand have documented a behavior never seen before in snakes, in which the limbless reptiles eviscerated and consumed the organs of living toads. Snakes, as a general rule, swallow their prey whole, but as new research published in the science journal Herpetozoa points out, the small-banded kukri snake of Thailand is an exception. … Continued
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ScienceBiologyRecord-Breaking Whale Stays Underwater for Mind-Bending 3 Hours and 42 Minutes
Marine biologists are astonished after a Cuvier’s beaked whale held its breath for nearly four hours during a deep dive. The unexpected observation shows there’s much to learn about these medium-sized whales. Scientists from Duke University and the Cascadia Research Collective recorded the unbelievable dive during field observations off the coast of Cape Hatteras, North … Continued
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ScienceBiologyJohn James Audubon Was Never Good
The most famous name in American ornithology is that of a slave owner, grave robber, and fraud who invented birds and falsified scientific results. Birders and ornithologists are grappling with John James Audubon’s legacy today, but problematic behavior doesn’t stop at a single 19th-century naturalist. Some in the field are considering a complete rethinking of … Continued
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ScienceBiologyGiraffes Are Basically Fuzzy Lightning Rods, New Research Suggests
Earlier this year, conservationists in South Africa discovered two adult giraffes struck down by lightning, signaling a potentially underrated risk for this majestic species. Lightning kills around 27 people in the United States each year, but the quantity and frequency of animal deaths as a result of these electrical outbursts is a complete mystery. Documented … Continued
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ScienceBiologyWhy Scientists Should Use Magic to Study Animal Intelligence
Scientists should use magic tricks to better understand animal intelligence and perception, argue a team of researchers in a new paper. The idea makes sense, particularly when humans and animals can be fooled by the same illusion. I’ve never really been a fan of magic tricks. Sure, they’re entertaining as hell, but they make me … Continued
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ScienceBiologyIce Age Cave Bear Found Exquisitely Preserved in Siberian Permafrost
Reindeer herders working on Bolshoy Lyakhovsky Island in arctic Russia have stumbled upon an incredibly well-preserved cave bear, in what scientists say is a discovery of “world importance.” When it comes to studying extinct cave bears, paleontologists have traditionally dealt with scattered bones and the odd skull. That’s why this new discovery is so important, … Continued
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ScienceBiologyFor Some Strange Reason, Orcas Are Ramming Into Boats in Northern Spain
Although the majority of orcas ignore boats at sea, there are a few in northern Spain that are apparently interested in ramming into them, setting off a string of questions and a bit of apprehension. Last Friday, a company called Halcyon Yachts was in the middle of sailing a 36-foot boat to the United Kingdom … Continued
By Jody Serrano -
ScienceBiologySeveral Fish Can Secretly Walk on Land, Study Suggests
A surprising number of hillstream loaches—a family of Asian fish—are capable of walking on land using all four limbs, according to a new study. It’s a discovery that could explain how some of the earliest animals managed to stroll on solid ground. South Asian hillstream loaches are a family of small fish that can often … Continued
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ScienceBiologyMonumental DNA Study Reveals Secrets of North American Mastodons
A new paper published today offers surprising insight into the American mastodon and its reactions to a changing environment. This stocky megafauna—whose tusks, trunk, and four legs echo today’s elephant—is thought to have lived predominantly within forests and marshy environments throughout ancient North America before its extinction approximately 11,000 years ago. With technology not available … Continued
Jeanne Timmons -
ScienceBiologyAn Ancient Breed of Singing Dog Isn’t Extinct in the Wild After All
A breed of wild dog known for its lyrical sounds may not be as extinct as we thought, according to a new paper out Monday. The study details genetic evidence suggesting that the New Guinea singing dog—thought to have only existed in captivity for the past 50 years—is still alive in the wilds of Indonesia. … Continued
By Ed Cara -
ScienceBiologyUnhatched Dinosaur Egg Reveals the Surprising Face of a Baby Sauropod
A rare egg fossil containing an unhatched dinosaur suggests baby sauropods were not miniaturized versions of the four-legged, long-necked behemoths we all know and love, exhibiting a unique set of physical characteristics that included a little rhino-like horn. Baby titanosaurs—the largest group of sauropods—featured a prominent facial horn and a pair of forward-facing eyes that … Continued
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ScienceBiologyFallen Boulder at the Grand Canyon Exposes 300-Million-Year-Old Footprints
The oldest fossilized vertebrate footprints ever discovered in the Grand Canyon were found embedded in a recently fallen boulder located in plain sight. Around 314 million years ago—long before the first dinosaurs appeared on Earth—a reptilian creature measuring around a foot long slowly angled its way upward along a windswept sand dune. Shortly after, the … Continued
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ScienceBiologyExtinct Tasmanian Tigers Were Way Tinier and Wimpier Than We Thought
An extensive analysis of dozens of Tasmanian tiger specimens suggests the extinct marsupial was far smaller, and far less formidable as a hunter, than conventionally assumed. Thylacines, otherwise known as Tasmanian tigers, became extinct in the 1930s. These iconic marsupial carnivores disappeared from this good Earth before modern scientists had an opportunity to study them … Continued
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ScienceBiologyIncredible Fossil Shows a Sea Monster in the Belly of an Even Bigger Sea Monster
As the Jedi master Qui-Gon Jinn once said, “There’s always a bigger fish.” Or in the case of the Triassic Period, there’s always a bigger aquatic reptile, as this incredible fossil demonstrates. New research published in iScience offers the oldest direct evidence of “megapredation” in the fossil record, in which an apex predator feeds upon … Continued
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ScienceBiologyHumans Didn’t Hunt Woolly Rhinos to Extinction, New Evidence Suggests
New genetic evidence suggests it was a warming climate—not human overhunting—that killed off woolly rhinos at the end of the last ice age. With cave bears, saber-toothed cats, woolly mammoths, giant sloths, and dire wolves, the Pleistocene was a cornucopia of megafaunal delights. And of course, there was the woolly rhinoceros (Coelodonta antiquitatis), an over-sized, … Continued
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ScienceBiologySweet-Smelling Locust Pheromone Could Be Key to Stopping Their Swarms
Scientists have identified the pheromone responsible for turning individual locusts into the swarming variety. They also found a way to “turn off” locusts’ ability to respond to this pheromone, in a breakthrough that could lead to new control strategies for preventing the spread of these voracious and extremely destructive insects. Migratory locusts, or Locustia migratoria, … Continued
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ScienceBiologyCats Can Get And Spread the Coronavirus to Other Cats, Study Finds
A new study is the latest to bring some mixed news when it comes to covid-19 and cats. The study found evidence that cats infected with the coronavirus that causes covid-19 can easily spread it to other cats within two days of exposure. However, none of these cats documented in the study become sick once … Continued
By Ed Cara -
ScienceBiology‘Weirdest Fossil’ Wasn’t a Dinosaur After All
The authors of a high-profile study published earlier this year, in which the scientists claimed to have discovered the world’s smallest dinosaur, have now retracted the paper in response to new fossil evidence. The now-retracted Nature paper, published on March 11, 2020, apparently misidentified a tiny skull found inside a 99-million-year-old chunk of Burmese amber. … Continued