Paleo in the News

Nectar-loving Ethiopian wolves may be the first carnivore pollinators

New Scientist - Thu, 11/21/2024 - 04:17
Endangered Ethiopian wolves feed on the nectar of red hot poker plants, and may transport pollen from flower to flower as they do so
Categories: Fossils

Thanksgiving special: Dinosaur drumsticks and the story of the turkey trot

Science Daily - Paleontology - Wed, 11/20/2024 - 11:16
Wings may be the obvious choice when studying the connection between dinosaurs and birds, but a pair of paleontologists prefer drumsticks. That part of the leg, they say, is where fibular reduction among some dinosaurs tens of millions of years ago helped make it possible for peacocks to strut, penguins to waddle, and turkeys to trot.
Categories: Fossils

Thanksgiving special: Dinosaur drumsticks and the story of the turkey trot

Science Daily - Dinosaurs - Wed, 11/20/2024 - 11:16
Wings may be the obvious choice when studying the connection between dinosaurs and birds, but a pair of paleontologists prefer drumsticks. That part of the leg, they say, is where fibular reduction among some dinosaurs tens of millions of years ago helped make it possible for peacocks to strut, penguins to waddle, and turkeys to trot.
Categories: Fossils

How military sonar impacts dolphin social dynamics

New Scientist - Wed, 11/20/2024 - 02:00
Research highlights impacts of military sonar devices on dolphin behaviour
Categories: Fossils

Scientists use ancient DNA to shed light on adaptation of early Europeans

Science Daily - Fossils - Tue, 11/19/2024 - 17:18
Leveraging a unique statistical analysis and applying it to ancient DNA extracted from human skeletal remains, a team of researchers has revealed new insights into how ancient Europeans adapted to their environments over 7,000 years of European history.
Categories: Fossils

The chilling sound of the Aztec death whistle

Science Daily - Fossils - Tue, 11/19/2024 - 12:29
The Aztec skull whistle produces a shrill, screaming sound. A study shows that these whistles have a disturbing effect on the human brain. The Aztecs may have deliberately used this effect in sacrificial rituals.
Categories: Fossils

Heart-shaped mollusc has windows that work like fibre optics

New Scientist - Tue, 11/19/2024 - 10:00
Tiny, solid windows in the shells of heart cockles let in light for the photosynthetic algae inside them – and they could show us how to make better fibre-optic cables
Categories: Fossils

A giant hornet from Asia has appeared in Europe for the first time

New Scientist - Tue, 11/19/2024 - 04:58
Four southern giant hornets have been identified in northern Spain, leading to concerns that the species could harm native insects if it becomes widespread
Categories: Fossils

Wild cavefish can somehow survive with almost no sleep at all

New Scientist - Tue, 11/19/2024 - 04:00
Several populations of Mexican tetra fish that live in darkness have independently evolved to need hardly any sleep, but the reason why is a mystery
Categories: Fossils

New fossil reveals the evolution of flying reptiles

Science Daily - Paleontology - Mon, 11/18/2024 - 11:52
A newly discovered pterosaur fossil is shedding light on the evolutionary journey of these ancient flying reptiles. This complete specimen, named Skiphosoura bavarica, provides crucial insights into how pterosaurs transitioned from early, smaller forms to the later, gigantic species. By analysing the unique features of Skiphosoura, paleontologists can now trace the step-by-step evolution of pterosaurs, including changes in head size, neck length, wing structure, and tail length. This groundbreaking discovery offers a clearer understanding of how these magnificent creatures soared through the prehistoric skies.
Categories: Fossils

Tiny worm makes for big evolutionary discovery

Science Daily - Paleontology - Mon, 11/18/2024 - 11:52
The history of a major animal group, composed of millions of species of insects, arachnids, and nemotodes, has been elusive -- until now. A team has now identified the oldest known ecdysozoan in the fossil record and the only one from the Precambrian period.
Categories: Fossils

Tiny worm makes for big evolutionary discovery

Science Daily - Fossils - Mon, 11/18/2024 - 11:52
The history of a major animal group, composed of millions of species of insects, arachnids, and nemotodes, has been elusive -- until now. A team has now identified the oldest known ecdysozoan in the fossil record and the only one from the Precambrian period.
Categories: Fossils

Earliest evidence of humans using fire to shape the landscape of Tasmania

Science Daily - Fossils - Sat, 11/16/2024 - 18:56
Some of the first human beings to arrive in Tasmania, over 41,000 years ago, used fire to shape and manage the landscape, about 2,000 years earlier than previously thought.
Categories: Fossils

Egyptians drank hallucinogenic cocktails in ancient rituals, study confirms

Science Daily - Fossils - Fri, 11/15/2024 - 11:46
Scholars for the first time identified chemical signatures of the components of a liquid concoction contained in a Bes mug. A new technique helped identify a sample flavored with honey, sesame seeds, pine nuts, licorice and grapes -- commonly used to make the beverage look like blood.
Categories: Fossils

A 200-year-old mystery about newts has finally been solved

New Scientist - Fri, 11/15/2024 - 06:00
A genetic flaw dooms half of all crested newts to die before they hatch – now we know how this baffling evolutionary quirk came about
Categories: Fossils

To truly understand non-human grief, we need to think like the animals

New Scientist - Wed, 11/13/2024 - 12:00
Evidence that animals mourn the death of loved ones is growing, but we should be wary of letting our biases cloud this topic, says philosopher Susana Monsó
Categories: Fossils

Bird brain from the age of dinosaurs reveals roots of avian intelligence

Science Daily - Paleontology - Wed, 11/13/2024 - 11:33
A 'one of a kind' fossil discovery could transform our understanding of how the unique brains and intelligence of modern birds evolved, one of the most enduring mysteries of vertebrate evolution.
Categories: Fossils

Bird brain from the age of dinosaurs reveals roots of avian intelligence

Science Daily - Dinosaurs - Wed, 11/13/2024 - 11:33
A 'one of a kind' fossil discovery could transform our understanding of how the unique brains and intelligence of modern birds evolved, one of the most enduring mysteries of vertebrate evolution.
Categories: Fossils

Bird brain from the age of dinosaurs reveals roots of avian intelligence

Science Daily - Fossils - Wed, 11/13/2024 - 11:33
A 'one of a kind' fossil discovery could transform our understanding of how the unique brains and intelligence of modern birds evolved, one of the most enduring mysteries of vertebrate evolution.
Categories: Fossils

The secrets of fossil teeth revealed by the synchrotron: A long childhood is the prelude to the evolution of a large brain

Science Daily - Paleontology - Wed, 11/13/2024 - 11:31
Could social bonds be the key to human big brains? A study of the fossil teeth of early Homo from Georgia dating back 1.77 million years reveals a prolonged childhood despite a small brain and an adulthood comparable to that of the great apes. This discovery suggests that an extended childhood, combined with cultural transmission in three-generation social groups, may have triggered the evolution of a large brain like that of modern humans, rather than the reverse.
Categories: Fossils

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