All Stories by Susan Milius
- Life
Extensive bird family tree rewrites some history
Unexpected pattern of evolution found across hemispheres.
- Paleontology
Earliest primate had tree-climber ankles
A creature known only from fossils of its teeth gets some more parts.
- Life
Hind wings gave four-winged dino flight control
Much-debated rear wings could have given Microraptor extra help in airborne maneuvers.
- Life
Pulsing blob makes memories sans brain
Slime molds create a GPS navigation system based on their own gooey trails.
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- Animals
Right eye required for finding Mrs. Right
Finches flirt unwisely if they can only use their left eyes.
- Life
Vampire squid no Gordon Gekko
Recently equated with greedy financiers, Vampyroteuthis infernalis is not really all that rapacious.
- Life
Birds catching malaria in Alaska
The mosquito-spread disease may be transmitted north of the Arctic Circle as climate shifts.
- Animals
Face Smarts
Macaques, sheep and even wasps may join people as masters at facial recognition.
- Life
Killer whale mama’s boys live longer
Survival benefits may explain females’ extended life span following menopause.
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- Life
International Congress of Neuroethology, College Park, Md., August 5–10
Dung beetle gaits and the whine of a mosquito's flight
