Search Results for: Vertebrates
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1,505 results
- Paleontology
Healed scars tag T. rex as predator
Healed wounds on the fossil skull of a Triceratops—wounds that match the size and shape of those that would be made by Tyrannosaurus rex—are a strong sign that the tooth scrapes are a result of attempted predation, not scavenging.
- Paleontology
Flightless Feathered Friends
New finds of fossil penguins, as well as analyses of the characteristics and DNA of living penguins, are shedding light on the evolution of these flightless birds.
- Plants
Botany under the Mistletoe
Twisters, spitters, and other flowery thoughts for romantic moments.
- Paleontology
Tracks suggest chase, capture, and after-meal respite
A 1.3-meter-long, S-shaped trail of fossil footprints discovered in southwestern Indiana includes one set of disappearing tracks—suggesting an ancient chase—and an impression where the predator rested after its meal.
- Ecosystems
One-Celled Socialites
A wave of research on the social lives of bacteria offers insights into the evolution of cooperation and may lead to medical breakthroughs that neutralize virulent bacterial strains.
- Paleontology
Ancient atmosphere was productive
New laboratory experiments suggest that extra carbon dioxide in the atmosphere in the era just before the dinosaurs went extinct may have boosted plant productivity to at least three times that found in today’s ecosystems.
- Paleontology
Role of gastroliths in digestion questioned
New analyses of the gastroliths in ostriches are casting doubt on the theory that large, plant-eating dinosaurs swallowed stones to grind up tough vegetation and thereby aid their digestion.
- Anthropology
Out on a Limb
The science of body development may make kindling out of evolutionary trees.
- Animals
Musical Pairs: Egg-deploying bird species divide for a song
A new genetic analysis bolsters the idea that musical taste, rather than geography, split Africa's indigobirds into multiple species.
- Paleontology
Bob, Bob, Bobbin’ Along: Dinosaur buoyancy may explain odd tracks
New lab experiments and computer analyses may explain how some of the heftiest four-legged dinosaurs ever to walk on Earth could have left trackways that include the imprints of only their front feet.
- Animals
First Impressions: Early view biases spider’s mate choice
In a new wrinkle on how females develop their tastes in males, a test has found that young female wolf spiders that see a male's courtship display grow up with a preference for that look in mates.
- Materials Science
Easy Repair: Novel structural model heals with heat
The vertebrate spine has provided inspiration for making new structures that heal when heated.
