Search Results for: Vertebrates
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Animals
Fish can recognize themselves in photos, further evidence they may be self-aware
Cleaner fish recognize themselves in mirrors and photos, suggesting that far more animals may be self-aware than previously thought.
By Betsy Mason -
Physics
How neutron imaging uncovers hidden secrets of fossils and artifacts
The technique can complement X-ray scanning and other tools to uncover details of dinosaur fossils, mummies and more.
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Paleontology
The Age of Dinosaurs may have ended in springtime
Fossilized fish bones suggest that the massive asteroid strike at the end of the Cretaceous Period occurred during the Northern Hemisphere’s spring.
By Sid Perkins -
Animals
Scientists thought snakes didn’t have clitorises. They were wrong
Snakes were long thought to be the only reptile group to lack clitorises. But new findings suggest the sex organs are present after all.
By Jake Buehler -
Paleontology
Mysterious ichthyosaur graveyard may have been a breeding ground
Some 230 million years ago, massive dolphinlike reptiles gathered to breed in safe waters — just like many modern whales do, a study finds.
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Animals
‘Wonderful nets’ of blood vessels protect dolphin and whale brains during dives
Complex networks of blood vessels called retia mirabilia that are associated with cetaceans’ brains and spines have long been a mystery.
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Animals
These tiny marsupials survived wildfires only to face extinction from feral cats
The Kangaroo Island dunnart was one species seen to reemerge after 2019–2020 Australian bushfires but is now closer than ever to extinction.
By Asa Stahl -
Animals
Extreme climate shifts long ago may have helped drive reptile evolution
The end-Permian extinction left reptiles plenty of open ecological niches. But rapid climate change may be what kick-started the animals’ dominance.
By Beth Geiger -
Paleontology
Spinosaurus’ dense bones fuel debate over whether some dinosaurs could swim
New evidence that Spinosaurus and its kin hunted underwater won't be the last word on whether some dinosaurs were swimmers.
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Paleontology
Pterosaurs may have evolved from tiny, fast-running reptiles
A mysterious little ground-dwelling reptile unearthed in a Scottish sandstone over 100 years ago turns out to be part of a famous flying family.
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Paleontology
Fossils reveal what may be the oldest known case of the dino sniffles
A respiratory infection that spread to air sacs in the vertebrae of a 150-million-year-old sauropod likely led to now-fossilized bone lesions.
By Sid Perkins