News archive 2009
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Killer petunias and murderous potatoes - 10/12/2009
Could petunias be killers? Or potatoes be murderous? Yes, according to new research.
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International year of biodiversity UK launch - 26/11/2009
Does biodiversity matter? Now is your chance to find out as the International Year of Biodiversity UK launches.
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Darwin’s mockingbirds DNA research may help species recovery - 18/11/2009
New research could help protect the future of a rare mockingbird in the Galapagos Islands.
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Fate of reefs depends on Copenhagen summit - 17/11/2009
Coral reefs could be condemned to extinction at next month’s Copenhagen climate summit, warns Pavan Sukhdev of the UN Environment Programme.
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How much is nature worth? - 13/11/2009
£1 billion? £100 billion? £1 trillion? Pavan Sukhdev discusses at this year’s Annual Science Lecture at the Museum on Monday.
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Social network tool for natural history science - 10/11/2009
Museum scientists create social networking tool called Scratchpads.
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Unusual meteorite found by time-lapse camera observatory - 05/11/2009
An unusual meteorite with an interesting orbit has been tracked to the ground.
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T.rex's oldest ancestor identified - 04/11/2009
A near-complete 165-million-year-old dinosaur skull in the Museum’s collection is identified.
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Woo a worm at society launch event - 30/10/2009
Woo a worm in London’s Hyde Park this Saturday at the launch of the Earthworm Society of Britain.
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Smallest dinosaur in North America uncovered - 22/10/2009
A new species of pigeon-sized dinosaur is the smallest ever found in North America.
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Tiny UK parasitoid wasp discovered - 20/10/2009
A new parasitoid wasp that feeds on a whitefly pest has been discovered in the UK.
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Spiders and more explored in new Arachnid book - 16/10/2009
Scared of spiders? Intrigued by ticks? Explore this new Museum book Arachnids.
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New flying reptile clues to rapid evolution - 14/10/2009
New pterosaur species shows evidence that evolution didn't always happen in gradual steps.
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Ancient humans in Britain project gets funding - 06/10/2009
Ancient Human Occupation of Britain (AHOB) gets £1.1million for 3rd phase.
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Ancient skeleton gives clues to human evolution - 02/10/2009
A 4.4 million-year-old fossil skeleton of an ancient human-like creature is uncovered.
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Biodiversity loss weakens global development - 30/09/2009
Goals set to alleviate poverty won't be met unless we address biodiversity loss.
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Dung beetle named after Darwin - 22/09/2009
A dung beetle from Costa Rica has been named after Charles Darwin and the Darwin Initiative.
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Give a wasp a name - 18/09/2009
Ever fancied naming a new species? Well, now is your chance.
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Prince and tarantula join in one of first Nature Live events - 17/09/2009
Prince William and a very large tarantula join in a Nature Live talk this week.
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Prince to open Museum's new Darwin Centre - 01/09/2009
His Royal Highness Prince William of Wales will be guest of honour at centre's opening.
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Humans spread out of Africa later - 04/09/2009
Modern humans spread out of Africa 20,000 years later than previously thought.
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Prince to open Museum's new Darwin Centre - 01/09/2009
His Royal Highness Prince William of Wales will be guest of honour at centre's opening.
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People help build Encyclopedia of Life - 26/08/2009
The public and scientists help create the first 150,000 species pages in the Encyclopedia of Life.
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Big Seaweed Search launches at Bioblitz - 21/08/2009
The Big Seaweed Search launches and Wembury 24-hour marine Bioblitz begins in Devon today.
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Mass butterfly and moth move at Museum - 14/08/2009
More than 8 million butterflies and moths move in to the Darwin Centre.
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Tropical bird theft at Natural History Museum - 13/08/2009
The Museum has been targeted by thieves who have stolen a number of tropical bird ‘skins’.
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Somerset cave first home after ice age - 29/07/2009
Gough's cave was one of the first places humans returned to in Britain after last ice age.
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DNA barcode for world's plants agreed - 28/07/2009
A DNA barcode to identify the world's plants has been agreed by an international team of scientists.
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Darwin Centre opens on 15 September 2009 - 16/07/2009
Get ready to experience the Natural History Museum’s metamorphosis.
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Duck-billed dinosaurs had unique chew - 30/06/2009
Hadrosaurs could chew in a very unusual way, scientists announce today.
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Oldest evidence of giant sperm - 19/06/2009
The oldest evidence for reproduction with giant sperm has been uncovered in the Natural History Museum’s collections.
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Woolly mammoth was recent resident - 18/06/2009
Woolly mammoths survived in Shropshire, UK, up until 14,000 years ago.
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Museum insect detectives join forensic team - 16/06/2009
Museum insect detectives have teamed up with the Forensic Science Service.
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Neanderthal of the North Sea - 15/06/2009
Scientists have identified a fragment of Neanderthal skull in sediments extracted from the bottom of the North Sea.
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Bumblebee re-introduced to UK - 12/06/2009
A campaign is launched to re-introduce the short-haired bumblebee to the UK from New Zealand.
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Mass plant freeze at Museum - 05/06/2009
Three million plant specimens are being frozen to make sure they stay free of pests.
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World's longest insect is in top 10 - 29/05/2009
The world's longest insect, on display at the Museum, is voted one of the top 10 species of 2008.
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Hippo and hobbit on display - 28/05/2009
A small display of a dwarf hippo skull and hobbit skull copy, opens at the Museum today.
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Did dinosaurs hold their heads up? - 27/05/2009
Some dinosaurs may have held their head up like a giraffe scientists report today.
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Donated Ida fossil cast to go on display - 26/05/2009
A cast of Ida, the 47-million-year-old lemur-like creature, goes on display.
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Evolution rocks at the fossil festival - 23/05/2009
Visit the Evolution Rocks Fossil Festival this weekend.
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A day and year for biodiversity - 22/05/2009
Today is the UN’s International Day for Biological Diversity.
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Lemur-like fossil gives clues to primate evolution - 19/05/2009
A 47-million-year old fossil of a lemur-like creature reveals clues to early primate evolution.
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Did modern humans eat Neanderthals? - 17/05/2009
A study of jaws and teeth from France reveals modern humans may have eaten Neanderthals.
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Fossils book is key to the past - 14/05/2009
The new edition of the Museum book Fossils: The Key to the Past is out now.
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Hippo's island life helps explain dwarf hobbit - 07/05/2009
Ancient Madagascan hippos shed light on origins of small-brained hobbit. Watch the video.
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Dinosaurs declined before mass extinction - 30/04/2009
Dinosaurs were dying out much earlier than previously thought say Museum scientists.
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British bluebells need your help - 15/04/2009
Museum Scientists are calling on the British public to help complete a bluebell puzzle.
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New hawkmoths on display - 07/04/2009
Some of the spectacular hawkmoths the Museum bought with the help of public donations go on display.
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First Darwin Centre specimens unpacked - 02/04/2009
The first of the 20 million specimens move in to the new Darwin Centre this week.
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Explore amazing animal migrations - 30/03/2009
Explore extraordinary animal voyages in the new Natural History Museum book, Animal Migration.
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New bird discovered after its extinction - 26/03/2009
After almost 120 years in the Museum collections, a new Colombian bird is discovered.
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Help watch out for worms - 24/03/2009
Wildlife Presenter Chris Packham launches the OPAL Soil and Earthworm Survey.
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Fossils reveal ancient monster predator - 19/03/2009
Fossil fragments are pieced together to reveal a 500-million-year-old monster predator.
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Dracula minnow has teeth, almost - 11/03/2009
A new species of tiny fish with huge jaw structures has been identified by Natural History Museum scientists.
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Darwin Centre staff move into cocoon - 06/03/2009
The first group of Natural History Museum scientists have moved in to the new high-tech labs.
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Earliest modern-looking human footprints - 04/03/2009
1.5 million-year-old footprints have been uncovered in Kenya.
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Fossil fish shows oldest live birth - 26/02/2009
A 380-million-year-old fossil fish that shows an unborn embryo and umbilical cord has been discovered.
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Fish knew first about sex - 25/02/2009
Fossilised pregnant fish was one of the first animals to have sex. Read more and watch a video.
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Moustache helps identify butterfly - 20/02/2009
A new butterfly has been discovered with the help of a 90-year-old Museum specimen and its hairy mouthparts.
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Museum unveils plaque for Darwin's birthday - 12/02/2009
Celebrations for the 200th birthday of Charles Darwin were held at the Museum yesterday.
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Talking about Neanderthals - 12/02/2009
Experts talk about Neanderthals and genomes at the AAAS science conference in Chicago this week.
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Thames alien crab safe to eat - 11/02/2009
Chinese mitten crabs pests that invaded the River Thames around 75 years ago are safe to eat.
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Climate change pushes moths up mountain - 29/01/2009
Populations of moths living on a mountain in Borneo have moved more than 60m uphill.
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Protecting coast and sea to become law - 26/01/2009
A new marine bill for the UK is due to become law this year.
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Extinction survivors were bird brains - 20/01/2009
Birds survived the mass extinction that wiped out the dinosaurs because of their larger brains, Museum scientists report today.
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Oldest bird hears like an emu - 14/01/2009
The earliest known bird, Archaeopteryx, had hearing similar to an emu, Natural History Museum scientists report today.