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News
Traces of ancient life found in 1.6-billion-year-old rocks in Australia
A previously unappreciated group of lifeforms are changing what we know about the evolution of life on Earth.
7 June 2023 -
News
Claims that Homo naledi buried their dead could alter our understanding of human evolution
New claims argue that the ancient human species Homo naledi buried their dead and made engravings.
5 June 2023 -
Science news
Marsupials might be the more evolved mammals
Mammal evolution has been flipped on its head, according to new research that suggests marsupials are the more evolved mammals.
19 May 2023 -
Science news
Rare fossils fill a gap in the evolution of major animal groups
Exceptionally well-preserved fossils from the Cambrian period have helped fill a gap in our understanding of the origin and evolution of major animal groups alive today.
11 May 2023 -
Science news
Ancient human DNA found in 20,000-year-old bone jewellery
A new technique allows researchers to extract the DNA of people who have handled bone artefacts, giving clues about prehistoric cultures.
3 May 2023 -
News
Pitcher plants might be luring in prey using specialised scents
While species focusing on bees produce more floral odours, those focusing on fruit flies make fruitier smells.
19 April 2023 -
Science news
Hanuman plover makes a comeback as a species after 86 years
Named after a Hindu god, it is hoped that resurrecting the species will focus conservation attention on at-risk habitats.
17 April 2023 -
News
Oldest bat skeletons ever found described as new species
52-million-year-old fossils of Icaronycteris gunnelli offer researchers a deeper look at how bats evolved.
12 April 2023 -
News
Deepest-ever fish filmed at a depth of 8,336 metres
An expedition to some of the Earth's deepest ocean trenches has broken records for deep-sea fish.
5 April 2023 -
Science news
Fossils of whale ancestors reveal the path to becoming Earth's largest mammals
Whales started becoming big early in their evolution – and kept going for millions of years.
30 March 2023 -
Dinosaurs
Why were dinosaurs so big? The secrets of titanosaurs' super size
Dinosaurs are the largest land animals to ever live. Titanosaurs were the biggest of them all. Explore how they were able to grow to such a size.
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News
New fossils challenge the identity of the oldest bryozoan
The oldest colonial animal might actually be one of the oldest types of seaweed.
8 March 2023 -
News
The largest ever penguin species has been discovered in New Zealand
Kumimanu fordycei weighed an estimated 150 kilogrammes, demonstrating that penguins became large early in their evolution.
17 February 2023 -
News
Oldest remains of ancient human relative Paranthropus suggest possible tool use
Early humans, and an ancient relative, may have been using complex stone tools as early as three million years ago.
9 February 2023 -
Science news
Boring bivalves are much more diverse than non-boring molluscs
A new study reveals that there are many ways these animals bore through solid rock, but a lack of habitat may lock them into an evolutionary dead end.
8 February 2023 -
News
Bizarre filter-feeding pterosaur described from Germany
The ancient flying reptile would have used its toothed snout with a flared end to filter-feed.
27 January 2023 -
Science news
Unique trilobite trident could be the oldest evidence of male sexual combat
Fighting for mates may be a behaviour that dates back over 400 million years.
16 January 2023 -
Science news
Earliest insect ears reveal the soundscape of the dinosaur age
Katydids are the earliest known animals to evolve complex communication using sound.
13 January 2023 -
Science news
New species of large tortoise discovered after a century of mistaken identity
Though it may have gone extinct over 600 years ago, understanding more about Astrochelys rogerbouri could help to save its living relatives.
11 January 2023 -
What on Earth?
The wonderfully weird world of tenrecs
From looking like Pokémon to having more nipples than any other mammal, tenrecs are an unusual bunch.
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News
The world's oldest DNA represents a two-million-year-old ecosystem
DNA found in Greenland has broken the record for the oldest yet discovered.
7 December 2022 -
Science news
Gloucestershire fossil suggests modern lizards could have Triassic origins
A new species of extinct lizard has been described from the Museum's collections.
2 December 2022 -
Science news
South African fossils reveal the lost world of ancient invertebrates
Leeches, mites and plants found at the site are revealing the ecosystems ancient animals walked over 260 million years ago.
30 November 2022 -
News
Giant glyptodont armadillos may have been hunted by early South Americans
A chink in the armour of giant South American armadillos may have left them vulnerable to human hunting.
25 November 2022 -
News
Evidence of the world's oldest meal may have been discovered
Algae and bacteria were on the menu for the early animal Kimberella shortly before it was buried over 500 million years ago.
24 November 2022 -
News
Europe's largest ever turtle species has been discovered
Measuring almost four metres in length, Leviathanochelys aenigmatica reveals that giant turtles were more common than previously thought.
17 November 2022 -
Science news
Tadpoles have an eye on the future as their vision develops
Frog lenses develop differently depending on what environment they will live in as adults.
16 November 2022 -
Science news
Earliest human fossils in the UK reveal how ancient Europeans were connected
Fossils discovered in Sussex were compared to human remains found in Spain from a similar time period to see if the populations are linked.
14 November 2022 -
Science news
The oldest evidence of life on Earth could help us discover ancient life on Mars
Minute structures found in 3.48-billion-year-old Australian rocks are the oldest evidence of life on Earth.
11 November 2022 -
News
Some mouthbrooding fish eat their children to reduce stress
Fish raised in their mother's mouth can sometimes end up their parent's next meal.
9 November 2022 -
Science news
Neanderthal extinction may have been caused by sex, not fighting
The question of how the Neanderthals died out remains one of the biggest mysteries in human evolution.
31 October 2022 -
Science news
More sociable mammals evolve quicker than solitary ones
The study could help in predicting how species will respond to the rapidly changing environment.
27 October 2022 -
Science news
Exceptional Jurassic fossil lizard sheds light on early lizard evolution
The most complete Jurassic fossil lizard ever found has been discovered in Scotland.
26 October 2022 -
Science news
The oldest human DNA in the UK reveals two distinct populations in late Ice Age Britain
The sequencing of the oldest human DNA in the UK so far.
24 October 2022 -
Science news
Sinuses offer new way of studying the evolution of ancient humans
While their function remains uncertain, the sinuses provide an insight into how ancient human skulls changed over time.
21 October 2022 -
News
Siberian remains could represent first-known Neanderthal community
Neanderthals may have lived in small groups of around 10 to 20, with females moving between the different communities.
19 October 2022 -
News
Feeding British red squirrels is changing their skulls
Red squirrels are developing differently depending on the region of the UK they live in.
17 October 2022 -
Science news
Scottish fossil reveals clues about the earliest pterosaurs
Living over 200 million years ago, Scleromochlus helps to show how ancient reptiles took their first steps towards flight.
5 October 2022 -
News
Researcher who sequenced Neanderthal genome awarded Nobel Prize
Professor Svante Pääbo, considered a founding father of palaeogenomics, has helped to reveal how humans evolved, and how we relate to our closest relatives.
3 October 2022 -
Science news
An ancient hairy, armoured worm lived in the oceans over 500 million years ago
A fossil from China has filled in a major gap in the evolutionary tree for life on Earth.
29 September 2022