Fossils

Fossil bones and antlers in the Museum's collection hold clues about the life and disappearance of Europe's biggest ever deer.

Great whites and megalodon may have been competing for the same prey in the last years of the megalodon's life.

Genyornis newtoni may have become extinct after humans stole and ate its eggs.

Some dinosaurs, such as stegosaurs, may have needed to bask in the sun to keep their body temperature constant.

How we depict extinct animals has changed significantly over time, as artists keep up with the latest scientific discoveries.

Plankton which help feed the ocean, lock away carbon dioxide and even influence the weather may not be as vulnerable to climate change as feared.

The tooth of a young girl living hundreds of thousands of years ago may be from the Denisovans, an extinct hominid species of which very little is known. 

Male trilobites could have acted like modern horseshoe crabs, using claspers to grip females and increase their chance of fathering young.

We now know how whales evolved from furry, four-legged critters to giants of the ocean.

Some of the largest animals that ever lived retained their size right up until they were wiped out 200 million years ago.

It beats the previous record holder by tens of millions of years.

The world's first flying vertebrates may also have been some of the biggest show-offs.

With the finding yet to be published in a scientific journal, debate continues over whether this could be the case. 

Spinosaurs were some of the only dinosaurs that spent much of their lives in water.

Living over 40 million years before the sabre-tooth tiger, Diegoaelurus vanvalkenburghae may have preyed on rhinos and primates in the forests of California. 

The fossil uncovered in Montana suggests the ancestor of all squid and octopus had 10 arms, with some of these then lost by its descendants. 

The finding could offer insights into the impact of climate change on its modern relatives. 

Bashanosaurus primitivus adds to evidence the group of dinosaurs may have originated in Asia.

Palaeontologists have reacted with scepticism over the claims.

Ancient plants measuring just two centimetres long could show what the ancestor of vascular plants looked like.

Scientists believe there could be many as yet unknown fossils to be uncovered in the region.

The neck of a diplodocid shows evidence of a disease that still affects birds today.

A new species of crocodile-like animal has been described from fossils unearthed in Tanzania. 

Modern humans arrived in western Europe about 10,000 years earlier than previously thought.

The unique ecosystem is one of the most diverse of the high Arctic.

The animals roamed Devon's vast grasslands thousands of years ago.

A group of fossilised snails and clams are challenging suggestions that ocean acidification contributed to the largest extinction in history. 

Evidence of increasing carnivory in ancient humans may just be a quirk of sampling.

The largest and most complete ichthyosaur ever found in the UK has been unearthed in the nation's smallest county.

The first large raptor to ever be discovered in the UK has been described as a new species. 

A series of tracks on a public beach point to the presence of large, long-necked dinosaurs in Wales over 200 million years ago. 

One of the largest invertebrates to have ever lived once roamed the beaches of ancient England.

The largest-ever flying animal acted like a giant heron, plucking prey from the water and launching itself into the air. 

The dinosaur was much chunkier than any other sauropod.

An ancient relative of modern crocodiles and alligators shows that their semi-aquatic lifestyle dates back over 150 million years. 

Scientists have discovered how a bird of prey dubbed 'the flying tiger' could take down one of the heaviest birds that ever lived.

Ancient elephants that would have been born the size of a puppy lived for decades more than previously thought.

Neanderthals lived fast and died young, developing their teeth earlier than humans to power their rapid growth. 

A new species of dinosaur has been discovered from the Isle of Wight after a case of mistaken identity.

The fossils of 'very weird animals' have helped show how elephants and walruses may have evolved their iconic tusks. 

A new ancestor of modern humans with the potential to rip up the family tree has been tentatively named.

A corgi-sized canine once roamed Mediterranean islands, hunting small prey like birds and pika. 

A conundrum that has foxed scientists for decades has been solved, revealing the origins of an ancient group of animals. 

The largest Triceratops ever found has sold for over £5 million in an auction that has caused controversy. 

Some of the oldest evidence for modern humans living in rainforests has been found in a cave in Southeast Asia. 

A giant ground sloth that once roamed South America occasionally broke its plant-based diet to eat meat, researchers have found.

Most African mammals all went extinct 33 million years ago as the world became dramatically cooler. 

Rocks with the potential to hold fossils of Martian life have been identified by NASA's Perseverance rover. 

The oldest-known meat-eating dinosaur discovered in the UK has been named in honour of trailblazing Museum scientist Angela Milner, who passed away in August 2021.

A unique 'hyper-eye' consisting of three different levels of vision has been discovered in a prehistoric animal. 

A species of eagle that may have eaten ancient koalas over 25 million years ago has been described from Australia. 

Two new species of carnivorous dinosaurs  have been discovered from the Isle of Wight. 

A nursery for the largest land mammals ever to have lived has been uncovered in Spain, offering rare clues to their family lives. 

Spicomellus afer is the oldest ankylosaur ever discovered. 

Our ancient relatives had a sweet tooth, researchers have found, after uncovering the oldest-known mammalian cavities.

A new beautifully preserved fossil of a horseshoe crab has revealed that their brains have hardly changed since at least the Carboniferous Period.  

Palaeontologists have uncovered thousands of perfectly preserved Jurassic fossils in a sleepy area of the Cotswolds. 

Mammoth ivory is appearing from melting permafrost and joining international markets.

Understanding the extraordinary diversity and differences between insects can help us figure out how these species evolved.

Over the past few hundreds of thousands of years Sicily was home to two different miniature elephants.

It's more common for mammals to have evolved smaller body sizes which makes it look like the brain is getting bigger. 

Marsupials have missed out on their evolutionary potential because of how they reproduce.

Their hearing may have been why these dolphins survived when all other relatives died out.

When modern humans arrived in the islands of southeast Asia, they may have encountered a range of ancient human species. 

By studying modern horseshoe crabs, researchers have been able to build up a picture of how some extinct arthropods such as trilobites may have fed on hard-shelled prey.

New 50p coin collection honours fossil hunter Mary Anning.

The often tightly wound shells of ammonites may be a familiar sight, but how much do you know about the animals that once lived inside?

It is shedding light on how the Columbian mammoth came to be. 

It is notoriously difficult to sex a dinosaur.

A milestone has been reached in the campaign for a statue of fossil hunter Mary Anning in Lyme Regis.

Radiodont eye fossils inform scientists of the role of vision in evolution. 

Many groups of dinosaurs were doing rather well right up until the end. 

If you can't get out to the beach to find fossils, why not make your own ammonites instead?

Why did they get so big?

Rodents of unusual size once lived across the Caribbean.

Were dinosaurs adhering to social distancing rules, or were they living in tight-knit herds?

This is the first 3D preserved embryo of a sauropod.

The skull shape of birds is just a tiny fraction of the diversity that would have been seen in their dinosaur ancestors.

For the first time ever, evidence of cancer has been found in the bones of a dinosaur.

A new cat-sized dinosaur with hooks for hands has been described. 

The origin of dinosaurs, their demise and what Dilophosaurus really looked like. 

New research on Turkana Boy is changing our understanding of the species Homo erectus.

A new study has found that the eggs of the earliest dinosaurs had soft shells.

The painting dates to at least 1,000 years ago.

A new family of ancient marsupials has been discovered, relatives of modern-day wombats and koalas.

This is thought to be one of the most significant dinosaur sites ever found in South Africa.

A 110-million-year-old dinosaur's fossil stomach has been studied by scientists.

Explore the latest findings from across the world of palaeontology.

It was once widely believed that ammonites were coiled snakes turned magically to stone.

Tracking the diversity of turtles could also give us clues as to how they might respond to increasing pressures in the future.

Dinosaur experts share some of the latest science news and views from across the world of palaeontology.

For over 100 years palaeontologists thought this dinosaur didn't exist.

New scans reveal how dinosaur teeth developed. 

A new fossil has revealed what they looked like.

Africa and Eurasia were inhabited by a whole range of hominin species just a few hundred thousand years ago.

This may alter the recreation of some non-avian dinosaurs. 

An ancient invertebrate lost its legs to live in tubes. 

Straight-tusked elephants were among the largest land mammals ever to have existed.

Three new coins have been designed.

They aren't scientifically accurate, but the Crystal Palace dinosaurs have a special place in the history of palaeontology.

A far greater variety of dinosaurs lived here than we realised.

The Triassic reptiles were found in Zimbabwe.

Dinosaur bones aren't the only way we can learn about the ancient reptiles that once roamed around our planet.

The footprints were made when an ancient amphibian walked across a river delta. 

Herbivorous dinosaurs kept evolving the same traits.

The meteorite formed as our solar system was being born. 

Find out how well you'd get along on a dino dig to search for famous Jurassic dinosaurs such as Brachiosaurus.

Explore an interactive story about Museum experts' adventure to Wyoming, USA, when they went off-grid in search of Jurassic dinosaurs.

A species of wormlike marine invertebrate has been uncovered.

Even though dinosaurs lived millions of years ago, we know about them thanks to fossils. Watch our animation to find out how dinosaur fossils formed.

Discover the story of the 11-tonne fossil that's been welcoming visitors to the Museum since 1887.

What was life like during the Triassic Period?

When did dinosaurs evolve, and what did the first dinosaurs look like?

A new species of stegosaurian dinosaur, Adratiklit boulahfa, has been described.

Discover how palaeontologists find and dig up prehistoric reptiles.

Have a go at our quiz about Museum palaeontologists' recent adventures on the Mission Jurassic dig.

Discover more about some iconic Neanderthal skulls.

Dr Susie Maidment shares what it's like to be a dinosaur researcher, how she got into this career and advice for budding palaeontologists.

New dating suggests they were in southern Greece 210,000 years ago. 

Pioneering woman palaeontologist to hit cinema screens soon.

What can we learn from scanning snakes?

Much of the ocean remains unexplored, but scientists at the Museum are helping unravel the mysteries of the world beneath the waves.

The face of modern science is young, black, female and ambitious.

Discover the important contributions made by one of London's first woman geologists.

The ancient shark was found in an unusual fossil ecosystem.

We've been looking at the wrong species. 

This is fastest recorded timeline of a bird losing its ability to fly.

It has been named Homo luzonensis.

It is the oldest quadrupedal whale from the Americas.

Go behind the scenes at the Museum and discover the huge variety of beetles and parasites in the collection. 

The team will help uncover dinosaur fossils and footprints in Wyoming. 

The Cambrian explosion is one of the most important intervals in the history of life.

The new amoeba species is the earliest of its kind ever discovered.

Hans Sloane's collection formed the basis of the Natural History Museum.

Although spinosaurs were named in 1915, little was known about these giants until a 31-centimetre-long claw was discovered in the UK in 1983.

They include new dinosaurs, an ancient wombat and a giant shark.

Evolving before trees and weathering five mass extinctions, sharks are true survivors.

A campaign group have attracted national attention for their quest to get her permanently commemorated. 

Australopithecus afarensis is one of the best-known early human relatives thanks to an extraordinary fossil called Lucy.

This long-necked skeleton is Attenborosaurus, an extinct marine reptile named after legendary broadcaster Sir David Attenborough.