News

The ancient flying reptile would have used its toothed snout with a flared end to filter-feed.

Though it may have gone extinct over 600 years ago, understanding more about Astrochelys rogerbouri could help to save its living relatives. 

It has never been more important to describe as much of the natural world as possible.

A new species of extinct lizard has been described from the Museum's collections. 

Museum scientists joined a six-week voyage to understand more about the fragile and rarely studied environments surrounding South Atlantic islands.

The UK government has released plans to restore the natural world. 

The ancient flying reptile would have used its toothed snout with a flared end to filter-feed.

Nights are becoming around 10% lighter each year, which has implications for the health of both humans and wildlife. 

More than 250 titanosaur eggs have been uncovered in India, revealing more about the lives of some of the largest animals which ever lived.

Fighting for mates may be a behaviour that dates back over 400 million years.

The Yangtze finless porpoise has faced habitat loss and a reduced range as a result of sand mining, but a suspension of the practice offers hope that they could recover. 

Katydids are the earliest known animals to evolve complex communication using sound.

Though it may have gone extinct over 600 years ago, understanding more about Astrochelys rogerbouri could help to save its living relatives. 

An orange-sized space rock blazed across the skies on Monday 9 January.

Virgin Orbit is hoping to launch a rocket carrying a payload of satellites into space from Spaceport Cornwall at Newquay Airport.

Invasive rats are devastating tropical islands, with effects reaching far beyond the land. 

The skulls of early herbivores are helping scientists to understand how a diverse group of dinosaurs evolved different ways of eating plants.

Here are just 20 of the ways humanity's efforts to help nature paid dividends in 2022.

Professor Chris Stringer has been awarded a CBE and Dr Sandra Knapp and Dr Richard Fortey an OBE.

It has never been more important to describe as much of the natural world as possible.

Current turtle habitats are likely to become unsuitable, but new areas could become available.

One of the most unusual self-defence techniques in the animal kingdom has been uncovered.

An unexpected series of eruptions at Stromboli may be due to changes in the volcano's internal 'plumbing'.

Intensively used land isn't just harmful to biodiversity we can see – it's also harming the wildlife living under the ground.

A walrus has been seen hauled out on a beach in Hampshire, UK.

Competition between ankylosaurs may be responsible for their iconic tail clubs.

DNA found in Greenland has broken the record for the oldest yet discovered.

A new species of extinct lizard has been described from the Museum's collections. 

Discover the stories behind the stunning images from Wildlife Photographer of the Year's 2023 People's Choice Award.

Leeches, mites and plants found at the site are revealing the ecosystems ancient animals walked over 260 million years ago.

Native mussels in the River Thames are in decline, with some species having disappeared since a landmark study in 1964.

Data being collected from the surface of Mars are already providing a glut of information about Jezero crater.

A chink in the armour of giant South American armadillos may have left them vulnerable to human hunting. 

Algae and bacteria were on the menu for the early animal Kimberella shortly before it was buried over 500 million years ago. 

The next rover to land on Mars could discover signs of a once mighty river ecosystem. 

Measuring almost four metres in length, Leviathanochelys aenigmatica reveals that giant turtles were more common than previously thought.

Frog lenses develop differently depending on what environment they will live in as adults.

The origins of a meteorite which lit up skies above the UK last year have been revealed.

Fossils discovered in Sussex were compared to human remains found in Spain from a similar time period to see if the populations are linked.

Minute structures found in 3.48-billion-year-old Australian rocks are the oldest evidence of life on Earth.

A new study has looked at what is driving the biodiversity crisis. 

Fish raised in their mother's mouth can sometimes end up their parent's next meal. 

The discovery of a seven million-year-old gibbon fossil has filled a long-elusive gap in the fossil record.

Demands for climate action are stronger than ever as the world comes together once again to discuss the rapidly warming world.

Dam building in Australia is reducing gene flow between platypus groups, piling pressure on populations whose numbers are already falling.

The first complete ichthyosaur skeleton has resurfaced, despite being thought destroyed during World War Two.

The question of how the Neanderthals died out remains one of the biggest mysteries in human evolution.

The aye-aye is one of 12 primates that pick their nose - but we have no good reason why the behaviour evolved.

The study could help in predicting how species will respond to the rapidly changing environment.

The most complete Jurassic fossil lizard ever found has been discovered in Scotland.

The sequencing of the oldest human DNA in the UK so far.

While their function remains uncertain, the sinuses provide an insight into how ancient human skulls changed over time.

A herd of bison released into woodland near Canterbury, Kent, have surprised conservationists by giving birth to a calf.

A large part of the asteroid belt may have been formed out on the fringes of the Solar System.

Neanderthals may have lived in small groups of around 10 to 20, with females moving between the different communities. 

Carcinogenic fuel, explosives and chemical weapons are leaking into the seas from sunken naval vessels.

Red squirrels are developing differently depending on the region of the UK they live in. 

Scavengers could help to preserve the soft tissue of the ancient reptiles by removing flesh and fluid from the body shortly after death. 

We know the problems, but we also know how to fix them. 

The new Global Typology of Ecosystems provides an important step towards characterising the true diversity of life on Earth at its largest scale. 

A new project aims to use the Museum's historic collections to investigate how the genome of wheat has changed.

Winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2022 announced.

A process mosquitoes use to weather harsh conditions offers new opportunities in the fight against malaria.  

Living over 200 million years ago, Scleromochlus helps to show how ancient reptiles took their first steps towards flight.

Mass producing the proteins in the saliva could provide a cheap and effective way to break down polyethylene waste. 

Professor Svante Pääbo, considered a founding father of palaeogenomics, has helped to reveal how humans evolved, and how we relate to our closest relatives.

A fossil from China has filled in a major gap in the evolutionary tree for life on Earth.

In the midst of war, scientists have been working to protect historic artworks.

Researchers have caught a glimpse of the cosmos just two million years after the formation of the solar system.

Termites could reduce the amount of carbon stored in wood as the world gets hotter and drier. 

The people after which England is named made up more than three quarters of the nation's genetic ancestry during the early Middle Ages. 

Investigating Mars' dry lakes could help scientists to discover how life began on Earth. 

The dental record of a small animal has pushed back the origin of mammals by 20 million years. 

The description of an extinct lizard-like animal may help reveal why its kind were rapidly pushed to the edge of extinction.

Female wildebeest are engaged in an evolutionary arms race - but scientists aren't sure why. 

Going green is no longer just the smart decision – it's also the most profitable one.