DNA from ancient packrat nests helps unpack Earth's past
Thursday, February 20, 2020 - 12:40
in Biology & Nature
New work shows how using next-generation DNA sequencing on ancient packrat middens—nests made out of plant material, fragments of insects, bones, fecal matter, and urine—could provide ecological snapshots of Earth's past. Published today in the journal Ecology and Evolution, the study may pave the way for scientists to better understand how plant communities—and possibly animals, bacteria, and fungi as well—will respond to human-caused climate change.