Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Evolution makes the world less ragged
How does evolution impact ecological patterns? It helps smooth out the rough edges, say researchers. A new review of the history of ecological and evolutionary research establishes a framework to...
How can we stop people wanting to buy illegal wildlife products?
Conservationists have been working for decades to save species such as pangolins and rhinos from illegal hunting and trading. And, with fears that the coronavirus pandemic originated from the wildlife...
Discovery opens up new path in study of marine evolution and biodiversity
New UCLA research indicates that an evolutionary phenomenon never before observed among marine life could help explain why there is such immense biodiversity in the world's coral reefs and the...
If architecture is the canary in the coalmine, the outlook for construction is appalling
Architecture suffers before building does.
Doing more with less: Sperm without a fully active tail move faster and more efficiently, new study finds
Sperm cells moving their long tail to swim through the body in search of an egg is a familiar image, but a fully 'powered' tail may not be the key...
Higher fruit, vegetable and whole grain intake linked to lower risk of diabetes
Higher consumption of fruit, vegetables and whole grain foods are associated with a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to two new studies.
Biologists trace plants' steady mitochondrial genomes to a gene found in viruses, bacteria
One could say that mitochondria, the energy-producing organelles inside every human cell, dance to their own beat. After all, they have their own genome—a set of DNA-containing chromosomes—completely separate from...
Scientists look to bird feathers for printing colors
In nature, colors play a vital role in behaviors such as pollination, signaling for mating and defense against predators. Colors are also an important factor in scientific research that can...
Living fossils: We mapped a half-billion years of horseshoe crabs to save them from blood harvests
If you ventured to the New York seaside in summer, you might see a large dome-shaped animal with a spiky tail, slowly moving towards the water. These are horseshoe crabs—the...
New ways to keep proteins healthy outside the cell
With increasing age, and especially in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's, proteins tend to misfold and aggregate into harmful deposits both inside and outside cells. Secreted proteins play an important...
Structural analysis of COVID-19 spike protein provides insight into its evolution
Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute have characterised the structure of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein as well as its most similar relative in a bat coronavirus. The structures provide clues...
Our field cameras melted in the bushfires. When we opened them, the results were startling
In late summer, male northern corroboree frogs call for a female mate. It's a good time to survey their numbers: simply call out "Hey, frog!" in a low, deep voice...
New bird checklists from Coiba National Park, Panama
A trip to Jicarón Island during the Coiba Bioblitz led to a published bird checklist.
New clues from fruit flies about the critical role of sex hormones in stem cell control
In one of the first studies addressing the role of sex hormones' impact on stem cells in the gut, scientists outline new insights showing how a steroidal sex hormone, ecdysone,...
Lightning data more useful than previously thought
Lightning is a spectacular natural phenomenon closely associated with the electrification and discharge of thunderstorms. Different types of thunderstorms correspond to different lightning characteristics and charge structures. But what are...
Detroit Tigers' Derek Hill makes Willie Mays-style catch
Detroit Tigers outfielder Derek Hill made an over-the-shoulder, Willie Mays-style catch during an intrasquad game at Comerica Park in Detroit.
P.E.I. potato farmers plant flower-filled 'refuge fields' for pollinators
A growing number of P.E.I. potato farmers are planting small fields of flowers and other plants to provide a friendly spot for pollinators. Researchers are also hoping the plants will...
New insights revealed in the evolution of community-level heredity
What would happen if a selection experiment was performed on thousands of communities of microbes based on some community-level function? Researchers from ESPCI Paris-PSL, College de France, and ENS-PSL used...
Nigeria's gorillas: World's rarest great ape pictured with babies
The sighting of young Cross River gorillas eases fears they will soon die out, conservationists say.
Ships Hit Smaller Sea Animals More Often than Researchers Thought
New research sheds light on the range of creatures killed and injured by collisions -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
The human brain: not just large but finely shaped
Large brains have long differentiated humans and primates from other mammals and there is a clear evidence that brain mass increased through time.
Gall fly outmaneuvers host plant in game of "Spy vs. Spy"
Over time goldenrod plants and the gall flies that feed on them have been one-upping each other in an ongoing competition for survival. Now, a team of researchers has discovered...
John Swing, a driving force in L.A.'s Historic Filipinotown, dies of COVID-19 at 48
Swing's death came just two months after he was asked to lead Search to Involve Pilipino Americans
Species that use sound to 'fake' their body size are usually skilled vocal learners
Animals that use their voice to sound bigger than they are tend to also be skilled vocal learners, according to new scientific paper.
Researchers develop mobile rapid test to assess coral thermotolerance
Coral death is impacting oceans worldwide as a consequence of climate change. The concern is that corals cannot keep pace with the rate of ocean warming. In particular, because a...
Stress testing 'coral in a box'
Coral death is impacting oceans worldwide as a consequence of climate change. The concern is that corals cannot keep pace with the rate of ocean warming. In particular, because a...
New type of base editor works on mitochondrial DNA
Splitting novel bacterial toxin in two pieces enables the first precision gene editing in mitochondria
Flatworms muscle new eyes' wiring into their brains
If anything happens to the eyes of the tiny, freshwater-dwelling planarian Schmidtea mediterranea, they can grow them back within just a few days. How they do this is a scientific conundrum —...