Misunderstood fin with no clear function evolved repeatedly in different fishes
Though present in more than 6,000 living species of fish, the adipose fin, a small appendage that lies between the dorsal fin and tail, has…
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Modern ocean acidification is outpacing ancient acidification upheaval
Some 56 million years ago, a massive pulse of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere sent global temperatures soaring. In the oceans, carbonate…
Preserving Cuttlefish and a Valuable Fishing Industry
Once upon a time, in a sea far far away, called Adriatic Sea, there were many cuttlefish. These delicate creatures spent their short life…
Winter’s Cold Can’t Stop Me, Baby: Migrating Birds Don’t Duet
In “Ain’t no Mountain High Enough,” Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell sing “If you ever need a helping hand,…
Hawaiian Fishes Like it Deep
As if Hawaii didn’t already have enough to boast about – beautiful beaches, luscious green mountains, and lava – it now also wears…
How to Find Large Animals by Tracking Dung Beetles
Big animals make lots of dung. And where there’s dung, there’s dung beetles. Researchers counted fossilized dung beetles to figure out…
Who’s the Living Fossil? The genus Crocodylus is Younger Than We Think!
What comes to mind when you think of crocodiles? You might think of ancient reptiles, or “living fossils,” that have been…
One tree likes seabird poop, the next prefers fresh air.
Off the west coast of Peru, seabirds deposit thick layers of guano that accumulates on the ground because of the lack of rain. Guano has…
Hitting the jackpot — a new vertebrate family endemic to West Africa
Biological classification arranges taxa according to their degree of relationship; several species may be grouped in a genus, several…
Environment-related morphological changes can confuse scientists
For many years, morphology-based classification has served us so well, and still forms a basis of what we are viewing the biological world…