Search Results for: Bats
- Paleontology
Newfound bat skeletons are the oldest on record
The newly identified species Icaronycteris gunnelli lived about 52.5 million years ago in what is now Wyoming and looked a lot like modern bats.
By Sid Perkins - Animals
Pregnancy may hamper bats’ ability to ‘see’ in the dark
Tiny Kuhl’s pipistrelle bats make fewer calls when pregnant, which may make it more difficult to hunt prey, lab tests hint.
By Freda Kreier - Health & Medicine
‘Blight’ warns that a future pandemic could start with a fungus
‘The Last of Us’ is fiction, but the health dangers posed by fungi are real, a new book explains.
- Life
‘Polyester bees’ brew beer-scented baby food in plastic cribs
Ptiloglossa bees’ baby food gets its boozy fragrance from fermentation by mysteriously selected microbes.
By Susan Milius - Health & Medicine
How raccoon dog DNA fits into the COVID-19 origins debate
Did the virus that causes COVID-19 come from animals or a lab? Evidence hints at animals. Either way, we should be prepping for the next pandemic.
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New discoveries are bringing the world of pterosaurs to life
The latest clues hint at where pterosaurs — the first vertebrates to fly — came from, how they evolved, what they ate and more.
By Sid Perkins - Life
Mammals that live in groups may live longer, longevity research suggests
An analysis of nearly 1,000 mammal species reveals that the evolution of mammals’ social lives and life spans could be linked.
By Jake Buehler - Animals
Most bats don’t echolocate in broad daylight. Here’s an exception
Egyptian fruit bats in Tel Aviv regularly navigate by sound during midday hours to avoid obstacles and forage, despite their excellent vision.
- Life
These bats buzz like wasps and bees. The sound may deter hungry owls
Researchers have identified what may be the first known case of a mammal mimicking an insect.
By Jake Buehler -
- Life
Long genital spines on male wasps can save their lives
A male wasp’s genital spines can save his life in an encounter with a scary tree frog, a new study shows.
By Susan Milius - Life
Lost genes may help explain how vampire bats survive on blood alone
The 13 identified genes underpin a range of physiological and behavioral strategies that the bats have evolved.