Search Results for: Vertebrates

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1,483 results
  1. a composite of photos of a lion, a resplendent quetzal, golden poison frog and blue shark (left to right)
    Science & Society

    Humans exploit about one-third of wild vertebrate species

    An analysis of nearly 47,000 vertebrate animal species reveals that using them for food, medicine or the pet trade is helping push some toward extinction.

    By Sid Perkins
  2. A close up photo of a castor bean tick sitting on dry grass.
    Animals

    Static electricity can pull ticks on to their hosts

    Ticks brought near objects with a static charge frequently get pulled to those surfaces, a new study finds, suggesting one way the bugs find hosts.

    By Soumya Sagar
  3. A photo of a fossilized bat skeleton
    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
  4. An illustration of a pterosaur flying over rocky terrain with mountains, a body of water and the sun in the background.

    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
  5. illustration of brown and tan Xiushanosteus mirabilis fish underwater
    Paleontology

    Ancient fish fossils highlight the strangeness of our vertebrate ancestors

    New fossils are revealing the earliest jawed vertebrates — a group that encompasses 99 percent of all living vertebrates on Earth, including humans.

    By Carolyn Gramling
  6. An image of a 3-D reconstruction of a spiny mouse skeleton on a black background. The mouse's tail is shown in red with a close-up of the plates that sit in the rodent's skin.
    Life

    Spiny mice have armadillo-like armor in their tails

    CT scans revealed the bony plates in the rodents’ tails. The hidden armor may protect against attacking predators or other spiny mice.

    By Jake Buehler
  7. A gloved hand swaps a green leaf.
    Animals

    A new DNA leaf swab technique could revolutionize how we monitor biodiversity

    Simple swabs of just 24 leaves in Uganda’s Kibale National Park provided a genetic snapshot of 52 animals in the tropical forest.

    By Darren Incorvaia
  8. A photo of a Tyto alba barn owl standing on a log on the ground. The owl is looking at the camera with its body turned away.
    Animals

    Volcanic sulfur may make barn owls grow redder feathers

    Barn owls on volcanic islands tend to have redder plumage than those on nonvolcanic islands, possibly due to an influx of sulfur in the environment.

    By Jake Buehler
  9. An illustration of a Tyrannosaurus eating a smaller dinosaur with half of that dino's body visible.
    Life

    T. rex may have had lips like a modern lizard’s

    Dinosaurs like Tyrannosaurus have long been portrayed as lipless, but new research suggests this wasn’t so.

    By Jake Buehler
  10. Pictures of a fossilized theropod, Ubirajara jubatus
    Paleontology

    Paleontology has a ‘parachute science’ problem. Here’s how it plays out in 3 nations

    When researchers study fossils from lower-income countries, they often engage in dubious or illegal practices that can stifle science.

    By Helen Thompson
  11. An illustration of a Natovenator polydontus sitting on top of a body of water with its feet visible below the water line
    Paleontology

    This dinosaur may have had a body like a duck’s

    Natovenator polydontus may have been adapted for life in the water, challenging the popular idea that all dinos were landlubbers.

    By Nikk Ogasa
  12. A wide photo of a valley on Ellesmere Island in Canada with mountains in the background.
    Life

    Fossils suggest early primates lived in a once-swampy Arctic

    Teeth and jawbones found on Ellesmere Island, Canada, suggest that two early primate species migrated there 52 million years ago.

    By Freda Kreier