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Categories: Biology: Zoology, Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published Vulnerability of England's only resident bottlenose dolphins



New research has provided a detailed examination of England's bottlenose dolphin population's existence and the challenges it faces from human activities and environmental factors on a daily basis.
Published The venom preceded the stinger: Genomic studies shed light on the origins of bee venom



Bees, wasps and ants belong to the Hymenoptera order and inject a whole cocktail of venomous ingredients when they sting. Despite their tremendous ecological and economic importance, little was previously known about the origins of their venom. Through extensive genomic studies, a team of researchers has now discovered that typical venomous components were already present in the earliest ancestors of Hymenoptera and must therefore have evolved before the stingers of bees and other insects. What's more, and contrary to previous assumptions, the gene for the venom melittin is found solely in bees.
Published Landscape dynamics determine the evolution of biodiversity on Earth



A landmark study into the geological timescale distribution of sediment and nutrients over 500 million years shows that species biodiversity on Earth is driven by landscape dynamics.
Published How shifting climates may have shaped early elephants' trunks



Researchers have provided new insights into how ancestral elephants developed their dextrous trunks. A study of the evolution of longirostrine gomphotheres, an ancestor of the modern day elephant, suggests moving into open-land grazing helped develop their coiling and grasping trunks.
Published Fish ecologist's research indicates need to conserve iconic migratory snook in Mexico



Biologists investigated the snook’s almost 400-mile migration up into the rainforest habitat of the Usumacinta River. They have found that the snook, which connect aquatic food webs and support fisheries, spawn and start their lives in coastal nursery habitats before moving into river habitats that offer an array of food resources.
Published Was 'witchcraft' in the Devil's Church in Koli based on acoustic resonance? The crevice cave has a unique soundscape



The national park of Koli in eastern Finland is home to a famous, 34-metre-long crevice cave known as Pirunkirkko, or Devil's Church in English. A new study investigates the acoustics of the Devil's Church and explores whether the acoustic properties of the cave could explain the beliefs associated with it, and why it was chosen as a place for activities and rituals involving sound.
Published Pioneering research method reveals bluefin tuna's fate



The Mediterranean spawning grounds of Bluefin tuna -- the largest tuna and one of the most powerful fish in the sea -- are under threat, due to rising sea temperatures. A pioneering research method to decode bluefin 'otoliths' (a stony tissue found in their ear) has determined the threshold sea temperature at which bluefin thrive to be 28 degrees Celsius.
Published Fish IgM structure sheds light on antibody evolution



Researchers have analyzed the antibody Immunoglobulin M in rainbow trout to shed some light on why these proteins may have evolved over time.
Published Vampire bats make northward flight seeking stable climates



A new article predicts that vampire bats -- currently only found in Mexico and Central and South America -- are on the move, with the United States being a viable home in 27 years.
Published Casas del Turuñuelo, a site of repeated animal sacrifice in Iron Age Spain



The Iron Age site of Casas del Turuñuelo was used repeatedly for ritualized animal sacrifice, according to a multidisciplinary study.
Published How do temperature extremes influence the distribution of species?



As the planet gets hotter, animal and plant species around the world will be faced with new, potentially unpredictable living conditions, which could alter ecosystems in unprecedented ways. A new study investigates the importance of temperature in determining where animal species are currently found to better understand how a warming climate might impact where they might live in the future.
Published Curators and cavers: How a tip from a citizen scientist led to deep discoveries in Utah's caves



Scientists and colleagues from Utah's caving community have published the first research from their collaborative fieldwork effort deep in Utah's caves. The journal's feature article reveals why caves make such compelling research archives; what was uncovered in Boomerang Cave in northern Utah; why skeletal remains provide new access to hard-to-get data from the recent past; and offers a new zoological baseline for mammalian changes in an alpine community.
Published Trilobites rise from the ashes to reveal ancient map



Ten newly discovered species of trilobites, hidden for 490 million years in a little-studied part of Thailand, could be the missing pieces in an intricate puzzle of ancient world geography.
Published Deep-sea mining and warming trigger stress in a midwater jellies



The deep sea is home to one of the largest animal communities on earth which is increasingly exposed to environmental pressures. However, our knowledge of its inhabitants and their response to human-induced stressors is still limited. A new study now provides first insights into the stress response of a pelagic deep-sea jellyfish to ocean warming and sediment plumes caused by deep-sea mining.
Published AI finds formula on how to predict monster waves



Using 700 years' worth of wave data from more than a billion waves, scientists have used artificial intelligence to find a formula for how to predict the occurrence of these maritime monsters. Long considered myth, freakishly large rogue waves are very real and can split apart ships and even damage oil rigs.
Published Innovative aquaculture system turns waste wood into nutritious seafood



Innovative aquaculture system turns waste wood into nutritious seafood. Researchers hoping to rebrand a marine pest as a nutritious food have developed the world's first system of farming shipworms, which they have renamed 'Naked Clams'.
Published Microbiome development: Bacteria lay the foundations for their descendants



The microbiome (the symbiotic community of microbial organisms of a host) is of existential importance for the functioning of every plant and animal, including human beings. A research team has now used the example of the sea anemone Nematostella vectenis to investigate how the microbiome develops together with the host. The researchers describe that the bacterial community is primarily controlled by the host organism during the early stages of life, while bacteria-bacteria interactions play the lead role in subsequent development.
Published Researchers develop comprehensive genetic map for bison, discover gene responsible for albinism



Researchers have determined the gene mutation responsible for an observable trait in bison -- albinism.
Published Idai vs. Impalas: New study shows in real-time what helps mammals survive a natural disaster



After a massive cyclone transformed the ecosystem of Gorongosa National Park, researchers studied the immediate and knock-on impacts to garner lessons for wildlife managers around the world.
Published Scientists have solved the damselfly color mystery



For over 20 years, a research team has studied the common bluetail damselfly. Females occur in three different color forms -- one with a male-like appearance, something that protects them from mating harassment. In a new study, an international research team found that this genetic color variation that is shared between several species arose through changes in a specific genomic region at least five million years ago.