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Categories: Anthropology: General, Paleontology: Dinosaurs
Published Family trees from the European Neolithic
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The Neolithic burial site of Gurgy 'les Noisats' in France revealed two unprecedentedly large family trees which allowed a Franco-German team to explore the social organization of the 6,700-year-old community. Based on multiple lines of evidence, the team describes a close kin group which practiced monogamy and female exogamy, and experienced generally stable times.
Published New archosaur species shows that precursor of dinosaurs and pterosaurs was armored
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have described a new species of armored reptile that lived near the time of the first appearance of dinosaurs. With bony plates on its backbone, this archosaur fossil reveals that armor was a boomerang trait in the story of dinosaur and pterosaur evolution: the group's ancestors were armored, but this characteristic was lost and then independently re-evolved multiple times later among specialized dinosaurs like ankylosaurs, stegosaurs, and others.
Published Unusual fossil shows rare evidence of a mammal attacking a dinosaur
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have described an unusual fossil from around 125 million years ago in China that shows a dramatic moment in time when a carnivorous mammal attacked a larger plant-eating dinosaur. The two animals are locked in mortal combat, and it's among the first evidence to show actual predatory behavior by a mammal on a dinosaur. The fossil's presence challenges the view that dinosaurs had few threats from their mammal contemporaries during the Cretaceous, when dinosaurs were the dominant animals.
Published Butterflies and moths share ancient 'blocks' of DNA
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Butterflies and moths share 'blocks' of DNA dating back more than 200 million years, new research shows.
Published Giant stone artefacts found on rare Ice Age site in Kent, UK
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have discovered some of the largest early prehistoric stone tools in Britain.
Published Fossils reveal how ancient birds molted their feathers -- which could help explain why ancestors of modern birds survived when all the other dinosaurs died
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Birds are the only group of dinosaurs that survived the asteroid-induced mass extinction 66 million years ago. But not all the birds alive at the time made it. Why the ancestors of modern birds lived while so many of their relatives died has been a mystery that paleontologists have been trying to solve for decades. Two new studies point to one possible factor: the differences between how modern birds and their ancient cousins molt their feathers.
Published Newly discovered Jurassic fossils in Texas
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have filled a major gap in the state's fossil record -- describing the first known Jurassic vertebrate fossils in Texas. The weathered bone fragments are from the limbs and backbone of a plesiosaur, an extinct marine reptile.
Published Humans' ancestors survived the asteroid impact that killed the dinosaurs
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A Cretaceous origin for placental mammals, the group that includes humans, dogs and bats, has been revealed by in-depth analysis of the fossil record, showing they co-existed with dinosaurs for a short time before the dinosaurs went extinct.
Published Humans' evolutionary relatives butchered one another 1.45 million years ago
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have identified the oldest decisive evidence of humans' close evolutionary relatives butchering and likely eating one another.
Published Lessons in sustainability, evolution and human adaptation -- courtesy of the Holocene
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The El Gigante rockshelter in western Honduras is among only a handful of archaeological sites in the Americas that contain well-preserved botanical remains spanning the last 11,000 years. Considered one of the most important archaeological sites discovered in Central America in the last 40 years, El Gigante was recently nominated as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Published 'We're all Asgardians': New clues about the origin of complex life
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source According to a new study, eukaryotes -- complex life forms with nuclei in their cells, including all the world's plants, animals, insects and fungi -- trace their roots to a common Asgard archaean ancestor. That means eukaryotes are, in the parlance of evolutionary biologists, a 'well-nested clade' within Asgard archaea, similar to how birds are one of several groups within a larger group called dinosaurs, sharing a common ancestor.
Published Cave excavation pushes back the clock on early human migration to Laos
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Fifteen years of archaeological work in the Tam Pa Ling cave in northeastern Laos has yielded a reliable chronology of early human occupation of the site. The team's excavations through the layers of sediments and bones that gradually washed into the cave and were left untouched for tens of thousands of years reveals that humans lived in the area for at least 70,000 years -- and likely even longer.
Published Focus on function helps identify the changes that made us human
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Research sheds light on human evolution, and demonstrates an approach for identifying significant differences in how genes are used between closely-related species.
Published Face of Anglo-Saxon teen VIP revealed with new evidence about her life
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The face of a 16-year-old woman buried near Cambridge (UK) in the 7th century with an incredibly rare gold and garnet cross (the 'Trumpington Cross') has been reconstructed following analysis of her skull. The striking image is going on public display for the first time on 21st June, with new scientific evidence showing that she moved to England from Central Europe as a young girl, leading to an intriguing change in her diet.
Published New dinosaur discovered: Ankylosaurs may have been far more diverse than originally thought
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source First armoured dinosaur to be described from the Isle of Wight in 142 years, shows Ankylosaurs may have been far more diverse than originally thought
Published Study shows ancient Alaskans were freshwater fishers
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A scientific team has discovered the earliest-known evidence of freshwater fishing by ancient people in the Americas. The research offers a glimpse at how early humans used a changing landscape and could offer insight for modern people facing similar changes.
Published Fossil study sheds light on famous spirals found in nature
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A 3D model of a 407-million-year-old plant fossil has overturned thinking on the evolution of leaves. The research has also led to fresh insights about spectacular patterns found in plants.
Published First hominin muscle reconstruction shows 3.2 million-year-old 'Lucy' could stand as erect as we can
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Digital modelling of legendary fossil's soft tissue suggests Australopithecus afarensis had powerful leg and pelvic muscles suited to tree dwelling, but knee muscles that allowed fully erect walking.
Published Remains at Crenshaw site are local, ancestors of Caddo
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Hundreds of human skulls and mandibles recovered from the Crenshaw site in southwest Arkansas are the remains of ancestors of the Caddo Nation and not foreign enemies, according to a new study.
Published Scientists investigate the evolution of animal developmental mechanisms, show how some of Earth's earliest animals evolved
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Lacking bones, brains, and even a complete gut, the body plans of simple animals like sea anemones appear to have little in common with humans and their vertebrate kin. Nevertheless, new research shows that appearances can be deceiving, and that a common genetic toolkit can be deployed in different ways to drive embryological development to produce very different adult body plans. It is well established that sea anemones, corals, and their jellyfish relatives shared a common ancestor with humans that plied the Earth's ancient oceans over 600 million years ago. A new study from the Gibson Lab, published in Current Biology on June 13, 2023, illuminates the genetic basis for body plan development in the starlet sea anemone, Nematostella vectensis. This new knowledge paints a vivid picture of how some of the earliest animals on earth progressed from egg to embryo to adult.