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ScienceDaily -- Alternative Medicine News - Science
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Thanksgiving special: Dinosaur drumsticks and the story of the turkey trot | ScienceDaily
Wings may be the obvious choice when studying the connection between dinosaurs and birds, but a pair of paleontologists prefer drumsticks. That part of the leg, they say, is where fibular reduction among some dinosaurs tens of millions of years ago helped make it possible for peacocks to strut, penguins to waddle, and turkeys to trot.
New model can help understand coexistence in nature | ScienceDaily
Different species of seabirds can coexist on small, isolated islands despite eating the same kind of fish. A researcher has been involved in developing a mathematical model that can be used to better understand how this ecosystem works.
New fossil reveals the evolution of flying reptiles | ScienceDaily
A newly discovered pterosaur fossil is shedding light on the evolutionary journey of these ancient flying reptiles. This complete specimen, named Skiphosoura bavarica, provides crucial insights into how pterosaurs transitioned from early, smaller forms to the later, gigantic species. By analysing the unique features of Skiphosoura, paleontologists can now trace the step-by-step evolution of pterosaurs, including changes in head size, neck length, wing structure, and tail length. This groundbreaking discovery offers a clearer understanding of how these magnificent creatures soared through the prehistoric skies.
Tree islands restore nature in oil palm plantations | ScienceDaily
Southeast Asia's tropical forests are renowned for their biodiversity, but at the same time face significant threats from the expansion of oil palm plantations. With global demand for palm oil rising, the urgency for effective restoration strategies in these landscapes has become critical. A long-running experiment has investigated how ecological restoration promotes biodiversity recovery in oil palm plantations in Sumatra. Their findings reveal that establishing islands of trees within large oil palm monocultures can promote the recovery of native tree diversity through natural regeneration.
Tiny worm makes for big evolutionary discovery | ScienceDaily
The history of a major animal group, composed of millions of species of insects, arachnids, and nemotodes, has been elusive -- until now. A team has now identified the oldest known ecdysozoan in the fossil record and the only one from the Precambrian period.
Biodiversity in the city: Designing urban spaces for humans and animals | ScienceDaily
Animals and plants also live and thrive on public squares. This creates opportunities for greater biodiversity and well-being for the human population. Researchers have studied at 103 locations in Munich how various factors affect flora and fauna. They advocate a close examination of local conditions and a more nature-focused approach to the design of public spaces.
Diverse and diverging demands on forests in Germany | ScienceDaily
Forests provide biodiversity, ecosystem functions, income and much more. How can these diverse and seemingly diverging demands be met? An international research team addressed this question by analyzing the effects of enriching beech forests in Germany with commercially valuable native (to mountainous regions of Europe) and non-native conifer species, in this case, the Norway spruce and Douglas fir, respectively.
Genetic legacy of Jomon hunter-gatherers linked to increased BMI in modern Japanese, study finds | ScienceDaily
New research exploring the roots of modern Japanese populations has linked the genetic signature of Jomon hunter-gatherers to a higher body mass index (BMI) among individuals, underlining that ancient human ancestors can leave a genetic legacy with impacts on health in modern day populations.
New study reveals half a century of change on Britain's iconic limestone pavements | ScienceDaily
Fifty years of change on iconic limestone pavements has revealed mixed fortunes for one of the most distinctive landscapes in the UK. The findings, which reveal large changes since the 1970s, are from the first national assessment in half a century of plants and vegetation in Britain's rare and iconic limestone pavements.
The secrets of fossil teeth revealed by the synchrotron: A long childhood is the prelude to the evolution of a large brain | ScienceDaily
Could social bonds be the key to human big brains? A study of the fossil teeth of early Homo from Georgia dating back 1.77 million years reveals a prolonged childhood despite a small brain and an adulthood comparable to that of the great apes. This discovery suggests that an extended childhood, combined with cultural transmission in three-generation social groups, may have triggered the evolution of a large brain like that of modern humans, rather than the reverse.
More evidence that Europe's ancient landscapes were open woodlands: Oak, hazel and yew were abundant | ScienceDaily
A new study finds that the disturbance-demanding plant species oak, hazel and yew were abundant in Europe's forests before modern humans arrived, strengthening the argument that ancient vegetation was not the shady closed-canopy forests often imagined.
New insights into the Denisovans: New hominin group that interbred with modern day humans | ScienceDaily
Scientists believe individuals of the most recently discovered 'hominin' group (the Denisovans) that interbred with modern day humans passed on some of their genes via multiple, distinct interbreeding events that helped shape early human history. Scientists outline evidence suggesting that several Denisovan populations, who likely had an extensive geographical range from Siberia to Southeast Asia and from Oceania to South America, were adapted to distinct environments. They further outline a number of genes of Denisovan origin that gave modern day humans advantages in their different environments.
New study maps dramatic 100-million-year explosion in color signals used by animals | ScienceDaily
A recent study finds that color vision evolved in animals more than 100 million years before the emergence of colorful fruits and flowers. And there has been a dramatic explosion of color signals in the last 100 million years.
The egg or the chicken? An ancient unicellular says egg | ScienceDaily
Chromosphaera perkinsii is a single-celled species discovered in 2017 in marine sediments around Hawaii. The first signs of its presence on Earth have been dated at over a billion years, well before the appearance of the first animals. A team has observed that this species forms multicellular structures that bear striking similarities to animal embryos. These observations suggest that the genetic programs responsible for embryonic development were already present before the emergence of animal life, or that C. perkinsii evolved independently to develop similar processes. Nature would therefore have possessed the genetic tools to 'create eggs' long before it 'invented chickens'.
Domino effect in the Amazon region | ScienceDaily
The Amazon region is a global hotspot of biodiversity and plays a key role in the climate system because of its ability to store large amounts of carbon and its influence on the global water cycle. The rain forest is threatened, however, by climate change as well as by intensified deforestation activities. An international team has now investigated how a change in Atlantic circulation would impact the Amazon Rain Forest.
Global ocean oscillations and climate change affect weather patterns in the Serengeti | ScienceDaily
The interactions between global climate change and ocean oscillations -- fluctuating cycles in wind and ocean temperatures -- are impacting weather patterns in the Greater Mara-Serengeti ecosystem in Kenya and Tanzania, according to a new study.
New genetic web tool to help restore climate-resilient marine ecosystems | ScienceDaily
In the face of increased human pressures and climate change, a team of scientists have launched a new online tool to assist marine managers and restoration experts to bolster the resilience of marine habitat-forming species. The 'Reef Adapt' initiative aims to expand the tools available to promote diverse, adaptable and resilient ecosystems.
Alcohol consumption among non-human animals may not be as rare as previously thought, say ecologists | ScienceDaily
Anecdotes abound of wildlife behaving 'drunk' after eating fermented fruits, but despite this, nonhuman consumption of ethanol has been assumed to be rare and accidental. Ecologists now challenge this assumption. They argue that since ethanol is naturally present in nearly every ecosystem, it is likely consumed on a regular basis by most fruit- and nectar-eating animals.
Ancient DNA brings to life history of the iconic aurochs, whose tale is intertwined with climate change and human culture | ScienceDaily
Geneticists have deciphered the prehistory of aurochs -- the animals that were the focus of some of the most iconic early human art -- by analyzing 38 genomes harvested from bones dating across 50 millennia and stretching from Siberia to Britain. The aurochs roamed in Europe, Asia and Africa for hundreds of thousands of years. Adorned as paintings on many a cave wall, their domestication to create cattle gave us a harnessed source of muscle, meat and milk. Such was the influence of this domestication that today their descendants make up a third of the world's mammalian biomass.
How mammals got their stride | ScienceDaily
Researchers reveal new insights into the complex evolutionary history behind the distinctive upright posture of modern placental and marsupial mammals, showing the transition was surprisingly complex and nonlinear, and occurred much later than previously believed.
Climate scientist identifying water requirements for climate mitigation through ecosystem restoration | ScienceDaily
Worldwide, deforestation and farming practices are responsible for the degradation of vital ecosystems. While there is a significant amount of interest in climate mitigation by restoring those degraded lands with forests and other ecosystems, it is unclear how feasible that would be and the resulting benefits. Previous studies have not considered the effects of ecosystem restoration on available water resources and in environments with water constraints. Water scarcity is already a key issue worldwide that is likely to only get worse in the future.
Human actions likely cause insect color change | ScienceDaily
New Zealand's native stoneflies have changed colour in response to human-driven environmental changes, new research shows. The study provides arguably the world's most clear-cut case of animal evolution in response to change made by humans.
Marri trees a lifeline for many native bee species in biodiversity hotspot | ScienceDaily
New research has revealed Marri trees are critical to the survival of more than 80 species of native bee in Western Australia's South West region, which is one of the world's most biologically rich but threatened biodiversity hotspots.
Invasive flathead catfish impacting Susquehanna's food chain | ScienceDaily
Flathead catfish -- native to the Mississippi River basin -- were first detected in the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania in 2002, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. In the two decades since then, the invasive species has spread throughout the river basin. The impact of the large predator on the waterway's food webs and ecology was unknown, but now a research team is beginning to understand what Susquehanna flatheads are eating and how their presence is affecting native aquatic species in the river.
Soil's secret language: Researchers decode plant-to-fungi communication | ScienceDaily
Researchers have cracked the code of plant-to-fungi communication in a new study. Using baker's yeast, the researchers discovered that the plant hormone strigolactone (SL) activates fungal genes and proteins associated with phosphate metabolism, a system that is key to growth. This insight into how fungi respond to chemical signals at the molecular level could lead to new strategies for cultivating hardier crops and combating disease-causing fungi.
Turtle genome provides new clues on the evolution of vertebrates | ScienceDaily
Scientists have generated the genome assemblies of two hidden-neck turtles, unpublished until now. The results, which revealed a new three-dimensional structure of the genome within the phylogenetic group of reptiles, birds and mammals, will contribute to the development of more effective turtle conservation strategies, and to the study of the evolution of the genome and chromosomal organisation of vertebrates.
Better ocean connectivity boosts reef fish populations | ScienceDaily
A new study has found that oceanographic connectivity (the movement and exchange of water between different parts of the ocean) is a key influence for fish abundance across the Western Indian Ocean (WIO). Connectivity particularly impacted herbivorous reef fish groups, which are most critical to coral reef resilience, providing evidence that decision-makers should incorporate connectivity into how they prioritize conservation areas.
One in three plants call islands home: Many at risk | ScienceDaily
From Tasmania to Madagascar to New Guinea, islands make up just over five per cent of Earth's land yet are home to 31 per cent of the world's plant species. A new study shows that of all plants classified as threatened worldwide, more than half are unique to islands, facing risks from habitat loss, climate warming and invasive species.
Why do we love carbs? The origins predate agriculture and maybe even our split from Neanderthals | ScienceDaily
A new study reveals how the duplication of the salivary amylase gene may not only have helped shape human adaptation to starchy foods, but may have occurred as far back as more than 800,000 years ago, long before the advent of farming.