Climate Change
Prehistoric Volcanoes Heated Earth in a Global Chain Reaction
New evidence suggests an origin to an exceptionally hot period in Earth’s history
Stories by Riley Black
Evolution
The Surprising Secret of Snakes’ Venomous Bites
Fangs evolved over and over because of this groovy process
Paleontology
Footprint Discovery Hints at Humans in the Americas More Than 20,000 Years Ago
Seeds found in fossilized tracks fuel new speculation about when—and how—people arrived
Evolution
New Process Helps Unscramble Dinosaur Boneyard Chaos
Piecing together a paleontological puzzle
Evolution
Prehistoric Plankton Became Predators to Survive a Mass Extinction
When the sun disappeared, tiny coccoliths turned to hunting
Biology
Story of Mammoth Survival Is in the Soil
Ancient DNA preserved in soil may rewrite what we thought about the Ice Age
EARTH
Earth’s Biodiversity Bursts Do Not Follow Expected Pattern
Life’s great radiations do not always line up with mass extinctions, a new study shows
Evolution
Dire Wolves Were Not Really Wolves, New Genetic Clues Reveal
The extinct giant canids were a remarkable example of convergent evolution
Evolution
Pterosaur Origins Flap into Focus
Fossils of small, delicate animals may reveal the early history of gigantic flying reptiles
Evolution
Why the World’s Biggest Dinosaurs Keep Getting Cut Down to Size
Debate erupts over how best to estimate the sizes of the largest creatures ever to have walked the earth
Evolution
A 429-Million-Year-Old Trilobite Had Eyes like Those of Modern Bees
A rare cracked fossil shows the world through ancient eyes
Evolution
Fossil Footprints Help Uncover the Mysteries of Bipedal Crocodiles
Ancient tracks reveal a previously unknown creature from the Age of Dinosaurs—answering one question but raising more
Evolution
Possible Dinosaur DNA Has Been Found
New discoveries have raised the possibility of exploring dino genetics, but controversy surrounds the results
Evolution
Smallest Known Dinosaur Found in Amber
A bird skull from Myanmar hints at a lost world of tiny fossils that are waiting to be unearthed
Evolution
Some Dinosaurs Regurgitated Pellets Just like Birds
Small, feathery dinosaurs jettisoned indigestible food just like some modern birds do
Evolution
My Own Personal Extinction
At the end of her time at Scientific American, Riley Black reflects on the history of Laelaps
Saber-Toothed Protomammal was a Quick Healer
An injury on an ancient bone hints that a saber-toothed carnivore healed fast for its time
Sharp-Nosed Marine Reptile Is a Triassic Surprise
A fossil found in Alaska may help explain why a mysterious group of seagoing creatures went extinct
Evolution
Squishy Cephalopod Was Almost a Pterosaur’s Lunch
The fossil of an ancient squid relative tells paleontologists something new about the reptile that tried to feed on it
Evolution
Penguin Skin Offers Hints about Dinosaur Fluff
A fossil penguin wing found in Antarctica has broader implications for what dinosaurs looked like
