Evolution

A fossil from Madagascar shows giant dinosaurs and pterosaurs originated from teensy ancestors

Scientists have found snippets of Native South American DNA in the genomes of present-day Polynesians, and they trace the contact to the year 1150. Christopher Intagliata reports.

Velvety free-tailed bats produce sounds that help them locate insect prey but simultaneously identify them to their companions.

Forests gave way to fields, pushing hunter-gatherers to the margins—geographically and socially

In Kenya’s Lake Turkana region, fossils of long-ago primates endure amid a transforming landscape

Behavioral scientist Stephen Martin and psychologist Joseph Marks talk about their book Messengers: Who We Listen To, Who We Don’t, and Why.

Here are some brief reports about science and technology from around the planet, including one about a 70-million-year-old mollusk fossil that reveals years back then had a few more days than we have now.

A new experiment suggests DNA and RNA may have formed together before the origin of life

A study of our closest evolutionary relatives finds that the chimp behavior known as lip smacking occurs in the same timing range as human mouths during speech.

Scientists are studying the delicate mucus houses built by creatures called larvaceans to better understand how they live. Christopher Intagliata reports. 

Ancient tracks reveal a previously unknown creature from the Age of Dinosaurs—answering one question but raising more  

Prey animals flash biochemically produced light to confuse elephant seals hunting in the dark. But at least one seal turned the tables.