Evolution

A sensitive genetic fingerprinting technique could help scholars learn more from thousands of fragile parchment fragments

A new analysis ruffles the story of poultry domestication 

A remarkable fossil reveals that the digits in our hands evolved before vertebrates emerged from the water to colonize land

Controversial new archaeological research casts doubt on a classic theory of this famous island's societal collapse

Exposed to mildly warmer waters, some corals turn neon instead of bleaching white. The dramatic colors may help coax symbiotic algae back. Christopher Intagliata reports. 

Mosquitoes that like to bite at night are being thwarted by bed nets, leading to the rise of populations that prefer to bite when the nets are not up yet.

The behavior could be an evolutionary adaptation that lets bees forage more easily

Originally published in August 1906

Food sharing is mainly found in adult animals as a part of social bonding. But in a rarely observed behavior in birds, older barn owl chicks will share food with younger ones.

Nature does not have to play fair with our puny human brains

Originally published in July 1948

To entice female ring-tailed lemurs, males rub wrist secretions, which include compounds we use in perfumes, onto their tail and then wave it near the gals.