Evolutionary Biology

Among the weirdest and most fascinating of rodents are the scalytails/scaly-tails, scaly-tailed squirrels or anomalures, properly termed Anomaluridae.

Let’s say you’re a small cell engaged in heavy manufacturing. Like most animal cells, you are coated only in a thin membrane made a double layer of fluid fat-like molecules.

Visual illusions are fun: we know with our rational mind that, for example, these lines are parallel to each other, yet they don't appear that way.

Some of you will know that I'm putting together a giant textbook on the vertebrate fossil record… and, oh god, it isn't easy. If you want sneak-peeks on how things are going, please consider supporting me at my patreon page.

The newly identified gene is found in modern-day humans, Neandertals and Denisovans, but not in chimps

The optimal length to keep eyes wet is a third of the width of the eye 

Flow sensors on the bodies of many fishes act like a hydrodynamic antenna, picking up signals about the flow of water around them. Gretchen Cuda Kroen reports 

 

I think we can all agree that dogs are great at everything. Except being bad friends, they're terrible at that. They're especially great at having jobs, and increasingly, researchers are realising their potential as wildlife scouts to help them track down the struggling species that (understandably) are doing their best to stay hidden.

Findings from a large, randomized trial suggest early exposure may decrease risk by as much as 86 percent

In addition to fuel, nectar from various plant species contains chemical compounds that reduce the numbers of a common gut parasite in bumblebees. Christopher Intagliata reports

I'm a big fan of palaeognaths - the terrestrial bird group that includes the mostly big, flightless ratites and the chicken-sized, flight-capable tinamous.

Scientists believe that idealizing one's partner can work as a self-fulfilling prophecy, where illusion eventually becomes reality. That is to say, people can help to create the partners they wish they had, by exaggerating their virtues and minimizing their faults in their own minds.