Evolution

An evolutionary puzzle in the genome of several different snake species is why their genetic code has DNA that, in most animals, controls the development and growth of limbs. Since snakes have long…

In a new study, Nikola-Michael Prpic et al. have identified the driving force behind the evolution of a leg novelty first found in spiders: knees.   With eight hairy legs and seven joints on…

This spring, the world learned of a newly discovered missing link between microbes and humans called Lokiarchaeota. The actual story is that the microbe Lokiarchaeota, discovered on the deep sea…

Researchers ave shown that well-developed eyes come at a surprising cost to other organ systems.  Researchers have long associated the presence of a well-developed brain with major energy…

Working in a cave complex deep beneath South Africa's Malmani dolomites, an international team of scientists has brought to light an unprecedented trove of hominin fossils -- more than 1,500 well-…

An international team of researchers has sequenced the first complete genome of an Iberian farmer, which is also the first ancient genome from the entire Mediterranean area. This new genome allows to…

Research into 430,000-year-old fossils collected in northern Spain found that the evolution of the human body's size and shape has gone through four main stages, according to a recent paper.  A…

New species evolve whenever a lineage splits off into several branches and so a common metaphor for evolution has been to describe evolution as a 'tree of life', where every branch constitutes a…

Wolves and foxes are closely related and share many of the same characteristics. But look at their eyes – where wolves have rounded pupils like humans, foxes instead have a thin vertical line. But…

Scientists have reconstructed part of the male chromosome in polar bears. They were able to assign 1.9 million base pairs specifically to the polar bear Y chromosome and show that more than 100,000…