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The Hoodwinker Sunfish (Mola tecta) in Reserva Marina Isla Chanaral, Chile, 2015. Image credit: Cesar Villarroel, https://vimeo.com/129499857.

Scientists Identify New Species of Ocean Sunfish: Hoodwinker Sunfish (Mola tecta)

Jul 25, 2017 by News Staff

A group of marine biologists led by Murdoch University researcher Marianne Nyegaard has identified and described an elusive new species of ocean sunfish. The...

The Dixie Valley toad (Bufo williamsi). Image credit: Mike Wolterbeek, University of Nevada, Reno.

Three New Toad Species Discovered in Nevada

Jul 25, 2017 by News Staff

A team of researchers led by University of Nevada Professor C. Richard (Dick) Tracy has discovered three new toad species in the Great Basin region of...

This digitally-colorized scanning electron microscopic (SEM) image depicts a number of mustard-colored, spheroid-shaped Staphylococcus aureus bacteria that were in the process of escaping their destruction by blue-colored human white blood cells. Magnification - 20,000x. Image credit: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Study: MRSA Emerged Long Before Introduction of Antibiotic Methicillin into Clinical Practice

Jul 21, 2017 by News Staff

According to a new study published in the journal Genome Biology, methicillin use was not the original driving factor in the evolution of methicillin-resistant...

Gaudry et al demonstrate that members of various lineages (for example, cetaceans, horses, woolly mammoths, Steller’s sea cows) evolved extreme cold hardiness in the absence of UCP1-mediated thermogenesis. Image credit: Mauricio Anton.

Single Gene Linked to Evolutionary Rise of Multiple Mammalian Lineages

Jul 17, 2017 by News Staff

Ancient, independent inactivations of the ucp1 gene, which encodes the uncoupling protein 1, or UCP1 (essential for thermogenesis in brown fat), were a...

This scanning electron microscope image shows a tardigrade. Image credit: Diane Nelson, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Earth’s Most Indestructible Creature Identified: Tardigrade

Jul 14, 2017 by News Staff

Water-dwelling, eight-legged, segmented micro-animals called tardigrades will survive the risk of extinction from all astrophysical catastrophes, and be...

A family of mountain gorillas in Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda. Image credit: Tierra Smiley Evans, University of California, Davis.

Epstein Barr-Like Virus Detected in Wild Mountain Gorillas

Jul 13, 2017 by News Staff

Researchers have detected a herpes virus in wild mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei) that is very similar to Epstein-Barr virus in humans. A...

Sea Spiders Move Oxygen with Pumping Guts, Marine Biologists Say

Jul 11, 2017 by News Staff

Marine arthropods called sea spiders use gut peristalsis to move hemolymph and oxygen throughout most of their bodies, according to a team of researchers...

A young male of the dry-forest sabrewing (Campylopterus calcirupicola) captured in the Fazenda Corredor, municipality of Bocaiúva, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Image credit: Leonardo Esteves Lopes.

Dry-Forest Sabrewing: New Hummingbird Species Discovered

Jul 3, 2017 by Natali Anderson

A new hummingbird species, called the dry-forest sabrewing, has been discovered in the tropical forests of eastern Brazil. A young male of the dry-forest...

Male palm cockatoo (Probosciger aterrimus) drumming on a hollow tree with a manufactured ‘drumstick.’ Image credit: Christina Zdenek.

Male Palm Cockatoos Play Drums to Attract Mates

Jun 30, 2017 by Enrico de Lazaro

Palm cockatoos (Probosciger aterrimus) not only play the drums, they craft the sticks too, according to new research from scientists in Australia. Male...

The starlet sea anemone (Nematostella vectensis). Image credit: Sinigaglia et al / University of Vienna.

Do Muscle-Less and Heartless Sea Anemones Hold Key to Heart Regeneration?

Jun 30, 2017 by News Staff

A team of researchers at the University of Florida has found genes known to form heart cells in humans and other animals in the gut of the starlet sea...

Male (right) and female paratypes of the blue-winged amazon (Amazona gomezgarzai). Image credit: T. Silva et al, doi: 10.7717/peerj.3475.

New Species of Amazon Parrot Discovered in Mexico

Jun 28, 2017 by Natali Anderson

A new species of parrot has been discovered in the tropical forests of the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico. Male (right) and female paratypes of the blue-winged...

The São Tomé grosbeak (Crithagra concolor). Image credit: Alexandre Vaz / Melo et al, doi: 10.1111/ibi.12466.

Meet Sao Tome Grosbeak, World’s Largest Canary

Jun 22, 2017 by Natali Anderson

A critically endangered bird species called the São Tomé grosbeak is the world’s largest canary, 50% heavier than the next largest species, according...

The Rugege highlands forest chameleon (Kinyongia rugegensis). Image credit: Eli Greenbaum.

Three New Chameleon Species Discovered in Central Africa

Jun 20, 2017 by News Staff

A team of herpetologists, led by Dr. Eli Greenbaum, associate professor of biological sciences at the University of Texas at El Paso, has discovered three...

The Suriname lowland forest cottontail (Sylvilagus parentum). Image credit: UOL / IUCN.

New Species of Cottontail Rabbit Identified: Sylvilagus parentum

Jun 14, 2017 by Enrico de Lazaro

A new species of cottontail rabbit (genus Sylvilagus) has been described from the lowlands of western Suriname by Portland State University Professor Luis...

A 2016 representation of the tree of life. Image credit: Laura A. Hug et al, doi: 10.1038/nmicrobiol.2016.48.

SYMPHY: Researchers Propose New ‘Tree of Life’ Framework that Incorporates Symbiomes

Jun 13, 2017 by News Staff

In 1859, Charles Darwin included a novel tree of life in his book ‘On the Origin of Species.’ Now, a Rutgers University-led research team wants to...

The Humboldt’s flying squirrel (Glaucomys oregonensis), the third-known species of flying squirrel in North America and the 45th known species of flying squirrel in the world. Image credit: Nick Kerhoulas.

Cryptic New Species of Flying Squirrel Identified in North America

Jun 7, 2017 by News Staff

Scientists reporting in the Journal of Mammalogy on May 30 have identified a new species of flying squirrel living in the Pacific Coast region of North...

Chimpanzees share the human capacity to build on the knowledge of others. Image credit: Marcel Langthim.

Chimpanzees Show ‘Cumulative Culture’

Jun 1, 2017 by News Staff

Chimpanzees share our human ability to amass knowledge, a new study led by a University of St Andrews researcher has found. Chimpanzees share the human...

The Yaku glassfrog (Hyalinobatrachium yaku) in life. Top row: adult male, holotype, in dorsal and ventral view. Bottom row: adult male, paratype. Image credit: Guayasamin et al, doi: 10.3897/zookeys.673.12108.

New Glassfrog Species Discovered in Ecuador

May 29, 2017 by Natali Anderson

Herpetologists are claiming they have discovered a new species of frog living in the Amazonian lowlands of Ecuador. The Yaku glassfrog (Hyalinobatrachium...

According to Williams et al, the earliest metabolisms of the Archaea were based on the anaerobic reduction of carbon dioxide, and likely evolved during the earliest period of Earth’s evolutionary history. This is an artist’s impression of an Archean landscape. Image credit: Tim Bertelink / CC BY-SA 4.0.

Scientists Improve Evolutionary Tree of Life for Archaea

May 28, 2017 by Enrico de Lazaro

An international group of researchers from UK, France, Hungary and Sweden has provided new insights into the origins of the Archaea, the group of simple...