Tag Archive for 'Yucatán Peninsula'

Xibalbanus tulumensis. Image credit: Pinheiro-Junior et al., doi: 10.1186/s12915-024-01955-5.

Toxins Found in Venom of Crustacean from Mayan Underwater Caves Have Pharmacological Potential

Oct 4, 2024 by Sergio Prostak

Xibalbanus tulumensis, a venomous remipede found in anchialine caves on the Yucatán Peninsula, is the only crustacean for which a venom system has been...

This painting depicts an asteroid slamming into tropical, shallow seas of the sulfur-rich Yucatan Peninsula in what is today southeast Mexico. The aftermath of this immense asteroid collision, which occurred approximately 65 million years ago, is believed to have caused the extinction of the dinosaurs and many other species on Earth. Shown in this painting are pterodactyls, flying reptiles with wingspans of up to 50 feet, gliding above low tropical clouds. Image credit: Donald E. Davis / NASA.

Study: Asteroid Impact-Generated Dust Played Key Role in Dinosaur-Killing Mass Extinction

Oct 31, 2023 by News Staff

About 66 million years ago, a massive asteroid crashed into Earth near the site of the small town of Chicxulub in what is now Mexico. The impact eradicated...

A cinnabar-painted vessel from the Maya site of Kaminaljuyu in southern Guatemala. Image credit: Kidder et al. / Cook et al., doi: 10.3389/fenvs.2022.986119.

Settlements of Ancient Maya were Contaminated with Mercury, Scientists Say

Sep 23, 2022 by News Staff

The ancient Maya in Mesoamerica used mercury — predominantly cinnabar, but rarely elemental mercury — for decorative and ceremonial purposes,...

Drought may have led to an increase in civil conflict followed by political collapse in Mayapan, the capital of the Maya in the Yucatán Peninsula in the 13th and 14th centuries CE. Image credit: Bradley Russell.

Study: Prolonged Drought Played Key Role in Collapse of Mayan Capital City

Jul 20, 2022 by Enrico de Lazaro

Mayapan emerged as a regional Maya capital on the Yucatán Peninsula, following the demise of Chichen Itza between 1000 and 1100 CE. Drought may have...

Dr. Chris Balzotti climbs an ancient staircase discovered in a sinkhole near Coba, Mexico. Image credit: Richard Terry.

Ancient Maya Tended Sacred Groves of Cacao Trees in Humid Microclimates of Karst Sinkholes

Feb 1, 2022 by News Staff

An international team of archaeologists from the United States and Mexico has found several biomarkers of cacao in soil from karst sinkholes that dot the...

Paleo-Indians hunting a glyptodont by Heinrich Harder, c. 1920.

Two Different Paleo-Indian Populations Coexisted in Late Pleistocene-Early Holocene Mexico

Feb 7, 2020 by News Staff

An international team of archaeologists and paleoanthropologists has uncovered the 9,900-year-old remains of a Paleo-Indian woman in the Chan Hol underwater...

IODP-ICDP Expedition 364 drilled into the subsurface Chicxulub peak ring at borehole M0077A (red dot), which was about 30 km northwest of Progreso and the north shore of the Yucatán Peninsula. The blue circle represents the approximate diameter of the 180-200-km subsurface impact structure. The gravity signature of the structure and locations of other drilling sites are shown in the inset. The only two sites with continuous core are the ICDP Yaxcopoil-1 (Yax-1) and IODP-ICDP M0077A boreholes. Other boreholes are Yucatán-1 (Y1), Yucatán-2 (Y2), Yucatán-6 (Y6), Chicxulub-1 (C1), Sacapuc-1 (S1), and Ticul-1 (T1). Image credit: Kring et al, doi: 10.1130/GSATG352A.1.

Geologists Return from Expedition to Chicxulub Impact Crater

Oct 25, 2017 by Enrico de Lazaro

The Chicxulub crater is the only well-preserved peak-ring crater on Earth and linked to the Cretaceous-Tertiary mass extinction, an event 65 million years...

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...