Category: Paleontology
Events:
Articles:
July 20, 2015
The Sixth Mass Extinction. Poor Documentation Blamed for Its “Sudden” Appearance
April 24, 2014
Ancient Whale Linked To The Origins of Echolocation
A drainage ditch in South Carolina recently provided the paleontology community with a remarkable find - an ancient whale that used echolocation to orient itself.
April 17, 2014
Tiny Tyrannosaur Becomes Big News
Long before the Napoleon Complex became a common way to refer to those of us who are small but strong, the <em>Nanuqsaurus hoglundi </em>sauntered Alaska’s North Slope, unaware history would identify her as the smallest of the great tyrannosaurids.
April 11, 2014
Paleoartist John Gurche on Recreating Prehistoric Life: Part II
Paleoartist John Gurche has worked on the movie Jurassic Park, designed stamps for the US Postal Service, and recently crafted the sculptures for the Smithsonian Museum’s Hall of Human Origins. In his new book <em>Shaping Humanity</em><em></em>, Gurche delves into the data, research, creativity, and emotion employed in constructing the Smithsonian exhibit.Paleoartist John Gurche has worked on the movie Jurassic Park, designed stamps for the US Postal Service, and recently crafted the sculptures for the Smithsonian Museum’s Hall of Human Origins. In his new book Shaping Humanity, Gurche delves into the data, research, creativity, and emotion employed in constructing the Smithsonian exhibit.
April 9, 2014
New Findings on Size of Paraves
20 million years before<em> Archaeopteryx</em>, dozens of dinosaurs were found to be light and winged, though not flapping their wings.
March 6, 2014
Scientists Reveal Secrets of Dimetrodon Dentition
The ancient reptile <em>Dimetrodon</em> exhibited a variety of different tooth shapes, probably due to evolutionary pressure from competitors who fed on similar prey.
February 24, 2014
Glancing Backward Near Lance Creek: An Experiential Essay
A fossil search out West brings amateur paleontologist Randall Wehler and his brother to a quarry in Wyoming that held former inhabitants of the land and water during the late Cretaceous period of history when dinosaurs still reigned supreme.A fossil search out West brings amateur paleontologist Randall Wehler and his brother to a quarry in Wyoming that held former inhabitants of the land and water during the late Cretaceous period of history when dinosaurs still reigned supreme.
February 13, 2014
Protorosaur From China Sported Long Snout and Neck
An elongated snout was not something that got in the way for <em>Fuyuansaurus acutirostris</em>, a protorosaur recently discovered in Fuyuan County of Yunnan Province, China.
January 30, 2014
A History of Horses
A newly-discovered ancient horse species lived about 4.4 million years ago.
January 29, 2014
Solution to Anthropocene Controversy in Sight
Erle Ellis from the University of Maryland proposes a global approach to investigating the true origins of the Anthropocene.
January 16, 2014
A Wish for Wings that Work
Like the modern ostrich or penguin, Habib proposes <em>Archaeopteryx</em> may have had ancestors that could fly but then adapted to a lifestyle that did not require it any longer.
December 27, 2013
Man’s Best Friend: Decoded
Previous analysis of fragments of dog and dog relative DNA pointed to the Middle East as the geographic origin of the first dogs. A recent study released in <em>Nature Communications</em> is now pointing instead to an origination from East Asia, specifically, southern China.
December 17, 2013
New Arthropod Had First Complete Nervous System
<em>Alalcomenaeus</em> provides an important evolutionary step between scorpions and spiders and other arthropods like millipedes and crustaceans.
November 7, 2013
Bird Brains
Besides physiological changes in the muscular and skeletal systems to support the physical aspects of flight, a bigger more powerful brain is also thought to be a key characteristic necessary to fly.
November 5, 2013
Huge Ancient Elephant Was Hunted By Early Humans
What happens when 15,000 pounds of elephant encounters early humans? Dinner, of course.
October 22, 2013
A Fecal Matter
Excrement from four different species of moa – flightless birds from New Zealand – is giving paleontologists insight into centuries-old ecosystems.
October 22, 2013
In Spain, First Fossilized Beetle Found in Amber
The fossil found in the Peñacerrada I outcrop in Spain was the first Spanish beetle ever described in amber.
October 8, 2013
Fossil Flower Reveals Ancient History of Tulip Tree
A 100-million-year-old fossil flower indicates tulip trees diverged from their close relatives magnolias long ago - the tulip tree was a sight probably enjoyed by the dinosaurs.
October 1, 2013
West Antarctica Gets a Raise
From studying the nearby ocean sediments, scientists concluded that West Antarctica could have been hundreds of meters higher in elevation than it is today.
September 24, 2013
Freshwater Species Were Able to Outlive Marine Species After Dinosaur Mass Extinction
Robertson et. al proposes methods by which freshwater organisms were able to survive at higher rates than their marine counterparts.
August 27, 2013
Demystifying Conodont Mouthparts
A new study debunks some of the long-pondered mysteries surrounding the ancient chompers of conodonts.
August 15, 2013
Reconstructing the Original Building Blocks of Life
Scientists in Spain have rebuilt four-billion-year-old thioredoxins that could withstand harsh environments characteristic of early Earth.
August 14, 2013
Prehistoric Large Lizard Offers Insight About How Climate Affects Animal Size
Dental fossils of the newly discovered large lizard <em>Barbaturex morrisoni</em> were found in the Pondaung Formation in central Myanmar.
August 8, 2013
New ceratopsid Nasutoceratops: “Large-Nosed Horned Face”
The new ceratopsid species, a close relative of the well-known <em>Triceratops</em>, has been dubbed <em>Nasutoceratops titusi</em>, and would have grown approximately fifteen feet long and weighed around 2. 5 tons.
July 30, 2013
Wings of Gossamer and Stone
Four of the six families of scorpionflies that once lived on Earth died out before the Oligocene Epoch 33 million years ago, leaving us with the two families that exist today. Dr. Archibald has discovered the first specimens of one of those missing families, and dubbed it Eorpidae.
July 23, 2013
The Scissorhands of the Cambrian
Instead of pincers, this prehistoric arthropod had claws that each featured three long, sharp, boney protrusions, which bring to mind nothing so much as the bladed appendages of Tim Burton’s classic character Edward Scissorhands.
July 23, 2013
Maintaining Microplankton Morphology
Microscopic marine life forms that subsisted on Earth 3 billion years ago have been unearthed in Australia.
July 9, 2013
How Did Ancient Ecosystems React to Climate Change?
The Last Glacial Maximum impacted ecosystems and drove many species to extinction.
July 9, 2013
The Ears They Leave Behind
A new fossil belonging to an ancient fish is so complete that it is one of the few that still contained its tiny otoliths, or ear bones.
July 3, 2013
Bones I Have Known: Getting Students Excited About Paleontology
Why do non-geology majors become so engaged in learning about their earth, and in particular about fossils, paleontology, and the evolution of life?Why do non-geology majors become so engaged in learning about their Earth, and in particular about fossils, paleontology, and the evolution of life?
June 17, 2013
Mammoth Blood Preserved in Ancient Remains Brings Hopes of Cloning
A group of Russian scientists have discovered 10,000-year-old mammoth remains from Siberia, finding uniquely preserved tissue and blood.
June 10, 2013
Studies on Crocodile Diversity Discover Two New Species in Venezuela
An international group of paleontologists revealed in <em>Nature Communications</em> that, at one point during the late Miocene, at least seven crocodylic species lived sympatrically.
May 27, 2013
The Hamilton Fauna Revisited: A New Approach for Studying Ecological Stability
The Devonian Hamilton fauna has always been a somewhat of a paleontological puzzle. A new study uses a novel approach to determine if this Devonian ecosystem was stable.The Devonian Hamilton fauna has always been a somewhat of a paleontological puzzle. A new study uses a novel approach to determine if this Devonian ecosystem was stable.
May 26, 2013
New Dinosaur is Oldest Bone-headed from North America
A new dinosaur find is shedding light on the history of bone-headed dinosaurs, while at the same time reminding scientists of the shortcomings of the fossil record.
May 8, 2013
Volcanic Eruptions Timed Close to Mass Extinction
A study recently published in the journal <em>Science</em> puts a time period on the eruptions that is far more concrete than any estimate thus far.
April 24, 2013
Columbus Was Five Hundred Million Years Late
In spite of what our history books might have taught us, it was the euthycarcinoids that first stepped foot on the “New World” – while giant slug-like mollusks slimed ashore and primitive crustaceans fed along the land/water's edge.In spite of what our history books might have taught us, it was the euthycarcinoids that first stepped foot on the “New World” – while giant slug-like mollusks slimed ashore and primitive crustaceans fed along the land/water's edge.
April 10, 2013
Is All Life Due to an Alien Energy Source?
A group of researchers is simulating primordial Earth conditions to discover how life came to use phosphorous as its energy storage source. Most interesting--this phosphorous probably came from outer space.
March 20, 2013
How Did This Extinct Wolf Come to Inhabit Islands?
Darwin still had time to puzzle out a mystery that would continue to plague biologists for hundreds of years: how did such a large mammal get to an island so far out to sea? Even more perplexing: how did it become the only one that did?
March 13, 2013
Ancient Caimans Help Place Panama
A new study describes two new species of Crocodilians that lived in Panama when it was still an island during the Miocene Epoch twenty million years ago, long before it connected North and South America.
March 5, 2013
Intricately Preserved Fossil Is Helping Scientists Paint a Picture of Early Arthropod Evolution
In Southwestern China, a 520 million-year-old arthropod fossil known as a fuxhianhuiid was discovered.
February 26, 2013
Episodes from the History of Paleontology and Geology Chapter Two: Most Popular Dinosaur Ever?
Is the infamous <em>T. rex</em> really the most popular dinosaur in America?Is the infamous <em>T. rex</em> really the most popular dinosaur in America?
February 26, 2013
Tackling the Mystery Behind The Dodo and the Solitaire
Author Parish painstakingly works to unravel the scientific debates surrounding these iconic birds with varying success.Author Parish painstakingly works to unravel the scientific debates surrounding these iconic birds with varying success.
February 21, 2013
Did “Invasions” Occur in the Fossil Record?
A panel of evolutionary biologists during Ithaca Darwin Days reflects on what we can learn about species invasions from the fossil record.Are human-facilitated invasions today the same kinds of events as Earth-facilitated changes in species distributions in the distant past? Are all species invasions “destructive”? Does invasion shut down speciation? Do we really know what the rate of invasion was in the past? In most instances, we simply don’t know.
February 12, 2013
Charles Darwin: The Legacy
If he were still alive today, Charles Darwin would be proud of us. It isn’t just science. Literature, technology, music, politics, religion—you name it—the theory of evolution is pervasive in our society, and who do we have to thank for that? Charles Darwin. If he were still alive today, Charles Darwin would be proud of us. It isn’t just science. Literature, technology, music, politics, religion—you name it—the theory of evolution is pervasive in our society, and who do we have to thank for that? Charles Darwin.
February 11, 2013
Episodes from the History of Paleontology and Geology: Elucidated Using Culturomics
In this four-article series, Dr. Jonathan Hendricks from San Jose State University writes about a new approach to looking at trends in popular literature; applying this fascinating new method to paleontology, geology, and evolution. In this four-article series, Dr. Jonathan Hendricks from San Jose State University writes about a new approach to looking at trends in popular literature; applying this fascinating new method to paleontology, geology, and evolution.
February 4, 2013
Prehistoric Poop Pleasantly Pleases Paleontologists
What excites paleontologists just as much as finding a nice, old dinosaur skeleton? Finding a nice, old dinosaur dung heap, of course.
January 30, 2013
Rhabdopleurids: 500 Million Years and Counting
Evolution doesn’t always end in success for every organism. In fact, for some, it seems to result in exactly what a species most fears: extinction.
January 30, 2013
Bigger Isn’t Necessarily Smarter: An Enormous Dino With a Tiny Brain
The biggest creatures to ever walk the Earth had brains smaller than ours.
January 28, 2013
Snagging a Date 125 Million Years Ago: the Avian Way
Sexual dimorphism, an essential piece of many species’ survival, is the difference in morphological appearance between males and females of the same species. Think Lion King: Simba’s father sported a big bushy orange mane, whereas his mother, also a lion, had no showy neck fur to speak of.
January 7, 2013
An Ancient Brain Gives Clues About Insect Ancestry
Fuxianhuia protensa is an ancient arthropod from the Yunnan Province of China that has scientists rethinking the evolutionary history of insects.
December 21, 2012
Defining Life
Life is more than the lucky product of a stew of elements; biology is more than complex chemistry.
November 27, 2012
A New Ancient Fish Offers Insight into “Living Fossil” Species
The fossils of a diminutive 100-million-year-old fish recently discovered in Texas has close relatives still living today.
October 25, 2012
The Early Bird Gets the Earlier Bird
A new study shows fossilized proof that feathered dinosaurs ate Mesozoic birds.
October 2, 2012
Dawn of the Deed, Part 1: Down and Dirty in the Devonian
In Part I of a series, author John Long describes his passion for placoderms – and his sudden discovery of live birth in these ancient fish.The story of unraveling placoderm reproduction begins with a 380-million-year-old fossil from the Gogo site, Western Australia, that yielded the oldest evidence of live birth in vertebrates.
October 2, 2012
World’s Tiniest Footprints Discovered
A recent trace fossil discovery at Canada's Joggins Fossil Cliffs has captured the interest of paleontologists worldwide.
October 2, 2012
Bringing Back the Woolly Mammoth
In Yakutia Russia, scientists have found what they believe to be frozen living cells from ancient mammoths.
October 1, 2012
When Opportunity Calls, The Message Isn’t Always Clear
In an act that proclaimed the continuing importance of the aging spacecraft—looking tired and dusty but proud after weathering no less than five Martian winters—the rover <em>Opportunity</em> beamed home a set of images that has scientists scratching their heads.Scientists examining a Mars image from the 9-year-old rover <em>Opportunity </em>have multiple working hypotheses of what the spherules might be, but no one is yet sold on an explanation.
September 14, 2012
The Search for the Origin of Life
Recent scientific efforts are bringing us closer to an understanding of the earliest life on Earth, and to the fielding of a theory that explains the dawn of our earliest ancestor.The cases of the earliest discovered evidences for life on Earth, if biological in origin, constrain the timing for the emergence of life to sometime before 3.4 billion years ago.
August 22, 2012
Seals in Parallel
A new study of seal locomotion suggests that true seals and sea lions evolved in parallel from separate aquatic ancestors.
August 19, 2012
Brain vs. Brawn
According to a new study, small animals with brains that are relatively large compared to their body size are better suited for survival.
August 19, 2012
Prehistoric Pigment
On an ancient ocean floor in the United Kingdom, paleontologists have found exceptionally well-preserved, 160-million-year-old ink sacs.
August 10, 2012
Early Domestication Discovered
The earliest domesticated animals in sub-Saharan Africa have been found in a cave in Namibia.
August 9, 2012
Found: Fossil Flatfish
A new discovery by Matt Friedman at Oxford University is providing paleontologists with clues to the flatfish’s seemingly unsolved history.
July 12, 2012
Lost and Found: An Ancient Forest
An ancient forest has been uncovered in a mine in Southern Illinois.
July 5, 2012
Prehistoric Flatulence Warmed the Earth
Dinosaurs contributed approximately 520 million tons of methane gas to prehistoric environments every year.
July 5, 2012
Mysteries of a Miniature Mammoth
An 800,000-year-old tooth that paleontologists originally thought belonged to an elephant is actually from a miniature-sized mammoth.
June 1, 2012
Largest Croc Made a Meal Out of Humans
A recently discovered crocodile is the largest species yet known, and lived alongside ancient humans 3 million years ago.
May 16, 2012
Not Your Average Chicken Egg
A recent fossil discovery in Spain is giving paleontologists exciting new data about the similarities between dinosaur eggs from prehistoric times and modern-day bird eggs.
May 8, 2012
Human Ancestor Was A Tree Climber
The famed australopithecine “Lucy” might have run into more than just her own species when she roamed Eastern Africa 3.2 million years ago.
April 17, 2012
Feathery Dinosaurs Go Large
A new, large tyrannosaur from China suggests puts the concept of "scaly dinosaurs" to the test.
April 11, 2012
Taking a Micro-look at Coral Relationships
Corals grow in shapes specific to their surroundings, but this plasticity often masks evolutionary relationships. One must look closer...Sahale Casebolt, a graduate student at Virginia Tech, is comparing micro-features of fossil and modern corals with their DNA sequences to reveal evolutionary relationships.
April 10, 2012
Dinobots
Drexel University's James Tengorra, a mechanical engineer, suggests using dinosaur robots as an efficient way to study dinosaur fossils.
March 26, 2012
Home Sweet Mollusk
Paleontologists have found three tiny lobster fossils inside the fossil shell of a Jurassic mollusk.
March 19, 2012
An Ancient Animal Masquerades as a Flower
Lorna O’Brien, a paleontologist at the University of Toronto, has been studying an ancient animal that bears an uncanny resemblance to the flower that we associate with springtime.
March 13, 2012
Not Your Average Scrubbing Sponge
Scientists have uncovered what they believe is the earliest ancestor of all animals.
March 13, 2012
Prehistoric Preschool
Paleontologists have discovered the oldest dinosaur nursery on Earth.
February 29, 2012
Judging a Book by Its Cover—Or a Dinosaur by its Skin
Apparently paleontologists are exempt from the age-old adage “don’t judge a book by its cover."
February 15, 2012
Mass Extinction Survivors Took 2M Years to Evolve
The discovery challenges the widely held assumption that a period of explosive evolution quickly follows for survivors of mass extinctions.
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