A new study from <a href="https://www.osu.edu/">Ohio State University</a> reveals what is going on inside of your <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/gut-brain-interactions-have-an-influence-on-diseases/">brain</a> when you get lost in a fictional fantasy. The experts discovered that the more immersed we become in the lives of our favorite characters of fiction, the more our brain activity reflects how much we identify with them.
&#8220;When they think about a favorite fictional character, it appears similar in one part of the brain as when they are thinking about themselves,&#8221; said study lead author Timothy Broom.
The research was focused on self-described fans of the HBO series &#8220;Game of Thrones.&#8221; The individuals were instructed to think about themselves, nine of their friends, and nine characters from the drama series. The participants also reported on which character they felt closest to and liked the most.
According to Broom, Game of Thrones was ideal for this study because it attracted a devoted fan base and the large cast presented a variety of characters that people could become attached to.
One of the key findings involved participants who scored highest on &#8220;trait identification.&#8221; These individuals agreed most strongly with statements like &#8220;I really get involved in the feelings of the characters in a novel.&#8221;
&#8220;People who are high in trait identification not only get absorbed into a story, they also are really absorbed into a particular character,&#8221; said Broom. &#8220;They report matching the thoughts of the character, they are thinking what the character is thinking, they are feeling what the character is feeling. They are inhabiting the role of that character.&#8221;
The researchers used an fMRI machine to measure activity in various parts of the brain through small changes in blood flow. As the participants&#8217; brains were scanned, they were evaluating themselves, their friends, and Game of Thrones characters. 
A part of the brain called the ventral medial prefrontal cortex (vMPFC) is known to show increased activity when people think about themselves and, to a lesser extent, when they think about close friends.
While in the fMRI, the individuals were shown a series of names &#8211; including themselves, friends, or characters &#8211; along with a trait, such as lonely, sad, trustworthy, or smart. The participants simply said &#8220;yes&#8221; or &#8220;no&#8221; to imply whether the trait fit the person.
As expected, the vMPFC was most active when people were evaluating themselves, less active when they evaluated friends, and least active when they evaluated characters from Game of Thrones.
However, among those who were high in trait identification, the vMPFC was more active when they thought about the fictional characters than it was for participants who identified less with the characters. This region of the brain was particularly active when the individuals evaluated the character they identified with the most.
Study co-author Dylan Wanger said the findings help explain how fiction can have such a big impact on some people.
&#8220;For some people, fiction is a chance to take on new identities, to see worlds though others&#8217; eyes and return from those experiences changed,&#8221; said Wagner.
&#8220;What previous studies have found is that when people experience stories as if they were one of the characters, a connection is made with that character, and the character becomes intwined with the self. In our study, we see evidence of that in their brains.&#8221;
The study is published in the journal <a href="https://academic.oup.com/scan">Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience</a>.
&#8211;&#8212;
By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

What happens in your brain while you're lost in fiction

Rivers shape life on Earth. They deliver water, sediment, and nutrients from mountains to oceans, cutting paths that feed ecosystems and human communities alike. 



For over a century, scientists have tried to understand why some rivers form a single, meandering channel, while other rivers split into multiple, crisscrossing streams. New research finally offers an answer.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-causes-a-river-to-split">What causes a river to split?</h2>



In a study by geographers at the <a href="https://www.ucsb.edu/">University of California, Santa Barbara</a>, scientists analyzed 36 years of satellite data from 84 rivers around the world. The goal was to determine what causes a river to split into many channels rather than stick to one.



Study lead author Austin Chadwick conducted the investigation as a postdoctoral researcher at UCSB.



“We found that rivers will develop multiple channels if they erode their banks faster than they deposit sediment on their opposing banks. This causes a channel to widen and divide over time,” said Chadwick. 



The study settles a long-standing debate in Earth science and provides new insight for understanding <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/flood-fatalities-experts-reveal-the-hidden-health-impacts/">flood</a> risks and how to restore waterways to their natural states.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-studying-two-types-of-rivers">Studying two types of rivers</h2>



Rivers are typically sorted into two categories: single-threaded and multi-threaded. While both are common, most of the world’s largest rivers have multiple channels. 



A notable exception is the <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/the-mississippi-river-in-the-united-states/">Mississippi River</a> in the U.S., which has been heavily studied and remains single-threaded.



Historically, single-threaded rivers got more attention from field researchers because they are easier to study. Lab researchers, on the other hand, often focused on multi-threaded rivers since they were easier to recreate in tank experiments.



The idea for this study started in a lab tank at the University of Minnesota’s St. Anthony Falls Laboratory. While observing multi-threaded rivers, Chadwick noticed something strange. The river channels kept widening and splitting, and <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthpedia-articles/erosion/">erosion</a> outpaced deposition.



“I was banging my head on the wall because I kept measuring more erosion than deposition. And that was not what we’re taught in school,” said Chadwick. 



“That led me to read some old books from the Army Corps and other sources about examples where there’s more bank erosion than deposition.”



This curiosity led to a broader question: was the odd river behavior just a fluke in the lab - or did it happen in nature too?



“You generate a hypothesis in a laboratory setting and then you’re able to test it in nature,” said co-author Evan Greenberg, a former doctoral student at UCSB.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-rivers-choose-their-path">How rivers choose their path</h2>



To test their hypothesis, the team turned to satellite imagery, specifically Landsat data available through Google Earth Engine. 



They studied erosion and deposition patterns across dozens of rivers using a technique called particle image velocimetry.



Originally designed to track particles in lab fluids, they adapted it to track <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-is-transforming-arctic-rivers-in-unexpected-ways/">riverbanks</a> in satellite photos. 



The results were clear. Single-threaded rivers show a balance between erosion and deposition. This balance allows them to stay narrow and meander across the landscape.



Multi-threaded systems behave differently. In these rivers, erosion wins out. Banks erode faster than sediment can build up on the opposite side. The result? The channel keeps widening until it eventually splits.



“It is not like multi-threaded rivers are gaining water on average. They are still conveying the same amount of water through time, but they are doing that by constantly shuffling the size of the individual threads,” explained senior author Vamsi Ganti, an associate professor of geography at UCSB.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-insights-into-why-rivers-split">New insights into why rivers split</h2>



The key difference isn’t how much water flows - it’s how that flow reshapes the banks and moves sediment.



Most of the sediment in multi-threaded rivers ends up on the riverbed, not the banks. This eventually forms the islands and bars that separate each thread.



There were a few exceptions. For example, Brazil’s São Francisco didn’t follow the pattern, but the team traced that back to external changes. The river has been shrinking due to upstream <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dams-release-twice-as-much-carbon-as-they-store/">dams</a> and irrigation, pulling it out of its usual behavior.



“The question of what causes a river to be single-threaded or multi-threaded is pretty much as old as the field of geomorphology,” said Ganti.



Now, thanks to this work, there’s a clearer explanation: it comes down to the balance between erosion and deposition. 



Environmental conditions - like slope, flow, sediment type, and bank strength - still matter. But they influence the river by tipping that balance one way or the other.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rivers-cut-off-from-their-floodplains">Rivers cut off from their floodplains</h2>



In the 20th century, many rivers were confined to narrow channels to make space for cities and agriculture. While that reduced flooding risks in some areas, it came with a cost.



Cutting rivers off from their floodplains disrupts ecosystems. It also raises the riverbed, making floods worse when they happen.



“Consider Hurricane Katrina,” Chadwick said. “When the levee broke, there was widespread flooding in part because the floodplain had been cut off from the Mississippi for so long that it had sunk relative to the river, allowing the floodwaters to pond there.”



Today, there’s a push to reconnect waterways with their floodplains. But to do that effectively, planners need to know how much space is required - and how long restoration will take.



This study offers a solution. The team developed a formula that calculates corridor width and recovery time for a channel returning to its natural state. 



It accounts for how quickly a river can abandon an old channel and whether it tends to be single- or multi-threaded.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rethinking-restoration-projects">Rethinking restoration projects</h2>



The researchers found that single-threaded rivers need about ten times more space and time to re-establish themselves than multi-threaded ones, assuming equal stream power. That changes the equation for restoration - and may make some projects more feasible.



Photos from the 1930s show the Los Angeles River once had multiple channels before it was confined to concrete. 



Many rivers we now think of as single-threaded may have originally been multi-threaded. That could mean restoration won’t require as much effort - or money - as previously believed.



“A project currently considered prohibitively large or expensive may actually be affordable if a river was misclassified,” Chadwick explained.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-following-the-flow-into-the-future">Following the flow into the future</h2>



Ganti’s team is now studying how river behaviors change over time - whether these speed up, slow down, or change how many threads they have. These trends could reflect the effects of climate change and human development.



Chadwick, now continuing his research at Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, is still exploring why erosion dominates and what drives the variety among multi-threaded systems.



Meanwhile, Greenberg is using satellite data at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to study how sediment moves through rivers. He’s also examining how dams influence river shapes over decades.



Rivers do more than flow. They feed farms, shape cities, and carry goods across continents. But they also flood, shift, and surprise us. 



This new research brings us closer to understanding how these forces shape our world - and how we can better live alongside them.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ads6567" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Science</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Why rivers split: A century-old mystery has finally been solved

Rivers shape life on Earth. They deliver water, sediment, and...

Diseño sin título - 1

Scientists analyzing sediment scraped from a rugged ridge nearly three miles under the Central Pacific Ocean expected calm, predictable chemistry. Instead they found a dense band of the radioactive isotope beryllium‑10 (10Be) packed into the layer that formed about 10 million years ago.



This enough extra atoms to raise the normal background by roughly seventy‑three percent. 



<a href="https://physics.anu.edu.au/contact/people/profile.php?ID=2472" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dr. Dominik Koll</a> of the Australian National University (<a href="https://www.anu.edu.au/">ANU</a>) and Helmholtz‑Zentrum Dresden‑Rossendorf (<a href="https://www.helmholtz.de/ueber-uns/helmholtz-zentren/zentren-a-z/zentrum/helmholtz-zentrum-dresden-rossendorf-hzdr/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HZDR</a>) led the international crew that pulled the samples and ran the accelerator mass‑spectrometry tests for the study.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-10-be-signals-from-the-ocean-floor">10Be signals from the ocean floor</h2>



The <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33321302/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">long‑lived radionuclide</a> 10Be forms high in the atmosphere when energetic cosmic rays shatter nitrogen and oxygen nuclei. 



Those new atoms float with aerosols for about one to two years before rain or snow carries them to the surface. Most wash into the ocean, where they mix with stable Beryllium-9 (9Be) that rivers deliver from eroding rocks. 



Levels of 10Be in modern sea water differ by more than a factor of two between polar and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tropical-forests-are-struggling-to-keep-pace-with-climate-change/">tropical</a> basins because production, scavenging, and circulation of the element vary by latitude.



When the isotope finally sticks to an iron‑manganese ridge on the seafloor it starts an atomic clock that ticks for 1.39 million years, the half‑life of 10Be.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-10-be-fascinates-geologists">Why 10Be fascinates geologists</h2>



Because the element decays so slowly, researchers use it to date marine sediments, ice cores, and even meteorites across spans up to 15 million years.



A typical cosmogenic nuclide profile in a growing crust drops smoothly with depth as older layers lose 10Be; any bump therefore signals either faster supply or slower loss.



The crusts grow at speeds of mere millimeters per million years, so a handheld drill producing two‑millimeter slices can resolve history in 400,000‑year steps.



Such precision lets scientists spot subtle environmental swings that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/prehistoric-sea-monster-shark-fossils-found-in-worlds-largest-cave-325-million-years/">fossils</a> or chemical ratios may miss.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-buried-in-ferromanganese-crusts">Buried in ferromanganese crusts</h2>



“The floor of the major oceans on Earth exhibits one of the most pristine geological archives recording millions of years of environmental conditions and changes - <a href="https://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/edu/lessonplans/ferrocrust.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ferromanganese crusts</a>,” said Dr. Koll.



Core after core from the Pacific showed the same pronounced swell centered on 10.1 million years. Accumulation persisted for at least 1.4 million years and boosted the integrated 10Be ocean inventory by 25 percent.



The discovery held across three independent ferromanganese crust samples that were hauled from sites thousands of miles apart, ruling out drilling artifacts or local pollution.



No comparable spike appears in younger sediments, showing that the event was unique within the last 15 million years of record.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-late-miocene-climate-shifts">Late Miocene climate shifts</h2>



The <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-023-01356-3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Late Miocene</a> saw the modern <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-023-01356-3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC)</a> strengthen as gateways south of Australia and South America widened, reorganizing global circulation. 



If swift new currents swept 10Be‑rich southern water into the central Pacific they could have flooded the region with extra isotope for centuries.



A reconfigured ACC would also explain why stable 9Be in the same layers declined, a hint that ocean mixing rather than land erosion controlled the signal.



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/arctic-fjords-show-signs-of-struggle-in-a-warming-world/">Meltwater</a> pulses from shrinking <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/antarctic-ice-sheet-patterns-point-to-rapid-melting-risks/">Antarctic ice</a> sheets are another possibility, yet sea‑level reconstructions place the largest rises earlier than the 10Be spike and model runs suggest they would dilute rather than concentrate the isotope.



Geochemical markers of carbonate dissolution track the beryllium layer, strengthening the argument that deep‑<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/water-might-have-formed-long-before-galaxies/">water</a> flow, not surface runoff, brought the anomaly. 



This pattern aligns with known disruptions in deep-ocean chemistry during the Miocene, including a sharp drop in calcium carbonate that was linked to shifting current regimes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-10-be-settles-in-the-ocean">How 10Be settles in the ocean</h2>



Cosmic factors linger in the debate about how and why 10Be accumulates on the ocean floor.



An unusual lull in <a href="https://geomag.bgs.ac.uk/education/earthmag.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Earth’s magnetic field</a> or an extended solar grand minimum lets more galactic particles penetrate the atmosphere, but known episodes boost production for thousands, not hundreds of thousands, of years.



Another proposal invokes a dense interstellar cloud compressing the heliosphere so that Earth lost its protective bubble and endured a sustained cosmic ray barrage. 



Though speculative, the timing sits within astrophysical uncertainty windows and remains on the table pending stellar‑motion models.



Any celestial trigger must still mesh with the clear oceanographic fingerprint, so researchers increasingly suspect a two‑step story in which circulation changes amplified a modest atmospheric surge.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-happens-next">What happens next</h2>



Teams are now targeting their search for 10Be to low‑sedimentation South Pacific ocean muds that offer finer time resolution than crusts. If the anomaly sharpens to a narrow peak it favors a cosmic origin, whereas a broad plateau supports current‑driven delivery.



They are also testing <a href="https://inis.iaea.org/records/tgyvc-9d306" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">53Mn</a>, another long‑lived isotope, with new laser‑assisted mass spectrometers to cross‑check the clock.



If future cores confirm the layer worldwide, stratigraphers could assign it as a global “golden spike,” simplifying the correlation of marine archives and sharpening models of Miocene climate evolution. 



Oceanographers, in turn, would gain a benchmark for tracing how the ACC matured and began ventilating the deep Pacific, a key step toward the ice‑dominated Earth we inhabit.



Astrophysicists might even glean constraints on past supernova rates or cloud encounters, linking galactic events to earthly sediments in a way that is rarely possible.



Either way, a thin ribbon of beryllium in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/pacific-sea-levels-are-rising-faster-than-anywhere-in-the-world/">Pacific</a> reminds us that the ocean floor is more than a record of water: it is a cosmic diary written in radioactive ink.



The study is published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-55662-4">Nature Comm</a><a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-55662-4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">un</a><a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-55662-4">ications</a>.



-----



Like what you read?<a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/"> Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on<a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/"> EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by<a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/"> Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Scientists report an unexpected accumulation of radioactive material in the ocean

Scientists analyzing sediment scraped from a rugged ridge nearly three...

A new study shows how everyday waste - like ropes and plastic bags - is silently killing baby birds, not just in the oceans, but on land too.



Researchers spent four years tracking white storks in southern Portugal. What they found was brutal: plastic-filled nests, chicks caught in rope, and many young birds that didn’t survive.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bird-nests-built-with-trash">Bird nests built with trash</h2>



The research was led by scientists at the <a href="https://www.uea.ac.uk/">University of East Anglia</a>, along with teams from the University of Montpellier and the University of Lisbon. 



The team focused on <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/white-storks-and-humans-have-a-long-intertwined-history/">white storks</a> - large, land-dwelling birds that often build their nests near people. And those nests? They were filled with trash.



The researchers inspected 568 nests from 32 colonies in Portugal’s Alentejo and Algarve regions. Of those nests, 91 percent contained human-made debris - mostly plastic. 



Soft plastic like shopping bags was found in 65 percent of nests. But the bigger danger was rope. Nearly half the nests had it, and it was the top cause of fatal entanglement.



In one especially detailed year of the study, scientists visited 93 nests weekly. They found that 12 percent of the chicks became tangled in debris - many fatally.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chicks-caught-in-cords">Chicks caught in cords</h2>



Most of the ropes came from agriculture - specifically, baler twine made of polypropylene. 



This tough plastic rope is used to bind hay bales, but it doesn’t break down easily. Once it ends up in the environment, birds collect it for their nests. The consequences are often deadly.



In 63 percent of cases, entanglements were caused by ropes. Some nests contained as many as 22 separate ropes. Baler wrap, another plastic material used in farming, showed up in 13 percent of nests and entangled six nestlings.



White stork chicks in nests with more rope were more likely to get stuck. And once entangled, their chances of survival dropped dramatically.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-plastic-nest-problem">The plastic nest problem</h2>



“This is a serious issue,” said Professor Aldina Franco of the University of East Anglia. “These chicks get entangled in synthetic ropes when they are very young and the ropes slowly strangle their limbs as they grow - mostly legs and feet - leading to necrosis and amputations, they suffer a horrible death.”



It’s not just happening in Portugal. According to Franco, birds across Europe are weaving plastic waste into their nests. 



In Ukraine, soldiers have reported nests containing drone wiring. In the UK, small birds like <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/goldfinches-are-moving-to-new-homes-in-unusual-places/">goldfinches</a> and wrens are building nests with colored plastic threads.



“We show that the impact of plastic in the nests can be underestimated, because the negative effects of the ropes and other human-produced materials tend to happen in the early life of the chicks, at an average age of two weeks, and the deaths can go unnoticed," said Professor Franco. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-storks-signal-wider-threat">Storks signal wider threat</h2>



White storks are what scientists call an “indicator species” - meaning they can signal a wider environmental problem. If this many of them are getting trapped in plastic, other birds likely are too.



“This study suggests that the threat posed by human-derived materials to terrestrial birds may be far more severe than previously recognized,” said lead author Ursula Heinze of the University of East Anglia.



“Our findings offer new insights into the extent of nestling deaths caused by entanglement, and highlights the urgent need to remove and replace hazardous materials such as <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/hotspots-of-microplastic-pollution-found-in-the-north-sea/">polypropylene</a> baler twine from both agricultural use and the environment, given its harmful impacts on nestlings.”



While past research has looked at the presence of plastic in nests, this study went a step further. It tracked chicks from hatching to fledging, allowing scientists to see exactly when the entanglements occurred.



“Our main goal has been to identify the nesting materials that may pose significant risks to terrestrial bird species and pinpoint their origins, in order to develop effective strategies to mitigate these risks to wildlife,” noted Professor Franco.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mistaking-trash-for-twigs">Mistaking trash for twigs</h2>



Why do birds use plastic in the first place? According to Dr. Inês Catry from the University of Lisbon, white storks are known to incorporate discarded human-made materials into their <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tangled-twigs-the-secrets-of-sturdy-bird-nests/">nests</a>, frequently nest near or within human settlements and often forage on organic waste at landfill sites.



“The reasons for using these materials in nest-building are not fully understood but may relate to their availability and the scarcity of natural ones, while some might also be mistaken for food, being inadvertently incorporated in the nests," said Dr. Catry.



“This study highlights that plastic pollution in terrestrial environments needs to be addressed and solutions to replace or safely discard of hazardous materials are urgently needed.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-land-birds-face-plastic-threat">Land birds face plastic threat</h2>



The study’s message is clear: plastic pollution isn’t just a marine problem. It’s affecting life on land in painful, visible ways. And even common farming tools like baler twine are part of the problem.



If these findings are ignored, more birds will suffer. However, if people and industries take responsibility - by <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/surprise-study-some-scientists-call-for-halting-ocean-plastic-cleanup-efforts/">cleaning up</a>, switching materials, and being more aware - there’s a chance to stop these deaths before they happen. 



The full study was published in the journal Ecological Indicators.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Birds are building nests with plastic, and the consequences are deadly

A new study shows how everyday waste - like ropes...

A fast belt of westerly winds that helps shape summer weather across South America, southern Africa, Australia, and Oceania is now sliding toward the South Pole and blowing harder.



New research shows that about half of this shift in the Southern Hemisphere’s eddy‑driven jet (EDJ) comes straight from global warming, while the other half traces to a cluster of interacting climate drivers.



By sorting those influences and testing models against real‑world data, scientists have sharpened near‑term forecasts for the next decade. 



The work was led by Julia Mindlin and colleagues at the <a href="https://www.physes.uni-leipzig.de/en/institute-for-meteorology">Institute for Meteorology at Leipzig University</a>, within the university’s <a href="https://www.physes.uni-leipzig.de/en/institute-for-meteorology/research/arbeitsgruppe-klimakausalitaet">Climate Causality working group</a>, headed by Professor Marlene Kretschmer.



“The aim of our research is to better understand climate risks and reduce the uncertainties of regional predictions and projections when it comes to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/extreme-weather-is-pushing-nature-toward-a-breaking-point/">extreme weather</a> and climate events,” Kretschmer said.



The researchers focused on the summertime EDJ, which steers storms and controls heat and rainfall across the Southern Hemisphere.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tracking-decades-of-wind-shifts">Tracking decades of wind shifts</h2>



Prompted by recent changes seen in Southern Hemisphere wind patterns, the researchers began by examining historical climate observations back to 1950.



They confirmed two clear trends: summer EDJ wind speeds have increased, and the jet’s core latitude has crept steadily poleward.



To untangle why, they turned to a statistical framework known as causal inference, which helps isolate the influence of individual drivers - even when those drivers co‑vary in the climate system.



They then linked the causal results to a “storyline” approach - a way of tracing climate changes as chains of cause and effect. Storylines help explain why different climate models can yield different futures and give researchers a structured way to explore uncertainty.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-forces-behind-the-jet-stream-shift">Forces behind the jet stream shift</h2>



Combining the two approaches produced a clean attribution. Roughly 50 percent of the observed poleward shift in the Southern Hemisphere summer jet is directly attributable to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earths-volcanic-past-reveals-the-shocking-reality-of-global-warming/">global warming</a>.



The remaining half reflects the combined push of several other climate‑related changes: warming of the upper tropical atmosphere, strengthening winds in the stratosphere, and warming in the tropical Pacific.



Some of these influences are themselves partly driven by human‑caused climate change; others are harder to pin down. The same mix of factors also explains the measured acceleration of the jet, with global warming contributing to the rise in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/new-method-developed-to-measure-the-wind/">wind speeds</a>.



“The findings show how complex the jet stream’s reaction to climate change is, especially in terms of how rapidly the winds are strengthening,” Mindlin said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-forecasting-the-next-decade">Forecasting the next decade</h2>



Because climate models often disagree - especially over short horizons - the team next asked which models best mirrored the real atmosphere.



The researchers compared simulations to observed EDJ behavior to see which captured core features such as latitude, variability, and sensitivity to the identified drivers.



By giving more weight to models that get those pieces right, they narrowed the plausible range of jet changes expected over the coming ten years. That tighter range is critical for planners in agriculture, water management, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/wildfires-are-changing-the-quality-of-our-air/">wildfire</a> preparedness, energy, and infrastructure.



“In the past, research primarily focused on long-term climate developments. Recently, however, short-term developments have taken center stage, as they are increasingly relevant for decision-makers. The methods we suggest can be used to improve climate predictions for the next ten years,” Mindlin said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-a-shifting-jet-stream-means">What a shifting jet stream means</h2>



When the EDJ edges poleward, the storm tracks it helps steer often shift with it. Regions on the jet’s equatorward side can see fewer frontal systems, bringing a tendency toward drier summers and greater <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-is-now-the-driving-force-behind-droughts/">drought</a> risk.



Farther south, where the jet now spends more time, stronger winds can intensify <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-soil-moisture-can-predict-severe-storms/">storms</a>, enhance ocean mixing, and reshape sea ice and marine ecosystems. 



These downstream changes matter for crop yields in southern Australia and reservoir inflows in Chile and Argentina. They also affect fire weather in South Africa and coastal infrastructure exposed to more frequent wind-driven extremes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-causal-tools-reveal-the-truth">Causal tools reveal the truth</h2>



Many large‑scale climate drivers occur together: greenhouse warming, tropical Pacific sea surface shifts, and stratospheric circulation changes often overlap in time. Traditional correlations blur their separate roles.



Causal inference lets researchers ask counterfactual questions - what would the jet have done without the tropical Pacific warming, for instance? - and assign shares of responsibility.



Coupling those answers to storylines makes the science more usable, because decision‑makers can follow the chain from driver to local impact.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-matching-models-to-history">Matching models to history</h2>



No single climate model is perfect, but each gets some features right. By comparing existing models to observed EDJ behavior, Mindlin’s team effectively filtered out poor performers and leaned on those that reproduce the jet’s history.



These findings will help water agencies, grid operators, and insurers work with narrower, more actionable climate windows for the coming decade.



The team is extending this framework to related wind belts over the Pacific and the coupled Atlantic‑Indian sector. The researchers want to see how shifts in these jet streams link to regional heatwaves and multi‑year droughts - events that strain societies and ecosystems. 



As causal‑storyline methods mature, they could become standard practice for translating global climate signals into the local risk information that communities need.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2500697122">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Why the Southern jet stream is shifting - and what it means

A fast belt of westerly winds that helps shape summer...

Wild tomatoes rooted on the raw lava of Fernandina and Isabela Islands have done something biologists once filed under “nearly impossible,” reviving a molecular defense that disappeared from their relatives millions of years ago during species evolution.



The phenomenon has been traced to a tiny tweak in the plants’ chemistry, and it now stands as the clearest plant example of reverse evolution, the re‑emergence of an ancestral trait after a long dormancy. 



Lead author <a href="https://profiles.ucr.edu/app/home/profile/adamj" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Adam Jozwiak</a> at the <a href="https://www.ucr.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of California, Riverside</a>, working with colleagues from the Weizmann Institute, mapped the unexpected comeback.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-evolution-of-wild-tomatoes">Evolution of wild tomatoes</h2>



Wild tomatoes on the islands produce a mix of bitter chemicals that help protect them from insects and animals that might try to eat them.



On the youngest islands, the mix has shifted toward an older type of toxin usually found in eggplants, not <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ripening-tomatoes-may-hold-clues-to-delay-human-aging/">modern tomatoes</a>, showing that this ancient version can still work better under harsh conditions like lava soil and intense heat.



The change comes down to a single enzyme in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tomato-plants-talk-to-one-another-to-signal-danger/">plant</a> that decides how its natural defense chemicals are made. 



By slightly altering this enzyme, the plant switches back to an older version of its toxin that had been lost for millions of years.



“Just four amino acids changed everything,” reported the study team, noting that the modified enzyme brought back the older, more aggressive version of the toxin. It wasn’t a random mutation, but a precise shift that reactivated a long-dormant chemical pathway.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-life-on-lava-and-sand">Life on lava and sand</h2>



The western Galápagos islands are among the youngest in the chain, with rugged volcanic ground and almost no soil. Plants growing there face intense heat, limited nutrients, and constant threats from insects and animals.



In those conditions, bringing back a stronger chemical defense gives the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/space-tomatoes-are-ready-for-an-unprecedented-mission/">tomatoes</a> a better chance of surviving, and evolution seems to have reached into the plant’s genetic history instead of creating something entirely new.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-when-tomato-evolution-hits-reverse">When tomato evolution hits reverse</h2>



Although it was once assumed that lost traits almost never return, <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rstb.2009.0154" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">research</a> shows that evolution can sometimes retrace its steps.&nbsp;



In some cases, structures that disappeared for millions of years have reappeared, such as larval stages in salamanders or wings in certain insects. 



These reversals challenge the old idea that evolution always moves in one direction and suggest that dormant genetic pathways can be reactivated when conditions shift. 



The tomato work tightens the evidence because stereochemistry can be measured atom by atom, making accidental convergence unlikely.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lessons-for-crop-science">Lessons for crop science</h2>



Changing four amino acids in <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/figure/GAME8-is-a-source-of-SGA-stereodiversity-in-Solanum-species-a-Phylogenetic-analysis-of_fig2_392798532" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">GAME8</a> inside greenhouse tobacco forced the host to synthesize the ancestral toxin, showing that minimal editing is enough to remodel an entire metabolic branch.



Researchers now wonder whether carefully steering stereochemistry could dial pest resistance up or down in other crops while avoiding off‑flavors that plague tomato breeders. 



Island survey data hint at an evolutionary gradient: <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/reverse-evolution-these-wild-tomatoes-are-turning-back-time/">tomatoes</a> on older eastern islands keep the modern toxin, central islands sit in the middle, and the youngest lava fields host plants in nearly full chemical retreat.



That pattern suggests evolution’s arrow is flexible, and under shifting climates crops might again reach backward for solutions thought obsolete.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-four-amino-acids-changed-the-story">How four amino acids changed the story</h2>



Most enzymes are highly specific, and even minor alterations can break them. But in this case, the GAME8 enzyme was surprisingly flexible.



By replacing just four amino acids in its active site, scientists restored the enzyme’s older behavior, allowing the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tomatoes-acylsugars-parallel-universe-plant-kingdom-evolution/">plant</a> to make the ancient version of its chemical defense again.&nbsp;



This kind of precise control over a plant's internal chemistry is unusual and suggests that nature sometimes keeps old instructions ready to use when needed.&nbsp;



The researchers used molecular docking and structural models to predict which amino acids made the difference. 



Lab tests confirmed their predictions, highlighting how small tweaks in sequence can flip a tomato plant's entire <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tomato-plants-talk-to-one-another-to-signal-danger/">chemical output</a>.



This work also demonstrates how directed enzyme evolution, a common tool in biotechnology, occurs naturally under harsh selection pressures like those on the Galápagos lava fields.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-impacts-beyond-tomatoes">Impacts beyond tomatoes</h2>



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/gene-modification-can-create-better-tomatoes-eggplants-but-should-we-do-it/">Tomatoes</a> belong to the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/solanaceae" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Solanaceae family</a>, which includes peppers, potatoes, and tobacco. All of them produce related alkaloids, and this study suggests they might also hold buried chemical routes.



Understanding how GAME8 evolved can help scientists modify alkaloid profiles in related plants, potentially unlocking medicinal or agricultural uses with more precision.



Some glycoalkaloids are mildly toxic to humans, and breeders often try to reduce them. But with the ability to dial in the stereochemistry, it might be possible to keep the benefits while avoiding the downsides.



This also raises fresh questions for evolutionary theory, particularly around how often so-called “lost” traits are truly gone, or just waiting for the right trigger to come back.



The study is published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-59290-4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Communications</a>.



-----



Like what you read?<a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/"> Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on<a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/"> EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by<a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/"> Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Scientists find a surprising case of 'reverse evolution' in wild tomatoes

Wild tomatoes rooted on the raw lava of Fernandina and...

As wild chimpanzees grow older, they tend to back away from complex tool-use activities. When they do engage, they become less efficient - paralleling many of the changes seen in aging humans.



This is the central finding of a new study based on an extraordinary 17-year record of wild chimpanzee behavior in Guinea’s Bossou Forest.



Researchers discovered that aging chimpanzees were not only less likely to participate in nut-cracking sessions using stone tools, but those who did often worked more slowly and less effectively than in their youth.



Some individuals appeared to struggle considerably with the task, while others retained strong abilities into their later years. The data suggest that, just like humans, chimpanzees vary widely in how age impacts their technical skills.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-aging-chimpanzees-slow-down">Aging chimpanzees slow down</h2>



Scientists know much less about how growing older affects wild animals than they do about human <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/lemurs-reveal-surprising-new-clues-about-healthy-aging/">aging</a>, which is well studied. This is especially true when it comes to physically and cognitively demanding behaviors.



Elliot Howard-Spink, a postdoctoral researcher at the <a href="https://www.ab.mpg.de/">Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior</a>, is the study's lead author.



“<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-pass-tool-use-skills-across-generations/">Tool use</a> is uncommon among animals, possibly because it requires a suite of physical and cognitive abilities, such as planning, fine motor coordination, understanding causal relationships, and identifying physical properties of objects,” he said.



“Given many of these faculties can be impacted by aging, wild animals’ tool-use behaviors could be vulnerable to decline with old age.”



The team analyzed behavior records from Bossou, where chimpanzees use stones to crack oil palm nuts. The technique involves selecting appropriate hammer and anvil stones and executing coordinated, targeted strikes.



Over the 17-year study period, the researchers focused on five adult chimpanzees - four females and one male - who aged from around 40 to 60 years old during the observation window.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-less-interest-lower-efficiency"><a></a>Less interest, lower efficiency</h2>



What they saw was a steady decline in nut-cracking activity among the older individuals. Unlike younger adults, older chimpanzees showed a major decline in their attendance at the outdoor laboratory over successive field seasons.



This reduction suggested a gradual disengagement from the demanding <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fish-foraging-behavior-changing-climate-warming-waters/">foraging behavior</a>. Even when older chimpanzees did show up, some spent noticeably less time interacting with the tools and nuts - further evidence of an age-related withdrawal.



The team also documented changes in performance. Some older chimpanzees took longer to select appropriate tools, switched stones more frequently, or required more attempts to open each nut.



The inefficiencies accumulated: it took more time and more strikes for the older apes to get the job done. But the degree of decline was not universal.



The scientists found stark differences in the magnitude of changes across individuals. Some chimpanzees maintained relatively steady skill levels into old age, while others showed marked decline.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-one-elder-stands-out">One elder stands out</h2>



Susana Carvalho, a group leader at the <a href="https://www.cibio.up.pt/en/about/">Research Center in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources</a> (CIBIO) in Portugal recalled a particularly vivid example from a chimpanzee named Yo. 



“We first spotted an elderly female (Yo) seemingly experiencing difficulties during <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/just-one-handful-of-pecan-nuts-each-day-can-lower-cholesterol-heart-health/">nut</a> cracking whilst observing chimpanzees in 2012,” she said. “Yo, formerly a keen and efficient tool-user, was taking a very long time to crack each nut, and was changing the stone tools she was using frequently.” 



The long-term data later confirmed those early observations. This deep behavioral record from Bossou is unique because it covers nearly two decades. 



The data was gathered in a consistent field setup known as the “outdoor laboratory.” The researchers placed nuts and tools in a clearing and filmed the chimpanzees who came to use them.



“This research was only possible through the unique video archive produced by decades of continuous observation,” said Tetsuro Matsuzawa, the founding director of the Bossou Archive.



“The Bossou Archive offers a baseline to inform conservation strategies across wild chimpanzee populations, including accounting for behavioral changes over lifetimes.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chimpanzees-mirror-aging-humans">Chimpanzees mirror aging humans</h2>



The study also demonstrates the cultural dimension of tool use among chimpanzees.



“Just as with human technical skills, chimpanzee tool use is culturally learned through social learning and individual practice,” noted study co-author Katarina Almeida-Warren, a researcher at the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-and-bees-are-capable-of-complex-social-learning/">University of Oxford</a>.



“By studying the same chimpanzees over two decades, we’ve been able to see how chimpanzees’ cultural skills change with old age.”



While the research did not pinpoint the biological mechanisms behind the decline, it opens new avenues for exploring how age affects cognition and behavior in our closest living relatives.



“As ours was an observational study, we can’t yet identify the specific reasons why aging affects nut cracking,” said co-senior author Dora Biro, a primatologist at the <a href="https://www.rochester.edu/">University of Rochester</a>.



“But our results raise important questions about how aging influences apes’ cognition and behavior in natural settings.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-aging-changes-chimpanzee-culture">Aging changes chimpanzee culture</h2>



With its detailed focus on individual animals over many years, the Bossou study provides a rare look at aging outside of captivity or the human species.



It also raises questions about how <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/adults-learn-skills-faster-than-children-but-theres-a-catch/">skill learning</a>, use, and decline might shape not only individual lives but group dynamics and traditions in wild chimpanzee communities.



“Until now, there has been no systematic study of how old age influences the technological behaviors of wild animals,” said Howard-Spink. That’s beginning to change - and the results suggest that even in the forest, age can bring challenges similar to those in humans.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://elifesciences.org/articles/105411">eLife</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

What aging chimpanzees can teach us about ourselves

As wild chimpanzees grow older, they tend to back away...

A plain‑white mineral found in western Serbia has a name straight out of the comics and a chemical profile that battery makers crave. Called jadarite, also known as sodium‑lithium‑boron silicate hydroxide, was first pulled from drill <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/new-microscopic-mineral-ehrigite-discovered-could-revolutionize-geological-exploration/">cores</a> in 2004 and officially recognized as a new mineral two years later.



Geologists soon noticed that the formula on the sample label matched the faux “kryptonite” shown in a <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0348150/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">2006 Superman film</a>, minus the fluorine and the green glow. 



That pop‑culture twist helped the discovery grab headlines, yet the real excitement lies in what the mineral could do for electric vehicles and renewable power storage.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-jadarite-discovered-in-serbia">Jadarite discovered in Serbia</h2>



Jadarite occurs as dull, chalky nodules tucked inside fine‑grained shale in the Jadar Valley. The host rocks formed in an ancient lake basin rich in volcanic ash, allowing lithium and boron to build up in the pore waters until the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/water-and-ice-may-reveal-where-rare-earth-elements-are-hiding/">mineral</a> crystallized. 



Those conditions have been found only in Serbia so far, making the deposit both unique and strategically valuable.



<a href="https://ausimm.eventsair.com/AUSIMMEventInfoPortal/14414-critical-minerals-conference-2024/cmprogram/Portal/AgendaItemDetail?id=5d8b67e0-34f2-fcc2-1dc0-3a12cf0470fc" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Michael Page</a>, a process chemist at Australia’s Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (<a href="https://www.ansto.gov.au/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ANSTO</a>), points out that the valley “is considered one of the largest lithium deposits in the world, making it a potential game‑changer for the global green energy transition.”&nbsp;



Researchers at the <a href="https://www.nhm.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Natural History Museum in London</a>, including mineralogist <a href="https://lithiumfuture.org/nhm.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Robin Armstrong</a>, later traced the steps nature followed. 



They showed that <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0012825224001120" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">alkaline terminal lakes</a>, <a href="https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/segweb/economicgeology/article-abstract/117/1/91/606255/Evaluating-the-Potential-of-Rhyolitic-Glass-as-a?redirectedFrom=fulltext" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">lithium‑rich volcanic glass</a>, and the gradual reworking of clay minerals all had to line up in a narrow window of temperature and pH.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-jadarite-could-replace-gasoline">Jadarite could replace gasoline</h2>



Each ton of jadarite contains roughly seven percent <a href="https://mineralseducationcoalition.org/minerals-database/lithium/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">lithium</a>, the light metal that lets rechargeable batteries pack a lot of energy without much weight. 



The rock also carries high levels of <a href="https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Boron-HealthProfessional/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">boron</a>, used in fiberglass, smartphone glass, and wind‑turbine blades, turning what would be waste in other ores into a marketable by‑product.



If the planned underground mine goes ahead, <a href="https://www.riotinto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Rio Tinto</a> estimates annual output of about 58,000 tons of battery‑grade lithium carbonate, 160,000 tons of boric acid, and 255,000 tons of sodium sulfate. That scale would be enough to supply cathode material for several million electric cars a year.



Demand is rising fast. The International Energy Agency (<a href="https://www.iea.org/reports/global-critical-minerals-outlook-2025/overview-of-outlook-for-key-minerals">IEA</a>) projects global lithium use to grow fivefold by 2040 in its “Stated Policies Scenario” as nations switch from combustion engines to batteries. 



Europe alone could see up to 90 percent of its current lithium needs covered by the Serbian <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earth-may-have-always-held-the-key-ingredients-for-life/">deposit</a>, according to market assessments.



“As the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/volcanic-white-gold-a-lithium-deposit-valued-at-1-5-trillion-has-been-discovered-in-the-u-s/">demand for lithium</a> continues in the race toward renewable energy, if mined, jadarite can offer huge potential, said Dr. Armstrong, highlighting the stakes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rare-conditions-needed">Rare conditions needed</h2>



“[The formation sequence is…] “similar to baking a cake, everything needs to be measured and exact … if the conditions are too acidic or too cold, jadarite will not form,” said lead author <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=r4shUpUAAAAJ&amp;hl=en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Francesco Putzolu</a>. 



The team’s lab experiments failed whenever they tweaked the water chemistry even slightly, hinting that only a few basins on Earth ever hit the sweet spot.



That rarity boosts the ore’s strategic appeal but complicates the search for new supplies. 



Geologists are now combing satellite images for dried‑up lake beds fringed with volcanic tuffs, hoping to locate a second occurrence. So far, none has surfaced.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-method-can-extract-lithium-and-boron">New method can extract lithium and boron</h2>



Extracting lithium from jadarite is trickier than from brines or spodumene because the sodium and boron tie up the metal in a tight molecular cage. 



ANSTO engineers have responded by testing a two‑step leach and purification circuit that recovers high‑purity <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/huge-lithium-deposit-from-volanic-ash-found-in-pennsylvania/">lithium carbonate</a> while capturing boric acid as a co‑product.



Page says the challenge of a “new type of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/global-hunt-for-rare-earth-elements-is-underway/">mineral</a> resource” energizes the pilot team, which has already produced battery‑grade chemicals from bulk samples sent to Australia. 



Commercial plants would likely use a similar hydrometallurgical flow sheet, avoiding the energy‑intensive roasting needed for spodumene and cutting overall carbon emissions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mining-brings-promise-but-sparks-protests">Mining brings promise but sparks protests</h2>



Serbian communities are not unanimous in welcoming the mine. Environmental groups warn that alkali‑rich tailings could leak into the Jadar River and harm local agriculture. 



Independent studies have found elevated boron and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/geologists-discover-a-19-million-ton-lithium-deposit-in-the-us/">lithium</a> downstream of exploratory boreholes, fueling weekly protests in Belgrade.



Supporters counter that rigorous water‑management plans and sealed tailings cells can limit impacts, and that the economic gains, including thousands of skilled jobs, are hard to ignore. 



European automakers also see the project as a chance to shorten supply chains now dominated by South American brines and Chinese refiners.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-search-beyond-serbia">The search beyond Serbia</h2>



Whether or not the Jadar project reaches full production, the mineral has already altered the critical‑minerals map. 



Its existence proves that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/lithium-brine-discovery-has-vast-implications-for-future-mining-operations/">lithium</a> can concentrate outside traditional pegmatites and brines, broadening the hunt to basins once dismissed as uneconomic clay.



Researchers are now experimenting with synthetic pathways, seeding gels of silica, borate, and lithium under lake‑like conditions to see if jadarite can be grown on demand. 



Success could pave the way for engineered deposits that bypass mining altogether. For now, though, nature’s one known batch in western Serbia remains the focus of intense scientific, industrial, and public scrutiny.



The study is published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-025-01705-4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Geoscience</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Jadarite, described as 'Earth's kryptonite twin,' has potential to replace fossil fuels

A plain‑white mineral found in western Serbia has a name...

Obesity is rare among Hadza hunter‑gatherers in Tanzania, Tsimane forager‑farmers in Bolivia, or Tuvan herder‑farmers in Siberia. Yet it’s common across rich, industrialized nations.



For decades, the explanation has been <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/exercising-in-midlife-can-reverse-years-of-inactivity/">inactivity</a>: people in wealthy countries sit too much and therefore burn too few calories. However, a new study argues that this explanation is wrong - or at least badly incomplete.



Researchers analyzed objective metabolic data from 4,213 men and women spread across 34 countries and cultural groups, running the gamut from small‑scale subsistence societies to office‑dwelling professionals in Europe and North America.



The result: people in highly developed nations burn about the same total number of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/spicy-foods-can-slow-down-eating-and-cut-calorie-intake/">calories</a> per day, once you adjust for body size, as people in far more physically demanding settings.



That finding forces a rethink. If most of us burn similar daily energy regardless of lifestyle, then widespread obesity in wealthy nations must come primarily from what we eat, not how little we move.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rethinking-obesity-s-root-cause">Rethinking obesity’s root cause</h2>



“There’s still a lively debate in public health about the role of diet and activity in the development of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/why-is-obesity-difficult-to-reverse-it-starts-in-the-brain/">obesity</a>," said senior author Herman Pontzer, a professor of evolutionary anthropology and global health at <a href="https://duke.edu/">Duke University</a>.



Untangling the two matters: prevention and treatment strategies hinge on knowing which lever - calories in or calories out - has moved the most.



To tackle the question, Pontzer and more than 80 collaborators pooled gold‑standard measurements collected with “doubly labeled water,” a tracer technique in which volunteers drink water marked with rare, harmless isotopes.



By tracking how those isotopes leave the body in urine or breath, scientists can calculate how much carbon dioxide a person produces - and from that, determine days‑long averages of total energy expenditure. 



The dataset also included basal energy expenditure (calories burned just staying alive) and the extra calories used in physical activity.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-calorie-burn-stays-steady">Calorie burn stays steady</h2>



After statistically adjusting for body size - people in affluent countries tend to be taller and heavier, and bigger bodies naturally burn more - the expected pattern vanished.



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/our-hunter-gatherer-ancestors-did-much-more-gathering-than-hunting/">Hunter‑gatherers</a> who walk miles each day, herder‑farmers who haul and dig, and office workers who sit long hours all landed in roughly the same range for total daily energy burn.



Pontzer interprets this through his “constrained total energy expenditure” model. When physical activity rises, the body trims energy elsewhere (for example, dampening some growth or immune processes) to keep total burn within a narrow band.



The practical takeaway is that ramping up movement does not necessarily translate into a large increase in total calories burned over the long haul.



"There is no effect of economic development on size-adjusted physical activity expenditure,” noted Pontzer. In other words, rich‑country living hasn’t slashed our activity calories the way many assumed.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-food-drives-obesity-now">Food drives obesity now</h2>



When the team compared energy intake estimates, a pattern emerged. “Our analyses suggest that increased energy intake has been roughly 10 times more important than declining total energy expenditure in driving the modern obesity crisis,” the authors wrote. 



More simply put, overeating swamps any small changes in how much we burn.



Diet quality also mattered. In a subset of the sample where dietary data were available, higher intake of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/direct-link-confirmed-between-ultra-processed-foods-upf-serious-health-problems/">ultra‑processed foods</a> correlated strongly with higher body fat percentages.



The study defined these products as “industrial formulations of five or more ingredients.” Think packaged snacks, sugary cereals, instant noodles, processed meats, and ready‑to‑eat meals - items engineered for shelf life and low cost.



“This study confirms what I’ve been saying, which is that diet is the key culprit in our current [obesity] epidemic. This is a well-done study,” said Barry Popkin, a nutrition researcher at the <a href="https://www.unc.edu/">University of North Carolina</a>.



“It’s clear from this important new research and other studies that changes to our food, not our activity, are the dominant drivers of obesity,” added Dariush Mozaffarian, a cardiometabolic expert at <a href="https://www.tufts.edu/">Tufts University</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-exercise-still-improves-health">Exercise still improves health</h2>



“We know that exercise is essential for health. This study doesn’t change that,” Pontzer said. Regular movement improves heart health, mood, blood sugar control, and longevity - even if it doesn’t melt off pounds as easily as hoped.



Still, when the goal is lowering obesity rates, Pontzer argues that nutrition must take center stage. Public guidance, food policy, and healthcare counseling need to tackle obesity by focusing on dietary choices - what’s on the plate, how much is consumed, and how often.



"To address obesity, public health efforts need to focus on diet,” especially on the products “that seem to be really potent causes of obesity," concluded Pontzer.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2420902122">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Obesity is linked more to food than fitness

Obesity is rare among Hadza hunter‑gatherers in Tanzania, Tsimane forager‑farmers...

Across Earth's long timeline, extinction often seems like a silent erasure. Yet behind many disappearances lies a chain of ecological tension. Researchers at the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP) in Brazil explored predator-prey dynamics.



The results of two new studies suggest predator-prey relationships shaped extinction patterns in ancient species. Supported by FAPESP, the work focuses on predators like saber-toothed cats and their herbivore prey in North America.



The scientists used fossil records, body size data, and climate history from the last 20 million years.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-predators-left-without-their-prey">Predators left without their prey </h2>



Saber-toothed tigers, known for long canines, likely hunted large animals. A popular theory links their extinction to the loss of megafauna during the late Pleistocene, caused by climate change and human actions.



“One of the hypotheses that’s received the most attention in the literature was that the end of saber-toothed tigers," said study author and <a href="https://unicamp.br">UNICAMP</a> researcher João Nascimento.



"It could be linked to the extinction of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/superfamily-of-bacterial-predator-proteins-is-changing-scientific-theory/">megafauna</a> at the end of the Pleistocene, which occurred between 50,000 and 11,000 years ago."



"These large animals became extinct due to climate change and human actions, and as a result, the predators were left without their main prey."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-extinction-started-before-humans">Extinction started before humans</h2>



Nascimento noted that the research offers a new timeline. “We found that the process began millions of years earlier,” he said.



Saber-toothed cats went through repeated extinctions over time, often during periods of reduced prey diversity. This long-term view changes how we understand their fate.



The second study, published in the journal <a href="https://academic.oup.com/evolut/advance-article-abstract/doi/10.1093/evolut/qpaf091/8124702?login=false" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Evolution</a>, takes a reverse approach. It looks at how predator expansion drove herbivore decline. Antilocaprids, once a diverse group in North America, now have just one species left: the American antelope.



This group includes two extinct subfamilies. Merycodontinae vanished about six million years ago, likely outcompeted by proboscideans, ancestors of modern elephants. These massive <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/largest-predator-prey-feast-ever-seen-in-the-ocean-enormous-quickly-altered-food-chain/">animals</a> dominated forest habitats, squeezing out smaller herbivores.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-predators-vanished-after-prey">Predators vanished after prey</h2>



The Antilocaprinae subfamily started fading when felids grew more diverse. The American cheetah (Miracinonyx), built for speed, emerged during this time. It likely drove antelopes to become faster.



Predator-driven speed might be why the American antelope is so fast today. The study gives new weight to that idea. More predators meant more evolutionary pressure on prey <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/world-otter-day-2025-on-the-front-lines-of-a-habitat-crisis/">species</a>. Fewer herbivores meant fewer niches to support diverse predators.



In a previous study, the researchers had suggested that large herbivores in the Iberian Peninsula caused predator decline 15 million years ago. These new papers expand that perspective to much broader regions.



“The great contribution of this set of studies is precisely to present the idea that the interaction between predators and prey can have an effect on large evolutionary patterns," said Professor Mathias Pires, who supervised the work.



"This had been debated for decades, but there was no really robust set of results to support this hypothesis."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fossils-reveal-extinction-clues">Fossils reveal extinction clues</h2>



These discoveries rest on detailed fossil records. The team analyzed size, diet, and coexistence patterns of animals across millions of years. 



For example, saber-toothed cats appeared around 14 million years ago in Eurasia and 12 million years ago in North America. Eight species once coexisted, but numbers shrank over time.



Six million years ago, the saber-toothed cat population began a steady decline. This drop happened during a shift toward a more arid climate. <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/grasslands-crucial-role-global-agriculture-environment-ecosystems/">Grasslands</a> expanded while forests shrank, affecting food chains.



Leaf-eating prey lost their food sources, reducing available prey for predators. 



“Our study did not find a direct relationship between this event and the reduction in saber-toothed cats, but these changes in the environment had an indirect impact on the extinctions of different saber-toothed species by reducing the availability of prey,” Pires said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-predators-and-prey-need-balance">Predators and prey need balance</h2>



Forest-dependent Merycodontinae went extinct as their habitats disappeared. Grass-eating Antilocaprinae lasted longer but declined with increasing predator pressure. This chain reaction mirrors how nature balances itself.



“We’re showing how an increase in predators can reduce the availability of prey, which in turn reduces the abundance of predators, and how this can manifest on an evolutionary scale," Pires said. 



"It’s a warning about how we may be altering the future with the extinctions we’re causing now.”



The studies not only map the past but also warn how predator loss and extinction trends today may echo through millennia, reshaping life far beyond our own time.



The study is published in the <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jeb/advance-article-abstract/doi/10.1093/jeb/voaf043/8115575?login=false" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Journal of Evolutionary Biology</a>. 



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Lessons from the past: Predators are doomed when their prey vanishes

Across Earth's long timeline, extinction often seems like a silent...

Recognition,Of,Odor,Traces,By,Police,Dog,On,Location

A pair of specially trained dogs has shown that Parkinson’s disease leaves a telltale scent on human skin. This scent is strong enough for a canine nose to detect with remarkable accuracy.



This discovery could open the door to faster, cheaper, and entirely non‑invasive screening for a condition that currently lacks an early diagnostic test.



The study brought together <a href="https://www.medicaldetectiondogs.org.uk/">Medical Detection Dogs</a> in Milton Keynes with scientists from the Universities of <a href="https://www.bristol.ac.uk/%C3%B9">Bristol</a> and <a href="https://www.manchester.ac.uk/">Manchester</a>.



Over several months, the charity’s trainers conditioned two retriever-type dogs to recognize the odor that clings to sebum. This oily substance, which our skin naturally produces, changes when <a href="https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/parkinsons-disease" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Parkinson’s disease</a> (PD) is present.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-training-dogs-to-detect-disease">Training dogs to detect disease</h2>



During training, the canines encountered more than 200 gauze swabs. Some were taken from recently <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-discover-that-dogs-can-alert-humans-to-valley-fever-disease/">diagnosed patients</a>, others from volunteers with no neurological illness, and a few from people living with different conditions.



Each pad was clipped to a stand. When a dog paused and pointed at a positive sample, the handler quietly clicked and offered a reward.



In the final double-blind trial - where neither the dog handler nor the overseeing scientist knew which positions held a patient’s swab - the dogs showed sensitivity of up to 80 percent and specificity of up to 98 percent.



Moreover, they were also able to detect Parkinson’s in swabs from people with multiple health conditions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-scent-of-parkinson-s">The scent of Parkinson’s</h2>



Dog noses are legendary, but <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cancer-immunotherapy-drug-also-works-to-slow-progression-of-parkinsons-disease/">Parkinson’s</a> researchers turned to them for a very specific reason. Excess sebum and a change in body odor often precede the familiar motor symptoms - shaking, slowed movement, and rigid muscles - by years.



A Scottish nurse named Joy Milne famously noticed a musky shift in her husband’s scent long before his diagnosis. Her observation inspired scientists to hunt for molecular fingerprints in skin oil.



A laboratory method based on mass‑spectrometry is inching forward, yet requires expensive instruments and trained personnel. Canines offer a shortcut.



“We are extremely proud to say that once again, dogs can very accurately detect disease," said Claire Guest, CEO and Chief Scientific Officer at Medical Detection Dogs.



“There is currently no early test for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cancer-immunotherapy-drug-also-works-to-slow-progression-of-parkinsons-disease/">Parkinson’s disease</a> and symptoms may start up to 20 years before they become visible and persistent leading to a confirmed diagnosis."



"Timely diagnosis is key as subsequent treatment could slow down the progression of the disease, and reduce the intensity of symptoms.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-detection-rates-that-rival-medical-tests">Detection rates that rival medical tests</h2>



Even seasoned neurologists can misclassify early Parkinson’s, and imaging scans or spinal fluid assays are costly. By contrast, the gold-coated sensitivity and specificity reported here exceed those of many existing point-of-care tests in medical use.



“Identifying diagnostic biomarkers of PD - particularly those that may predict development or help diagnose disease earlier - is the subject of much ongoing research,” said lead author Nicola Rooney, an animal behavior specialist at the University of Bristol.



Rooney noted that the dogs in the study achieved high sensitivity and specificity and showed there is an olfactory signature distinct to patients with the disease.



“Sensitivity levels of 70 percent and 80 percent are well above chance, and I believe that dogs could help us develop a quick, noninvasive, and cost-effective method to identify patients with Parkinson’s disease.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-blinded-trials-confirm-the-results">Blinded trials confirm the results</h2>



To guard against subconscious cues or handler bias, the researchers also presented every testing line in reverse order.



A computer kept track of which sample sat where, and only after the dog’s choice did researchers learn whether to dispense a treat. 



This rigorous protocol mirrors clinical trial standards and boosts confidence that the animals relied on smell alone.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dogs-help-build-smell-sensors">Dogs help build smell sensors</h2>



Dogs will never replace neurologists, but the findings give chemists a shortlist of volatile molecules to capture with sensors.



"This study adds to the growing body of evidence showing that simple, noninvasive skin swabs can be used to diagnose Parkinson’s disease," said Perdita Barran, a professor of analytical chemistry at the University of Manchester.



Professor Barran's lab is already dissecting the swab chemistry; the canine results confirm those molecules belong on the diagnostic radar.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dogs-and-other-neurological-diseases">Dogs and other neurological diseases</h2>



Researchers and dog trainers are beginning to explore how these animals can detect other neurological diseases like Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis, and even conditions like migraines or autism-related sensory episodes. 



In the case of Alzheimer’s, for example, people in early stages of the disease may emit subtle changes in body odor - things a human nose would never catch, but a dog’s nose picks up with ease. 



These scent cues could one day help in screening or early detection, well before symptoms become obvious.



There are also stories of dogs acting differently before their owners have a migraine or during MS flare-ups - becoming restless or unusually attentive - as if they sense something’s coming. 



Some families of children with autism even report that service dogs notice sensory overload before it escalates, helping calm things down before a meltdown.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-expanding-the-science-of-scent">Expanding the science of scent</h2>



Future trials aim to include people with <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sleep-disruptions-could-signal-the-onset-of-alzheimers/">REM sleep behavior disorder</a> - a risk state for Parkinson’s - to see whether dogs can spot the disease before a neurologist could.



Parallel chemical analyses will hunt for the exact compounds responsible for the odor. If those molecules prove consistent worldwide, engineers could embed them in low‑cost sensor chips.



For now the message is hopeful: a straightforward skin swab carries hidden information about <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/coffee-grounds-could-help-prevent-neurodegenerative-diseases/">neurodegeneration</a>, and a dog’s nose can read it.



That knowledge could accelerate the quest for a rapid, painless test. It would offer one more tool to bring Parkinson’s onto clinicians’ radar while there is still time to slow its march.



The study is published in the <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1877718X251342485" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Journal of Parkinson’s Disease</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Dogs can now detect some neurological diseases years before symptoms appear

A pair of specially trained dogs has shown that Parkinson’s...

For decades, scientists have puzzled over Uranus. Unlike its fellow giant planets, it seemed unusually quiet in terms of heat.



When NASA’s <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/nasa-pulls-another-life-saving-maneuver-for-voyager-from-15-billion-miles-away/">Voyager 2</a> spacecraft flew past the icy world in 1986, its instruments detected almost no internal warmth. That didn’t make sense. Planets the size of Uranus should still be radiating heat from their formation - so where was it?



Now, new research suggests the heat is there - just harder to detect. This new evidence helps resolve an old mystery and opens the door to better understanding not just Uranus, but how planets form, evolve, and interact with their environments.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-uranus-is-still-losing-ancient-heat">Uranus is still losing ancient heat</h2>



The study comes from researchers at the <a href="https://www.uh.edu/">University of Houston</a>, working with planetary scientists across the globe. 



It draws on decades of spacecraft data and advanced computer modeling. Together, the evidence paints a clearer picture: Uranus does release more energy than it gets from the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/widest-high-resolution-photo-of-the-sun-ever-captured-solar-orbiter/">Sun</a>.



“This means it’s still slowly losing leftover heat from its early history, a key piece of the puzzle that helps us understand its origins and how it has changed over time,” said first author Xinyue Wang.



The findings also line up with those from a separate team led by Professor Patrick Irwin at the University of Oxford.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-not-as-hot-as-its-neighbors">Not as hot as its neighbors</h2>



While Uranus does emit heat, it gives off far less than the other giant planets in our solar system. Jupiter, Saturn, and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/auroras-captured-on-neptune-for-the-first-time-thanks-to-the-webb-telescope/">Neptune</a> all emit more than twice the energy they absorb from sunlight. Uranus emits only about 12.5 percent more.



The reason isn’t clear, but researchers believe Uranus may have a different internal structure or evolutionary history than its neighbors.



In other words, Uranus might be built differently on the inside - or it may have followed a unique evolutionary path over billions of years that shaped how it stores and releases heat.



The study also found that Uranus’s heat output varies with its seasons - and those seasons are extreme. Each one lasts around 20 years, due to the planet’s tilted spin and off-center orbit.



As Uranus makes its long journey around the Sun, its energy levels rise and fall.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-planning-future-uranus-missions">Planning future Uranus missions</h2>



Scientists aren’t just curious about Uranus for curiosity’s sake. Understanding how the planet works could directly affect the planning of future space missions.



Liming Li, also a co-author of the study, believes the findings come at the right time. NASA is gearing up for a major mission to Uranus - one that the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine ranked as a top priority for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/civilian-spacewalk-is-a-giant-leap-in-space-exploration/">space exploration</a> through 2032.



“This study could improve planning for NASA’s flagship mission to orbit and probe Uranus,” Li said.



“From a scientific perspective, this study helps us better understand Uranus and other giant planets. For future space exploration, I think it strengthens the case for a mission to Uranus,” Wang added.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lessons-for-earth">Lessons for Earth</h2>



The research also holds lessons for Earth. The methods used - combining space data with physical models - don’t apply only to Uranus. They could be used to study heat flow on other planets, even ones outside our solar system.



“By uncovering how Uranus stores and loses heat, we gain valuable insights into the fundamental processes that shape planetary atmospheres, weather systems, and climate systems,” Li said. 



“These findings help broaden our perspective on Earth’s atmospheric system and the challenges of climate change.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-future-of-research-in-space">The future of research in space</h2>



This study isn't just about Uranus - it's a preview of where space science is headed. As tools for modeling, data collection, and observation improve, scientists are gaining new ways to study planets across the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/astronomers-announce-evidence-suggesting-that-our-solar-system-has-nine-planets-again/">solar system</a> and beyond. 



The methods used to analyze Uranus’s heat could help decode the atmospheres of other ice giants, exoplanets, and even newly discovered worlds in distant systems.



NASA’s upcoming Uranus mission is just one example of how this research will shape future exploration. By combining long-term data with modern computational models, scientists are building a deeper understanding of how planets form, change, and interact with their environments.



These advances don’t just push planetary science forward - they also strengthen our ability to study climate systems, design new technologies, and prepare for the challenges of Earth’s future.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2025GL115660#https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2025GL115660">Geophysical Research Letters</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Hidden heat on Uranus changes what we know about ice giants

For decades, scientists have puzzled over Uranus. Unlike its fellow...

Earth’s deepest layers were not always solid rock blanketing a molten core. New simulations show a hidden sea of magma pooled above the core during the planet’s chaotic youth and how it still shapes the underground landscape today.



<a href="https://www.yorku.ca/science/profiles/faculty/charles-boukare/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Charles‑Édouard Boukaré</a>, a planetary physicist at <a href="https://www.yorku.ca/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">York University</a>, guided the work and argues that the ancient melt layer, or <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0031920124001250" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">basal magma ocean</a>, was an unavoidable consequence of early cooling.&nbsp;



“Another way to say this is there is a memory,” Boukaré said, explaining that the planet’s interior still remembers its fiery beginnings.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-modeling-the-infant-earth">Modeling the infant Earth</h2>



The research team combined isotope data from ancient rocks with modern seismic images to build a three‑dimensional model of a newborn planet. 



Their code tracked how iron‑rich liquid separated from lighter crystal mush and trickled to the bottom of the mantle.



Even when they forced crystallization to start in mid‑mantle zones, dense melt still slid downward, proving that the deep pool forms, no matter where solidification begins. 



The result overturns earlier one‑directional models that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ancient-mantle-plume-created-a-60-million-year-volcanic-trail-from-iceland-to-ireland/">made the mantle</a> freeze from the core upward.



The simulations reproduced present‑day mantle temperatures and predicted a lingering layer of melt up to 60 miles (96 kilometers) thick. 



That prediction matches tiny signals in seismic data that hint at pockets of extraordinary heat above the core.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-heat-flow-kept-earth-s-core-liquid">Heat flow kept Earth's core liquid</h2>



Cooling crust near the surface formed the first minerals, but their extra weight made them plunge back into the mantle. 



Most solidified crystals remelted on the trip down, yet some carried shallow chemical signatures that are now buried nearly 1,800 miles (2,900 kilometers) deep.



Iron oxide lowered the melting point of these sinking masses and helped them merge into the basal <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sunken-worlds-discovered-under-the-pacific-ocean-in-earths-mantle/">ocean</a>. Heat flowing out of Earth's core kept the iron‑rich mixture liquid long after the rest of the mantle stiffened into rock.



Because the melt is denser than the surrounding solids, it refuses to rise and cool. 



That quirk sealed in a reservoir of incompatible elements such as neodymium and tungsten, explaining why modern lava sometimes carries ancient isotopic fingerprints.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-clues-from-mantle-blobs">Clues from mantle blobs</h2>



Seismologists have mapped two continent‑sized zones beneath Africa and the Pacific where earthquake waves slow sharply. 



These large, low‑shear velocity provinces might be the frozen rims of the primeval ocean, dating back more than 4.4 billion years.



Alternative theories say the blobs are piles of sunken ocean crust recycled by plate tectonics. Yet the volume and dense, iron‑enriched makeup of the blobs fit the basal <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/evidence-magma-ocean-molten-rock-found-moons-surface-south-pole-chandrayaan-3/">magma ocean</a> story far better than crustal recycling alone.



If the blobs truly are relics of early melt, they could act as anchors that pin mantle plumes in place, explaining the long‑lived volcanic tracks that dot the Pacific seafloor. 



Their presence also helps seismologists interpret odd, low‑velocity patches found near Earth's core–mantle boundary worldwide.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-earth-s-core-drives-convection">Earth's core drives convection</h2>



Heat leaving the core drives convection that powers the <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31964848/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">geodynamo</a>, the engine behind Earth’s magnetic field. A thick, insulating sheet of iron‑rich melt alters that heat flow and could modulate magnetic strength over tens of millions of years.



“Continent drift might affect the location of tectonic plates,” notes Boukaré, hinting that the drift could partially reflect the deep ocean’s rhythm of currents. Changes in melt thickness also tweak how stiff slabs sink and how buoyant plumes rise.&nbsp;



Isolated melt pockets may even lubricate slab edges, letting plates slide with less friction. That effect could explain why <a href="https://www.nps.gov/subjects/geology/plate-tectonics-subduction-zones.htm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">subduction zones</a> sometimes shift along straight lines rather than wandering like rivers.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chemical-prints-in-ancient-rocks">Chemical prints in ancient rocks</h2>



Isotopic ratios of samarium–neodymium and lutetium–hafnium vary subtly in rocks that are older than 3 billion years. 



The variations match the signature expected when shallow crystals rain into a deep, iron‑saturated melt, then remix into later lavas.



Some Archean basalts in western <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/drones-reveal-hidden-details-about-greenlands-melting-ice/">Greenland</a> preserve these signals, confirming that early differentiation products were never fully erased by later convection. 



The model reconciles that evidence with the fact that most upper mantle rocks look chemically uniform today.



Geochemists once limited the amount of bridgmanite crystallization because they feared it would skew surface isotopes, but the new work shows that shallow and deep processes can cancel each other’s signals. This finding opens room for more extensive early mantle stratification than previously thought.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-echoes-on-other-worlds">Echoes on other worlds</h2>



It is theorized that Mars lost its magnetic shield early, and Venus never developed plate tectonics, outcomes that may reflect how long their own basal oceans survived. 



Running Boukaré’s code with Martian gravity produces a melt layer that freezes quickly, starving the core of heat and ending dynamo action.



Super‑Earth exoplanets, with stronger gravity and thicker mantles, may hold basal oceans far longer. 



That persistence could dampen surface volcanism and help the planets retain atmospheres, parameters that astronomers use when ranking habitability.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-future-questions-about-earth-s-core">Future questions about Earth's core</h2>



Laboratory experiments that squeeze minerals to core pressures are planned to test how truly dense molten iron‑silicate mixtures become. Those results will refine melt‑mobility numbers in the next generation of mantle models.



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/continent-sized-islands-llsvp-found-inside-earth-are-100-times-taller-than-mount-everest/">Seismologists</a> are also hunting for ultrasonic echoes that bounce off the melt’s upper surface, a signal that would prove the ocean still exists today. Any detection would transform theories about mantle convection and core cooling in one stroke.



Looking ahead, the team plans to fold more trace elements into the model and simulate mantle overturn events triggered by giant impacts. 



Those runs could reveal whether the basal ocean ever mixed completely or still hides a liquid heart.



Success in either search would ripple into planetary science, informing models of exoplanets and guiding missions that probe the deep interiors of rocky worlds. 



The next decade of experiments and observations could turn the idea of a lasting magma sea from theory into accepted geology.



The study is published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-08701-z" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature</a>. 



Photo credits: @Sylvain Petitgirard/University of Bayreuth.



-----



Like what you read?<a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/"> Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on<a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/"> EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by<a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/"> Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

How an 'ocean of fire' shaped early Earth's core, according to a new study

Earth’s deepest layers were not always solid rock blanketing a...

Every year, billions of birds take on epic journeys between North America’s temperate zones and the tropical forests of South America. 



While their migration patterns have been studied extensively, most of what we know comes from data collected in North America and Europe. That’s left a big gap in our understanding - especially in tropical regions.



Researchers from the <a href="https://www.uchicago.edu/en">University of Chicago</a>, working with scientists in Colombia and at universities across the United States, are now filling in those gaps. 



The team used radar data from across Colombia to see how birds behave when migrating through tropical skies. What they found is changing how we think about migration, weather, and conservation.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-birds-migrate-without-weather-cues">Birds migrate without weather cues</h2>



In places like the U.S. and Canada, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/vanishing-forests-make-bird-migration-harder-across-the-corn-belt/">bird migration</a> often happens in big waves. Birds wait for just the right wind conditions - usually during cold or warm fronts - then take off by the thousands in a single night. But in Colombia, birds follow a different rhythm.



“Birds are great indicator species of environmental health, serving as bellwethers of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/global-biodiversity-crisis-is-actually-worse-than-we-thought/">global biodiversity</a> gain and loss," said Jacob Drucker, a doctoral student at the University of Chicago. "So understanding their migration on a global scale is extremely important.”



“But until now, our knowledge of this massive natural phenomenon has been heavily biased towards temperate latitudes in North America and Europe.”



Unlike temperate zones, Colombia doesn’t have strong seasonal wind patterns. Instead, its <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ai-can-predict-the-weather-but-what-about-extreme-events/">weather</a> is more stable. The study revealed that birds migrating over the country travel at a steadier pace. They don’t wait for perfect nights - they go when they need to.



“It turns out that wind isn't as important to birds in deciding which nights to fly in Colombia, but it plays a major role in deciding the altitude they fly,” noted Drucker.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-soaring-to-beat-the-wind">Soaring to beat the wind</h2>



The Colombian Andes offer a special case. High above the forests, winds blow southward as part of the Orinoco Low-Level Jet. 



These winds can either help or hinder birds, depending on the season. In the fall, they act as tailwinds. In the spring, they become headwinds.



“We saw birds flying as high as 3,000 meters above the Amazon to avoid headwinds. It was spectacular,” Drucker said. “When the wind weakened at lower altitudes, birds adjusted by flying lower.”



These shifts in altitude helped them conserve energy as they responded to changing wind conditions in the Andes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-migrating-birds-tracked-by-radar">Migrating birds tracked by radar</h2>



This study wouldn't have been possible without an unusual data source: Colombia’s national weather radar network. Seven years ago, 



Drucker reached out to fellow researchers with a simple idea - what if they used weather radar to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/machine-learning-may-solve-the-mystery-of-bird-movements/">track birds</a>? He teamed up with Nick Bayly from the Colombian conservation nonprofit SELVA and Alfonso Ladino, a meteorologist with ties to Colombia’s weather agency and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. 



Together, the researchers began a multi-year project to decode the tropical migration story. A major challenge was filtering out radar 'noise'. In tropical skies, there are a lot of insects - more than in temperate regions - and they can look a lot like birds on radar.



“We initially struggled to distinguish between insects and birds,” said Drucker. “There are far more insects in the tropics, creating substantial radar noise from an ornithological perspective."



"To solve this, we built a model that assumes <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/very-little-is-known-about-99-of-all-insects-on-earth/">insects</a> move passively with the wind, while birds move independently and purposefully.”



The researchers tested that model using radar data from both Colombia and Australia. It’s likely to help other scientists in future studies.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bird-safe-cities-need-rethinking">Bird-safe cities need rethinking</h2>



The study doesn’t just add to our understanding of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bird-behavior-productivity-being-directly-impacted-by-climate-change/">bird behavior</a> - it could shape how we protect birds in cities.



In cities like Chicago or Toronto, turning off lights during major migration nights can reduce bird deaths caused by building collisions. These “lights out” campaigns are carefully timed based on weather forecasts and migration patterns. But that strategy might not work in tropical cities.



“Since bird migration in Colombia isn't tied to predictable wind events, it becomes much harder to anticipate large migration nights and tell people when to turn their lights off,” Drucker said.



That means new strategies will be needed in cities like Bogotá, Medellín, and Calí. Conservation efforts in the tropics may need to focus less on timing and more on continuous solutions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-next-migration-frontier">The next migration frontier</h2>



This study is just the start. There’s still a lot to learn about how birds react to local weather and terrain as they move. For Drucker and his team, the goal is to go deeper - zooming in on finer scales to understand every twist and turn in a bird’s journey.



“We need to drill down into the granular details of how birds react to specific habitats and finer-scale weather patterns along migration routes,” he said.



By combining new technology with international teamwork, researchers are opening new ways to better understand and protect migratory birds - wherever they fly.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2024.2609">Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Tropical birds migrate without riding the wind

Every year, billions of birds take on epic journeys between...

A fossilized rhino tooth, buried for over 20 million years, is now helping scientists rewrite the history of early rhino evolution. 



Inside the tooth enamel, researchers found something remarkable: preserved proteins that held clues to the animal’s lineage and evolutionary split from other species.



This breakthrough came from scientists at the <a href="https://www.york.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of York</a>. By analyzing enamel proteins in the tooth, the experts traced key moments in rhino evolution much further back than previously possible.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-reconstructing-the-rhino-family-tree">Reconstructing the rhino family tree</h2>



The team discovered that this particular rhino diverged from other members of the family <a href="https://www.su.se/english/news/geneticists-map-the-rhinoceros-family-tree-1.568317" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Rhinocerotidae</a> during a window between 41 and 25 million years ago. This coincides with a time between the Middle Eocene and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ancient-climate-shift-sheds-light-on-future-global-warming/">Oligocene</a> Epochs. 



Even more surprising was that the data revealed that the two main subfamilies of rhinos - Elasmotheriinae and Rhinocerotinae - split later than previously thought.



Instead of parting ways in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fossils-reveal-a-previously-unknown-mass-extinction-event/">Eocene</a>, as earlier bone studies suggested, this separation likely occurred during the Oligocene, between 34 and 22 million years ago.



This new timeline helps scientists better understand how different rhino species emerged, adapted, and survived (or didn’t) through changing environments.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rhino-evolution-revealed-in-dna">Rhino evolution revealed in DNA</h2>



Ancient DNA has helped researchers study <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cave-art-discovery-depicts-animal-dicynodont-that-went-extinct-280-million-year-ago/">extinct</a> species, but it rarely survives beyond a million years. This fossil tooth changes that. 



The successful recovery of <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/enamel-protein">enamel proteins</a> from a sample over 20 million years old extends the timeline for molecular research by a factor of ten.



This is important because it allows scientists to explore evolutionary history through molecular evidence - not just fossil shapes. Well-preserved enamel proteins offer access to valuable genetic information, opening new avenues for discovery.



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tooth-enamel-analysis-suggests-early-eurasians-were-multiple-species-paranthropus-robustus/">Enamel</a> is the hardest tissue in the body. Its mineral-rich structure protects proteins for millions of years, especially in cold environments where this tooth was found.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-keeping-the-fossil-tooth-data-pure">Keeping the fossil tooth data pure</h2>



The fossil tooth was found in Canada’s High Arctic - a region where permafrost still dominates. That cold environment played a key role in keeping the proteins intact, but cold alone wasn’t enough.



To make sure the proteins were truly ancient, researchers at the University of York ran tests using a method called chiral amino acid analysis.



This technique helped the team distinguish between original proteins from the rhino’s life and any later contamination. 



By comparing the degraded proteins in this tooth with those from previously studied rhino fossils, they confirmed the material was genuine.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-unique-environmental-history-of-the-site">Unique environmental history of the site</h2>



Professor Enrico Cappellini from the University of Copenhagen’s Globe Institute emphasized the significance of the fossil site.



“The <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0016703721002234" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Haughton Crater</a> may be a truly special place for palaeontology: a biomolecular vault protecting proteins from decay over vast geological timescales,” said Cappellini.



“Its unique environmental history has created a site with exceptional preservation of ancient biomolecules, akin to how certain sites preserve soft tissues. This finding should encourage more paleontological fieldwork in regions around the world."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-exploring-further-back-in-time">Exploring further back in time</h2>



Dr. Marc Dickinson, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of York’s Department of Chemistry, was one of the co-authors on the study.



“It is phenomenal that these tools are enabling us to explore further and further back in time. Building on our knowledge of ancient proteins, we can now start asking fascinating new questions about the evolution of ancient life on our planet,” said Dickinson.



The team sees this fossil tooth as more than just an isolated find. It’s a signal that there may be more ancient biomolecules waiting to be studied.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-perspective-on-rhino-evolution">New perspective on rhino evolution </h2>



“Successful analysis of ancient proteins from such an old sample gives a fresh perspective to scientists around the globe who already have incredible fossils in their collections. This important fossil helps us to understand our ancient <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/supernovae-explosions-seem-to-have-altered-earths-climate-in-the-past-and-could-do-so-again-at-any-time/">past</a>,” said Fazeelah Munir, who analyzed the tooth during her doctoral research at York.



Modern rhinos are threatened by habitat loss, poaching, and climate change. Tracing their evolutionary history reveals how past environmental shifts shaped the species we see today. 



The more we understand what helped ancient rhinos survive - or led to their decline - the better equipped we are to protect the few that remain.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09231-4">Nature</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Secrets of rhino evolution found in 20-million-year-old tooth

A fossilized rhino tooth, buried for over 20 million years,...

New scans of two small predatory dinosaurs reveal a pea-sized wrist bone once thought unique to birds. The research suggests that the engines of flight were revving inside dinosaur arms long before any creature flapped skyward.



The study was led by James Napoli of <a href="https://www.stonybrook.edu/">Stony Brook University</a> with colleagues at the <a href="https://www.amnh.org/">American Museum of Natural History</a> and the <a href="https://mas.ac.mn/en/">Mongolian Academy of Sciences</a>. 



The research overturns earlier claims that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/large-theropod-dinosaurs-thrived-in-polar-environments/">theropods</a> lacked a bird-like pisiform and raises the possibility that the path to powered flight was, as the authors put it, “all in the wrist.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dinosaur-wrist-bone-on-the-move">Dinosaur wrist bone on the move</h2>



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earliest-modern-bird-lived-in-antarctica-69-million-years-ago/">Modern birds</a> fold their wings automatically when the elbow bends. The hinge works because a tiny carpal called the pisiform migrated from the edge of the wrist to replace another bone, the ulnare. 



Its new spot lets a V-shaped notch clamp the hand bones and stop them from popping loose during vigorous flapping.



For years, paleontologists assumed non-avian dinosaurs never made that switch. Napoli’s team tested the dogma by CT-scanning an exquisitely preserved troodontid, a quick, velociraptor-like hunter. They also scanned an oviraptorid, a beaked omnivore with a long neck.



Digital slices peeled away surrounding rock, isolating each pebble-sized carpal in three dimensions. The images showed a bead-like bone tucked where the pisiform sits in modern birds.



“We believe this is the first time a migrated pisiform in a non-bird meat-eating dinosaur has been identified,” Napoli said. 



The discovery pushes the joint’s redesign back to Pennaraptora, a diverse branch of feathered theropods that includes velociraptors, troodontids, and oviraptorosaurs.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-flight-link-to-wrist-evolution">Flight link to wrist evolution</h2>



“While we currently do not know precisely how many times dinosaurs learned to fly, it is intriguing that experimentation with flight in these creatures appears only after the pisiform migrated into the wrist joint,” Napoli explained.



“Therefore, it is possible this established the automated mechanisms found in current living birds, though we would need to test this hypothesis with more research and analysis of dinosaur wrist bones.”



The scientists argue that the pisiform’s relocation was gradual. Early pennaraptorans still carried a small ulnare. Later species lost that bone entirely as the pisiform enlarged and took over its role.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-gradual-wrist-bone-replacement">Gradual wrist bone replacement</h2>



The replacement mirrors other avian traits - hollow bones, enlarged brains, filamentous feathers - that spread outward through theropod evolution before coalescing into true birds.



According to the authors of the study, the findings make clear that the topological and functional replacement of the ulnare by the pisiform occurred much deeper in theropod history than has been previously understood and was a stepwise process.



“Over the past few decades, our knowledge of theropod <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dinosaur-extinction-theories-are-challenged-by-new-research/">dinosaur</a> anatomy and evolution has increased exponentially, much of it revealing that classically ‘avian’ traits such as thin-walled bones, an enlarged brain, and feathers, all characterize more inclusive groups of theropod dinosaurs," noted the researchers.



"Our results suggest that the construction of the avian wrist is no exception and follows topological patterns laid down by the origin of Pennaraptora.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-scans-reveals-hidden-features">Scans reveals hidden features</h2>



Identifying the bone took both luck and technology. The fossils - discovered in Mongolia’s Cretaceous rocks - had escaped crushing, so their wrist bones lay undisturbed. 



Micro-CT resolution below 50 microns allowed the researchers to trace delicate sutures, distinguishing the pisiform’s spoon-like head and its telltale notch. 



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/dinosaur-wrist-bone_Citipati_flight-evolution_credit-Henry-Sharpe_1m.jpg"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/dinosaur-wrist-bone_Citipati_flight-evolution_credit-Henry-Sharpe_1s.webp" alt="This is an illustration of an oviraptorid dinosaur called Citipati. The scene depicts Citipati being startled while resting on a sand dune. The creature raises its arms in a threat display, which reveals its wrists, highlighting the small migrated pisiform carpal (blue X-ray view) bone. Credit: Henry S. Sharpe" class="wp-image-1978020"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">This is an illustration of an oviraptorid dinosaur called Citipati. The scene depicts Citipati being startled while resting on a sand dune. The creature raises its arms in a threat display, which reveals its wrists, highlighting the small migrated pisiform carpal (blue X-ray view) bone. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Henry S. Sharpe</figcaption></figure>



Without such scans, the structure would look like one of several nubs commonly lumped together as generic carpals.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-wrist-bone-shaped-evolution">Wrist bone shaped evolution</h2>



Flight appears to have evolved at least twice within Pennaraptora and perhaps as many as five times. If the pisiform swap predates those experiments, it may have primed the limb for aerial feats in separate lineages. 



That echoes convergent “upgrades” seen in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/pterosaurs-mastered-land-before-dominating-the-sky/">pterosaurs</a>, bats, and birds, where wrist and shoulder tweaks unleash new kinematic possibilities.



The finding also casts fresh light on grounded relatives like Velociraptor. Though too heavy to fly, such animals wielded feathered arms for display, brooding, or balance.



A bird-style pisiform would have let them tuck and unfurl their limbs with mechanical efficiency. This hints that the crouched, wing-guarding pose seen in some fossil nests used the same automatic folding action modern roosters employ.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-future-fossil-finds">Future fossil finds</h2>



Future work will scan additional fossils to see exactly when the pisiform first slid into place. The researchers want to investigate whether the move coincided with feather lengthening or muscle shifts.



They also hope to model forces across the joint to test how much stability the new bone adds during flapping or mantling motions.



For now, the lesson is clear: tiny parts can steer colossal evolutionary leaps. A marble-sized bone drifting a few millimeters may have set the stage for the skies to fill with beating wings. It began inside dinosaur wrists millions of years before the first true birds appeared.



Image credit: Henry Sharpe



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09232-3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Flight may have started with a tiny wrist bone from a dinosaur called "Citipati"

New scans of two small predatory dinosaurs reveal a pea-sized...

Humans have limited regenerative abilities compared to some animals. Once sensory hair cells in the inner ear are damaged, hearing and balance often decline for good. Meanwhile, animals like fish, frogs, and chicks use gene-driven repair to easily renew these cells.



Scientists at the <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> have discovered how two genes guide this regeneration in zebrafish. This research may shape future work on hearing loss in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/common-genetic-mutation-dramatically-increases-the-risk-of-dementia-in-men/">humans</a>.



“Mammals such as ourselves cannot regenerate hair cells in the inner ear,” said study co-author Dr. Tatjana Piotrowski. “As we age or are subjected to prolonged noise exposure, we lose our hearing and balance.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fish-genes-and-hearing-cells">Fish genes and hearing cells </h2>



The study was designed to investigate how zebrafish control cell division during hair cell regeneration. The team, led by Dr. Mark Lush, found two genes that regulate how two support <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/gene-regulation-controlling-cells-to-improve-medical-treatments/">cell</a> types divide.



The researchers used single-cell RNA sequencing and lineage tracing to uncover gene activity patterns. This helped them see which genes were responsible for maintaining stem cells and triggering regeneration.



“During normal tissue maintenance and regeneration, cells need to proliferate to replace the cells that are dying or being shed - however, this only works if there are existing cells that can divide to replace them,” said Piotrowski.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-zebrafish-offer-rare-insight">Why zebrafish offer rare insight</h2>



Zebrafish have sensory structures called neuromasts, which contain hair <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ancient-dna-reveals-37000-years-of-hidden-human-infections/">cells</a> resembling those in the human inner ear. These neuromasts are distributed in a line from head to tail and help detect water motion.



Because zebrafish larvae are transparent, scientists can observe their cells directly. The team studied how hair cells regrow using imaging, gene editing, and molecular tracing.



“We can manipulate genes and test which ones are important for regeneration,” said Piotrowski. “By understanding how these cells regenerate in zebrafish, we hope to identify why similar regeneration does not occur in mammals and whether it might be possible to encourage this process in the future.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-two-genes-control-hearing-cell-repair">Two genes control hearing cell repair</h2>



Within neuromasts, two groups of support cells drive <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/drugs-may-be-available-to-prevent-hearing-loss/">regeneration</a>. Stem cells lie at the edges, while progenitor cells are in the center. The research team discovered two cyclinD genes, each linked to only one cell group.



“When we rendered one of these genes non-functional, only one population stopped dividing,” said Piotrowski. 



“This finding shows that different groups of cells within an organ can be controlled separately, which may help scientists understand cell growth in other tissues, such as the intestine or blood.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-uncoupling-division-and-differentiation">Uncoupling division and differentiation</h2>



When the progenitor-specific gene was removed, those cells stopped dividing but still turned into hair cells. This meant cell division wasn’t always needed for differentiation. When the stem-cell gene was added to progenitors, their division restarted.



The ability to separate growth from differentiation could have broad biological implications.



The&nbsp;study&nbsp;illustrates this gene-switching in detail, using labeled cell populations and fluorescent markers to track regeneration.



"Our findings have important implications for the understanding of how proliferation of symmetrically dividing stem and progenitor cells is controlled during homeostasis and disease," wrote the researchers.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fish-genes-may-help-human-hearing">Fish genes may help human hearing</h2>



Dr. David Raible, a professor at the <a href="https://www.washington.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Washington</a>, highlighted the significance of the research. 



“This work illuminates an elegant mechanism for maintaining neuromast stem cells while promoting hair cell regeneration. It may help us investigate whether similar processes exist or could be activated in mammals," said Dr. Raible.



CyclinD genes also affect many human tissues, such as the gut, brain, skin, and blood. The findings in zebrafish may offer clues for regenerative therapies beyond hearing.



“Insights from zebrafish hair cell regeneration could eventually inform research on other organs and tissues, both those that naturally regenerate and those that do not,” said Piotrowski.



The study received funding from the <a href="https://www.nih.gov" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NIH</a>, the <a href="https://hearinghealthfoundation.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hearing Health Foundation</a>, and the Stowers Institute. The findings reflect the authors' views and not necessarily those of the NIH.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-60251-0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Communications</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Fish genes offer clues to reversing human hearing loss

Humans have limited regenerative abilities compared to some animals. Once...

Butterflies are slipping away from the British countryside. Yet hope may lie in some of its most familiar sights: thorny hedges, pocket-sized woods, even a single oak in the middle of a field.



A new study led by the <a href="https://www.ox.ac.uk/">University of Oxford</a> and <a href="https://butterfly-conservation.org/">Butterfly Conservation</a> shows that these modest features can lift <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/butterflies-can-adapt-quickly-but-evolution-has-its-limits/">butterfly</a> numbers in ordinary farmland.



This gives species such as the Speckled Wood and Meadow Brown a fighting chance just as national counts have hit historic lows.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-ten-year-countryside-snapshot">A ten-year countryside snapshot</h2>



The research team mined ten years of records from the <a href="https://butterfly-conservation.org/our-work/recording-and-monitoring/wider-countryside-butterfly-survey">Wider Countryside Butterfly Survey</a>, in which volunteers stroll one-kilometer routes around farmland and record every butterfly they see.



Altogether, they analyzed more than a thousand routes scattered across England. They then matched each one to habitat maps that reach three kilometers in every direction.



Wherever hedgerows, groves, or field trees took up more space on that map, the counts rose. The pattern was clearest in arable regions where otherwise tidy fields leave few wild corners.



Dr. Ruth Feber, lead author of the study, pointed out numbers told only part of the story. 



“As well as demonstrating the importance of trees and hedgerows for biodiversity on farmland, our results also highlighted the relatively lower numbers of butterflies on intensively managed grassland compared to arable land," said Dr. Feber.



Those silage pastures, cut and fertilized for maximum yield, now cover more than a quarter of the country. Even small changes in how they are managed could tip the scales for wildlife.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-farmers-want-to-help-and-need-support">Farmers want to help, and need support</h2>



The scientists also spoke with 31 farmers who manage land near the survey squares. Most recognized the upside of hedges and shade trees - from sheltering <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/livestock-grazing-is-changing-soil-plants-and-insect-populations/">livestock</a> to soaking up floodwater.



But nearly expressed concern about the cost and commitment of planting, trimming, and replacing them. That tension sits at the heart of the study.



“It is clear that farmers recognize the importance of these crucial habitats," noted Dr. Feber. "But they need to be supported. We need to recognize that these trees and hedgerows provide public goods which benefit <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/un-report-disturbing-details-about-the-state-of-earths-wildlife/">wildlife</a> and people."



She noted that agri-environment payments must stretch beyond basic prescriptions and cover the true expense of keeping woody features healthy for decades. Otherwise, good intentions can wither the moment grain prices tighten.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-farmland-hedges-are-butterfly-highways">Farmland hedges are butterfly highways</h2>



Hedges do more than mark a boundary. Their tangled branches serve as food plants for caterpillars and provide adult butterflies with a buffet of nectar. Thick growth breaks the wind, allowing butterflies to warm up and fly on cooler days. 



Above all, lines of woody cover act as green corridors, guiding insects from one flower-rich patch to another so that no colony becomes isolated.



That highway network is exactly what common butterflies need right now. Fresh figures show that 2024 ranks among the worst years on record. For the first time, more than half of U.K. species have slipped into long-term decline.



“We know that butterflies are in desperate trouble, including our common countryside species. Butterflies are important indicators of wider biodiversity, so actions that help butterflies will also help other declining wildlife,” said Dr. Feber.



“With 70 percent of the U.K.'s land area being farmland, our farmers and landowners play a vital role in helping these species recover, through protecting and restoring hedgerows and trees.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-farming-with-butterflies-in-mind">Farming with butterflies in mind</h2>



Dr. Feber’s group is already probing one promising route. At Northfield Farm near Oxford, cattle are moved daily in a “mob grazing” system that leaves each paddock to regrow for weeks.



“My current project is investigating regenerative <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/feeding-the-world-without-harming-nature-the-complex-balance-of-farming/">farming</a>, which uses livestock grazing and other practices to help promote soil health and increase soil carbon,” said Dr. Feber. 



“This is receiving increasing attention as an approach to grassland management that might contribute to tackling some <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-and-agriculture-are-locked-in-a-destructive-feedback-loop/">climate impacts of agriculture</a>."



Dr. Feber added that more research is needed on how this may impact biodiversity, particularly above-ground invertebrate groups, such as butterflies, moths, and other pollinators.



Early surveys will track whether butterflies bounce back when lush grass is replaced by more varied, flower-rich swards.



“In this system, areas of land are grazed for a short period of time before the cattle are moved on and the pasture allowed to recover,” Dr. Feber said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-butterflies-need-better-farmland">Butterflies need better farmland</h2>



The study’s message is disarmingly simple: keep - or better yet, expand - the scruffy, butterfly-friendly edges of Britain’s farmlands. A single thorn hedge or an untidy willow clump can be enough to connect the dots for butterflies.



For farmers, the next step is clear financial backing that rewards the effort year after year. For policymakers, it means seeing hedges and field trees as green infrastructure every bit as vital as roads and drains.



Butterflies respond quickly; give them corridors and they will return. The countryside may look pared to the bone, but its recovery could begin with nothing fancier than a line of hawthorn left to bloom or a young oak allowed to stand. Recognizing that these small gestures stitch life back into the land is the first step.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/2688-8319.70042">Ecological Solutions and Evidence</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Simple farmland features can reverse butterfly declines

Butterflies are slipping away from the British countryside. Yet hope...

In 1960, a young woman walked into the forests of Gombe with a notebook and binoculars. Jane Goodall didn’t have formal scientific training, but she had a question: what are chimpanzees really like? Her observations would change science forever. 



On July 14 of that year, Goodall saw her first chimp using a stick to fish for termites. Until then, tool use was considered uniquely human. Today, we remember that moment with World Chimpanzee Day.



But this day is not just about honoring Jane’s legacy. It’s about recognizing who chimpanzees are and why they matter. They’re not just fascinating <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/social-curiosity-starts-young-and-helps-us-survive/">animals</a>. They are our closest living relatives, and they need our help.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-day-to-focus-on-chimpanzees">A day to focus on chimpanzees </h2>



Chimpanzees don’t just live in the wild. They live full, emotional lives. They use tools, share food, form friendships, and sometimes even hold hands. 



In some places, chimps use leaves like sponges. In others, they sharpen sticks to hunt. Every <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-select-the-best-materials-for-termite-fishing/">group</a> has its own habits and culture, passed down through generations.



Chimpanzees care for their young for years. They play, tease, and comfort each other. And when a chimp dies, others mourn. One mother carried her infant’s body for days, unable to let go. 



These aren’t instincts on repeat. These are actions driven by memory, emotion, and thought. The more we watch chimps, the more familiar they feel.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-threats-to-chimpanzees">Threats to chimpanzees </h2>



Despite all this richness, chimpanzees are vanishing. Habitat loss is their biggest enemy. Forests are cleared for farming, roads, and mining. As the trees fall, so do the homes and feeding grounds of chimpanzees. 



Illegal hunting also takes a toll. Some chimps are killed for bushmeat. Others are captured and sold as pets or performers.



Diseases passed from humans spread quickly among <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/social-chimpanzee-mothers-raise-babies-more-successfully/">chimps</a>. Unlike us, they don’t have the immunity to fight back. What feels like a harmless cold to a human can be deadly for them. 



Climate change adds pressure too, shrinking food sources and drying up water. Fewer than 200,000 wild chimpanzees remain, and that number is dropping fast.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-jane-goodall-changed-everything">Jane Goodall changed everything</h2>



<a href="https://janegoodall.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jane Goodall</a> broke the rules of science. She named chimps instead of numbering them. She saw personalities, not data points. There was David Greybeard, the first chimp she saw using a tool. There was Flo, a strong mother, and Flint, her emotional son. 



Goodall didn’t just watch - she listened, and that made all the difference. Her compassionate approach lives on through the Jane Goodall Institute and conservation efforts around the world. 



These programs safeguard forests, support education, and empower future generations. Her legacy proves the power of one person who chooses to truly care.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-take-action-on-world-chimpanzee-day">Take action on World Chimpanzee Day </h2>



You don’t have to be a scientist to make a difference. Start small - learn something new about chimpanzees. Watch a documentary, share a story, or tell a child that chimps laugh and grieve just like we do. The more we understand them, the harder it becomes to ignore their <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/chimpanzees-copy-strange-useless-trends-just-like-humans-do/">struggles</a>.



Supporting trusted conservation groups can help protect wild habitats. Speaking out against wildlife trade and unethical animal shows can also help. 



Even simple choices, like avoiding unsustainable palm oil, can reduce pressure on forests. Every action matters, no matter how small it seems.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-safe-places-new-beginnings">Safe places, new beginnings</h2>



Across Africa, sanctuaries now give rescued chimpanzees a second chance. In Uganda, Ngamba Island houses chimps rescued from illegal trade. 



In Liberia, hundreds of chimps once used in medical research now roam protected river islands. These places do more than provide safety. They offer peace, freedom, and healing.



Many of these chimpanzees arrive fearful and malnourished. With time, they climb again. They play again. They trust again. Sanctuaries remind us that healing is possible - not just for animals, but for the people who help them too.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-this-day-still-matters">Why this day still matters</h2>



World Chimpanzee Day isn’t just a date on the calendar. It’s a moment to stop and remember that chimpanzees are still here - but they’re in danger. 



If we let them disappear, we lose more than animals. We lose their stories, their intelligence, and a part of our own history.



Chimpanzees are more than a species in decline - they’re a reflection of who we are and what we choose to value. World Chimpanzee Day isn’t about sympathy; it’s about connection, respect, and a promise to protect a future we still share.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

World Chimpanzee Day 2025: Protecting our closest relatives

In 1960, a young woman walked into the forests of...

For decades, reptiles - including tortoises - have lingered in the background of animal sentience discussions. Popular imagination often casts them as simple, instinct-driven beings - unfeeling and unaware. 



Unlike mammals and birds, they rarely show overt emotion, leading many to dismiss the idea that reptiles might feel in complex ways. 



But a new study from the <a href="https://www.lincoln.ac.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Lincoln</a> has disrupted that belief, offering compelling evidence that red-footed tortoises (Chelonoidis carbonaria) can experience long-term mood states.



Published in the journal Animal Cognition, the study reveals that tortoises can show optimism and pessimism depending on their environment. These emotional states then shapes their response to the world around them.



The implications are profound. If tortoises can feel mood shifts similar to mammals and birds, we must rethink how they are treated in captivity and reconsider their place in the story of animal consciousness.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-moods-mean-in-animals">What moods mean in animals</h2>



Mood and emotion are not the same. Emotions are short-lived responses to immediate situations, like fear when chased or joy at finding food. Moods, on the other hand, linger. 



They form a kind of emotional background noise, influencing how an animal perceives new experiences. Scientists call these “free-floating” states, unattached to specific triggers but powerful in shaping behavior.



In humans and other mammals, we have tested mood using cognitive bias tasks. These tests explore how an individual interprets ambiguous situations. 



Someone in a good mood will expect a positive outcome, while someone in a bad mood will expect the worst. Until now, no study had used this method on <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/turtles-may-hold-the-secret-to-cancer-prevention/">reptiles</a>.



That gap has finally been closed. Researchers at Lincoln tested 15 red-footed tortoises to determine if they could exhibit mood-driven bias. Their approach was clear and controlled, building on established methods from mammal studies.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tortoises-respond-to-uncertainty">Tortoises respond to uncertainty</h2>



Each <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/turtle-heads-reveal-an-ancient-reptilian-secret/">tortoise</a> was trained in a simple spatial judgment task. A bowl placed in one spot always contained a food reward (rocket leaves). 



The same bowl, placed elsewhere, never had food. Once trained, tortoises were presented with the bowl at three new, in-between locations: one near the positive spot, one in the middle, and one near the negative.



How quickly a tortoise approached the bowl at each of these ambiguous points showed its expectation. Quick approach meant optimism. Hesitation meant doubt or pessimism. 



Every trial was carefully timed, filmed, and structured to avoid smell-based cues or random behavior. The test was fair.



Interestingly, the tortoises judged the near-positive and middle spots more optimistically. They moved faster toward these bowls, showing an “optimistic skew” similar to that seen in mammals and birds. This alone is a strong sign of mood in action. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-anxiety-measured-in-action">Anxiety measured in action</h2>



To confirm that mood shaped behavior beyond just one task, the tortoises were also subjected to two classic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/where-do-fear-and-anxiety-reside-in-the-brain-new-cells-identified/">anxiety</a> tests: the novel object test and the novel environment test. 



These are used widely in animal cognition to assess emotional reactions to unfamiliar situations.



In the novel object test, each tortoise encountered an unusual item, a colorful bead coaster, inside a familiar arena. 



The researchers recorded how long it took the tortoise to approach the object, how far it extended its head, and how quickly it began to move. Confident, relaxed tortoises moved sooner and extended their heads farther.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tortoise-mood-affects-behavior">Tortoise mood affects behavior </h2>



The novel environment test changed the tortoises’ surroundings. Different textures, colors, and patterns created a new sensory world. 



Again, tortoises were watched for how they responded to unfamiliarity. The researchers noted that tortoises who showed optimistic bias in the earlier task also behaved with more confidence in these settings.



For example, tortoises that approached ambiguous bowls faster also reached new objects more quickly. 



Some even extended their heads farther in strange environments, indicating comfort and curiosity. These behavioral links show a deep connection between mood and action.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rethinking-reptile-feelings">Rethinking reptile feelings</h2>



The authors of the study interpret these results as remarkable. The presence of a mood state in a tortoise means that reptiles do not simply react. They evaluate, anticipate, and feel. That changes the ethical landscape.



"Animal welfare concerns are reliant upon evidence that a given <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/world-turtle-day-protecting-turtles-tortoises-and-their-vanishing-habitats/">species</a> has the capacity to experience affective states," said Anna Wilkinson, a professor of Animal Cognition at the University of Lincoln. 



"With reptiles becoming increasingly common as pets, it is essential for us to study their moods and emotions to try to understand how captivity may impact them."



Professor Oliver Burman noted that the research represents a significant shift in our understanding of what reptiles can experience, with important implications for how we care for these animals in captivity and interact with them in the wild.



The researchers emphasized that these findings align reptiles more closely with mammals and birds in terms of emotional capacity.



While reptiles may lack certain emotional expressions seen in other animals, they still experience shifts in affective state. Their moods impact how they explore, respond, and behave.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tortoise-mood-and-the-roots-of-emotions">Tortoise mood and the roots of emotions</h2>



Reptiles diverged from mammals and birds hundreds of millions of years ago. That makes this discovery even more significant. If a tortoise, members of one of the oldest lineages of land animals, can experience mood, then the evolutionary roots of emotion run deeper than we thought.



The study references earlier research that found reptiles do show some emotional behavior, such as emotional fever and response to enrichment. 



But until now, no one had shown that they could experience long-lasting, mood-like states. These new results argue against the idea that reptiles have a narrow emotional spectrum.



They suggest that affective states, both emotional and mood-based, might be ancient features of vertebrate brains. These are not recent innovations. This insight matters for biology, psychology, and ethics.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-reptiles-need-more-than-basics">Reptiles need more than basics</h2>



The researchers argue for major changes in how we house and care for reptiles. Current enclosures often focus on physical health and basic habitat needs. 



But if tortoises have moods, then their emotional well-being must also be addressed. That means offering larger enclosures, complex terrain, opportunities for exploration, and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/brain-stimulation-could-change-the-future-of-math-education/">mental stimulation</a>.



According to the researchers, we should assume that they are not only capable of suffering but also experiencing enduring positive moods. Captive reptiles deserve spaces that support both.



The research also expands the toolkit for welfare assessments. Behavioral and mood-based testing can help zookeepers, researchers, and pet owners recognize when a reptile like a tortoise is distressed or thriving.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rethinking-how-we-see-tortoises">Rethinking how we see tortoises</h2>



For too long, tortoises have been treated as slow-moving curiosities. But this new evidence invites us to see them differently. They can be optimistic, feel anxiety, and might even experience contentment.



This is not just about red-footed tortoises. It is about revising our relationship with all <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/reptile-ancestors-appeared-40-million-years-earlier-than-we-thought/">reptiles</a>. The cold-blooded no longer seem cold-hearted. They are thinking, feeling beings. And now we have the science to prove it.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10071-025-01973-y" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Animal Cognition</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Grumpy tortoise? Reptiles can experience mood swings too

For decades, reptiles - including tortoises - have lingered in...

Sharks have survived five mass extinctions and ruled the oceans for over 400 million years. As apex predators, they play a critical role in maintaining the balance of marine ecosystems.&nbsp;But today, sharks are more threatened than ever. 



On Shark Awareness Day, we highlight the science behind their importance. Without sharks, ocean ecosystems would become unbalanced, leading to overpopulation of some species and the collapse of others.



This disruption would harm the overall health of the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-climate-fixes-could-worsen-the-oxygen-crisis/">ocean</a>, ultimately affecting food security and coastal economies.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-happens-when-sharks-disappear">What happens when sharks disappear?</h2>



A <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/top-predator-missing-what-happens-when-great-white-sharks-disappear/#google_vignette">long-term study</a> conducted in False Bay, South Africa, offers a real-world example of what happens when sharks disappear from an ecosystem.



The researchers found that by mid‑2018, great white sharks had vanished from the region. This led to dramatic shifts throughout the ecosystem.&nbsp;



With the disappearance of great whites, Cape fur seal and sevengill shark populations surged, while their prey - smaller fish and bottom-dwelling shark species - declined sharply.&nbsp;



The findings provide real-world evidence of a “trophic cascade,” where the loss of a top predator triggers a ripple effect through lower levels of the food web.



The researchers suggest that the sharks may have disappeared due to several potential causes, including targeted attacks by orcas - which have been observed killing and eating great white livers.&nbsp;



The study demonstrates the importance of apex predators in maintaining ocean health. The research highlights how their loss can destabilize marine webs and reduce biodiversity.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-declining-shark-populations-nbsp">Declining shark populations&nbsp;</h2>



According to a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/overfishing-has-caused-a-50-decline-in-sharks-and-rays/">study</a> led by researchers from Simon Fraser University, over half of all sharks and rays have disappeared globally since 1970 - with overfishing identified as the primary cause.&nbsp;



Sharks and rays, serving as critical predators and sediment stirrers, help maintain food webs and nutrient flows. The report revealed that around one-third of shark and ray species now face extinction. 



However, there is cause for hope: countries such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the US, parts of Europe, and South Africa have implemented science-based fishing limits, reduced bycatch, and protected critical habitats.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-endangered-shark-species-nbsp">Endangered shark species&nbsp;</h2>



Among the most threatened are the great <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/why-some-great-hammerhead-sharks-rarely-leave-home/">hammerhead</a> and the scalloped hammerhead sharks - both of which have seen dramatic population declines worldwide.&nbsp;



These species are particularly vulnerable because they grow slowly and reproduce rarely, making it hard for their populations to bounce back once they decline.



The oceanic whitetip shark, once abundant across tropical and subtropical waters, has suffered steep losses from bycatch and targeted fishing - pushing it toward critical endangerment.&nbsp;



Many deep-sea sharks, like the bluntnose sixgill and the gulper shark, are also threatened due to slow reproduction rates combined with increased fishing pressures.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-campaigns-around-the-world">Campaigns around the world</h2>



Around the world, numerous campaigns and organizations are dedicated to protecting sharks and raising awareness about their critical role in ocean ecosystems.&nbsp;



One of the most widely recognized efforts is <a href="https://www.discovery.com/shark-week/shark-week-2025-kicks-off-july-20">Shark Week</a>, a series on the Discovery Channel that draws millions of viewers each summer. Through documentaries and expert interviews, the series highlights both the awe-inspiring nature of sharks and the threats they face from human activity.



<a href="https://iucn.org/our-union/members/iucn-members/project-aware-foundation">Project AWARE</a> mobilizes scuba divers globally to advocate for shark conservation by pushing for bans on shark finning and the creation of marine protected areas.&nbsp;



On a larger scale, coalitions like the <a href="https://www.globalsharkmovement.org/">Global Shark Movement Project</a> work to influence policy and fisheries management worldwide.



The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) <a href="https://www.iucnssg.org/">Shark Specialist Group</a> also plays a vital role by assessing species status and guiding conservation strategies globally.&nbsp;



Together, these campaigns combine public education, advocacy, and policy efforts to reduce shark deaths and support healthier oceans for future generations.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-celebrate-shark-awareness-day-nbsp">Celebrate Shark Awareness Day&nbsp;</h2>



Shark Awareness Day highlights the urgent need for stronger protections and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sustainable-fishing-must-be-redefined-to-halt-ocean-destruction/">sustainable fishing practices</a> to prevent the irreversible loss of these vital ocean predators.



Today, people around the world are encouraged to learn about sharks and the threats they face from human activities. We are also encouraged to take action by choosing sustainable seafood and speaking up for better laws to protect sharks.&nbsp;



Shark Awareness Day helps build a stronger global community committed to conservation efforts. Ultimately, protecting sharks is about protecting the entire ocean system - and a planet that depends on it.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-ralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Shark Awareness Day: Protecting the balance of the ocean 

Sharks have survived five mass extinctions and ruled the oceans...

What started as a student field trip along the cliffs of Dorset turned into the discovery of a new prehistoric species. A 16.5-millimeter lower jaw, embedded in rock near Swanage, is now reshaping how scientists view early mammal evolution.



The discovery was made by an undergraduate student from the <a href="https://www.port.ac.uk/">University of Portsmouth</a>. The fossil belongs to a type of extinct mammal called a multituberculate. 



These small, rodent-like creatures once lived alongside <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/where-did-dinosaurs-come-from-missing-fossils-hold-the-secret/">dinosaurs</a> and were known for their distinctively complex teeth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-curious-jaw-a-surprising-species">A curious jaw, a surprising species</h2>



The fossil was uncovered at Durlston Bay, a site famous for its rich geological layers. It’s the first multituberculate jaw found there since the 1800s. 



Though it looks a bit like a rabbit's jaw at first glance, the structure of the teeth tells a different story. A sharp incisor juts out at the front, followed by a gap, and then four blade-like premolars.



“I instantly had my suspicions of what the jaw was when I found it at the beach, but couldn’t have imagined where the discovery would take me,” said Ben Weston,&nbsp;an undergraduate paleontology student.



“I’m extremely grateful to the team and to the university for helping me take my first steps into academic paleontology.”



Researchers at the University of Portsmouth confirmed that the fossil is from a species that had never been identified before.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-technology-brings-the-fossil-to-life">Technology brings the fossil to life</h2>



The fossil wasn’t easy to examine. Rock still clung to key parts of the specimen. To get around this, the team turned to high-resolution <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/gordonia-traquairi-pig-like-creature-discovered-roamed-earth-250-million-years-ago/">CT scanning</a>. 



Dr. Charles Wood, a senior scientific officer at the university, scanned the fossil, allowing scientists to see inside the rock without damaging the sample.



Jake Keane, a former Portsmouth paleontology student now working in Abu Dhabi, helped process the scans. In just a few hours, he digitally removed the surrounding rock and isolated the teeth in fine detail.



The scans were then turned into 3D-printed models by John Fearnly, lead technician in the university’s Faculty of Technology. These models were ten times larger than the original, making it safer and easier to study the fossil in depth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-mammal-gets-a-name">New mammal gets a name</h2>



The team named the new species Novaculadon mirabilis. “Novacula” means razor, a nod to its sharp back teeth. “Mirabilis” refers to the jaw’s almost perfect preservation.



Portsmouth student Hamzah Imran created an artistic rendering of the animal. It’s imagined as a small, furry creature with a mix of spots and stripes - though its actual appearance remains speculative.



Based on its teeth, Novaculadon mirabilis likely ate <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/very-little-is-known-about-99-of-all-insects-on-earth/">insects</a> and other small <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-noise-can-be-fatal-to-marine-invertebrates/">invertebrates</a>. Its slicing premolars and pointed incisors set it apart from modern rodents like rats or squirrels.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-hotspot-for-new-mammal-species">A hotspot for new mammal species</h2>



This isn't the first time a student has made a big find in the same area. In 2017, another Portsmouth undergraduate, Grant Smith, discovered fossils of two new <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/where-mammals-live-depends-more-on-climate-than-human-activities/">mammal</a> species thought to be among humanity’s earliest relatives.



Dr. Steve Sweetman, a researcher at the University of Portsmouth, also worked on this new discovery. 



“This is a remarkable find that reminds me of when Grant found those extraordinary eutherian mammal teeth," said Dr. Sweetman.



"When I first saw Grant's specimens, my jaw dropped - and I had exactly the same reaction to Ben's multituberculate jaw. It's incredible that Durlston Bay keeps delivering such significant mammal discoveries by our undergraduate students.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-evolution-insights-from-tiny-jaw">Evolution insights from tiny jaw </h2>



Beyond the scientific importance, the discovery highlights the value of collaborative research. 



“Looking back now that the discovery has been published, I am amazed at how many people it took to describe this little mammal," said Professor David Martill.



"I especially appreciated that all team members were University staff or present and former students - a true team effort including academics, technicians, alumni, and students with diverse talents across three departments.” 



The fossil helps researchers better understand how early mammals survived during the age of dinosaurs. While multituberculates lived through the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/what-was-the-cause-of-earths-largest-mass-extinction/">mass extinction</a> that wiped out dinosaurs, they eventually died out during the Oligocene, around 33 million years ago.



With over 200 known species, multituberculates were the most diverse group of mammals in the Mesozoic era. They filled many ecological roles - some burrowed, others climbed trees. This new discovery adds to what we know about their evolution and survival.



And it serves as a reminder that major scientific contributions can come from anyone - even a 22-year-old student on a windy beach in Dorset.



Image Credit: Hamzah Imran



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pgeola.2025.101128">Proceedings of the Geologists Association</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Tiny fossil, big discovery: Student uncovers a lost mammal species

What started as a student field trip along the cliffs...

A beautiful turquoise‑and‑lilac sea creature that has been kept in hobbyist aquariums around the world for nearly two decades has finally been given a scientific species name. 



The modest crustacean hiding in plain sight turns out to be Cherax pulverulentus, an entirely new crayfish species no biologist had cataloged until now.



<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jiri-Patoka" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jiří Patoka</a> of the <a href="https://www.czechuniversities.com/catalogue-of-universities/czech-university-of-life-sciences-prague" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Czech University of Life Sciences Prague</a> and an international team realized the oversight while inspecting a shipment of Indonesian pets in 2023. 



Their detective work now ends years of speculation about the animal’s identity in the scientific community worldwide.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-meet-cherax-pulverulentus">Meet Cherax pulverulentus</h2>



Ever since the early 2000s, importers have marketed the animal under nicknames such as “Blue Moon” and “Hoa Creek,” labels that lumped several look‑alike <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earth-may-have-three-million-undiscovered-animal-species/">species</a> together. 



Dealers moved thousands of specimens across Europe, the United States, Japan, and Indonesia, yet museum drawers remained empty of an official voucher specimen.



Collectors recognized the flashy colors, but the mix of hues muddied any attempt to match the pet to known taxa. Without an authoritative description, conservation agencies could not track exports or assess wild harvest pressure.



Field notes hinted that the mystery crayfish came from forested headwaters near Ayamaru Lake in the Bird’s Head Peninsula of western New Guinea. 



Border checkpoints rarely scrutinized small ornamental shipments, allowing animals to flow from creeks to storefronts without paperwork.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cherax-pulverulentus-has-two-forms">Cherax pulverulentus has two forms</h2>



The research team reports that purple‑form individuals sport turquoise bodies dusted with violet specks. Their joints and tail fans fade to a chalky white, producing an almost pastel appearance that appeals to aquarists.



Blue‑form animals replace those lilac freckles with a deep navy background that drifts toward black around the claws. 



Bright orange stripes frame the abdomen and legs, giving the crayfish a stark, two‑tone look unique within the genus.



Patoka and colleagues chose the species epithet pulverulentus, Latin for “covered with dust,” to capture these pinpoint spots. 



The name, Cherax pulverulentus, cements the animal’s singular identity and separates it from <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jcb/article-abstract/35/6/830/2547908" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cherax pulcher</a>, a close relative described in 2015.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-detective-work-in-the-lab">Detective work in the lab</h2>



Traditional morphometrics ranked claw shape, eye size, and rostrum length against 38 allied species. DNA barcoding of the mitochondrial COI gene then revealed at least 2 percent divergence from every known member of the genus.



“This <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/saving-biodiversity-scientists-discover-hidden-pattern-guiding-species-distributions/">species</a> has been exploited in the ornamental aquarium trade at least for 21 years,” wrote Patoka in the report. That long tenure outside science underscores how commercial networks can outpace taxonomy.



A second line of <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/387844505_Cherax_pulverulentus_a_new_freshwater_crayfish_Decapoda_Parastacidae_from_Southwest_Papua_Province_Indonesia" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">evidence</a> came from nuclear 28S sequences that grouped Cherax pulverulentus as a sister lineage to C. pulcher, yet still distinct enough to rule out color morph status. 



The dual approach gives regulators a clear diagnostic toolkit should confiscated shipments require forensic identification.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-guinea-streams-to-aquariums">New Guinea streams to aquariums</h2>



In the wild, the dusty crayfish digs shallow burrows into sandy streambeds shaded by rainforest canopy. Water temperatures hover near 75°F, oxygen levels stay high, and leaf litter offers both shelter and food.



The <a href="https://wwf.panda.org/discover/knowledge_hub/where_we_work/new_guinea_forests/conservation_new_guinea_forests/sites_new_guinea_forests/papua_new_guinea_bird_head_peninsula/">Bird’s Head Peninsula</a> ranks as a biodiversity hotspot, yet many of its tributaries remain unsampled by crustacean specialists. 



Local fishers collect juveniles during the dry season when water levels drop, a practice that feeds the export pipeline but leaves population trends unknown.



Little is published on the crayfish’s diet, growth rate, or breeding season. Patoka’s team calls for ecological studies that could inform sustainable quotas before demand removes more animals than nature can replace.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dumping-cherax-pulverulentus">Dumping Cherax pulverulentus</h2>



During the survey, one dusty crayfish turned up in a thermal spring near Budapest, Hungary, evidence that at least one aquarist released an unwanted pet. 



Similar introductions have seeded invasive populations of marbled crayfish and signal crayfish across Europe.



Non‑native crustaceans often carry the oomycete Aphanomyces astaci, the agent of crayfish plague, a disease lethal to indigenous European stocks. Even a handful of carriers can trigger a cascade that empties streams of native fauna.



Thermal refuges give tropical <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/more-than-3500-animal-species-are-directly-threatened-by-climate-change/">species</a> a foothold in colder climates. Once established, escapees outcompete local detritivores, alter nutrient cycling, and nibble on amphibian eggs, multiplying their ecological footprint.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-formal-naming-matters">Why formal naming matters</h2>



Legal frameworks that govern wildlife trade, such as <a href="https://cites.org/eng/disc/what.php">CITES</a>, depend on precise species lists. 



An unnamed organism cannot be added to an appendix, leaving customs officials powerless to intercept over‑harvested cargo.



Taxonomic clarity also guides aquaculture biosecurity. Without diagnostic characters, hatchery operators may unknowingly mix species, breeding hybrids that compromise genetic integrity in the source range.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-s-next-for-cherax-pulverulentus">What's next for Cherax pulverulentus?</h2>



Patoka’s group urges Indonesian authorities to map the crayfish’s distribution and to monitor harvest volumes. 



Citizen scientists photographing stream fauna with location tags could accelerate the search for hidden colonies.



Aquarists can help by buying captive‑bred stock, quarantining new arrivals, and never releasing pets into local waterways. 



Responsible hobby practice will allow enthusiasts to enjoy the dusty crayfish’s colors without endangering ecosystems.



The study is published in <a href="https://mapress.com/zt/article/view/zootaxa.5566.3.4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Zootaxa</a>.



-----



Like what you read?<a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/"> Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on<a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/"> EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by<a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/"> Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Colorful aquarium creature turns out to be a new species never catalogued by scientists

A beautiful turquoise‑and‑lilac sea creature that has been kept in...

Four tiny predators were hiding in South Korea’s limestone and lava caves, waiting for the right flashlight beam to catch their gleaming, pincer‑like jaws. These pale, eyeless pseudoscorpions - nicknamed “dragon pseudoscorpions” for their fierce-looking claws - had remained invisible to science until recently.



<a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=do5tcEAAAAAJ&amp;hl=en">Ki-Hoon Jeong</a> of the <a href="https://www.nibr.go.kr/">National Institute of Biological Resources</a> and his colleagues, who made the discovery, say the creatures spend their entire lives in complete darkness - which explains their ghostly lack of color and total blindness.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-caves-hide-rare-life">Caves hide rare life</h2>



Researchers have identified more than 1,000 caves across South Korea, yet many remain biologically uncharted. Caves form inside <a href="https://www.nps.gov/subjects/caves/karst-landscapes.htm">karst landscapes</a>, where acidic water dissolves limestone, creating isolated pockets that act like evolutionary islands for small creatures.



The perpetual night drives what biologists call <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3639761/">troglomorphic change</a>, most often the loss of eyes and pigment together with elongated limbs and sensory hairs. 



Because each cave system isolates itself from its neighbors, animals that stumble inside can quickly diverge, creating swarms of localized species that go unnoticed by science - unless someone rappels in



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dragon-jaws-and-vacant-eyes">Dragon jaws and vacant eyes</h2>



Jeong’s team named them Spelaeochthonius dugigulensis, S. geumgulensis, S. magwihalmigulensis, and S. yamigulensis. The adults are only about 0.08 inches long, but their chelicerae spread wide like grappling hooks.



“All species are strongly cave‑adapted and known from a single cave or karst system only,” wrote the authors. 



The pseudoscorpions wield venom‑tipped pedipalps that snap shut on springtails and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-mites-survived-without-sex-for-millions-of-years/">mites</a>, yet they lack the sting and tail that give true scorpions their reputation.



Worldwide, the order <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4450/13/1/25">Pseudoscorpiones</a> already boasts more than 3,300 described species, with dozens added every year.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-genes-confirm-the-newcomers">Genes confirm the newcomers</h2>



Field collections supplied just a handful of specimens, sometimes only one, but that was enough for DNA work. The researchers sequenced the <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1691236/">mitochondrial COI barcode</a>, a 650‑base snippet widely used for species delimitation.



In arthropods, a 10 percent COI gap usually separates good species boundaries. The four Korean lineages showed between 13.7 and 19.8 percent divergence, easily clearing that bar. 



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pseudoscorpions_Spelaeochthonius-dugigulensis_new-species_images_credit-Jeong_1m.jpg"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pseudoscorpions_Spelaeochthonius-dugigulensis_new-species_images_credit-Jeong_1s.webp" alt="Habitus of Spelaeochthonius dugigulensis sp. nov. A. Holotype male, dorsal view; B. Holotype male, ventral view; C. Paratype female, dorsal view; D. Paratype female, ventral view. Scale bar: 1 mm. Credit: Jeong et al." class="wp-image-1977845"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Habitus of Spelaeochthonius dugigulensis sp. nov. A. Holotype male, dorsal view; B. Holotype male, ventral view; C. Paratype female, dorsal view; D. Paratype female, ventral view. Scale bar: 1 mm. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Jeong et al.</figcaption></figure>



Even the closest pair differed by 6.8 percent, still above the in‑house variation of less than 0.6 percent reported for single populations.



These genetic splits mirror geography: each species occupies one cave, separated from its nearest relative by scores of rocky ridges and dry valleys, natural walls that arthropods the size of sesame seeds rarely cross.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-endemic-treasures-under-threat">Endemic treasures under threat</h2>



Blind cave life is fragile. Many Korean caves double as tourist attractions or concrete‑lined storage depots, and runoff can introduce pesticides, sewage, or construction dust.



Karst breakdown already erased one beetle, Coreoblemus parvicollis, which vanished after its only cave flooded behind the Chungju Dam, a cautionary tale cited by local conservationists.



Because the dragon pseudoscorpions live nowhere else, a single blocked entrance or polluted drip could wipe out each entire species. 



Jeong’s group urges formal protection for cave ecosystems before “dark extinction” claims more unseen lineages.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-taxonomy-protects-cave-life">Taxonomy protects cave life</h2>



Accurate species identification is more than just naming. It sets the groundwork for conservation laws, biodiversity metrics, and habitat protection. 



Without formal recognition, these pseudoscorpions wouldn’t qualify for endangered listings or land protections, leaving them invisible in policy.



Jeong’s team used both physical features and genetic data to verify each new species. 



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pseudoscorpions_Spelaeochthonius_new-species_genetic-analysis_credit-Jeong_1m.jpg"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/pseudoscorpions_Spelaeochthonius_new-species_genetic-analysis_credit-Jeong_1s.webp" alt="Phylogenetic analyses of Spelaeochthonius shed light on species diversity and the biogeographical complexity of this genus. Credit: Jeong et al." class="wp-image-1977847"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Phylogenetic analyses of Spelaeochthonius shed light on species diversity and the biogeographical complexity of this genus. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Jeong et al.</figcaption></figure>



Their work followed standards set by the <a href="https://www.iczn.org/">International Code of Zoological Nomenclature</a> and included digital archiving in <a href="https://zoobank.org/">ZooBank</a> to make the names valid and permanent.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-one-cave-equals-one-species">One cave equals one species</h2>



Each cave system in this study hosted a different pseudoscorpion, and none were found anywhere else. That makes them single‑karst endemics, meaning their entire population lives in one small, isolated location. If a single cave collapses or gets sealed, that species could disappear permanently.



This kind of hyper‑local distribution is common in cave life, especially among small <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cambrian-fossils-reveal-new-clues-about-arthropod-evolution/">arthropods</a> with limited mobility. It also means conservation decisions can’t rely on broad habitat ranges. 



Protecting these pseudoscorpions requires protecting individual caves, each one may be home to a species found nowhere else on Earth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-next-finds-lie-underground">Next finds lie underground</h2>



Every cave the team explored held at least one unknown pseudoscorpion, hinting that South Korea’s tally could climb from the current seven cave‑adapted species to dozens once systematic surveys begin.



With next‑generation sequencing now portable and cheap, even a few legs from a hand‑collected specimen can yield full mitochondrial genomes, opening the door to deeper evolutionary studies and faster threat assessments.



The discovery also reminds <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/humans-can-accurately-perceive-biodiversity-through-the-senses/">biodiversity</a> workers that tiny arthropods matter. They patrol fungal films, recycle bat guano, and feed larger cave invertebrates, weaving subterranean food webs every bit as intricate as those above ground. 



Protecting the darkness, therefore, protects an entire hidden branch of the Korean biosphere, one dragon‑jawed pseudoscorpion at a time.



The study is published in <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0325375">PLOS One</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

'Dragon pseudoscorpions' discovered living in caves have no fangs or eyes

Four tiny predators were hiding in South Korea’s limestone and...

You’ve seen them on shirts, in documentaries, and maybe jumping at a theme park. They look bold and sound fierce. But orcas, also called killer whales, aren’t what the name suggests. They’re smart, social, and loyal. Every year on July 14, we celebrate World Orca Day.



It started in New Zealand. A young orca got stuck in shallow water. Locals worked together to help him return to the sea. That rescue turned into something bigger. Now, people around the world use this day to honor <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/orcas-have-hunting-and-eating-habits-that-we-never-imagined/">orcas</a> - not only celebrating their strength but also highlighting the challenges they face.



While some orcas are thriving, many are struggling. They face pollution, food shortages, and in some cases, captivity in tanks. World Orca Day presents an opportunity to learn about the real challenges they endure.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-orcas-live-in-pods-and-pass-on-skills">Orcas live in pods and pass on skills</h2>



Orcas aren’t whales - they’re actually <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/why-are-killer-whales-struggling-to-survive-in-the-pacific/">dolphins</a> that live in social groups called pods. Every pod has its unique way of communicating. Some feed exclusively on fish, others hunt seals, and a few even pursue sharks. Each group follows its own distinct hunting strategy.



Orcas learn how to hunt from each other. Young ones watch the adults. They copy what they see, and then get better at it. Some pods chase fish into tight balls. Others slide onto beaches to grab seals. These skills don’t come from instinct - they’re passed down like family recipes.



Orcas stick together. Mothers lead, sons often stay for life, and grandmothers play a big role. They know the best places to find food and guide the group with memory and experience. These pods aren’t random groups - they are families.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-awareness-on-world-orca-day">Awareness on World Orca Day </h2>



The <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/prehistoric-marine-reptiles-would-have-eaten-killer-whales-as-snacks/">ocean</a> has gotten louder due to ships, drills, sonar. It’s equal to trying to talk in traffic. Orcas use sound to hunt and stay close. Ocean noise messes that up.



Food is another problem. Some orcas depend on salmon, but in some places, these fish are disappearing. Less food means weaker orcas, affecting moms, calves, and the whole pod.



Pollution adds to the stress. Orcas store fat. When they don’t eat enough, they burn that fat for energy. That’s when stored toxins enter the bloodstream, impacting their health and survival.



Some orca populations are shrinking. They can’t bounce back if the ocean stays loud and empty.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tanks-are-not-healthy-homes">Tanks are not healthy homes</h2>



Captive orcas live in marine parks. They spend years in tanks that are too small and restrictive.



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/photographer-captures-killer-whales-wearing-fish-hats/">Orcas</a> kept in tanks often suffer from illness. They may grind their teeth and display unusual behaviors, and they tend to have shorter lifespans than their wild counterparts. 



While some parks continue to feature them in shows, this is more for entertainment than genuine education.



A few places have banned <a href="https://savedolphins.eii.org/campaigns/fow">orca captivity</a>. Others still allow it. World Orca Day reminds people that wild animals belong in the wild. Tanks don’t offer a healthy life.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-world-orca-day-inspires-action">World Orca Day inspires action</h2>



To help protect orcas, you can start with the basics. Learn what makes them unique and share those facts with others. Stay away from parks that keep orcas in tanks. Choose brands that care about the ocean.



You don’t need to live near the coast to make a difference. You can watch orcas through live cams, read their stories, and talk about them. You can join a cleanup in your area or support groups working to protect marine life. Every small step counts.



On World Orca Day, schools and science centers often join the effort. Kids ask questions. Teachers explore ocean life. Artists and researchers also get involved. And you can too, in whatever way fits you best.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-this-day-still-matters">Why this day still matters</h2>



Orcas play a big role in the ocean. They help keep balance in marine food webs. When they suffer, the whole system shifts. They’re not just animals. They’re indicators of ocean health.



World Orca Day calls on us to care - to recognize how our actions impact the ocean. Orcas don’t seek applause; they need clean waters, plenty of food, and peaceful places to raise their young.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

World Orca Day 2025: Saving the ocean's top predators

You’ve seen them on shirts, in documentaries, and maybe jumping...

Fish have voices, and the sea is never silent. From croaks that ricochet through mangroves to deep‑sea booms, these conversations guide courtship, navigation, and survival.



A new analysis from <a href="https://www.sfu.ca/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Simon Fraser University</a> shows that Canada’s flagship conservation policies almost never recognize those <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/small-fish-species-are-the-big-catch-of-the-future/">voices</a>, leaving vital acoustic habitats unguarded. 



Marine ecologist <a href="https://www.sfu.ca/postdoctoral-fellows/profiles/kieran-cox.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kieran Cox</a> of Simon Fraser University co‑authored the study that sifted through two decades of federal paperwork.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fish-use-sound-to-survive-and-reproduce">Fish use sound to survive and reproduce</h2>



More than 1,000 known fish species are <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41597-023-02745-4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">soniferous</a>, meaning they deliberately produce sound to communicate, and hundreds more are suspected to do the same. Male toadfish drone like idling motorcycles, while haddock tick and grouper boom, each signal tuned to species‑specific ears.



“A male <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ancient-fish-bones-reveal-clues-about-the-evolution-of-eating/">fish</a> might hum or sing to attract their mates, and the longer his song, or the louder it is, the more eggs he will get from females,” explained Cox. 



Atlantic cod <a href="https://academic.oup.com/tafs/article/135/2/529/7887937" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Gadus morhua</a> grunt through swim‑bladder muscles during spawning, and researchers have tracked entire aggregations by listening to those calls.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ocean-noise-drowns-out-fish-voices">Ocean noise drowns out fish voices</h2>



The <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aba4658" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ocean soundscape</a>, the mix of biological, physical, and human noises filling the water, has changed faster than any other habitat feature in recent decades. 



Ship engines, seismic air guns, and pile drivers add low‑frequency roar that travels farther than light or chemicals, masking the fine‑tuned signals fish depend on.



Most of this din comes from <a href="https://wwwcdn.imo.org/localresources/en/OurWork/PartnershipsProjects/Documents/GloNoise-Library/MEPC.1-Circ.833-7April2014.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">underwater radiated noise</a> generated when propeller bubbles collapse and machinery vibrates the hull. As depth increases and daylight fades, sound replaces vision, so the risk rises for deep‑water species that have no other way to find mates or food.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conservation-laws-ignore-acoustic-habitats">Conservation laws ignore acoustic habitats</h2>



<a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320725003763" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">COSEWIC</a>, the expert panel that advises Ottawa on endangered wildlife, acknowledged fish sound production in just one assessment out of 204. Neither of the 56 recovery strategies drafted under <a href="https://laws.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/s-15.3/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SARA</a>, Canada’s endangered‑species law, mentioned soundscapes or noise threats.



Anthropogenic noise has <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aah4783" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">doubled</a> background sound levels in more than half of U.S. protected areas, hinting at the scale of the problem in Canadian waters as well. 



When noise blocks communication, the effect mirrors habitat loss, shrinking a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fish-dont-rest-while-hovering-its-actually-hard-work/">fish</a>’s functional living space even though the water looks unchanged.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-learning-from-the-whales">Learning from the whales</h2>



Regulators already protect communication spaces for southern resident <a href="https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/species-especes/publications/mammals-mammiferes/whalereview-revuebaleine/review-revue/killerwhale-epaulard/index-eng.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">killer whales</a>, setting vessel speed limits and buffer zones in the Salish Sea. During voluntary slow‑down trials, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X21010109" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">quieter ships</a> raised successful foraging dives by the whales, proving that less noise can yield instant biological payoffs.



Fish biologists argue the same principle should apply below the whales, because many coral, seagrass, and deep‑sea communities are built on acoustic cues. 



The International Maritime Organization’s revised <a href="https://wwwcdn.imo.org/localresources/en/Documents/MEPC.1-Circ.906%20-%20Revised%20Guidelines%20For%20The%20Reduction%20Of%20Underwater%20Radiated%20NoiseFrom%20Shipping%20To%20Address...%20%28Secretariat%29.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">guidelines</a> outline hull forms, propeller tweaks, and resilient engine mounts that slash cavitation clatter at the design stage.



For existing fleets, slower speeds remain the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X21013357" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">quickest fix</a>, trimming hull noise in minutes and saving fuel at the same time. On land, urban planners already impose airport curfews; similar acoustic zoning could shield key spawning refuges from seismic blasts.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fish-voices-must-be-included-in-planning">Fish voices must be included in planning</h2>



<a href="https://sites.google.com/site/ecoacousticssociety" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ecoacoustics</a>, the cross‑disciplinary science of environmental sound, now lets managers deploy autonomous recorders that log fish choruses year‑round with little labor. 



Cox and his team want Ottawa to add acoustics to every new status report, a change that would trigger legal duties to weigh noise limits before approving coastal developments.



“These three aspects of sound create different types of marine noise pollution, and each kind of noise pollution poses potential risks to marine species, from whales to fish to crustaceans,” said Kiara Kattler, who led the analysis in Isabelle Côté’s <a href="https://tmel.wordpress.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">lab</a>.



If policy follows the evidence, tomorrow’s endangered‑species plans could include quiet hours, ship‑route changes, and protected “singing grounds” for fish.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-policymakers-can-do-now">What policymakers can do now</h2>



Fisheries managers don’t have to wait for more studies to take action. Passive acoustic monitoring gear is already cheap, easy to deploy, and able to track seasonal behavior in many key species. 



Adding simple guidance on soniferous species to existing review checklists could prevent new development from degrading acoustic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-alternative-seafood-can-help-save-our-oceans/">habitats</a> by accident.



Acoustic degradation doesn’t only affect fish. Crustaceans, cephalopods, and even coral larvae also use sound to find mates or settle in reef habitats, which means entire ecosystems could be thrown off balance. 



By integrating sound into conservation policies, agencies could protect dozens of marine species at once without needing separate rules for each.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320725003763?dgcid=coauthor" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Biological Conservation</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Fish have voices but conservation policies ignore them

Fish have voices, and the sea is never silent. From...

A four week voyage across the North Atlantic has uncovered a pollutant so small that standard nets could never snag it. Researchers found that plastic particles under one micrometer, known as nanoplastics, saturate ocean water from the Azores to Europe.



When the team scaled their measurements up, they calculated roughly <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09218-1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">twenty seven million tons</a> of these specks floating in the top 650 feet of the North Atlantic, rivaling every estimate of larger debris for the entire world <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-plastic-crisis-goes-way-deeper-than-we-thought/">ocean</a>.



This estimate comes from geochemist Helge Niemann of the <a href="https://www.nioz.nl/en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research</a> and <a href="https://www.uu.nl/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Utrecht University</a>, who worked with graduate student Sophie ten Hietbrink aboard the research vessel RV Pelagia.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-detecting-invisible-plastic-particles">Detecting invisible plastic particles</h2>



Ten Hietbrink drew two‑liter samples at twelve stations, collecting <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/world-environment-day-2025-plastic-pollution-is-choking-our-planet/">water</a> from the surface, 3,300 feet, and near the seabed. She passed each sample through filters finer than a red blood cell.



Back in the Utrecht lab, the residue was baked inside a proton transfer reaction mass spectrometer, a device that fingerprints polymers by the gases they release. “By drying and heating the remaining material, we were able to measure the characteristic molecules of different types of plastics,” noted Ten Hietbrink.



The approach allowed the crew to log <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/polyethylene-terephthalate" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">polyethylene terephthalate</a>, polystyrene, and polyvinyl chloride even at 15,000‑foot depths. Every vial, no matter its origin, contained plastic.



Because the mass spectrometer ignores <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ai-algorithms-can-increase-ocean-plastic-cleanup-efficiency/">pieces</a> above one micrometer, the expedition focused exclusively on bits far smaller than conventional <a href="https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/microplastics.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">microplastic</a>, the fragments between one micrometer and five millimeters often photographed on beaches.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-shocking-amount-of-ocean-plastic">Shocking amount of ocean plastic</h2>



When the numbers from each station were extended across latitudes eight to fifty-five degrees north, the tally reached masses never before assigned to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/coca-cola-may-dump-1-3b-pounds-plastic-into-oceans-by-2030/">plastic</a> pollution. The final figure equals the combined cargo of almost 2,000 container ships.



Niemann described the result as a shocking amount and explained that it finally answers the puzzle of missing plastic that production statistics could not account for.



“There is more plastic in the form of nanoparticles floating in this part of the ocean than there is in larger particles floating in the Atlantic or even all the world's oceans,” said Niemann.



The data also reshape the popular image of ocean garbage patches. Nets that trap bottle caps and food wrappers sample only a thin veneer; the bulk of the load is invisible and dispersed.



Within the <a href="https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/gyre.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">North Atlantic subtropical gyre</a>, currents corral microplastics at the surface, yet the researchers found the highest nanoplastic concentrations closer to the European shelf, hinting at strong land-based sources.



The nanoplastic concentration dropped by roughly one half at 3,300 feet, and fell to about a third of surface levels near the seabed - yet plastic still appeared at every depth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-nanoplastics-harm-animals-and-humans">Nanoplastics harm animals and humans</h2>



Laboratory and clinical <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412022001258" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">studies</a> show that particles smaller than a micrometer can slip past the intestinal lining and enter the bloodstream, where they appear in human blood samples.



Once circulating, they can also cross the <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35302003/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">blood‑brain barrier</a>, ferrying other contaminants into nervous tissue - as demonstrated in mice.



Marine life confronts the same risk. Bacteria may mistake nanoplastics for food, zooplankton ingest them, and the particles ascend the food web to fish and seabirds.



A recent <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30861380/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">meta‑analysis</a> concludes that smaller pieces accumulate more readily than larger debris and may trigger oxidative stress in cells.



Field experiments in the Mediterranean have linked nanoplastic exposure to reduced filtration rates in farmed <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37379876/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">filter feeder mussels</a>, a sector worth more than $4 billion to coastal economies.



Economic losses could rise if shellfish accumulate particles that lower growth or market appeal, adding a financial dimension to what was once viewed solely as an environmental issue.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-where-the-fragments-come-from">Where the fragments come from</h2>



Sunlight bleaches and cracks larger items at the surface, eventually grinding them into nanoscale dust. River mouths add steady plumes of city trash each day.



The air itself delivers particles. Atmosphere monitors detect plastic aerosols over both continents and oceans, which settle by rainfall or dry deposition.



Once in seawater, nanoplastics no longer obey buoyancy rules. Their motion is governed by <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11905425/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Brownian motion</a>, letting them drift vertically and reach depths where light never penetrates.



Sediment cores from the deep <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10919090/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">North Pacific</a> and equatorial trenches already hold threads of polyester and shards of polyvinyl chloride, proving that tiny plastics sink or hitchhike on marine snow to the seabed.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-types-of-ocean-plastic-still-unclear">Types of ocean plastic still unclear</h2>



Curiously, the expedition detected no nanoparticles of polyethylene or polypropylene, the two polymers that dominate surface trash. Niemann suspects chemical weathering may hide their fingerprints, or the fragments may degrade faster than they form.



Future cruises will test other oceans and refine techniques to reveal modified polymers, because the Atlantic is unlikely to be unique.



Researchers also need time‑series records to track whether nanoplastic levels continue climbing or have reached a plateau.



Equally urgent is understanding how mixtures of plastic and natural organic matter interact, potentially altering toxicity.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-choosing-prevention-over-cleanup">Choosing prevention over cleanup</h2>



Niemann stresses that the particles already adrift are beyond recovery; their size makes skimming devices useless. The logical path is to curb new emissions.



Several countries now restrict the use of microbeads in cosmetics and plan to phase out certain single‑use items, yet production of virgin plastic keeps rising faster than recycling capacity.



Standardized monitoring that includes nanoscale particles would give policymakers a clearer target and let them judge whether interventions are working.



Citizen science beach cleanups, while unable to net nanoparticles, still remove items that would otherwise weather into new fragments, providing a frontline defense against future invisible pollution.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09218-1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Nanoplastic particles have infiltrated the ocean's food web at the most important levels

A four week voyage across the North Atlantic has uncovered...

Long before the first mammals walked the Earth, the oceans were home to strange, powerful fish. Some of these ancient fish eventually crawled onto land and kicked off a new chapter in evolution. 



Now, thanks to new fossil research, we’re learning even more about how these early animals lived - and ate.



In a new study led by scientists from <a href="https://www.flinders.edu.au/">Flinders University</a>, researchers examined jawbones from 380-million-year-old lungfish found in Western Australia's remote Gogo fossil field. 



The findings shed light on the evolution of feeding strategies in fish that are closely related to all land-dwelling <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/over-half-of-the-worlds-vertebrates-reside-in-the-tropics/">vertebrates</a>, including us.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-biting-power-of-ancient-fish">Biting power of ancient fish</h2>



The researchers used 3D finite element modeling (FEM) - a tool more commonly seen in engineering. They digitally tested how different fossilized jaws handled biting stress. 



By running simulations on fish jawbones from multiple species, the team revealed surprising variation in shape, strength, and eating behavior.



“Lungfish are ‘sister taxa’ to the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/we-know-far-less-about-four-footed-animals-than-expected/">tetrapods</a> - or all four-limbed animals with a backbone, including humans - which means they are our closest ‘fishy’ relatives,” noted Dr. Alice Clement.



“They have an extensive fossil history stretching back over 400 million years and still with living representatives today and their phylogenetic proximity to tetrapods giving insight into our long-distant ancestors who first made the move from water to land.”



That close relationship makes lungfish fossils especially valuable. The Gogo Formation in northern Western Australia is a goldmine of such specimens. With 11 known species, it holds the most diverse group of lungfish ever discovered from one place or time.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fish-bite-force-and-eating-style">Fish bite force and eating style</h2>



Until now, scientists knew these fish had different jaw shapes. What they didn’t know was how those jaws worked. The new models changed that.



“We’re slowly teasing apart the details of how the bodies and lifestyles of these animals changed, as they moved from being fish that lived in water, to becoming tetrapods that moved about on land,” said Dr. Clement.



By scanning seven fossil species and applying FEM to five of them, the team was able to measure how the jawbones responded to stress during simulated bites.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fossil-bites-defy-expectations">Fossil bites defy expectations</h2>



The dataset is the most detailed look yet at biting performance in any <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fossilized-fish-lived-15-million-years-ago-still-has-preserved-food-in-stomach-ferruaspis-brocksi/">fossil fish</a>. It provides biomechanical evidence for diverse feeding adaptations and niche partitioning within Gogo lungfishes, noted Dr. Olga Panagiotopoulou, a functional anatomist at Touro University California.



Some of the findings contradicted assumptions. Jaws that looked sturdy on the outside didn’t always perform well in bite-force simulations. And some that looked more delicate turned out to be much stronger than expected.



“The results were somewhat surprising, with some ‘robust’-looking lower jaws appearing to not be all that well suited to biting stress, and some of the more gracile or slender jaws appeared to be able to withstand stress and strain very well,” said Professor John Long of Flinders University.



“This diversity of biomechanical function seen in the Gogo lungfishes suggest that there was niche partitioning and trophic differentiation among lungfishes, possibly accounting for their incredibly high species diversity at this site.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-when-fish-reinvented-eating">When fish reinvented eating</h2>



The Devonian period, often called the “<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/early-jawless-fish-rhinopteraspis-dunensis-filter-feeders/">Age of Fishes</a>,” was ruled by placoderms and other ancient species for about 60 million years. Many of their fossils were found decades ago, but new tools like FEM are finally revealing how these animals actually lived.



Joshua Bland, a researcher at the Flinders Palaeontology Lab, is the study's lead author. He noted that the Gogo lungfish of the Late Devonian reefs were truly unique, with species possessing a host of different behaviors and abilities.



“To capture parts of that story, hidden in the bone, was extremely rewarding. It felt like we lifted the veil on some real functions behind the form. It was impressive to see the more complex morphology perform better in our tests," said Bland. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-future-science-from-old-bones">Future science from old bones</h2>



All 3D models from the study are now available on Morphosource, allowing other researchers to explore and expand on this work.



By combining old fossils with new technology, the team has brought us one step closer to understanding the creatures that helped shape life on land. 



The researchers have also shown that even after 380 million years, ancient bones can still have something new to say.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/iscience/fulltext/S2589-0042(25)01231-3?_returnURL=https%3A%2F%2Flinkinghub.elsevier.com%2Fretrieve%2Fpii%2FS2589004225012313%3Fshowall%3Dtrue">iScience</a>.



Image Credit: John Long, Flinders University



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Ancient fish bones reveal clues about the evolution of eating

Long before the first mammals walked the Earth, the oceans...

'Zombie' fungi that hijack insects are not just a modern forest horror story. A pair of tiny fossils locked in Burmese amber shows that these parasites stalked ants and flies nearly 100 million years ago in what is now Myanmar.



The newly described fungi, Paleoophiocordyceps gerontoformicae and Paleoophiocordyceps ironomyiae, sprouted from their long‑dead hosts, just like today’s entomopathogenic relatives. This gruesome strategy has clearly been in play since ancient times. 



Study co‑author <a href="https://www.biotaxa.org/pe/article/view/palaeoentomology.5.3.1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Professor Edmund Jarzembowski</a> of the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology (<a href="http://english.nigpas.cas.cn/">NIGPAS</a>) and London’s <a href="https://www.nhm.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Natural History Museum</a> helped craft the formal description.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ancient-outbreak-of-parasitic-fungi">Ancient outbreak of parasitic fungi</h2>



Amber from the Hukawng Valley captures an ant pupa with a slender fungal stalk, and a fly pierced by a second projectile‑like stroma. 



The position of each growth mirrors the way that modern zombie fungi erupt from soft joints after the host’s last breath.



Palaeontologists reconstructed the scene and noted that the ant appears to have been dragged away from the nest before the infection reached its spore‑spraying stage. Social insects often quarantine sick kin, a behaviour already in place during the <a href="https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/the-cretaceous-period.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cretaceous</a>.



“It’s fascinating to see some of the strangeness of the natural world that we see today was also present at the height of the age of the dinosaurs,” said Jarzembowski, reflecting on the familiar menace that infected the ancient insects.



The research team counted flask‑shaped perithecia, the microscopic chambers where sexual spores mature, on the fossilized stalks. 



Their arrangement ties the ancient genus to living Ophiocordyceps, even though the lineage split more than 130 million years ago.



Very few fossil pathogens display intact reproductive parts. This makes every new specimen a potential window into deep‑time disease ecology. 



The rarity arises because fungi are soft and because an insect corpse rarely fossilizes side by side with its killer, scientists noted.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-makes-a-fungus-a-zombie">What makes a fungus a zombie</h2>



Members of <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1005037" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ophiocordyceps</a> start with a pin‑sized spore that germinates. It drills through the exoskeleton of a living insect, and sets up shop in the haemolymph. 



Chemical signals then steer the victim to a perch that maximizes wind exposure for the dispersal of spores released after death.



A genome survey of ant‑infecting species uncovered dozens of genes that code for enterotoxin‑like proteins. This suggests that the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/deadly-fungus-aspergillus-that-can-eat-you-from-the-inside-out-is-quietly-spreading-around-the-world/">fungus</a> rewires muscles and nerves using the same tricks that bacteria use to upset mammalian guts.



Transcript <a href="https://www.nature.com/scitable/blog/accumulating-glitches/how_fungus_makes_ant_zombies/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">studies</a> show that as the infection peaks, genes tied to serotonin and dopamine pathways in the ant surge or plunge, matching the precise timing of the so‑called death grip.



Today more than 1,500 insect‑killing <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthpedia-articles/understanding-fungi-characteristics-and-function/">fungi</a> are catalogued, yet only a handful make headlines. Specialists target beetles that bore into crops or mosquitoes that spread malaria, demonstrating the ecological punch of these microbes, even outside tropical forests.



Their life cycle is a masterclass in recycling nutrients: the mycelium consumes host tissues from within, then the emergent stalk spreads fresh <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/biodegradable-living-plastic-contains-bacterial-spores-that-break-it-down/">spores</a> that restore carbon and nitrogen to soil food webs.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-amber-as-nature-s-time-capsule">Amber as nature's time capsule</h2>



Tree resin entombs soft bodies in minutes and hardens into amber that resists water, oxygen, and microbial decay. 



That airtight seal lets researchers inspect insect cuticles along with fungal filaments that are thinner than a human hair.



Kachin amber is celebrated for its clarity, but the deposit also raises ethical concerns because mining revenues can fund armed conflict. International guidelines now press museums to verify provenance before accepting new pieces.



Gem cutters often discard cloudy chunks, yet those fragments may shelter the best biological inclusions. Researchers therefore sift mine tailings for overlooked specimens, rather than fueling fresh extraction.



Because resin flows layer over layer, a single piece can trap snapshots separated by hours. That layering helps date biological events with unusual precision when volcanic ash beds bracket the deposit.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fungi-give-clues-to-insect-evolution">Fungi give clues to insect evolution</h2>



Comparative anatomy and molecular clocks place Paleoophiocordyceps on a branch that diverged from the modern zombie‑ant fungus during the <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/392592127_Cretaceous_entomopathogenic_fungi_illuminate_the_early_evolution_of_insect-fungal_associations" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Early Cretaceous</a>. this was at the time that flowering plants began reshaping terrestrial food webs.



The study’s host‑switch analysis flagged a likely jump from beetles to flies and ants, mirroring the radiation of pollinators and social insects. Such leaps underline how a parasite’s fate is tied to the fortunes of its preferred prey.



Beetles already thrived in decaying wood, an environment humid enough for fungal spores, while the rise of canopy flowers led <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/swarm-intelligence-ants-can-anticipate-obstacles-and-plan-ahead/">ants</a> to exploit new niches. The fungus followed its insect food, so to speak, adapting its toolkit for each cuticular landscape.



Host regulation may have checked insect booms long before birds or bats evolved sophisticated appetites for six‑legged prey. 



That invisible policing force could explain relatively stable herbivore damage in Cretaceous leaf fossils, despite soaring insect diversity.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-tale-familiar-to-modern-forests">A tale familiar to modern forests</h2>



Field surveys in Thailand show that fungus-infected ant graveyards form in patches where humidity hovers near 95 percent, suggesting the parasite needs microclimates as well as hosts.



Timing is equally precise. Infected carpenter ants bite down at solar noon more often than chance predicts, hinting that fungal circadian genes sync with the host’s biological clock.



When <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0004835" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">cadavers</a> pile up, each fungal stalk releases millions of spores, yet infections remain patchy. Colony grooming, corpse removal, and antimicrobial secretions keep outbreaks from wiping out entire nests.



Lab trials with generalist insect fungi show a trade‑off between killing speed and spore burden, meaning parasites that act too quickly may sacrifice dispersal success.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-it-matters-today">Why it matters today</h2>



Entomologists already deploy fungal <a href="https://www.epa.gov/ingredients-used-pesticide-products/what-are-biopesticides" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bio‑pesticides</a> against insects such as locusts and crop‑boring moths. 



This method of control targets the insects without drenching fields in chemicals. Lessons from ancient lineages could sharpen that strategy by revealing how host jumps evolve.



Climate models predict that warmer nights and shifting rainfall will widen the habitat for many fungal pathogens. 



Tracking their evolutionary playbook helps forecast which <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/insect-populations-dramatically-declining-around-the-world-rising-temperatures/">insect</a> groups, helpful or harmful, might feel the heat next.



The fossils nevertheless remind us that even tiny microbes leave fingerprints on evolution, shaping who thrives and who fails. 



The study is published in <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/abs/10.1098/rspb.2025.0407" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences</a>.



-----



Like what you read?<a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/"> Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on<a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/"> EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by<a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/"> Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

'Zombie' fungus that lived almost 100 million years ago found preserved in amber

'Zombie' fungi that hijack insects are not just a modern...

Ever wonder what kind of videos would keep monkeys glued to a screen? Turns out, their preferences aren’t all that different from ours.



A recent study found that long-tailed macaques are especially drawn to watching aggressive behavior and familiar faces - just like us. The findings offer new insight into the social instincts we share with other primates.



The study was led by researchers at <a href="https://www.uu.nl/en">Utrecht University</a> in the Netherlands, in collaboration with The Ohio State University.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-inside-the-monkey-theater">Inside the monkey theater</h2>



The team showed two-minute videos to 28 <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/japanese-macaques-have-social-bonds-that-persist-beyond-death/">macaques</a> living at the Biomedical Primate Research Centre in Rijswijk, the Netherlands. 



Each video featured monkeys from the same group or complete strangers, engaged in one of four activities: fighting, grooming, running, or just sitting around.



The macaques were free to enter a testing corridor where laptops played the videos. These testing areas were already familiar to the animals, so the environment wasn’t new or stressful. While watching, researchers tracked how long the monkeys looked at the screen.



The results were clear: the macaques paid the most attention to videos showing fights between monkeys. Running came in second. Grooming and sitting barely registered.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-conflict-grabs-attention">Conflict grabs attention</h2>



Brad Bushman is co-author of the study and professor of communication at The Ohio State University.



“<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/social-bonds-drive-learning-in-monkeys-and-humans-alike/">Humans</a> and macaques are both social animals who have a fundamental need to belong,” he said. “It’s not surprising that they both would be most interested in the video content that may help them navigate relationships in their groups.”



“We have plenty of research showing the popularity of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/early-exposure-to-violent-media-increases-aggression-in-teens/">violent media</a> with humans. Now we have some evidence that other primates might also be attracted to conflict and aggression in videos."



“From an evolutionary perspective, this makes sense. Both humans and other animals may be hardwired to pay attention to aggression because that is an adaptive response that increases survival,” Bushman added.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-groupmates-get-more-views">Groupmates get more views</h2>



The macaques didn’t just favor <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/visually-striking-primate-features-ease-tension-and-reduce-conflict/">conflict</a> - they also preferred to watch monkeys they knew. Videos of their own group members got more attention than clips featuring strangers.



“This indicates that gathering social information on group members is more important than getting information about strangers,” said Elisabeth H.M. Sterck, professor of animal behavior and cognition at Utrecht University.



“When we as humans watch movies, we like to see actors we know – we like to see the stars playing in big movies more than we do actors who are not familiar to us,” Bushman said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-monkey-social-status">Monkey social status </h2>



Not all monkeys watched with equal interest. Lower-ranking and less aggressive macaques were more attentive to the videos than their dominant peers.



“More dominant individuals can be more confident that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/alcohol-increases-pain-tolerance-and-fuels-aggression/">aggression</a> will not affect them – they don’t have to pay attention to others as much,” Sterck said.



“Lower-ranking individuals can become an aggression victim and that may be why they pay more attention to what others are doing in the videos.”



Interestingly, monkeys that were more anxious or easily stressed were less focused on group members.



“We found that the gathering of social information from the videos differed with dominance rank and behavioral tendencies, which may reflect personality,” Sterck said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-shared-curiosity-across-species">A shared curiosity across species</h2>



These monkeys, known for their visual acuity, watched the videos on their own terms - walking into the test space voluntarily. Each session was brief, but the pull of conflict on screen was undeniable.



“The macaques are very visual animals. Their eyesight is similar to that of humans, and they are very interested in watching videos,” Sterck said.



And while the videos were short, their effect was real. Bushman noted that even this brief exposure to aggressive media captured the attention of macaques in the study.



“When you see this in some of our closest primate relatives, it is easy to see why humans are so interested in violent media," said Bushman. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-primate-preference-for-drama">A primate preference for drama</h2>



What we see on screen says a lot about who we are - and apparently, that’s true for monkeys too.



In this study, our primate cousins showed they’re drawn to social drama and familiar faces, just like humans sitting down with popcorn for a movie night. 



Whether it’s about survival, curiosity, or just plain interest, the content that grabs attention may be more universal than we thought.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10071-025-01970-1">Animal Cognition</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Monkeys love watching videos of fights and friends - just like humans

Ever wonder what kind of videos would keep monkeys glued...

A new fossil skull, dug out of purple siltstone in northern China, belongs to a creature that walked the planet about 259 million years ago. The animal was named Yinshanosaurus angustus, and the find helps fill a gap in the family tree of large plant‑eating reptiles that roamed just before the greatest die‑off in Earth’s history.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-unearthing-yinshanosaurus-angustus">Unearthing Yinshanosaurus angustus</h2>



<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jian-Yi-9" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dr. Jian Yi</a> and <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jun-Liu-222" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dr. Jun Liu</a> of the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (<a href="http://english.ivpp.cas.cn/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">IVPP</a>), compared two well‑preserved specimens from Shanxi and Inner Mongolia.



Both fossils include almost complete skulls, giving researchers a rare full view of the head and much of the spine.



“Pareiasauria are a bizarre herbivorous clade of tetrapods that existed in the Guadalupian and Lopingian and were victims of both the <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/earth-science/articles/10.3389/feart.2021.631198/full" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Late Capitanian</a> and the end‑Permian mass extinction events,” reminded Liu. 



The more complete of the two skulls measures 10 inches long yet barely 4 inches wide across the cheeks, the narrowest head known for any pareiasaur.



That unusual shape is not the only odd trait. The snout is as wide as it is high, the frontal bone is slender and twice as long as it is wide, and the upper‑jaw teeth stand almost vertical instead of tilting backward as in relatives.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-on-earth-is-a-pareiasaur">What on Earth is a pareiasaur?</h2>



A pareiasaur is a stocky, barrel‑bodied tetrapod that carried a tiny tail and a head often ringed with bony knobs. Most species topped out at about 8 feet long and weighed as much as today’s American bison.



They thrived across the <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22096103/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">late Permian period</a>, serving as key plant chompers in ecosystems from South Africa to Russia. Their success ended abruptly when roughly 90 percent of marine species and 70 percent of land vertebrates vanished at the close of the era.



Yinshanosaurus angustus foraged on the northern shoulder of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/forest-fossils-from-earths-largest-mass-extinction-carry-a-climate-warning/">Pangea</a>, the single landmass that stitched together today’s continents. 



At the time, the interior of the supercontinent swung between searing summers and bitter winters, pressuring animals to adapt or disappear.



China’s Naobaogou and Sunjiagou formations capture that turbulent landscape in stacked mudstones and siltstones. 



Periodic floods buried carcasses quickly enough to preserve delicate <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-discover-a-33-foot-jurassic-giant-twice-as-big-as-its-cousin-xingxiulong/">skeletal</a> links, a stroke of luck for modern paleontologists.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-clues-written-in-bone">Clues written in bone</h2>



Yi and Liu spotted a forked rear projection on the nasal bone and a notch in the tabular bone at the back of the skull, features never seen together before. 



They also noticed a U‑shaped paraoccipital process that differs from the V‑shaped version in close cousins.



“The skeleton of Yinshanosaurus angustus provides the complete cranial and articulated postcranial details of Chinese pareiasaurs for the first time,” added Jian Yi after months of lab preparation. 



Using 183 anatomical characters, the team ran computer analyses that split Chinese pareiasaurs into three distinct branches, placing the new taxon beside <a href="https://dbpedia.org/page/Shihtienfenia" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Shihtienfenia completus</a> within a fresh sub‑group.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-the-permian-still-matters">Why the Permian still matters</h2>



The Permian ended with volcanic eruptions in what is now Siberia, pumping out enough carbon dioxide to warm oceans by at least 14°F. 



That spike drove <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cascading-oxygen-loss-could-endanger-our-oceans/">ocean anoxia</a>, acid rain, and habitat collapse, setting the stage for the dinosaurs that would follow in the Triassic.



Each newly described pre‑extinction species sharpens models of how ecosystems responded to rising heat and disrupted carbon cycles. 



Because pareiasaurs sat low on the land food chain, they reflect the health of primary plant production more directly than predators do.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-from-dig-site-to-digital-tree">From dig site to digital tree</h2>



CT scans of the Shanxi skull reveal replacement tooth buds waiting beneath worn crowns, confirming lifelong dental turnover like that in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fossil-discovery-shifts-the-origin-of-lizards-back-35-million-years/">modern lizards</a>. 



The scans also expose internal canals that once carried blood vessels to horn‑like bosses, suggesting seasonal growth tied to mating display or species recognition



Digital models of those structures feed into the expanding open database hosted by the Chinese Academy of Sciences. 



By pooling 3‑D files from separate labs, researchers can test competing family trees without moving fragile <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/what-fossils-tell-us-about-life-after-mass-extinction/">fossils</a> across borders.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-yinshanosaurus-angustus-and-the-future">Yinshanosaurus angustus and the future</h2>



Work now shifts to beds just above the current fossil horizon, layers that may hold early <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/triassic-fossils-shed-new-light-on-ancient-ecosystems/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Triassic</a> survivors or fresh victims of the end‑Permian crisis. 



Liu’s group plans a targeted survey during the next field season, armed with drone‑based photogrammetry to map promising outcrops.



The team also hopes to sample bone collagen, if any remains, for stable‑isotope studies that could reveal diet and seasonal water stress. 



Combined with climate models, those data might show whether narrow‑snouted herbivores had a feeding edge in arid late Permian landscapes.



Understanding how a mid‑sized, flat‑snouted browser fit into the pre‑extinction puzzle helps scientists refine the timeline of faunal turnover. 



Each added piece, however small, tests broader ideas about resilience and collapse as Earth’s systems tip past critical thresholds.



-----



Yinshanosaurus angustus <a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Yinshanosaurus-angustus_tetraod_illustration_credit-Guo-IVPP_1m.jpg">image credit</a>: Guo, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP)



The study is published in <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/spp2.70020" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Papers in Palaeontology</a>.



-----



Like what you read?<a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/"> Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on<a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/"> EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by<a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/"> Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Scientists discover a prehistoric animal that lived on Earth 259 million years ago

A new fossil skull, dug out of purple siltstone in...

As oceans heat up, coastal sharks are adjusting their calendars. Instead of swimming south in early fall, many are now sticking around longer due to global warming. 



Researchers at <a href="https://www.stonybrook.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Stony Brook University</a> tracked this trend by following six shark species along the U.S. East Coast. They used acoustic tags and detection models to uncover how ocean warming delays the sharks’ southern migrations by up to 29 days.



"Both temperature and photoperiod (length of sunlight) influenced the timing of the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/greenland-sharks-survive-for-centuries-in-icy-waters/">sharks</a>’ southernly migration, and it is likely that they both cumulatively influence migratory patterns,” said lead author Maria Manz.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-sharks-delay-migration-due-to-warming">Sharks delay migration due to warming</h2>



The study observed blacktip, dusky, sand tiger, sandbar, thresher, and white <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-the-sharks-body-grows-with-geometric-precision/">sharks</a>. Among them, sandbar sharks showed the longest delay of up to 29 days. They also used the widest range of latitudinal zones, from the New England Shelf to Florida.



White sharks, by contrast, showed the least delay. Being partially warm-bodied (regional endotherms), they are less dependent on external temperature shifts. Their migration changed by only one day under future climate scenarios.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-east-coast-is-warming-fast">East Coast is warming fast</h2>



The study focused on the Mid-Atlantic Bight. This region, especially the New York Bight and New England Shelf, is heating faster than many other parts of the Atlantic. 



According to projections based on the high-emissions SSP5 8.5 scenario, the New England Shelf could warm by over 2°C (3.6°F) by 2049.



This rise in temperature affects not just the water, but everything in it. Fish prey species may move earlier or later, altering food availability for predators like sharks.



“Results of the models suggested that projected increases in SST across decades may delay southern autumn <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rare-video-footage-of-an-elusive-deep-sea-predator-pacific-sleeper-shark/">migrations</a> of coastal sharks with many species remaining in northern habitats for longer durations," wrote the researchers.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-sharks-were-tracked-in-warming-waters">How sharks were tracked in warming waters</h2>



The researchers tagged 155 sharks and monitored their movements using over 390 acoustic receivers. These receivers picked up signals from the tags whenever sharks came within 900 meters (2,953 feet).



The sharks’ migrations were tracked across five defined zones: New England Shelf (NES), New York Bight (NYB), Mid-Atlantic (MA), Southern Atlantic (SA) and Florida (FL).



Some species, like sandbar and thresher sharks, appeared in all zones. Others, like white sharks, showed more restricted ranges.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-predictors-of-migration-timing">Predictors of migration timing</h2>



To understand what drives sharks to migrate, the researchers fed their data into mixed-effect Cox models. 



The team tested sea surface temperature (SST), photoperiod, and lunar phase. Photoperiod emerged as a consistently strong predictor, especially for thresher <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/shark-skeletons-could-lead-to-technological-innovations/">sharks</a>.



Interestingly, lunar phase had less influence than expected. Only sandbar sharks showed some sensitivity to moonlight patterns. 



Most migration timing was better explained by combinations of light and temperature, which can vary regionally.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-warming-delays-and-shark-survival">Warming delays and shark survival</h2>



If sharks delay migration but human activities continue on schedule, it could spell trouble. For example, commercial fishing in the Northeast typically ramps up in the fall. Sharks that remain in the area face a higher risk of accidental catch.



“Our findings suggest that climate change could increase vulnerability to bycatch, particularly in mixed-use areas like the New York Bight,” the authors wrote.



There is also concern that shark diets and reproductive cycles may shift out of sync with prey availability. A mismatch in timing could reduce feeding success or breeding success.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-strategies-for-a-changing-ocean">New strategies for a changing ocean</h2>



Static conservation policies will not hold up if shark behavior keeps changing. The researchers suggest dynamic management tools, like adjusting fishery closures based on temperature data.



Sandbar sharks, which showed the most migration delay, may require special focus. They are already listed as vulnerable due to previous overfishing and slow reproduction.



Successful conservation now depends on real-time data and predictive modeling. As this study shows, changes in migration are not hypothetical. They are already underway.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-shark-migration-is-shifting-with-warming">Shark migration is shifting with warming</h2>



The timing of shark migrations is shifting. Some species are adapting by staying longer in warming northern waters. While that may suit them for now, it raises questions about long-term ecological impacts.



Maria Manz and her team stress the importance of using both regional climate data and shark movement models. Doing so can improve predictions and help managers adjust strategies before the ocean changes even more.



"Our study adds to the growing body of evidence demonstrating how migratory populations will respond to a warming climate, potentially altering regional ecosystem dynamics and exposure to anthropogenic threats."



The research is published in the journal <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cobi.70080" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Conservation Biology</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Warming oceans are changing shark migration patterns

As oceans heat up, coastal sharks are adjusting their calendars....

Rainforests thrive on delicate relationships. Plants, animals, and insects like ants constantly interact, creating a web of survival and competition. Amid this chaos, unexpected harmony sometimes blooms.



In the tropical rainforests of Fiji, scientists uncovered a fascinating story of peacekeeping. It is not a tale of advanced creatures or complex brains. Instead, it centers around a plant with an unusual design. 



This plant has developed a surprisingly simple strategy to solve conflict among aggressive ants.



This discovery from <a href="https://www.durham.ac.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Durham University</a> reshapes our understanding of cooperation in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-future-climate-conditions-will-transform-plant-growth/">nature</a>. It shows how something as basic as plant architecture can manage aggression and encourage mutual support. 



The study reveals that, sometimes, structure itself can shape behavior and nurture harmony among rivals.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ants-and-plants-team-up">Ants and plants team up</h2>



The plant at the center of this story belongs to the genus Squamellaria. It is part of the Rubiaceae family, also known as the coffee family. These plants grow on the branches and trunks of rainforest trees.



The plants form large, bulbous structures called domatia. These domatia are not just growths - they serve as homes for ants. In return for shelter, ants provide the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-finally-learn-what-makes-plants-roots-grow-faster-and-stronger-autophagy/">plant</a> with essential nutrients from their waste.



However, the ants that live in these plants are not naturally friendly neighbors. Many of them are highly aggressive and often engage in violent fights with other species. 



This raises an important question: how can so many aggressive species coexist peacefully inside a single plant?



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-walls-keep-rivals-apart">Walls keep rivals apart</h2>



The answer lies in the design of Squamellaria’s domatia. Professor Guillaume Chomicki of Durham University led an international team to investigate the mystery. 



Using high-resolution 3D CT scans, the researchers explored the inner structure of the plant’s domatia. What they found was remarkable. The plant creates domatia with multiple chambers, each completely sealed off from the others inside.



Every chamber has its own entrance, but inside, walls separate them from their neighbors. This design prevents physical contact between ant <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/plant-roots-could-be-key-to-fighting-climate-change/">species</a>. It is as if the plant built a miniature apartment complex, with each species living in its own secure unit.



This clever separation prevents fights and keeps the peace within the plant. It is not a chemical trick or behavioral adaptation by the ants. The plant’s architecture itself enforces harmony.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-one-plant-many-ants">One plant, many ants</h2>



To test the effectiveness of this system, the researchers conducted extensive fieldwork. They observed Squamellaria plants on three Fijian islands for over a decade.



The team's observations revealed that a single Squamellaria <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/plants-could-soon-talk-to-farmers-and-listen-too/">plant</a> could house as many as five different ant species simultaneously. Despite their natural tendency to fight, the ants coexisted peacefully.



The researchers also performed nutrient labeling experiments using nitrogen isotopes. These experiments confirmed that all of the ant species provided valuable nutrients to the plant. 



Each ant colony contributed to the plant’s well-being, making the relationship mutually beneficial for all involved.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-when-peace-breaks-down">When peace breaks down</h2>



To truly understand the importance of separation, the researchers conducted a bold experiment. They surgically removed the internal walls between the chambers of the domatia.



The results were immediate and violent. Ant species that had previously lived peacefully erupted into fierce battles. These fights led to many ant deaths on both sides.



In contrast, plants with intact chambers saw no such conflict. Even outside the plant, ants shared food sources without issue. This highlights the importance of physical separation inside the plant.



“It is incredible how such an odd group of organisms, restricted to a couple of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/nasa-warning-sea-level-rise-in-pacific-island-nations-is-irreversible/">Fijian islands</a>, can provide general insights into the stability of cooperation between species,” noted Professor Chomicki.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-plant-that-solves-conflicts">A plant that solves conflicts</h2>



The team also created mathematical models to further explore the plant’s strategy. The models confirmed that compartmentalization helps maintain long-term partnerships. 



The system prevents fights during the early stages of colony establishment. This allows each chamber to develop into a stable, nutrient-contributing <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/just-a-few-ants-can-change-an-entire-colonys-social-structure/">colony</a>.



Even in situations where only a small fraction of arriving ants were aggressive, the models showed that compartmentalized domatia performed better than single-chambered ones.



This shows that separating rivals is not just a short-term solution. It has lasting benefits for both the plant and its ant residents. The architecture ensures that mutualism remains stable over time, providing security and resources for all involved.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hidden-harmony-in-nature">Hidden harmony in nature</h2>



This discovery helps solve a long-standing mystery in ecology. Scientists have wondered how unrelated and sometimes hostile species manage to maintain cooperation.



The findings suggest that physical separation could be a widely used strategy in nature. Many organisms may rely on similar methods to prevent conflict and maintain beneficial relationships.



The study of Squamellaria shows that architecture alone can shape ecosystems. It highlights the hidden power of structural design in keeping peace among species that would otherwise be at odds.



In the rainforests of Fiji, a simple plant demonstrates that sometimes, the best way to manage conflict is to keep your neighbors at a safe distance.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adu8429" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Science</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Some plants have a strategy to prevent violent ant fights

Rainforests thrive on delicate relationships. Plants, animals, and insects like...

Most people don’t like snakes. Some fear them and others avoid even talking about them. Every year on July 16, the world takes a moment to pause, reconsider, and appreciate snakes.



For World Snake Day 2025, the message is clear: “Respect, Don’t Fear: Protecting Nature’s Silent Guardians.” It’s more than a catchy slogan - it’s a call to rethink everything we’ve been taught. Are snakes truly the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/new-species-of-tree-snake-with-completely-black-eyes-is-discovered/">villains</a> we’ve made them out to be?



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-ecological-role-of-snakes">The ecological role of snakes</h2>



Snakes are natural rodent controllers, consuming large numbers of pests that threaten crops and spread disease. 



On farms and in forests, they work silently and efficiently, reducing the need for chemical pesticides. Just one snake can eat dozens of mice in a year - a small act with a big impact on food security and human health.



Snakes are also a vital food source for predators like hawks, owls, coyotes, and foxes. If snakes vanish, these animals lose a key part of their diet - and the balance begins to unravel. <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/34-million-year-old-snake-fossil-hibernophis-breithaupti-changes-our-understanding-of-evolution/">Nature</a> doesn’t function well when pieces go missing.



However, it's easy to forget the important ecological role of snakes, especially when you come face to face with one. 



The reality is that most snakes aren’t dangerous. In the United States, garter snakes and corn snakes are harmless. King snakes are also harmless, and they even eat venomous snakes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-world-snake-day-2025-fear-and-myths">World Snake Day 2025: Fear and myths</h2>



Movies have affected our perception of snakes. They are often depicted as monsters or bad omens, and that image sticks with us. But in reality, snakes don’t chase people, don’t plot attacks, and they’re certainly not evil.



Venomous snakes do exist - from rattlesnakes and copperheads in North America to vipers, cobras, and kraits in Asia and Africa. 



While these snakes do pose risks, they generally avoid human contact and rarely bite unless threatened or provoked. Most bites occur when people try to handle, move, or harm them.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-humans-are-the-biggest-threat-nbsp">Humans are the biggest threat&nbsp;</h2>



Habitat loss hits snakes hard. Cities expand, forests shrink, and wetlands dry up. Roads cut through territory, and cars hit snakes crossing them. Lawns replace wild grass. Fewer places to hide means that fewer snakes survive.



Then there’s the pet trade. People catch wild snakes, stuff them into containers, and sell them online. Some die in transit, while others live in tanks that are too small, too hot, or too dry. Many do not survive these conditions for very long.



Furthermore, misinformation spreads fast. One fake video of a “deadly” snake goes viral and people panic. More snakes get killed. We don’t do this to most <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/some-birds-use-snake-skins-in-their-nests-to-deter-predators/">animals</a>, but for snakes, fear seems like justification. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-meaning-of-world-snake-day">Meaning of World Snake Day </h2>



World Snake Day isn’t about loving snakes - it’s simply about respecting them. That means giving them space, learning the facts, and stopping needless harm. 



Across the country, zoos and wildlife groups hold events this week. They show people how snakes behave, and some offer safe encounters. Others run online sessions, where you can ask a herpetologist questions. 



These events open minds and help break down fear and misconceptions, promoting a greater appreciation for the important role snakes play in ecosystems everywhere.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-changing-our-perception-of-snakes">Changing our perception of snakes</h2>



First, stop believing every snake is dangerous. Learn which ones live near you. In most U.S. states, for example, venomous snakes are rare and easy to identify. 



If you spot a snake, stay calm and give it space to move away. If it’s in your yard and you’re concerned, contact a local wildlife organization for help. Avoid using sticks, guns, or any force. 



If you know someone who still believes “the only good snake is a dead snake,” start a conversation. Sharing just one fact can be enough to change how they see snakes. You don’t have to become an expert; just stop being their enemy.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-creature-that-is-misunderstood">A creature that is misunderstood </h2>



Snakes have existed for over 100 million years. They’ve outlived dinosaurs. They’ve adapted, evolved, and survived major extinctions - but they might not survive us.



That’s the uncomfortable part of this story. We’re the problem, but we can also be the solution.



World Snake Day 2025 offers us a <a href="https://www.worldanimalprotection.org/our-campaigns/sentience/animal-awareness-days/world-snake-day/">moment</a> - not to idolize snakes or adore them without question, but to pause, gain understanding, and perhaps take steps to protect a creature that has long been misunderstood.



So next time you see a snake, remember this: it’s not out to get you. It’s just trying to live its quiet, necessary life. 



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

World Snake Day 2025: Protecting nature’s silent guardians

Most people don’t like snakes. Some fear them and others...

These complex, looping tracks pressed into ancient seafloor mud look much more like doodles made by a child with a stick than fossils of animal movement. 



However, new measurements have shown those squiggles were, in fact, purposeful movements along paths made by primitive animals navigating their world almost 550 million years ago, well before textbooks say complex life "took off" during the Cambrian Explosion.



Analysis of 170 <a href="https://www.nps.gov/dena/learn/nature/trace-fossils.htm" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">trace fossils</a>, which are the preserved marks of animal movement rather than the animals actual <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/animal-movement-predictions-matter-more-than-ever/">bodies</a>, tell a much different story. 



They suggest that streamlined, sensor‑rich creatures were gliding across the seabed roughly 10 million years before the start of the <a href="https://stratigraphy.org/ICSchart/ChronostratChart2024-12.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cambrian Explosion</a>, a 20‑million‑year interval beginning near 538.8 million years ago when most major animal groups appear in rocks.



Paleontologist Dr. Zekun Wang of the <a href="https://www.nhm.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Natural History Museum, London</a>, led the <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rspb.2025.0889" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">work</a> with colleagues in Canada and China.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-when-animals-started-moving">When animals started moving</h2>



The <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/grand-canyon-fossils-reveal-secrets-of-the-cambrian-explosion/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cambrian Explosion</a> has often been framed as a sudden evolutionary big bang that conjured eyes, limbs, and hard shells out of nowhere.



Yet the new study argues that many key traits, including directed movement and elongated bodies, emerged quietly during the preceding <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/591-million-years-ago-complex-life-emerged-on-earth-magnetic-field-ediacaran-period/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ediacaran Period</a>, which stretched from 635 million to 539 million years ago.



Wang’s team grouped the oldest tracks into three phases that mirror escalating anatomical sophistication. Early trails twist abruptly, matching stubby builders with limited perception. 



Mid‑stage paths smooth out, implying better coordination. Latest tracks resemble modern worm burrows, pointing to long, hydrodynamic bodies.



“Life in the Ediacaran was no longer microscopic, but typically, it wasn't able to move along the seafloor,” said Wang. His catalog shows that by about 545 million years ago, motion had transformed from stumble to cruise.



That timeline overlaps a sedimentary upheaval known as the <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/229535050_The_Cambrian_Substrate_Revolution" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cambrian Substrate Revolution</a>, when burrowers began churning seafloor mud and opening new ecological real estate. The traces imply the engineers of that revolution were already in rehearsal.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-ancient-animals-moved">How ancient animals moved</h2>



Most Ediacaran body fossils are little more than quilted impressions, making it tricky to match shape to behavior. <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/ichnology" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ichnology</a>, the study of trace fossils, fills the gap by reading sediment as a behavioral diary.



Classic ichnology relies on eyeballing trail patterns, but Wang’s group added mathematics. They calculated curvature along each path, converting wavy lines into numbers that capture turning radius and smoothness. 



Paths that rarely bend sharply signal <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/animals-secretly-reshape-landscapes-in-powerful-ways/">creatures</a> with elongated, flexible trunks; jerky turns point to compact forms that pivot on the spot.



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/complex-animals_Psammichnites_fossil_movement-before-skeletons_credit-Zhao_1m.jpg"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/complex-animals_Psammichnites_fossil_movement-before-skeletons_credit-Zhao_1s.webp" alt="By analyzing trace fossils of ancient animal movement, like Psammichnites, researchers have been able to determine how animals lived and moved more than half a billion years ago. Credit: Ziwei Zhao and Dr Xiaoya Ma" class="wp-image-1978192"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">By analyzing trace fossils of ancient animal movement, like Psammichnites, researchers have been able to determine how animals lived and moved more than half a billion years ago. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Ziwei Zhao and Dr Xiaoya Ma</figcaption></figure>



Those metrics can also hint at senses. An animal plotting a straight, efficient route was likely following chemical or tactile gradients toward food, whereas a meandering track betrays a blind wanderer bumping into meals by chance.



By comparing fossil tracks to modern analogs, horseshoe crabs, snails, and worms, the researchers estimated how animals moved and found body length‑to‑width ratios climbing from roughly 1:1 to as high as 12:1 during the final Ediacaran chapter.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-movement-style-and-animal-shapes">Movement style and animal shapes</h2>



In a second paper, the team applied <a href="https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/~wjh/dataview/tutorials/sonogram.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">power‑spectral analysis</a>, a signal‑processing tool more common in engineering than paleontology. 



The technique isolates periodicities in trajectory curvature, teasing out repeated movement motifs such as rhythmic undulation or <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/peristalsis">peristalsis</a>.



Results hint that early trace makers moved by extending blobs of tissue, akin to giant amoebae. Later forms show signatures of muscular waves consistent with bilateral nerve‑muscle systems, the hallmark of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/Bilateria" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bilaterian animals</a> that dominate today’s fauna.



“By studying their mathematical properties instead, we can infer what the animals that made the traces might have been like,” added Wang. The numbers back a gradual rise in body coordination rather than an overnight makeover.



Because trace density also spikes near the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0301926819306278" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ediacaran‑Cambrian boundary</a>, some researchers speculate that mobile bilaterians outcompeted stationary soft‑bodied cousins, contributing to an extinction that wiped out many iconic quilt‑patterned taxa.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-body-changes-over-time">Body changes over time</h2>



Curvature metrics separated paths into “unsmooth,” “regional‑smooth,” and “smooth” categories. Unsmooth tracks, older than 550 million years, loop and kink like cracked phone cords. 



<a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40628487/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Regional‑smooth trails</a> appear a few million years later, tracking short animals that likely glided with cilia or stubby legs. 



Smooth trails dominate at 545 million years, matching long, tapered worms using muscular ripples to push through sediment.



Importantly, the switch did not require shells or skeletons. Streamlining alone would have lowered drag and extended sensory coverage, advantages in search of patchy <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/animals-share-hidden-behavior-patterns-across-continents/">microbial</a> mats that coated the sea floor.



As body plans slimmed, animals began to burrow vertically, ventilating deeper layers and altering chemical gradients. 



That engineering likely changed oxygen levels and nutrient cycling, paving the way for the bustling Cambrian seascapes familiar from <a href="https://naturalhistory.si.edu/research/paleobiology/collections-overview/burgess-shale" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Burgess Shale</a> snapshots.



The data reinforce a view that evolution’s tempo can accelerate smoothly rather than spiking. What looks like an explosion in body fossils may instead record the moment when durable hard parts first preserved an already diverse cast of animals and their moves.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-early-animal-movement-matters">Why early animal movement matters</h2>



Mobility reshapes ecosystems by mixing sediments, redistributing microbes, and linking food webs. The Ediacaran traces show these processes igniting earlier than once thought, giving Earth an extra 10 million years of ecological tinkering before skeletons burst onto the scene.



Understanding that prelude helps resolve puzzles such as why some soft‑bodied lineages vanished while others thrived. 



Animals able to seek favorable niches or escape stress would outlast immobile epifauna during environmental swings of the <a href="https://bio.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Introductory_and_General_Biology/Introductory_Biology_(CK-12)/05%3A_Evolution/5.08%3A_Late_Precambrian_Period" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">late Precambrian</a>.



The work also highlights how quantitative tools borrowed from physics and computer science can wring fresh insight from humble scrapes in stone. 



What once looked like random squiggles now provide centimeter‑scale snapshots of nervous systems coming online.



Next steps include three‑dimensional imaging of burrow architecture and geochemical probes that trace oxygen footprints around the tunnels, offering further clues to how early animals moved, breathed, and fed.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-looking-beyond-the-fossil-bones">Looking beyond the fossil bones</h2>



The updated timeline invites revisions to evolutionary trees calibrated on the <a href="https://evolution.berkeley.edu/the-cambrian-explosion/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cambrian Explosion</a>, because behavioral innovations precede skeletal ones. 



It may also adjust models of Earth’s biogeochemistry, as active burrowing accelerates the burial of carbon and sulfur.



Paleobiologists are already scanning older rock layers for similar curved tracks, hoping to push complex mobility even deeper into geological time. 



Each new find tightens the connection between behavior, environment, and evolutionary opportunity.



By quantifying wiggles in mud, Wang and colleagues show that the story of animals and their moves is written not only in bones but in the graceful arcs of forgotten journeys. The quiet crawl before the boom matters as much as the boom itself.



The study is published in <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rspb.2025.0889" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Proceedings of the Royal Society B</a>.



-----



Like what you read? <a href="https://www.earth.com/subscribe/">Subscribe to our newsletter</a> for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates.&nbsp;



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by <a href="https://www.earth.com/author/eralls/">Eric Ralls</a> and Earth.com.



-----

Fossil discovery casts fresh doubt on the 'burst of evolution' known as the Cambrian Explosion

These complex, looping tracks pressed into ancient seafloor mud look...

species in Syngenoherpiidae

News coming your way