New fossil fish on plate tectonics map
Climate change and asteroids are linked with animal origin and extinction – and plate tectonics also seems to play a key evolutionary role, ‘groundbreaking’ new fossil […]
Palaeontology
Fossils lead to NZ’s ‘first’ native species
Forget the kiwi or moa, kākāpō are the true native of New Zealand. Aotearoa’s true ancient species are animals like kākāpō, small wrens, bats and freshwater limpets, […]
Student steps back 70,000 years
A field excursion to the Wellington Caves in outback NSW was part of a step-back-in-time experience for Investigator College Year 11 student William Soper. As recipient […]
‘Giga-goose’ shows its face
After 128 years of exploration, fossil excavation and investigation, Flinders University researchers have finally uncovered the skull of Australia’s own giant and charismatic megafauna bird – […]
Giant kangaroos bounce back from the past
Palaeontologists from Flinders University have described three unusual new species of giant fossil kangaroo from Australia and New Guinea, finding them more diverse in shape, range […]
New tree of life for modern birds
The largest and most complete study of bird evolution has been launched after an international team of scientists revisited the timing of evolutionary changes. In a […]
Ancient air-breathing fish comes to the surface
Alice Spring’s Finke River (Larapinta), often cited as one of the oldest rivers in the world, once hosted waters teeming with bizarre animals – including a […]
Why the long face? Now we know
Horses have developed long faces simply ‘because they can,’ a team of evolutionary biologists say. In a major review of how mammalian heads evolve, scientists from […]
Big birds of prey rise again
Australia’s only vulture, and a fearsome extinct eagle, are among the earliest recorded birds of prey from the Pleistocene period more than 50,000 years ago – […]