Fossil footprints give glimpse of how ancient climate change drove the rise of reptiles
A set of fossils that lay forgotten in a museum are revealing new secrets about Britain's prehistoric wildlife
Coastal Management
Uneasy non-evolution: India has amended its coastal regulations 25 times over the past 19 years. Here are some samples. Scroll over the bubbles …
Evolution: why it seems to have a direction and what to expect next
A dominant, intelligent species like humans will always be bad news for many of the other species on the planets where they evolve
Ancient humans may have first walked upright on trees, not land
Researchers look at chimpazees to understand bipedalism; New study contradicts earlier theories
We sequenced the oldest ever DNA, from million-year-old mammoths
About a million years ago, there was a known species of mammoth inhabiting Siberia. This was thought to be the ancestor of later species, but was it?
A geological account on how to interpret time
Bjornerud rationalises global problems we are facing today and says that the reason for this evidently self-harming behaviour is because of the …
How fish evolved to walk — and in one case, turned into humans
Some fish species pull themselves forward using well developed fore-fins, while others “walk” along the ocean floor.
Have human-made changes heralded a new epoch?
Experts have proposed that the new epoch—Anthropocene—began around 1950, when human-induced changes started affecting earth's geology
Axolotls can regenerate their brains — these adorable salamanders are helping unlock mysteries of brain evolution, regeneration
Identifying all the cell types in the axolotl brain also helps pave the way for innovative research in regenerative medicine
What if the Lazarus returns
We may never be able to bring extinct species back to life. Yet, scientists are drawing up secret plans for their resurrection
What elephants teach us about cancer prevention
Elephants naturally avoid cancer after 55 million years of evolution. Scientists are studying if they can extract lessons that could help people
Chimpanzees evolved to behave more flexibly. It can help them weather climate change
Chimpanzees are capable of remarkable behavioural variability, and this may have allowed them to range in harsher and drier habitats
How to use evolution to fight malaria
Scientists have proposed a new strategy to select mosquitoes which can be checked by repellents, thereby less likely to transmit malaria
Our expertise and observations complemented those from Europe: Gopakumar Achamveedu
Down To Earth speaks to Gopakumar Achamveedu from Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, who is part of the international team of …
Food supply, protection determine denning habits of striped hyenas
Denning behaviour in a species helps to maximise its overall survival fitness in its habitat by securing a foothold place against adverse …
The forgotten tigons and litigons of Alipore Zoo and other hybrids: Part 2
‘Species’ is a concept invented by human beings. And that concept is not clear-cut
Humanity’s birthplace: why everyone alive today can call northern Botswana home
Earliest population of modern humans arose 200,000 years ago in an area that covers parts of modern-day Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe
How culture shaped evolution
A new book argues that cultural evolution helped in the accumulation of locally adaptive knowledge much faster than genetic evolution
Humans now drive evolution on Earth, both creating and destroying species
Human activity doesn't just reduce biodiversity – new research explores how we are continually creating newspecies and ecos
New study adds to calls for formal recognition of Himalayan wolf
The research, conducted by British and Nepalese researchers, confirms that the proposed Himalayan wolf is an ancient wolf lineage, has developed …
Greenland fossil find may force rethink on origin of life
Discovered four years ago, the finds were not publicised at that time as geologists led by Allen P Nutman of the University of Wollongong in …
Making sex count
In the annals of modern medicine, medical research experiments have always been sexist. The tide is finally turning
Giant sea lizards: Fossils in Morocco reveal astounding diversity of marine life 66 mn years ago
Far from declining at the end of the Cretaceous, marine reptiles — especially mosasaurs — evolved to become increasingly diverse
It’s reassuring to think humans are evolution’s ultimate destination – but research shows we may be an accident
Modern biologists agree most complex organisms have become more complex over the last 4 billion years, disagree over the process that accounts …
Semantics of Anthropocene: Have humans really formed a new era
The Earth will hardly notice when we humans are gone, just as it hardly knew we were here