Mammal

About 125 million years ago, a young mammal about the size of a possum bit down on the side of a beaked dinosaur nearly three times its size. The animals died like that, entangled and at odds with each other, a fossilized tableau of the dinosaurian-mammalian power shift that would finally come about 60 million years later.Exclusive Jurassic World Dominion Bonus Feature ClipThose are the certainties of the Cretaceous Period exchange that wereencased in time until this week, when a team of paleontologists revealed the…

Fossil showing the entangled skeletons of Psittacosaurus (dinosaur) and Repenomamus (mammal) and their interaction just before death. NOTE: The scale bar equals 10 cm. Credit: Gang HanA 125-million-year-old fossil, showing a carnivorous mammal attacking a dinosaur, challenges the long-standing belief that <span class="glossaryLink" aria-describedby="tt" data-cmtooltip="<div class=glossaryItemTitle>Cretaceous</div><div class=glossaryItemBody>The Cretaceous is a geological…

The most intriguing fossils tell a story about the animal’s life, or where and how it lived, and paleontologists have now uncovered a doozy. The fossils of a dinosaur and a small mammal have been discovered locked in combat when they apparently died together mid-fight, revealing new insights into the relationship between ancient reptiles and mammals.It’s often thought that during the reign of the dinosaurs, mammals were mostly small critters scurrying around under those giant scaly feet. But new studies are showing our…

Just like some people, elephants seem to prefer a rich palette of foods, research out this week suggests. Studying decades-old poop, researchers found that elephants tend to have diverse diets that can differ significantly from others in the same community. These diets are further influenced by the time of year and the elephants’ specific circumstances.What is One Change Mark Zuckerberg Should Make to His Social Platforms? | Gizmodo InterviewPast research has been able to show the broad strokes of an elephant’s…

When does a squirrel become a pancake? Answer: Apparently, when the world becomes a griddle. It’s officially sweat season for humans in the U.S., which means it’s sploot season for squirrels. And if you don’t know what that means, keep reading.What is One Change Mark Zuckerberg Should Make to His Social Platforms? | Gizmodo InterviewParts of 17 states are under active heat advisories and warnings as of Friday morning, according to the National Weather Service, encompassing more than 100 million people. From California to…

The Sunday Magazine10:00The history of animal espionageIt may be impossible to interrogate Hvaldimir the beluga on his connection to Russian espionage, but if he is a spy, he wouldn't be the first sea creature to be given a covert mission. The whale first surfaced near Norway in 2019 carrying camera gear marked "equipment of St. Petersburg" prompting some to wonder if the whale was a Russian spy. It was named Hvaldimir, which is a combination of the Norwegian word for whale and Russian President Vladimir Putin.The whale …

A recent study found that COVID-19 lockdowns dramatically influenced mammalian movement behaviors. In strict lockdown areas, animals traveled 73% farther and moved 36% closer to roadways, indicating a decrease in fear of human presence or traffic. These findings underscore the impact of human activity on wildlife and offer insights for future conservation efforts.A new study indicates that the reduced traffic and human mobility during the 2020 <span class="glossaryLink" aria-describedby="tt"…

In a groundbreaking study, it has been suggested that humans are not as unique or egalitarian in their societal behaviors as often believed. The study involved a hundred researchers from various global institutions and compared data from 90 human populations to lifetime data for 45 different nonhuman, free-ranging mammals.Study looks at reproductive inequality in humans compared to other <span class="glossaryLink" aria-describedby="tt" data-cmtooltip="<div…

A significant international study examining the genomes of 240 mammals has revealed over three million key regulatory elements, advancing understanding of mammalian evolution, species-specific traits, disease predispositions, and risk of extinction. The findings, which could improve understanding and treatment of diseases like schizophrenia, asthma, and medulloblastoma, underscore that at least 10% of the genome is functional, far more than previously known.Genomes From 240 Mammal Species Explain Human Disease RisksWhy is…

Running wolves, flying bats and swimming dolphins seem to have few similarities. But these widely disparate animals are among at least 240 mammalian species—including humans—that share a full 10 percent of their genome. This discovery includes more than 400,000 never-before-identified stretches of DNA that likely control the way that genes—the segments of genetic material that code for proteins—actually function. The newly analyzed regions were highlighted in papers published today in Science detailing the first effort to…