Scientists from @griffith.edu.au analyzed 199 unrelated interactions involving 19 species to reveal that bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) and baleen whales engage in playful behavior with each other! 🧪 link.springer.com/article/10.1...

@stephanspiekman.bsky.social and colleagues recently described Mirasaura grauvogeli, a newly discovered Triassic reptile, which has a complex feathered skin crest that evolved independently of feathers or hair! 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Dissacus praenuntius fossils reveal how ancient predators adapted to global warming. During the Paleocene–Eocene thermal maximum, this jackal-sized omnivore shifted its diet to include more bones, mirroring today's wildlife responses to climate change! 🧪 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

The James Webb Space Telescope may have just captured an image of a planet orbiting Alpha Centauri A! This presumed planet is a cool, Saturn-sized world with an elongated orbit, possibly accompanied by moons! 🧪 arxiv.org/abs/2508.03814 arxiv.org/abs/2508.03812

"Scrumping" describes the behavior of primates consuming overripe, fermented fruit. Studying this behavior may help us better understand the evolution of human alcohol tolerance! 🧪 academic.oup.com/bioscience/a...

9 million years ago, a romance between tomato-like plants and potato ancestors (Etuberosum) in South America led to the birth of the potato as we know it! This ancient hybridization resulted in tuber formation allowing potatoes to thrive in harsh Andean environments! 🧪 www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...

A new phasmid species, Acrophylla alta, has been discovered during wet season habitat searches in Queensland, Australia. The linked paper includes a comparative key and details on habitat, food, and reproduction! 🧪 mapress.com/zt/article/v...

The Kuril–Kamchatka Trench is home to the deepest chemosynthesis-based communities ever discovered! It spans 2500km and provides hydrogen sulfide/methane to this extreme environment. 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Recent research on ancient bronze jars discovered in coastal Italy suggests they likely contained honey - with multianalytical approaches revealing the presence of lipids, sugars, and royal jelly proteins! 🧪 pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...

Astronomers have observed a young star 1,400 light-years away (HOPS-315) surrounded by cooling gas and silicate minerals. This marks the early stages of planet formation and could provide crucial insights into the processes that shaped our own solar system! 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

A recently discovered meter-long front flipper of the Jurassic ichthyosaur Temnodontosaurus reveals unique soft-tissue anatomy including a wing-like planform with serrated edges that could have provided for hydroacousticly enhanced stealth! 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Bottlenose dolphins in Shark Bay, Australia, use sponges on their beaks while hunting fish to protect them from sharp rocks while they forage at the expense of echolocation. Only about 5% of the population has mastered this culturally transmitted skill! 🧪 royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

@vestaeleuteri.bsky.social and colleagues observed that elephants use a combination of gestures for goal-directed communication that is almost unheard in non-primates! 🧪 royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

Atacamite, an emerald-green mineral, demonstrates unusual magnetocaloric behavior such that its temperature is dramatically reduced in the presence of a magnetic field! This has potential for energy efficient cooling applications! 🧪 journals.aps.org/prl/abstract...

Recently discovered Tharsis fossils present a compelling case for careful eating! These Jurassic ray-finned fish would sometimes accidentally choke on the long bony bodies of squid-like belemites while sucking up decaying organic matter! 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

A new comet, 3I/ATLAS, has been spotted zooming in from interstellar space! This is only the 3rd time we've seen such a cosmic traveler! ('Oumuamua and Comet 2I/Borisov are the other two!) 🧪 arxiv.org/pdf/2502.16741

Paranthropus boisei could have made the oldest known tools which challenges the idea that only the most "human-like" of our ancestors were capable of such feats! 🧪 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Astronomers have captured visual evidence of a star that detonated twice (SNR 0509-67.5), revealing a new mechanism behind Type Ia supernovae! 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Orcas (Orcinus orca) have been observed offering food to humans 34 different times across four oceans! This seemingly altruistic behavior highlights the cognitive and social capabilities of these marine mammals! 🧪 psycnet.apa.org/fulltext/202...

@nbellono.bsky.social and colleagues observed that Elysia sea slugs steal chloroplasts from algae and store them in specialized organelles called kleptosomes. During times of starvation, this allows them to photosynthesize in support of their energy needs! 🧪 www.cell.com/cell/abstrac...

The James Webb Space Telescope has achieved a significant milestone by directly imaging exoplanet TWA-7b, a cold gas giant located 111 light-years from Earth! 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Archaeologists have uncovered the ancient routes of Stone-Age seafarers who journeyed from Taiwan to Japan's Ryukyu islands! They sailed dugout canoes to demonstrate how ancient people could have successfully navigated these challenging waters! 🧪 www.science.org/doi/full/10....

@drwhale.bsky.social and colleagues have discovered a new orca (Orcinus orca ater) behavior known as allokelping! These killer whales use bull kelp as grooming tools - possibly to enhance social bonds or to promote skin health! 🧪 www.cell.com/current-biol...

Ornithologists from @cornellbirds.bsky.social suggest that territoriality and foraging communication are the main reasons birds sing at dawn, challenging the "acoustic transmission" hypothesis which claims this timing optimizes sound carry distance. 🧪 royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

Two Mediterranean beetle species, Pygopleurus chrysonotus and P. syriacus, possess photoreceptors that can detect red light! This finding prompts a reevaluation of the evolutionary relationship between flower colors and pollinator vision. 🧪 journals.biologists.com/jeb/article/...

Every year Bogong moths (Agrotis infusa) migrate 600+ miles to cool mountain caves where they take refuge from the Australian summer heat. Remarkably, these insects find their way at night via a combination of celestial navigation and magneto-perception! 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Wild Nematodes have been observed forming "living towers" on rotting fruit. These tiny worms are not just making acrobatic towers; they’re hitching rides on insects to explore new territories! 🧪 www.cell.com/current-biol...

Spathagnathus roeperi gen. et sp. nov., a pterosaur recently discovered in the Solnhofen limestone, is the oldest known gnathosaurine! This taxon is differentiated by its unique dental features and adds to the known diversity of Late Jurassic ctenochasmatids! 🧪 link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Cleaner goby (Elacatinus evelynae) stations do more for their ecosystems than just remove parasites. @dranyabrown.bsky.social and colleagues report that these tiny fish also shape microbial diversity across the entire coral reef! 🧪 www.int-res.com/abstracts/me...

After the end-Permian extinction, archosauromorphs defied the odds by migrating through an inhospitable super-hot region known as the Pangaean tropical dead zone! Their resilience may have been crucial to the evolutionary success of these dinosaur ancestors. 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Three lizard species (F. oustaleti, O. cuvieri, and Z. laticaudatus) may be vital for the survival of Madagascar's ecosystems! These little guys spread seeds from over 20 plants throughout degraded environments that other seed spreaders like lemurs avoid! 🧪 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) have been observed blowing bubble rings during friendly encounters with humans! This playful behavior might be more than just fun; it could be a new way of communicating! 🧪 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Data from @medimurdermaps.bsky.social been used to study historical criminology patterns including a recently solved medieval murder case - A priest slain in revenge by a local noblewoman after her humiliation by the church! 🧪 link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Data collected from 47,000 trees across China suggest that Buddhist temples serve as a critical refuge for endangered tree species underscoring the critical role that cultural monuments can play in preserving biodiversity! 🧪 www.cell.com/current-biol...

@barbaraklump.bsky.social and colleagues observed sulfur-crested cockatoos (Cacatua galerita) in Sydney operating twist-handle drinking fountains! This behavior suggests the emergence of cultural tradition amongst these feathered problem solvers! 🧪 royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

The @shoalgroup.bsky.social report that baboons (Papio ursinus) walk in lines not for safety, but rather to stay close to friends! This study reveals that social bonds drive movement patterns and highlights the importance of these relationships in animal behavior. 🧪 academic.oup.com/beheco/advan...

The world's oldest synthetic pigment, Egyptian Blue, has finally been recreated in a lab! Advanced techniques like X-ray diffraction and spectrometry were used to uncover the relationship between this color and its microstructure! 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/s40...

Researchers have discovered a new single celled organism in seawater near Hachijojima Island in Japan. Viscidocauda repens is a protist from the Endomyxa group and features a persistent flagellum which is a first for its kind! 🧪 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

The chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) of Guinea-Bissau demonstrate "stone-assisted drumming" for long-distance communication by throwing rocks at trees. This behavior is likely culturally transmitted within population groups! 🧪 royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/... www.youtube.com/watch?v=oU1u...

@umich.edu scientists have discovered a novel silicone co-polymer that acts like a semiconductor. This challenges the traditional view of silicones as insulators and opens avenues for flexible electronics and color-variable applications! 🧪 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

@nicmalexandre.bsky.social and colleagues report that Anna’s hummingbirds (Calypte anna) have adapted their beak morphology in response to human-made feeders, expanding their range significantly! 🧪 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

The @sipimikko.bsky.social lab report that ammonia from Adélie penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae) guano enhances cloud condensation over Antarctica so significantly that it mitigates regional climate change effects! 🧪🐧💩 www.nature.com/articles/s43...

For 30 million years, the sloth family diversified across the Americas, from megafauna as large as elephants to the six considerably smaller species we know today. This evolutionary history has recently been explored by analyzing ancient DNA and over 400 fossils! 🧪 www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Experimental contact lenses now allow humans (and mice) to see near-infrared light by converting it into visible wavelengths. No power source needed! 🧪 www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...

@theresarueger.bsky.social and her team report that clown fish (Amphiprion percula) can shrink in response to heat stress, boosting their survival odds by 78% with better odds when these fish coordinate with a breeding partner! 🧪 www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

A new study from @ucdavis.bsky.social highlights the ecological impact of invasive bullfrogs (Rana catesbeiana) on Northwestern pond turtles (Actinemys marmorata) in Yosemite National Park. Remediation efforts show promising results for turtle recovery! 🧪 www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

@zoegoldsborough.bsky.social and colleagues observed a somewhat unsettling social tradition among the capuchins of Jicarón Island: some males relieve their boredom by abducting baby howler monkeys for piggy-back rides! 🧪 www.cell.com/current-biol... www.youtube.com/watch?v=mooQ...

Paleontologists have recently described Mosura fentoni, a newly identified radiodont species from 506 million years ago, notable for its distinctive segmented abdomen and three eyes! 🧪 royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/...

@chiaradg.bsky.social and colleagues observed that Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) use a complex vocalization structure containing recursion previously thought unique to humans! 🧪 nyaspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

@idorog.bsky.social and colleagues observed that 400+ tree species simultaneously partner with two types of mycorrhizal fungi (Lactarius and Clitocybe) to access more nutrients and water resulting in broader geographic ranges! 🧪 onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...