Biology
Updates every hour. Last Updated: 11-May-2025 03:09 ET (11-May-2025 07:09 GMT/UTC)
15-Apr-2025
Primate mothers display different bereavement response to humans
University College LondonPeer-Reviewed Publication
Macaque mothers experience a short period of physical restlessness after the death of an infant, but do not show typical human signs of grief, such as lethargy and appetite loss, finds a new study by UCL anthropologists.
- Journal
- Biology Letters
15-Apr-2025
Foraging on the wing: How can ecologically similar birds live together?
Penn StatePeer-Reviewed Publication
A new study used modern methods to reassess a foundational study in biology that explained how ecologically similar species of wood warblers coexist. The research team examined foraging behavior, physical characteristics, diet and evolutionary history of 13 warbler species and found that how these songbirds coexist is more nuanced than originally proposed.
- Journal
- Biology Letters
- Funder
- U.S. National Science Foundation, Schmidt Sciences, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Penn State Eberly College of Science, Pennsylvania State University
15-Apr-2025
Growing wildflowers on disused urban land can damage bee health
University of CambridgePeer-Reviewed Publication
Wildflowers growing on land previously used for buildings and factories can accumulate lead, arsenic and other metal contaminants from the soil, which are consumed by pollinators as they feed, a new study has found.
- Journal
- Ecology and Evolution
- Funder
- USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture
15-Apr-2025
First confirmed footage of a colossal squid—and it’s a baby!
Schmidt Ocean InstituteReports and Proceedings
An international team of scientists and crew on board Schmidt Ocean Institute’s research vessel Falkor (too) was the first to film the colossal squid (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni) in its natural environment. The 30-centimeter juvenile squid (nearly one foot long) was captured on video at a depth of 600 meters (1968 feet) by the Institute’s remotely operated vehicle (ROV) SuBastian. The sighting occurred on March 9 on an expedition near the South Sandwich Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. This year is the 100-year anniversary of the identification and formal naming of the colossal squid, a member of the glass squid family (Cranchiidae).
15-Apr-2025
USC researchers develop plastic substitute from mineral found in seashells
University of Southern CaliforniaPeer-Reviewed Publication
USC Viterbi School of Engineering researchers have discovered a mineral commonly found in seashells could be the key to a safer plastic alternative.
- Journal
- MRS Communications
- Funder
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, USC Sea Grant Program
15-Apr-2025
First Caribbean 'dirt ant' found in 16-million-year-old amber
New Jersey Institute of TechnologyPeer-Reviewed Publication
Biologists at NJIT unearth a buried chapter in the evolution of dirt ants, uncovering first fossil evidence that one of Earth's stealthiest insects inhabited the Caribbean millions of years ago.
- Journal
- Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences