![Large brown cockroach](jpg/gettyimages-476825324c72e.jpg)
How Did Cockroaches Reach Global Domination?
A common species of cockroach hails from Asia, according to new research that tracks its spread around the globe
How Did Cockroaches Reach Global Domination?
A common species of cockroach hails from Asia, according to new research that tracks its spread around the globe
Glow-in-the-Dark Animals May Have Been Around for 540 Million Years
Ancestors of so-called soft corals may have developed bioluminescence in the earliest days of deep-ocean living
How Humans Lost Their Tails
A newly discovered genetic mechanism helped eliminate the tails of human ancestors
An Evolutionary ‘Big Bang’ Explains Why Snakes Come in So Many Strange Varieties
Snakes saw a burst of adaptation about 128 million years ago that led to them exploding in diversity and evolving up to three times faster than lizards
‘Living Fossil’ Lizards Are Constantly Evolving—You Just Can’t See It
New research into the “stasis paradox” challenges the rules of evolution
New ‘Chicken from Hell’ Discovered
A newly identified “chicken from hell” species suggests dinosaurs weren’t sliding toward extinction before the fateful asteroid hit
Robotic Dinosaur Tests How Dinos (and Birds) Got Wings
Scientists built a robotic dinosaur to terrify grasshoppers, all in hopes of understanding how truly pathetic wings could offer prehistoric animals an evolutionary advantage
A Comic Guide to the Evolution of Ancient Cells into Complex Brains
“The anus was a prerequisite for intelligence” said one biologist
How Does the World’s Largest Seabird Know Where to Fly?
Wandering albatrosses navigate thousands of miles using “the voice of the sea.”
Did Neurons Evolve Twice?
Tracing the history of the earliest animals offers clues to whether the birth of the neuron was a one-time event
The 6 Most Intriguing Things We Learned about Pet Cats and Dogs This Year
In 2023 we learned that cats really are choosing to ignore humans and that—despite dogs getting all the glory when it comes to retrieving prowess—cats want to play fetch, too
Eyeless Cave Spiders Can Still ‘See’ the Light
Some species of cave-dwelling spiders lack eyes but still maintain the ability to sense light, which likely protects them from the arid environments at the sunny mouths of caves