Biology

A team of herpetologists, led by Dr. Eli Greenbaum, associate professor of biological sciences at the University of Texas at El Paso, has discovered three new species of chameleons. The Rugege highlands forest chameleon (Kinyongia rugegensis). Image credit: Eli Greenbaum. The reptile trio — historically thought to be a single …

A new species of cottontail rabbit (genus Sylvilagus) has been described from the lowlands of western Suriname by Portland State University Professor Luis Ruedas. The Suriname lowland forest cottontail (Sylvilagus parentum). Image credit: UOL / IUCN. Prof. Ruedas made the discovery after studying rabbit specimens at the Naturalis Biodiversity Center …

In 1859, Charles Darwin included a novel tree of life in his book ‘On the Origin of Species.’ Now, a Rutgers University-led research team wants to reshape Darwin’s tree. The authors discuss their proposal in a paper published online in the journal Trends in Ecology and Evolution. A 2016 representation …

Scientists reporting in the Journal of Mammalogy on May 30 have identified a new species of flying squirrel living in the Pacific Coast region of North America. The Humboldt’s flying squirrel (Glaucomys oregonensis), the third-known species of flying squirrel in North America and the 45th known species of flying squirrel …

Chimpanzees share our human ability to amass knowledge, a new study led by a University of St Andrews researcher has found. Chimpanzees share the human capacity to build on the knowledge of others. Image credit: Marcel Langthim. The ability to achieve great feats by building on the work of others …

Herpetologists are claiming they have discovered a new species of frog living in the Amazonian lowlands of Ecuador. The Yaku glassfrog (Hyalinobatrachium yaku) in life. Top row: adult male, holotype, in dorsal and ventral view. Bottom row: adult male, paratype. Image credit: Guayasamin et al, doi: 10.3897/zookeys.673.12108. The glassfrogs, or …

An international team of taxonomists led by experts at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF) selected the top 10 from among the approximately 18,000 new species named during 2016 and released the list this week to coincide with the birthday, May 23, of Carolus Linnaeus. Linnaeus is …

After decades of research aiming to understand how DNA is organized in our cells, a team of researchers from the Gladstone Institutes, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and elsewhere has shed new light on this field by discovering how a key protein helps control gene organization. The study is published …

New research from the University of Sheffield, UK, has shed light on how hunter-gatherers adopted agriculture and how crops were domesticated to depend on people. Ploughing with a yoke of horned cattle in Ancient Egypt. Domesticated crops have been transformed almost beyond recognition in comparison with their wild relatives — …

A new species of the butterfly genus Melitaea has been discovered in northern Israel, according to a paper published in the journal Comparative Cytogenetics. The Acentria’s fritillary (Melitaea acentria), female, Mt. Hermon (1,800 m), Israel, May 7, 2016. Image credit: V. Lukhtanov, doi: 10.3897/CompCytogen.v11i2.12370. Butterflies of the genus Melitaea are …