Caterpillars evolved their weird chubby little 'prolegs' from ancient crustaceans By Richard Pallardy published 23 October 23 The extra legs caterpillars have appear have origins in the primitive crustaceans that insects evolved from during the Ordovician period over 400 million years ago.
Takins: Strange, mountain-dwelling mammals with mythical golden fleeces By Richard Pallardy published 21 October 23 These weird-looking stocky mammals roam Alpine zones and forested valleys in Asia, using their specially adapted split hooves help them traverse the steep, rocky terrain.
The strange story of sharks that lived in a golf course pond for 20 years — then vanished By Richard Pallardy published 27 September 23 In the 1990s, a group of juvenile bull sharks were left stranded in a golf course pond in Australia, where they thrived for decades. Now scientists are trying to understand why.
Indian crocodiles seen saving dog from feral pack attack, but scientists divided over what it means By Richard Pallardy published 20 September 23 Crocodiles appeared to rescue a dog that had been chased into a river, and scientists said this unusual behavior could indicate empathy — but others are skeptical.
Mystery of 'living fossil' tree frozen in time for 66 million years finally solved By Richard Pallardy published 15 September 23 The Wollemi pine was thought to have gone extinct 2 million years ago until it was rediscovered by a group of hikers in 1994. Now, scientists have decoded its genome to understand how it's survived — almost unchanged — since the time of the dinosaurs.
Tortoise beetle larvae use their telescopic anuses to build shields from shed skin and poop By Richard Pallardy published 11 September 23 Many tortoise beetle larvae create shields for themselves using faeces and old skin. Scientists have now looked at how and why they create these poop parasols.
'Like a bomb has gone off': Ancient humans may have set megafires that turned Southern California into an uninhabitable 'wasteland' for 1,000 years By Richard Pallardy published 25 August 23 Ice-age humans may have set fires that led to the extinction of large mammals across what is now Southern California.
Watch sloth fight off ocelot in incredibly rare footage from deep in the Amazon rainforest By Richard Pallardy published 18 August 23 The footage from a camera trap in Yasuní Biosphere Reserve in eastern Ecuador appears to be the first time a fight between a sloth and an ocelot has been caught on film.