A 'barcode' gene that can be used to distinguish between the majority of plant species on Earth has been identified. This gene, which can be used to identify plants using a small sample, could lead…

An unusual new species of whirligig beetle from India is being named Orectochilus orbisonorum in honor of the late rock ‘n’ roll legend Roy Orbison and his widow Barbara. Arizona State University…

Tropical forests are immensely species-rich. The question of what causes this diversity is a perennial one in tropical biology. In the 1970s Daniel Janzen and Joseph Connell independently came up…

Although there is unquestionably much left to be discovered about life on Earth, charismatic animals like mammals are usually well documented, and it is rare to find a new species today—especially…

Midwestern farming has introduced the equivalent of five Connecticut Rivers into the Mississippi River over the past 50 years and is adding more carbon dioxide annually into its waters, according to…

Prairie voles, aka Microtus ochrogaster, are common native rodents in the central U.S. and southern Canada. Because they mate for life and are relatively easy to study, the mouse-like creatures have…

Marine bacteria come almost a billion to a cup. Until recently, however, little has been known about how these minute creatures live or what they need to flourish. New research led by a marine…

The direct effect predators have on their prey is to kill them. The evolutionary changes that can result from this direct effect include prey that are younger at maturity and that produce more…

A gigantic palm that flowers itself to death and exists as part of an entirely unique genus has been discovered in Madagascar. The mystery palm has a huge trunk which towers over 18m high and fan…

A newly discovered parasite so dramatically transforms its host, an ant, that the ant comes to resemble a juicy red berry, ripe for picking, according to a report accepted for publication in The…