The exceptionally long neck of Lijiangosaurus yongshengensis contained 42 cervical vertebrae, according to a research team led by paleontologists from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology at the Chinese Academy of…
Category: Paleontology
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A high-resolution 3D reconstructed skeleton of the extinct dwarf whale Cetotherium riabinini from Ukraine
The specimen
The holotype skeleton NMNHU-P OF 668/1 was found in 1930 in the vicinity Mykolaiv (precise locality is unknown) in late Sarmatian sensu lato limestone (Khersonian Formation, early Tortonian7,8). Since then it has been held in a…
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Scientists find a surprising link between lead and human evolution
A major international research effort is reshaping the long-held belief that lead exposure is primarily a modern problem. The new findings show that early human ancestors encountered lead repeatedly for more than two million years, suggesting…
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Scientists recover 40,000-year-old mammoth RNA still packed with clues
Researchers from Stockholm University have — for the first time ever — managed to successfully isolate and sequence RNA molecules from Ice Age woolly mammoths. These RNA sequences are the oldest ever recovered and come from mammoth tissue…
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Ancient Chinese tombs reveal a hidden 4,000-year pattern
Tombs found throughout China, built from the time of the 4,000-year old Xia Dynasty to the present day, offer insight into long-term social and political trends. This conclusion comes from a study published October 29, 2025 in the open-access…
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55-million-year-old fossils reveal bizarre crocs that dropped from trees
The oldest known crocodile eggshells ever identified in Australia are giving UNSW researchers fresh insight into long vanished animals and the environments they depended on. These remains come from creatures that lived millions of years before…
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40,000-year-old woolly mammoth RNA offers a peek into its last moments
Ancient RNA from Yuka, a 40,000-year-old woolly mammoth preserved in permafrost, can offer new biological insights into the Ice Age animal’s life.
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A 400-million-year-old plant creates water so weird it looks alien
A research group at The University of New Mexico has identified how an unusual prehistoric plant may provide new ways to interpret Earth’s ancient climate conditions.
Led by UNM Earth and Planetary Sciences Professor Zachary Sharp, the team…
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A fierce crocodile ancestor that hunted before dinosaurs has been found
A newly identified carnivorous reptile may look like a dinosaur at first glance, but researchers have confirmed that it was actually an early relative of modern crocodiles.
The species is named Tainrakuasuchus bellator, a title partly inspired by…
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Mid-Cretaceous sand fly (Psychodidae, Phlebotominae) illuminates early diversification of Old World fauna
Mid-Cretaceous sand fly (Psychodidae, Phlebotominae) illuminates early diversification of Old World fauna
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