DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Strange fungus turns cicadas into zombies
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-15 | by ( Kate Golembiewski | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

But some of these insects won’t succeed in their goal of procreating — instead, they’ll be controlled like zombies into spreading a strange fungus that hijacks cicadas’ bodies and behavior. At some point, the insects are exposed to spores of the fungus Massospora cicadina. Courtesy Angie Macias/WVUDespite having a chalky gumdrop of spores instead of genitals, the infected cicadas still attempt to mate, with gusto. Both male and female cicadas infected with Massospora flick their wings to draw in amorous, soon-to-be-infected males. But attempting to mate is just one part of how infected cicadas spread the fungus.

Persons: procreating —, John Cooley, It’s, ”, Matt Kasson, Angie Macias, ” Cooley, ” Kasson, Kasson, Cooley, “ We’re, “, Kate Golembiewski Organizations: CNN, University of Connecticut, West Virginia University, WVU, Midwest Locations: Hartford, Illinois, Chicago

☆ Scientists unveil 240-million-year-old ‘dragon’ fossil
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Issy Ronald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Newly-discovered fossils have allowed scientists to reveal a 240-million-year-old “dragon” in its entirety for the first ever time, National Museums Scotland (NMS) said in a statement on Friday. An artist's rendition of the ancient marine creature. Marlene DonellyNow, newer fossils indicate that the creature had 32 vertebrae, creating an extremely long neck that likely helped it to catch fish, though scientists are still unsure of its precise function. “I’m still baffled by the function of the long neck,” Fraser said. They added that the Dinocephalosaurus’ long neck resembled another ancient, and equally baffling, marine reptile Tanystropheus hydroides.

Persons: Dr Nick Fraser, “, Li Chun, Fraser, Chun, Marlene Donelly, “ I’m, ” Fraser, ” Organizations: CNN, National Museums Scotland, National Sciences, Environmental, Royal Society of Edinburgh, Vertebrate Locations: China, NMS, Scotland, Germany, USA, Palaeoanthropology, Beijing, Guizhou Province

☆ Ancient reptile fossil revealed as a forgery
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —A 280 million-year-old fossil thought to be a well-preserved specimen of an ancient reptile is largely a forgery, according to new research. The fossil appeared in book and article citations over the decades, but no one ever studied it in detail. A new, detailed analysis has revealed that the dark color of the fossil isn’t preserved genetic material — it’s just black paint covering a couple of bones and carved rock. When the specimen was discovered, researchers thought the fossil might provide a rare glimpse into reptilian evolution. It’s not the first time a fossil forgery has been uncovered, but Rossi said this particular style of forgery is unusual.

Persons: antiquus, ”, Valentina Rossi, ” Rossi, Rossi, Mariagabriella Fornasiero, Evelyn Kustatscher, It’s, Fabrizio Nestola, ” Nestola Organizations: CNN, University of Padua’s Museum of Nature, University College Cork, Museum of Nature, Tyrol Nature Museum, University Center, Museums, University of Padua Locations: Italian, Italy, Ireland, Tyrol, Bolzano

☆ A 13-year-old found a 5-million-year-old fossil, and now there's a new species of walrus named in his honor
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Jenny Mcgrath | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Co-authors Robert Boessenecker and Sarah Boessenecker hold the Valenictus walrus skull. Robert BoesseneckerEleven years after Sheperd found it, Boessenecker named the newly-identified walrus species Valenictus sheperdi, after Sheperd's last name. But because the new skull was older and larger than other Valenictus species and had some physiological differences, Boessenecker suspected it was an unknown species. The smooth surface is part of the walrus skull emerging from the rock. AdvertisementThe walruses of CaliforniaMillions of years ago, over a dozen walrus species roamed the planet.

Persons: Forrest Sheperd, who's, Robert Boessenecker ., Robert Boessenecker, Sarah Boessenecker, Sheperd, Boessenecker, Sheperd's, I've, Forrest, clacking, walruses, it's Organizations: Business, Santa Cruz Museum, California, Los Locations: Santa Cruz , California, California, West, San Joaquin, Sierra

☆ Birdlike footprints from Triassic mystery animals precede earliest bird fossils by 60 million years
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Mindy Weisberger | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The footprints, found at several sites in southern Africa, were recently identified as the oldest birdlike tracks ever found, preceding the earliest known skeletal fossils of avians by about 60 million years. Some called the tracks birdlike, but others weren’t so sure. Ellenberger may have muddied the waters by assigning many differently shaped tracks to the ichnogenus, “and not all of them are birdlike,” Abrahams said. They could belong to other reptiles or cousins of dinosaurs that evolved birdlike feet,” Clarke said. During a trip to Maphutseng, a fossil locale in Lesotho, the team found a number of birdlike tracks from the Triassic Period.

Persons: “, ”, Miengah Abrahams, Abrahams, Paul Ellenberger, Ellenberger, ” Abrahams, Julia Clarke, ” Clarke, there’s, Morphotype, paravians, —, ” Mindy Weisberger Organizations: CNN, University of Cape, University of Texas, Scientific Locations: Africa, University of Cape Town, South Africa, Austin, archosauria, Maphutseng, Lesotho

☆ DNA remnants found in fossil of 6 million year old turtle
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Researchers excavate the 6 million year old fossil remains of a sea turtle of the genus Lepidochelys near La Pina along the Caribbean coast of Panama in this handout photograph taken in 2015 and obtained by Reuters on September 28, 2023. Cadena said the only older vertebrate fossils than the newly described turtle to have been found with similar DNA remnants were of two dinosaurs - Tyrannosaurus, which lived about 66 million years ago, and Brachylophosaurus, which lived about 78 million years ago. Cadena said DNA remnants also have been reported in insects dating to tens of millions of years ago. The turtle is from the same genus - Lepidochelys - as two of the world's seven living species of sea turtles - the Kemp's ridley, the world's smallest sea turtle, and the olive ridley, Cadena said. "Each fossil, each fossil site has specific conditions of preservation that in some cases could have favored preservation of original biomolecular remains such as proteins and DNA," Cadena said.

Persons: Carlos de Gracia, today's Kemp's ridley, Edwin Cadena, Cadena, ridley, Kemp's ridley, Will Dunham, Elida Moreno, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Reuters, REUTERS Acquire, Universidad del Rosario, Smithsonian Tropical Research, Pacific, Thomson Locations: La Pina, Panama, Handout, Bogota, Gulf of Mexico, Washington

☆ Octopuses could get the same protections as mice and monkeys thanks to a growing body of evidence that suggests they feel pain
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The NIH said a growing body of evidence suggests cephalopods are capable of feeling pain. Other countries have also extended animal welfare protections to octopuses. AdvertisementAdvertisementThanks to mounting evidence that they may be capable of feeling pain, octopuses could soon receive the same legal protections that mice and monkeys have in the US. The US Public Health Service sets the federal standards for animal welfare in science under its policy on "Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals." The move comes after other countries have also extended animal welfare protections to cephalopods, including New Zealand, Australia, Canada, and Switzerland.

Persons: —, Robyn Crook Organizations: National Institutes of Health, NIH, Service, US National Institutes of Health, Public Health Service, Animals, San Francisco State University, Nature Locations: California, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Switzerland, Spain

☆ Ancient jawless fish’s head fossilized in 3D hints at evolution of vertebrate skulls
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( Mindy Weisberger | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Hundreds of millions of years ago, jawless fishes swam Earth’s seas, their brains protected on the outside by armored skin, and on the inside by plates made of cartilage. Scientists are still piecing together how modern vertebrates’ skulls evolved from these ancient fish ancestors, which were the first animals with backbones. The specimen — an articulated cranium that’s 455 million years old — belongs to the jawless fish Eriptychius americanus. Modern vertebrate descendants of jawless fishes make up two groups: vertebrates with jaws, and jawless hagfish and lampreys. “So it’s quite exciting.”Extracting the detailsThe fossilized head cartilage was excavated in 1949 and described in 1967 by the late paleontologist Robert Denison, a curator of fossil fishes at Chicago’s Field Museum of Natural History.

Persons: jawless, ”, Richard Dearden, Robert Denison, Denison, Dearden, “, paleobiologist Lauren Sallan, Sallan, ” Sallan Organizations: CNN, Naturalis Biodiversity, Field, University of Birmingham, Okinawa Institute of Science, Technology Graduate University Locations: Colorado, Leiden, Netherlands, United Kingdom, Japan

☆ 'Bizarre' long-legged bird-like dinosaur has scientists enthralled
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

A life reconstruction of the bird-like dinosaur Fujianvenator prodigiosus, which lived 148 million to 150 million years ago in China, is seen in this illustration. Asked for a word to describe Fujianvenator, Wang replied, "I would say 'bizarre.' Fujianvenator is a member of a grouping called avialans that includes all birds and their closest non-avian dinosaur relatives, Wang said. "The forelimb is generally built like a bird's wing, but with three claws on the fingers, which are absent from modern birds. There is still a big gap between the oldest known bird and the second-oldest known birds," Zhou said.

Persons: Chuang Zhao, Handout, Fujianvenator, Min Wang, Wang, Zhonghe Zhou, Zhou, Will Dunham, Daniel Wallis Organizations: REUTERS Acquire, Vertebrate Paleontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Thomson Locations: China, Fujian Province, Germany, Fujianvenator, Washington

☆ Bird-like dinosaur with surprising features discovered in China
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —The fossil of a tiny bird-like dinosaur with surprisingly long lower legs has been discovered in China. However, in birds, it’s a feature also present in wading birds like storks and cranes, making it possible that Fujianvenator lived in a swampy aquatic environment. Other known early bird-like dinosaurs lived in trees and were more aerial in nature, the study said. While no feathers were preserved in the fossil, it’s highly likely Fujianvenator had them because its closest relatives in the dinosaur family tree did, Wang said. It can’t be determined from the fossil whether the bird-like dinosaur could fly or not, he added.

Persons: Fuijianvenator, Fuijian, Min Wang, “, ”, Wang Organizations: CNN, Vertebrate Paleontology, Fujian Institute of Geological Survey Locations: China, what’s, Fujian, Beijing

☆ A mysterious Arctic shark that can live for 500 years got lost and ended up swimming in the balmy waters of the Caribbean, scientists say
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-03 | by ( Rebecca Rommen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A shark was found in the Caribbean — thousands of miles away from its usual habitat in the Arctic. The Greenland shark, which has a lifespan of 250 – 500 years, surprised researchers in Belize. When they retrieved their scientific catch, they were astonished to find the ancient Greenland shark. Greenland sharks are primarily scavengers, eating everything (dead or alive), including fish, seals, polar bears, and whales. AdvertisementAdvertisementAccording to a 2016 study, Greenland sharks don't reach sexual maturity until they are at least 134 years old.

Persons: Hector Daniel Martinez, Demian Chapman, they're, Julius Nielsen Organizations: Service, Florida, Mashable, National Ocean Service, Caribbean, Sharks, Rays Conservation Research, Mote Marine Laboratory, Aquarium, New Locations: Caribbean, Belize, Wall, Silicon, Greenland, Baffin, Nova Scotia, Svalbard, Norway

☆ The Oldest Plant-Eating Dinosaur Has Been Found in India
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-19 | by ( Meenakshi J | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Thar Desert today is a scorching region in western India’s Rajasthan state. It is the first of that group discovered in India, and the oldest ever found in the world’s fossil record. The all-Indian team that discovered the species named it Tharosaurus indicus, referencing the Thar Desert, and its country of origin. Dicraeosaurids like Tharosaurus indicus are part of a larger group called diplodocoid sauropods. Earlier theories suggested that India was inhabited only by the predecessors of diplodocoids.

Persons: Sunil Bajpai Organizations: Indian Institute of Technology Locations: India’s Rajasthan, India, Africa, Americas, China, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee

☆ Egyptian scientists discovered a diminutive 41-million year old whale and named it after King Tut
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-12 | by ( Sebastian Cahill | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Egyptian paleontologists found a new, extinct whale species, about the size of a bottlenose dolphin. It is the smallest known whale of the extinct basilosaurids family, says the scientists' new study. The species is named "Tutcetus rayanensis," after King Tutankhamun, an ancient Egyptian Pharoah. It's named in part "Tut" for the ancient Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamun or "King Tut," who died at 19, since researchers believe the specimen found had also not yet reached full maturity. Antar and the MUVP did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment, sent outside regular business hours.

Persons: King Tutankhamun, It's, Tutankhamun, Tut, rayanensis, Mohammed S, Antar, doesn't, Erik R, CNN there's, Seiffert Organizations: Service, Biology, Smithsonian, Vertebrate Paleontology, CNN, University of Southern Locations: Wall, Silicon, Egypt, University of Southern California

☆ Fossil discovery may be one of the oldest, smallest aquatic whales found in Africa, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Jenna Schnuer Cnn | Jenna Schnuer | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The find is also the oldest fully aquatic whale found in Africa, according to a new study. Tutcetus rayanensis is a member of the extinct family of early whales known as basilosauridae — the first widespread group to become fully aquatic. The discovery of the whale fossil led to the establishment of a new genus within the basilosauridae family. The area is one of the world’s “most productive fossil whale sites,” according to the study. Tutcetus rayanensis is the second whale species, following Phiomicetus anubis, to be discovered, described, and named by Egyptian paleontologists,” Antar said via email.

Persons: Pharaoh Tutankhamen, rayanensis, ”, Mohammed S, Antar, ” Antar, paleobiologist Nicholas Pyenson, wasn’t, Abdullah Gohar, Mohamed Sameh, Hesham, Whales, Erik R, Seiffert, Carlos Mauricio Peredo, Hesham Sallam Organizations: CNN, Communications, Vertebrate Paleontology, Smithsonian National Museum of, Egypt's, University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine, Miami University in, American University Locations: Egypt, Africa, Washington , DC, Mansoura, Wadi, Miami University in Oxford , Ohio, Cairo

☆ Ancient reptile was riddled with parasites, fossilized poop reveals
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( Mindy Weisberger | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Researchers didn’t find the parasites in phytosaur bones or teeth; rather, they retrieved them from a nugget of fossilized feces, known as a coprolite. For example, certain fish with spiraling intestines poop out what eventually become spiral-shaped coprolites, according to Nonsrirach. “Studying the remains of parasites in coprolites is important since it provides us with rare insights into ancient parasite-host relationships,” Qvarnström said. “This event raises interesting questions about how prey animals and parasites interact with each other. It suggests that parasites may have been inside the bodies of prey before they were eaten,” Nonsrirach said.

Persons: didn’t, ”, Thanit Nonsrirach, “, Nonsrirach, Coprolites, Martin Qvarnström, Qvarnström, ” Qvarnström, ” Nonsrirach, ” Mindy Weisberger Organizations: CNN, Mahasarakham, Uppsala University, University of California Museum of Paleontology, Scientific Locations: Thailand, Asia, Kham Riang, Sweden, Berkeley, coprolites

☆ Long before whales, pioneering marine reptile was a filter-feeder
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Artist's reconstruction shows the Triassic Period marine reptile Hupehsuchus nanchangensis, based on fossils unearthed in China's Hubei Province. Hupehsuchus is believed to have been a filter-feeder, akin to some of today's baleen whales. "Baleen whales are mammals and Hupehsuchus are reptiles. Marine reptiles asserted themselves. Two other ancient marine reptiles - Paludidraco, which lived about 230 million years ago, and Morturneria, which lived about 70 million years ago - appear to have used some type of filter-feeding.

Persons: Shi Shunyi, Long Cheng, Handout, Hupehsuchus, Mike Benton, Cheng, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, University of Bristol, BMC, Wuhan Center, China Geological Survey, Hupehsuchus, Thomson Locations: Hubei Province, Hupehsuchus, England, Siberia, Washington

☆ New fossils reveal specialized eating technique of unusual ancient marine reptile
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —An unusual ancient marine reptile may have gulped down tons of shrimplike prey using a feeding technique similar to one used by some modern whales. Fang et al/Courtesy University of BristolBut there hasn’t been much evidence in the fossil record for ancient reptiles using filter feeding, until now. These structures are similar to what’s seen in baleen whales, which have strips of keratin instead of teeth. “Baleen whales have grooves along the jaws to support curtains of baleen, long thin strips of keratin, the protein that makes hair, feathers and fingernails. It’s possible that the marine reptile didn’t start out with this ability.

Persons: Hupehsuchus nanchangensis, ”, Long Cheng, et, Li Tian, Hupehsuchus, Zichen Fang, Michael Benton, It’s Organizations: CNN, BMC, Wuhan Center, China Geological Survey, University of Bristol, China University of Geosciences, University of Bristol’s School of Earth Sciences Locations: China, Hubei province, China University of Geosciences Wuhan

☆ Ancient whale from Peru may be most massive animal ever on Earth
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Giovanni Bianucci/Handout via REUTERSAug 2 (Reuters) - Move over, blue whale. The biggest-known blue whale weighed around 190 tons, though it was longer than Perucetus at 110 feet (33.5 meters). Its skeletal mass alone was estimated at between 5 and 8 tons, at least twice that of the blue whale. The researchers suspect Perucetus lived like sirenians - not an active predator but an animal that fed near the bottom of shallow coastal waters. The researchers said it was unlikely Perucetus was a filter-feeder like today's baleen whales including the blue whale.

Persons: Giovanni Bianucci, Perucetus, Bianucci, Olivier Lambert of, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, University of Pisa, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, Thomson Locations: Peru, Handout, Italy, Argentina, sirenians, Brussels, hoofed, Washington

☆ Whale fossil may be the heaviest animal ever
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( Kristen Rogers | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —A colossal ancient whale discovered in Peru might be the heaviest animal on record, according to a new study. What’s more, Perucetus likely weighed two to three times more than the blue whale, which today weighs a maximum of 149.6 metric tons (330,000 pounds). Giovanni Bianucci“Discoveries of such extreme body forms are an opportunity to re-evaluate our understanding of animal evolution,” wrote J.G.M. “It seems that we are only dimly aware of how astonishing whale form and function can be,” they added. The lifestyle of a colossal whaleThe findings suggest that gigantism or peak body mass among cetaceans had been reached around 30 million years earlier than previously thought, according to the study.

Persons: Giovanni Bianucci, “, ” Bianucci, Perucetus, ”, ’, Bianucci, pacificus, Mystacodon selenesis, Mario Urbina Schmitt, Schmitt, Thewissen, David A, Waugh, weren’t, Ingalls, Brown, ” Thewissen Organizations: CNN, University of Pisa’s, sirenians, Peru “, National University of San, Ohio Medical University Locations: Peru, Italy, Ica, Peruvian, National University of San Marcos, Lima

☆ A brand new dinosaur species with spiky armor was recently discovered to have roamed England during the Cretaceous period
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Jenny Mcgrath | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A new species of dinosaur, Vectipelta barretti, was discovered on England's Isle of Wight. The new species is an ankylosaur, with dorsal armor made up of plates, spikes, and curved spines. Researchers will have to examine other ankylosaur fossils to see if they belong to the new species. But the newly-discovered species, Vectipelta, is thought to have been between 6 and 8 million years older than Polacanthus and has a few anatomical differences. Since 2019, at least four other new dinosaur species have been discovered there and scientists aren't holding back with some of the names.

Persons: barretti, —, Vectipelta, Polacanthus, we've, Stuart Pond, Ankylosaurs, William Fox, ankylosaurs, Ceratosuchops inferodios Organizations: Service, Privacy, Scientists, CNN Locations: Isle of Wight, England's Isle of Wight, China, Asia, Europe

☆ A Bear That Looked Like a Raccoon and Had a Dangerous Appetite
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-18 | by ( Carolyn Wilke | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Some 30 million years ago, a primitive bear roamed near a river in what is now North Dakota. A male, he probably looked like a raccoon and might have eaten like an otter. The skeleton includes the baculum, a penis bone found in many mammals that is rarely preserved. In an article published earlier this month in The Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, Dr. Wang’s team noted details of the creature’s features from his teeth to the tips of his toes. “It’s a small side branch, but it’s a very important side branch,” Dr. Wang said.

Persons: “, ”, Xiaoming Wang, Wang’s, Dr, Wang Organizations: of Los, Paleontology Locations: North Dakota, of Los Angeles County

☆ The Sad Story Behind a Fossil’s ‘Grin’
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Freda Kreier | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Before the dawn of the dinosaurs, the world belonged to reptiles called rhynchosaurs. They were the size of pigs and thrived all over the planet 225 million to 245 million years ago during the mid- and late Triassic Period. They may get overshadowed by the earliest dinosaurs, he suggests, although they make up 90 percent of vertebrate fossils in some Triassic digs. This highly unusual way of eating may have doomed rhynchosaurs as they reached old age. Unable to bite their food, these old rhynchosaurs may have starved to death, Dr. Benton said.

Persons: ”, Michael Benton, . Benton, rhynchosaurs, Benton Organizations: University of Bristol Locations: England

☆ Pterosaur bones found in Australia reveal world’s oldest flying reptile lived there 107 million years ago
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Chris Lau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Pterosaurs, the world’s oldest flying reptiles, once flew in Australia’s skies as far back as 107 million years ago, according to a study published Wednesday. Palaeontologists came to that conclusion after examining two pieces of prehistoric bone extracted from Dinosaur Cove – a fossil-bearing site in the Australian state of Victoria – more than three decades ago. The samples turned out to be the oldest remains of pterosaurs ever recovered from the country, according to the study published in science journal History Biology on Wednesday. Experts from the Perth-based Curtin University and Museums Victoria, in Melbourne, examined bones from two individuals, including a wing bone belonging to the first juvenile pterosaur ever reported in Australia. The pterosaur bones discovered at Dinosaur Cove in Victoria, Australia.

Persons: Palaeontologists, Victoria –, Adele Pentland, palaeontologists Tom Rich, Pat Vickers, Victoria, ”, “, Rich Organizations: CNN, Curtin University, Museums Victoria, Museums Victoria Research Institute Locations: Australian, Victoria, Perth, Melbourne, Australia, Brazil, Argentina

☆ Up to 1.7 billion T. rex dinosaurs lived on Earth, a new study found. But scientists aren't sure where all the bones went.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( Erin Heger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

New calculations suggest that 1.7 billion T. rexes lived on Earth from 65.5-68 million years ago. This dichotomy between how many T. rexes lived and how few fossils we have of them shows us just how rare fossilization is and how much more we have to learn about these majestic creatures. Warpaintcobra/Getty ImagesMarshall was the lead author of an earlier study that estimated 2.5 billion T. rexes once roamed Earth. Of the roughly 1.7 billion, or so, T. rexes who roamed our planet, scientists have only uncovered a few hundred fossils, equating to fewer than 100 total dinosaurs. Despite their prime conditions for fossilization, if Giebeler's calculations are correct, scientists have only found about 0.0000002% of the T. rex that lived on Earth.

☆ Quite a Tail: A Mouse Has Been Hiding Its Armor All This Time
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-24 | by ( Asher Elbein | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

But the spiny mouse’s body is full of secrets. Now, researchers have revealed another surprise in the journal iScience on Wednesday: Their tails are lined with osteoderms, or bony plates, making them only the second group of living mammals known to be equipped with underskin armor like an armadillo. X-rays of the mouse’s tail gave him pause: They reminded him of the lizards he had worked on for his Ph.D. But the only living mammals with known osteoderms were armadillos. “I know enough about osteoderms that it’s a fairly unknown thing for rodents to have them,” Dr. Stanley said.

Search resuls for: "Vertebrate"

25 mentions found