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news Biology Evidence status: Peer reviewed · Fossil description
A 6-million-year-old pygmy sperm whale skull from Peru has both bony nostrils on its left side. Scientists infer it fed on the seafloor; one skull is known.
news Biology Evidence status: Peer reviewed · Observational (quasi-experimental) study
Chimpanzee raspberry call study: 91 apes in eight groups used the sound in one stable way only where adults were present. What it shows, and its limits.
explainer Biology
Most octopuses live 1 to 2 years; the giant Pacific octopus gets 3 to 5. See lifespans by species, why they die after breeding, and a 53-month record.
news Biology Evidence status: Peer reviewed · Comparative (observational) study
Machine learning scored 2,839 ray-finned fish species: schooling arose about 60 times, was lost about 320, and tracks predators, diet and diversification.
explainer Biology
Backyard hens usually live 6 to 8 years and the record is 23. See how farm chickens, egg-laying hens and pets compare, and what shortens a chicken's life.
explainer Biology
Pet rabbits can live 8 to 12 years with good care, but in English vet records the median age at death was 4.3 years. Most wild rabbits die within a…
explainer Biology
How long do flies live? Adult house flies live about 10 days to two months after 1 to 2 weeks as egg, maggot and pupa. See the life cycle and…
news Biology Evidence status: Peer reviewed; phylogenetic modelling with imputed traits
A PLOS Biology study finds 80% of 51 recently extinct hooved mammals were likely migratory, versus 46% of living ones, but the model result depends on fossils.
explainer Biology
Cats knead because kittens do it to keep milk flowing, and adults link it to comfort. See what is observed, what is only proposed and what is untested.
