Cheers to hot barley
A newly identified genetic mechanism helps barley grow more grains.
Aussies love barley – after all, it makes beer – and an international team of researchers has good news for its produ...
Nature
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Human colonisation could have helped Fijian bees flourish
Anthropogenic impacts on ecology not all bad.
Homalictus fijiensis, female of the species. Credit: James DoreyAustralian researchers have used DNA analysis to ...
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Conversation
This adorable mouse was considered extinct for over 100 years — until we found it hiding in plain sight
It turns out Gould’s mouse isn’t extinct.
Emily Roycroft, Australian National UniversityAustralia has the world’s worst track record for wiping out mammals...
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Passing on the good beetle genes
Male seed beetles help keep populations genetically healthy.
Turns out, males do have a purpose – and yes, it is about sex.According to a new study, published in Evolution Le...
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Video
The Science of Pearls
All about oyster farming with Farmer of the Year, James Brown.
The Australian Farmer of the Year award celebrates pioneers in farming who show innovation, resilience, and tenacity....
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Robins’ eyes may have in-built ‘compass’
Researchers identify protein in the eye of a robin that’s sensitive to Earth’s magnetic field
Migratory birds have an uncanny ability to orient themselves, finding their way across sometimes thousands of kilomet...
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Snails carrying tiny computers solve survival mystery
The miniature computers were fixed atop snail shells.
Snails carrying the world’s smallest computers on their shells have helped explain the mystery of their own survival ...
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Introducing a new plant organ – the cantil
The previously undiscovered cantil was named after the cantilever.
We already know quite a bit about plant architecture, so it's somewhat surprising that a new natural organ was discov...
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Sonic deception: stealth moths
If you evolve to live in the dark, it’s handy if you develop some predator-evasion attributes.
Forget stealth military jets. Moths were there first. But rather than dodging enemy radar, they’re playing a differen...
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Orange-bellied parrots fly free
Several successes for the critically endangered migratory parrots – one spotted in historic feedi...
Bird enthusiasts in South Australia’s Coorong region have just spotted an orange-bellied parrot, and heard another on...
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You may have missed...
Stray science stories from last week to cheer up your Monday.
The domestic history of goatsHow and where were goats domesticated? 10,000-year-old DNA might be able to tell us....
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Small, but mighty important
Krill are crucial to the marine ecosystem, and new research being undertaken has the potential to...
I vividly remember the moment back in Tokyo when I first borrowed an encyclopedia about zooplankton from my primary s...