A plan for a unified species classification
Scientists propose 10 principles to streamline taxonomy.
As the Earth faces a growing environmental crisis, scientists are calling for agreement on a single, streamlined list...
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Conversation
Bushfires push closer to extinction
Six Australian experts analyse the impact of the nation’s fires.
Images of desperate, singed koalas in blackened landscapes have come to symbolise the damage to nature this bushfire ...
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Species v hybrid. More fuel for the debate
The evolutionary importance of hybridisation.
By their nature, conflicting ideas about evolution aren’t easily resolved. Some – such as the role of hybridisation i...
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Altered fire patterns put species at risk
Fires are critical to ecosystems – but not always in a good way.
History, landscape fragmentation and invasive species interact to influence species distribution decline in landscape...
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Humans are giving many other species cancer
Homo sapiens classified as “oncogenic species”.
Because we modify the environment in a way that can cause cancer in wildlife, humans can be defined as an “oncogenic ...
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Searching for the mythical or mysterious
Chasing mythical or mysterious animals grabs media headlines and spurs debates.
In 2012 scientists succeeded in filming for the first time ever a giant squid in its natural habitat. Credit: EPA/NHK...
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Identifying deep-sea octopus by their warts
The importance of detailed study of rarely-seen deep ocean species.
The distribution of warts on the arms and mantle of Graneledone verrucosa octopus can be used to tell them apart. Cre...
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Tuatara: Not a lizard nor a dinosaur
Tuatara is the sole survivor of a once-widespread reptile group.
The unique tuatara, photographed on Stephens Island, Takapourewa. Credit: Paddy Ryan, Author provided Have you ever h...
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Bizarre new species of giant shipworm found
The six-foot mollusc lives in stinking mud.
A Kuphus polythalamia removed from its shell. Credit: Marvin AltamiaA worm-like creature that grows to almost two m...
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New proposal challenges definition of species
If you thought the concept of ‘species’ was simple, think again.
Is species fitness tied to how mitochondrial and nucleic DNA interact? Credit: PexelsA fascinating new hypothesis p...
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Our favourite species discoveries this year
Anthea Batsakis reports on six plants and animals.
Living with spikes on your back is typically a defensive move. But two newly discovered ant species need their spikes...
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Measuring the sixth mass extinction
Claims that Earth is on the brink of a sixth mass extinction.
The Earth teeters on the edge of a sixth mass extinction – or so a recent study published in Science Advances has cla...