[unable to retrieve full-text content]Why are some hybrids viable and others not? It is known that this depends on the father species and the mother species. New research in two related frog species shows the influence of mother and father species: one hybrid is viable, the other hybrid dies in early stages of development....
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Seven new spider species from Brazil named after seven famous fictional spider characters
[unable to retrieve full-text content]Several literary classics from the fantasy genre are further immortalized and linked together thanks to a Brazilian research team who named seven new spiders after them....
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Worldwide importance of honey bees for natural habitats captured in new report
An unprecedented study integrating data from around the globe has shown that honey bees are the world's most important single species of pollinator in natural ecosystems and a key contributor to natural ecosystem functions. The first quantitative analysis of its kind, led by biologists at the University of California San Diego, is published Jan. 10...
Giant extinct burrowing bat discovered in New Zealand
[unable to retrieve full-text content]The fossilized remains of a giant burrowing bat that lived in New Zealand millions of years ago have been found by a UNSW Sydney-led international team of scientists. Teeth and bones of the extinct bat -- which was about three times the size of an average bat today -- were recovered...
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Scouting the eagles: Proof that protecting nests aids reproduction
[unable to retrieve full-text content]Reproduction among bald eagles in a remote national park in Minnesota was aided when their nests were protected from human disturbance, according to a new study....
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Deadly disinfection in ant colonies
[unable to retrieve full-text content]Ants kill colony mates infected with deadly diseases when they are unable to prevent them from falling sick in the first place. In doing so, the ants protect their colony from the outbreak of an epidemic....
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