Sharing meat after hunting and exchanging other valued food items is considered key in the evolution of cooperation in human societies. One prominent idea is that humans share valuable foods to gain future favors, such that those we chose to share with are more likely to cooperate with us in the future. Despite regularly occurring...
Polar bears gorged on whales to survive past warm periods; won't suffice as climate warms
Polar bears likely survived past warm periods in the Arctic, when sea ice cover was low, by scavenging on the carcasses of stranded large whales. This food source sustained the bears when they were largely restricted to land, unable to roam the ice in search of seals to hunt.
A new study led by the University...
Louisiana amphibian shows unique resistance to global disease
Amphibian populations around the world are declining due to a skin disease caused by fungus. However, an amphibian commonly found in Louisiana, the three-toed amphiuma, has shown a resistance to the fungus, in a new study led by researchers at LSU, Southeastern Louisiana University, Duquesne University and the University of Washington. The study was published...
In the absence of bees, flies are responsible for pollination in the Arctic region
Most of the fauna in the Arctic region take part in pollinating, yet during the busiest flowering weeks, there's a shortage of such services. A recent study indicates that the pollination services provided to plants and, thus, the plants' ability to produce seeds are dependent on the timing of the blooming season, and on how...
Scientists go 'back to the future,' create flies with ancient genes to study evolution
Scientists at New York University and the University of Chicago have created fruit flies carrying reconstructed ancient genes to reveal how ancient mutations drove major evolutionary changes in embryonic development -- the impact of which we see today.
The work, published in the journal eLife, found that two mutations that arose 140 million years ago changed...
Cleaning, but safely! Cocoons protect sensitive ant brood during toxic disinfection
Ants are neat: when they move into a new nest box, they spend the first days cleaning it thoroughly, like us humans getting out the cleaning bucket when moving into a new home. Despite keeping the nest clean, using poison within the nest is dangerous and can kill unprotected brood. However, the silk cocoon that...