Researchers discover the Earth's deepest and most extensive whale fossil graveyard, with fossils dating back 5.3 million years, reshaping understanding of whale-fall ecosystems and cetacean evolution.
A Chinese-led expedition discovered a rare "whale graveyard" in the Diamantina Zone off Australia, featuring five active whale falls and hundreds of fossils, including a new extinct beaked whale species. The site offers insights into deep-sea ecosystems and cetacean evolution over millions of years.
Scientists have discovered the world's deepest and most extensive whale graveyard in the south-eastern Indian Ocean, with fossils dating back over 5 million years. The site, located in the Diamantina fracture zone, reaches depths of over 7km and teems with life, offering insights into biodiversity and adaptation in extreme environments.
Researchers in China have discovered well-preserved micro-bryozoan fossils in the Cambrian strata of Shaanxi Province, providing definitive mineralized skeletal evidence that the phylum originated in the Early Cambrian, pushing back the fossil record by at least 50 million years.
Australia's stalled opal museum project has received a $1 million government bailout from the NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development. The funding comes after an independent audit raised serious concerns about the financial survival of the Australian Opal Centre Limited (AOCL), which had stopped construction last year due to depleted grants.
Australia's stalled opal museum project received a $1 million government bailout from the NSW Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, months after an audit flagged serious financial survival concerns. The funds will clear contractor debts, but the organisation has made staff redundant and closed its shopfront as part of a scale-back plan for a 2027 relaunch.
Scientists discovered fossils of an intact temperate rainforest near the South Pole dating back 90 million years to the Cretaceous period. The findings, including a 3-meter root network preserved in mudstone, suggest Antarctica was ice-free and supported dense vegetation with an average annual temperature of 12°C due to higher atmospheric CO2 levels.
Microscopic squiggles found in 890-million-year-old Canadian reef rocks may represent the oldest animal body fossils, potentially pushing back the origin of animal life by 350 million years, sparking scientific debate.
Ancient Kenyan fossils reveal early humans employed a dynamic strategy for meat acquisition, blending hunting with opportunistic scavenging. Evidence of tool marks on bones, alongside predator tooth marks, suggests a sophisticated approach to accessing carcasses. This adaptable foraging, including marrow extraction and meat transport, was crucial for survival and brain development, moving beyond the simple hunter-scavenger debate.
Two fossils found in Thailand are named as long-missing pieces of a "shark-toothed" dinosaur after being identified partly by accident.
Researchers have discovered ancient platypus fossils in outback South Australia, where they are believed to have lived with lungfish, flamingos and freshwater dolphins. They also had major a difference from the modern species: well-formed teeth.
This feature explores how the panda evolved from an overlooked creature in ancient Chinese folklore—known as 'white bears' in the Three Kingdoms era and believed to eat iron—into a national treasure and defining symbol of modern China. Palaeontological evidence shows panda fossils with butchery marks dating back 8-9 million years, while the earliest written records appear in the Book of Documents from the pre-Qin period.
Researchers have discovered fossilized remains of two giant octopus species from the late Cretaceous period (100 million years ago) in northern Japan. Using innovative digital fossil-mining techniques with AI, they found jaws inside concretions that indicate the creatures reached up to 60 feet in length — larger than a school bus and rivaling other apex predators of the era. These ancient octopuses likely fed on hard-shelled prey like shrimp and lobster, and showed signs of right-side jaw dominance suggesting early brain development.
Scientists have identified ancient octopus fossils belonging to genus Nanaimoteuthis, particularly Nanaimoteuthis haggarti, which may have grown up to 19 meters (62 feet) long—longer than a bus and possibly the largest invertebrate ever recorded. Analysis of 27 fossilized beaks reveals these creatures were apex predators in Cretaceous oceans, using intelligence and crushing bite force to dominate marine ecosystems alongside mosasaurs and plesiosaurs.
An analysis of tiny fossils of sea creatures found in rock samples around the Port Campbell region in south-western Victoria has refined our understanding of how the Twelve Apostles formed.
The US attack on Iran has made the need for renewable energy inarguable. Environmentalists are now being seen for the pragmatists that they areDonald Trump has done more to accelerate the energy transition than anyone else alive. Fossil fuel companies bankrolled his presidential campaign to stop the transition in its tracks. But when you back a volatile narcissist, unable to concentrate for more than a few minutes at a time, you shouldn’t expect to control the outcome.It’s not that the fossils are suffering yet. As prices have soared since Trump and Netanyahu attacked Iran, oil executives have been selling shares at gobsmacking prices: the CEO of Chevron, for example, has cashed $104m so far this year. Vladimir Putin has also received a massive boost to his Ukraine invasion budget. As promised, Trump has gutted clean energy rules and programmes, green alternatives and environmental science. A fortnight ago, he stated, with the usual quantum of evidence (zero): “The environmentalists, I mean, they are terrorists … I call them environmental terrorists.”George Monbiot is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...
