5 facts about what's possibly the world's first flower

2015-08-19 09:17

The ancient aquatic plant, called the Montsechia vidalii, has overtaken the Archaefructus sinensis, an aquatic plant found in China, as one of the possible first flowers on the planet.

Early bird winds back the avian clock

2015-05-05 21:06

Modern birds may have evolved six million years earlier than thought, say Chinese palaeontologists.

Fans a-frothing over Dippy the dino plans

2015-01-29 20:49

UK fans are in uproar over plans to retire Dippy the dinosaur from London's Natural History Museum and have started a petition to stop the move.

Move over Nessie, Scotland gets a new marine reptile

2015-01-12 08:26

Scientists have announced the discovery of the fossil remains of a dolphin-like seagoing reptile on Scotland's Isle of Skye that lived about 170 million years ago and was about 4.3m long.

Ichthyosaur fossil solves reptile riddle

2014-11-06 11:37

For millions of years ichthyosaurs that roamed the ocean, yet they were not fish. According to a new theory, their forebears were land-loving reptiles which adapted to the sea after the world was struck by a mass extinction.

Toothy tyrant of the Jurassic was 9m long

2014-10-15 15:36

A forerunner of today's crocodiles that lurked in coastal waters and estuaries some 150 million years ago measured 9.26m from snout to tail, scientists report.

Squirrel critters shed light on mammal origins

2014-09-11 09:16

Scientists have announced the discovery of fossils belonging to three squirrel mammals that indicate as a group, they appeared earlier than some experts thought.

3-million-year-old SA child skull had no soft spot

2014-08-26 12:59

A three-million-year-old child's skull uncovered in SA has no signs of the kind of soft spot that would be seen in human children with larger brains, a study says.

2m penguin fossil found in Antarctica

2014-08-11 11:01

Argentine palaeontologists have uncovered the largest penguin fossils ever found. Discovered on the Antarctic Peninsula, the bird, dubbed 'Colossus', would have stood two metres tall.

Flesh-eating dinosaurs evolved into small birds

2014-08-01 08:56

Large flesh-eating dinosaurs evolved into small flying birds, but it did not happen overnight, according to an international team of scientists.


Ice age camel bones found

2015-06-10 21:18

Ice age camel bones have been found in northwestern Canada forcing the redrawing of the species' family tree.

US scientists dig up dinosaur found by 5-year-old and dad

2015-04-09 11:27

Scientists from Southern Methodist University have helped a Dallas zookeeper and his 5-year-old son excavate a dinosaur fossil they found behind a grocery store.

3-million-year-old ancestor had human-like hands

2015-01-23 10:13

The hand structure of early human ancestors who lived 3.2 million years ago suggests they had the ability to grasp and use tools, even if they hadn't invented them yet, anthropologists say.

New dinosaur species found in museum collection

2014-12-01 14:19

A UK palaeontologist has discovered a new species of dinosaur while studying fossils in a Canadian museum.

US man ordered to pay for dinosaur theft

2014-10-21 14:42

A Utah man who pleaded guilty in the theft of a priceless fossilised dinosaur footprint that's never been recovered has been sentenced to a year of probation and ordered to pay $15 000 in restitution.

Ancient flying reptile named after 'Avatar' creature

2014-09-13 20:20

Scientists have announced the discovery of a new species of flying reptile called a pterosaur that lived 120 millions years ago and so closely resembled the creatures from the film Avatar.

Museum to display 6 500-year-old human skeleton

2014-08-29 17:22

The public will soon get to see an ancient human skeleton recently rediscovered in a Philadelphia museum's storage room.

US cave unearths a treasure trove of animals

2014-08-11 13:45

Scientists excavating a sinkhole containing a trove of fossils of Ice Age mammals have unearthed hundreds of bones, including prehistoric animals such as the American cheetah.

Fowl play: Neanderthals were first bird eaters

2014-08-08 14:00


Footprints suggest T-Rex hunted in a pack

2014-07-25 14:31

Scientists in western Canada have discovered the fossilised footprints of three tyrannosaurs that suggest these fearsome predators may have hunted in packs.



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