Extinction News

January 26, 2025

Top Headlines

Empty Headed? Largest Study of Its Kind Proves 'Bird Brain' Is a Misnomer

Jan. 21, 2025 — It's difficult to know what birds 'think' when they fly, but scientists in are getting some remarkable new insights by looking inside birds' heads. Evolutionary biologists and neuroscience researchers have teamed up to explore a new approach to ...

How Human Activity Has Shaped Brazil Nut Forests' Past and Future

Jan. 24, 2025 — Researchers use genomic data to study the decline in genetic diversity in the Amazon Basin, particularly in Brazil Nut trees. The research uses genomic data to understand this keystone species' genetic health and adaptability, help reconstruct its ...

Cycle of Coral Bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef Now at 'Catastrophic' Levels

Jan. 21, 2025 — Marine scientists highlights the complex interplay between heat stress, disease onset and coral mortality. They found that 66 percent of the colonies were bleached by February 2024 and 80 per cent by ...

Ecologists Reveal Key Genetic Insights for the Conservation of Iconic Cockatoo Species

Jan. 13, 2025 — Ecologists have made valuable discoveries that could transform the conservation of two iconic cockatoo species: the Sulphur-crested cockatoos and the critically endangered Yellow-crested cockatoos -- ...

Latest Headlines

updated 9:16am EST

Asteroid Impact Sulfur Release Less Lethal in Dinosaur Extinction

Jan. 16, 2025 — Previous studies have posited that the mass extinction that wiped the dinosaurs off the face of the Earth was caused by the release of large volumes of sulfur from rocks within the Chicxulub impact ...

Conquest of Asia and Europe by Snow Leopards During the Last Ice Ages Uncovered

Jan. 15, 2025 — Scientists have identified fossils of snow leopards. The discovery has allowed them to trace the evolutionary history of the species during the ...

Did Prehistoric Kangaroos Run out of Food?

Jan. 9, 2025 — Prehistoric kangaroos in southern Australia had a more general diet than previously assumed, giving rise to new ideas about their survival and resilience to climate change, and the final extinction ...

Great Barrier Reef Fish Evidence Suggests Shifts in Major Global Biodiversity Patterns

Jan. 14, 2025 — Life on the Great Barrier Reef is undergoing big changes in the face of climate change and other human-caused pressures, a new study reveals. From ...

Polygamy Is (Not) for the Birds

Jan. 13, 2025 — Researchers have uncovered new insights into the evolution of bird behavior, revealing why certain mating systems persist while others disappear over ...

Study Highlights Key Factors for Successful Restoration of Elkhorn Coral Colonies

Jan. 10, 2025 — To help rare elkhorn corals survive in Florida waters, coral researchers should place them in shallow ocean locations with fast currents, scientists ...

Don't Write Off Logged Tropical Forests -- Converting to Oil Palm Plantations Has Even Wider Effects on Ecosystems

Jan. 9, 2025 — A research team has carried out the most comprehensive assessment to date of how logging and conversion to oil palm plantations affect tropical ...

The Extreme Teeth of Sabre-Toothed Predators Were 'Optimal' for Biting Into Prey

Jan. 9, 2025 — Sabre-toothed predators -- best know from the infamous Smilodon -- evolved multiple times across different mammal groups. A new study reveals why: ...

Herbivore or Carnivore? A Toolbox for the Study of Extinct Reptiles

Jan. 8, 2025 — Evolution has resulted in the development of both herbivores and carnivores -- but how? What type of food did extinct vertebrates eat? And how can we gain insight into the diets of these creatures? ...

Mediterranean Sharks Continue to Decline Despite Conservation Progress

Jan. 8, 2025 — New research has found more than 200 measures to protect sharks and rays across the 22 coastal states of the Mediterranean region. However, while elasmobranchs have made it onto many policy agendas, ...

Rethinking Population Management in Zoos

Jan. 8, 2025 — Until now, contraception has been the method of choice for zoos to avoid surplus animals. Researchers are now calling for a paradigm shift: zoos could preserve their breeding populations, raise ...

Scientists Unveil Surprising Human Vs Mouse Differences in a Major Cancer Immunotherapy Target

Jan. 3, 2025 — Much of our knowledge of the protein PD-1, a leading cancer treatment target, comes from studies in mice. In a comprehensive assessment of PD-1, researchers have found that PD-1 in mice is ...

Urgent Action Needed to Protect the Parma Wallaby

Dec. 27, 2024 — The creation of more fox-free safe havens and greater collaboration between government and landowners is needed to ensure the survival of a species of wallaby, an expert argues. The Parma wallaby, ...

Coral Reef Nightlife Becomes More Predatory With Artificial Light

Dec. 26, 2024 — Artificial light can wake sleeping fish and attract predators, changing nighttime coral reef communities, according to new research using novel underwater infrared ...

Individual Leopards Can Be Identified by Their Roars

Dec. 23, 2024 — In the first large-scale paired camera trap and autonomous recording survey for large African carnivores, researchers were able to identify individual leopards by their vocalizations with 93% ...

Researchers Identify a Mysterious Fossil Seed to Reveal New Chapters in Climate History of Los Angeles

Dec. 19, 2024 — Scientists have successfully identified a previously unknown species to Southern California from fossilized seeds, revealing a drought-fueled dance between two species of juniper with lessons for the ...

New Study Highlights the Correlation Between Live Corals and Fishing Yields

Dec. 19, 2024 — A new study examines the correlation between fish yield and live coral habitats. Researchers analyzed the yields of nine fisheries dependent on Australia's Great Barrier Reef from 2016 to 2020. ...

Chart of Life Extended by Nearly 1.5 Billion Years

Dec. 19, 2024 — Fossilized skeletons and shells clearly show how evolution and extinction unfolded over the past half a billion years, but a new analysis extends the chart of life to nearly 2 billion years ago. The ...

Massive Volcanic Eruptions Did Not Cause the Extinction of Dinosaurs

Dec. 18, 2024 — While volcanism caused a temporary cold period, the effects had already worn off thousands of years before the meteorite, the ultimate cause of the dinosaur extinction event, ...

Threat of Abrupt Mortality Events Keeps Endangered Monkey Population at Risk, Despite Decades of Growth

Dec. 16, 2024 — Despite the population being almost four times larger than it was in 1982, a new study published in the journal Ecology suggests the northern muriqui monkeys remain at risk, especially in the face of ...

New Research About Drought Impacts on Wildlife Can Inform Conservation Strategies

Dec. 16, 2024 — New research shows that many wildlife species in the U.S., like the endangered giant kangaroo rat, will face much more frequent and severe droughts in the future. By 2050-2080, year-long droughts ...

Hippos 'Vulnerable' as Gaps in Data Hinder Conservation Efforts

Dec. 13, 2024 — A new database of African hippo populations has revealed huge gaps in our knowledge of where the megaherbivores live and thrive, with populations fragmented and reliant on protected ...

Overfishing Has Halved Shark and Ray Populations Since 1970

Dec. 12, 2024 — A new analysis reveals that overfishing has caused populations of chondrichthyan fishes -- sharks, rays, and chimaeras -- to decline by more than 50 per cent since 1970. To determine the ...

Botanists Name Beautiful New Species of 'Lipstick Vine' from the Philippine Rainforest

Dec. 12, 2024 — Scientists have today announced the discovery of a species of lipstick vine completely new to science, from the depths of the Philippine rainforest. The team of botanists made the discovery during an ...

Australia's Extinction Tally Is Worse Than We Thought

Dec. 11, 2024 — A new study estimates that more than 9000 insects and other native invertebrates have become extinct in Australia since European arrival in 1788 and between 1-3 additional species become extinct ...

Well-Meaning Dogs Led Astray by Rule-Defying Owners

Dec. 11, 2024 — While good dogs never mean harm, they are often directed to remain on-lead in nature reserves to protect wildlife. Research has found that whether dog owners follow this rule is mostly driven by ...

Human Disruption Is Driving 'Winner' and 'Loser' Tree Species Shifts Across Brazilian Forests

Dec. 10, 2024 — Fast-growing and small-seeded tree species are dominating Brazilian forests in regions with high levels of deforestation and degradation, a new study shows. This has potential implications for the ...

Biodiversity at Risk in Most Rainforests

Dec. 9, 2024 — New research has revealed less than a quarter of the remaining tropical rainforests around the globe can safeguard thousands of threatened species from ...

Conservation Paradox: Invasive Species Are Often Threatened in Their Native Range

Dec. 6, 2024 — Non-native species introduced by humans are among the main causes of global species decline -- they were partly responsible for 60 percent of the species that have become extinct worldwide in recent ...

Deforestation Reduces Malaria Bed Nets' Effectiveness

Dec. 5, 2024 — When a forest is lost to development, some effects are obvious. Stumps and mud puddles across the landscape, a plowed field or houses a year after that. But deforestation isn't just a loss of ...