Stable temperatures boost biodiversity in tropical mountains. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, June 8, 2011. The diversity of plants and animals in tropical mountain ranges may have something to do with the stable seasonal temperatures found near the equator relative to higher latitudes.
Category Archives: NESCent
Songbirds tweak their tunes in different ways to cope with clamor
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Songbirds tweak their tunes in different ways to cope with clamor. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, May 26, 2011. Some birds that live near noisy sites can alter their songs to deal with din. But closely related species with similar songs may tweak their tunes in different ways, says a new study. Picked up by US News and World Report and Science Magazine.
Coping with climate change
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Coping with climate change. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, May 11, 2011. Can we predict which species will be able to move far or fast enough to keep up with rising global temperatures? A new study says the secrets to success in the face of a warming world are still elusive.
Marine snails get a metabolism boost
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Marine snails get a metabolism boost. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, May 3, 2011. Most of us wouldn’t consider slow-moving snails to be high-metabolism creatures. But at one point in the distant past, snail metabolism sped up, says a new study in the journal Paleobiology.
Toxic frogs are more physically fit
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Treadmill tests for poison frogs prove toxic species are more physically fit. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, March 29, 2011. The most toxic, brightly colored members of the poison frog family may also be the best athletes. Story picked up by Wired Science, Discovery Channel, and MSNBC News.
New study pinpoints why some microbial genes are more promiscuous than others
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New study pinpoints why some microbial genes are more promiscuous than others. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, March 16, 2011. A new study of more than three dozen species — including the microbes responsible for pneumonia, ulcers and plague — settles a longstanding debate about why bacteria are more likely to steal some genes than others.
To age is primate
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To age is primate. Duke Today, March 10, 2011. For a long time scientists thought that humans aged more slowly than other animals, especially given our relatively long life spans and access to modern medicine. But now, the first-ever comparison of human aging patterns with those in chimps and other primates suggests the pace of human aging may not be so unique after all. Picked up by Discovery News, US News & World Report, ABC News, MSNBC, Science Magazine, USA Today, CBS News, and NPR’s Science Friday.
Evolution drives many plants and animals to be bigger, faster
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Evolution drives many plants and animals to be bigger, faster. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, March 7, 2011. For the vast majority of plants and animals, the ‘bigger is better’ view of evolution may not be far off the mark, says a new study of natural selection.
Biological clock ticks slower for female birds who choose good mates
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Biological clock ticks slower for female birds who choose good mates. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, January 18, 2011. In birds as in people, female fertility declines with age, but some female songbirds can slow the ticking of their biological clocks by choosing the right mates. Picked up by MSNBC.
Primates are more resilient than other animals to environmental ups and downs
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Primates are more resilient than other animals to environmental ups and downs. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, December 1, 2010.What sets mankind’s closest relatives — monkeys, apes, and other primates — apart from other animals? According to a new study, one answer is that primates are less susceptible to seasonal ups and downs. Picked up by TIME Magazine.
Single parenthood doesn’t pay off for plants
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Single parenthood doesn’t pay off for plants. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, November 8, 2010. Plants that can pollinate themselves are more likely to go extinct, says a new study of the nightshade plant family.
Scared snails opt for single parenthood rather than wait for a mate
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Scared snails opt for single parenthood rather than wait for a mate. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, August 16, 2010. Solitary snails in search of a mate put off parenthood as long as possible in the hopes that a partner will appear. But scared snails settle for single parenthood much sooner than their calm counterparts, says a new study. Picked up by USA Today, the Dallas Morning News, and LiveScience.
Penguin males with steady pitch make better parents
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Penguin males with steady pitch make better parents. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, July 12, 2010. Courtship calls help penguin females decide which males are likely to be devoted dads. Picked up by the New Zealand Herald and the Post and Courier.
Why you should never arm wrestle a saber-toothed tiger
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Why you should never arm wrestle a saber-toothed tiger. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, July 2, 2010. Saber-toothed cats may be best known for their supersized canines, but they also had exceptionally strong forelimbs for pinning prey before delivering the fatal bite. Picked up by Discover Magazine, Science News, MSNBC, and Science.
Competition puts the brakes on body evolution in island lizards
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Competition puts the brakes on body evolution in island lizards. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, June 18, 2010. Anolis lizards compete in ways that shape their bodies over evolutionary time, says a new study in the journal Evolution.
Thriving in thin air
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Scientists uncover the genetic secrets that allow Tibetans to thrive in thin air. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, June 7, 2010. A new study pinpoints the genetic changes that enable Tibetans to thrive at altitudes where others get sick. Picked up by Discovery News, Irish Times, and the New York Times.
Desperate female spiders fight by different rules
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Desperate female spiders fight by different rules. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, June 7, 2010. In most animals the bigger, better fighter usually wins. But for the jumping spider Phidippus clarus, size and skill aren’t everything — what matters for Phidippus females is how badly they want to win. Picked up by U.S. News and World Report, Wired Science, and NOVA.
Road to royalty begins early in paper wasps
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The making of a queen: Road to royalty begins early in paper wasps. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, May 19, 2010. Social status in paper wasps is established earlier in life than scientists thought. Picked up by Life’s Little Mysteries.
DNA barcoding exposes fake ferns
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DNA barcoding exposes fake ferns in international plant trade. Duke Today, May 4, 2010. DNA testing of garden ferns sold at plant nurseries in North Carolina, Texas, and California has found that plants marketed as American natives may actually be exotic species from other parts of the globe. Picked up by the Raleigh News and Observer and the Charlotte Observer.
For deep sea animals, food can be a double-edged sword
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When the dinner bell rings for seafloor scavengers, larger animals get first dibs. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, April 5, 2010. Surplus food can be a double-edged sword for animals in the ocean deep. Picked up by Science News and Down to Earth Magazine.
Pine pollen still potent miles from the tree
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Gone with the wind: Far-flung pine pollen still potent miles from the tree. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, April 5, 2010. Pollen from the loblolly pine—the most commonly planted tree in the southern US—can still germinate after drifting long distances, which may make it difficult to contain transgenic trees. Picked up by Science News, the Raleigh News and Observer, and the Durham Herald-Sun.
Flowering plants may be older than previously thought
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Molecular study could push back angiosperm origins. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, March 15, 2010. Flowering plants may be considerably older than previously thought, says a new analysis of the plant family tree.
Africa’s rarest monkey had an intriguing sexual past
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Africa’s rarest monkey had an intriguing sexual past, DNA study confirms. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, November 9, 2009. Results may help to set conservation priorities for this critically endangered species. Picked up by National Geographic and MSNBC.
Male sabertoothed cats were pussycats
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Male sabertoothed cats were pussycats compared to macho lions. Duke Today, November 5, 2009. Despite their fearsome fangs, male sabertoothed cats may have been less aggressive than many of their feline cousins, says a new study of male-female size differences in extinct big cats. Picked up by the Durham Herald-Sun, Laelaps Science Blog, Fox News, MSNBC, and National Public Radio.
Are humans still evolving? Absolutely.
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Are humans still evolving? Absolutely, says a new analysis of a long-term study of human health. National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, October 19, 2009. Although advances in medical care have improved standards of living over time, humans aren’t entirely sheltered from the forces of natural selection, a new study shows. Picked up by the Boston Globe, TIME, Science Magazine, NPR’s Science Friday, New Scientist, and Telegraph.