An analysis of eggshells from three kinds of dinosaurs shows they were all warm-blooded, suggesting that dinosaurs’ ancestors were also warm-blooded

Fossils of single cells found in China are 2 billion years old, making them the oldest eukaryotic cells in the fossil record and possibly our distant relatives

Most tadpoles breathe air but they are too weak to break the elastic "skin" on top of ponds created by water tension – so they suck air bubbles from the surface

Amber from the Cretaceous period trapped a leaf-footed bug with extremely long and wide antennae, which may have helped disguise the insect or confuse predators

Blue tits and great tits don’t need to taste unpleasant foods to avoid them – they can learn not to try them by seeing another bird’s disgusted response, even if it’s only on video

A number of ant species produce acid in a poison gland in their abdomen to spray at enemies, and now it seems they also drink it to kill pathogens in their food

The earliest cave-dwelling animal identified from the dinosaur era is a ghostly white cockroach with tiny eyes and wings that was preserved in amber

As the world gets warmer, animals whose sex is determined by temperature are finding cool ways to control their own fate. But can they adapt in time?

Green seaweed fossils found in a billion-year-old rock are the oldest complex plants discovered, and may have given rise to plants that evolved to live on land

Healthy grey whales are four times more likely to become stranded when solar activity produces lots of radio noise, suggesting solar storms may be blinding their ability to sense magnetic fields

All animals rely on oxygen at least at some stage of their life, but a parasite that infects fish seems to have completely lost the ability to use it – where it gets its energy from is still a mystery

Seagulls are known for aggressively attempting to swipe people's food, and it seems that when given the choice between identical meals, they favour the one handled by humans

Genetic analysis suggests that the Himalayan and Chinese red pandas are two different species that diverged about 200,000 years ago

A worm-like creature from 518 million years ago evolved to lose its back legs, the earliest known example of an animal losing body parts it no longer needed

Watching brain activity in fish as they try to “swim” in virtual reality helps us understand their perception abilities and how they interact with other animals

The bell of an upside-down jellyfish has structures that can provide a scaffold for growing human skin cells, which could be used to help repair wounds after surgery or a bad burn

It’s 2038 and Earth's trees are dead, bar some firs on a tiny island. The tale of what happened is an epic combining sci-if, mystery and an exposé of capitalism, says Sally Adee

A mixture of two carbon-based chemicals can spontaneously form molecules that can copy themselves, hinting at how life may have begun on Earth

This pink manta ray, nicknamed Clouseau, has resurfaced off Australia’s coast. No one knows why it has a bubble-gum pink underside or if there are others out there

A new species of dinosaur has been named from a skull measuring only 1.4 centimetres across. The dinosaur was smaller than any living bird today

Genetic analysis suggests all Arabica coffee plants are descended from a single common ancestor, and this lack of genetic diversity makes them vulnerable to extinction

The plot of sci-fi movie Little Joe may sound like it plays to powerful 1990s anti-GM fears but bigger issues like human freedom may really be at stake

A 2000-year-old skeleton found in Spain belonged to a lapdog that may have been born thousands of kilometres to the east and traded during Roman times

Penguins are the first seabirds we have recorded making sounds under water – they may be calling out for help when they hunt or making noise to disorient their prey

We love to hate wasps, but they pollinate flowers, kill off pests and their venom might even help us treat cancer

Finding out how flight evolved or animals moved onto land is all about a collision of palaeontology and genetics, argue two new books

A shrimp-like creature found 6 kilometres down in the Pacific Ocean’s deepest trench has been named Eurythenes plasticus after the microplastics found in its gut

Tropical seas are ecological hotspots where predators should be active and easy to catch – but 50 years of data shows sharks are easier to catch in cooler seas

Bottlenose dolphins in Shark Bay, Australia, form alliances and coordinate the timing of their clicking noises to attract females and deter other males

A 99-million-year-old skull recently discovered in amber might actually belong to a lizard, rather than a tiny bird-like dinosaur as first thought

Plant-eating cave bears vanished when ice spread across Europe – maybe because their large sinuses prevented them chewing meat to adapt to the new conditions

The age of a whale shark can be determined by dating the rings of growth in their cartilage, a method that has confirmed that these animals can live for at least 50 years

Soil’s earthy smell comes from chemicals produced by bacteria called Streptomyces, which use the odour to attract springtails to help disperse their spores

Two lineages of ancient monkey migrated from Africa to South America more than 30 million years ago. But we’re not sure which ones got there first

Pale spear-nosed bats can learn to alter their calls to mimic different sounds – a rare skill that could help us understand the biology of human speech and language

The first living organisms had to make essential carbon-based chemicals, and they may have done it by harnessing the chemical power of metals like nickel

Most molecules exist in mirror-image forms, and yet life prefers one over the other. How this bias began and why it persisted is one of the most baffling questions in biology – but now we have an answer

Male ring-tailed lemurs rub their wrists to release a sweet, fruity smell that may be the first evidence of sex pheromones identified in primates

An alligator carcass dropped in the deep ocean reveals the bizarre ecosystems of the seabed - including zombie worms that fed on prehistoric reptiles

An aerial view of crabeater seals in Antarctica, mating damselflies and a twilight rocket launch were among the most lauded entries to the inaugural Nature TTL Photographer of the Year award

Humans, chimpanzees, gorillas and bats have evolved to be good at metabolising alcohol, according to a study that suggests many mammals can get drunk

A well-preserved fossilised tail from Spinosaurus suggests this massive dinosaur may have been able to propel itself and hunt for prey in the water

Vampire bats are social creatures that build relationships through grooming and food-sharing, but when they feel ill, they self-isolate and call out for contact far less

Apollo 11, Take Your Pills, Pandemic: How to prevent an outbreak, and Icarus are all great documentaries available to stream at the moment

For years, the oldest turtle fossils we could find had fully formed shells. Now, more primitive fossils are revealing the strange tale of how turtle shells evolved

The Tully Monster is a famously odd 300-million-year-old fossil that looks like an alien, but a new analysis suggests it was a backboned animal like a hagfish or lamprey

For orangutans, scratching is contagious – but unexpectedly, the behaviour is transmitted more between individuals that do not know each other well

Sara Pauly is not one of those small business owners scrambling to fill out paperwork for part of the more than $350 billion in government aid available through the Paycheck Protection Program or the...

(This Apr 9 story corrects spelling and title of Joyce Maroney, founder and executive director of the Workforce Institute at Kronos, in paragraphs 16 and 23.)

After closing their doors to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, many small businesses face an uncertain future following government-ordered lockdowns.