Modern North American porcupines are at least twice the size of their southern cousins and have stronger jaws. But how long have they looked that way?
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Articles on Fossils
Displaying 1 - 20 of 407 articles
A recent announcement that kiwi and moa are Australian immigrants is not borne out by available evidence. Working out when birds arrived in New Zealand requires both fossil evidence and genetics.
Megalodon, the giant shark species that disappeared around 3.6 million years ago, was the most ferocious creature that ever lived. What do we know about it?
The Jurassic pterosaur’s size was estimated from only its finger bone.
A new Australian coelacanth find has revealed a surprising force behind the slow evolution of these ‘living fossils’.
When did fur evolve? You may be surprised to learn there’s a chance it pre-dates the dinosaurs.
Palaeontologist don’t just dig up dinosaur bones – they study the whole history of life on Earth, and uncover clues about its future too.
Using a method applied directly to ancient hominin teeth, researchers have calculated the age of several important fossils.
Thousands of years ago, a woolly mammoth died in Siberia. Its fragile DNA underwent a remarkable transformation, and we can still analyse it today.
Amber catches creatures in incredible detail. These fossil insects in amber are a link between ancient Gondwana and modern Australian forests.
New insect treasures are almost certainly just waiting to be found by future palaeonentomologists.
A 500-million-year-old find reveals previously unknown features of the sea creatures responsible for some of palaeontology’s most recognisable fossils.
A photo of Lucy’s reconstructed skeleton next to a live four-year-old girl shows how human Lucy was – and how small.
In 2021 a former avocado farmer discovered the most complete pterosaur skeleton ever found in Australia – and new research shows it represents a previously unknown species.
A recent find of an ancient giant bird’s skull has revealed much about its life among the vanished lakes and wetlands of inland South Australia.
Fossilized skin belonging to an amniote was recently discovered. The skin was so well-preserved, that its cellular structures could be identified.
Understanding more about feathers could change the way we think about dinosaurs.
Starfish reproduce by splitting in two. A new fossil reveals how ancient this ability is.
Such massive disruptions have in the past been caused by volcanoes or meteorites. Only humans have done this with full awareness of their actions.
There appear to be two possible explanations for circular patterns with central depressions in Pleistocene deposits on the Cape coast.
Top contributors
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Associate professor in Vertebrate Palaeontology, University of the Witwatersrand
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Strategic Professor in Palaeontology, Flinders University
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Research Associate, African Centre for Coastal Palaeoscience, Nelson Mandela University
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Professor of Vertebrate Palaeontology, University of Bristol
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Professor in Evolutionary Biology (jointly appointed with South Australian Museum), Flinders University
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Associate Professor, Vertebrate Palaeontology Group, Flinders University
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Senior Lecturer in Paleontology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences at the University of Bath, University of Bath
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Professor in Geochronology and Geochemistry, Southern Cross University
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Honorary Research Associate, Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand
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Research Associate in the College of Science and Engineering, Flinders University
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Professor of Palaeobiology, University of Leicester
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Professor, Flinders University
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Lecturer in Palaeontology, Flinders University
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Lecturer, University of Cape Town
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Research associate, Curtin University
