monkeys origin called into question with new fossil discovery.
Well-preserved craniodental fossil remains from two primate species have been discovered during excavations at an Algerian site. They reveal that the small primate Algeripithecus, which is 50 million years old and until now was considered as the most ancient African anthropoid, in fact belonged to another group, [...]

A test for color blindness showing a “6″.
Researchers from the University of Washington and the University of Florida used gene therapy to cure two squirrel monkeys of color blindness — the most common genetic disorder in people.

Dolphins like Natua, pictured here, may share with humans the ability reflect upon their states of mind, says UB researcher David Smith.
Smith makes this conclusion in an article published the September issue of the journal Trends in Cognitive Science (Volume 13, Issue 9). He reviews this new and rapidly developing area of comparative inquiry, describing [...]

Getting a leg up on his snake brethren.
A snake with a single clawed foot has been discovered in China.
Dean Qiongxiu, 66, said she discovered the reptile clinging to the wall of her bedroom with its talons in the middle of the night.
“I woke up and heard a strange scratching sound. I turned on the light and [...]

Fly caught inside a Venus fly trap.
Like the man-eating plant in Little Shop of Horrors, carnivorous plants rely on animal prey for sustenance. Fortunately for humans, carnivorous plants found in nature are not dependent on a diet of human blood but rather are satisfied with the occasional fly or other insect. The existence of carnivorous [...]

Researchers found that corpses of animals, from insects to crustaceans, all emit the same death stench produced by a blend of specific fatty acids.
The smell of recent death or injury that repels living relatives of insects has been identified as a truly ancient signal that functions to avoid disease or predators, biologists have discovered.

Tigers have more complex brain than  lions?
A wide-ranging study of big cat skulls, led by Oxford University scientists, has shown that tigers have bigger brains, relative to their body size, than lions, leopards or jaguars.

Joy riding around the nuclear power plant does have a few side effects
Every week we spend time finding and sorting through our top ten photos. And every week we end up with more than ten. Its not because we can’t count. Rather, it’s because we don’t think you can.  (Pics)
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New research shows that nicotine, the addictive component in cigarettes, “tricks” the brain into creating memory associations between environmental cues and smoking behavior.
Ever wonder why former smokers miss lighting up most when they are in a bar or after a meal with friends?

Bosavi giant woolly rat.
A Smithsonian Institution biologist, working with the Natural History Unit of the BBC, has discovered a new species of giant rat on a filmmaking expedition to a remote rainforest in New Guinea.

A monkey that has acquired the sole power to hand out apples is generously rewarded with grooming sessions by the other monkeys in its group.
A monkey that has acquired the sole power to hand out apples is generously rewarded with grooming sessions by the other monkeys in its group. But as soon as another [...]

A cotton bollworm moth flies off the hand of a technician in a laboratory
Moths, caterpillars and fruit flies could soon take the place of millions of mice used every year by scientists testing drugs, researchers said Tuesday.  Biologists have discovered that certain key cells in mammals and insects react in the same way when attacked [...]

They are thought of as the mischief-makers of the animal kingdom.  But baby chimps are less of a handful than their human cousins.  If a young chimp is in tears, it is quickly calmed by a cuddle, research shows.
 

Oithona attacking prey. The position of the copepod before the jump is marked with white and after the jump with black.
Could you filter 100,000 cubic metres of syrup every day to find food in a concentration of two grains of rice per cubic metre?

Hey Baby, Let Me Suck Your Pool!

Debra Mitchell is a lead code compliance officer for the Village of Wellington. During the collapse of the housing market, the community was left with a large number of foreclosed homes.
Pointing out one example Mitchell said, “It has an unsanitary, abandoned swimming pool, stagnant swimming pool. There’s no electricity [...]

Cows have feeling? Meat Eaters Have Ethics? Genetic Engineering has Ethics too?  

That’s the question that Jeremy Hsu asks, given innovations in genetic engineering:
In 2006, researchers found six Pakistani children who felt no pain due to an inactivated gene, and who constantly had bruises and cuts. One fell into the habit of putting knives through his [...]

New research reveals that chimpanzees in the Congo have developed specialised ‘tool kits’ to forage for army ants.
Chimpanzees in the Congo have developed specialised ‘tool kits’ to forage for army ants, reveals new research published today in the American Journal of Primatology. This not only provides the first direct evidence of multiple tool use in [...]

Master! Master! Where’s the dreams that I’ve been after?

Monkeys are found to be fans of heavy metal music, in particular Metallica, after a study showed it calmed them down.
A group of cottontop tamarins were played a variety of music, including Bach, Led Zeppelin and Miles Davis, but they only reacted when heavy metal rock songs [...]

IT’S OFFICIAL!

The budget wasn’t the only thing that the council members of Madison, Wisconsin, had to consider during its meeting: they also decided to make the plastic lawn flamingo its official bird!
The new mascot was debated for five minutes, and then the Common Council voted 15-4 to make the plastic pink flamingo the official city [...]

Now thats one sneaky chic
Female gorillas use sex as a tactic to thwart their rivals, new research suggests. Pregnant apes court their silverback male to stop other females conceiving.

Scientists at the Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease have traced the evolution of the four-chambered human heart to a common genetic factor linked to the development of hearts in turtles and other reptiles.
 

Ready to rumble!

It’s the latest thing for the paranoid pet owner: an earthquake survival kit for cats and dogs.
Animal lovers living in earthquake-prone regions can now buy special kits to ensure the survival of their most cherished pets should the earth begin the tremble.
Manufacturers Oyagokoro, from Japan, have released three types of earthquake packs for [...]

A fun day at the beach..hmm I don’t think so.
SAINT-MICHEL-EN-GRÈVE, France — It should have been a perfect day for Vincent Petit, finishing an afternoon gallop on a wide expanse of beach along a pastel-colored bay. Instead, he and his mount were sucked into a hole of noxious black sludge.

Now we know that Mr Ed was a cultural phenomenon for a very long time
German archaeologists on Thursday unveiled a bronze and gold horse’s head they said was believed to be a remnant of a 2000-year-old Roman statue.