165 Items Tagged

Paleontology

The 28 steps imprinted on this sandstone boulder form the Grand Canyon National Park's oldest fossil.

Found: The Grand Canyon’s Oldest Vertebrate Fossil

These 28 footprints were made 310 million years ago.

Anna Kusmer November 16, 2018

A key-footed glyptodon.

extinct animals

What in the World Was a Key-Footed Glyptodon?

It had a shell as big as a car.

Sarah Laskow November 9, 2018

A raptor, genus <em>Zhenyuanlong</em>.

Paleontologists Are Still Digging Into the Origins of the 'Chinese Pompeii'

What we know (and what we don't) about the Jehol Biota.

Robin George Andrews October 22, 2018

The ripples are plainly visible beside dinosaur tracks. A new mural above showcases both.

Prehistoric Sand Is Full of Secrets

Petrified wave ripples can tell us about the weather that dinosaurs saw.

Jessica Leigh Hester October 18, 2018

Inside the cave.

Sataplia Nature Reserve

The cave holds a spectacular array of stalactites and stalagmites, including one shaped like a giant human heart.

Not your everyday beach find.

Found: The First Known Footprints of an Elusive Sabre-Toothed Cat

And they tell us about how they hunted.

Matthew Taub September 6, 2018

Museum visitors brought all sorts of finds spanning thousands of years.

A Museum's Treasured Tradition of Identifying Fossils for the Public

Including the occasional turd.

Jessica Leigh Hester July 6, 2018

The archaeological site of Hadar.

Shinile, Ethiopia

Hadar Archaeological Site

The skeletal remains of the famous hominid "Lucy" were found at this spot.

The 432-million-year-old fossilized stem is one of the oldest and largest ever found.

A Czech Museum's 432-Million-Year-Old Plant Sprouts Surprising Information

A new look at the fossil shows plants of the era may have been greener and more vascular than we thought.

Christina Ayele Djossa May 8, 2018

Mark Witton's reconstruction has a short proboscis and medium sized ears.

The Puzzles and Pitfalls of Reconstructing Paraceratherium, the Largest Ever Land Mammal

Piecing together a giant prehistoric rhinoceros is as hard as it looks.

Natasha Frost April 26, 2018

A 3D reconstruction of the cow skull shows its exterior and interior perspectives.

Around 5,000 Years Ago, People Performed Brain Surgery on This Cow

The question is: Why?

Natasha Frost April 19, 2018

A model of a Neanderthal man, from London's Natural History Museum.

Why Did Neanderthals Have Such a Distinctive Face Shape?

New research disproves an often-cited theory about their powerful bite.

Natasha Frost April 5, 2018

The femur and tibia bones of a pterosaur.

Found: Fossilized Pterodactyls With 30-Foot Wingspans

These prehistoric reptiles reigned over the skies 66 million years ago.

Christina Ayele Djossa March 16, 2018

Red-eared sliders: cute but trouble.

Found: A 5.5-Million-Year-Old Ancestor of the Red-Eared Slider

The ancient relative of a popular (but invasive) pet.

Vittoria Traverso February 27, 2018

The ladder shape composed of red horizontal and vertical lines (center left) dates to older than 64,000 years and was made by Neanderthals.

The Earliest European Cave Art Was Made by Neanderthals

A new study suggests that they had the capacity for symbolic behavior.

Natasha Frost February 23, 2018

The lands of Bears Ears are a trove of treasures of geology, archaeology, and paleontology.

Found: A Rich Collection of Triassic Fossils at Bears Ears

Another wonder from a wild place now left unprotected.

Vittoria Traverso February 23, 2018

Two large fossilized mammoth tracks.

The Stories Hidden in Fossilized Mammoth Footprints

What researchers uncovered when they analyzed 43,000-year-old tracks.

Christina Ayele Djossa February 14, 2018

An image of the moa, by Heinrich Harder, shows them erroneously being hunted with bows and arrows.

What Fossilized Poop Tells Us About an Extinct Giant Bird From New Zealand

Resurrecting the moa's diet.

Natasha Frost February 13, 2018