Rare fossil specimen offers evidence of social behaviour among ancient snakes

Rare fossil specimen offers evidence of social behaviour among ancient snakes

A perfectly preserved burrow of fossilized snakes shows that the reptiles have been social creatures for almost 40 million years, says a new research paper co-authored by a University of Alberta paleontologist.  It’s well known that snakes today gather in burrows for all kinds of reasons, including breeding and surviving cold temperatures by piling together … Read more

Geologist says she knows the Mona Lisa’s setting. But not everyone is convinced

Geologist says she knows the Mona Lisa’s setting. But not everyone is convinced

As It Happens7:16This geologist says she found the Mona Lisa’s setting While many art historians have focused on the woman in Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, Ann Pizzorusso has a different obsession — the mountain ridges in the background. Pizzorusso, a geologist and Italian Renaissance scholar, says she combined her two fields of expertise to pinpoint … Read more

Fossilized tracks of rare 320-million-year-old animal found in Cape Breton

Fossilized tracks of rare 320-million-year-old animal found in Cape Breton

People could be making tracks to see an impressive new exhibit of 320-million-year-old footprints at the Cape Breton Fossil Centre in Sydney Mines, N.S. A group of geologists from Cape Breton University recently found fossilized claw imprints that are remarkable for their size and age. “The stuff we get on Cape Breton and in Nova Scotia … Read more

Oldest mosquito in amber reveals bloodsucking surprise

Oldest mosquito in amber reveals bloodsucking surprise

Hundreds of thousands of people worldwide are killed annually by malaria and other diseases spread through the bite of mosquitoes, insects that date back to the age of dinosaurs. All of these bites are inflicted by females, which possess specialized mouth anatomy that their male counterparts lack. But it hasn’t always been that way. Researchers … Read more