Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about biodiversity and the hidden quirks of the natural world. Over 390 million years ago, the ancestors of modern land ...

Study suggests adapting to life on land wasn't the biggest challenge facing fish coming ashore millions of years ago.

Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. The story of two of ...

A fish thought to be evolution’s time capsule just surprised scientists. A detailed dissection of the coelacanth — a 400-million-year-old species often called a “living fossil” — revealed that key ...

Animals from completely different branches of the tree of life, such as insects, worms and vertebrates, independently evolved similar genetic solutions to survive on land, according to a new study ...

The discovery of a golden scaleless fish in China is helping scientists understand how animals evolved to live in caves. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate ...

Two new studies add to the evidence that human activity, from fishing to urban development, is driving the evolution of wild animals. By Emily Anthes Call it the case of the incredible shrinking cod.

Teeth first evolved as sensory organs, not for chewing, according to a new analysis of animal fossils. The first tooth-like structures seem to have been sensitive nodules on the skin of early fish ...

The coelacanth is known as a “living fossil” because its anatomy has changed little in the last 65 million years. Despite being one of the most studied fish in history, it continues to reveal new ...

New research is shaking up our understanding of evolution by revealing that some species may not evolve gradually at all. Instead, scientists discovered that certain marine worms experienced an ...

The story of two of the strangest animals on the planet just got a little stranger, thanks to clues revealed by a lone fossil specimen that scientists now say represents a long-extinct ancestor. The ...