Nature & Wildlife
Tales of the north
From the warm seas of the Torres Strait to the ancient rainforests of Cape York, the Far North only reveals itself through the sharing of stories
Tag: science
Drones may soon be fighting Australia’s bushfires
How can drones help Australia fight bushfires? And what are the obstacles to be overcome before it becomes reality?
Fossils show carnivorous dinosaurs thrived in Australia 120 million years ago, rewriting evolutionary history
Groundbreaking research has unveiled a landmark discovery – fossils of the world’s oldest known megaraptorid and the first evidence of carcharodontosaurs in Australia.
Space with Fred Watson
Alien volcanos
Once in a while, our planet reminds us of its awesome power by releasing a little of the magma that permeates its mantle in a volcanic eruption.
Scientists are watching wombat burrows from space
The Nullarbor is riddled with wombat and rabbit warrens. How do we know where these semi-subterranean creatures live, and how many there are? The answers come from the sky.
DNA tests reveal orcas killed great white for only its liver
Scientists have confirmed a great white shark found dead on a beach in western Victoria in 2023 was killed by orcas. Their research is also the first confirmed evidence of orcas’ selective eating of shark liver in Australian waters.
Whale song patterns follow a universal law of human language
Human languages display a pattern known as Zipf’s law. Now, researchers have found the same pattern in whale song.
PFAS: The forever chemical reality
What’s all the fuss about PFAS? And how did these manufactured menaces – known as ‘forever chemicals’ – manage to infiltrate global water sources so extensively before anyone realised?
People
Ocean warrior
This English-born marine scientist has stepped up to become a leader in the fight to safeguard the world’s reefs.
Largest study on genetic diversity finds glimmers of hope amid general global decline
Before species go extinct, their populations often shrink and become isolated. Healthy populations tend to have a large gene pool with many genetic variants circulating. But the path to extinction erodes genetic diversity, because a species’ gene pool shrinks as the population declines. Losing genetic diversity limits the ability of populations to adapt to threats such as disease and climate change.