Animal

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Animals are a major group of mostly multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. Their body plan eventually becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their life. Most animals are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously and independently. Most animals are also heterotrophs, meaning they must ingest other organisms for sustenance.

Most known animal phyla appeared in the fossil record as marine species during the Cambrian explosion, about 542 million years ago.

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News tagged with animals

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Extinct goat Myotragus balearicus

Extinct goat was cold-blooded

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Nov 18, 2009 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (37) | comments 12

(PhysOrg.com) -- An extinct goat that lived on a barren Mediterranean island survived for millions of years by reducing in size and by becoming cold-blooded, which has never before been discovered in mammals.


Bigger not necessarily better, when it comes to brains

Bigger not necessarily better, when it comes to brains

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Nov 17, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (19) | comments 12

(PhysOrg.com) -- Tiny insects could be as intelligent as much bigger animals, despite only having a brain the size of a pinhead, say scientists at Queen Mary, University of London.


Warm-blooded dinosaurs worked up a sweat

Warm-blooded dinosaurs worked up a sweat

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Nov 11, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (5) | comments 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Were dinosaurs endothermic (warm-blooded) like present-day mammals and birds or ectothermic (cold-blooded) like present-day lizards? The implications of this simple-sounding question go beyond ...


The therapeutic benefits of the human-animal bond

Other Sciences / Social Sciences

created 22 hours ago | popularity 4.6 / 5 (5) | comments 0

A pet owner knows the enormous joy and comfort that an animal can provide, especially in troubled times. Most pets are considered important members of the family and irreplaceable companions. A growing body of research now ...


Aquatic creatures mix ocean water

Physics / General Physics

created Nov 22, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 1

Understanding mixing in the ocean is of fundamental importance to modeling climate change or predicting the effects of an El Niño on our weather. Modern ocean models primarily incorporate the effects of winds and tides. However, ...


Can biodiversity persist in the face of climate change?

Can biodiversity persist in the face of climate change?

Biology / Ecology

created Nov 06, 2009 | popularity 3 / 5 (8) | comments 2

(PhysOrg.com) -- Predictions made over the last decade about the impacts of climate change on biodiversity may be exaggerated, according to a paper published in the journal Science.


Penguins and sea lions help produce new atlas

Penguins and sea lions help produce new atlas

Biology / Ecology

created Nov 16, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Recording hundreds of thousands of individual uplinks from satellite transmitters fitted on penguins, albatrosses, sea lions, and other marine animals, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and BirdLife ...


Over 17,000 species threatened by extinction

Biology / Ecology

created Nov 02, 2009 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

(AP) -- A rare Panamanian tree frog, a rodent from Madagascar and two lizards found only in the Philippines are among over 17,000 species threatened with extinction, a leading environmental group said Tuesday.