Some three billion years ago, when life on this planet was still in its infancy, hot springs, geysers and volcanic hydrothermal vents were burgeoning with single-cell organisms. Temperatures hovered ...

Microbial organisms adapted to extreme and inhospitable environments carry proteins within their proteome that significantly accelerate the dissolution of CO₂ in water, while also withstanding very ...

A single gene that regulates testosterone levels in a 'crazy' species of shore bird controls the development of three wildly different types of males, a new study has found. Ruffs have long fascinated ...

There are three morphs in ruffs that differ in their appearance and mating behavior. Males of the aggressive Independents (left) have more testosterone in their blood than the other two morphs (a male ...

We normally associate high testosterone levels with male dominance and aggression. Among ruffs – a shore bird that breeds across Europe and Asia – some males suffer from too much of it. Together with ...