http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/fossils_ruins/fossils/ Paleontology and fossil records. Read about fossil finds over the last 10 years starting with the most recent research. Full text, photos. en-us Wed, 15 Feb 2012 21:05:01 EST Wed, 15 Feb 2012 21:05:01 EST 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/fossils_ruins/fossils/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120207152545.htm It's big, it's old and it lives under the sea -- and now an international research collaboration has confirmed that an ancient seagrass holds the secrets of the oldest living organism on Earth. Ancient giant Posidonia oceanica reproduces asexually, generating clones of itself. A single organism -- which has been found to span up to 15 kilometers in width and reach more than 6,000 metric tonnes in mass -- may well be more than 100,000 years old. Tue, 07 Feb 2012 15:25:25 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120207152545.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120207133602.htm Scientists have completed the genome sequence of a Denisovan, a representative of an Asian group of extinct humans related to Neanderthals. Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:36:36 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120207133602.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120207100143.htm Although many anthropologists believe that modern humans ancestors "wiped out" Neanderthals, it's more likely that Neanderthals were integrated into the human gene pool thousands of years ago during the Upper Pleistocene era as cultural and climatic forces brought the two groups together. New research suggests that the Neanderthals demise was due to a combination of influences, including cultural changes. Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:01:01 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120207100143.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120206154114.htm The love song of an extinct cricket that lived 165 million years ago has been brought back to life by scientists. The song – possibly the most ancient known musical song documented to date – was reconstructed from microscopic wing features on a fossil discovered in North East China. It allows us to listen to one of the sounds that would have been heard by dinosaurs and other creatures roaming Jurassic forests at night. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:41:41 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120206154114.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120203102414.htm They are tiny, ugly, disease-carrying little blood-suckers that most people have never seen or heard of, but a new discovery in a one-of-a-kind fossil shows that "bat flies" have been doing their noxious business with bats for at least 20 million years. Fri, 03 Feb 2012 10:24:24 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120203102414.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120131175625.htm A new species of prehistoric crocodile has been discovered. The extinct creature, nicknamed "Shieldcroc" due to a thick-skinned shield on its head, is an ancestor of today's crocodiles. Tue, 31 Jan 2012 17:56:56 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120131175625.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120131102519.htm Thirty-thousand-year-old bison bones discovered in permafrost at a Canadian goldmine are helping scientists unravel the mystery about how animals adapt to rapid environmental change. Tue, 31 Jan 2012 10:25:25 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120131102519.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120123152528.htm A 33,000-year-old dog skull unearthed in a Siberian mountain cave presents some of the oldest known evidence of dog domestication and indicates that modern dogs may be descended from multiple ancestors, with advancing glaciers thwarting early domestication efforts. Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:25:25 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120123152528.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120123152512.htm An excavation at a site in South Africa has unearthed the 190-million-year-old dinosaur nesting site of the prosauropod dinosaur Massospondylus -- revealing significant clues about the evolution of complex reproductive behavior in early dinosaurs. Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:25:25 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120123152512.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120123152505.htm An excavation at a site in South Africa has unearthed the 190-million-year-old dinosaur nesting site of the prosauropod dinosaur Massospondylus -- revealing significant clues about the evolution of complex reproductive behavior in early dinosaurs. Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:25:25 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120123152505.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120118173659.htm A bizarre creature that lived in the ocean more than 500 million years ago has emerged from the famous Middle Cambrian Burgess Shale in the Canadian Rockies. Officially named Siphusauctum gregarium, fossils reveal a tulip-shaped creature that is about the length of a dinner knife (approximately 20 centimeters or eight inches) and has a unique filter feeding system. Wed, 18 Jan 2012 17:36:36 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120118173659.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120117143505.htm Archaeological finds from cuneiform tablets and remnants of different vessels from over 4,000 years ago show that even around the dawn of civilization, fermented cereal juice was highly enjoyed by Mesopotamia's inhabitants. However, besides the two basic ingredients, barley and emmer (a type of wheat) the brew produced in the clay jars of the Sumerians is shrouded in mystery. Despite an abundance of finds and scribal traditions which point to an early love of fermented cereal beverages, reconstructing ancient brewing methods is very difficult. Tue, 17 Jan 2012 14:35:35 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120117143505.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120113210347.htm Based on a hominid molar, scientists from Germany, Bulgaria and France have documented that great apes survived in Europe in savannah-like landscapes until seven million years ago. Fri, 13 Jan 2012 21:03:03 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120113210347.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120112134321.htm A team of geneticists and computational biologists have reveal how an ancient mechanism is involved in gene control and continues to drive genome evolution. Thu, 12 Jan 2012 13:43:43 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120112134321.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120110192938.htm A new study examines the first extinct North American primate with a toe bone showing features associated with the presence of both nails and a grooming claw, indicating our primate ancestors may have traded their flat nails for raised claws for functional purposes, much like pop icons Adele and Lady Gaga are doing today in the name of fashion. Tue, 10 Jan 2012 19:29:29 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120110192938.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120110140216.htm A turning point in the history of life occurred two to three billion years ago with the unprecedented appearance and dramatic rise of molecular oxygen. Now researchers report they have identified an enzyme that was the first – or among the first – to generate molecular oxygen on Earth. Tue, 10 Jan 2012 14:02:02 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120110140216.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120104153745.htm The toothiest prehistoric predators also had beefier arm bones, according to results of a new study. Saber-toothed tigers may come to mind, but these extinct cats weren't the only animals with fearsome fangs. Take the false saber-toothed cats -- also known as nimravids -- and their catlike cousins, a family of carnivores called the barbourofelids. Wed, 04 Jan 2012 15:37:37 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120104153745.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120103135448.htm The existence of brucellosis, an infectious disease still prevalent today, has now been confirmed in ancient skeletal remains. Tue, 03 Jan 2012 13:54:54 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120103135448.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111227142628.htm A small fish crawling on stumpy limbs from a shrinking desert pond is an icon of can-do spirit, emblematic of a leading theory for the evolutionary transition between fish and amphibians. This theorized image of such a drastic adaptation to changing environmental conditions, however, may, itself, be evolving into a new picture. Tue, 27 Dec 2011 14:26:26 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111227142628.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111222195017.htm A new analysis indicates the shift of soil bacteria Azospirillum may have occurred only 400 million years ago, rather than approximately two billion years earlier as originally thought. Thu, 22 Dec 2011 19:50:50 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111222195017.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111222142444.htm Evidence of the single-celled ancestors of animals, dating from the interval in the Earth's history just before multicellular animals appeared, has been discovered in 570 million-year-old rocks from South China. Thu, 22 Dec 2011 14:24:24 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111222142444.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111207132908.htm Scientists working on fossils from Kangaroo Island, South Australia, have found eyes belonging to a giant 500 million-year-old marine predator that sat at the top of the earth's first food chain. Wed, 07 Dec 2011 13:29:29 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111207132908.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111206115051.htm A new species of horned dinosaur was just announced by an international team of scientists, nearly 100 years after the initial discovery of the fossil. The animal, named Spinops sternbergorum, lived approximately 76 million years ago in southern Alberta, Canada. Spinops was a plant-eater that weighed around two tons when alive, a smaller cousin of Triceratops. Tue, 06 Dec 2011 11:50:50 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111206115051.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111206101456.htm A species of ancient predator with saw-like teeth, sleek bodies and a voracious appetite for meat survived a major extinction at a time when the distant relatives of mammals ruled the earth. Tue, 06 Dec 2011 10:14:14 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111206101456.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111129123303.htm Bones contained entirely within the skin of some of the largest dinosaurs on Earth might have stored vital minerals to help the massive creatures survive and bear their young in tough times, according to new research. Tue, 29 Nov 2011 12:33:33 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111129123303.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111124150835.htm Much of our knowledge about past life has come from the fossil record -- but how accurately does that reflect the true history and drivers of biodiversity on Earth? Thu, 24 Nov 2011 15:08:08 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111124150835.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111121151554.htm Traditionally, fossil-hunters often could only make educated guesses as to where fossils lie. The rest lay with chance. But thanks to a new software model, fossil-hunters' reliance on luck when finding fossils may be diminishing. Using artificial neural networks, researchers developed a computer model that can pinpoint productive fossil sites. Mon, 21 Nov 2011 15:15:15 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111121151554.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111116174738.htm Extinct animals hide their secrets well, but an exceptionally well-preserved fossil of an aquatic reptile, with traces of soft tissue present, is providing scientists a new window into the behavior of these ancient swimmers. Wed, 16 Nov 2011 17:47:47 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111116174738.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111115175635.htm The brightest hues in nature are produced by tiny patterns in, say, feathers or scales rather than pigments. These so-called "structural colors" are widespread, giving opals their fire, people their blue eyes, and peacocks their brilliant feathers. Now, a new study brings us closer to the origins of structural colors by reconstructing them in fossil moths that are 47 million years old. Tue, 15 Nov 2011 17:56:56 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111115175635.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111108201411.htm Researchers in Canada have followed fossilized footprints to a multi-legged predator that ruled the seas of the Cambrian period about half a billion years ago. Tue, 08 Nov 2011 20:14:14 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111108201411.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111108195131.htm Scientists have produced amazing three-dimensional images of a prehistoric mite as it hitched a ride on the back of a 50-million-year-old spider. At just 176 micrometres long and barely visible to the naked eye, the mite -- trapped inside Baltic amber (fossil tree resin) -- is believed to be the smallest arthropod fossil ever to be scanned using X-ray computed tomography (CT) scanning techniques. Tue, 08 Nov 2011 19:51:51 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111108195131.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111102161253.htm Did climate change or humans cause the extinctions of the large-bodied Ice Age mammals such as the woolly rhinoceros and woolly mammoth? Scientists have for years debated the reasons behind the Ice Age mass extinctions, which caused the loss of a third of the large mammals in Eurasia and two thirds of the large mammals in North America. Wed, 02 Nov 2011 16:12:12 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111102161253.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111102161141.htm The timing, process and archeology of the peopling of Europe by early modern humans have been actively debated for more than a century. Reassessment of the anatomy and dating of a fragmentary upper jaw with three teeth from Kent's Cavern in southern England has shed new light on these issues. Wed, 02 Nov 2011 16:11:11 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111102161141.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111102161058.htm A piece of jawbone excavated from a prehistoric cave in England is the earliest evidence for modern humans in Europe, according to an international science team. New dating of the bone, which shows that it is between 44,000 and 41,000 years old, is expected to help scientists pin down how quickly modern humans spread across Europe during the last Ice Age. It also helps to confirm the much-debated theory that early humans coexisted with Neanderthals. Wed, 02 Nov 2011 16:10:10 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111102161058.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111102161050.htm Paleontologists have discovered two skulls from the first known mammal of the early Late Cretaceous period of South America. The fossils break a roughly 60 million-year gap in the currently known mammalian record of the continent and provide new clues on the early evolution of mammals. Wed, 02 Nov 2011 16:10:10 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111102161050.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111102125650.htm One of the most comprehensive analyses yet done of the ancient history of insect-borne disease concludes for the first time that malaria is not only native to the New World, but it has been present long before humans existed and has evolved through birds and monkeys. Wed, 02 Nov 2011 12:56:56 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111102125650.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111101204358.htm Traces of bizarre, bone-eating 'zombie' worms have been found on a 3-million-year-old fossil whale bone from Tuscany in Italy. It is the first time the genus Osedax has been found in the Mediterranean, and suggests Osedax were widespread throughout the world's oceans 6 million years ago. Tue, 01 Nov 2011 20:43:43 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111101204358.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111025210908.htm Researchers have concluded the mass extinction that ended the Permian Period was disastrous for land-based animals. In a specimen-by-specimen analysis, the scientists say species were reduced to a handful of forms, called disaster taxa. The low diversity of vertebrates meant that terrestrial ecosystems endured boom-and-bust cycles for up to eight million years before finally stabilizing. Tue, 25 Oct 2011 21:09:09 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111025210908.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111020084819.htm A reconstruction based on the skull of Norway’s best-preserved Stone Age skeleton makes it possible to study the features of a boy who lived outside Stavanger 7,500 years ago. Thu, 20 Oct 2011 08:48:48 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111020084819.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111019221928.htm A new study is believed to have resolved a major debate about when oxygen began to be produced on Earth and how long it took before oxygen levels were enough to support the growth of life. Researchers made the discovery by examining key elements in banded iron formations through time. Wed, 19 Oct 2011 22:19:19 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111019221928.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111019181210.htm New research shows the first evidence that oxygen-breathing bacteria occupied and thrived on land 100 million years earlier than previously thought. Wed, 19 Oct 2011 18:12:12 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111019181210.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111013085107.htm New research has identified a small fossil fragment at the Natural History Museum, London as being part of a giant pterosaur -- setting a new upper limit for the size of winged and toothed animals. Thu, 13 Oct 2011 08:51:51 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111013085107.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111012113552.htm Scientists are reporting development of the first fast and reliable scientific method to determine the age and authenticity of priceless silk tapestries and other treasures -- such as Civil War General Phillip Sheridan's famous red-and-white battle flag -- in museums and other collections around the world. Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:35:35 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111012113552.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111011192420.htm An international team of researchers have found the oldest rodent fossils in South America. The find confirms the animals origin in Africa and contradicts the conclusion that they spread from south to north, which was deduced from the fossil record just 20 years ago. Tue, 11 Oct 2011 19:24:24 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111011192420.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111011101955.htm A new study of sediments laid down shortly after an asteroid plowed into the Gulf of Mexico 65.5 million years ago, an event that is linked to widespread global extinctions including the demise of big dinosaurs, suggests that lowly worms may have been the first fauna to show themselves following the global catastrophe. Tue, 11 Oct 2011 10:19:19 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111011101955.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111010075530.htm Long before whales, the oceans of Earth were roamed by a very different kind of air-breathing leviathan. Snaggle-toothed ichthyosaurs larger than school buses swam at the top of the Triassic Period ocean food chain, or so it seemed before paleontologist Mark McMenamin took a look at some of their remains in Nevada. Now he thinks there was an even larger and more cunning sea monster that preyed on ichthyosaurs: a 'kraken' of such mythological proportions it would have sent Captain Nemo running for dry land. Mon, 10 Oct 2011 07:55:55 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111010075530.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111008130348.htm Movie industry computer graphics and the very latest digital marine technology have brought the world's oldest submerged city back to life in a new documentary. Just a few metres under the sea, off the southern coast of Greece, lies Pavlopetri -- the oldest submerged city in the world. A team of archaeologists has spent the last three years surveying the site which was first discovered in the late 1960's. This summer the city, which dates back over 5,000 years, became the first underwater city to be fully digitally mapped and recorded creating a highly detailed stone by stone plan in photo-realistic 3-D. Sat, 08 Oct 2011 13:03:03 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111008130348.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111005111005.htm Researchers have discovered the earliest known fossil caddisflies, of the family Psychomyiidae, preserved in Burmese amber. Wed, 05 Oct 2011 11:10:10 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111005111005.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111005110957.htm A team of researchers has discovered a remarkable silky lacewing insect from the Mesozoic of China. Wed, 05 Oct 2011 11:09:09 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111005110957.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111004180106.htm A study into the muscle development of several different fish has given insights into the genetic leap that set the scene for the evolution of hind legs in terrestrial animals. This innovation gave rise to the tetrapods -- four-legged creatures, and our distant ancestors -- that made the first small steps on land some 400 million years ago. Tue, 04 Oct 2011 18:01:01 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111004180106.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111004175929.htm Scientists have examined fossil relatives of the South American Hoatzin (Opisthocomus hoazin), which point to African origins for the enigmatic bird. Tue, 04 Oct 2011 17:59:59 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111004175929.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110930102802.htm Metazoan-dominated reefs only took 1.5 million years to recover after the largest species extinction 252 million years ago, paleontologists have found, based on fossils from the southwestern United States. Fri, 30 Sep 2011 10:28:28 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110930102802.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110926095341.htm After being alerted to two unusual wasps in amber found in New Jersey, a researcher in South Africa has determined that they represent a new family of wasps, but with its closest relatives found in South America and South Africa. Mon, 26 Sep 2011 09:53:53 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110926095341.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110922121405.htm Researchers studying DNA patterns from modern and archaic humans has found that the Denisovans, a recently discovered hominin group, contributed genes to several populations in Asia and that modern humans settled Asia in more than one migration. Thu, 22 Sep 2011 12:14:14 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110922121405.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110919151322.htm CT scans of fossil skull fragments may help researchers settle a long-standing debate about the evolution of Africa's Australopithecus, a key ancestor of modern humans that died out some 1.4 million years ago. The study explains how CT scans shed new light on a classic evolutionary puzzle by providing crucial information about the internal anatomy of the face. Mon, 19 Sep 2011 15:13:13 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110919151322.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110919151320.htm Evolutionary biologists have resolved a long-standing paleontological problem by reconciling the fossil record of species diversity with modern DNA samples. Mon, 19 Sep 2011 15:13:13 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110919151320.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110919151315.htm A new study puts an end to the longstanding debate about how archaic birds went extinct, suggesting they were virtually wiped out by the same meteorite impact that put an end to dinosaurs 65 million years ago. Mon, 19 Sep 2011 15:13:13 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110919151315.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110915131559.htm A researcher found treasure trove of Cretaceous feathers trapped in tree resin. The resin turned to resilient amber, preserving some 80 million-year-old protofeathers, possibly from non-avian dinosaurs, as well as plumage that is very similar to modern birds, including those that can swim under water. Thu, 15 Sep 2011 13:15:15 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110915131559.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110914192308.htm Did an ancient crocodile relative give the world's largest snake a run for its money? In a new study, researchers describe a new 20-foot extinct species discovered in the same Colombian coal mine with Titanoboa, the world's largest snake. The findings help scientists better understand the diversity of animals that occupied the oldest known rainforest ecosystem, which had higher temperatures than today, and could be useful for understanding the impacts of a warmer climate in the future. Wed, 14 Sep 2011 19:23:23 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110914192308.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110914115831.htm The blood from woolly mammoths -- those extinct elephant-like creatures that roamed Earth in pre-historic times -- is helping scientists develop new blood products for modern medical procedures that involve reducing patients' body temperature. Wed, 14 Sep 2011 11:58:58 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110914115831.htm