New Scientist - Life

1. Worm-like fossil is the oldest ancestor of spiders and crustaceans
   Arthropods belong to an evolutionary branch – the ecdysozoa – that contains about half of all animal species, and the earliest fossil evidence of the group dates back 550 million years
2. Chimpanzees seem to get more technologically advanced through culture
   Groups of wild chimpanzees with more complex tool-using behaviours tend to be genetically linked, providing evidence for cumulative culture in other apes
3. Brainwave experiment shows minke whales have ultrasonic hearing
   In the first hearing test of live baleen whales, the animals detected much higher frequency sounds than expected, forcing researchers to reconsider how these mammals respond to predators – and humans
4. A sliver of lab-grown wood has been made from stem cells
   Growing wood directly from stem cells could offer an alternative to cutting threatened hardwood trees, but it isn't clear if it has same properties as actual wood
5. Nectar-loving Ethiopian wolves may be the first carnivore pollinators
   Endangered Ethiopian wolves feed on the nectar of red hot poker plants, and may transport pollen from flower to flower as they do so
6. How military sonar impacts dolphin social dynamics
   Research highlights impacts of military sonar devices on dolphin behaviour
7. Heart-shaped mollusc has windows that work like fibre optics
   Tiny, solid windows in the shells of heart cockles let in light for the photosynthetic algae inside them – and they could show us how to make better fibre-optic cables
8. A giant hornet from Asia has appeared in Europe for the first time
   Four southern giant hornets have been identified in northern Spain, leading to concerns that the species could harm native insects if it becomes widespread
9. Wild cavefish can somehow survive with almost no sleep at all
   Several populations of Mexican tetra fish that live in darkness have independently evolved to need hardly any sleep, but the reason why is a mystery
10. A 200-year-old mystery about newts has finally been solved
    A genetic flaw dooms half of all crested newts to die before they hatch – now we know how this baffling evolutionary quirk came about