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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 1d

News from Episode 228:

The early evolution of lizards is famously confusing, and this new species - among the earliest known lizards - raises even more questions.

New Jurassic Lizard Species Has Confusing Set of Features Seen in Snakes and Geckos | Sci.News

Breugnathair elgolensis is a species of hook-toothed lizard that lived during the Middle Jurassic, about 167 million years ago.

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 1d

News from Episode 228:

New species of megaraptorid was among the largest predators in its environment. Also it maybe ate crocs.

New 'Megaraptor' Species Found With Shocking Last Meal Still in Its Mouth

Paleontologists have discovered a new species of megaraptor dinosaur in Argentina, along with a startling clue about what it ate.

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 1d

News from Episode 228:

A new species and an expanded view of croc diversity during the Late Cretaceous of North America.

95 million-year-old 'tiny, tiny skull' from never-before-seen crocodile-like creature discovered in Montana

Researchers have described a whole new family of extinct crocodyliforms based on the fossilized remains of a single teenage croc named Elton discovered in the Blackleaf Formation.

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 1d

News from Episode 228:

Wing injuries on baby pterosaurs provide clues as to how they died, with big implications for how flying reptiles ended up fossilized in the famous Solnhofen deposits of Germany.

A powerful storm wiped out these baby pterosaurs 150 million years ago | CNN

Two baby pterosaur fossils contain rare evidence of how they died 150 million years ago — and the specimens solve a larger mystery about a fossil deposit in Germany.

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 2d

This episode, we explore how Dinosaur Provincial Park earned its designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, we list off some of the famous dinosaurs who once lived there, and we discuss a fraction of the many fossil discoveries that have been made at the Park since the late 1800s.

Episode 228 – Dinosaur Provincial Park

Listen to Episode 228 on Podbean, YouTube, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! Take a trip to Alberta, Canada and you can visit a vast stretch of badlands that contains some …

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 3d

It's dangerous to go alone! There are new monsters afoot!

This episode, we take a trip to the Kingdom of Hyrule. How might nature develop an octopus-like monster with a penchant for projectiles? Our creatures to create this time: Ocotoroks.

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 5d

Next weekend, we're gonna be back in Georgia!

Friday, October 17th, 7pm, we're presenting at the Athens Science Cafe at Terrapin Brewery in Athens, GA.

Saturday, October 18th starting at 1pm, we'll be hanging out at the Fernbank Museum in Atlanta for a last Museum Meet-up!

Come say hi!

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 6d

Next week, on Episode 228...

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 10d

Let's-a go! Our first monster of 2025 is here!

This episode, we begin with a baddie from the Mushroom Kingdom. What evolutionary path might generate a pipe-dwelling plant-like predator? Our creatures to create this time: Piranha Plants.

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 11d

It looks like such fun!

Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 13d

IT'S SPOOK-E SEASON!

Four episodes! Every Saturday! Monsters of Nintendo!
Then Cute-E!
Then a Livestream!

Follow us all Spook-E Season long on social media, in our Discord, and of course on the episodes themselves!

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©️ 2025 J. Raasch @jraasch.bsky.social · 14d

Learn about BEAKS! Bird beaks, turtle beaks, dinosaur beaks, beaks, beaks, beaks!!!

Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 16d

Birds, turtles, and many more groups have developed toothless snouts covered in a tough sheath. This episode, we’ll explore the defining features of beaks and their various functions.

Episode 227 – Beaks

Listen to Episode 227 on Podbean, YouTube, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! The famous faces of birds and turtles are just some of the examples of the many times animals h…

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 15d

News from Episode 227:

A review of mammal evolution highlights the many times that lineages have evolved into specialized ant-eaters.

Mammals Have Evolved Into Anteaters at Least 12 Times Since The Dinosaurs

If you want to get by in this world, you could do a lot worse than developing a predilection for ants.

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 15d

News from Episode 227:

Ancient DNA reveals several types of bacteria that lived in and on mammoths as far back as one million years ago.

Scientists Investigate the Bacteria That Colonized Extinct Mammoths—and Uncover the Oldest Known Microbial DNA From a Host

Some of the microbes might have been benign or helpful, while others could have caused deadly diseases

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 15d

News from Episode 227:

A look into the deep history of sharks reveals patterns in which body shapes were most successful at different time periods.

Sharks now roam the open ocean. But for 200 million years, they only lived near the sea floor

A new study sheds light on how sharks colonised the oceans and became apex predators.

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 16d

Birds, turtles, and many more groups have developed toothless snouts covered in a tough sheath. This episode, we’ll explore the defining features of beaks and their various functions.

Episode 227 – Beaks

Listen to Episode 227 on Podbean, YouTube, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! The famous faces of birds and turtles are just some of the examples of the many times animals h…

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Reposted by Common Descent

Punk_Entomology @punkentomology.bsky.social · 18d

How do you spend part of your Friday night?

I had a lovely time in the @commondescentpod.bsky.social’s love Q&A chat about mimicry.

And now? Borderlands 4

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 20d

Next week, on Episode 227...

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 26d

What if the Geologic Time Scale was based on the evolution and extinction of PLANTS??
🌱🌿🌴🌲🌳🌻

Leaf It To Us Podcast @leafittouspod.bsky.social · 26d

Scientists organize the history of the Earth based on the experiences of animals. But what if the Geologic Time Scale was plant-centric? This episode, Aly presents Nora with her take on a time scale based on the evolution and extinction of plants through time.

Image by Lucy Wayland

A photo of rock layers tilted in multiple directions, all overgrown with plants.
Text above the image says "Episode 12 - The Geologic Time Scale According to Plants"
Image by Lucy Wayland

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 29d

News from Episode 226:

DNA and fossils reveal when - and how often - cave fish adapted to the caverns of eastern North America.

These Cavefish Lost Their Eyes, but They Gained Some Pretty Nifty Traits

Mexican tetras that got swept into pitch-black caverns had no use for the energetically costly organs

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 29d

News from Episode 226:

An ancient lineage of sea-dwelling turtles now known from Syria.

50-Million-Year-Old Sea Turtle Unearthed in Syria Stuns Paleontologists

Scientists discovered Syriemys lelunensis, a 50-million-year-old fossil sea turtle from Syria. Near the city of Afrin in Syria, an international group of scientists, including members of the…

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 29d

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Oldest Known Fossil of an Armored Ankylosaur Is 'Far Weirder' Than Paleontologists Expected

The 13-foot dinosaur, covered in long spikes fused into its bones, suggests ankylosaurs developed tail weapons 30 million years earlier than thought

www.smithsonianmag.com

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 29d

News from Episode 226:

The oldest known ankylosaur is surprisingly spiky

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · 29d

News from Episode 226:

A new species of large terrestrial croc-cousin from Cretaceous Argentina.

70 million-year-old hypercarnivore that ate dinosaurs named after Egyptian god

Researchers have unveiled Kostensuchus atrox, a giant crocodile relative that ate dinosaurs in Argentina 70 million years ago during the Cretaceous period.

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Common Descent @commondescentpod.bsky.social · Sep 14

This episode, we explore the tragic story of the world's most famous extinct birds, the scientific details we've learned since their disappearance, and the cultural impact of their loss.

Episode 226 – Dodos

Listen to Episode 226 on Podbean, YouTube, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts! There is perhaps no more famous symbol of extinction than these birds. This episode, we discuss…

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