Fresh Science

Stromatolites have been discovered beyond the well-researched south-east corner of Hamelin Pool, in Shark Bay Western Australia, according to a researcher from Bush Heritage. Erica Suosaari donned a wetsuit and spent three years being dragged behind a boat to investigate the entire pool for the first time. She found stromatolites around almost the entire 135km…

A 55-million-year old fossil found in rural Queensland is forcing scientists to rewrite their theories about the origin of Australia’s iconic marsupials, revealing an ancient evolutionary link between Australia and South America. The fossil, a tiny anklebone smaller than a grain of rice, is from a mouse-sized marsupial previously known only from South America. “As…

Two thymus glands fast-track immune defences Until now, it was a mystery why many marsupials have two thymuses—key organs in the immune system—instead of the one typical of other mammals. Now postdoctoral researcher Dr Emily Wong from the University of Sydney and her colleagues have found that the two organs are identical, which suggests why they…

A compound produced by a pregnant lizard may provide important information on the origins and treatment of cancer in humans, according to zoologist Bridget Murphy from the University of Sydney, who discovered the protein, which is pivotal to the development of the lizard placenta.