CarmeLab

Another Rasmus study, finding adaptation unique to a certain human population. This time it's diving:

Physiological and Genetic Adaptations to Diving in Sea Nomads Genetic and physiological adaptations enable the remarkable breath-holding ability of marine nomads.

Funny. Large population size -> selection stronger than drift -> less diversity -> higher vulnerability -> extinction.

Natural selection shaped the rise and fall of passenger pigeon genomic diversity The now-extinct passenger pigeon used to be one of the most numerous vertebrates on Earth. Murray et al. examined the genomes of four passenger pigeon samples from different locales within its range. They describe the interplay between passenger pigeon population size, genome structure and recombina...

Now there are three kinds of orangutans

New ape found, sparking fears for its survival Researchers have identified a new species of orangutan in an isolated forest on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Fewer than 800 individuals remain, and the construction of a dam and road threaten the prime habitat of the ape. A combination of anatomical, ecological, and genetic data convinced resea...