Latest Biology News & Discoveries: Cutting-Edge Research in Life Sciences - SciTechDaily

1. The Mystery of Hair Growth Patterns May Finally Have a Simple Explanation
   A new study reveals how subtle interactions between cells and chemical signals may shape the intricate patterns of mammalian hair. The precise arrangement of hair follicles across an animal’s skin may arise from a surprisingly simple process. Researchers at the University of Geneva (UNIGE) have developed a mathematical model showing how cells responding to chemical [...]
2. Human-Elephant Conflict Could Explode Across Southern Africa As Scientists Warn of a Growing Crisis
   Human-elephant conflict could intensify across Southern Africa as expanding farmland and increasingly dry conditions reshape the landscape. By 2085, the area of Southern Africa facing a high risk of elephant crop raids could expand by 33% to 100%, according to a new study. Researchers predict that growing human populations, expanding farmland, and increasingly dry conditions [...]
3. Mosquitoes Are Picky Eaters – and Scientists Just Figured Out Why They Prefer Certain People
   Scientists have discovered that different mosquito species are attracted to distinct human scent signatures. A person who attracts one mosquito species may be far less appealing to another. In a study involving 119 volunteers, researchers at Florida International University (FIU) found that three major disease-carrying mosquito species consistently preferred different people. Not a single participant [...]
4. Scientists Finally Identify Mysterious Creature Nearly 90 Years After It Was First Found
   A mysterious millipede first collected nearly 90 years ago has resurfaced in South Australia. A millipede first collected nearly 90 years ago in South Australia has finally been identified as a new species, challenging assumptions about where its moisture-loving relatives can survive. Named Colobothrix deckeri, the species belongs to the family Dalodesmidae, which typically inhabits [...]
5. This Unusual Spider’s Genome Is Roughly 50% Larger Than a Human’s
   Scientists have sequenced the unusually large genome of a trapdoor spider named after comedian Stephen Colbert, uncovering surprising features of its DNA. A spider no bigger than a quarter has a genome roughly 50% larger than the human genome. Known as Aptostichus stephencolberti, this elusive trapdoor spider lives beneath California’s coastal dunes and carries 4.6 [...]