Tag Archives: Extinction

Diminishing giants

Posted on December 10, 2021 by twilightbeasts

Island dwarfism is perhaps one of the most beautiful examples of evolution through natural selection. Large animals that arrive on an island, evolve smaller sizes to survive on less food, and because there are fewer (if any) predators. (Similarly, small … Continue reading →

Posted in Cebu Tamaraw | Tagged Bubalus cebuensis, Bubalus mindorensis, Cebu, Cebu Tamaraw, Cretan Dwarf Hippopotamus, Cretan Dwarf Mammoth, Dodo, Dwarf pronghorn, Extinction, Giant Duck, Giant Rabbit, Island Dwarfism, Myotragus balearicus, Philippenes, Pleistocene, Sardinian Dwarf Mammoth | 3 Comments

Marching up the wrong tree

Posted on December 21, 2020 by twilightbeasts

Before Darwin published his theory of evolution through natural selection, On the Origin of Species, evolution wasn’t a new concept. It had been discussed by many different people of science as early as the Ancient Greeks. It was how evolution … Continue reading →

Posted in Homo sapiens | Tagged Charles Darwin, Evolution, Extinction, Homo sapiens, March of Progress, Thomas Henry Huxley | 3 Comments

The Evolutionary History of Extinct and Living Lions

Posted on May 22, 2020 by twilightbeasts

I’m fairly obsessed with cave lions. If one were to open up my head and look at my brain’s RAM it would be something like 70% facts about extinct species of cat, 20% stuff that my wife and kids tell … Continue reading →

Posted in American Lion, Cave Lion, DNA, Homo sapiens | Tagged American lion, ancient DNA, Cave Lion, Conservation, DNA, Extinction, Lion, mitochondrial DNA, Nuclear DNA, Phylogeny, Pleistocene, University of Copenhagen Zoological Museum, Zoo | 19 Comments

Ex Profundis

Posted on November 4, 2019 by twilightbeasts

“Tis the part of a wise man to keep himself today for tomorrow, and not venture all his eggs in one basket.” Miguel de Cervantes, Don Quixote The most perfect thing in nature, arguably, is the egg. A living capsule: … Continue reading →

Posted in Elephant Bird, Uncategorized | Tagged Aepyornis, Australia, dromornithidae, eggs, Elephant Bird, emu, Extinction, great auk, Madagascar, Museum, ocean | Leave a comment

Sabertooth

Posted on January 25, 2018 by twilightbeasts

[This review was written in 2014, when the book first came out] I recently read “Sabertooth” by Mauricio Anton. Obviously given my interests, this was one book I had to treat myself to. Anton and Turner’s “Big cats and their … Continue reading →

Posted in Sabre tooth Cat, Uncategorized | Tagged Carnivores, Extinction, felidae, Homotherium latidens, Homotherium serum, Overkill, Pleistocene, Sabre tooth cat, Smilodon, Smilodon fatalis, Smilodon populator | 2 Comments

Lost Animals

Posted on January 23, 2018 by twilightbeasts

[This book review was written when the book was first published] I’ve been a big fan of Errol Fuller’s thoughtful prose for about 13 years. When I was finishing my undergraduate degree I had my imagination fired by reading some … Continue reading →

Posted in Extinction, Uncategorized | Tagged Dodo, Extinction, great auk, Huia, moa, Quagga, Solitaire bird, Steller's sea cow, Thylacine, Thylacinus cynocephalus | 1 Comment

No Bullwinkle

Posted on March 15, 2017 by twilightbeasts

On Twilight Beasts you will hopefully have seen some of the amazing mummified animals of the Pleistocene. Some of these mummies may even be like old familiar friends to you: the woolly mammoths Lyuba, Buttercup, Khroma, Dima, Yuka, and Mascha, … Continue reading →

Posted in Extinction, Irish Elk, moose, Uncategorized | Tagged Alces alces, Beringia, Buttercup, Cervalces, Cervalces latifrons, Cervalces scotti, Clovis culture, Extinction, Irish Elk, Lyuba, Mammoth, Megaloceros giganteus, moose, mummies, Pleistocene | 2 Comments

Turtle Power

Posted on October 6, 2016 by twilightbeasts

In the canonical tale, Big Chuck D’s visit to the Galapagos was a “Eureka!” moment, where he instantly worked out his theory of evolution by natural selection after observing the different species of finches on the archipelago’s varying islands. Almost … Continue reading →

Posted in Meiolania | Tagged Aldabra, Aldabrachelys, Australia, Chelonoidis, Extinction, Florentino Ameghino, Glyptodon, Lord Howe Island, Megalania, Meiolania, Mylodon Cave, New Caledonia, Ninjemys, Niolamia, Overkill, Patagonia, Richard Owen, Thomas Henry Huxley, Ultima Esperanza, Vanuatu | 3 Comments

In Patagonia

Posted on June 20, 2016 by twilightbeasts

Patagonia. The name conjures up exotic windswept plains, adventure, and danger. A by-word for a region as foreign as Timbuktu. This remote section of Argentina and Chile holds many mysteries. In the south, Tierra Del Fuego, the legendary land of … Continue reading →

Posted in Extinction, Ground Sloth, Horse, Macrauchenia, Sabre tooth Cat, Short Faced Bear | Tagged Arctotherium, Arctotherium tarijense, Charles Darwin, Extinction, guanaco, Hippidion, Humans, llama, megafauna, Monte Verde, Mylodon Cave, Mylodon darwinii, Panthera onca mesembrina, Pararctotherium, Patagonia, Pleistocene, radiocarbon, Ross Barnett, Smilodon populator | 5 Comments

Lost, as the moa is lost!

Posted on January 22, 2016 by twilightbeasts

Every biologist has a gateway species. The taxon you had never heard of before that just looked so weird and unusual that you had to learn more. So, you looked up a few books, searched some library holdings, maybe photocopied … Continue reading →

Posted in moa | Tagged Aepyornis, ancient DNA, birds, cave art, DNA, eggs, Elephant Bird, Extinction, feathers, Homo sapiens, Maori, moa, mummies, New Zealand, Overkill, Pacific, Ratite, Richard Owen, Ross Barnett | 14 Comments

	The most (and least)… on A very brief introduction to…
	The most (and least)… on The Nipple Tooth
	The most (and least)… on The burrowers
	The most (and least)… on The Stuff Of Night-Mares
	The most (and least)… on The beasts within

	The most (and least)… on A very brief introduction to…
	The most (and least)… on The Nipple Tooth
	The most (and least)… on The burrowers
	The most (and least)… on The Stuff Of Night-Mares
	The most (and least)… on The beasts within