A Tar Pits researcher reconstructed forests of 56 million years ago—with chilling parallels for our warming planet: climate change led to a widespread browning of Earth's landscapes—against a backdrop of elevated atmospheric CO₂, global warming, and reduced rainfall triggered by volcanically driven carbon release—and trees are at the root of these drastic changes.

The first new extinct toad species and the first description of the Mexican burrowing toad at the Tar Pits help us understand the impacts of climate change on species distributions, past, present, and future.

Published in the journal Science, a new study by NHM researchers shows that Mexico acted as a biodiversity "holding pen" for 10 million years ahead of the Great American Biotic Interchange that opened the floodgates between North and South America 2.8 million years ago.

Discover some of the Ice Age titans of Talara, the asphaltic site in Northwest Peru

Newly Described Snake from the Age of Dinosaurs, Tametara mirim, Reveals the Ancient Brains and Surprising Diversity of Snakes 

See how Beatriz Inglessis, a scientific illustrator and visual artist, captured the bones of Ice Age animals in Japanese woodcut prints.

Discover some of the last fossils and the lasting impact of the bone beds beneath San Pedro High School

An international team of researchers add a new chapter in the story of apes—including us humans—starting around 18 million years ago in North Africa

A new species of extinct dugong from the Persian Gulf highlights sea cows as underwater lawn mowers protecting biodiversity

A new study reveals how ancient trees from La Brea Tar Pits helped warm the planet during the last ice age by coughing up CO2