Osage orange, avocado, papaya, honey locust, paw paw, persimmon, and many more: fruits that have outlasted the gomphotheres and other megafauna. These "anachronistic fruits" can be a key to understanding their intended consumers. More. More. More. And even more.
posted by fiercecupcake on Jul 31, 2008 - 33 comments

Robert Krulwich tells the tale of Dr. Alan Rabinowitz and his friend... "Dawi told Alan the terrible secret that explained why there were so few Taron (left in the world). And then Alan told Dawi a secret of his own..." (includes audio link)
posted by ZachsMind on Feb 3, 2007 - 12 comments

Saving the world’s weirdest creatures. The EDGE of Existence programme, a project of the Zoological Society of London, aims to conserve the world's most Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered (EDGE) species by implementing the research and conservation actions needed to secure their future. [Via MoFi.]
posted by homunculus on Jan 16, 2007 - 8 comments

One fifth of all bird species are in danger of extinction. And right when we're finally understanding where they came from, too.
posted by jefgodesky on Jun 3, 2005 - 3 comments