Published 21 August 2019 Fossil crane-fly from the 54-million-year-old Fur Formation of Denmark. Note distinct compound eyes preserved as dark stains. Photo: René Lyng Sylvestersen. Eumelanin – a natural pigment found for instance in human eyes – has, for the first time, been identified in the fossilized compound eyes of 54-million-year-old crane-flies. It was previously assumed that melanic scree

https://www.science.lu.se/article/composition-fossil-insect-eyes-surprises-researchers - 2025-04-15

Published 19 September 2019 Illustration: Don Davis. An international study led by researchers from Lund University in Sweden has found that a collision in the asteroid belt 470 million years ago created drastic changes to life on Earth. The breakup of a major asteroid filled the entire inner solar system with enormous amounts of dust leading to a unique ice age and, subsequently, to higher levels

https://www.science.lu.se/article/gigantic-asteroid-collision-boosted-biodiversity-earth - 2025-04-15

Published 29 August 2019 The water in the glasses comes from natural waters within a distance of 35 kilometers in the county of Jönköping, southern Sweden. (Photo: Stefan Löfgren). Over the past 50 years, the water in lakes and watercourses has turned increasingly brown. The so-called browning has a negative impact on both drinking water production and ecosystems. If nothing is done, the water is

https://www.science.lu.se/article/how-changes-land-use-could-reduce-browning-lakes - 2025-04-15

Published 26 September 2019 Ice hockey player In a new article, researchers at Lund University have studied a new ice-skating technique that is more energy efficient than the traditional stride technique. By skating in arcs, ice hockey players can move just as quickly but with less energy loss. The authors say this could lead to better performance on the ice, as the players would retain more energ

https://www.science.lu.se/article/lund-researchers-have-analysed-alternative-skating-technique-could-revolutionise-ice-hockey - 2025-04-15

Published 16 October 2019 Gabriel Norevik with a nightjar. Photo: Aron Hejdström. A new study from Lund University in Sweden shows that the presence or absence of moonlight has a considerable bearing on when migratory birds take flight in the autumn. Together with colleagues at the Department of Biology at Lund University, Gabriel Norevik studied European nightjars (Caprimulgus europaeus) and how

https://www.science.lu.se/article/moon-determines-when-migratory-birds-head-south - 2025-04-15

Published 1 November 2019 Olivier Van Aken. Photo: Johan Joelsson. An international study led by researchers at Lund University in Sweden and The University of Western Australia shows that the pressure from water droplets on a leaf surface triggers stress hormones like jasmonic acid. These cellular changes become apparent very quickly and can could make plants better equipped to withstand disease

https://www.science.lu.se/article/impact-water-droplets-leaves-quickly-triggers-stress-responses-plants - 2025-04-15

Published 7 November 2019 Black hole. Illustration: LL Calçada/M Kornmesser/ESO An international research team have discovered a peculiar object circling a red giant star. The celestial body is invisible but still has a strong impact on the star’s orbit. With the help of data simulations carried out at Lund University, the researchers have now been able to establish that the mysterious companion m

https://www.science.lu.se/article/lund-researchers-have-tracked-black-hole-near-red-giant-star - 2025-04-15

Published 22 November 2019 Jens Uhlig. Photo: Johan Joelsson. An international study led from Lund University in Sweden shows that 30 per cent of the energy in a certain type of light-absorbing iron molecule disappears in a previously unknown manner. By closing this loophole, the researchers hope to contribute to the development of more efficient solar cells using this iron-based solar cell. The s

https://www.science.lu.se/article/iron-based-solar-cells-track-becoming-more-efficient - 2025-04-15

Published 4 December 2019 Skylark. Photo: Richard Ubels. Researchers in Sweden and the UK have discovered the largest known avian sex chromosome. The giant chromosome was created when four chromosomes fused together into one, and has been found in two species of lark. “This was an unexpected discovery, as birds are generally considered to have very stable genetic material with well-preserved chrom

https://www.science.lu.se/article/record-size-sex-chromosome-found-two-bird-species - 2025-04-15

Published 4 December 2019 Not all neonicotinoid insecticides have negative effects on bees, according to researchers at Lund University and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. Their new study indicates that the use of certain neonicotinoids could benefit bumblebees and pollination. In a field study, the researchers Maj Rundlöf, Lund University, and Ola Lundin, the Swedish University o

https://www.science.lu.se/article/use-certain-neonicotinoids-could-benefit-bumblebees-new-study-finds - 2025-04-15

Published 18 December 2019 By analysing almost daily water samples taken from the same river from 1940 until today, researchers at Lund University in Sweden have confirmed their hypothesis that the browning of lakes is primarily due to the increase in coniferous forests, as well as rainfall and sulphur deposits. The study was carried out on the Lyckebyån River in southeast Sweden. However, Martin

https://www.science.lu.se/article/unique-data-confirms-why-water-turns-brown - 2025-04-15

Published 18 December 2019 A new study from Lund University in Sweden shows that plant-eating insects affect forest ecosystems considerably more than previously thought. Among other things, the insects are a factor in the leaching of nutrients from soil and increased emissions of carbon dioxide. The researchers also establish that the temperature may rise as a result of an increase in the amount o

https://www.science.lu.se/article/plant-eating-insects-disrupt-ecosystems-and-contribute-climate-change - 2025-04-15

Published 7 January 2020 Experiment set-up measuring how many blinks per minute a falcon perceives. Photo: Simon Potier. Extremely acute vision and the ability to rapidly process different visual impressions – these two factors are crucial when a peregrine falcon bears down on its prey at a speed that easily matches that of a Formula 1 racing car: over 350 kilometres per hour. The visual acuity of

https://www.science.lu.se/article/falcons-see-prey-speed-formula-1-car - 2025-04-15

Published 7 January 2020 Two top international researchers have been named honorary doctors at Lund University’s Faculty of Science. Mary Higby Schweitzer achieved cult status with her fossil finds, including from a pregnant Tyrannosaurus rex female. Through advanced observations, astronomer Thomas Henning gave the world an increased understanding of how stars and planets are formed. Mary Higby Sc

https://www.science.lu.se/article/dinosaur-expert-and-planet-formation-guru-are-new-honorary-doctors-science - 2025-04-15

Published 31 January 2020 Emily O'Connor. Photo: Aron Hejdström. Researchers have for the first time found a connection between the immune systems of different bird species, and the various climatic conditions in which they live. The researchers at Lund University in Sweden believe that as the climate changes, some birds may be exposed to diseases that they are not equipped to handle. The results

https://www.science.lu.se/article/immune-systems-not-prepared-climate-change - 2025-04-15

Published 13 February 2020 It has now been confirmed that Lund University will receive SEK 100 million from the EU to coordinate the international research project Interact for another four years. Among other things, the funding is to be used to send more polar researchers to the Arctic, make data available using artificial intelligence and reduce the research stations’ climate impact. “Climate ch

https://www.science.lu.se/article/lund-university-receives-sek-100-million-coordinate-major-polar-research-project - 2025-04-15

Published 19 February 2020 The ability of global ecosystems to absorb carbon dioxide is regulated to a large extent by the nutrients nitrogen and phosphorus. With lower plant access to these nutrients, greater volumes of carbon dioxide stays in the atmosphere, instead of being absorbed by forests and other ecosystems. A new study has now charted the global patterns of this nitrogen and phosphorus

https://www.science.lu.se/article/new-study-solves-old-climate-mystery-about-ecosystems-nutrient-limitation - 2025-04-15

Published 2 March 2020 Researchers have discovered nematodes, or worms, in the brains of lizard embryos. This is the first time they have been found in reptile eggs, and it was previously believed that egg laying prevents parasites from being transmitted in this way. The discovery was made by an international research team led by Nathalie Feiner, evolutionary biologist at Lund University in Sweden

https://www.science.lu.se/article/worms-discovered-brain-lizard-embryos-first-time - 2025-04-15

Published 6 March 2020 Grey-crowned babblers raise their chicks in family groups. Photo: Graham Lee. Bird social groups are more complex than previously thought. Now, researchers at Lund University in Sweden have established that bird species which raise their young in nuclear family groups develop greater social complexity compared with species that raise their young in groups without family ties

https://www.science.lu.se/article/raising-young-nuclear-family-groups-evolutionary-bliss-some-birds - 2025-04-15

Published 6 April 2020 An international research team from Sweden and Hungary have discovered an entirely new sense in dogs: using their cold, wet nose tips, dogs can sense the heat from other animals or a human. “It has taken a rather long time to discover this, given that dog and man have lived side by side for 15,000 years, and we have remained unaware of this ability”, says Ronald Kröger, prof

https://www.science.lu.se/article/dogs-can-detect-heat-noses-study-finds - 2025-04-15