A curious question in science is to know how these different types of lions evolved and how different are today’s lions from their ancestors. In a new study, an international team of researchers have tried to answer these questions by analysing the genes of extinct and living lions. The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), finds that about 500,000 years ago, modern and now-extinct lions shared a common ancestor. Further, about 70,000 years ago, two different lineages of modern lions emerged. The findings also have implications on the conservation of the remaining lion population, which is just 10% of what it was a century ago.

Three new species of horned frogs discovered from the forests of Northeast India. 

Animal behaviour studies, which began in the 1970s, had a rocky start as they were viewed as a deviation from biological studies. They try to answer questions relating to why an animal's behaviour differs with different organisms and environmental factors, and the cost-benefits associated with each behaviour. Such studies help to understand not only the biology of the organism but also its ecological role. In one such study, Dr Anuradha Bhat and her group at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Kolkata, have looked at the mating behaviour of zebrafish.

Research Matters is happy to bring you this article as part of the series on Mathematical Modeling and Data Analysis by the Mathematical Modeling team of Indian Scientists' Response to Covid-19 (ISRC). The first part of this series is on Explaining Models of Epidemic Spreading.

Why do we need Mathematical Models for CoVID-19?