NEWS

Plants producing sandburs (or sandspurs) belong to a group of annual native weeds that are commonly found growing in patchy lawns or sandy areas. The seed heads or “burs” of these plants are covered in needle-sharp spines that can be extremely painful when stepped on. The purpose of the burs is not to inflict pain… Read More >

It’s not easy eating green. Most plants are heavily defended with chemicals to deter plant eaters. For these herbivores, getting enough to eat, while minimizing exposure to toxins, is a persistent challenge that shapes their foraging choices. Understanding how these animals navigate these choices is fundamental to understanding what these creatures need to survive and… Read More >

A “teenaged” pachycephalosaur from Mongolia’s Gobi Desert may provide answers to lingering questions around the dinosaur group, according to new research published today in the journal Nature. The fossil represents a new species of pachycephalosaur and is both the oldest and most complete skeleton of this dinosaur group found to date. “Pachycephalosaurs are iconic dinosaurs,… Read More >

It’s official! The N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles has approved our application for a specialty license plate featuring the toothy skeleton of Acrocanthosaurus, one of the Museum’s signature dinosaur specimens and better known as the “Terror of the South.” The DMV has processed all applications from the initial launch and plates are now in production…. Read More >

The French call painted buntings — a bird the size of a house finch flitting through the shrubs on our southernmost shores — “nonpareil,” or “without equal.” They’re right. Each adult male painted bunting carries a rainbow splattered across his body: red underneath with a lime-green back, bluish-purple head, red eye ring. They seem too… Read More >