Bowerbirds in an Australian city use a range of human items – from glass and plastic to banknotes and even a pair of handcuffs – to impress females, new research shows.

Researchers have developed a fish-like robot that shows how some species of modern fish are able to walk on land, and could help unravel how early vertebrates evolved similar abilities hundreds of millions of years ago.

Researchers from the University of Copenhagen have identified a previously unknown protein that may help explain how plants managed to colonize land more than 400 million years ago. The protein was studied in moss, and the new findings contribute to our understanding of plant evolution and life on Earth.