Fossils from some of the oldest-known animals on Earth, dating from 574 million years ago (Ediacaran period), suggest that cloning, not competition, dominated the Ediacaran seas, slowing evolution ...

This study is led by Prof. Jian-Fang Gui (Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences). Polyploidy is generally thought to be a main driving force of speciation, as the polyploids possess ...

The way that Earth's first animals reproduced held back life's diversity for millions of years, until stress and competition ...