Christa Lesté-Lasserre
New Scientist
France
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Past articles by Christa:
Stone flakes made by monkeys cast doubt on ancient human 'tools'
When macaques use stones to crack nuts, they accidentally create flakes that look like early human artefacts, raising questions about whether such objects were made deliberately → Read More
Avalanches create habitats for a wider range of birds in the Alps
Massive flows of snow down mountain slopes can clear out dense forest and make way for shrubs and smaller trees, allowing a more diverse range of bird species to live in the affected area → Read More
Male flies produce a chemical that makes females sleep in after mating
A “sex peptide” transferred from male to female fruit flies during mating interferes with the female’s biological clock, reducing her chances of mating again → Read More
Fossils reveal the dinosaur era's changing insect soundscape
Bush crickets from the Triassic era onwards evolved high-frequency songs to avoid being heard by predators → Read More
Brain mapping in mice may explain why pain makes us lose our appetite
Researchers have identified different pathways that lower a mouse's desire to eat when it's in pain - and a similar brain circuit could also occur in humans → Read More
Oldest army ant found in 35-million-year-old Baltic amber
An unexpected discovery in a piece of amber stored at Harvard University since the 1930s reveals that army ants once lived in Europe → Read More
Fish that keep their young in their mouths sometimes eat them
Some female cichlid fish keep their offspring in their mouth for protection, but they commonly eat up to half of their brood → Read More
Rhino horns have got smaller over time as poachers target big prizes
A database of photos taken from 1886 to 2019 reveals that horn size has gradually decreased in five species of rhinoceros, probably due to poaching → Read More
Vaccines that prolong the immune response may give better protection
Most vaccines are designed to provoke a quick immune response, but a longer one might allow the most effective immune cells to stick around in the bone marrow → Read More
17th-century infant's life and health revealed by 'virtual autopsy'
A young child found in an unmarked coffin in an Austrian crypt was exceptionally well preserved, and his bones and organs show signs of rickets and pneumonia → Read More
Your cat really does prefer your voice to that of a stranger's
Unlike dogs, which often enthusiastically respond to everyone, cats choosily respond only to their owner’s voice with an increase in certain behaviours → Read More
Dyslexia linked to 42 genetic variants in biggest study of its kind
Better understanding the genetic variants associated with dyslexia could lead to a test that assesses whether a child is predisposed to have it → Read More
A remote-controlled car with a flag on a pole can herd cattle
A small remote-controlled vehicle proved effective at keeping cows away from overgrazed areas, and the animals showed few signs of fear or aggression → Read More
Sperm move in packs like cyclists to push through thick vaginal fluid
In mock-ups of the female reproductive tract, bull sperm cluster in groups of two to four, which seems to help them swim upstream → Read More
Hunter-gatherers kept animals for food before they farmed crops
Ancient dung hints that 12,000 years ago, a population of hunter-gatherers in what is now Syria kept animals like sheep or gazelles around – probably for food → Read More
Battery made of crab shell and zinc is rechargeable and biodegradable
A zinc battery made using a compound from crab shells can be recharged at least 1000 times and can biodegrade or be recycled at the end of its life → Read More
Ancient megalodon shark could eat a whale in just a few bites
The first 3D reconstruction of a huge, ancient shark called megalodon suggests it was even bigger than previously thought → Read More
Woodpeckers don't have built-in shock absorbers to protect their brain
It was thought that spongy bone in woodpeckers’ heads cushioned their brains from hard knocks, but in fact their skulls are stiff like a hammer → Read More
Three-eyed predator stalked the seas 500 million years ago
Stanleycaris hirpex, which lived in the Cambrian period, had two protruding eyes on the side of its head and a larger eye in the centre → Read More
Infertility in some men may be caused by X chromosome mutations
An international study has identified more than 50 genes on the X chromosome in which mutations may cause poor sperm production → Read More