Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about biodiversity and the hidden quirks of the natural world. During a dive off the coast of Southern California in 1979, ...

And now, news of a tiny, transparent creature that can pull off a stunning trick - two individuals can fuse to become one. Here's science reporter Ari Daniel. ARI DANIEL, BYLINE: A little more than a ...

For almost two decades, scientists have debated whether sponges or comb jellies are the first animal lineage. Now some are ...

Armed with the ability to accept all cells as its own, comb jellies can merge with others to survive. Here’s how it works. On a quiet summer day at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, ...

Were sponges or comb jellies the first to split from the animal family tree? A new approach at settling this question, which is critical to understanding the evolution of animals, points strongly to ...

Researchers found that two individuals of a type of comb jelly can fuse and become one with a shared nervous system and digestive system. It has implications for animal regeneration and immune systems ...