Ecology and Brain Size Drive Feeding Innovations in Birds.

Authors: Liu, Yating¹ (AUTHOR), Jiang, Ying¹ (AUTHOR), Xu, Jiliang^1,2 (AUTHOR) xujiliang@bjfu.edu.cn, Liao, Wenbo^3,4 (AUTHOR) Liaobo_0_0@126.com

Source: Integrative Zoology. Sep2026, p1. 11p. 4 Illustrations.

Subject Terms: *Size of brain, *Bird ecology, *Cognitive flexibility, *Cognitive ability, *Biological adaptation, *Applied ecology, *Migratory animals, *Foraging behavior

The social face hypothesis: facial expressive capacity is associated with brain and social network size.

Authors: Adams, Reginald B. Jr.¹ (AUTHOR) radams@psu.edu, Xu, Brian Y.¹ (AUTHOR), Albohn, Daniel N.² (AUTHOR)

Source: Behaviour. Aug2026, p1-19. 19p.

Subject Terms: *Facial expression & emotions (Psychology), *Size of brain, *Social evolution, *Human evolution, *Social belonging, *Social perception, *Primates

Brain scaling and diversity in musteloids.

Authors: Michaud, Margot^1,2 (AUTHOR) m.mar33@hotmail.fr, Harrington, Arianna Rose³ (AUTHOR), Ladeveze, Sandrine⁴ (AUTHOR), Gálvez‐López, Eloy^5,6 (AUTHOR), Fischer, Valentin² (AUTHOR), Alfsen, Apolline⁷ (AUTHOR), Bertrand, Ornella C.^8,9 (AUTHOR)

Source: Journal of Anatomy. Aug2026, p1. 24p. 9 Illustrations.

Subject Terms: *Brain anatomy, *Size of brain, *Phylogenetic models, *Biological evolution, *Animal feeding, *Mustelidae, *Shape analysis (Computational geometry)

Elevational variation in brain size of the Minshan toads (Bufo minshanicus) on the Tibetan Plateau.

Authors: Zhang, Zhi Y.¹ (AUTHOR), Gu, Chao F.¹ (AUTHOR), Yao, Ming Z.¹ (AUTHOR), Yu, Tong L.¹ (AUTHOR) yutonglei_00000@163.com

Source: Ethology Ecology & Evolution. Aug2026, p1-16. 16p. 2 Illustrations.

Subject Terms: *Toads, *Size of brain, *Biological adaptation, *Cognitive flexibility, *Uplands, *Evolutionary theories

Geographic Terms: Tibet (China)

Regional Brain Volume Differences Were Associated With Behavioural Outcomes in Children Born Preterm: A Systematic Review.

Authors: Almagro, Yolanda Marín¹ (AUTHOR), Ruiz, Macarena Román¹ (AUTHOR), Luque, Natalia Jiménez¹ (AUTHOR), Gutiérrez, Manuel Lubián¹ (AUTHOR), López, Simón P. Lubián^1,2 (AUTHOR) simonplubian@gmail.com, Fernández, Isabel Benavente^1,2,3 (AUTHOR)

Source: Acta Paediatrica. Aug2026, Vol. 115 Issue 8, p1581-1592. 12p.

Subject Terms: *Premature infants, *Size of brain, *Magnetic resonance imaging, *School children, *Functional status, *Neural development, *Autism spectrum disorders, *Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder

The visual brain hypothesis.

Authors: Barton, Robert A.¹ (AUTHOR) r.a.barton@durham.ac.uk

Source: Science. 8/6/2026, Vol. 393 Issue 6811, p560-561. 2p.

Subject Terms: *Size of brain, *Primates, *Biological adaptation, *Biological evolution, *Neurosciences, *Phylogeny

Can the male germline offer insight into mammalian brain size expansion?

Authors: Bush, Stephen J.¹ (AUTHOR), Goriely, Anne^2,3 (AUTHOR) anne.goriely@imm.ox.ac.uk

Source: Andrology. Nov2026, Vol. 14 Issue 8, p2352-2358. 7p.

Subject Terms: *Size of brain, *Neural stem cells, *Genetics, *Mitogen-activated protein kinases, *PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway, *Spermatogenesis, *Genetic mutation

Pre- and Postnatal Ontogeny of Brain Size in Beluga and Bowhead Whales.

Authors: Thewissen, J.G.M.¹ (AUTHOR), Mars, Katheryn R.¹ (AUTHOR), Waugh, David A.¹ (AUTHOR), Peacock, John¹ (AUTHOR), Stimmelmayr, Raphaela² (AUTHOR), Citta, John J.² (AUTHOR)

Source: Brain, Behavior & Evolution. 2026, Vol. 101 Issue 3, p143-160. 18p.

Subject Terms: *Neural development, *Size of brain, *Gompertz functions (Mathematics), *Cetacea, *Baleen whales, *White whale

Evolutionary lags in the primate brain size/body size relationship revisited.

Authors: Dunbar, R. I. M.¹ (AUTHOR) robin.dunbar@psy.ox.ac.uk

Source: PLoS ONE. 7/1/2026, Vol. 21 Issue 7, p1-21. 21p.

Subject Terms: *Size of brain, *Body size, *Diet, *Predation, *Evolutionary theories

Sensorimotor Complexity and Cognition as Predictors of Primate Brain Size.

Authors: Song, Zitan^1,2 (AUTHOR) songzitan@gmail.com, Heldstab, Sandra A.^3,4 (AUTHOR), Kay, Richard F.^5,6 (AUTHOR), Kirk, E. Christopher^7,8 (AUTHOR), van Schaik, Carel P.^2,9,10 (AUTHOR) vschaik@aim.uzh.ch

Source: American Journal of Biological Anthropology. Jun2026, Vol. 190 Issue 2, p1-10. 10p.

Subject Terms: *Size of brain, *Sensorimotor integration, *Physical mobility, *Phylogeny, *Motor ability, *Cognition, *Neural development

A Step Forward in Encephalization: The Virtual Endocast of the Middle Pleistocene Hominin from Ceprano, Italy.

Authors: Di Vincenzo, Fabio^1,2 (AUTHOR) fabio.divincenzo@uniroma1.it, Grimaud-Hervé, Dominique³ (AUTHOR), Borrani, Antonio⁴ (AUTHOR), Arsuaga, Juan Luis^5,6 (AUTHOR), Manzi, Giorgio^1,2 (AUTHOR) fabio.divincenzo@uniroma1.it

Source: Brain, Behavior & Evolution. Jun2026, p1-21. 21p. 5 Illustrations.

Subject Terms: *Size of brain, *Cerebral cortex development, *Fossils, *Pleistocene Epoch, *Fossil hominids, *Neanderthals, *Calvaria

Geographic Terms: Europe, Italy

The Virtue of Being Simple.

Authors: KEIM, BRANDON (AUTHOR)

Source: Nautilus. 2026, Issue 68, p60-63. 4p. 2 Color Photographs.

Subject Terms: *Cognitive ability, *Size of brain, *Evolutionary theories, *Caloric expenditure, *Phylogeny, *Biological fitness, *Intellect

Associations of cannabis use, tobacco use and co‐use with brain volume: A systematic review and meta‐analysis.

Authors: Sawyer, Katherine^1,2 (AUTHOR) ksls20@bath.ac.uk, Freeman, Tom P.¹ (AUTHOR), Skumlien, Martine^1,2 (AUTHOR), Walton, Esther³ (AUTHOR), Lancaster, Thomas³ (AUTHOR), Treur, Jorien L.⁴ (AUTHOR), Lorenzetti, Valentina⁵ (AUTHOR), Blackwell, Anna K. M.¹ (AUTHOR), Burke, Chloe^1,6 (AUTHOR), Carr, Richie J.^3,6 (AUTHOR), Constantinides, Constantinos³ (AUTHOR), Cox, Maisie³ (AUTHOR), Dance, Sarah^1,7 (AUTHOR), Daryan, Shadi¹ (AUTHOR), Hamilton, Sorcha¹ (AUTHOR), Jenkins, Tom^1,8 (AUTHOR), Taylor, Gemma M. J.^1,9,10 (AUTHOR)

Source: Addiction. Mar2026, p1. 34p. 7 Illustrations.

Subject Terms: *Tobacco use, *Size of brain, *Insular cortex, *Amygdaloid body, *Globus pallidus, *Gray matter (Nerve tissue), *Marijuana abuse

Rare-variant aggregation highlights disease-linked genes associated with brain volume variation.

Authors: Wightman, Douglas P.¹ (AUTHOR) d.p.wightman@vu.nl, Maciel, Bernardo A.P.C.¹ (AUTHOR), Brouwer, Rachel M.¹ (AUTHOR), van den Heuvel, Martijn P.^1,2 (AUTHOR), Posthuma, Danielle^1,2 (AUTHOR)

Source: American Journal of Human Genetics. Mar2026, Vol. 113 Issue 3, p517-528. 12p.

Subject Terms: *PTEN protein, *Size of brain, *Genetic variation, *Genes, *Neural development

Brain vs. endocast: Does size differ? A unique experiment based on a cohort of 75 volunteers.

Authors: Kubicka, Anna Maria^1,2 (AUTHOR) amkkubicka@gmail.com, Prima, Sylvain^2,3 (AUTHOR), Filippo, Andréa² (AUTHOR), Giolland, Victor² (AUTHOR), Bardinet, Éric⁴ (AUTHOR), Didier, Mélanie⁴ (AUTHOR), Santin, Mathieu⁴ (AUTHOR), Balzeau, Antoine^2,5 (AUTHOR)

Source: Journal of Anatomy. Mar2026, Vol. 248 Issue 3, p412-422. 11p.

Subject Terms: *Size of brain, *Magnetic resonance imaging, *Cerebral dominance

Negative correlation between habenular volume and duration of gambling disorder: Modulation by symptom severity and personality traits.

Authors: Inagaki, Takahiko¹ (AUTHOR) taka-inagaki@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp, Kyuragi, Yusuke¹ (AUTHOR) kyuragi@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp, Katsuragi, Kentaro¹ (AUTHOR) katsuken9006@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp, Ebina, Kota¹ (AUTHOR) kota.ebina.e3@tohoku.ac.jp, Ishikawa, Yuzuki¹ (AUTHOR) yuzukii1004@gmail.com, Mutsuda, Yoshiteru¹ (AUTHOR) mutsuda@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp, Aki, Morio¹ (AUTHOR) morioaki@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp, Shibata, Mami¹ (AUTHOR) mami_sh@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp, Hamamoto, Ayaka¹ (AUTHOR) hamamoto.ayaka.68n@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp, Miyagi, Takashi¹ (AUTHOR) t_miyagi@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp, Mizuta, Hiroto¹ (AUTHOR) hmizuta@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp, Takemura, Ariyoshi¹ (AUTHOR) ariyoshi_t@hotmail.com, Murao, Takuro¹ (AUTHOR) superultratakuchanman@gmail.com, Takeuchi, Hideaki^1,2 (AUTHOR) tkuchihd@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp, Kawada, Ryosaku¹ (AUTHOR) ryo2323@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp, Oishi, Naoya³ (AUTHOR) noishi@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp, Takahashi, Hidehiko^2,4,5 (AUTHOR) hidepsyc@tmd.ac.jp, Murai, Toshiya¹ (AUTHOR) murai@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp, Tsurumi, Kosuke¹ (AUTHOR) kaytee@kuhp.kyoto-u.ac.jp

Source: Journal of Behavioral Addictions. Mar2026, Vol. 15 Issue 1, p1-11. 11p.

Subject Terms: *Disease duration, *Size of brain, *Reward (Psychology), *Brain anatomy, *Symptom burden, *Brain imaging, *Compulsive gambling, *Personality

The evolution of a placenta is not linked to increased brain size in poeciliid fishes.

Authors: Rowiński, Piotr K¹ (AUTHOR) piotr.rowinski@lansstyrelsen.se, Näslund, Joacim^1,2 (AUTHOR), Sowersby, Will^1,3 (AUTHOR), Eckerström-Liedholm, Simon¹ (AUTHOR), Rogell, Björn^1,2 (AUTHOR) Bjorn.Rogell@slu.se

Source: Journal of Evolutionary Biology. Mar2026, Vol. 39 Issue 3, p385-393. 9p.

Subject Terms: *Placenta, *Size of brain, *Poeciliidae, *Maternal nutrition, *Fetal development, *Neural development

The Universal Model of Growth: Dependence of Brain and Body Mass on Age.

Authors: Martyushev, Lev L.¹ (AUTHOR), Martyushev, Leonid M.^2,3 (AUTHOR) leonidmartyushev@gmail.com

Source: American Journal of Human Biology. Mar2026, Vol. 38 Issue 3, p1-12. 12p.

Subject Terms: *Size of brain, *Growth curves (Statistics), *Developmental biology, *Body weight, *Fetal development, *Aging

Predictable evolution towards larger brains and lower hand‐wing indices in long‐tailed birds.

Authors: Zhang, Yizhou¹ (AUTHOR), He, Lin¹ (AUTHOR), Yao, Yongfang¹ (AUTHOR), Xu, Huailiang¹ (AUTHOR), Ji, Yanzhu² (AUTHOR), Lei, Fumin^2,3 (AUTHOR), Fan, Liqing⁴ (AUTHOR) fanliqing@xza.edu.cn, Xiong, Ying¹ (AUTHOR) xiongying_bio@163.com

Source: Functional Ecology. Jan2026, Vol. 40 Issue 1, p191-202. 12p.

Subject Terms: *Size of brain, *Natural selection, *Predation, *Biological evolution, *Aerodynamics

The product of head height and head width is a strong predictor of brain mass in birds.

Authors: Yuran Liu¹, Rakhima, Baisalbayeva¹, Yidong Wei¹, Jinmei Liu¹ liujm172002@hainnu.edu.cn, Wei Liang¹ liangwei@hainnu.edu.cn

Source: Avian Research. Dec2025, Vol. 16 Issue 4, p1-6. 6p.

Subject Terms: *Size of brain, *Ornithology, *Cephalometry, *Animal behavior, *Nonlinear statistical models, *Craniometry, *Cognitive ability