Animals

Most White Sands moths are white to blend in with their environment, but a select few black species have evolved as well.

Dissecting Moth Genitals In the Name of Science

How “moth evangelist” Eric Metzler uncovered hundreds of moth species in the barren dunes of New Mexico

The butchered rhino

700,000-Year-Old Butchered Rhino Pushes Back Ancient Human Arrival in the Philippines

The find changes the story of human migration, but scientists still don't know what human species did the cutting

A pelagic snail ensnares food with with a mucous web.

These Strange Ocean Creatures Trap Their Food In a Net of Mucus

Biologists are finding that these invertebrate grazers can actually be picky eaters—and their choices might influence ocean food webs

Long-eared Myotis bat (Myotis septentrionalis), photographed in Arizona.

Where Clean Drinking Water Is Hard To Find, Bats Could Lead the Way

A wildlife biologist argues that tracking bats, which cover wide areas and need clean water, could be useful in locating potable sources

The striking Banggai cardinalfish is a popular collector's fish. It's also an endangered species in the wild.

Why You Can Walk Into a Store and Buy a Nearly Extinct Animal

By commercializing species, humans wield a far bigger influence than they think over the fate of wild plants and animals

Cabral's image, now disqualified, was one of the winners of the 2017 Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition.

Contest Judges Rule Wildlife Photography Winner Used Taxidermic Creature

Brazilian photographer Marcio Cabral has been disqualified and can not enter the competition in the future

Fossil Tracks May Record Ancient Humans Hunting Giant Sloths

The tracks suggest a human—perhaps in search of food—closely followed the movements of the massive creature

Attenborougharion rubicundus is one of more than a dozen species named after the legendary naturalist Sir David Attenborough.

Why Scientists Name Species

From the Beyonce fly to the David Attenborough possum, the names we bestow on animals have real conservation impacts

Did a Prehistoric Surgeon Practice on This Cow?

Though an early human likely created the hole, the reason why remains less clear

Potter envisioned Hill Top as a living testament to rural tradition. Its artifacts, from crockery to rustic furniture, are reproduced in her drawings.

Britain's Lake District Was Immortalized by Beatrix Potter, But Is Its Future in Peril?

Shepherds and ecologists are butting heads over what's next for the beloved landscape

A Tyrannosaurus Rex head on display in Beijing. The country's fossil boom has resulted in a bevy of options for tourists seeking pterosaurs, feathered dinosaurs and early bird specimens.

Ten Chinese Museums Where You Can See a Dinosaur Fossil Up Close

The country's dino explosion has created a mecca for tourists intent on catching a glimpse of feathered dinos and other prehistoric wonders

These unusual cats may have some advantages for allergic owners, but to call them hypoallergenic would be a stretch.

There's No Such Thing as a Hypoallergenic Cat

With its short tight curl, many claim that the Cornish Rex is proof that cats can be allergen-free. Nope

None

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Earth’s Past Climates

They have a lot to tell us about our future

Bridget the Bearded Lioness Has Died at the Oklahoma City Zoo

The 18-year-old lioness suddenly began growing a mane last year, baffling her caretakers

Everyone knows about shallow coral reefs like this one, which Shepherd captured during a decompression stop up from a mesophotic dive. Far fewer know about the deep reefs that lie just below them.

Illuminating the Ocean’s Teeming Twilight Zone, Before It Disappears

Like underwater islands, these deep reefs harbor countless creatures that scientists have never heard of, and many they never will

A flock of beluga whales in the Sea of Japan, off the coast of Russia.

How Culture Guides Belugas' Annual Odysseys Across the Arctic

Strong, multi-generational ties help the cetaceans make the same migrations year after year

The story of Laika (above, in a postage stamp from the Emirate of Ajman, now part of the UAE) lives on today in websites, YouTube videos, poems, and children’s books, at least one of which provides a happy ending for the doomed dog.

The Sad, Sad Story of Laika, the Space Dog, and Her One-Way Trip Into Orbit

A stray Moscow pup traveled into orbit in 1957 with one meal and only a seven-day oxygen supply

Under a blacklight, scorpions put on quite a show.

Puffin Beaks Are Fluorescent, and They’re Not the Only Ones

Scorpions, stick insects and caterpillars are among the many critters that glow under UV light

View of two farmers checking the corpses of dead sheep on a farm ranch near the Dugway Proving Ground in Utah.

How the Death of 6,000 Sheep Spurred the American Debate on Chemical Weapons

The Dugway sheep incident of March 1968 made visible the military’s covert attempts to test and stockpile millions of dollars worth of chemical weapons

Not a sick raccoon, but one that is certainly riled up.

‘Zombie-Like’ Raccoons Are Terrorizing Youngstown, Ohio

Sadly, the critters’ strange behavior can likely be ascribed to a serious illness

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