Mammals

The doormouse hibernates to conserve resources in harsh conditions. Similarly, scientists envision humans hibernating to endure long-distance space travel.

Can Humans Ever Harness the Power of Hibernation?

Scientists want to know if astronauts can hibernate during long spaceflights. First, they need to understand what hibernation is

Colo died at age 60 in the zoo where she was so famously born.

Colo, the World's First Gorilla Born in Captivity, Is Dead

The miracle baby turned matriarch was 60 years old

Nearly 100 false killer whales are currently stranded in the Everglades in the worst Florida stranding of its kind.

Scores of Dolphins Are Stranded in the Everglades

So far, at least 82 false killer whales have died

Why Were Electric Cars Once Advertised as 'Ladies' Cars'?

Your questions answered by our experts

Tusks from an $8 million shipment intercepted in Singapore

There's a New Tool in the Fight Against Elephant Poaching

An American biologist wields an innovative weapon against the illegal trade in African ivory

Incredibly Cute Polar Bear Cubs See the World for First Time

After a long winter in their den, a polar bear mother and her cubs emerge at the first signs of spring.

Native Americans Saw Buffalo as More Than Just Food

The relationship between some Native American tribes and the American buffalo was a sacred one

The Risky Way a Polar Bear Attack Victim Confronts Her Fear

For Erin Greene, walking up to a polar bear requires even more courage than most of us can imagine

A Fertile Polar Bear's Hard Journey From Mating to Motherhood

After mating takes place, a female polar bear will prepare for her impending pregnancy by eating voraciously. In all, she will pack on more than 400 pounds

Why the U.S. Army Guarded the 23 Remaining American Buffalo

In 1882, General Philip Sheridan's expedition to the protected buffalo haven in Yellowstone National Park revealed a gruesome reality

A Beloved Alpha Polar Bear Near the End of His Life

Saint Pete, as he's known by locals in nearby Churchill, Manitoba, is an elderly polar bear who's been visiting the town for decades

An Angry Hippo Charges a Trespassing Lion

A lion ventures into an area of the river that's part of a hippo bull's territory. The enraged hippo wastes no time in asserting his dominance

Hippo Climbs Down a Steep Cliff...With Difficulty

A 15-foot male hippo carefully negotiates his enormous body down a sheer cliff. It's the shortest and most direct route to the water

Showy traits, like the large antlers of these bull moose, can be detrimental to an animal's health.

Go Big or Go Generic: How Sexual Selection Is Like Advertising

When it comes to attracting mates, it pays to either go all out—or not try at all

What Really Killed Off the Woolly Mammoth?

What caused woolly mammoths to die-off so quickly? New evidence suggests an unfavorable climate may have drove them to extinction

A tickled rat.

What Tickling Giggly Rats Can Tell Us About the Brain

Their laughter manifests in a surprising region of the cerebral cortex

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

Canada Can’t Figure Out Why the Ocean Floor Is Beeping

A mysterious sound has baffled residents of a far-flung hamlet

Ask Smithsonian: What’s the Longest You Can Hold Your Breath?

A dive into the science shows it is possible to override the system

A spotted hyena in South Africa's Kruger National Park.

North America Used to Have its Very Own Hyena

These giggly beasts didn’t just roam Africa and the Middle East. They were right here in our backyard

These are the creatures snakes have nightmares about.

The Animals That Venom Can’t Touch

Meet the creatures who look into the face of venomous death and say: Not today

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