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Science / Our Planet

Horseshoe crabs evolved 445 million years ago and have been around for 1,500 times longer than Homo sapiens. It was not until the 20th century, however, that scientists discovered life-saving properties in their blood.

Horseshoe Crab Blood Has Long Helped Us Make Safe Medicines. Now, Alternatives That Spare the Ancient Creatures Might Be Breaking Through

An enzyme in the blue blood has been key to testing vaccines since the 1980s, raising concerns for the crabs’ population. But regulatory approval and new data are signaling the tide may be turning

Navigating based on natural signs, writes Tristan Gooley, “sharpens our powers of observation, deduction and prediction.”

It’s Almost Impossible for Tristan Gooley to Get Lost. That’s One Reason He Has Millions of Followers

The British adventurer has crossed the Atlantic solo in a plane and a boat. Now he reads tree leaves, puddles and moss to get his bearings

Isaque Carvalho Borges won $12,500 in the Central and South American category of the 2025 Earth Prize, the world’s largest environmental sustainability competition for students between 13 and 19 years of age.

This 16-Year-Old Invented an A.I. Tool to Help Cool Down the World’s Hottest Cities

Isaque Carvalho Borges experiences the urban heat island effect in his home of Palmas, Brazil, and he wants to do something about it

An aerial view of Altadena on March 11, 2025, shows surviving trees and new greenery amid homes destroyed in the Eaton Fire.

After the L.A. Fires, Locals Turn to Native Plants to Help Shield Homes From Flames and Clean Contaminated Soil

Scientists and community members in Altadena are testing ways that California species can assist efforts to rebuild

Camels evolved into a range of shapes and sizes, including small forms like these Stenomylus on display at the American Museum of Natural History.

Meet the Extinct Camels of North America, From Ice Age Giants to Sheep-Size Runners

Largely outshone by fossils of horses, the earliest camels are getting another look from scientists determined to sort out the relationships and adaptations of these “absolutely bonkers” herbivores

These six keel-billed toucans were discovered bound and sedated in June by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials. The Wildlife Confiscations Network helped find experts at qualified facilities to care for the birds.

Once Smuggled Animals Are Rescued, Law Enforcement Officers Call Her

As coordinator of the Wildlife Confiscations Network, Mandy Fischer helps match trafficked animals—from alligators to jaguars to baby monkeys—with sanctuaries and care facilities

The epigenetic clock is emerging as a wildlife conservation tool.

This ‘Clock’ Could Warn of Hidden Stresses to Animals, Offering a Long-Sought Signal That a Population Is Nearing Collapse

The epigenetic clock measures biological age and could help scientists assess the health of polar bears, dolphins, baboons and other threatened creatures “while recovery is still possible”

Jane Goodall visiting a chimpanzee rescue center in 2018 in Entebbe, Uganda

Jane Goodall, Legendary Primatologist and Anthropologist, Dies at 91

She was considered the world’s leading expert on chimpanzees and was renowned for her global conservation efforts

As popular as it is, coffee is only the third-most popular drink worldwide, after water and tea.

Celebrate National Coffee Day and Get Your Caffeine Fix With These 15 Photos

It’s a grand day to enjoy coffee-centric snapshots from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest

The orca known as “Old Thom” swims in front of researchers in the Bay of Fundy.

The Curious Case of ‘Old Thom,’ an Orca Traveling Alone in the North Atlantic

Sightings of the marine mammal captivate the public and baffle scientists

A historian inspects oysters from a reef on the Nansemond River, in Virginia.

Can Scientists Help Oysters Thrive Again?

Dredging and pollution devastated the once-bountiful reefs. Careful science may help bring them back

Animal life seemed to explode into a wide variety of new forms in the Cambrian period.

What Led Life to Flourish Roughly 520 Million Years Ago?

Changes to the world’s oceans and the rise of certain predators may have driven diversification

Many different types of animals, from birds to orcas, are affected by human noise.

Five Dramatic Ways Animals Respond to Human Noise, From Mimicking Car Alarms While Wooing Mates to Calling Higher Over the Din of Traffic

As human-caused sound gets louder around the world, some animals change their behavior and many creatures suffer health issues

An aardvark emerges from its burrow.

Could Aardvark Burrows Be Ground Zero for the Next Pandemic?

Animals of all kinds mix and mingle in the underground refuges, offering troubling opportunities for diseases to jump species

Dustin Partridge of the New York City Bird Alliance looks for migrating birds during the 2024 Tribute in Light in New York City.

The New Science of Aeroecology Reveals So Much About the Amazing Creatures That Populate the Skies and How Humans Can Ensure Their Survival

The sky above us is a complex ecosystem, just like the land and sea. A new field of research is bringing a fresh understanding of the birds, bugs and other species that live there

The only human development on Tetepare is a small research center and ecolodge on the western corner of the island, which is otherwise covered in lush rainforest and lined by coral reefs and meadows of seagrass.

Why Is Tetepare the South Pacific’s Largest Uninhabited Island?

Descendants of the island’s former inhabitants struggle to balance environmental conservation with sustaining their community’s livelihoods

In some countries, it’s not uncommon to bring cows and other farm animals into the house with humans for the winter. It protects them from the chill and adds a source of heat to the home in frigid months.

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

Get a Glimpse of Farm Life All Around the World

These 15 images from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest will grow on you

Boston terriers are said to be affectionate with human family members, good with children and playful.

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

Celebrate Man’s Best Friend With These 15 Photographs of Good Dogs

Delight in dogs with snapshots from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest

The eyelash viper is a relatively small species, with adults averaging from 22 to 32 inches long. Its most distinguishing feature, and origin of its common name, is the set of modified scales above the eyes that look much like eyelashes.

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

See 15 Photos of Sensational, Slithering Snakes

These reptiles often get a bad rap, but there are plenty of reasons to celebrate snakes

A large prawn walks over a field of mineral-rich nodules in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ).

As Interest in Deep-Sea Mining Grows, Scientists Raise Alarms About the Possible Ecological Consequences

Gathering minerals such as nickel, cobalt, manganese and lithium from the seabed could affect everything from sponges to whales. The long-term effects of these extractions remain uncertain

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