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Science / Wildlife

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Researchers Discover New Method of Barnacle Sex

Upending 150 years of theory, scientists observed that some barnacles can capture sperm from the water for reproduction

As part of a new study, shore crabs that were given a mild electrical shock responded in a way indicating they felt pain.

New Study Suggests Crabs Can Feel Pain After All

Most of us assume that crustaceans can’t feel pain—but new research suggests otherwise

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Ask Smithsonian 2017

Why Are Chimpanzees Stronger Than Humans?

Chimps are far stronger than we are - but why?

Each year, around 5,300 Golden Warblers – a threatened species – die from collisions with communication towers.

Communication Towers Are Death Traps for Threatened Bird Species

Nearly 7 million North American birds - including 13 threatened species - lose their lives through tower collisions each year

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Scientists Finally Figure Out How Squids Mate

There are all sorts of animals that we actually have never seen get it on. Squid used to be one of them

Small red boring sponges embedded in star coral, killing the coral polyps immediately surrounding them.

Drill, Baby, Drill: Sponges Bore Into Shells Twice as Fast in Acidic Seawater

In acidic water, drilling sponges damage scallops twice as quickly, worsening the effects of ocean acidification

The Nopoli rock-climbing goby

Determined Fish Climb Waterfalls With Special Sucker Mouths

One goby species in Hawaii uses its suction-cup mouth for both feeding and scaling walls, presenting an evolutionary chicken-or-egg conundrum

Baby bonobos share papayas

Bonobos Offer Banana Bribes for Friendship

Chimpanzees will sooner kill than share food, but bonobos will sacrifice some of their own goods for the pleasure of interacting with strangers

A beloved symbol of biodiversity, the red-eyed tree frog, shown here in Panama, has evolved a flexible strategy for survival.

How the Tree Frog Has Redefined Our View of Biology

The world’s most charismatic amphibian is upending the conventional wisdom about evolution

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Seven Must-See Art-Meets-Science Exhibitions in 2013

Preview some of the top-notch shows—on anatomy, bioluminescence, water tanks and more—slated for the next year

Sparky, the electric eel, and his Christmas tree.

A Twinkling Christmas Tree, Powered by…an Electric Eel?

A Utah aquarium uses the charges emitted by an electric eel to trigger the lights on a nearby tree

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Where’s Rudolph? Inside the Decline of Alaska’s Caribou

The antlered herd’s population is declining – what’s going on in the Alaskan wilderness?

A new study shows that microscopic barbs allow porcupine quills to slice into flesh easily and stay there stubbornly.

Could Porcupine Quills Help Us Design the Next Hypodermic Needle?

Microscopic barbs allow porcupine quills to slice into flesh easily and stay there stubbornly—qualities that could prove useful in medical applications

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Should Trophy Hunting of Lions Be Banned?

Some argue that tourist safari hunts generate important money for African nations—but can lions afford the loss?

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The Top 10 Animal Superpowers

So you think Spiderman’s and Catwoman’s special powers are impressive. They’re nothing compared to what these creatures can do

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Beavers On Parachutes

Beavers On Parachutes

A male Eastern wild turkey

14 Fun Facts About Turkeys

#8: A turkey’s gender can be determined from its droppings

The 3.5-million-year-old Australopithecus bahrelghazali from Chad probably ate grass, just like the modern baboons seen here do.

Early Hominids Had a Taste for Grass

Unlike earlier hominids, the 3.5-million-year-old Australopithecus bahrelghazali ate grassland foods

Crocodylians are the last living representatives of the crocodylomorpha, an even bigger group that originated over 205 million years ago.

The Top 10 Greatest Survivors of Evolution

Travel back millions of years in your time machine and you’d find some of these species thriving and looking much as they do today

A rufous hummingbird preparing to feed at a torch lily.

Hummingbirds Are Popping Up in the Strangest Places

Two master bird banders are at the forefront of finding out why the rufous hummingbird’s migration has changed

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