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Science / Wildlife

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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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The Best Wildlife Photographs of the Year

Over 48,000 photos were entered in the Veolia Environnement contest; these 10 were among the most stunning

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Rare and Intimate Photos of a Gorilla Family in the Wild

Two photographers ventured deep into the forests of central Africa to capture touching photos of a 33-year-old wild silverback and his clan

Black-headed Spider Monkey (Ateles fusciceps)

Alan Dudley’s Wondrous Array of Animal Skulls

A new book delivers fascinating photographs of over 300 skulls from the British taxidermist’s personal collection—the largest in the world

An artist’s reconstruction of Purgatorius, a probable primate ancestor.

Five Early Primates You Should Know

Scientists have identified dozens of early primates, based on teeth, but still have a hard time assessing how these mammals relate to modern primates

Defying its reputation as aloof, this tortoiseshell cat was labelled “the friendliest cat we met”

Judging a Cat (Wrongly) by the Color of its Coat

Black cats aren’t evil, and torties aren’t always aloof. But people often think coat color and behavior are linked

Black swifts, with their preference for nesting on steep, wet, cold rock faces, are among the most enigmatic birds in North America.

What is North America’s Most Mysterious Bird?

Nesting behind waterfalls and in caves, the rarely seen black swift is only beginning to shed its secrets

Neanderthals may have collected feathers from dark birds, such as black vultures (shown), for ornamental purposes, a new study suggests.

Do Feathers Reveal Neanderthal Brainpower?

Neanderthals may have used feathers as personal ornaments, which suggests our cousins were capable of symbolic expression

Scientists are learning that bacteria play a crucial role in our digestion of food, including our intake of fats.

Biologists Pinpoint Bacteria That Increase Digestive Intake of Fat

A new study in zebrafish found that certain types of gut bacteria lead to a greater absorption of fat during digestion

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Bears, Up Close and Personal, in the Alaskan Wilderness

A newly built retreat gives visitors a chance to see the Kodiaks in their element

Gastroptychus spinifer is capable of seeing UV light, researchers discovered.

How Do Crabs See Food on the Ocean Floor? UV Vision

Marine biologists took a submersible more than half a mile below the surface to understand the strange creatures that glow on the ocean floor

Amazing Underwater Photos of Ocean Creatures

Check out these incredible images by photojournalist Brian Skerry, and help select which photographs will appear in an upcoming exhibit

Shanthi, 34, and Kandula, 8, in the Elephant Trails yard after the first phase of renovations were completed in 2010 at the Smithsonian National Zoo.

Found: A Time Capsule at the National Zoo

While renovating the Elephant House, construction workers discovered a mysterious box hidden in a wall

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How Biomimicry is Inspiring Human Innovation

Creative minds are increasingly turning to nature—banyan tree leaves, butterfly wings, a bird’s beak— for fresh design solutions

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