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Science / Wildlife

Most orchid bees, like this Euglossa paisa, have metallic coloration.

The Evolution of the Orchid and the Orchid Bee

Which came first—the plant or its pollinator?

Toxoplasma gondii requires the cat digestive system for reproduction, so it hitches a ride in a rat

The Parasite That Makes a Rat Love a Cat

Toxoplasma gondii alters activity in a rat’s brain

The moose likely got drunk eating apples fermenting on the ground.

The Alcoholics of the Animal World

A drunken moose got stuck in a tree. But they aren’t the only ones who like the product of fermentation

About one-third of all corals are in threat of extinction, and some coral experts say that we could lose reefs as we know them by 2050.

Saving Coral…Through Sperm Banks?

Marine biologist Mary Hagedorn has learned to freeze and reanimate coral cells

A glowing kitty may help in the fight against AIDS

The Glow-In-The-Dark Kitty

A fluorescent green cat could help in the fight against AIDS

Without science, we wouldn't know that prehistoric creatures, like this short-necked plesiosaur (at the Smithsonian's Natural History Museum) were real

Why I Like Science

It’s time to speak up: Why do you like science?

A male elephant at Etosha National Park in Namibia

Male Elephants Queue in Dry Times

Researchers believe the hierarchy helps elephants avoid injuries that could result from competing for water

Woolly rhinos may have used their flattened horns to sweep away snow and expose edible vegetation underneath.

Woolly Rhino May Have Been A Tibetan Native

When the Ice Age began, these large mammals spread out to northern Asia and Europe

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Wild Things: Wildcats, Pigeons and More…

Cleaner wrasse fish, black widow spiders and even bananas made the news recently as part of the latest wildlife research

Every day California sea otters spend 10 to 12 hours hunting and consume nearly a third of their body weight.

Otters: The Picky Eaters of the Pacific

Could the California sea otters’ peculiar dietary habits be impeding their resurgence?

Chickens at a Florida farmhouse museum

14 Fun Facts About Chickens

#5: With 25 billion chickens in the world, there are more of them than any other bird species

The Eastern Tiger Salamander has managed to survive in an inhospitable and unlikely habitat in Wisconsin.

The Salamanders that Refuse to Grow Up

In a Wisconsin reservoir, these normally terrestrial animals have managed not only to survive but to thrive underwater

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The Great Penguin Rescue

After an oil spill, should people put in the time and effort to clean up wildlife, or would it be better to just let the animals die?

Bob Rosenfield holds a pair of Cooper’s hawks in a city park in Victoria, Canada. The female, in the foreground, is a third again as large as her mate.

The Hawks in Your Backyard

Biologists scale city trees to bag a surprisingly urban species, the Cooper’s Hawk

A wild capybara by a lake in Brazil

What In The World Is A Capybara?

And why is one running loose in California?

One of Amani's five cubs at seven weeks age

Helping Older Cheetahs Become Moms

Researchers may soon be able to transfer embryos from older cheetahs into younger animals and give them a better chance of success

Do you ever peek at the end of a book?

Are Spoilers Misnamed?

Giving away surprises, surprisingly, makes readers like stories better

A male houbara bustard displays his feathers to get a female

Macho Birds Age Faster

Male houbara bustards pay a steep price for wooing the ladies

Kanzi the bonobo is quite the musician

Six Talking Apes

“Talking” apes are not just the stuff of science fiction; scientists have taught many apes to use some semblance of language

A vampire bat feeds on a pig

Halloween

How Vampire Bats Find A Vein

They may not be Dracula in disguise, but vampire bats are still creepy nocturnal critters that need blood to survive

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