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Science / Wildlife

A jaw of an Eoconodon coryphaeus—a house cat-sized omnivore that lived between about 66 and 63 million years ago—that Williamson collected in the San Juan Basin.

Nuclear Technology May Help Bring Early Mammal Evolution Into Focus

Using a neutron scanner at Los Alamos, paleontologists are generating high-resolution imagery of early mammal fossils

Mosquito researcher Kelly Bennett, turkey baster in hand, is on the prowl, collecting specimens for study

Hunting Deadly Mosquitoes in Panama

The latest podcast “Sidedoor” travels with Smithsonian experts on the trail of the buzzing beasts known as the Aedes

Oils extracted from the citronella plant are a powerful mosquito repellent.

Why Plant-Based Mosquito Repellents Are So Hard to Make

Bug sprays with DEET feel oily and smell gross. But turning natural plant oils into commercial products isn’t easy

RangerBot is an autonomous underwater vehicle designed to identify and kill crown-of-thorns starfish by lethal injection.

Sea-Star Murdering Robots Are Deployed in the Great Barrier Reef

The RangerBot is a new line of defense against coral-eating crown-of-thorns starfish

How do animals think and feel?

Do Animals Experience Grief?

A growing body of evidence points to how animals are aware of death and will sometimes mourn for or ritualize their dead

Dinosaurs had some bad luck, but sooner or later extinction comes for all of us.

What Makes Some Species More Likely to Go Extinct?

With help from the fossil record, paleontologists are piecing together what might make one creature more vulnerable than another

Some of the ‘remarkable beetles’ Wallace collected in Borneo.

Tracing Alfred Russel Wallace’s Footsteps Through the Jungles of Borneo

A biologist treks to the site where the little-known naturalist penned a paper on evolution that would spur on a rivalrous Charles Darwin

How Accurate Is the Theory of Dog Domestication in ‘Alpha’?

The “boy and his dog” tale is a piece of prehistoric fiction, but scientists are uncovering the true origins of our incredible relationship with dogs

A volunteer helps redirect a stranded seabird.

Newfoundland’s Volunteer Puffin Patrol Helps Save Hundreds of Baby Seabirds Confused by Light Pollution

Baby birds leaving the nest for the first time sometimes confuse urban lights for the moon and stars as they try and head out to sea from Witless Bay

Darwin, described by caretakers as a bit "goofy," befriended even the Zoo's cassowary, widely considered one of the world's most dangerous birds.

The National Zoo’s Beloved, Aging Emu Has Died

Darwin delighted zoo patrons for 21 years with his clever antics and charisma

Four Przewalski's horse foals—one filly and three colts—have been born at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute since mid-March.

Four Foals Join the Herd of Przewalski’s Horses at the Smithsonian

This endangered species, native to Mongolia, China and Kazakhstan, is slowly being revitalized with the help of conservation scientists around the world.

A koala in the Vienna zoo.

Koalas Use Ancient Viral DNA to Neutralize New Invaders

And the research on the fluffy marsupials may help unlock the secrets of the human genome’s viral relics

Birds don’t fly across wide Amazonian rivers like the Rio Negro.

How Amazon Rivers Play a Role in the Evolution of Birds

Rivers are natural boundaries for evolving populations. But scientists don’t agree whether they create new species or just help maintain them.

One of the meg's fearsome teeth, shown here in this extreme close-up.

The Real Science Behind the Megalodon

As The Meg hits theaters, dive into what we really know about this chompy predator

When Bsal first arrived in the Netherlands, the pathogen wiped out 96 percent of the resident population of fire salamanders in a few years.

How American Scientists Are Planning to Thwart a Salamander Apocalypse

Yet another fungus threatens to decimate amphibians in North America, but this time, scientists stand ready

The Santa Monica State Beach is an allegory of North American consumerism. Every morning, cleaners collect chip bags, takeout containers, plastic straws, and more, hiding tonnes of trash from beachgoers who may never know the magnitude of the problem.

Are We Grooming Beaches to Death?

Urban beaches worldwide have less garbage than remote beaches, but less life too. The City of Santa Monica hopes to change the image of a clean beach.

Fathers can communicate their priorities through a growing fetus, which can express a set of paternal instructions that increase future care from mothers.

How Dad’s Genes Can Prepare Mom for Parenthood

Even fathers who don’t provide childcare to their offspring have a way of securing their kids’ futures—by ramping up mom’s hormones

Could spider plants alert you of carbon monoxide, or even the flu, lurking in your home?

Could Houseplants Keep Tabs on the Health of Your Home?

Researchers at the University of Tennessee look at the possibility of using plants as biosensors to detect dangers like mold or radon

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