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Animals

Scarce resources could push killer whales into menopause.

New Research

Orca Moms Might Go Into Menopause Because of Their Daughters

Competition could explain this evolutionary mystery

Smallmouth salamanders reproduce sexually, which may give them certain advantages.

New Research

When Is Sex Worth Going the Distance? When You’re a Salamander, Apparently

Asexual amphibians may be less equipped to handle modern threats than their sexual counterparts

Here’s What Makes Komodo Dragons So Powerful

Not only is the Komodo dragon the largest lizard in the world, its powerful claws, tail, and bite make it one of the deadliest

If only the three blind mice had enjoyed access to 21st century retinal transplant technology.

New Research

These Blind Mice Just Got a Vision Boost Thanks to a New Transplant Technique. Could Blind Humans Be Next?

Transplanting an entire piece of retinal tissue into the eyes of blind mice appears to work better than just transplanting cells

Anna's hummingbirds have brains uniquely adapted for hovering precisely while feeding.

New Research

For Hummingbirds, the World Moves as Fast as They Do

New research shows how the hummingbird brain allows them to hover and fly precisely

Age of Humans

Video: Why Should Humans Care About Preserving the Diversity of Life on Earth?

This animation explains that humans don’t just impact the interconnected web of life—we depend on it

Because Cystisoma live far from shore, scientists have just begun to study them in their natural habitat.

The Master of Disguise of the Ocean Reveals Its Secrets

A marine creature’s unusual defense is becoming perfectly clear

A street cat lounging in inner Sydney, Australia.

New Research

Feral Cats Now Cover 99.8 Percent of Australia

The fluffy murderbeasts pose a major threat to wildlife

An illustration of Topsy from the St. Paul Globe on June 16, 1902.

Topsy the Elephant Was a Victim of Her Captors, Not Thomas Edison

Many believe Edison killed Topsy to prove a point, but some historians argue otherwise

According to one group, animals consume eight times more antibiotics than human beings each year.

It Just Got Harder to Give Antibiotics to Farm Animals

New regulations take aim at antibiotic resistance

J2, better known as "Granny," was the oldest-known living orca.

Trending Today

World’s Oldest-Known Orca Is Missing and Believed Dead

Over a century old, “Granny” hasn’t been spotted since early October

Several armed guards accompanied Luiz Rocha and his colleagues throughout their work in Somaliland.

Meet the Researchers Who Scour the World’s Most Dangerous Corners in Search of Biological Riches

Militants, malaria and pirates are just some of the challenges these scientist-explorers face in their quest to map the world’s diversity

Yosemite National Park

Trending Today

The Year in National Parks

From people stealing baby bison and Yosemite trademarks to epic blooms in Death Valley, 2016 has been an eventful centennial year for the NPS

Pan Pan sired around 25 percent of all pandas in captivity.

Trending Today

Goodbye, Pan Pan: World’s Oldest Male Panda Dies

He was a prolific panda papa

Ocean Legacy has a task not even Sisyphean would envy: picking up, sorting and recycling the vast amount of plastic that ends up on our shores.

Future of Conservation

Turning Ocean Garbage Into Gold

From the common plastic water bottle to the shoes of tsunami victims, one recycling organization tries to find a home for all ocean refuse

Leah Desrochers, a former employee of the Massachusetts Audubon Society, holds a stranded Kemp's ridley sea turtle.

Why Are Endangered Sea Turtles Showing Up Cold and Seemingly Lifeless on Northeastern Shores?

In the past three decades, scientists have confronted a worsening epidemic of stranded Kemp’s ridley sea turtles

Thousands of lab rodents disposed of at Dartmouth College are being blamed for radioactive contaminations and carcinogens in local groundwater.

Trending Today

Residents Claim Ivy League College Polluted Water With Dead Lab Rodents

Burial of lab animals in the ‘60s and ‘70s have been linked to groundwater contamination in Hanover, New Hampshire

A painted lady butterfly, Vanessa cardui, one of thousands of insect species that migrate over southern England

New Research

Researchers Record Trillions of Migrating Insects Swarming Through the Skies

Though bugs make up a large amount of biomass, little was known about their migrating habits, until now

Incredibly Cute Polar Bear Cubs See the World for First Time

After a long winter in their den, a polar bear mother and her cubs emerge at the first signs of spring.

These ancient amber fossils from Burma in Southeast Asia help complete the patchy record of lizard evolution.

This Year in Ancient Amber: Prehistoric Feathers, Mushrooms, Lizards and More

It’s no Jurassic Park, but this treasure trove of new creatures will still transport you to an ancient world

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