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Animals

A study of ten narwhal tusks reveals how the animals are responding to a swiftly changing Arctic.

New Research

Study of Narwhal Tusks Reveals a Swiftly Changing Arctic

Chemical analysis of ten tusks shows shifting diets and increasing levels of mercury as climate change warms the polar region

Grasshoppers swarm a street light a few blocks from the Las Vegas Strip on July 26, 2019.

New Research

Las Vegas Was Inundated by 46 Million Grasshoppers on a Single Night in 2019

A new study says the horde of insects was drawn to the Vegas Strip by its famously bright lights

The imported parrots and scarlet macaws were mummified between 1100 and 1450 A.D.

Cool Finds

Mummified Parrots Found in Chile Suggest Vast Pre-Hispanic Trade Network

People in South America likely kept the birds as exotic pets whose feathers were prized for their use in headdresses and hats

A newly emerged cicada from Brood X suns itself.

14 Fun Facts About Cicadas

Amazing details about the buzzing insects set to storm the United States this spring

Bears with intensifying symptoms either die or are require euthanasia. Those that survive require lifetime treatments and can't return to the wild.

A Puzzling Brain Disease Is Killing Black Bears in the Western United States

Some animals showing signs of a neurological disorder had brain inflammation, but the cause is still unknown

By the time sauteur d’Alfort rabbits are a few months old, they learn how to walk on their front paws to accommodate their uncoordinated back legs.

New Research

Thanks to a Genetic Mutation, These French Rabbits Prefer Handstands to Bunny Hops

The unusually acrobatic sauteur d’Alfort rabbits were first discovered in France in 1935

Retouched composite image of the mural and its surroundings

Cool Finds

3,200-Year-Old Mural of Knife-Wielding Spider God Found in Peru

Local farmers accidentally destroyed 60 percent of the shrine complex that houses the ancient Cupisnique painting

The site of the rabbit burrow has apparently been occupied by different groups over the millennia.

Cool Finds

Burrowing Bunnies in Wales Unearth Trove of Prehistoric Artifacts

Rabbits on Skokholm Island discovered Stone Age tools and fragments of a Bronze Age cremation urn

The juvenile walrus spent two days resting in Pembrokeshire, Wales before returning to sea.

How Did This Walrus Get to Wales?

The same walrus might have stopped briefly in Denmark and Ireland

All modern dogs are descended from a wolf species that when extinct around 15,000 years ago. Grey wolves, pictured here fighting for food with now extinct dire wolves (red), are dogs’ closest living relative.

Smithsonian Voices

Meet the Scientist Studying How Dogs Evolved From Predator to Pet

Learn about how humans of the past helped build the bond between us and our favorite furry friends

The southern African orchid Disa forficaria attracts male longhorn beetles.

Extremely Rare Orchid Tricks Horny Beetles Into Carrying Its Pollen

The flower found in southern Africa releases a chemical so irresistible to longhorn beetles that they attempt to mate with it

Western lowland gorilla Baraka forages in the outdoor gorilla habitat at the Smithsonian's National Zoo. The silverback takes mealtime seriously, say his keepers.

Smithsonian Voices

How Do You Help a Gorilla With a Toothache?

When primate keepers at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo noticed Baraka wasn’t eating his meals, they wondered if this masked something more serious

The biodiversity map predicted that amphibians and reptiles have the most undiscovered species to date. Pictured: blue poison dart frog (Dendrobates tinctorius "azureus")

This Map Shows You the Odds of Finding a New Species in Your Neighborhood

The ‘Map of Life’ predicts where undiscovered birds, reptiles, amphibians and mammals could be found around the world

The intricately crafted ornament, which depicts a knight emerging out of a snail shell perched atop of a goat, measures less than an inch long.

Cool Finds

Was This Ornament of a Knight Emerging From a Snail Shell a ‘Medieval Meme’?

The unusual image “may be a satirical reference to cowardly or non-chivalric behavior of opponents,” says curator Beverly Nenk

This cow was fed a small amount of seaweed along with its feed to reduce methane emissions from its burps.

New Research

Seaweed-Fed Cows Burp Less Planet-Warming Methane

Researchers report an 82 percent reduction in methane emissions in cows fed 1.5 to 3 ounces of seaweed a day for 21 weeks

Bulls, like horses, were important animals to the ancient Greeks.

Cool Finds

Rare Bronze Bull Sacrificed to Zeus Found at Site of the Ancient Olympic Games

The 3,000-year-old figurine was probably a votive offering made at the Greek god’s altar in Olympia

The researchers found that 3D tracking tags picked up circling movements in various animals including, king penguins, tiger sharks, whale sharks and a Cuvier's beaked whale.

Researchers Are Investigating Why Marine Animals Swim in Perplexing Circles

Sea creatures may exhibit the spiraling behavior to navigate the ocean, for mating rituals, or to track prey

Ocean creatures are noisier than scientists first thought.

Women Who Shaped History

Biologist Marie Fish Catalogued the Sounds of the Ocean for the World to Hear

Scientists once thought marine life kept quiet. Then the Navy tapped an aptly named researcher with an open mind

When suburbanites want to limit the number of deer in their area, it can be easier said than done.

How Can Suburbs Control Deer Populations? And More Questions From Our Readers

You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts

Across the globe, culling has become the default strategy for the egg industry to eliminate the unwanted hatchlings.

Can New Technologies Eliminate the Grim Practice of Chick Culling?

As the U.S. egg industry continues to kill male chicks, scientists are racing to develop accurate and affordable ways to sex a chick before it hatches

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