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Ecology

L. larvaepartus (male, left, and female) from Indonesia is the only frog ever discovered to birth live tadpoles.

New Research

This Exotic Frog Skips the Eggs, Gives Birth to Live Tadpoles

The species is one of just a handful of frogs that use internal fertilization, and the only one found that births tadpoles

Dumpling squid don't let danger stop them from mating.

New Research

Threat of Being Eaten Doesn’t Deter Dumpling Squid From Sex

The adorable cephalopods seem to rate mating higher on their list of priorities than survival

Get a good look at Sinea incognita, a newly recognized species of assassin bug.

New Research

Meet the Stealthiest Assassin Bug in the United States

The unique and secretive species has been living among us unrecognized for a century

New Research

The Cutest Climate Change Culprits: Arctic Ground Squirrels

By digging burrows in permafrost, Arctic ground squirrels help destabilize the vast stores of carbon in the soil

New Research

Conserving Tigers Could Hurt Leopards

When one predator returns, another can be displaced

Plastic trash collected from the world's oceans.

New Research

The Ocean Contains Over Five Trillion Pieces of Plastic Weighing More than 250,000 Tons

These frightening figures represent the most robust estimate of marine plastic pollution calculated to date

A bleached coral reef

New Research

Listen to the Sounds of a Dying Coral Reef

Healthy coral reefs produce a medley of sounds that ocean creatures use as homing beacons

A humpback whale in waters off southern Oman.

New Research

Humpback Whales in the Arabian Sea Have Been Isolated for 70,000 Years

Conservationists want this particular population of humpbacks to be classified as critically endangered

A hippopotamus named Linda takes her calf Reginald for a swim in a pool at Whipsnade Zoo. England, 1954.

Cool Finds

Let Wildlife Recordings From the 1930s Take You Back to Nature

Hear African wildlife from the 1930s with the British Library’s nature sound archives

New Research

Manhattan Insects Eat the Equivalent of 60,000 Hot Dogs Each Year

Millions of urban insects act as efficient, largely unnoticed garbage disposals

The proposed canal routes through Nicaragua.

Cool Finds

Nicaragua Is Going Ahead With a Massive Canal That Will Bisect the Country

According to experts, the project will likely wreak havoc on both Nicaraguans and the country’s environment

Sunflower sea stars are just one of 20 species affected.

New Research

Meet the Tiny Killer Causing Millions of Sea Stars to Waste Away

The deadly sea star wasting disease, which turns live animals into slimy goop, is caused by a previously unknown virus

Around 1,400 chimps might lose their home in Congo.

Cool Finds

How a Misdrawn Map Put 1,400 Chimps and a Rare Plant in Peril

Miners and farmers are moving into a protected forest in Congo thanks in part to an administrative blooper

New Research

Bullying Pays Off For Chimp Dads

For male chimps, the meaner you are, the more offspring you have

New Research

Living in Tough Environments Makes People More Prone to Belief in God

People living in harsh natural environments are more likely to believe in a tough, moralizing god

Mexican free-tailed bats can be real jerks to their friends.

New Research

On Summer Nights, Some Bats Like to Jam

Mexican free-tailed bats “jam” each others’ echolocation calls to discombobulate competitors

Cool Finds

Humans Outnumber Rats in NYC

There’s actually about one rat for every four people

A baby penguin and its parent greet the disguised rover.

New Research

Rovers Disguised as Baby Penguins Can Quietly Infiltrate Penguin Colonies

Normally wary penguins seem unfazed when there’s a smartly dressed robot in their midst

A common vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus) isn't as scary as its name might suggest.

Halloween

Seven Vampires That Aren’t Bats (Or Bela Lugosi)

From flying frogs to deep-sea squid, meet some of the other nosferatu of the animal kingdom

New Research

Invaders From Cuba Force Florida Lizards to Quickly Evolve (Or Get Out)

In just 15 years, green anoles changed their behavior and evolved bigger, stickier toes to escape alien competitors

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