Oceans

Helpless babe or capable professional navigator?

Baby Weddell Seals Have the Most Adult-Like Brains in the Animal Kingdom

The newborn seal pups possess the most well-developed brains compared to other mammals, but that advantage comes with a cost

How many unborn brothers and sisters did this sand tiger shark devour to be here today?

Baby Sand Tiger Sharks Devour Their Siblings While Still in the Womb

This seemingly horrific reproduction strategy may be a way for females to better control which males sire her offspring

Emperor penguins swimming

14 Fun Facts About Penguins

Which penguin swims the fastest? Do penguins have teeth? Why do penguins sneeze? How is penguin poop useful?

Flamingos depend on plant-derived chemical compounds to color their feathers, legs and beaks.

For Some Species, You Really Are What You Eat

Flamingos, shrimp and many other animals use chemical compounds found in their diets to color their exteriors

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10 Things We’ve Learned About the Earth Since Last Earth Day

Pigeon-eating catfish, Antarctic trash, and more: A list of surprising, alarming and exciting discoveries about our planet from the past year

A trident lined with shark teeth, used in the study.

19th Century Shark Tooth Weapons Reveal A Reef’s Missing Shark Species

Lashed to swords and spears from the Pacific's Gilbert Islands are teeth from two shark species that were never known to have swam in the area

Beneath the seafloor, there is an ecosystem of microbes living in the oceanic crust, independent of sunlight. Here, the seafloor of McMurdo Sound in Antarctica.

Microbes Buried Deep in Ocean Crust May Form World’s Largest Ecosystem

Far below the ocean floor, scientists have discovered a microbial community away from undersea vents, beyond the reach of the sun

An island of ice breaking away from Greenland’s Petermann Glacier (in the center of the photo) in the summer of 2010.

Greenland’s Glaciers Are Hemorrhaging Ice, Best Seen By Photos from Space

Satellites snap pictures of Greenland's glaciers, which a new study shows are vanishing at an accelerated pace, helping to spike global sea levels

Polar bear-brown bear hybrids like this pair at Germany’s Osnabrück Zoo are becoming more common as melting sea ice forces the two species to cross paths.

Brown Polar Bears, Beluga-Narwhals and Other Hybrids Brought to You by Climate Change

Animals with shrinking habitats are interbreeding, temporarily boosting populations but ultimately hurting species' survival

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Untangling the Mysterious Genetic Tentacles of the Giant Squid

Contrary to prior speculation about the elusive creatures, all giant squid belong to a single species and they all share very similar genetics

At the bottom of the Mariana Trench, nearly eight miles below the ocean’s surface, abundant communities of bacteria thrive.

Nearly 8 Miles Down, Bacteria Thrive in the Oceans’ Deepest Trench

The Mariana Trench may serve as a seafloor nutrient trap, supporting remarkable numbers of microorganisms

Ribbon worms come in all shapes and sizes. This one, with white stripes along the body, was found off the coast of Mexico.

14 Fun Facts about Marine Ribbon Worms

Ribbon worms swallow prey whole, grease themselves with their mucus to slide quickly through mud, split into new worms if severed, and much more

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Vanishing Marine Algae Can Be Monitored From a Boat With Your Smartphone

An app allows boat travelers to track declining levels of phytoplankton, a microscopic organism at the base of the marine food chain

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Stressed Corals Dim Then Glow Brightly Before They Die

Measuring how coral fluorescence changes may serve as an early indicator of the declining health of a reef

Rapidly melting sea ice will open up shipping lanes across the Arctic, potentially making the Northwest Passage (left) and North Pole (center) navigable during the summer.

Climate Change Could Allow Ships to Cross the North Pole by 2040

Melting sea ice will open up shipping lanes across the Arctic, potentially making the Northwest Passage and North Pole navigable during summer

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Transforming Raw Scientific Data Into Sculpture and Song

Artist Nathalie Miebach uses meteorological data to create 3D woven works of art and playable musical scores

Ice melt in Greenland will significantly affect water levels throughout the world, most of all the equatorial Pacific and South Africa.

Melting Polar Ice Will Spike Sea Levels at the Equator

Expect higher sea levels in the equatorial Pacific and lower ones near the poles by 2100, according to new research

A study shows that wild perch are less fearful, eat faster and are more anti-social when exposed to a common pharmaceutical pollutant.

Flushing Your Anti-Anxiety Pills Down the Toilet Could Affect the Behavior of Wild Fish

A study shows that wild perch are less fearful, eat faster and are more anti-social when exposed to a common pharmaceutical pollutant

Two waved albatrosses, the only tropical albatross species, courting one another on the Galapagos Islands.

Is It Love? Why Some Ocean Animals (Sort Of) Mate For Life

A look at the mating systems of some monogamous ocean animals show that finding life partners helps species protect themselves and their young

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This Sea Slug Discards Its Penis After Sex and Grows Another

Chromodoris reticulata, native to the Pacific, engages in mating behavior previously unknown in the rest of the animal kingdom

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