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Oceans

The new species lives in the tropical and subtropical waters of the Atlantic, from the eastern United States down to Brazil.

Scientists Identify a New Manta Ray Species, Just the Third Known in the World

Meet Mobula yarae, a large marine creature that lives along the coast in the Atlantic Ocean

The petroglyphs were exposed by seasonal changes in the tides and waves.

Cool Finds

Centuries-Old Hawaiian Petroglyphs Emerge From the Sand for the First Time in Nine Years

Discovered in 2016, the sandstone carvings on the western shore of Oahu depict human-like figures and extend across more than 100 feet

Scientists filmed the way killer whales hunt together. These images show one of the animals turning toward the other after a tail slap delivers a shock to herring.

Killer Whales Hunt Fish in Highly Coordinated Pairs and Perfect Their Movements With Practice, Drone Videos Reveal

Footage taken off the coast of Norway reveals that orcas team up to maximize their prey, according to a new study

The leaf-toed gecko has been rediscovered on Rábida Island in the Galápagos.

Small, Secretive Gecko Rediscovered in the Galápagos After Scientists Eliminate Invasive Rats

Researchers thought leaf-toed geckos were locally extinct on Rábida Island, so they were thrilled to find several of the lizards alive and well during 2019 and 2021 expeditions

 The scientists found R. wellingtoni in two different color combinations, black-purple and red-black.

Scientists Just Found a Coral Species They Thought Had Gone Extinct, Marking the First Record of It in 24 Years

After the 1982-1983 El Niño warming event, the coral endemic to the Galápagos Islands experienced sharp population declines and was rarely observed during surveys

The destroyer was commissioned in 1942 and used in the Guadalcanal campaign.

Underwater Archaeologists Capture Photos of Japanese Warship That Hasn’t Been Seen Since It Sank During World War II

The “Teruzuki” was a Japanese Navy destroyer that sank near the Solomon Islands on December 12, 1942. Eight decades later, researchers have identified the wreckage in the Pacific

An artist's reconstruction of the giant ichthyosaur Temnodontosaurus (left), featured in the study, and researchers examining part of the creature's flipper at Sweden's Lund University (right).

Fossil Flipper Reveals Ichthyosaurs Hunted in Lethal Silence With Unique Adaptations for Stealth

An analysis of a roughly 180-million-year-old fossil fin reveals serrations and flexibility that might have served to dampen sound as the predator swam

A large prawn walks over a field of mineral-rich nodules in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ).

As Interest in Deep-Sea Mining Grows, Scientists Raise Alarms About the Possible Ecological Consequences

Gathering minerals such as nickel, cobalt, manganese and lithium from the seabed could affect everything from sponges to whales. The long-term effects of these extractions remain uncertain

For the first time ever, the genome of a knotty sea spider was sequenced in high resolution.

These ‘Weird’ Sea Spiders Don’t Have Abdomens—and Instead Store Organs in Their Legs. With DNA, Scientists Are Learning Why

Researchers sequenced the knotty sea spider’s genome for the first time, revealing a missing gene that many other animals have

Lead author Judith Pardo-Pérez where the fossil, nicknamed Fiona, was discovered.

A Rare, Pregnant Ichthyosaur Fossil Discovered in Chile Is Revealing More Secrets About the Early Cretaceous World

The fossil helps scientists better understand not just the animal, but our planet’s geology

The "blob" south of Greenland has cooled over the last century, despite warming surface temperatures across the rest of the planet.

Scientists Shed Light on the Mysterious ‘Cold Blob’ in the North Atlantic Amid a Search for Its Cause

In two recent studies, researchers suggest a weakening ocean current system is to blame for a persistent cold spot in the Atlantic Ocean, though other factors may also be at play

Orcas are highly social creatures that often share prey with each other. Now, new research suggests they're extending this behavior to humans.

Orcas Appear to Be Sharing Their Prey With Humans—but What Does It Mean?

Researchers documented 34 instances of purported prey-sharing behavior, which suggests orcas may be altruistic and capable of recognizing sentience in another species

The team didn't use any maps throughout their 45-hour trip.

New Research

Scientists Built a Canoe Using Only Prehistoric Tools. Then They Sailed the Dangerous 140-Mile Route Early Humans Traveled 30,000 Years Ago

Five paddlers journeyed from Taiwan to Japan’s southern Yonaguni Island in 45 hours. Their efforts provide new insights into prehistoric mariners’ tools and techniques

A view of one of Tuvalu's islands captured in June 2023. The nation is highly threatened by climate change.

More Than One-Third of Tuvalu’s Population Has Applied for a ‘Climate Visa’ to Relocate to Australia

The world-first climate visa agreement will grant permanent residency status to 280 Tuvaluans per year as the island nation grapples with sea-level rise

Two killer whales "allokelping" with a kelp stem between them

These Killer Whales Make Tools From Kelp to Massage Each Other in a Newly Discovered Grooming Behavior

Dubbed “allokelping,” it might be a unique cultural phenomenon that’s as endangered as the orca population itself

The view from a research aircraft that scientists use to collect data from high in Earth’s atmosphere.

Scientists Are Just Beginning to Understand How Life Makes Clouds, and Their Discoveries May Drastically Improve Climate Science

Plants, plankton and sea spray all release elements that help the atmospheric blankets form

A male sea spider, preserved for imaging under a microscope, carries egg sacs after mating with two different females.

Scientists Discover First Known Sea Spider Species That ‘Eat’ Methane With the Help of Bacteria

The research offers new insights on interactions between creatures on the mysterious seafloor and sheds light on the methane cycle

A stingray swims on the ocean floor. Several shark and ray species are threatened with extinction due to overfishing, climate change and habitat loss.

More Countries Agree to Protect the ‘High Seas’ in a Step Toward Wider Ocean Conservation

The High Seas Treaty, which would allow nations to create marine protected areas in international waters, is now expected to take effect in early 2026—without the United States on board

The squid species had only been known from dead specimens found in fishing nets or the stomachs of other animals.

Scientists Had Never Seen This Mysterious Squid Alive in the Wild—Until Now. See the First Footage of the Elusive Creature

A three-foot-long Antarctic gonate squid was spotted swimming 7,000 feet below the surface of the Southern Ocean

Many sea horse traders operate on the black market.

Sea Horse Smuggling Is a Big Problem, Despite Global Efforts to Protect These Beloved Aquatic Creatures

Between 2010 and 2021, authorities seized around five million individual sea horses worth more than $21 million

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