All Stories by Susan Milius
- Plants
Built-in bird perch spreads the pollen
Tests confirm the idea that a plant benefits from growing a bird perch to let pollinators get the best angle for reaching the flowers.
- Animals
New Mammals: Coincidence, shopping yield two species
Researchers have identified a new species of monkey in Africa and a rodent in Asia that belongs to a new family among mammals.
- Animals
Built for Blurs: Jellyfish have great eyes that can’t focus
Eight of a box jellyfish's eyes have superb lenses, but their structure prevents them from focusing sharply.
- Animals
Alive and Knocking: Glimpses of an ivory-billed legend
New observations confirm that the famed ivory-billed woodpecker has not gone extinct after all.
- Ecosystems
Decades of Dinner
Sunken whale carcasses support unique marine ecosystems that display stages of succession and change, just as land ecosystems do.
- Ecosystems
Where Tuna Go: Atlantic fish mix for feeding, not spawning
The largest high-tech tag study yet of Atlantic bluefin tuna suggests that two groups mix on feeding grounds but spawn on opposite sides of the ocean.
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When opposites don’t attract
The quirks of two kinds of European corn borers are giving researchers a way to study how a single species might split in two.
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Many cyanobacteria make a neurotoxin
A brain-damaging toxin, once believed to come only from a group of tropical plants and their live-in microbes, turns out to be much more widespread.
- Ecosystems
Ambush Ants: Beware the moldy patch on that branch
Tiny tropical ants build shaggy platforms on plants and hide underneath them, poised to reach out and capture insects that may be far larger than themselves.
- Animals
Funny Walks: Cranes bob, bob, bob along when hunting
The jerky neck motions of a whooping crane may help it spot food by keeping its head motionless about half the time.
- Animals
Fish Din: Reef clamor attracts young fish settlers
When looking for a home, young fish seem to prefer a reef that's alive with the sounds of shrimp and fish rather than a quieter environment.
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Little Brains That Could: Bees show big-time working memory
Even though a honeybee's brain could fit on the head of a match, the creature's working memory is nearly as effective as that of a pigeon or a monkey.
