Susan Milius

Susan Milius

Life Sciences Writer

Life sciences writer Susan Milius has been writing about botany, zoology and ecology for Science News since the last millennium. She worked at diverse publications before breaking into science writing and editing. After stints on the staffs of The Scientist, Science, International Wildlife and United Press International, she joined Science News. Three of Susan's articles have been selected to appear in editions of The Best American Science Writing.

All Stories by Susan Milius

  1. Genetics

    Current CRISPR gene drives are too strong for outdoor use, studies warn

    Self-limiting genetic tools already in development may be able to get around concerns surrounding the use of gene drives.

  2. Animals

    Honeybees fumble their way to blueberry pollination

    Blueberry flowers drive honeybees to grappling, even stomping a leg or two down a bloom throat, to reach pollen.

  3. Animals

    EPA OKs first living pest-control mosquito for use in United States

    Feds approve non-GM male tiger mosquitoes for sale as fake dads to suppress local pests.

  4. Animals

    Here’s why some water striders have fans on their legs

    A fan of tiny, elegant plumes on their legs helps certain water striders dash across flowing water without getting wet.

  5. Life

    Defining ‘species’ is a fuzzy art

    Here's why scientists still don't agree on what a species is.

  6. Animals

    This sea slug makes its prey do half the food catching

    Nudibranchs’ stolen meals blur classic predator-prey levels.

  7. Animals

    Scary as they are, few vampires have a backbone

    Researchers speculate on why there are so few vampires among vertebrates.

  8. Animals

    Climate change may threaten these bamboo-eating lemurs

    Longer dry spells and more nutrient-poor bamboo might eventually doom the greater bamboo lemur, a critically endangered species.

  9. Life

    Nanoscale glitches let flowers make a blue blur that bees can see

    Bees learn about colorful floral rings faster when nanoscale arrays aren’t quite perfect.

  10. Animals

    Being a vampire can be brutal. Here’s how bloodsuckers get by.

    Blood-sucking animals have specialized physiology and other tools to live on a diet rich in protein and lacking in some nutrients.

  11. Plants

    José Dinneny rethinks how plants hunt for water

    Plant biologist José Dinneny probes the very beginnings of root development, which may have important implications for growing food in a changing climate.

  12. Paleontology

    Woolly rhinos may have grown strange extra ribs before going extinct

    Ribs attached to neck bones could have signaled trouble for woolly rhinos, a new study suggests.