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. Life

    Three deep-sea fish families now one

    Male and young whalefish look so different from females that scientists had mistakenly put them all in different families.

  2. Life

    A Most Private Evolution

    The most dramatic examples of the power of evolutionary theory may come from the strange and ugly stuff — biology too dumb to have been designed.

  3. Life

    Superloud moth jams bat sonar

    Newly recorded moth could be the first demonstrated case of natural sonar-jamming.

  4. Life

    Fifty-two things to do with a bat wing

    Bats swim, run, flirt and do lots of other nonflight jobs with their wings -- a fact that may have influenced evolution of the wing's architecture.

  5. Life

    Rock-climbing fish caught in evolution tug-of-war

    Tall is good for dodging danger, but short is better for climbing waterfalls.

  6. Agriculture

    Candy cane strategy sweetens life for goldenrods

    Goldenrods temporarily duck their heads during pest season

  7. Life

    Buzzing bees protect plant leaves

    Honeybee air traffic can interrupt caterpillars' relentless munching.

  8. Life

    Extreme preservation gives fly’s eye view

    The cell-by-cell detail of a 45 million-year–old retina is preserved in amber

  9. Life

    Hawaii’s honeyeater birds tricked taxonomists

    DNA from old museum specimens reveals evolutionary look-alikes.

  10. Life

    Study raises worries for zoo-born elephants

    Study of captive-born females finds big survival gap between zoo natives and elephants in native ranges.

  11. Animals

    Dogs will go on strike over unfair treats

    Equal sausage demanded for equal paw shakes.

  12. Health & Medicine

    Honeybee CSI: Why dead bodies can’t be found

    Virus could explain one symptom of colony collapse.