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. Life

    Ground squirrels use ‘armpit effect’

    Hibernating ground squirrels forget who’s who, so thank goodness for the armpit effect.

  2. Ecosystems

    Slave ants rebel

    Species vulnerable to enslavement may evolve ways to fight their captors.

  3. Life

    His master’s yawn

    When humans open up for a jaw-stretcher, so do their best friends.

  4. Life

    Smallest known snake

    New species is thin as a spaghetti noodle but shorter.

  5. Animals

    Built for Speed

    Animals would prove fierce competitors at the Olympics — if only they would stay in their lanes.

  6. Life

    Fish lie

    No, really. I like the other girl better. Really. Science reveals a fish dating scene worse than junior high school.

  7. Life

    Nature’s chronic boozers

    Tree shrews pub-crawl nightly from flower to flower for fermented palm nectar.

  8. Ecosystems

    Nomadic ants hunt mushrooms

    A species of ants not well understood surprises researchers with a nomadic lifestyle, roaming the rainforest on fungal forays.

  9. Plants

    Fugitives spread bumblebee diseases

    Pathogens hitchhike on commercial bees that escape from greenhouses. These escapees bring disease to wild bumblebees.

  10. Plants

    Parasite Godzilla

    Parasites are small but have a big impact. An estuary study reveals that these little annoyances add up to a lot of biomass.

  11. Animals

    We all sing like fish

    From opera singers to toadfish, vertebrates may use basically similar circuitry for controlling vocal muscles.

  12. Animals

    Brains for a change

    Outsized brains may have sped up evolution of body size in birds.