All Stories by Susan Milius
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Kill-save gene combo might fight malaria
A technique that might someday enlist mosquitoes in the fight against malaria has passed an early test.
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Rare flower needs prickly neighbors
A flowering plant found only in Mauritius makes more fruit if dense stands of pandanus trees grow nearby.
- Animals
Too Few Jaws: Shark declines let rays overgraze scallops
A shortage of big sharks on the U.S. East Coast is letting their prey flourish, and that prey is going hog wild, demolishing bay scallop populations.
- Plants
Old plants were lost in the grass
An obscure family of plants long thought to be relatives of grasses turns out to represent one of the most ancient surviving lineages of flowering plants.
- Animals
Honey, I Ate the Kids
Some of the most devoted parents in the animal kingdom routinely devour some of their own children.
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Not So Wimpy: Antimalarial mosquito has an edge in tests
For the first time, mosquitoes engineered to resist malaria have shed their underbug image and outperformed regular mosquitoes in a lab test.
- Animals
Mafia Cowbirds: Do they muscle birds that don’t play ball?
A new test offers the best evidence yet that cowbirds retaliate against birds that resist their egg scams.
- Animals
Snail Highways: By following trails, periwinkles save slime
A snail that follows another snail's slimy path saves energy by not having to secrete so much mucus.
- Animals
Science behind the Soap Opera
Tight family groups of meerkats in Africa's arid lands offer a chance to see the costs, as well as the charms, of cooperation. With audio.
- Animals
Bird Plans: Jays show foresight in breakfast menus
The strongest evidence yet that animals plan ahead may come from western scrub jays preparing for their morning meals.
- Animals
Perils of Migration: New evidence that bats stalk birds
Big Mediterranean bats snatch migrating songbirds out of the night sky in spring and fall.
- Animals
What’s Going on Down There?
In a 10-year, global effort, researchers exploring the unknowns of marine life have found bizarre fish, living-fossil shrimp, giant microbes, and a lot of other new neighbors.
