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. 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.

  2. Animals

    Honey, I Ate the Kids

    Some of the most devoted parents in the animal kingdom routinely devour some of their own children.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

  5. 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.

  6. 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.

  7. 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.

  8. 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.

  9. 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.

  10. Animals

    Do flies eat their sibs before birth?

    A tiny fly that parasitizes cicadas could be the first insect species that's recognized to practice prenatal cannibalism.

  11. Animals

    Glittering male seeks fluorescing female

    A tropical jumping spider needs ultraviolet light for courtship.

  12. Animals

    Bite This: Borrowed toad toxins save snake’s neck

    An Asian snake gets toxins by salvaging them from the poisonous toads it eats.