Animals
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Animals
These ants build tall nest hills to help show the way home
Desert ants living in the harsh, flat salt pans of Tunisia create towering anthills to aid with navigating the near-featureless terrain.
By Soumya Sagar -
Animals
How a new Lyme vaccine for mice may protect people
A vaccine, distributed as pellets, can neutralize Lyme-causing bacteria in wildlife. Scientists hope it will reduce Lyme exposure for people and pets.
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Life
5,000 deep-sea animals new to science turned up in ocean records
Scientists compiled a list of animals unknown to science that live in a deep-sea Pacific Ocean ecosystem targeted for mining exploration.
By Jude Coleman -
Life
Spiny mice have armadillo-like armor in their tails
CT scans revealed the bony plates in the rodents’ tails. The hidden armor may protect against attacking predators or other spiny mice.
By Jake Buehler -
Animals
Octopuses and squid are masters of RNA editing while leaving DNA intact
Modifications to RNA could explain the intelligence and flexibility of shell-less cephalopods.
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Life
Large predators push coyotes and bobcats near people and to their demise
Coyotes and bobcats hide near people when wolves, cougars and other large predators are close-by, putting the smaller carnivores at a higher risk of dying at human hands.
By Freda Kreier -
Animals
The Sonoran Desert toad can alter your mind — it’s not the only animal
Their psychedelic and other potentially mind-bending compounds didn't evolve to give people a trip.
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Animals
Why some hammerhead sharks seem to ‘hold their breath’ during dives
Scalloped hammerhead sharks in Hawaii seem to limit the use of their gills during deep dives to prevent losing heat to their surroundings.
By Freda Kreier -
Animals
Pregnancy may hamper bats’ ability to ‘see’ in the dark
Tiny Kuhl’s pipistrelle bats make fewer calls when pregnant, which may make it more difficult to hunt prey, lab tests hint.
By Freda Kreier -
Life
Swarming locusts can deploy a chemical to avoid being cannibalized
Releasing a “don’t-eat-me” pheromone signals a locust has become a toxic treat. The finding could lead to new ways to control destructive swarms.
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Animals
A 2,200-year-old poop time capsule reveals secrets of the Andean condor
Guano that has accumulated in a cliffside Andean condor nest for 2,200 years reveals how the now-vulnerable birds responded to a changing environment.
By Jake Buehler -
Animals
This marine biologist is on a mission to save endangered rays
Jessica Pate and the Florida Manta Project confirm that endangered mantas are mating and sicklefin devils are migrating along the East Coast.