Animals
- Animals
Malaria parasite drives mosquitoes to human scent
Compared to uninfected insects, ones carrying disease land more often on sweat-soaked stockings.
- Animals
Tamed fox shows domestication’s effects on the brain
Gene activity changes accompany doglike behavior in foxes bred over more than 50 years.
- Animals
The secret behind the alligator’s toothy smile
Dental stem cells enable the reptile to grow new teeth every year, researchers find.
By Meghan Rosen - Animals
Cannibalistic spiders may just be choosy guys
Male Micaria sociabilis may choose to have older female for lunch, not sex.
By Susan Milius - Animals
Malaria mosquito dosed with disease-fighting bacteria
After thousands of tries, lab gets parasite-carrying insect to catch Wolbachia.
By Susan Milius - Animals
Tongue bristles help bats lap up nectar
High-speed videos capture stretched-out tongue bumps that stretch out so nectar-feeding bats can slurp up their food.
By Meghan Rosen - Animals
Winged robots may shed light on fly aerobatics
After years of trying, researchers create flapping machines that can hover and perform rudimentary flight maneuvers.
- Animals
Evolutionary enigmas
Comb jelly genetics suggest a radical redrawing of the tree of life.
By Amy Maxmen - Animals
Deep-sea worms drop acid to get dinner
Bone-eating worms produce chemicals to dissolve and feed on skeletons.
- Animals
Fossil illuminates ancestry of swifts and hummingbirds
Spectacularly preserved remains suggest that the two avian groups' predecessors got small before splitting and developing their flying chops.
- Animals
A Different Kind of Smart
Animals’ cognitive shortcomings are as revealing as their genius.
By Susan Milius - Animals
Termites, not fairies, cause plant circles in African deserts
Underground insect engineers create water traps in the soil, allowing rings of green grasses in the sand.
By Susan Milius