Animals
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Animals
Foodfree growth
Rattlesnakes undergo a hibernation-like state to survive long periods of famine, while continuing to grow longer.
By Janet Raloff -
Animals
Hummingbirds can clock flower refills
Hummingbirds can keep track of when a particular flower has replenished its nectar and is worth visiting again.
By Susan Milius -
Animals
Sharpshooter threatens Tahiti by inedibility
A North American insect is menacing Tahitian ecosystems by getting itself killed and proving surprisingly toxic to its predators.
By Susan Milius -
Animals
Wary male spiders woo lifelessly
When trying to court a cannibalistic female spider, males of a certain species play dead.
By Susan Milius -
Animals
Hairy crab lounges deep in the Pacific
A newly discovered deep-sea creature has the body of a crab, but with long, fluffy, blonde hair covering its legs.
By Susan Milius -
Animals
That’s One Weird Tooth
The narwhal's distinctive spiral tusk has structures that could make it phenomenally sensitive, raising new questions about its functions.
By Susan Milius -
Animals
Woodpecker video is challenged and defended
The video released last spring as evidence that the ivory-billed woodpecker exists may show a common pileated woodpecker, some critics say.
By Susan Milius -
Animals
Can You Hear Me Now? Frogs in roaring streams use ultrasonic calls
A small frog living beside Chinese hot springs may be the first amphibian known to use ultrasound in its calls.
By Susan Milius -
Animals
Cannibal Power: Mormon crickets swarm to eat and not be eaten
What keeps the great swarms of Mormon crickets rolling across the landscape may be a combination of nutritional deficits and the risk of getting cannibalized.
By Susan Milius -
Animals
Killer Flatworm: New species hunts with puffer fish toxin
A newly described marine flatworm from Guam hunts with the same toxin that a puffer fish uses. With video.
By Susan Milius -
Animals
Males as Nannies? First test for wasps’ hidden baby-care skills
Young male wasps, in the absence of females, can care for larvae.
By Susan Milius -
Animals
Hawk skin sends UV signal
The patch of skin above a hawk's beak looks orange-yellow to us, but to another hawk, it may broadcast ultraviolet sex appeal.
By Susan Milius