Animals

Tech

This octopus-inspired glove helps humans grip slippery objects

The human hand, for all its deftness, is not great at grasping slippery stuff. A new glove aims to change that.

Animals

Tardigrades could teach us how to handle the rigors of space travel

Tardigrades can withstand X-rays, freezing and vacuum. Now researchers are learning how they do it, with an eye toward human space travel.

Environment

Flower shape and size impact bees’ chances of catching gut parasites

Bumblebees have higher chances of contracting a gut parasite from short, wide flowers than from blooms with other shapes, experiments show.

Health & Medicine

The flowery scent of a Zika or dengue infection lures mosquitoes

Mice and humans infected with dengue emit acetophenone, attracting bloodsucking mosquitoes that could then transmit the viruses to new hosts.

Animals

Ed Yong’s ‘An Immense World’ reveals how animals perceive the world

The book showcases the diverse sensory abilities of other animals and how their view of the world is different from our own.

Life

Here’s how sea anemones launch their venomous stingers

Starlet sea anemones use speedy projectiles to sting predators and prey. New images capture a detailed look at these weapons in action.

Paleontology

Megatooth sharks may have been higher on the food chain than any ocean animal ever

Some megalodons and their ancestors were the ultimate apex predators, outeating all known marine animals, researchers report.

Animals

50 years ago, eels’ navigation skills electrified scientists

Excerpt from the June 24, 1972 issue of Science News

Animals

These tiny marsupials survived wildfires only to face extinction from feral cats

The Kangaroo Island dunnart was one species seen to reemerge after 2019–2020 Australian bushfires but is now closer than ever to extinction.

Ecosystems

Some polar bears in Greenland survive on surprisingly little sea ice

“Glacial mélange” could provide a last refuge for some bears as the Earth warms, but climate action is needed to preserve the species, researchers say.

Animals

Here’s why pumpkin toadlets are such clumsy jumpers

Tiny Brachycephalus frogs from southern Brazil can leap into the air but have trouble landing.

Animals

Butterflies may lose their ‘tails’ like lizards

Fragile, tail-like projections on some butterflies' wings may be a lifesaver.