Animals
- Health & Medicine
Readers have questions about Parkinson’s disease, moth wings and more
Readers had questions about Parkinson’s disease, the new definition of a kilogram’s mass, Saturn’s moon Dione and more.
- Anthropology
Dogs may have helped ancient Middle Easterners hunt small game
Jordanian finds point to pooch-aided hunting of small prey around 11,500 years ago, offering new clues into dog domestication in the Middle East.
- Animals
Male birds’ sexy songs may not advertise their brains after all
A biologist backs off an idea he studied for years that the mastery of birdsong is a sign of bird smarts.
- Animals
Young emperor penguins brave icy, winter waters in their first year
Young emperor penguins learn survival skills on their own, including how to navigate Antarctica’s icy winter ocean.
- Genetics
A CRISPR gene drive for mice is one step closer to reality
Researchers have made progress toward creating a gene drive for mice in the lab. Such genetic cut-and-paste machines have yet to be made for mammals.
- Animals
Cryptic remains of tiny animals have turned up in an Antarctic lake
Researchers were surprised to find vestiges of what appear to be tiny animals in mud from Antarctica’s ice-covered Lake Mercer.
- Animals
This honeybee parasite may be more of a fat stealer than a bloodsucker
Inventing decoy bee larvae prompts a back-to-basics rethink of a mite ominously named Varroa destructor.
- Animals
This rediscovered Bolivian frog species survived deadly chytrid fungus
Scientists recently rediscovered a frog species in Bolivia that hasn’t been seen in 10 years — and it could be used to better understand a frog-killing fungus.
- Animals
Bacterial compounds may be as good as DEET at repelling mosquitoes
A bacterium’s metabolic by-products are as effective as DEET in deterring Aedes aegypti mosquitoes.
- Animals
How worm blobs behave like a liquid and a solid
Blobs of worms flow like a fluid, plop like a solid and fascinate scientists.
- Animals
Poison toilet paper reveals how termites help rainforests resist drought
Novel use of poisoned toilet paper rolls and teabags led to discovery that termites help tropical forests resist droughts.
- Animals
50 years ago, scientists studied orcas in the wild for the first time
The study of killer whales has come a long way since the capture of seven in 1968 allowed scientists to study the animals in their habitat.
