Life
- Animals
Too Few Jaws: Shark declines let rays overgraze scallops
A shortage of big sharks on the U.S. East Coast is letting their prey flourish, and that prey is going hog wild, demolishing bay scallop populations.
- Paleontology
Birds’ ancestors had small genomes too
Among mammals, reptiles, and related animals, today's birds have the smallest genomes, and the dinosaurs that gave rise to birds had small genomes as well.
- Plants
Old plants were lost in the grass
An obscure family of plants long thought to be relatives of grasses turns out to represent one of the most ancient surviving lineages of flowering plants.
- Animals
Honey, I Ate the Kids
Some of the most devoted parents in the animal kingdom routinely devour some of their own children.
- Ecosystems
Lakeshore Nature Preserve
This nature preserve at the University of Wisconsin–Madison protects undeveloped lands along the shore of Lake Mendota. Even if you can’t visit it in person, the award-winning interactive map will help you appreciate the qualities of this beautiful slice of nature. Go to: http://www.lakeshorepreserve.wisc.edu
- Paleontology
Catching evolution in the act
Paleontologists have unearthed fossils that provide direct evidence of something scientists had long suspected: The tiny bones in the middle ears of modern-day mammals evolved from bones located at the rear of their reptilian ancestors' jaws.
- Animals
It’s a Girl: Atlantic mystery squid undergoes scrutiny
To scientists' surprise, a huge, deep-sea, gelatinous squid formerly reported only in the Pacific Ocean has turned up half a world away.
- Animals
Mafia Cowbirds: Do they muscle birds that don’t play ball?
A new test offers the best evidence yet that cowbirds retaliate against birds that resist their egg scams.
- Paleontology
Ancient slowpoke
A 1-centimeter-long, 505-million-year-old fossil from British Columbia represents a creature that joins two lineages of marine invertebrates from that era that scientists previously hadn't linked.
- Animals
Snail Highways: By following trails, periwinkles save slime
A snail that follows another snail's slimy path saves energy by not having to secrete so much mucus.
- Animals
Science behind the Soap Opera
Tight family groups of meerkats in Africa's arid lands offer a chance to see the costs, as well as the charms, of cooperation. With audio.
- Ecosystems
Warming Sign? Larger dead zones form off Oregon coast
Unprecedented recent changes in the yearly pattern of ocean currents off North America's West Coast have wreaked havoc on aquatic ecosystems there, another possible symptom of Earth's warming climate.
