wildlife

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The Rarest Fish on Earth Has an Unlikely Home—Nevada

Amid the vast Mojave Desert sits an oasis, one brimming with rare flora and fauna that exists nowhere else on earth

Monarch butterflies' signature white spots could help them fly—and inspire better drones.

Seven Scientific Discoveries From 2023 That Could Lead to New Inventions

Biologists learned lots about animals and plants this year, and their findings could inspire better robots, medicine and environmental technologies

Seabirds, such as puffins, have a well-earned reputation as sentinels of change in marine environments.

How Seabirds Can Help Us Predict the Size of Fish Stocks

The scientists who study terns, puffins and other birds are trying to get fisheries managers to heed their warnings

Cats are not picky and will eat nearly anything they can catch.

Cats Prey on More Than 2,000 Different Species

A new study sheds light on just how many creatures domestic cats will eat—including hundreds that are threatened or endangered

Covid-19 lockdowns had all kinds of effects on wild populations, helping some and hindering others. In one Mexican marine park, though, the sudden lack of tourists led to an increase in the density and diversity of marine species.

During Covid-19 Lockdowns, Fish Flourished in This Park

In the absence of tourists, the animals increased within Mexico’s Cabo Pulmo National Park

More than 200 cold-stunned turtles have already been rescued since November.

52 Cold-Stunned Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtles Rescued From Cape Cod

The critically endangered creatures were flown by private plane to rehabilitation centers in Florida

Ten big dinosaur discoveries stood out in 2023.

The Top Ten Dinosaur Discoveries of 2023

From uncovering a tyrannosaur’s last meal to unlocking the secrets of a dino with a really long neck, these were the year’s biggest stories

A group of gray wolves in Canada. Before a wolf pack recently migrated to Colorado, gray wolves were last known to live in the state in the 1940s.

Colorado Will Reintroduce Endangered Gray Wolves This Month

In 2020, voters narrowly passed a measure in favor of wolf reintroduction, and now, wildlife officials are about to begin the controversial effort

Wolverines live in snowy, high-elevation habitats.

Wolverines Receive Federal Protection as a Threatened Species in the Lower 48 States

The carnivorous mammals will increasingly face habitat loss and fragmentation because of climate change, according to scientists

Chinstrap penguins incubate eggs.

Chinstrap Penguins Sleep Over 10,000 Times a Day—for Just Four Seconds at a Time

The amazing microsleep strategy may be an adaptation to group living and lurking predators in a harsh Antarctic environment

In 2023, wildfires ravaged communities in Canada, Hawaii and elsewhere across the globe.

Why Wildfires Are Burning Hotter and Longer

As conflagrations become more difficult to contain, a citizen movement to try to manage them through “prescribed burns” is growing

An iceberg breaks off the Knox Coast in the Australian Antarctic Territory in 2008. The moving iceberg scientists are now tracking broke off from Antarctica in 1986.

The World's Largest Iceberg Is Drifting Three Miles Into the Ocean Each Day

The iceberg, which naturally broke off Antarctica in 1986, had remained grounded for decades before moving again in recent years

This year's titles include Daughter of the Dragon, Whalefall and Witness.

Smithsonian Scholars Recommend Their Favorite Books of 2023

Curators and staffers satisfied their endless curiosity with novels, short stories, biographies, art collections and journalistic reporting

An oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico. Officials spotted an oil slick three to four miles wide off the coast of Louisiana last Thursday.

Oil Spill Dumps as Much as 1.1 Million Gallons Into Gulf of Mexico, Raising Concerns About Wildlife

The U.S. Coast Guard is still searching for the specific source of the leak, which occurred last week

An Indian cobra found in the farmlands of Kanchipuram, India. The country has the highest rate of snakebite deaths in the world.

An Inside Look at the Effort to Curb Deadly Snakebites in India

With around 58,000 human deaths from snakebites each year in the country, a lot more must be done to save lives

After several attempts to dolphin-proof the bait, the team finally figured out a solution: a mesh bait pouch.

Watch Dolphins Outsmart Crab Traps in First-Ever Footage

Bottlenose dolphins in Australia have been snatching fish used to bait crabs—and adapting to fishers' attempts to thwart them

This well-preserved track from Australia clearly shows the four toes of an ancient bird.

Australia's Oldest Known Bird Tracks Are 120 Million Years Old

In that age, the continent was attached to Antarctica, but migrating animals still traveled to the polar region for sustenance

Cheetahs may give up their prey to a larger predator, such as a lion or leopard, if one comes along while they are eating.

Cheetahs Become More Nocturnal in Extreme Heat, Study Finds

Hunting later at night may force the big cats to surrender their prey to larger carnivores, such as lions and leopards

Contact between Europeans and Native Americans is recorded in the DNA of head lice.

When Did Humans Arrive in the Americas? Lice Help Answer That Head-Scratcher

A new analysis of the annoying critters shows when groups from Asia and Europe hitched rides on human hair and skin to arrive on our continent

Wildcats appear very similar to domestic cats, but they are slightly larger with longer legs.

Domestic Cats Could Breed Scottish Wildcats Out of Existence

Just a few decades of intermixing affected the DNA of all sampled modern wildcats, researchers say, suggesting the species may be "genomically extinct"

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