Rachel Nuwer

Rachel Nuwer

 

Rachel Nuwer is a freelance science writer based in Brooklyn.

That cockroach has a nasty bite.

A Cockroach Can Bite With a Force 50 Times Its Body Weight

Adding to their supervillain-esque powers, roaches can gnaw through tough materials with surprisingly strong jaws

The weasel-like fisher, an already at-risk animal, faces threats of poison from pot farms.

Illegal Pot Farms Are Killing Rare Animals With Bacon-Scented Poison

Marijuana plots hidden in California’s forests are inadvertently poisoning protected mammals called fishers

Electric eels are really shocking biologists.

Electric Eels Curl Up to Double Their Shock Value

The predators take down difficult prey by curling up their bodies to create a powerful electric dipole field

Chelonoidis donfaustoi was named after Ecuador’s oldest park ranger.

New Species of Galapagos Tortoise Found on Santa Cruz Island

The newly recognized reptile was thought to be part of a more populous species of tortoise sharing the island

The red-necked wallaby has a powerful nose, according to a new study.

Wallabies Can Sniff Out Danger in Poop

Like sommeliers of poop, the pint-sized marsupials can smell what species left it behind and what that creature last had for dinner

A young chimpanzee sets out for a stroll in Tanzania's Mahale Mountains National Park.

Walking Chimps Move in Surprisingly Similar Ways to Humans

Motion-sensor studies showing how chimpanzees walk upright could help scientists better understand the evolution of bipedalism

An adult tammar wallaby on Kangaroo Island, Australia.

Mother Wallabies Are Delaying Births Due to Bright Lights

Marsupials exposed to artificial light had their babies a month later than those that spent nights solely lit by the stars and moon

Queen bumblebee, Bombus balteatus, foraging for nectar on the alpine wildflower Polemonium viscosum.

Bee Tongues Are Getting Shorter as Temperatures Warm

In Colorado, alpine bumblebee tongues are shrinking in response to shifting wildflower populations

It's OK, buddy. We're here to help.

Domestication Seems to Have Made Dogs a Bit Dim

Thanks to their relationship with us, dogs are less adept at solving tricky puzzles than their wolf relatives

A mother hummingbird in Arizona incubates her eggs under the indirect protection of her neighborhood hawk.

Hawks Act as Unwitting Muscle for Hummingbirds

In Arizona, hummingbirds seem to deliberately seek out bodyguard hawks to shield them from nest-robbing jays

Knut, the star of the Berlin Zoo, died due to swelling in his brain.

Knut the Polar Bear’s Mysterious Death Finally Solved

The famed Berlin Zoo bear suffered from an autoimmune disease that until now has only been known to occur in humans

"Flatties" might be more aptly nicknamed "fliers" for their ability to glide to safety should they lose their grip in tree canopies.

Gliding Spiders Found Falling From Tropical Trees

Flat-bodied spiders that live in the rainforest strike a Superman pose to take control of their free-falls

The larger Pacific striped octopus uses unique prankster shoulder-tapping techniques to lure shrimp prey within arms' reach.

Tropical Octopus Definitely Mates Beak-to-Beak

Larger Pacific striped octopus couples engage in a host of behaviors unheard of among other octopuses

A wasp larva perches on its hapless spider host.

Parasitic Wasps Turn Spiders Into Zombie Weavers

Arachnids injected with a potent neurotoxin are forced to create shiny new web cradles for wasp larvae

Hamsters seem to have a more optimistic outlook when they have access to creature comforts.

Hamsters Are Optimists When They Live in Comfy Cages

Pet hamsters that enjoy habitats full of toys and fluffy bedding make more upbeat decisions than those in stark enclosures

Boa constrictors seem to deliver death not through suffocation, but by cutting off blood flow to the heart and brain.

Boa Constrictors Kill By Stopping Blood Circulation

The popular belief that boas and other constricting snakes deal death by suffocation seems to be a flawed assumption

An Anopholes mosquito, the vector for malaria, taking a blood meal from a tasty human.

Mosquitoes Can Carry, and Deliver, a Double Dose of Malaria

Insects that are already carrying one strain are more likely to pick up a second infection and harbor higher numbers of parasites

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Bumblebees Are Getting Squeezed by Climate Change

Across North America and Europe, the insects are just not keeping up with shifting temperatures

Unlike the tails of almost all other animals, seahorse tails are more like square prisms than cylinders.

Why Seahorses Have Square Tails

Engineers show that the animals' prism-like tails are mechanically superior to cylindrical ones

A reconstruction of "grandfather turtle."

This Ancient Creature Shows How the Turtle Got Its Shell

The 240-million-year-old "grandfather turtle" may be part of the evolutionary bridge between lizards and shelled reptiles

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