Biology

Some eastern monarch butterflies travel about 3,000 miles to reach their overwintering sites in Mexico.

Hand-Reared Monarch Butterflies Are Weaker Than Their Wild Cousins

In the wild, only about one in 20 caterpillars grows up to be a butterfly

A sample of calcium copper silicate, also called Egyptian blue because it was invented roughly 5,000 years ago at the end of ancient Egypt's first dynasty.

New Tool for Biomedical Research Was Invented in Ancient Egypt

The bright blue pigment that adorns the Bust of Nefertiti’s crown can now be used to study molecular biology

Maratus azureus, a newly discovered species of peacock spider from Western Australia

See Seven New Dazzling, Dancing Peacock Spiders

Hailing from all over Australia, the spiders were identified by a scientist who used to fear them

Urban Coyotes Eat a Lot of Garbage—and Cats

A new study shows how city-dwelling coyotes thrive by feasting on human-linked food sources

Pallid bats use relatively low-pitched sounds for echolocation, making them better at hunting in open spaces like grasslands.

California Bats Thrive in Forests Recovering From Wildfires

Wildfires leave behind a patchwork of forest densities that can give bats more room to fly and hunt

This Cranwell's frog fluoresces green in blue light

In Blue Light, Most Amphibians Have a Neon-Green Glow

Researchers at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota shed light on frog and salamander bioluminescence

A gray whale "spyhopping" off the coast of Alaska. Gray whales migrate over 12,000 miles along North America's west coast.

How Storms on the Sun Interfere With Whale Migration

The new research gives weight to the hypothesis that gray whales use Earth’s magnetic field to navigate

The first two cheetah cubs born via embryo transfer

In a First, Cheetah Cubs Born Through Surrogacy at the Columbus Zoo

Zookeepers and Smithsonian scientists successfully transferred cheetah embryos, marking a major conservation milestone for the vulnerable species

A bumblebee, barred from touching a sphere that's visible in lit conditions, learns about the object through sight alone.

Like Humans, Bumblebees May Create Mental Images in Their Brains

After touching an object in the dark, the insects can recognize it later through sight alone—a complex cognitive feat

Photographers gather at the eastern edge of El Capitan in February, eager to capture Yosemite's "firefall."

Nine Rare Natural Phenomena Worth Traveling For

You have to be in the right place at the right time to see these awe-inspiring events

Most cat allergies are caused by a protein called Fel d 1 that's found in cat saliva and skin glands, and often gets wicked into fur.

What Does a Study of Slow Lorises Actually Say About Cat Allergies?

An unusual theory ultimately warrants skepticism under further research is conducted

A cat-eyed snake eats a toad in Panama. Many snakes depend on amphibians and their eggs for nutrition.

Tropical Snakes Suffer as a Fungus Kills the Frogs They Prey On

Surveys of reptiles in central Panama show the ripple effects of an ecological crisis

Three Cassiopea, or upside-down jellyfish, seen from above in a lab at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History. The cloudy matter floating above and to the left of the jellyfish is a mucus that they exude.

These Jellyfish Don't Need Tentacles to Deliver a Toxic Sting

Smithsonian scientists discovered that tiny 'mucus grenades' are responsible for a mysterious phenomenon known as 'stinging water'

Mexico City Is Proposing to Build One of the World's Largest Urban Parks

More than twice the size of Manhattan, the park could restore the water systems of the region and serve as a model for cities around the world

Numbers of these charismatic, blubbery birds have decreased by about half across Antarctica's northwest.

Preliminary Census Documents Antarctica’s Chinstrap Penguins in Sharp Decline

Climate change is the likeliest culprit, researchers say

Fuzzy and fast flying, bumblebees tend to run warm, and are best adapted to cooler climes.

Climate Change Has Driven Serious Declines in World’s Bumblebees

The number of habitats in North America that bumblebees occupy has fallen by almost 50 percent

Jackass penguin calls don't sound like human words. But the two forms of communications follow the same linguistic laws.

Jackass Penguin Calls Follow Similar Rules to Human Speech

These birds are nicknamed for donkeys, but structure their calls like words

The red-breasted nuthatch eavesdrops on chickadee conversations to get advanced notice of predators like pygmy owls.

Nuthatches Heed Chickadees' Warning Calls—but They're Wary of False Alarms

Nuthatches prefer to check the facts before they 'retweet' chickadees' alerts

Peter Longstaff, a foot artist who participated in the neurological study.

Artists Who Paint With Their Feet Have Unique Brain Patterns

Neuroscientists determined that certain "sensory maps" in the brain become more refined when people use their feet like hands

Axolotls can regrow lost limbs, again and again, making them appealing to scientists who want to understand regeneration.

Some Salamanders Can Regrow Lost Body Parts. Could Humans One Day Do the Same?

In recent decades, the idea of human regeneration has evolved from an 'if' to a 'when'

Page 23 of 87