Animals
- Animals
Boa constrictors stop their victims’ hearts
It’s a myth that boa constrictors kill by suffocation. A new study shows the snakes actually squeeze off blood flow, stopping the hearts of their prey.
- Animals
Top rooster announces the dawn
Roosters know their places in the chicken world. Lower-ranking birds defer to the guy at the top of the pecking order. And they show it by holding their crows until after he greets the new day.
- Fossils
Remains of ancient primate found in Oregon
Scientists have found a few teeth and a fossil jaw of an ancient species of primate. It may be related to modern lemurs or tarsiers.
- Animals
Climate change shrinks bumblebee’s range
Due to global warming, bumblebees are disappearing from their southernmost homes. But their northern borders are expanding to compensate. This leaves the insects with less territory.
- Animals
Explainer: Male-female flexibility in animals
Some animals behave as if they were the opposite sex; others can even change their sex — and still produce offspring.
- Animals
Why seahorses have square tails
The unique shape of a seahorse tail provides strength, and it may also help the fish to grasp objects.
- Genetics
DNA in ivory pinpoints elephant poaching hot spots
Thousands of elephants have been killed for their ivory tusks. A new study used DNA in ivory to trace where most of the killings happen.
- Animals
More dinosaur bones yield traces of blood, soft tissue
More dinosaur bones are found to contain residues of blood and soft tissue. The discovery could help point to when dinosaurs turned into warm-blooded creatures.
- Animals
A whale of a journey
The 5,200-kilometer (3,200 mile) journey of Isabela provides a window into the migration patterns of blue whales.
- Animals
These spiders can purr
This wolf spider can purr like no other. It makes vibrations and sounds to tell a female he’s interested in her.
- Animals
This endangered species gives new meaning to ‘single mom’
Scientists have found DNA evidence that in the wild, sawfish have produced offspring without mating. That’s a first for an animal with a backbone.
- Animals
Biowarfare saves bats from killer fungus
Good news for bats. Those infected with white-nose syndrome may be cured by a brief exposure to fumes from therapeutic bacteria.
