Scuba divers may be beating up coral reefs more than they think. Video analyses of divers show that more than 80 percent of damaging physical contact with the reef is…
Category: Animals
Seabirds weren’t fooled by a scarecrow-like buoy with rotating eyes
A buoy with googly eyes was supposed to scare seabirds away from Danish fishing nets. The buoy, named Bobby, sported wind-spun eyes that loomed over the birds as a predator…
AI-powered whale-spotting tech may help save San Francisco Bay’s gray whales
An AI-powered monitoring system could save the lives of gray whales that are increasingly taking a deadly detour into California’s heavily trafficked San Francisco Bay. The new technology combines round-the-clock…
Meet ‘Snuffleupagus,’ a newfound fish sporting shaggy camouflage
In shallow seas near Australia, a familiar, trunked face emerges from billowing tufts of red algae. The fish it belongs to, though, is new to science. The woolly, reddish fish…
Crabs’ sideways walk may have evolved just once
The iconic sideways walk of crabs may have evolved just once, in an ancestor that roamed Earth roughly 200 million years ago. That conclusion, published April 21 in eLife, comes…
Female rats like a different kind of tickling than males
For nearly a decade, Vincent Bombail has been tickling rats. It’s been a standard technique used in the study of animal happiness. But not all rats particularly enjoy the experience,…
Hantavirus questions grow in the wake of a cruise ship outbreak
As public health officials around the world monitor dozens of former passengers and crewmembers of the MV Hondius for signs of hantavirus infection, scientists are hoping to learn more about…
Territorial conflict may explain male primates’ large size
It’s a game of monkey mean, monkey grew. Territorial tension may be behind the size of male primates. In many primate species, males have evolved to be bigger than their…
If wings came before flight, what were they for?
Lily Burton is the Spring 2026 science writing intern at Science News. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Molecular and Cell Biology and Anthropology from UC Berkeley. She also has…
Neandertals used rhinoceros teeth as tools
Neandertals may have had an unexpected tool in their kits: rhinoceros teeth. Marks in fossil rhino teeth found in caves in France and Spain suggest they were once used as…
