Biologist Brian Gall was flinging stowaway spiders out of his kayak when he noticed an interesting pattern: After landing on the water’s surface, the arachnids quickly darted to the nearest…
Category: Animals
Here are 5 questions about the mystery dog illness making news
Saima Iqbal is the fall 2023 science writing intern at Science News. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Harvard College, where she studied the history of medicine, conducted research on…
When do cats play fetch? When they feel like it
In news that probably won’t surprise cat owners, cats that play fetch do it on their own terms. Fetching felines tend to dictate when a fetching session begins and when…
A new species of hedgehog stands out for its short spikes
Initially mistaken for one of its close relatives, a group of small, spiky mammals in eastern China has now been identified as a new species: the eastern forest hedgehog. Researchers…
Why do some lizards and snakes have horns?
Horns aren’t just for rhinos and cattle. A fair number of snake and lizard species have heads adorned with spiky, scaly accessories. But how the reptiles snag food may determine…
Fish beware: Bottlenosed dolphins may be able to pick up your heartbeat
To snap up fish, bottlenosed dolphins may rely on more than just sharp sight and sonar detection. The creatures might also pick up on the weak electric pulses prey produce…
These nesting penguins nod off 10,000 times a day, for seconds at a tim
Nesting chinstrap penguins take nodding off to the extreme. The birds briefly dip into a slumber many thousands of times per day, sleeping for only seconds at a time. The…
Scientists eavesdrop on a South American forest to find a missing bird
How do you look for an animal you don’t even know exists anymore? The last sighting of the purple-winged ground dove (Paraclaravis geoffroyi) — a small, bamboo-loving dove native to…
A Brazilian mountain is home to a surprising number of parasitic wasps
The tropics are teeming with life, tending to hold far more species than milder environments closer to the poles. But one group of insects, the Darwin wasps, were thought to…
Some picky Australian mosquitoes may target frog nostrils for blood
An Australian mosquito species knows the best spot to drink its bloody meals: a frog’s nostril. The bloodsuckers are surprisingly selective when dining on frogs, seemingly picking no other place…
