zoology

A simple rainforest leaf swab revealed DNA from dozens of animal species, possibly improving biodiversity monitoring in the future.

Rice University researchers claimed the Ig Nobel Prize for upleveling biorobotics by transforming deceased spiders into robotic grippers.

A genetic study tracked the evolution of two transmissible cancers currently ravaging populations of Tasmanian devils.

A subset of hypothalamic neurons mirrors aggression in mice, challenging previous views on the location and functional role of these cells.

Some of the foundational studies in the field were neither ethical by today’s standards nor replicable. But we can do better.

Getting it wrong can harm the very creatures that scientists are trying to protect.

The father-and-son duo Leopold and Rudolf Blaschka crafted thousands of scientifically accurate models of plants and sea creatures as teaching aids. 

The father-and-son duo, the last generations of a long line of renowned glassworkers, crafted thousands of realistic models of plants and sea creatures.

Forced to respond to a climate that’s changing faster than it ever has, it remains unclear whether species’ adaptations can keep pace.

The ocean’s surface harbors an ecosystem of colorful, understudied life, ranging from protists and cnidarians to insects.

The sea surface is home to a diverse group of animals adapted to life in the open ocean, but increasingly, they’re sharing that space with plastic debris.

A high-quality reference genome for this vulnerable feline may help scientists understand why they’re so prone to transitional cell carcinoma in captivity.

Researchers visualize the snake clitoris in detail for the first time, finding evidence that the organ may be evolutionarily important for snake sex.

New insights into the functionality of nonhuman sound may help us conserve nature and protect ourselves from excessive noise.

Researchers race to find ecological data kept on outdated media or in dusty backroom boxes—before they’re lost forever.

A decade-long, multicontinent study suggests that acoustic defense strategies are more common among moths than previously imagined.

The molting fluid of ant pupae functions as “metabolic currency” in the ant colony and may have enabled the evolution of eusociality. 

Bats that experience food shortages due to climate change and habitat loss end up roosting in urban settings, where they shed more of the deadly Hendra virus. 

In a chapter on cats, author Bethany Brookshire explores the thorny issue of felines that live freely.

In Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains, I explore what it is that makes an animal a pest—and it has nothing to do with their behavior, but rather our own desires and beliefs about the natural world.