The finding suggests nonhuman primates recognize their peers’ intentions and desires.

More than a half-century ago, researchers at the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center outside Washington, D.C., engaged in some creative barnyard breeding. Their goal was the development of fatherless turkeys — virgin hens that would reproduce via parthenogenesis. Along the way, and ostensibly quite by accident, an interim stage of this work resulted in a rooster-fathered hybrid that the scientists termed a churk.

Maybe you think you know what happens when a mouse meets a python, but scientists recently presented a surprising twist on the typical snake-meets-mouse tale. They found that three substances in the blood of a Burmese python cause a mouse’s heart to grow larger (though probably not fonder). When lab mice received injections of these substances, called fatty acids, their hearts grew heavier by 10 percent in a week. The larger hearts looked healthy, as though the mice had been exercising more, the scientists said. To learn more, visit the new Science News for Kids website an...

In the wild, the most powerful males reign tensely. (p. 11)

Human-raised Panzee challenges the notion that only people can discern acoustically altered words. (p. 16)

Humans can assess the dominance of their close evolutionary relatives by glancing at the apes’ expressionless faces. (p. 8)

Youngsters mimic mothering by cradling sticks, reigniting debate over sex differences in toy choices. (p. 16)

Bornean apes went through a genetic bottleneck when isolated during an ancient glaciation. (p. 12)

Before turning in for the night, some reef-dwelling fish apply a slimy mucus shield to deter biting bugs. (p. 9)