The Science Life

  1. Animals

    Leeches expose wildlife’s whereabouts and may aid conservation efforts

    DNA from the blood meals of more than 30,000 leeches shows how animals use the protected Ailaoshan Nature Reserve in China.

    By
  2. Animals

    How scientists found an African bat lost to science for 40 years

    African researchers had been searching for the Hill’s horseshoe bat since 2013. Now, the first recording of its echolocation call may help find more.

    By
  3. Earth

    How climbers help scientists vibe with Utah’s famous red rock formations

    Researchers teamed up with rock climbers to collect rare data that help them assess the seismic stability of red rock formations in Utah.

    By
  4. Animals

    Mirror beetles’ shiny bodies may not act as camouflage after all

    Hundreds of handmade clay nubbins test the notion that a beetle’s metallic high gloss could confound predators. Birds pecked the lovely idea to death.

    By
  5. Chemistry

    One forensic scientist is scraping bones for clues to time of death

    The bones of more than 100 cadavers are shedding light on a more precise and reliable way to determine when someone died.

    By
  6. Animals

    Scientists uncover the secret to fishing cats’ hunting success

    Volunteers in India have helped to explain how one of the world’s semiaquatic wild cat species hunts.

    By
  7. Animals

    Scientists vacuumed animal DNA out of thin air for the first time

    The ability to sniff out animals’ airborne genetic material has been on researchers’ wish list for over a decade.

    By
  8. Animals

    Gut bacteria let vulture bees eat rotting flesh without getting sick

    Acid-producing bacteria in the gut of vulture bees let these “weirdos of the bee world” safely snack on animal carcasses.

    By
  9. Anthropology

    How catching birds bare-handed may hint at Neandertals’ hunting tactics

    By pretending to be Neandertals, researchers show that the ancient hominids likely had the skills to easily hunt crowlike birds called choughs.

    By
  10. Animals

    Some birds learn to recognize calls while still in their eggs

    For over a decade, behavioral ecologist Diane Colombelli-Négrel and colleagues have been studying how birds perceive sounds before hatching.

    By
  11. Animals

    A hammerhead shark baby boom near Florida hints at a historic nursery

    Finding an endangered shark nursery in a vast ocean is like finding a needle in a haystack. But that’s just what scientists did near Miami.

    By
  12. Animals

    How some lizards breathe underwater

    Researchers have figured out how some anole lizards can stay underwater for as long as 18 minutes.

    By