Sarah Zielinski

Sarah Zielinski

Editor, Print at Science News Explores

Sarah Zielinski wanted to be a marine biologist when she was growing up, but after graduating from Cornell University with a B.A. in biology, and a stint at the National Science Foundation, she realized that she didn’t want to spend her life studying just one area of science — she wanted to learn about it all and share that knowledge with the public. In 2004, she received an M.A. in journalism from New York University’s Science, Health and Environmental Reporting Program and began a career in science journalism. She worked as a science writer and editor at the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, the American Geophysical Union’s newspaper Eos and Smithsonian magazine before becoming a freelancer. During that time, she started her blog, Wild Things, and moved it to Science News magazine, and then became an editor for and frequent contributor to Science News Explores. Her work has also appeared in Slate, Science, Scientific AmericanDiscover and National Geographic News. She is the winner of the DCSWA 2010 Science News Brief Award and editor of the winner of the Gold Award for Children’s Science News in the 2015 AAAS Kavli Science Journalism Awards, “Where will lightning strike?” published in Science News Explores. In 2005, she was a Marine Biological Laboratory Science Journalism Fellow.

All Stories by Sarah Zielinski

  1. Animals

    Why great white shark sightings are good news

    Conservation measures implemented in the 1990s halted a decline in great white sharks in the Atlantic.

  2. Animals

    To ID birds, try facial recognition

    Improve your backyard birding using facial recognition software.

  3. Animals

    Tiny frogs host an illusion on their backs

    How dyeing dart frogs move changes how predators see the amphibians, a new study finds.

  4. Animals

    Fish-eating spiders are the stuff of nightmares

    Spiders that feast on fish can be found on every continent but Antarctica, a new review finds.

  5. Animals

    Mosses hitch rides on the wings of birds

    Seeds may travel from far north to south hidden in the feathers of migratory birds.

  6. Animals

    It’s hard being a sea otter mom

    The energy requirements of lactation may explain why some female sea otters abandon their young.

  7. Animals

    See your lawn through a bird’s eyes with YardMap

    A new web tool lets you map your outdoor spaces and wildlife habitat, helping scientists understand how birds use urban and suburban spaces.

  8. Animals

    Deadly bat disease gets easier to diagnose

    White-nose syndrome in bats can be spotted with UV light, scientists have found.

  9. Animals

    Bird dropping disguise proves to be effective camouflage

    Several species of spiders and other animals mimic bird poop.

  10. Animals

    Beware the pregnant scorpion

    Female striped bark scorpions are pregnant most of the time. That makes them fat, slow and really mean.

  11. Oceans

    Dusk heralds a feeding frenzy in the waters off Oahu

    Even dolphins benefit when layers of organisms in the water column overlap for a short period.

  12. Animals

    Pets’ rights explored in ‘Citizen Canine’

    Science journalist David Grimm describes pet's progression towards full citizenship.