All Stories by Susan Milius
- Animals
Genetically modified mosquitoes have been OK’d for a first U.S. test flight
After a decade of heated debate, free-flying swarms aimed at shrinking dengue-carrying mosquito populations gets a nod for 2021 in the Florida Keys.
- Life
How two new fungus species got named after the COVID-19 pandemic
Tiny fuzz on a beetle and fake leopard spots on palms now have Latin names that will forever nod to the new coronavirus.
- Life
Wild bees add about $1.5 billion to yields for just six U.S. crops
Native bees help pollinate blueberries, cherries and other crops on commercial farms.
- Plants
This parasitic plant consists of just flashy flowers and creepy suckers
With only four known species, Langsdorffia are thieves stripped down to their essentials.
- Animals
How Yellowstone wolves got their own Ancestry.com page
Since the wolves’ reintroduction to the park, 25 years of devoted watching has chronicled bold moves, big fights and lots of puppies.
- Animals
Larvaceans’ underwater ‘snot palaces’ boast elaborate plumbing
Mucus houses have valves and ducts galore that help giant larvaceans extract food from seawater.
- Life
More ‘murder hornets’ are turning up. Here’s what you need to know
Two more specimens of the world’s largest hornet have just been found in North America.
- Life
Pollen-deprived bumblebees may speed up plant blooming by biting leaves
In a pollen shortage, some bees nick holes in tomato leaves that accelerate flowering, and pollen production, by weeks.
- Life
Why otters ‘juggle’ rocks is still a mystery
Shuffling pebbles really fast looks as if it should boost otters’ dexterity, but a new study didn’t find a link.
- Animals
Why mammals like elephants and armadillos might get drunk easily
Differences in a gene for breaking down alcohol could help explain which mammals get tipsy.
- Animals
Earthy funk lures tiny creatures to eat and spread bacterial spores
Genes that cue spore growth also kick up a scent that draws in springtails.
- Animals
The ‘insect apocalypse’ is more complicated than it sounds
Freshwater arthropods trended upward, while terrestrial ones declined. But the study’s decades of data are spotty.
