1,566 results
- Animals
Ants changed the architecture of their nests when exposed to a pathogen
Black garden ants made tweaks to entrances, tunnels and chambers that may help prevent diseases from spreading.
- Animals
Bird nests made with a toxic fungus seem to fend off attacking ants
Two species of birds in Costa Rica build nests in trees defended by ants. Ants that encounter the horsehair fungus in the nests develop odd behaviors.
- Paleontology
Early ants may have had complex social lives, fossil data suggests
The earliest ants may have been primed for a highly social life — 100 million years ago, the insects had antennae tuned to key communication functions.
- Life
This biophysicist’s work could one day let doctors control immune cells
The Stanford biophysicist thinks that understanding the mechanics of cell movement could allow scientists to manipulate immune cells.
- Neuroscience
Here’s how magnetic fields shape desert ants’ brains
Exposure to a tweaked magnetic field scrambled desert ants’ efforts to learn where home is — and affected neuron connections in a key part of the brain.
- Animals
The first known scorpion to live with ants carries mini hitchhikers
Small arachnids hitch a ride on the scorpion, possibly to get inside food-rich ant nests.
- Ecosystems
How an invasive ant changed a lion’s dinner menu
An invasive ant is killing off ants that defend trees from elephants. With less cover, it’s harder for lions to hunt zebras, so they hunt buffalo instead.
- Animals
Ant face patterns like swirls and stubble might have practical value
Reviewing thousands of ant photos hints that facial surface patterns might offer benefits, like structural support or abrasion protection.
- Plants
Carnivorous plants eat faster with a fungal friend
Insects stuck in sundew plants’ sticky secretions suffocate and die before being subjected to a medley of digestive enzymes.
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- Life
Ants may be the first known insects ensnared in plastic pollution
At this point, it’s unclear whether this type of trash harms insects, but the discovery highlights the ubiquity of plastic pollution in the wild.
- Animals
These are our favorite animal stories of 2023
Spiders that make prey walk the plank, self-aware fish and a pouty T. rex are among the critters that enchanted the Science News staff.
