Animals

  1. Genetics

    Elephant shark genome small and slow to evolve

    The animals have the smallest genome of non-bony fishes and the slowest-evolving genes among vertebrates, a study suggests.

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  2. Animals

    Dog-paddle science debunks notion of underwater trot

    From Newfoundlands to Yorkshire terriers, canines swim with similar, distinctive gait.

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  3. Archaeology

    Animal mummies were a message direct to the gods

    A new theory about the purpose of animals mummified by ancient Egyptians proposes that the cats, ibises and other dead critters were more than just simple sacrifices.

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  4. Animals

    Flightless birds face extinction

    New Zealand’s flightless birds have limped through the last few decades, but conservation efforts have had some success.

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  5. Animals

    Smoker’s breath saves caterpillars’ lives

    Larvae of the tobacco hornworm caterpillar exhale nicotine, driving away predatory spiders.

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  6. Plants

    Kleptoplast

    A cellular part such as a light-harvesting chloroplast that an organism takes from algae it has eaten.

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  7. Animals

    Unusual new species names of 2013

    Here are five species with tongue-twister titles.

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  8. Animals

    Year in Review: Odd cicada history emerges

    Brood II returns better understood.

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  9. Animals

    Year in Review: Canine genealogy

    Competing clues confuse the story of dog domestication.

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  10. Animals

    A year of rediscovered species

    Thousands of species go extinct each year, but at least a few are found after many years of being lost.

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  11. Animals

    African frog conceals itself with chemicals

    Two small peptides keep the West African savanna frog from being stung by ants.

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  12. Animals

    Penguin huddles move like traffic jams

    When one emperor penguin takes a step, he sets off a wave of movement.

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