Animals

Animals

Many fish run on empty

Many fish eat all the time, while some others spend their days going from brief feast to lengthy famine.

Animals

Singing frog in China evokes whales, primates

A frog in China warbles and flutes with such versatility that its high-pitched calls sound like those of birds or whales.

Animals

Ant Enforcers: To call in punishment, top ant smears rival

In Brazilian ant colonies where a female has to fight her way to the top, she stays in power through some judicious gang violence.

Animals

Blame winter for the vanishing sparrows

Changes in winter farming practices may help explain a puzzling drop in number of rural house sparrows in southern England.

Animals

Getting a Grip: How gecko toes stick

Scientists have pinned down the molecular basis of the gecko's astonishing ability to scamper up polished walls and hang from ceilings, paving the way for a new type of synthetic dry adhesive.

Animals

What’s the Mane Point? Foes and females both have role

The condition of a lion's mane apparently advertises high-quality mates to picky females and wards off male adversaries.

Animals

Male butterflies are driven to drink

Monarch butterflies that winter in California, especially males that had a demanding day, search out dewdrops as a water source.

Animals

Slithering on Air: Flying snakes glide through the treetops

The paradise tree snake flies by flattening its body and slithering through the air.

Animals

Strong Medicine: Over-the-counter remedy snags snakes

Acetaminophen—the active ingredient in Tylenol—vanquishes brown tree snakes, the bane of Guam.

Animals

Hyena androgens exact high cost

Blocking androgens for spotted hyenas before they're born shows that the exposure of a female fetus to male hormones normally takes a heavy physical toll when females bear their own pups.

Animals

Deer littermates have different dads

Twin fawns may not have the same dad—the first time multiple paternity has turned up in a large, free-ranging hoofed mammal.

Animals

Dragonfly Glitter

Dragonflies bring a lot of glitter to glamour shots. Texas A&M’s entomology program offers a variety of stunning images to illustrate the considerable diversity of dragonfly species. A video captures a female laying eggs, and a sequence of images shows how junior grows up. Go to: http://stephenville.tamu.edu/~fmitchel/dragonfly/index.html