Life

Animals

Cool Birds

Emperor penguins go to such extremes to cope with life in Antarctica that they've inspired interesting science as well as a hit movie.

Animals

Proxy Vampire: Spider eats blood by catching mosquitoes

Researchers studying food preferences among spiders report finding the first one with a taste for vertebrate blood.

Paleontology

Raptor Line: Fossil finds push back dinosaur ancestry

Fossils of a newly discovered raptor dinosaur species suggest that the reptile's lineage is older and more widespread than previously suspected.

Animals

Baited camera snaps first live giant squid

For the first time, researchers have photographed a living giant squid in the wild.

Animals

Looks Matter: If swallows aren’t spiffy, mates’ fidelity is iffy

If a male barn swallow's plumage is more attractive than that of other males, his mate is less likely to have furtive flings with other wooers.

Paleontology

DNA pegs Irish elk’s nearest relatives

Analyses of DNA of the Irish elk, which died out after the last ice age, may settle a long-running debate about the creature's place on the deer family tree.

Animals

Balls of Fire: Bees carefully cook invaders to death

Honeybees that defend their colonies by killing wasps with body heat come within 5 degrees C of cooking themselves in the process.

Ecosystems

West Nile virus fells endangered condor

A 3-month-old California condor chick, one of only four of this highly endangered species born in the wild this year, succumbed to a West Nile virus infection.

Plants

Save the Flowers

Now that breeders have created thousands of new ornamental-flower varieties, scientists are turning their attention to restoring the fragrances that fell victim to the process.

Plants

Day-Glo Flowers: Some bright blooms naturally fluoresce

Some common flowers fluoresce but the glow most likely has little effect on pollinators.

Paleontology

Dinosaurs!

The Smithsonian Institution’s dinosaur Web site tells the story of the National Museum of Natural History’s collections, research, and staff. Visitors not only learn about the early history of these well-known dinosaur collections but also get a chance to participate in a virtual dinosaur discovery, click through an interactive “Tree of Life” highlighting milestones in […]

Animals

Perfect Match: Tied contest gives fish no hormone rush

A male fish produces a burst of hormones as he fights off an intruder, but this surge isn't triggered simply by fighting.