Animals
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AnimalsSome spikes in malaria cases may be tied to amphibian die-offs
Amphibian deaths from a fungal disease may have led to more mosquitoes — and an increase in malaria cases in Costa Rica and Panama.
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TechHow to turn your hobby into a seriously cool science project
This year’s Broadcom MASTERS finalists were inspired by their love of painting, horseback riding and other pastimes.
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AnimalsLet’s learn about parasites that create zombies
Some parasites turn their victims into mindless puppets that do the parasites’ bidding, even at the cost of their own lives.
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AnimalsAnalyze This: Octopuses may use favorite arms for grabbing meals
Understanding how octopuses control all their arms could provide clues for engineers building soft robots.
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AnimalsSea creatures’ fishy scent protects them from deep-sea high pressures
TMAO’s water-wrangling ability protects a critter’s critical proteins — including muscle — from crushing under deep ocean pressures.
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AnimalsThis acrobatic spider flips for its food — literally
An acrobatic hunting trick lets the Australian ant-slayer spider catch prey twice its size, a new study shows.
By Freda Kreier -
AnimalsAward-winning photo captures ‘zombie’ fungus erupting from a fly
The winner of the 2022 BMC Ecology and Evolution photo competition captures the cycle of life and death in the Amazon rainforest in Peru.
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AnimalsScience is just starting to understand what animals feel
Animal-welfare researchers are studying the feelings and experiences of horses, octopuses and more.
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AnimalsWatch: This red fox is the first spotted fishing for its food
Big fish in shallow water were easy pickings for this red fox. It’s the first of its species known to fish.
By Freda Kreier -
AnimalsLiving mysteries: This critter has 38 times more DNA than you do
The genomes of salamanders are bloated with genetic “parasites.” That extra DNA slows down their lives and strands them in perpetual childhood.
By Douglas Fox -
AnimalsSeveral mammals use a South American tree as their pharmacy
Researchers in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest stumbled onto something very strange. They watched as animals “doctored” themselves with products from a tree.
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FossilsBizarre ancient critter has spines but no anus
The spiny discovery moves this minion lookalike off a distant limb on the human family tree.
By Anna Gibbs