Animals
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AnimalsAbdominal fuzz makes bee bodies super slippery
Scientists find that tiny hairs on a honeybee’s abdomen reduce wear and tear as a bee’s outer skeletal parts rub against each other all day long.
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AnimalsUncovering secrets of the glasswing butterfly’s see-through wings
The tricks of its transparency include sparse, spindly scales and a waxy coated membrane.
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AnimalsSome beetles walk along the underside of the water’s surface
Their upside-down scurrying is a rare method of getting around.
By Jake Buehler -
AnimalsDinosaur families appear to have lived in the Arctic year-round
Fossils of baby dinosaurs in northern Alaska challenge the idea that northern dinosaurs only spent their summers in the high Arctic.
By Nikk Ogasa -
AnimalsSpiders can take down and feast on surprisingly big snakes
Snared in sticky webs and subdued by poison, even venomous snakes can become a spider’s soup.
By Asher Jones -
AnimalsBirds could get their sense of direction from quantum physics
Songbirds could detect north and south using a protein in their eye. It works somewhat like a compass.
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AnimalsA bubble of air lets some lizards breathe underwater
Anolis lizards leap into streams to escape danger. Now researchers have figured out how they can stay underwater for up to a quarter of an hour.
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AnimalsSudden shark die-off 19 million years ago eliminated most species
New fossil evidence shows 90 percent of sharks died in the mysterious event.
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AnimalsLet’s learn about dinosaurs’ fearsome neighbors
Dinosaurs may get much of our attention, but there were plenty of other interesting critters during the Age of Reptiles, including our mammal ancestors.
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AnimalsUrchin mobs can literally dis-arm a predator
Urchins are important herbivores — but not strict vegetarians. When hungry enough, they may even rip apart their predators for lunch.
By Jake Buehler -
AnimalsEngineers surprised by the power of an elephant’s trunk
An elephant's trunk can suck air through it fast — at more than 335 miles per hour (150 meters per second)!
By Sid Perkins -
AnimalsLet’s learn about whales and dolphins
Whales, dolphins and porpoises are all cetaceans — mammals that live in water and have a streamlined body similar to a fish.