Science News
Science News
Articles from Science News
sciencenews.orgThis fish may play a hole in its head like a drum
For the rockhead poacher, the noises are all in its head. The fish is a pint-size, unassuming inhabitant of nearshore shallows, but it has a conspicuous divot in the top of its skull that appears to work like a drum.
Animal personalities can play a big role in saving species
From bold foxes to gregarious birds, animals’ personalities are increasingly being seen as crucial to conservation efforts.
How cheetah mummies could help bring the species back to Arabia
The fastest land animal on the planet lies frozen in time beneath blistering desert sands. Researchers have discovered dozens of ancient cheetah skeletons and dehydrated bodies preserved in caves on the Arabian Peninsula, where the species hasn’t been spotted for decades.
Among chimpanzees, thrill-seeking peaks in toddlerhood
In humans, teens do the most dangerous things. In chimpanzees, that honor goes to toddlers. The difference may lie in caregiver supervision.
Queen bumblebees are poor foragers thanks to sparse tongue hair
The density of fine hairs on bumblebees’ tongues determines how much nectar they can collect — and workers put queen bees to shame.
An all-female wasp is rapidly spreading across North America’s elms
She’s less than a centimeter long, produces only daughters and is conquering the continent without a single male. Meet the elm zigzag sawfly, named for the delicate zigzag patterns it carves into elm tree leaves.
These scientific discoveries brought us joy in 2025
Amidst a tough year for science, glimmers of joy burst through in revelations from the silly to the sublime.
In a first, orcas and dolphins seen possibly hunting together
New footage shows orcas and dolphins coordinating hunts, hinting at interspecies teamwork to track and catch salmon off British Columbia.
Science taught us a few new tricks about our pets in 2025
Are we reading our dog’s moods right? Does TV really comfort them when we’re away? These pet stories were catnip to us this year.
These are our favorite animal stories of 2025
From caterpillars disguised as the dead to narwhals that play with their food, here are the animal tales that we loved in 2025. Killer vomit A spider called a feather-legged lace weaver doesn’t kill its prey by injecting venom with fangs as many spiders do.
Ancient DNA rewrites the tale of when and how cats left Africa
Like a toy on a string, the timing of cat domestication has been a moving target. Now researchers have pounced on a new timeline suggesting that tame descendants of African wildcats left the continent more recently than thought.
Trucked-in honeybees may edge out bigger bumblebee foragers
Even in the face of vast fields of flowers, local bumblebees may face the sting of competition when people bring their honeybees to the floral feast.
Bats might be the next bird flu wild card
Finding that vampire bats along Peru’s coast carried H5N1 antibodies raises concerns that multiple bat species could become reservoirs for the virus.
Huge relatives of white sharks lived earlier than thought
Some 115 million years ago, a veritable fleet of giant predators prowled the waters near Australia. There were long-necked plesiosaurs, snaggletoothed pliosaurs with massive heads, dolphinlike ichthyosaurs, and now — suggests new fossil findings — 8-meter-long sharks.
How male seahorses tap into their mothering side
If there were to be a “best dad” award in the animal kingdom, seahorses would be a shoe-in. That’s because males, not females, of these peculiar fish carry their young to term.
Ancient DNA reveals China’s first 'pet' cat wasn’t the house cat
The modern house cat reached China in the 8th century. Before that, another cat — the leopard cat — hunted the rodents in ancient Chinese settlements.
Rats are snatching bats out of the air and eating them
The grisly infrared camera footage records a never-before-seen hunting tactic. It may have implications for bat conservation.
A wolf raided a crab trap. Was it tool use or just canine cunning?
Video from the Haíɫzaqv Nation Indigenous community shows a wolf hauling a crab trap ashore. Scientists are split on whether it counts as tool use.
These ancient bumblebees were found with their pollen source
Insects have long pollinated plants, but evidence of ancient pairing is rare. Fossils now show bees and linden trees goes back 24 million years.
New wetsuit designs offer a layer of protection against shark bites
By weaving Kevlar or polyethylene nanofibers into standard neoprene in wetsuits, researchers found ways to limit injury during rare encounters with sharks.
Toy-obsessed dogs give clues to addictive behaviors
Some dogs love playing with toys so intensely they can’t stop—offering scientists a window into behavioral addictions.
Mic’d bats reveal midnight songbird attacks
Sensor data reveal greater noctule bats chasing, catching and chewing on birds during high-altitude, nighttime hunts.
What the longest woolly rhino horn tells us about the beasts’ biology
A nearly 20,000-year-old woolly rhino horn reveals the extinct herbivores lived as long as modern-day rhinos, despite harsher Ice Age conditions.
The rare 'grue jay' may be a harbinger of environmental change
Despite millions of years of evolutionary separation and a geographical divide, a blue jay and green jay mated in Texas. This bird is the result.
Is camouflage better than warning colors? For insects, it depends
The effectiveness of camouflage or warning colors for insect defense depends on conditions such as light levels and how many predators are around.
This fish may play a hole in its head like a drum
For the rockhead poacher, the noises are all in its head. The fish is a pint-size, unassuming inhabitant of nearshore shallows, but it has a conspicuous divot in the top of its skull that appears to work like a drum.
Animal personalities can play a big role in saving species
From bold foxes to gregarious birds, animals’ personalities are increasingly being seen as crucial to conservation efforts.
How cheetah mummies could help bring the species back to Arabia
The fastest land animal on the planet lies frozen in time beneath blistering desert sands. Researchers have discovered dozens of ancient cheetah skeletons and dehydrated bodies preserved in caves on the Arabian Peninsula, where the species hasn’t been spotted for decades.
Among chimpanzees, thrill-seeking peaks in toddlerhood
In humans, teens do the most dangerous things. In chimpanzees, that honor goes to toddlers. The difference may lie in caregiver supervision.
Queen bumblebees are poor foragers thanks to sparse tongue hair
The density of fine hairs on bumblebees’ tongues determines how much nectar they can collect — and workers put queen bees to shame.
An all-female wasp is rapidly spreading across North America’s elms
She’s less than a centimeter long, produces only daughters and is conquering the continent without a single male. Meet the elm zigzag sawfly, named for the delicate zigzag patterns it carves into elm tree leaves.
These scientific discoveries brought us joy in 2025
Amidst a tough year for science, glimmers of joy burst through in revelations from the silly to the sublime.
In a first, orcas and dolphins seen possibly hunting together
New footage shows orcas and dolphins coordinating hunts, hinting at interspecies teamwork to track and catch salmon off British Columbia.
Science taught us a few new tricks about our pets in 2025
Are we reading our dog’s moods right? Does TV really comfort them when we’re away? These pet stories were catnip to us this year.
These are our favorite animal stories of 2025
From caterpillars disguised as the dead to narwhals that play with their food, here are the animal tales that we loved in 2025. Killer vomit A spider called a feather-legged lace weaver doesn’t kill its prey by injecting venom with fangs as many spiders do.
Ancient DNA rewrites the tale of when and how cats left Africa
Like a toy on a string, the timing of cat domestication has been a moving target. Now researchers have pounced on a new timeline suggesting that tame descendants of African wildcats left the continent more recently than thought.
Trucked-in honeybees may edge out bigger bumblebee foragers
Even in the face of vast fields of flowers, local bumblebees may face the sting of competition when people bring their honeybees to the floral feast.
Bats might be the next bird flu wild card
Finding that vampire bats along Peru’s coast carried H5N1 antibodies raises concerns that multiple bat species could become reservoirs for the virus.
Huge relatives of white sharks lived earlier than thought
Some 115 million years ago, a veritable fleet of giant predators prowled the waters near Australia. There were long-necked plesiosaurs, snaggletoothed pliosaurs with massive heads, dolphinlike ichthyosaurs, and now — suggests new fossil findings — 8-meter-long sharks.
How male seahorses tap into their mothering side
If there were to be a “best dad” award in the animal kingdom, seahorses would be a shoe-in. That’s because males, not females, of these peculiar fish carry their young to term.
Ancient DNA reveals China’s first 'pet' cat wasn’t the house cat
The modern house cat reached China in the 8th century. Before that, another cat — the leopard cat — hunted the rodents in ancient Chinese settlements.
Rats are snatching bats out of the air and eating them
The grisly infrared camera footage records a never-before-seen hunting tactic. It may have implications for bat conservation.
A wolf raided a crab trap. Was it tool use or just canine cunning?
Video from the Haíɫzaqv Nation Indigenous community shows a wolf hauling a crab trap ashore. Scientists are split on whether it counts as tool use.
These ancient bumblebees were found with their pollen source
Insects have long pollinated plants, but evidence of ancient pairing is rare. Fossils now show bees and linden trees goes back 24 million years.
New wetsuit designs offer a layer of protection against shark bites
By weaving Kevlar or polyethylene nanofibers into standard neoprene in wetsuits, researchers found ways to limit injury during rare encounters with sharks.
Toy-obsessed dogs give clues to addictive behaviors
Some dogs love playing with toys so intensely they can’t stop—offering scientists a window into behavioral addictions.
Mic’d bats reveal midnight songbird attacks
Sensor data reveal greater noctule bats chasing, catching and chewing on birds during high-altitude, nighttime hunts.
What the longest woolly rhino horn tells us about the beasts’ biology
A nearly 20,000-year-old woolly rhino horn reveals the extinct herbivores lived as long as modern-day rhinos, despite harsher Ice Age conditions.
The rare 'grue jay' may be a harbinger of environmental change
Despite millions of years of evolutionary separation and a geographical divide, a blue jay and green jay mated in Texas. This bird is the result.
Is camouflage better than warning colors? For insects, it depends
The effectiveness of camouflage or warning colors for insect defense depends on conditions such as light levels and how many predators are around.
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