Animals (Page 6)

A new study is a take on the adage, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” When parasitic wasps come calling, some caterpillars have a surprising ally: a viral infection. Insects called parasitoid wasps lay their eggs inside young moth larvae, turning the caterpillars into unwitting, destined-to-die incubators forContinue Reading

A genetic analysis hints that the critters lack the right light-sensing proteins to see color Next time you’re looking at a rainbow, be thankful you’re not a tardigrade. While the microscopic creatures, also known as water bears, are master survivors when it comes to radiation, space or extreme temperatures (SN:Continue Reading

The book grapples with the ethical dilemmas of saving Earth’s animals On the Arctic Ocean’s fringe, polar bears stand on ice thinning from human-caused climate change. Without thick ice from which to powerfully pounce on seals, many of these symbols of the wild north can’t eat. Should we feed polarContinue Reading

Shadowy areas are a heat-absorbing liability, but losing them may mess with the insects’ mating Many dragonflies zip through the air with their translucent wings painted in an array of dark spots and bands. But — for males at least — those dapper decorations could soon fall out of styleContinue Reading

A withered old male hornet shows that repeat invasions are the not-so-new normal Fingers crossed for finding nothing: July marks the main trapping season to check for Asian giant hornets still infesting Washington state. The first of these invasive hornets found in North America in 2021, in June, was probablyContinue Reading

The smallest mammal in the ocean doesn’t rely on blubber or a large body to keep toasty Sea otters’ secret to staying warm isn’t in thick stores of blubber. It’s in their muscles. Leaks in the energy-generating parts of muscle cells help otters maintain a resting metabolism three times asContinue Reading

Sparse, spindly scales and a waxy membrane coating are behind the insect’s transparency. Most butterflies sport colorful, eye-catching patterns on their wings. But some species, like the glasswing butterfly, use mostly transparent wings to hide in plain sight. To figure out how these Central American butterflies go incognito, researchers putContinue Reading

Her nickname is “Fernanda.” A giant tortoise in the Galápagos Islands that was thought to have gone extinct over a century ago just came out of hiding. Researchers discovered the female tortoise on the Galápagos’ Fernandina Island during a joint expedition carried out by the Galápagos National Park Directorate andContinue Reading