Peacock Spider Courtship: Color, Vibration and Dance
At a scale of only a few millimeters, a male peacock spider approaches a female. He raises his elongated third pair of legs, elevates his brilliantly patterned abdomen, and begins …
Greater Honeyguide Human Cooperation: How Birds Lead People to Honey
In a dry woodland in southeastern Africa, a honey hunter produces a distinctive rolling call. From somewhere among the trees, a greater honeyguide answers. The person calls again, the bird …
Thorny Devil Water Transport: How Its Skin Channels Water
Rain has darkened a patch of red Australian desert sand. A thorny devil moves across the wet surface, and liquid touching its body disappears into microscopic spaces associated with its …
Orca Hunting Traditions: How Killer Whales Learn to Hunt
A young killer whale travels beside its mother and other experienced members of its social group as they search for prey. When the adults accelerate, dive, circle a school of …
How Crows Remember Human Faces for Years
A person walks through a city park while an American crow watches from a nearby tree. To a human observer, there may be nothing unusual about the encounter. But suppose …
Grasshopper Mouse vs. Scorpion Venom: How It Survives the Sting
Night has settled over the desert of the American Southwest. Between scattered rocks and dry vegetation, a southern grasshopper mouse moves toward a bark scorpion—dangerous prey armed with a venomous …
How Pallas’s Cats Survive Extreme Cold With Dense Fur and a Remarkable Tail
Among the wind-scoured rocks of Central Asia, a Pallas’s cat can appear almost motionless against the winter landscape. Snow collects between boulders, temperatures fall far below freezing, and vegetation offers …
Why Marigolds Belong in Every Vegetable Garden (It’s Not Decoration)
Marigolds are usually treated as the colorful border around the “real” vegetable garden. But their value can go beyond appearance. When used correctly, companion planting marigolds can add plant diversity, …
How Peregrine Falcons Reach 240+ MPH Without Injuring Themselves
A peregrine falcon high above the landscape can transform from a soaring bird into one of nature’s most extraordinary high-speed predators in seconds. During its specialized hunting dive, known as …
Kinkajou Feet: How This Rainforest Mammal Climbs Down Trees Headfirst
After sunset in a tropical American forest, a kinkajou may emerge from a tree hollow and begin moving through a world of trunks, vines and overlapping branches. Its movements can …