A pond in late afternoon may seem easy to understand. Dragonflies patrol the shoreline, ducks forage or rest on the water, insects move among emergent plants, and sunlight fuels photosynthesis …
A ruby-throated hummingbird hovering beside a flower and a blue whale descending beneath the ocean surface face the same basic physiological challenge: their tissues need oxygen, and their cardiovascular systems …
A group of giant river otters moving through an Amazonian river can look less like a collection of independent animals and more like a coordinated team. Adults hunt, patrol territorial …
A tarsier staring through a dark Southeast Asian forest looks almost unreal. Its enormous eyes dominate its tiny face, giving the impression that it can see everything around it. Yet …
A small insect rests on a branch above a tropical stream. Below it, an archerfish approaches the surface, aims upward, and fires a concentrated jet of water from its mouth. …
A predator corners a small horned lizard in the desert. Running may not work, and its spines have failed to discourage the attack. Then the lizard deploys one of the …
A killdeer suddenly appears in front of you, dragging one wing across the ground as though it has suffered a serious injury. It stumbles forward, gives distressed calls, and seems …
Above certain coral reefs, manta rays perform an unusual daily ritual. Instead of feeding or migrating, they slow down, hover over particular coral outcrops, and allow tiny fishes to swim …
Deep in tropical forests, a carpenter ant leaves its colony and begins behaving in ways that seem completely out of character. It wanders through vegetation, climbs to a particular location, …
On a tree trunk in Madagascar, what looks like a patch of bark may suddenly open its eyes and move. The animal is a leaf-tailed gecko, and leaf-tailed gecko camouflage …