On the forest floor in eastern Australia, a male satin bowerbird may spend hours maintaining a structure made from carefully positioned sticks. Around it, he places selected objects—blue feathers, flowers, …
High above a rocky mountain slope, a bearded vulture circles with something unusual clutched beneath it: a large bone. The bird releases its cargo, the bone crashes against exposed rock, …
Summer on the Arctic tundra can bring a dramatic burst of biological activity. Migratory birds arrive to breed, eggs fill nests, insects emerge, and in some regions populations of lemmings …
A group of dark birds circling over a field can create an unsettling impression, especially when a dead deer is later discovered nearby. It is easy to connect the two …
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 …
You see it crossing your yard at night and think “giant rat.” You’reactually looking at one of the most useful — and most misunderstood —animals in North America. 🐀 Meet …
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. …