Why the Narwhal’s Tusk Is Really a Giant, Feeling Tooth
At first glance, a narwhal seems to be carrying a horn straight out of mythology. But that long spiral structure is neither a horn nor an antler. It is an …
Ocean
The “Immortal” Jellyfish That Can Reverse Its Own Aging
Imagine reaching adulthood and then, instead of continuing toward old age, reorganizing your body and returning to an earlier stage of life. A tiny marine animal called Turritopsis dohrnii can …
The Greenland Shark: Earth’s Longest-Living Vertebrate
In the cold, dark waters of the Arctic and North Atlantic lives an animal whose lifetime may span several human centuries. The extraordinary Greenland shark lifespan has made Somniosus microcephalus …
How Cuttlefish “Hypnotize” Their Prey With a Pulsing Light Show
A cuttlefish closing in on a crab can suddenly transform into something that looks almost unreal. Dark bands appear to flow repeatedly across its pale head and arms while the …
How the Mantis Shrimp’s Punch Breaks the Laws of Ordinary Speed
A mantis shrimp does not look like an animal capable of producing one of the fastest strikes in the ocean. Yet some “smasher” species accelerate a hammer-like appendage so rapidly …
Why Octopuses Have Three Hearts and Blue Blood
An octopus already looks like an animal designed by a very imaginative engineer: eight flexible arms, hundreds of suckers, remarkable camouflage, and a nervous system unlike our own. But some …
How Octopuses Change Color Faster Than the Human Eye Can Track
An octopus can rest against a pale patch of sand, move toward a reef, and suddenly appear mottled with browns, creams, and dark patches. This extraordinary octopus camouflage is not …
The Sailfish: Why It’s Considered the Fastest Fish in the Ocean
For decades, wildlife books have introduced the sailfish as the fastest swimmer in the sea, often attaching an astonishing figure of about 68 miles per hour to the claim. Modern …
Why the Colossal Squid Has the Largest Eyes of Any Animal Alive
Far below the sunlit surface of the Southern Ocean lives an animal with eyes unlike anything else known in nature. The colossal squid (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni) possesses enormous, forward-facing eyes, and …
The Cookiecutter Shark: A Small Predator That Leaves Perfectly Round Wounds
Some sharks kill prey by overpowering it. The cookiecutter shark uses a very different strategy: it takes a piece and leaves the victim alive. A typical cookiecutter shark bite is …