Animals, features and articles | Educational Science

Mar 31, 2018

This Creepy Fish Packs 'Switchblades' in Its Face and Could Kill You with Its Venom

If you invite the venomous, armored stonefish to a party, know this: It's going to bring not one, but two switchblades — and it can't check them at the door, because these weapons are embedded in its skull. Scientists recently discovered these switchblades, or lachrymal sabers, in a group of...

Mar 31, 2018

'Alice in Wonderland' Dodo Was Murdered in Cold Blood

Dodos went extinct more than 300 years ago, but scientists are only now opening up a cold case after learning that one of the birds — the prized dodo specimen that likely inspired author Lewis Carroll to create a dodo character in the 1865 book Alice in Wonderland — was...

Feb 28, 2018

Why Aren't There Any Supersize Whales?

Whales are giant beasts, but why aren't even larger, supersize whales swimming around? The answer has to do with food, according to a new study that found that it would be basically impossible for an ocean-bound creature to eat enough food to support a body bigger than a whale. At...

Jan 31, 2018

Does All That Headbanging Leave a Mark on Woodpeckers' Brains?

Scientists may have just pecked new holes in the widely held idea that woodpeckers' brains suffer no ill effects from the considerable force generated by their high-speed pecking. A new study — the first to examine the birds' brains — shows that woodpecker brains are not immune to these repeated...

Dec 31, 2017

Frozen Sharks Washing Up on Cape Cod

As the Arctic blast continues to roil the Eastern Seaboard with gusty winds and frigid temperatures, at least four thresher sharks have been found frozen off the coast of Cape Cod. Is Old Man Winter to blame? Probably not, as the sharks likely died not from hypothermia but from stranding...

Dec 31, 2017

Making the Case ― Again ― for Saving Imperiled Species (Op-Ed)

David Steen received his Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from Auburn University and is now a Research Ecologist at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center on Jekyll Island. Steen has published dozens of scientific papers about wildlife ecology and conservation biology and is also an award-winning science communicator known for his wide-ranging...

Nov 30, 2019

The 9 Best Blobs of 2019

When scientists discover a round, lumpy object that they can't totally explain, they have a special name for it: A blob. Blobs come in all shapes and sizes. Some are as small as cells, others as big as galaxies. Some blobs live underwater, others deep in space or far below...

Nov 30, 2019

The 10 Strangest Animal Stories of 2019

A wild, wild world Ants that eat ants, cockatoos that head-bang, and clams that eat their way through stone — one thing's for sure, the animal kingdom can be really wild. This year, scientists stumbled upon all sorts of creatures performing bizarre and mesmerizing behaviors. Here are 10 of the...

Oct 31, 2019

Remains of a Massive Jurassic 'Sea Monster' Found in a Polish Cornfield

Paleontologists in Poland recently unearthed the jaws and teeth of a monstrous pliosaur, an ancient marine reptile with a bite more powerful than that of Tyrannosaurus rex. Pliosaurs, the biggest of the Jurassic period's ocean predators, lived around 150 million years ago. Researchers found fossils of this enormous carnivore in...

Oct 31, 2019

Does This 'Unicorn Puppy' Really Have an Extra Tail?

This puppy may not be quite as unique as a unicorn, but he's close: The pint-sized pup appears to have a tail protruding out of his face. The 10-week-old puppy was rescued this month by Mac's Mission, an animal shelter in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, that works with special-needs dogs, according...

Sep 30, 2019

This Brainless 'Blob' Could Take Over the Paris Zoo, If You Give It Enough Oatmeal

The Paris Zoological Park has added a brand-new blob to their collection. No, it's not a jellyfish. It's not even an animal, really — more like a living pile of old yellow silly string with a powerful hunger for fungus. As you can imagine, scientists have had a hard time...

Sep 30, 2019

The Scoop on Slime — Hyenas Squeeze It from Their Butts and Parrotfish Sleep in Snot Balloons

Goopy, sticky slime, whether it intrigues or disgusts you (or both), has more practical uses than you may expect. In fact, many animals and even plants make their own goo. Creatures might slime things up to help with reproduction, as protection against drying out or even as a defense against...

Aug 31, 2019

These Students Are Breeding Endangered Finches. But Will It Save the Species?

A primary school in Australia is breeding endangered finches — but although the program is bringing awareness to the birds' plight, it won't save them, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). The southern subspecies of the black-throated finch, called Poephila cincta cincta, is native to north-east Australia. It is...

Aug 31, 2019

Rare, Two-Headed Rattlesnake Named 'Double Dave' Rescued from Certain Doom in New Jersey

Two herpetologists in New Jersey — both named Dave — have discovered a rare, two-headed snake, which they've named Double-Dave. Members of the Nobel Prize committee: The ball is in your court. Double-Dave is a baby rattlesnake, just a few weeks old and about 9 inches (23 centimeters) long, according...

Jul 31, 2019

A Woman Needed Her Hands and Legs Amputated After Contracting Infection from Dog 'Kisses'

A little lick from a puppy may have led to a life-threatening infection for one woman in Ohio, who ended up needing her hands and legs amputated to save her life, according to news reports. The woman, Marie Trainer, went to the emergency room on May 11 after developing a...