Nature

When you think of vast organisms, it’s hard not to think of giants like blue whales and redwood trees. But back in the 1980s, it was a single mushroom that broke records and forced a rethink on what it means to be an individual organism. A team of scientists from the US and Canada recently

Hurricane Michael, the most powerful storm the US has seen in nearly 50 years, is moving through the Florida Panhandle, ripping apart homes and sending walls of water rushing inland. The storm made landfall northwest of Mexico Beach around noon on Wednesday, with an eye so clear and wide it could easily be seen from

During the spectacular event of a total solar eclipse, humans emerge blinking from their dens to enjoy the awe-inspiring show. But what of the bees? According to new research, they stop flying and go completely silent. Over the years, scientists have jumped at every opportunity to study animal behaviour during solar eclipses. We know that

Trying to imagine what dinosaurs actually looked like 66 million years ago is no easy task – it involves some painstakingly detailed fossil analysis, some intelligent guesswork, and a bit of creative imagination. As scientific methods develop and new research is published though, our concepts of dinosaur appearances are getting better over time. Now a

In August of the year 79 CE, the surrounds of volcano Mount Vesuvius were definitely not the place to be. Over the two days of a catastrophic eruption, if pyroclastic surges didn’t roast you alive, any number of other things could have made for a horrific death. Including, according to new research, this exciting death:

Nobody likes getting dialled by some weirdo who won’t say anything when you pick up. But sometimes, such stories have a blissfully cute ending. That’s what happened to marine mammal vet Claire Simeone, who managed to track down her own prank-calling perpetrator – only to find he was a heck of a lot smaller than

What images go through your mind when you think of the end of the world? Asteroids? Perhaps a world war? Climate change? Or even aliens? Even if some of these things are realistic, there’s a much greater threat lurking beneath Earth’s surface that could put an end to human civilisation – and very few know

Within a decade of a massive die off due to a fungus commonly known as chytrid, the frog species left in El Copé, Panama developed the ability to coexist with the deadly fungus. In a later field study, the researchers found that frogs infected with the fungus survived at a nearly identical rate compared with

The Pentagon is studying whether insects can be enlisted to combat crop loss during agricultural emergencies. The bugs would carry genetically engineered viruses that could be deployed rapidly if critical crops such as corn or wheat became vulnerable to a drought, a natural blight or a sudden attack by a biological weapon. The concept envisions

A couple of weeks ago a small hole in Arkansas became a show-stopper, with a 12-foot (3.6 metre) high flame erupting out of it, which continued to burn at 8 feet (2.4 metres) for over 40 minutes. Unfortunately, there are no pictures or video of the September 17 flame-shooting event (it happened at 4:30 am),

There’s no denying that sloths are weird creatures. They risk their lives every time they poo, their organs are stuck to their bones, and finding a mate looks like a nightmare. Now we can add an extra feature to the sloths’ repertoire: their metabolism is so weird, scientists have never seen it before in the

Stinging trees grow in rainforests throughout Queensland and northern New South Wales in Australia. The most commonly known (and most painful) species is Dendrocnide moroides (Family Urticaceae), first named “gympie bush” by gold miners near the town of Gympie in the 1860s. My first sting was from a different species Dendrocnide photinophylla (the shiny-leaf stinging

The name is not appetising: it’s called the groundcherry. It’s possible you haven’t heard of this fruit, but with some genetic tweaks, it could become a supermarket staple sooner than you think. That’s because scientists have used the groundcherry as an experimental test case to illustrate just how quickly CRISPR genome editing can speed up

An international team of scientists has discovered evidence of common bacteria living so far underground and away from sunlight that we may have to re-evaluate the habitability of deep subsurface ecosystems – including those of alien worlds. There’s a deep terrestrial environment – sometimes called the ‘dark biosphere’ – that extends hundreds of metres into

Every time your dog does that thing you’ve trained her to do, you pet her and praise her. “Clever girl,” you say. “Who’s the goodest and cleverest girl of all?” Well – it’s probably not your dog. According to the latest research, the much-vaunted canine intelligence may not actually exist. Dog smarts, they have concluded, are

Kerry McKinnon of Strathdownie, Australia, didn’t know what she was going to find when her husband woke her up and told her to come quick. Happily, it was good news – a baby koala had decided to take up residence in the warm fur of their five-year-old golden retriever, Asha. “[Asha] kept looking back at

Animals don’t always stick to traditional menus, and they certainly don’t read the descriptions of their diets we include in textbooks. When it recently emerged that a notorious carnivore (a shark) was actually selecting the vegetarian option, scientists were intrigued. We’ve known for some time that bonnethead sharks consume large quantities of seagrass, but this

Over the past few days, the mathematics world has been abuzz over the news that Sir Michael Atiyah, the famous Fields Medalist and Abel Prize winner, claims to have solved the Riemann hypothesis. If his proof turns out to be correct, this would be one of the most important mathematical achievements in many years. In

A magnitude 7.5 earthquake has struck off the coast of the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, triggering a 1.8-metre (6-foot) tsunami. The wave tore through several of the island’s coastal cities and towns, including the capital Palu, on Friday. The devastating quake has been followed by multiple strong aftershocks, and comes shortly after a magnitude 6.1

There’s been more scientific debate over the title of the world’s biggest bird than you might have realised, with many candidates coming and going down the years as new discoveries and new research has come to light. Now though, we may finally have a winner. Presenting Vorombe titan, a new species of flightless elephant bird

You’d probably think that a city with a feral cat population and a feral rat population would end up with fewer rats due to the work of… the feral cats. But it turns out that, just like humans, cats may prefer the path of least resistance – and that includes opting for easier prey. On

Clever and strange, octopuses are fascinating creatures with incredible problem-solving skills and breathtaking camouflage. But overall, they are short-lived, typically around for just one to two years. That’s because they’re semelparous, which means they reproduce just once before they die. With female octopuses, once she’s laid her eggs, that’s it. In fact, the mother even stops

Being face to face with wild animals can be a source of great amazement. But there is such a thing as being too close to them, to the point where you become collateral between a carnivore and its flailing prey. This was the recent experience of adventurer Kyle Mulinder, who was kayaking with some friends

Across the world, the buzz of bee colonies is growing faint, and hives are failing. In what’s been described as “ecological armageddon”, this vital pollinator is vanishing. Scientists aren’t entirely sure why. Strong evidence exists linking the decline to pesticides, but new research shows another poison – one long believed to be harmless to animals

Scientists in Australia have solved a bizarre mystery from earlier in the month, when a mother in Queensland found that orange slices she’d cut up for her two-year-old son had puzzlingly transformed overnight. Hours after being segmented, these orange chunks were no longer orange, but had morphed into a vibrant purple. The fruit reportedly had

For the first time, scientists have discovered all-female termite colonies, living and flourishing in Japan. While we know of several insect species that easily thrive without any males, this is an exciting new development in our understanding of asexual reproduction. Most species on this planet reproduce sexually, requiring both male and female gametes in order

Over the last 10 years, it’s estimated there has been a 360 percent rise in veganism in Britain – around 542,000 people have ‘gone vegan’. As a nation of animal lovers, with around 44 percent of homes owning a pet – and somewhere in the region of 8.5 million dogs in the UK – it’s

Praying mantises catch and eat a lot of different animals. All kinds of insects, lizards, and even frogs, snakes, or small birds if it comes to it. But scientists didn’t think fish were on the menu – until now that is. Researchers have discovered a praying mantis in India repeatedly enjoying a meal of guppies

A woman in Virginia found a bizarre surprise in her flower bed last week: a copperhead snake with not one, but two heads on a single body. According to experts, it’s an incredibly rare find. The venomous viper (Agkistrodon contortrix) was discovered on Sunday 16 September, and has been removed to the care of an

Even as the water from Hurricane Florence and the flooding that followed finally began to recede, it left behind a poignant – and pungent – reminder of the powerful storm that overwhelmed the Carolinas and turned roads to rivers. Thousands of dead and dying fish littered Interstate 40 in North Carolina over the weekend, stranded

Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, the nation’s largest protected area, stretches over half-a-million square miles of sea and land in Hawaii. It also includes wonderfully odd and stretchy critters, as a research team aboard the exploration vessel Nautilus observed Thursday. The Nautilus, operated by the nonprofit Ocean Exploration Trust, has been streaming excursions online since 2012. (The Nautilus team

Researchers have captured rare footage of something equally amazing and terrifying on a small island in the Indian Ocean.  The video shows a giant coconut crab snatching and devouring an adult seabird – a red-footed booby whose choice to sleep on a low-lying branch proved to be fatal. Reaching a size of more than one

For centuries, humans have endeavoured to discover and describe the sum of Earth’s biological diversity. Scientists and naturalists have catalogued species from all continents and oceans, from the depths of Earth’s crust to the highest mountains, and from the most remote jungles to our most populated cities. This grand effort sheds light on the forms

The evidence is in. A mysterious creature that lived on Earth over half a billion years ago has now been proven an animal. A fossil from 558 million years ago was so well preserved, it still had fat molecules, conclusively laying to rest the debate about Dickinsonia‘s identity. Prior to the Cambrian explosion 541 million

Next time you bite into a slice of watermelon or a cob of corn, consider this: these familiar fruits and veggies didn’t always look and taste this way. Genetically modified foods, or GMOs, inspire strong reactions nowadays, but humans have been tweaking the genetics of our favourite produce for millennia. While GMOs may involve splicing

Ever wanted to see what happens when you give octopuses drugs? Scientists in the US have just lived that dream. They gave a solitary, asocial octopus species MDMA, aka ecstasy, and watched rapt as the cephalopods tried to hug all up on each other. The research, as weird as it may seem, actually yielded some

On Monday, a New Zealand family were just walking along a Northern Auckland beach when they stumbled across a bizarre, pink-colour blob that resembled a volcano shape. The creature, which turned out to be a species of huge jellyfish, has a white segmented outer body, with a colourful red inside, and looks just a bit

Hurricane Florence is causing a threat that many Carolinians may not be aware of – fire ants. Fire ants, which carry a dangerous sting, are an invasive species in the region and are especially adept at surviving massive flooding. The insects band together to create rafts that float upon the flood waters until they are

Early on the night of May 5, a team of scientists snuck out onto the white beaches of south Florida to attach a transmitter in the shell of a nesting leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea). They nicknamed her Isla, and for months, members of the non-profit organisation Florida Leatherbacks, Inc. have been following this turtle as

In coming weeks, long after Hurricane Florence’s winds and rains have faded, its aftermath will still pose life-threatening hazards: snakes, submerged sharp objects, bacterial infections and disease-carrying mosquitoes. People are trapped by floodwaters and facing dwindling supplies of medicines, food and drinking water. Carbon monoxide poisoning is a danger as people crank up portable generators,

Before he heads to work, Jon Zawislak sometimes pops a ginger pill in his mouth to settle his stomach. He also prefers to stick to bland foods like pretzels and crackers before he gets to the office, because he wouldn’t want to hurl all over his desk. Zawislak is a Hurricane Hunter. He spends 8-hour

Hurricane Florence made landfall this morning near Wrightsville Beach in North Carolina, causing huge storm surges, heavy winds, strong winds, and intense flooding. According to The Washington Post, at least four deaths have already been linked to the storm, and an entire town was cut off by water. Just a few minutes before the now-Category

Hurricane Florence may affect the operations of several of the 16 nuclear reactors located in the Carolinas and Virginia, raising concerns about safety and power outages. Ted Kury, director of energy studies at the University of Florida’s Public Utility Research Center, explains why nuclear power stations must take precautions during big storms. 1. Keeping cores

Denver Zoo in the US has just welcomed a new resident: a teeny tiny member of one of the most elusive lemur families in the world, the aye-aye. The new arrival, born on 8 August to mum Bellatrix and dad Smeagol, has been named Tonks, a name just as adorable as she is. The birth

When plants are under attack – say, for instance, by an insect making a tasty leaf meal – their defence systems are raised in other parts. How do they know to do that? According to new research, plants use the same signalling molecules that animals use in their nervous system. Our green friends don’t have

As 1.7 million people on the US’s East Coast are being told to evacuate ahead of Hurricane Florence’s arrival, another strong storm is set to lash Southeast Asia. Super Typhoon Mangkhut, considered the strongest storm so far this season, is expected to make landfall in the Philippines on Saturday before advancing to southern China, Vietnam,

Hurricanes can cause immense damage due to the winds, waves and rain, not to mention the chaos as the general population prepares for severe weather. The latter is getting more relevant, as the monetary damage from disasters is trending up. The growing coastal population and infrastructure, as well as rising sea level, likely contribute to

Alexander Gerst, a German astronaut orbiting Earth from 250 miles (402 kilometres) up, has a warning for humans on the planet below him. “Watch out, America!” Gerst, who joined the crew of the International Space Station in June, said Wednesday in a tweet featuring pictures he took of Hurricane Florence. “This is a no-kidding nightmare coming