Biology News

Elephantnose Fish Use Electric Colors to Reliably Identify Prey, Study Says

The striking ‘trunk’ of the Peters’ elephantnose fish (Gnathonemus petersii) is actually its chin that has numerous electroreceptors. Image credit: Maik Dobiey / University of Bonn.
Nov 21, 2018 by News Staff

An African freshwater fish species called the Peters’ elephantnose fish (Gnathonemus petersii) generates weak electrical pulses to safely navigate its environment. Animals, plants, or the fish’s favorite food — mosquito larvae — provide specific electric colors during this electrolocation, according to a new study published in the journal Current Biology. The Peters’ elephantnose fish (Gnathonemus petersii). Image credit: Maik Dobiey...

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The Siberian willow warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus yakutensis). Image credit: Kristaps Sokolovskis.

Study: Siberian Willow Warblers Migrate Incredible 8,000 Miles One Way

Nov 20, 2018 by News Staff

A small songbird called the Siberian willow warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus yakutensis) holds a long-distance migration record in the 10-gram weight category...

Hemimastix kukwesjijk. Image credit: Lax et al, doi: 10.1038/s41586-018-0708-8.

Newly-Discovered Protists Add New Branch to Tree of Eukaryotic Life

Nov 20, 2018 by News Staff

A team of researchers from Dalhousie University, Canada, has identified two previously undescribed species of hemimastigotes — members of the extremely...

A graphical rendition of a diving sperm whale using its echolocation. Image credit: Chris Johnson.

Study: Toothed Whales Use Sonic Equivalent of Flashlight to Echolocate Prey

Nov 16, 2018 by News Staff

Toothed whales — apex predators varying in size from 40-kg porpoises to 50-ton sperm whales — use narrow beams of high intensity sound to echolocate...

Raphia zamiana: a habitat along the road, with team member Dr. Raoul Niangadouma for scale, in Oyem, Gabon. Image credit: Thomas L.P. Couvreur.

Two New Palm Species Discovered in Africa

Nov 14, 2018 by Natali Anderson

An international team of botanists has discovered and described two new species of the African palm genus Raphia from Cameroon and Gabon. Raphia zamiana:...

Laumer et al show that orangutans can spontaneously innovate a hook tool out of a straight piece of wire to solve a novel problem. Image credit: Laumer et al, doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-34607-0.

Inventive Orangutans Make Hook Tools to Retrieve Food

Nov 12, 2018 by News Staff

Orangutans spontaneously make hook tools out of a straight piece of wire, using them to ‘fish’ for food. Laumer et al show that orangutans can spontaneously...

Leaves and young shoots of hongyacha. Image credit: Ji-Qiang Jin et al, doi: 10.1021/acs.jafc.8b03433.

Hongyacha: Caffeine-Free Tea Plant Discovered in China

Nov 12, 2018 by Sergio Prostak

Hongyacha, a new type of wild tea plant from the mountains of southern China, contains little or no caffeine, according to a study published in the Journal...

A new study by Auersperg et al supports previous studies on Goffin’s cockatoos showing that they can not only select, but create different tools depending on the task at hand. Image credit: Goffin Lab, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna.

Goffin’s Cockatoos Can Manufacture, Manipulate Tools of Different Length

Nov 9, 2018 by News Staff

An Indonesian species of parrot known as the Goffin’s cockatoo (Cacatua goffiniana) can tear a cardboard sheet into long strips as tools to reach food,...

A rare triple-hybrid warbler. Image credit: Lowell Burket.

Rare Triple-Hybrid Warbler Spotted in Pennsylvania

Nov 8, 2018 by News Staff

A three-species hybrid warbler found in Pennsylvania is the offspring of a hybrid warbler mother and a warbler father from an entirely different genus...

An African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis) swimming in a tank. Image credit: Celia Herrera-Rincon / Tufts University.

Wearable Drug Delivery Device Helps Frogs Regenerate Their Hindlimbs

Nov 7, 2018 by News Staff

A team of scientists from Tufts University and the University of Florida has found that delivering progesterone to an amputation injury site can induce...

The Inaccessible Island rail (Atlantisia rogersi). Image credit: Peter G. Ryan.

Scientists Crack Mystery of World’s Smallest Flightless Bird: Inaccessible Island Rail

Nov 5, 2018 by News Staff

Inaccessible Island, the westernmost of three islands in the Tristan Archipelago, is located about 2,250 miles (3,600 km) east of Porto Alegre, Brazil,...

Polar bears’ habitat and food sources are shrinking at an alarming rate. Image credit: Skeeze.

WWF Study Shows 60% Decrease in Vertebrate Population Counts

Nov 5, 2018 by Sam Sander Effron

It is no secret that climate change and environmental negligence have been worsened by human activity and accelerated industrialization over the past century,...

The Natewa swallowtail (Papilio natewa). Image credit: Greg Kerr.

Lepidopterists Discover New Swallowtail Species on Fiji

Nov 2, 2018 by News Staff

A beautiful new species of swallowtail butterfly has been discovered on the Pacific Island of Vanua Levu, Fiji. The Natewa swallowtail (Papilio natewa)....

American cockroaches deter emerald jewel wasps with a vigorous defense. Image credit: K.C. Catania, doi: 10.1159/000490341.

Cockroaches Karate Kick Parasitoid Wasps to Avoid Becoming ‘Zombies’

Nov 1, 2018 by News Staff

The emerald jewel wasp (Ampulex compressa) is renowned for its ability to zombify the American cockroach (Periplaneta americana) with a sting to the brain....

New Research Confirms Six Living Tiger Subspecies

Oct 30, 2018 by News Staff

Today, fewer than 4,000 free-ranging tigers survive in the wild, covering only 7% of their historical range. Efforts to protect these animals have been...

New Caledonian crow with a stick tool. Image credit: Auguste von Bayern.

New Caledonian Crows Can Combine Objects to Construct New Compound Tools

Oct 29, 2018 by News Staff

According to a new study published in the journal Scientific Reports, habitually tool-using New Caledonian crows (Corvus moneduloides) are able to create...

The Central African slender-snouted crocodile (Mecistops leptorhynchus). Image credit: Shirley et al, doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.4504.2.1.

Cryptic New Species of Crocodile Identified in Africa

Oct 26, 2018 by News Staff

An international team of researchers has identified a cryptic new species of slender-snouted crocodile living in Central Africa. The Central African slender-snouted...

3D projection of a cancer cell that is about to undergo cell division and adheres to the substrate with reticular adhesions: chromatin/DNA (blue); cell membrane (red); reticular adhesions (green/yellow in the bottom of the cell). Image credit: John Lock.

Scientists Discover New Structure in Human Cells

Oct 24, 2018 by News Staff

An international research team led by scientists at Karolinska Institutet, Sweden, has discovered a new structure in human cells — a new type of...

The Rote leaf warbler (Phylloscopus rotiensis). Image credit: Philippe Verbelen.

Rote Leaf Warbler: New Bird Species Discovered in Indonesia

Oct 23, 2018 by News Staff

A striking new species of leaf warbler has been discovered in the forests of the Indonesian island of Rote by an international team of researchers. The...

The Pando aspen clone from a distance (green foreground and middle -- not yellow). Image credit: Lance Oditt, Studio 47.60° North.

Pando, World’s Largest Single Organism, is Shrinking

Oct 22, 2018 by News Staff

A team of researchers from Utah State University has conducted the first complete assessment of the Pando aspen clone — the largest living organism...

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