Life

  1. A close up photo of a bee sitting on a purple flower with green leaves and stems in the background.
    Life

    ‘Polyester bees’ brew beer-scented baby food in plastic cribs

    Ptiloglossa bees’ baby food gets its boozy fragrance from fermentation by mysteriously selected microbes.

    By Susan Milius
  2. A close up photo of a tiny brown mouse eating from a small pile of grain with burlap sacks in the background.
    Animals

    Camouflaging wheat with a wheat smell could be a new approach to pest control

    Wheat fields coated in wheat germ oil confuse the noses of mice, reducing seed loss by more than 60 percent, a new study finds.

    By Bethany Brookshire
  3. An overhead photo of a black bowhead whale mother with a smaller gray bowhead whale child swimming on the surface of icy water.
    Animals

    Bowhead whales may have a cancer-defying superpower: DNA repair

    Bowhead whale cells repair damaged DNA exceptionally well, an ability that could prevent cancer and help the marine mammals live for centuries

    By Meghan Rosen
  4. A California two-spot octopus against a black backdrop
    Animals

    RNA editing helps octopuses cope with the cold

    California two-spot octopuses tweak the proteins they make, potentially to help maintain brain function when temperatures dip.

    By Freda Kreier
  5. A photo of a woman putting a spacesuit helmet on astronaut Akihiko Hoshide.
    Neuroscience

    Brain cavities that swell in space may need at least 3 years to recover

    MRI scans of astronauts show that duration in space and time between flights affect how much the brain’s fluid-filled cavities expand during missions.

    By McKenzie Prillaman
  6. A close up photo of a screwworm on a red background.
    Life

    50 years ago, flesh-eating screwworms pushed scientists to mass produce flies

    "Fly factories” dreamed up in the early 1970s have helped North and Central America keep screwworms in check for decades.

    By Nikk Ogasa
  7. A photo of a male Japanese macaque sitting on a rock with a blurry forest in the background.
    Animals

    When and why did masturbation evolve in primates? A new study provides clues

    In a first-of-its-kind comparative study, researchers show that primates were masturbating 40 million years ago and that the behavior may help males keep their sperm fresh.

    By Darren Incorvaia
  8. A photo of four cats perched on a ledge.
    Life

    A gene therapy shot might keep cats from getting pregnant without being spayed

    Even after mating with fertile males, females given the cat contraceptive, which targets an ovulation-preventing hormone, did not get pregnant.

    By Erin Garcia de Jesús
  9. A headshot of Marjorie Weber smiling in front of large plants
    Ecosystems

    Marjorie Weber explores plant-protecting ants and other wonders of evolution

    Cooperation across the tree of life is an understudied driver of evolution and biodiversity, Marjorie Weber says.

    By Meghan Rosen
  10. A photo of a wooden walkway leading between several gray and white boxes in a large grassy field.
    Life

    Air pollution monitoring may accidentally help scientists track biodiversity

    Filters in air monitoring facilities inadvertently capture environmental DNA, which could give scientists a new tool to track local plants and animals.

    By Erin Garcia de Jesús
  11. Two scuba divers investigating a coral reef
    Life

    Coral reefs host millions of bacteria, revealing Earth’s hidden biodiversity

    A new estimate of microbial life living in Pacific reefs is similar to global counts, suggesting many more microbes call Earth home than thought.

    By Erin Garcia de Jesús
  12. A close up photo of a forager Cataglyphis fortis ant standing on a brown sandy surface.
    Animals

    These ants build tall nest hills to help show the way home

    Desert ants living in the harsh, flat salt pans of Tunisia create towering anthills to aid with navigating the near-featureless terrain.

    By Soumya Sagar