Collage of freshwater fish from Virginia

Freshwater Fish of Virginia

Roanoke College's Ichthyological Collection of over 800 freshwater fish documents the biodiversity we're losing at an alarming rate.
Blue viper snake eating a frog, Indonesia

How Snakes Swallow

A snake’s ability to swallow enormous prey has long been a source of fascination, but the common explanation that they dislocate their jaws is a myth.
An opossum feigning death

The Biology of Death-Feigning

Some animals, when faced with predators, play dead instead of trying to escape. But for death-feigning to work, a lot of things have to go well.
sargassum seaweed dumped on beach

The Great Seaweed Invasion

In the Caribbean, sargassum deposits have grown to unprecedented sizes, obscuring the sand and turning nearshore waters into seething sargassum soup.
Ernst Haeckel's Kunstformen der Natur depicts a horned Texas lizard

The Craziest Ways Animals Escape Their Predators

From shedding skin to making slime to shooting blood out of their eyes, these animals have defense mechanisms that are convincing, to say the least.
Photograph of two frogs

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Frog Sex (but Were Afraid to Ask)

New research suggests that specific positions may serve to ensure that frog species only mate with their own kind.
Olduvai Gorge

The Prehistoric Secrets of Olduvai Gorge

Olduvai Gorge continues to reveal details about the lives of the hominids, some of them our ancestors, from more than a million years ago.
Dave Ebert

Every Week Is Shark Week for Shark Biologist Dave Ebert

An interview with shark biologist Dr. David Ebert, discoverer of the ninja lanternshark.
Moonfish

The Opah Fish is Warm-Blooded!

The Opah fish, or moonfish, is actually warm-blooded.
Cuttlefish

Camouflage Artists of the Animal Kingdom

A few camouflage artists of the animal kingdom, including cuttlefish and Craugastor frogs.