Since late March 2026, millions of bright blue creatures have been washing ashore on the US West Coast, from California to Washington. While they look like jellyfish, these organisms are a type of zooplankton called Velella velella. The word comes from the Latin vēlum, meaning "sail."...
Read news articleModern crocodiles are powerful, heavy reptiles. They spend much of their lives along riverbanks, waiting to ambush prey. But their ancient relatives looked and lived very differently. One example is Sonselasuchus cedrus (S. cedrus). This recently discovered crocodile species lived about 215 million years ago during the Late Triassic Period....
Read news articleA tiny insect that lived about 100 million years ago has been given a name inspired by Stray Kids, a South Korean boy band. The newly described species, Carcinonepa libererrantes (C. libererrantes), dates back to the Cretaceous Period. This is the time when dinosaurs still roamed Earth....
Read news articleMost ant colonies are built around a single queen that lays all the eggs. Around her, thousands of female workers build and maintain the nest, gather food, and care for the young. There is also a small number of males. Their only role is to mate with the queen before they die. However, Temnothorax kinomurai (T. kinomurai) follows a completely different strategy....
Read news articleTwo massive wildfires in Southern Georgia have destroyed at least 125 structures, forced hundreds of evacuations, and sent smoke across much of the southeastern United States. The fires began in mid-to-late April and have burned more than 55,000 acres combined. That is an area larger than Washington, DC....
Read news articleFarmers in Gabon, West Africa, often wake up to find their farms raided by elephants. In some cases, the animals feed on the leaves and stems of plants, but leave the fruit behind. Steeve Ngama, a local conservation scientist, was curious about this unusual behavior. He decided to investigate....
Read news articleThe emperor penguin, the largest of all penguin species, was officially added to the Endangered Species list by the IUCN on April 9, 2026. These iconic birds, found only in Antarctica, are under threat due to shrinking sea ice linked to climate change....
Read news articleOn February 20, 2026, conservation teams released 158 young giant tortoises on Floreana Island in the Galápagos. This historic milestone marked the first step in restoring a species that disappeared from the island in the 1800s....
Read news articleJackie and Shadow, a beloved bald eagle couple in Big Bear Valley, California, welcomed two chicks on Easter weekend. It marked a bright moment after a difficult start to the 2026 nesting season for the pair....
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