November 2009

humpback whale and seal
Exploring Science and Nature

Save the Seal!

Whales act instinctively to save seals

eels
Features

Slippery Business

Scientists race to understand the reproductive biology of freshwater eels.

baby gray whale on top of mother
Naturalist at Large

Gray Whales Revealed

Discover gray whales in the isolated San Ignacio lagoon

magnetite
Nature.net

Magnetic Minerals

An Internet guide to mineral magnetism

Orb spider
Samplings

Spider’s No Dummy

Well-placed decoys help orb spiders elude attack.

chimp dancing
Samplings

Play It Again, Sakura

A baby chimp chooses consonance over dissonance.

Golden geckos eggs
Samplings

Herp Hatcheries

Nest sharing is surprisingly common among reptile moms.

 

radiation produced by black hole
Samplings

Young and Hungry

Early black holes were slow to grow.

Yellow-bellied marmot
Samplings

Ghost of Predation Past

Colorado marmots “remember” a long-gone foe.

Doedicurus clavicaudatus
Samplings

Sweet Spot of the Glyptodont

Ancient mammals whacked away—with just the right part of their tails.

wild mares
Samplings

Neigh-Neigh Sisterhood

Female friendships help wild mares cope.

 

Ant
Samplings

Ants, All for One!

Ants attempt to rescue their nestmates from a strange trap.

 

jacky winter
Samplings

Heat Shrink

As temperatures rise, Australian birds are moving toward the pole.

Antarctica
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Recent Stories

Teeth that stab or crush to match their meal

To walk on walls and ceilings, your feet have to stick, but they have to get unstuck, too.

Ferns and fungi that explosively reproduce

The seemingly unwieldy shape of a fish is anything but a drag.

Recent Interview

Xiaoming Wang

Hear author Xiaoming Wang interviewed by Vittorio Maestro, Editor in Chief of Natural History. (MP3, 17 minutes)