Animals

Paleontologists have discovered the first molecular evidence of pheomelanin, a pigment that causes red hair, in the fossil record.

A crocodile in Kenya's Mara River was filmed thrashing around with the corpse of a baby hippo in its jaws in unusual sighting. It is unclear if the crocodile killed the calf or if it snatched a stillborn.

Three mass mortality events have struck a population of gray whales off the west coast of North America since the 1980s, and scientists have linked them to changing conditions in the Arctic.

Killer whales are surprisingly gentle in the wild when interacting with humans — though it's sometimes a different story with orcas in captivity.

Scientists discovered an enzyme within the ant "blood-brain barrier" that helps control whether an ant ends up a soldier or a forager.

Researchers documenting fossil tracks in March discovered the first tritylodontid fossils ever found in the Navajo Sandstone and rushed to retrieve them before snowmelt replenished Lake Powell.

Scientists analyzing cave lion bones have discovered the earliest evidence of Neanderthals hunting a cave lion, as well as the oldest example of human relatives using a lion pelt for cultural purposes.

By analyzing how birds migrated across the U.S. over a 23-year period, researchers have shown that solar weather events can seriously disrupt the navigation of the wandering avians.

A newly described titanosaur species, named after an ancient Egyptian deity, fills a gap in our understanding of Africa's dinosaurs.

Researchers have discovered a new insect genus of big, alien-looking parasitic wasps in the Peruvian rainforest, one of the most biodiverse places in the world.