By Science News | Elie Dolgin | 3/11/2026 12:00 PM
The Amazon molly reproduces without sex. A genomic copy-and-paste trick called gene conversion may explain how it avoids evolutionary meltdown. ... Read full Story
Submerged bees breathe and use strategies that don’t require oxygen, lab tests show. In nature, that trick could help the bees survive floods. ... Read full Story
As koalas in southern Australia have grown from a few hundred to almost half a million, the marsupials show signs of regaining lost genetic variation. ... Read full Story
The wood-feeding cockroach’s cannibalistic love bites lead to a lasting bond. Afterward, the pair prefer each other over all other roaches. ... Read full Story
Suitable milkweed habitat in Mexico may shift south, fracturing existing migration routes and possibly pushing some butterflies to stay put. ... Read full Story
By Science News | Jake Buehler | 2/25/2026 1:00 AM
Finding a caterpillar with rhythm was “mind-blowing,” suggesting it might be a more widespread part of animal communication than thought. ... Read full Story
Fecal analyses and necropsies suggest a fire-footed rope squirrel was the source of a 2023 mpox outbreak among sooty mangabeys in Côte d’Ivoire. ... Read full Story
By Science News | Emily Conover | 2/24/2026 11:00 AM
Rufus net-casting spiders can tune the stiffness and elasticity of their webs thanks to loops of silk, scanning electron microscope images reveal. ... Read full Story
By Science News | Jake Buehler | 2/18/2026 2:00 PM
Research reveals more short-snouted dogs besides pugs and bulldogs that struggle with breathing. Pekingese and Japanese Chins topped the study's list. ... Read full Story
The complex biology of ghrelin, the hunger hormone, has researchers wondering how its absence helps snakes last a long time with no food, if at all. ... Read full Story
A temperate tunneling species of dung beetle seems capable of adapting to climate change, but their tropical cousins may be less resilient. ... Read full Story
“Dressed in full Irish regalia, Fitzgerald rode his horse, Jack, through the streets of Clinton every St. Patrick’s Day. Jack was also dressed for the occasion, with green ribbons on his mane and a green blanket with gold lettering, ‘Erin Go Bragh.’” — Craig S. Semon, The Worcester (Massachusetts) Telegram & Gazette, 22 Dec. 2025
Did you know?
March 17th is the feast day of the patron saint of Ireland, St. Patrick. In the United States, it is also the day of shamrocks, leprechauns, and green beer (and green everything else). Blue was once the color traditionally associated with St. Patrick, but the color green has several links to Ireland, including its use on Ireland’s flag in the form of a stripe, its symbolism of Irish nationalism and the country’s religious history, and its connection to Ireland’s nickname, The Emerald Isle. On St. Patrick’s Day, people turn to their dictionary to look up Erin go bragh, which means “Ireland forever.” The original Irish phrase was Erin go brách (or go bráth), which translates literally as “Ireland till doomsday.” It’s an expression of loyalty and devotion that first appeared in English during the late 18th-century Irish rebellion against the British.