Leaping isn’t exactly a graceful activity for miniature Brachycephalus frogs, and scientists finally know why.
Luiz F. Ribeiro
The amphibians have some of the smallest inner ear canals among all vertebrates, which turns their landings into faceplants.
Researchers discovered that octopuses use their siphons to blast silt, shells, and other debris into open water. They even appear to aim at targets, like other octopuses.
Godfrey-Smith et al., 2022, PLOS ONE, CC-BY 4.0
This throwing behavior is quite uncommon in the animal kingdom.
And it seems to serve a variety of purposes — such as helping octopuses clean out their dens and warding off unwelcome mates.
Daniel Kronauer
The milk-like substance is loaded with hormones and neuroactive substances that likely influence colony behavior.
It went unnoticed for so long because ants slurp the milk up as soon as it’s excreted, leaving little for scientists to observe in the wild.
Alfred Wegener Institute / PS124 AWI OFOBS team
The animals created the largest continuous fish nesting site ever observed by scientists.
In total, it contains about 60 million individual nests with about 1,700 eggs in each.
Bats may be known for their high-pitched echolocation calls, but they also make deep, guttural sounds — like the ones heard in death metal and Mongolian throat singing.
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Researchers studied the larynxes of Daubenton’s bats to see how they do it.
The creatures can turn on different parts of the larynx for high and low sounds, which explains their incredible range.
Boing! Young Laemophloeus biguttatus beetles can launch themselves into the air in an acrobatic feat.
Bertone et al/PLOS One
While they have legs to crawl, leaping might just be a more efficient strategy for larvae to get around, researchers say.
Current Biology/Kornder et al
While scientists already knew about sponge sneezes, a 2022 study recorded the behavior in fresh detail.
They also captured footage of smaller sea creatures snacking on the mucus.
Ashley Cooper/Corbis/Getty Images
When the Moon dimmed, the birds suddenly dropped in altitude — then rose again when the eclipse ended, as detailed in a 2022 report.
The eclipse could have allowed the swifts to hunt in low light, though researchers are not entirely sure what caused the collective behavior.
It’s uncommon to see animals from different species fight over resources, but a conflict between mountain goats and bighorn sheep could be a sign of things to come.
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Researchers recorded a rare case of bighorn sheep and mountain goats competing for salt in the Rocky Mountains.
As climate change worsens, they argue that cross-species conflict could become more common as resources become scarce.
Self-care for the Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin means rubbing against corals, a practice that might actually have medicinal benefits.
Gerhard Schulze / 500px/500px/Getty Images
Researchers studied the mucus oozing from the dolphin’s favorite corals, finding it rich in antioxidative and antibacterial properties.
The dolphin’s affinity for coral scrubs might help them fight off skin infections and maintain their natural glow.