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Brightly colored birds resting on a tree
Opinion: Biodiversity Loss Worsened by Extinguishing Animal Innovators
When species disappear, more than their genomes are lost. The potential for their creative innovation to benefit ecosystems vanishes as well.
Opinion: Biodiversity Loss Worsened by Extinguishing Animal Innovators
Opinion: Biodiversity Loss Worsened by Extinguishing Animal Innovators

When species disappear, more than their genomes are lost. The potential for their creative innovation to benefit ecosystems vanishes as well.

When species disappear, more than their genomes are lost. The potential for their creative innovation to benefit ecosystems vanishes as well.

animal behavior, culture

WITH VIDEO
One chimpanzee has its hand on the ear of another, as it peers onto the back of its neck. A third chimpanzee is in the background.
Chimp Groups Have Their Own Distinct “Handshakes”
Robin Donovan | Jun 18, 2021 | 4 min read
A 12-year study shows variation among primate groups in how the animals clasp hands during grooming, but consistency within them, even as group membership shifts over time.
Book Excerpt from The Nature of Fear
Daniel T. Blumstein | Oct 21, 2020 | 4 min read
In the book’s prologue, author Daniel T. Blumstein explains his introduction to the study of fear.
Opinion: What Animals Can Teach Us About Fear
Daniel T. Blumstein | Oct 1, 2020 | 3 min read
Fear binds us to our human and nonhuman ancestors. Understanding the emotion can help us grapple with challenges we face today.
super navigators david barrie
Making Sense of Magnetic Navigation
David Barrie | Jun 1, 2019 | 3 min read
A new book about remarkable feats of migration by animals explores the front lines of research into how they do it.
How One Wild Dolphin’s Trick Became a Fad
Ashley Yeager | Dec 1, 2018 | 4 min read
After release from rehab, bottlenose Billie started walking on water with her tail. Studying how the behavior spread could offer clues about how animals learn from each other.
When Should Service Dogs Be Admitted into the Lab?
Jef Akst | Nov 1, 2018 | 10+ min read
Becoming a neuroscientist with a service dog by your side presents numerous challenges. Joey Ramp, who went back to college to study her own post-traumatic stress disorder, is learning this the hard way.
The Challenges of Bringing Service Dogs into the Lab
Jef Akst | Sep 18, 2018 | 10+ min read
Joey Ramp went back to college to study post-traumatic stress disorder. But the dogs that help her manage her own PTSD complicate her research career.
How Moral Disgust Can Simultaneously Protect and Endanger Humanity
Robert Sapolsky | Jun 1, 2017 | 3 min read
The human brain’s insular cortex is adept at registering distaste for everything from rotten fruit to unfamiliar cultures.
Cannibalism: Not That Weird
Bill Schutt | Feb 1, 2017 | 3 min read
Eating members of your own species might turn the stomach of the average human, but some animal species make a habit of dining on their own.
Notable Science Quotes
The Scientist | Sep 1, 2016 | 2 min read
Sensory discoveries, open-access publishing, and candidates on climate changes
Capsule Reviews
Bob Grant | May 1, 2016 | 4 min read
Sorting the Beef from the Bull, Cheats and Deceits, A Sea of Glass, and Following the Wild Bees
To Each Animal Its Own Cognition
Frans de Waal | May 1, 2016 | 3 min read
The study of nonhuman intelligence is coming into its own as researchers realize the unique contexts in which distinct species learn and behave.
Book Excerpt from Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are?
Frans de Waal | Apr 30, 2016 | 7 min read
In the book's prologue, author Frans de Waal considers the intellectual impediments to studying animal intelligence.
Speaking of Science
The Scientist | Jul 1, 2015 | 2 min read
July 2015's selection of notable quotes
Capsule Reviews
Bob Grant | Apr 1, 2015 | 3 min read
Junk DNA, Cuckoo, Sapiens, and Cool
Chimp Culture Caught on Camera
Bob Grant | Oct 1, 2014 | 2 min read
Researchers have captured footage of wild chimpanzees teaching each other to use tools, lending support to the idea that humans aren’t the only primates to engage in social learning.
On the Other Hand
Bob Grant | Sep 1, 2014 | 10+ min read
Handedness, a conspicuous but enigmatic human trait, may be shared by other animals. What does it mean for evolution and brain function?
Book Excerpt from The Drunken Monkey
Robert Dudley | May 31, 2014 | 4 min read
In Chapter 3, "On the Inebriation of Elephants," author Robert Dudley considers whether tales of tipsy pachyderms and bombed baboons have any basis in scientific truth.
Review: “Green Porno”
Ajai Raj | Jan 29, 2014 | 3 min read
Isabella Rossellini explores nature’s kinky side in a one-woman show.
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