National Geographic News: Animals

Evolutionary Flop: Early 4-Footed Land Animal Was No Walker?

Dave Mosher — Fri, 25 May 2012 10:20:02 -0400

New 3-D models suggest that what's been seen as one of Earth's first land walkers was actually more of a flopper.

Magma Rise Sparked Life as We Know It?

Ken Croswell — Wed, 23 May 2012 17:46:34 -0400

Oxygen-breathing life exists on Earth today because of changes in the planet's magma 2.5 billion years ago, a new study says.

Can Sugar Make You Stupid? "High Concern" in Wake of Rat Study

Charles Q. Choi — Wed, 23 May 2012 15:39:01 -0400

Bingeing on fructose stunted memory and learning in rats, prompting "high concern" over unhealthy humans.

Fossil Ink Sacs Yield Jurassic Pigment—A First

Christine Dell'Amore — Mon, 21 May 2012 17:45:57 -0400

Still soft ink sacs from 160-million-year-old squidlike animals have yielded pigment matching that of modern cuttlefish.

Giant Killer Mice Decimating Rare Seabirds

Rachel Kaufman — Fri, 25 May 2012 10:37:56 -0400

Oversize house mice are consuming millions of endangered Atlantic petrels on the bird's only known breeding area, a new study confirms.

Slow-Mo Microbes Still Living off Dino-era "Lunch Box"

Christine Dell'Amore — Thu, 17 May 2012 17:17:35 -0400

Buried for 86 million years, a bacterial community lives so sluggishly it's still surviving on a "lunch box" from dino days, a new study says.

Prehistoric "Panda" Found in Spain—Giant Panda Has European Roots?

Christine Dell'Amore — Mon, 14 May 2012 17:26:57 -0400

A small fossil bear recently identified in Spain suggests China's giant panda has European roots, a new study says.

Runner's High Hardwired in People—And Dogs

Christine Dell'Amore — Thu, 10 May 2012 17:27:54 -0400

The pleasurable sensation known as "runner's high" may have motivated human and canine ancestors to build endurance, a new study says.

Biggest Crocodile Found—Fossil Species Ate Humans Whole?

Christine Dell'Amore — Tue, 08 May 2012 17:35:40 -0400

The 27-foot-long predator may have ambushed early humans in what's now Kenya, a new study says.

"Zombie Ant" Fungus Under Attack—By Another Fungus

Christine Dell'Amore — Fri, 04 May 2012 21:57:54 -0400

Besieged by a fungus that takes over their brains then erupts from their heads, rain forest ants have an unlikely ally—another fungus.

Glowing Pygmy Shark Lights Up to Fade Away

Helen Scales — Thu, 03 May 2012 00:05:30 -0400

In what may sound like soggy logic, the smalleye pygmy shark hides in the dark by lighting up, a new study says.

White Killer Whale Spotted—Only One in the World?

Christine Dell'Amore — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 13:24:29 -0400

Iceberg the Orca may be the only known white adult killer whale, and his strange skin color remains a mystery.

New Species: Bumblebee Gecko Strikingly Striped

Christine Dell'Amore — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 18:23:39 -0400

The latest buzz in reptiledom—a strikingly striped lizard—comes from a little-explored Pacific island.

Fish Glow Green After Genetic Engineering

Brian Handwerk — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 16:01:45 -0400

A genetically engineered fish that glows green from the inside out is helping illuminate what pollutants do inside the body.

Emperor Penguins Counted From Space—A First

Christine Dell'Amore — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 13:06:57 -0400

New satellite images show the population of emperor penguins in Antarctica has doubled since 1992, scientists report.

"Strawberry" Leopard Discovered—A First

Christine Dell'Amore — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:21:08 -0400

The rare South Africa leopard probably has erythrism, a condition that causes a pinkish coat, experts say.

Drug-Resistant Bacteria Found in 4-Million-Year-Old Cave

Dave Mosher — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 16:49:06 -0400

Deep in a pristine New Mexico cave, scientists have discovered nearly a hundred types of bacteria that can fight modern antibiotics.

One-Ton Feathered Dinosaur Found: Fluffy and Fierce

Ker Than — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 17:03:54 -0400

As long as a bus but downy soft in chicklike plumage, Yutyrannus was by far the biggest feathered animal known, a new study says.

"Lost" Long-Fingered Frog Found in Africa

Christine Dell'Amore — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 14:27:59 -0400

In a handy stroke of luck, scientists have rediscovered a "lost" African species: the Bururi long-fingered frog.

Bizarre "King of Wasps" Found in Indonesia

Dave Mosher — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 18:32:45 -0400

Males of the venomous wasps have large, spiked jaws— perhaps to protect their young, a new study says.

Whales Have Sonar "Beam" for Targeting Prey

Christine Dell'Amore — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 18:10:53 -0400

Precision sound "beams" let whales focus on fast prey in the dark ocean, a new study says.

Viking Invaders Brought Armies of Mice

Christine Dell'Amore — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 17:52:39 -0400

Vikings who conquered new lands unwittingly brought with them another sort of invader, a new DNA study says—mice.

"Hot Bee Balls" Cook Enemy Hornets—But How Do Bees Endure the Heat?

Dave Mosher — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 14:27:49 -0400

Japanese honeybees swarm to cook enemy hornets, but how do they survive the heat themselves? A new brain study may have the answer.

Giant Squid's Basketball-Size Eyes Have Sperm Whale Vision

Brian Handwerk — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 17:46:40 -0400

Colossal and giant squid eyes—the world's biggest—seem to have a "superpower" Captain Ahab might have killed for: sperm whale vision.

Crocodiles Have Strongest Bite Ever Measured, Hands-on Tests Show

Brian Handwerk — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 15:34:18 -0400

An "extraordinary" new study—based on treacherous hands-on measurements—suggests crocs are "force-generating machines" rivaling T. rex.