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Yes, butterflies can taste with their feet. Many butterflies have specialized chemical sensors called gustatory sensilla on their legs, particularly on the lower foot segments known as tarsi. When a butterfly lands on a leaf or flower, these sensors can detect certain chemicals on the surface. For f
How do bats navigate in darkness? Discover how echolocation works, why bats use ultrasonic calls, how they catch insects, and whether bats can see.
Sloths move so slowly because their bodies are adapted to conserve energy. Their low-energy diets, unusually low metabolic rates, slow digestion, and economical methods of regulating body temperature all favor a lifestyle built around careful, deliberate movement. Sloths are not simply lazy animals.
How do octopuses change color? Discover how chromatophores, reflective cells and skin papillae help octopuses camouflage and communicate.
Yes, whales sleep, but they do not sleep exactly like humans. Whales are air-breathing mammals, so they must continue reaching the surface to breathe while resting. Research on dolphins and other cetaceans has revealed an unusual pattern called unihemispheric slow-wave sleep, in which one side of th
Yes, birds can smell. Most birds possess an olfactory system, although their sensitivity to odors varies widely among species. Turkey vultures can use smell to locate carrion, some albatrosses and petrels detect airborne chemical signals associated with ocean food webs, and kiwi birds use both smell
Why do fireflies glow? Learn how luciferin and luciferase produce light, why lightning bugs flash to find mates, and how light pollution affects them.
Why do cats knead blankets and people? Learn why cats make biscuits, what it means when they purr, and when kneading might signal stress.
Why do chameleons change color? Learn how skin nanocrystals create color, why chameleons signal to rivals, and how temperature affects their appearance.
Why do bees dance? Discover how honeybees use the waggle dance to communicate food direction and distance, and what young bees must learn.
Yes, some frogs can survive being frozen and become active again after thawing. The best-known example is the wood frog (Lithobates sylvaticus), which can tolerate ice forming in substantial portions of its body during winter. Its heartbeat and circulation may become undetectable during freezing, bu
Are dinosaurs reptiles? Learn how dinosaur hips, legs and ancestry set them apart, why pterosaurs aren't dinosaurs, and which dinosaurs survive today.
Yes, birds are dinosaurs. Modern birds are the only surviving branch of dinosaurs and evolved from small, feathered theropod ancestors during the Mesozoic Era. Scientific evidence from fossils, skeletal anatomy, feathers, eggs, and evolutionary relationships establishes that birds belong within the
Fish need water to survive, but scientists do not know whether they experience thirst in the same subjective way humans do. Most marine bony fish regularly drink seawater because they lose water to their salty surroundings. Freshwater bony fish face the opposite problem: water continually enters the
The tripod fish is a remarkable deep-sea fish that can stand above the ocean floor using three extraordinarily long fin extensions. One of the best-known species, Bathypterois grallator, rests on two elongated pelvic-fin rays and an extended ray from the lower part of its tail fin. It faces into the
Is a snake a reptile or amphibian? Learn why snakes are reptiles, how their scales, lungs, eggs and evolution differ from frogs and salamanders.
Why do crows gather in huge groups at dusk? Discover communal roosting, predator protection, food information, and why winter crow flocks grow so large.
Why do penguins huddle together? Discover how emperor penguins save heat, move in coordinated waves, and survive Antarctica's winter.