Nature and Science
•Animals, plants, planet •Small, digestible science explanations
How coral reefs time mass spawning with the moon
Watching the reef “snow” On some nights, a reef can look calm right up until it suddenly turns into a slow-motion blizzard.
Why pumice rafts let plants and insects colonize distant islands
Seeing “floating rock” in the real world It sounds wrong at first. Rock shouldn’t drift across the ocean like driftwood.
Why raindrops make different sounds on metal and wood
Hearing it happen Stand under a porch in Seattle or Mumbai, or wait out a shower at a bus stop in London, and you can hear it right away.
The orchid that mimics a female moth down to the scent molecules
A flower that smells like an insect People don’t usually think of orchids as having anything to do with moths.
How electric eels prevent self-shock while stacking thousands of volts
If you ever shuffled across carpet and sparked a doorknob, you probably noticed something odd: the spark hurts, but you don’t “electrocute yourself” just.
The bacterium in subway tiles that glows under blue light
Why subway tiles can glow under blue light Someone points a blue “blacklight” at a tiled wall in a subway station and a few spots flare up.
How electric fish create private radio channels underwater
A quiet kind of underwater noise People picture rivers as loud places: rushing water, rain, insects.
The ant species that farms aphid livestock across fields
Seeing “livestock” on a plant Watch a bean plant for a minute in a garden, a meadow edge, or an orchard, and you might notice ants moving with a strange.
Why alpine plants curl their leaves at night
Not all alpine plants do it, but you can watch it happen If you spend a night near the timberline in the Alps or the Colorado Rockies, some small plants.
Why bioluminescent plankton pulse when ships pass
What you see from the deck Watch a boat move through dark water and you can get a strange effect: the wake doesn’t just glow, it seems to flash in beats.
