Look at the underside of a fern leaf. Those rows of orange clusters aren’t tiny insects; they’re spores waiting to be catapulted away. Once a spore lands, it grows into a tiny plant, from whi...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2024/04/16/watch-ferns-get-freaky/
Tiny marine flatworms called acoels hunt for prey in coral reefs. They're referred to as “plant-animals'' because they've got a partnership with photosynthetic algae that live inside of them. B...
Sharpshooters survive by guzzling a lot of plant sap. But drinking all of that liquid nutrition presents a problem for these tiny insects: How do they move it all out? Easy. They've perfected a s...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2024/02/27/sharpshooter-insects-are-real-wizzes-at-whizzing/
When the moon, sun and ocean temperatures all align, an underwater "snowstorm" occurs. Corals put on a massive spawning spectacle, by sending tiny white spheres floating up the water column all a...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2024/02/06/to-survive-corals-turn-the-ocean-into-a-giant-snow-globe/
Ever wonder how those tiny, jumpy flies got onto your bathroom wall? Well, they came out of your sink drain after growing up down in the pipes. A goofy, long 'mustache,' fuzzy wings and some aqua...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2024/01/16/a-drain-flys-happy-place-is-down-your-pipes/
When grown-up jellyfish love each other very much, they make huge numbers of teeny-tiny potato-shaped larvae. Those larvae grow into little polyps that cling to rocks and catch prey with their st...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/12/19/mom-where-do-baby-jellyfish-come-from/
Like its name suggests, the brown dog tick dines on dog blood. But as temperatures rise, they're more likely to feast on you, too. That's a problem, because the brown dog tick is a vector for Roc...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/11/28/dog-ticks-are-changing-their-diet-youre-on-the-menu/
This fuzzy acorn weevil can’t crack open acorns like a woodpecker or chomp through them like a squirrel. Instead, she uses her incredibly long snout, called a rostrum, to power-drill through an...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/11/14/this-weevil-has-puppet-vibes-but-drills-like-a-power-tool/
Every year, up to half the honeybee colonies in the U.S. die. Varroa mites, the bees’ ghastly parasites, are one of the main culprits. After hitching a ride into a hive, a mite mom hides in a h...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/10/24/varroa-mites-are-a-honeybees-8-legged-nightmare/
Ladybugs may be the cutest insects around, but they don't start off that way. Also called ladybird beetles or ladybirds, they pop out of their eggs as prickly mini-monsters with an insatiable hun...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/10/03/watch-ladybugs-go-from-goth-to-glam/
Do cockroaches — those daring, disgusting disease vectors — have anything at all to offer us? Scientists think so. They compressed American roaches with a hydraulic press, subjecting them to ...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/09/14/cockroach-vs-hydraulic-press-who-wins/
Covered in a shiny bubble, the alkali fly scuba dives into the harsh waters of Mono Lake. Thanks to an abundance of hair and water-repellent wax, this remarkable insect remains dry while embarkin...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/08/24/this-daring-fly-swims-in-a-shimmering-bubble-shield/
Here's the science behind bioluminescence, and where you can see it for yourself in the Bay Area.
A “bee fly” looks a bit like a bee, but it’s a freeloader that takes advantage of a bindweed turret bee’s hard work. The bees dig underground nests and fill them with pollen they collect ...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/08/01/this-fly-torpedoes-a-bindweed-bees-nest/
Trash from humans is constantly spilling into the ocean — so much so that there are five gigantic garbage patches in the seas. They hang out at the nexus of the world's ocean currents, changing...
Most of the sea snails in a tide pool cruise around searching for food. But not the scaled wormsnail. It cements its shell to a rock and snags its meals using the one thing a snail has plenty of:...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/07/11/this-snail-goes-fishing-with-a-net-made-of-slime/
Estimated to have inhabited Devils Hole in Death Valley for the last 10,000 years, the Devils Hole pupfish is an endangered species that has proven incredibly resilient.
Step right up to see tiny springtails spin through the air with the greatest of ease! In ponds and streams, they skyrocket out of the reach of hungry insects like water striders by slapping a tai...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/06/20/springtails-do-their-own-stunts/
No suction cups, no Velcro, no glue. Geckos navigate nearly any surface with something far cooler: an electron dance at the atomic scale.
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/05/30/gecko-grip-its-atomic-really/
Forty years after California condors were on the brink of extinction, aggressive conservation efforts and breeding-in-captivity programs remain as essential as ever.
To us, a snake's forked tongue evokes danger and deceit. But the tongue's two sensitive tips, called tines, actually help the snake smell in stereo. That's bad news if you're a mouse ...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/05/09/why-do-snakes-have-forked-tongues/
Bird’s nest fungi look just like a tiny bird's nest. But those little eggs have no yolks. Each one is a spore sac waiting for a single raindrop to catapult it on a journey with a layover inside...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/04/18/this-mushroom-can-fly/
How are frogs and toads so amazing at catching bugs? They smack ’em with a supersoft tongue covered in special spit.
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/03/28/toad-tongues-slay-with-seriously-sticky-spit/
Mussels create byssal threads, known as the mussel's "beard," to attach themselves to rocks and each other. They use their sensitive foot to mold the threads from scratch and apply a waterproof a...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/03/07/yep-mussels-grow-beards-with-their-feet/
Earthworms know a thing or two about romance. They cozy up with a mate inside tubes of slime, then follow a series of intricate steps to make cocoons full of baby worms.
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2023/02/14/earthworm-love-is-cuddly-and-complicated/
Asian citrus psyllids transmit a disease that can ruin your oranges. Even worse, Argentine ants protect them in exchange for the psyllids’ delicate ribbons of sugary poop, called honeydew. So, ...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2022/12/13/citrus-psyllids-bribe-ants-with-strings-of-candy-poop/
Oblique streaktail hoverflies zip from bloom to bloom wearing a wasp costume to avoid getting eaten. But it’s all show – they don’t even have stingers! Their fierce maggots, on the other ha...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2022/11/22/how-hoverflies-spawn-maggots-that-sweeten-your-oranges/
If videos of the creepiest creatures and fungi aren't on your YouTube Halloween watchlist, then you’re missing out.
Monarchs are locked in a battle with Ophryocystis elektroscirrha (OE), a parasite that can trap a butterfly in its own chrysalis and deform its beautiful wings. Turns out there is a right way, an...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2022/10/11/this-nasty-parasite-is-ruining-monarch-butterfly-wings/
During hurricane season, residents of impacted states sometimes have the added misfortune of wading into large groups of floating red fire ants. Those ants are ready to sting and inject a nasty v...
https://ww2.kqed.org/science/2022/09/27/fire-ants-turn-their-babies-into-a-stinging-life-raft/