Boars that encounter a wolf carcass will try to flee or fight the corpse, suggesting that sometimes dead predators can still influence their prey’s behaviour Wild boars can still be scared by a dead wolf. Not only are apex predators scary to prey animals, but their carcasses seem to be able to produce a scare that other dead animals can’t. Prey species behave differently depending on the presence or absence of predators in their environment, carefully navigating their world to reduce the risk of being eaten. Dead animals can also signal that a predator could be nearby, so some prey…

Just like people, the simple nematode worm Caenorhabditis elegans is driven to consume high-calorie food when its cannabinoid receptors are activated, hinting at a common signalling pathway for preventing starvation Nematode worms seek out high-calorie food after they consume a cannabis-like substance, much like people who get the “munchies” after smoking marijuana. The finding suggests that cannabis hijacks an important mechanism that has been conserved across the animal kingdom to help regulate appetite. In people, smoking or ingesting marijuana can lead to strong food cravings, particularly for high-calorie snacks like chocolate bars, a tendency known as the munchies. Read more:…

A parasitic microorganism with tiny hair-like structures over its body called a ciliate appears to be behind the mass die-off of long-spined sea urchins across the Caribbean The mystery killer behind a recent mass die-off of a once-common sea urchin species has been identified as a parasitic microorganism called a ciliate. Long-spined sea urchins (Diadema antillarum) once peppered Caribbean reefs in the millions, but in 1983 urchins began losing their spines, dying and vanishing from the reef within a matter of days. By the following year, 98 per cent of Caribbean long-spined sea urchins were gone. The urchins had been…

In some countries, including China, people are more likely to report being right handed if they are educated beyond secondary school level or live in a country where there may be a stigma around left-handedness Fewer than 3 per cent of people in China report being left-handed, despite the global average being closer to 10 per cent. Researchers think the difference is probably due to a continuing cultural stigma against left-handedness, which is less of an issue elsewhere, rather than genetics. Hugo Spiers at University College London and his colleagues are overseeing a long-running study that assesses people’s ability to…

Orchids seem unique in how they inspire such a devoted following, but why are these much-loved plants so diverse and widespread, wonders Penny Sarchet This is an extract from our Wild Wild Life email newsletter. Sign up to receive it for free in your inbox every month. THE announcement of a newly recognised orchid species in Japan prompted discussion among our UK news team recently. Spiranthes hachijoensis is undoubtedly beautiful, and it is always surprising to hear of new species in well-studied countries. But I couldn’t help being slightly cynical about this one, which is very similar to another known…

“When children read more, they learn to read better,” says Dominic Wyse at University College London. A young child who enjoys being read to is developing a love of books that will help motivate them to learn to read.

Procrastination can steal hours of our time, but the latest research has some answers about how to reduce it, finds David Robson in his new 60-second psychology column PROCRASTINATION, we are often told, is the “thief of time”. When I notice my days slipping away in some unfulfilling activity, I can’t help but feel a sense of loss for all I might have achieved and guilt for failing to keep that burglar at bay. According to the psychological research, our self-admonishment may only make it harder to break the habit, because procrastination is often a way of coping with stress…

More like a village than a city, Mastodon has less cruelty and bad-faith debates than Twitter, in my experience Could it be a social media platform to trust, asks Annalee Newitz IT HAS been nearly six months since Twitter’s transformation from iconic social media platform into the eccentric personal project of tech billionaire Elon Musk. I abandoned my account last November, save for work announcements – I didn’t want to stick around and watch the place fall apart. Still, I craved a digital hangout where I could connect with friends and colleagues, test out my half-baked ideas and look at…

this is a life demo

Chemical analysis of metal sculptures made in West Africa between the 16th and 19th centuries provides evidence that may reshape the understanding of Germany’s involvement with the Benin Bronzes The world-famous Benin Bronze artworks created by African metalsmiths between the 16th and 19th centuries were made of brass rings produced in Germany’s Rhineland region. These rings were used as currency in the transatlantic slave trade. The Edo people in what is now modern-day Nigeria created the Benin Bronzes in the shape of heads, plaques, figurines and other objects by combining metal components with carved ivory or wood. Researchers had previously…