Wildlife

The Belled Viper

Even hunters of timber rattlers now admit that these snakes are shy, placid — and very fragile

December 1, 1997

Mustangs on the Move

Without free-roaming bands of wild horses, the American West just wouldn't be the same

November 1, 1997

Claws

In Down East Maine, the lobster means more than seafood

September 30, 1997

Here, Birds Are Unafraid

Galápagos seabirds tolerate human spectators, and crabs in Panama ignore cars (but hide from trucks)

September 1997

An Ant's Life is No Picnic

August 1997

For Rescue Dogs "Nothing's Better Than a Live Find"

July 31, 1997

Nature's Own Pooper-Scoopers Keep Earth Livable for All of Us

If it were not for dung beetles, members of the scarab family, every terrestrial organism would be up to its eyeballs in you know what

May 31, 1997

Condors: Back From the Brink

Hopes for the endangered vultures' survival soared recently after six captive birds were released on a clifftop in the Arizona wilds

May 1997

Everyone Knows the Dragon Is Only a Mythical Beast

But try telling that to the people who live on a few islands in Indonesia where several thousand real dragons subsist in the wild

April 1, 1997

An Orphanage for Some Big Babies

Daphne Sheldrick has turned her Nairobi home into a nursery and rehabilitation center for infant elephants who have lost their families

March 1997

Phenomena, Comment and Notes

As scientists probe deeper into whether animals really have consciousness, questions arise. If they think, do we want to know what they think about us?

February 1997

You Can Call Him 'Cute' or You Can Call Him 'Hungry'

The much-maligned weasel is always on the lookout for something to eat, and the rest of us should be grateful he usually finds it

February 1, 1997

When Uncle Sam's "Fish Cops" Reel in a Suspect, He's Usually a Keeper

Agents of the National Marine Fisheries Service often work undercover gathering the evidence needed to make arrests stick

February 1, 1997

Feathered Fights of Fancy

No ordinary fowl, these birds have been bred for visual delight. For many an owner, they are just too pretty to eat

January 1997

When One of the National Zoo's Gorillas Goes In For Tests, It's Not Just Standard Operating-Room Procedure

By discovering heart disease early, echocardiograms have improved life; now Washington cardiologists are using them to help great apes at the National Zoo

January 1997

Following the Footsteps of Fox and Bear

Naturalist-sleuth Susan Morse and her fellow conservationists at Keeping Track monitor wildlife in order to pinpoint critical habitat

January 1, 1997

Around the Mall & Beyond

Since her arrival in September, baby Chitwan has charmed visitors and curators alike. This is the first birth of a rhino at the National Zoo since 1974

December 1996

The Dogs That Go to Work, and Play, All Day -- for Science

Geneticist Jasper Rine and his colleagues launched the Dog Genome Initiative to elucidate both canine genes and behavior

November 1, 1996

The Object at Hand

It took four years, a shipwright and help from the British to create the blue whale model installed in the National Museum of Natural History

October 1996

At the 'Mayo Clinic for Animals,' the Extraordinary Is Routine

New York's renowned veterinary hospital takes on almost anything, from a constricted boa to a mite-infested mouse to an anemic iguana

October 1996