Biology

Bowhead whales were known to live up to 200 years, and a new study finds that southern right whales may live up to age 150 if they aren’t being hunted

A planned octopus farm is facing opposition. Here’s why

Three-dimensional models of Australopithecus afarensis hint at the muscular adaptations that made modern humans better runners

The huge Stegosaurus fossil Apex, bought at auction for $44.6 million, has debuted on loan at the American Museum of Natural History

Material from asteroid Ryugu riddled with earthly microbes provides a cautionary tale for scientists seeking signs of alien life

The burps, barks and snorts humpback whales make when asking their mother for milk are the first recorded instances of begginglike behavior in a baleen whale

Studies of great apes hint at why and when clowning behavior evolved

Earth’s deadliest mass extinctions have important commonalities—and significant differences

Scientific racism today must be seen and rejected for what it truly is—a hollow attempt to dress discrimination in the garb of science and reason

From periods of rapid aging in our 40s and 60s to ancient brains that don’t decompose, here are some of the year’s most intriguing stories about human biology

Evolution is often depicted as a steady forward march from simple to complex forms. But new research shows that certain ferns can evolve “backward”

From a comb jelly with two butts to wing-slapping ants, this animal research made us laugh this year