Dolphins Identify by "Names"

New research shows that bottlenose dolphins have a unique signature whistle that they respond to by repeating that whistle back to the originator, ignoring other similar vocalizations and supporting evidence of a concept of identity with a distinct "name" for each individual animal.

Behavior of Watched Crickets

Researchers have demonstrated crickets change their own aggressive behavior when they are aware of being watched by other crickets, the first time such social behavior has been observed in invertebrates and revealing an unexpected depth of learning and memory in insects.

Insects Orient Using Stars

Scientists have demonstrated that dung beetles (superfamily Scarabaeoidea) use the gradient of light from the Milky Way to guide themselves and ensure they continue in a straight line, proving for the first time that insects can use stars for orientation.

Ocean Floor Communication

For the first time, researchers have recorded "rumbles" and frequencies beyond the range of human hearing of creatures such as mantis shrimp that live on the sea floor at depth, a largely unexplored field of benthic acoustics implying communications similar to a chorus of birds or frogs.