Stories by Cody Cottier

Dolphins seem to “feel” their way across the sea with narrow, sweeping beams of sonar

New research shows father-daughter relationships have a positive influence on female baboons’ lives—when the dads stick around

This tally of animals’ effect on Earth’s geology, equivalent to that of thousands of extreme floods, most likely is an underestimate

Inuit languages really do have many words for snow, linguists found—and other languages have conceptual specialties, too, potentially revealing what a culture values

Bacterial genes protect animals—and their predators—from harmful contamination

Discarded authors Sarah Gabbott and Jan Zalasiewicz, observers of the geological past, look into the future

The third confirmed location of extinct hominins known as Denisovans shows these human cousins adapted to an impressive range of environments

Bonobos’ grunts, peeps and whistles may share an advanced linguistic property with human language

Charged water droplets generate sparks that can forge organic compounds

Humpback whales learn their haunting melodies in much the same way humans learn words

The land, water and air around us are chock-full of DNA from fungi that scientists can’t identify