In the late 1880s, Ida B. Wells-Barnett began her journalism career and served as a newspaper editor and civil rights activist. Wells-Barnett's accomplishment is just one example of the rich history of Black journalism in the United States. That history is preserved by the National Association of Black Journalists, which was founded in Washington, DC, in 1975 to support Black media professionals and honor people like Wells-Barnett.

Animal foraging theory (OFT) holds that animals' foraging behaviors reflect cost-benefit trade-offs that vary by species and with dynamic ecological circumstances. One such circumstance is lunar intensity, which Alexander Lang and colleagues found to be negatively associated with foraging by white-throated round-eared bats but Patricia C. Wright found to be positively associated with foraging by three-striped night monkeys. This discrepancy is explicable in terms of OFT: the monkeys' greater reliance on vision means that higher lunar intensity benefits them more than it benefits the bats.

Can field mustard plants grow on Mars? Can pea plants? You might think the answer to these questions is obviously no, but researchers in the Netherlands recently showed that the seeds of many common plant species can germinate in soil designed to simulate Martian conditions, as long as water is supplied. In fact, some species actually do better in Martian soil than in Earth soil: 30 percent of field mustard seeds sprouted when planted in simulated Martian soil, compared with 4 percent that did when planted in soil from their home planet.

Why do flat-headed cats purr but jaguars roar? Researchers hypothesize that this difference between the two feline species may be partly due to a U-shaped bone in their throats called the hyoid. Flat-headed cats, which are much smaller than jaguars, have a rigid hyoid that rumbles when the cat's larynx vibrates, resulting in a purr. By contrast, jaguars have a somewhat flexible hyoid, and the bone is attached to the skull with a stretchy ligament that flat headed cats lack. These traits allow jaguars and most other species of big cats to produce powerful roars. The same traits may also prevent most big cats from purring.

Through the Urban Wildlife Information Network, citizen scientists systematically document animals they observe in metropolitan areas. Participants record not just which species they see but also the species’ behaviors and nearby urban features, such as artificial lighting, buildings, and green spaces. The resulting database helps researchers understand how animals adapt to human-dominated landscapes and informs city planning and conservation efforts that benefit both people and wildlife.