New Scientist

A hybrid grolar bear saga is unfolding in the Arctic, and the tale of this strange family has much to tell us about nature on our changing planet

From a dragonfly to marine organisms, photographer Michael Benson zoomed in with powerful scanning electron microscopes to take these extraordinary shots for his book Nanocosmos

Nearly three decades since the remarkable cloning of Dolly the sheep, it has all gone quiet on the human cloning front. Michael Le Page wonders what's happening behind the scenes

Camera traps in an area of the Leuser rainforest patrolled by NGOs spotted 17 tigers in 2023 and 18 Sumatran tigers in 2024, while surveys elsewhere on the island averaged seven

Duelling prairie chickens, a snake-mimicking moth and a once-a-year sunrise at the South Pole feature in the best images from the Royal Society Publishing Photography Competition 2025

Pet owners' increasing tendency to see their animals as children rather than dogs or cats can have dire consequences. Owners, and veterinarians, should be wary, warns Eddie Clutton

We have long struggled to determine how the first living organisms on Earth came together. Now, surprising evidence hints that poorly understood prions may have been the vital missing ingredient

Vets have developed a training protocol to help cats benefit from water-based rehabilitation therapies, in spite of their natural aversion to water

Domestic cats originated in North Africa and spread to Europe in the past 2000 years, according to DNA evidence, while in China a different species of cat lived alongside people much earlier

Chytrid fungus is a scourge to global amphibian populations, but before it kills some frogs, it can produce symptoms that may help the infected animals find mates and spread the fungus further

Captive giant pandas have been seen breaking off twigs and bamboo pieces to scratch hard-to-reach spots, using a crude opposable thumb that other bears don’t have

Hoverflies, often mistaken for bees and wasps, pollinate three quarters of our crops. Now we’re discovering we can train them to be even more efficient

See some of the winning entries for this year's Oceania Photo Contest, including Miesa Grobbelaar's shot of a whale, which took the top prize

Analysis of the DNA and proteins of a range of animals has revealed that sperm’s molecular toolkit arose in our single-celled ancestors, perhaps more than a billion years ago

From woolly mammoths to giant sloths, via some lesser-known ice-age beasts like 'killer koalas', the visuals in this documentary are simply astounding

Around 1000 markings on a slab of rock that was once a seafloor during the Cretaceous period may have been made by sea turtle flippers and swiftly buried by an earthquake

Astronauts strapped moss spores to the outside of the International Space Station for nine months - and most of them survived the challenging experience

Scientists have observed mice helping each other when they encounter difficulties during birth, prompting a rethink of caregiving among rodents and other animals 

Botanist James Wong is constantly asked if he plays music to his army of plants. Time to put this notion to the test...

The books, TV, games and more that New Scientist staff have enjoyed this week