Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) Image from Wikimedia Commons The call of the Red-winged Blackbird is a familiar sound of the wetlands. Listen to the call of the Male Red-winged Blackbird

“An elephant never forgets”, this is a saying we might hear often, but it is not completely correct. It is true elephants have excellent memory abilities, it is a superior skill for the creatures and has been able to keep them and their herds alive in many difficult climates on Earth. Wild elephants are able to enjoy long lives, around 70 years, and travel large distances, hundreds of miles at a time.

Common Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius) Image from Wikimedia Commons

A piece of digital art I made of the Forested Crested Toad in all its glory. This here, is a strange toad, it is physically different from any other species that you may encounter in the rest of the world. If you are in North America (north of Guatemala and Belize) then you’re probably seeing members of Anaxyrus (other than the occasional…

European Green Toad (Bufotes viridis) Image from Wikimedia Commons Listen to the call of the European Green Toad.

Saddle-Billed Stork (Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis) Image from Wikimedia Commons

Did you know that octopuses can open a jar in under a minute? It might sound impossible, but it’s true! This is just one example of the many surprising talents an Octopus possesses. From being able to recognize people to solving puzzles, this animal demonstrates significant intelligence. Let’s explore what makes these creatures so remarkable! Image of a still common octopus…

Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) Image from Wikimedia Commons Read more about this species here.

Ancient Frog (Palaeobatrachus grandipes) Image from Wikimedia Commons

What is an Axolotl? The Axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum) is a unique amphibian that comes from the lake areas of Mexico City. Unlike most salamanders, which grow out of their baby stage and move onto land, the axolotl stays in its juvenile form for its entire life. The Axolotl is an important animal for scientists as it stays young forever and can regrow major body parts, and can be able to study development, evolution, and new treatments.

Image from Wikimedia Commons We all know the Greek myth of the Trojan horse – the wooden horse used by the Greeks to defeat the city of Troy. What if we could use a “Trojan Horse” to combat and provide a treatment for cancer? Research at Columbia Engineering has built a cancer treatment that uses both bacteria and viruses to accurately target and kill cancerous tumors.

Black Pegasus (Pegasus bellerophon) Image from pngimg.com Did you think they'd all be real organisms?

When people think about deadly viruses, names like Ebola, HIV, or even COVID-19 usually get all the attention. But there's another virus out there that is just as dangerous, even though most people have never even heard of it. That virus is called Marburg. Although it doesn't make headlines like Ebola does, it is a part of the same viral family…

Image from Wikimedia Commons Have you ever heard someone say “ I need to sneeze” and then that person proceeds to look up at the sun or overhead lights? Or have you ever continuously sneezed after your eyes meeting the sun even for a brief moment? Well, that is called phonic sneeze reflex. Phonic sneeze reflex is known by many names, one of them being autosomal dominant compelling helio-ophthalmic outburst syndrome or its widely known acronym "ACHOO syndrome."

West Indian Manatee (Trichechus manatus) Image from Wikimedia Commons Read more about this species here.

When people hear the term “dire wolf” many will think of the animal on the coat of arms of the fictional “House Stark” in the renowned show Game of Thrones. However, more recently, dire wolves have been in the news for supposedly being brought back to life. On April 7th, 2025 the company Colossal Labs claimed to bring back direwolves through the scientific process of de-extinction.

Deserts are not fixed areas and naturally shift over time, growing and shrinking due to various natural processes. This is easily observable on an individual level. For instance, on flat, sandy beaches (areas with similar physical geographies to deserts), one may notice sand is lifted and thrown by the wind, resulting in natural changes in the shape and elevation of the beach.

Migraine headaches are a relatively common disorder affecting more than a billion people globally. They can present with significant variance in symptoms, severity, and triggers, and though they have been studied since the days of Ancient Egypt, there are many aspects of the condition that are not fully understood. One key characteristic of migraines is that they tend to develop over the course of multiple days and they do so through…

Image from Wikimedia Commons A very important field of engineering is genetic engineering and not many people know about it. Genetic engineering is a manipulation of an organism’s genes by using technology and other processes to change its genetic makeup. This process is important because it is used to improve medicine by producing life saving drugs, enhancing agriculture by helping create more nutritious crops, and advancing scientific research by looking at different gene functions.

Central American Smilisca (Smilisca phaeota) Image from Wikimedia Commons Listen to the call of the Central American Smilisca

Great Indian Hornbill (Buceros bicornis) Image from Wikimedia Commons

Imagine yourself winter-fishing at your favorite Johnson County-run lake with your family, and the fish at the end of your line is a beautiful Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). You instantly start admiring its sleek, colorful, and wild look. The thing is, it's not wild. What you may not realize is that this fish has spent its entire life in a hatchery, where food is abundant, and predators are non-existent.

On the 23rd of December, 2025, I was admitted to the hospital and underwent surgery for the removal of a perennial fistula: one of the many symptoms those who live with Crohn’s disease may face daily. Along with other symptoms, like stomach pain and excessive weight loss, this is the reality for many who have some variation of Crohn’s disease. Crohn’s disease, a type of…

Woolly Mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) skeleton Image from Wikimedia Commons Read more about wooly mammoths here.

Image from Wikimedia Commons From Garfield, to Puss in Boots, to your neighbor’s crazy cat, orange cats are everywhere in society and in the media. Because of this, it’s common knowledge to many cat-loving people that orange cats are, shall we say, special (i.e. they have earned themselves a reputation as colorful as their fur). Now, though, two separate studies done by a…