Stuart Blackman

Recent articles by Stuart Blackman

Kenyi cichlid Maylandia lombardoi aquarium fish swimming

It’s official – fish can count

Black-handed spider monkey © Kryssia Campos/Getty

Do monkeys get drunk? Scientists find out the truth

Boa constrictor feeding on lizard, Tijuca Forest National Park, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. © Vitor Marigo/Aurora Photos/Getty

How do boa constrictors eat and breathe at the same time?

Global warming is affecting the migratory behaviour of swallows. © Amy Lewis

Swallows overwintering in Britain rather than migrating back to Africa

Diamondback rattlesnake coiled on a dirt road.

The origin of pieces: 9 amazing ways animals have evolved

Orcas killing blue whale

First records of orcas seen killing and eating blue whales

Orangutan_Bas-Vermolen_Getty-Gunung-Leuser-National-Park-Sumatra-Indonesia_623-a2b4c7c

Are there any ticklish animals?

A jaguar amongst vegetation looks towards the camera

Jaguars of the Pantanal prove to be more sociable than elsewhere

Crown shyness, where tree branches don't overlap. © Jordan Lye/Getty Images

Biological terms glossary: definitions, with examples

Eurasian water shrew. © Creative Nature NL/Getty

Eurasian water shrew guide: diet, how they’re adapted to water and why they’re venomous

A child in a forest glade on a summer day in northern Sweden (Västerbotten). © Marcus Lindstrom/Getty

Greenery boosts children’s immune systems

A North American beaver drags small birch branch toward lodge in pond near Wonder Lake on autumn evening, Denali National Park, Alaska, USA. © Paul Souders/Getty

Beavers’ activities can create oases and limit spread of US wildfires

Elephants in Botswana. © Getty

Male elephants’ educational role more crucial than previously thought

California two-spot octopus. © Phil Garner/Alamy

Insects & Invertebrates

Why do female octopuses die after reproducing?

Thistle-down velvet ant. © Joseph S. Wilson

Remarkable similarity between fluffy ant and fruit is not due to mimicry