Stories by Traci Watson

Hundreds of people at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have received layoff notices, and work at many federal laboratories has been suspended

Soft-tissue patterns on a well-preserved fossil suggest that elaborate spines helped dinosaurs to attract mates and communicate

Fossils from ancient hippo ancestor suggest that grass helped the animals to conquer a continent

Birds were spiritual emblems in pueblos of the southwestern U.S. and northern Mexico 

Teenage mother who lived 12,000 years ago was malnourished but still roamed widely 

The insects show sophisticated learning for non-bee–related tasks, and can even improve on what they are taught

The insects show sophisticated learning for non-bee–related tasks, and can even improve on what they are taught

Archaeologists worry that a museum exhibition will encourage exploitation of priceless historical sites

Tracking space rocks that reach Earth will give insight into the early solar system

Depictions of objects on a 3,000-year-old woman’s body may have had religious significance

Citing a communication breakdown, the radio telescope's director steps down

The sun and moon's disruptive presence appears to have kicked WT1190F onto a path that will lead the piece of space debris to self-destruct in Earth's atmosphere

Space agency pulls support for Sentinel mission as decision on rival nears

The B612 Foundation has only raised a small fraction of the estimated cost for its proposed "Sentinel" space telescope

Some experts say enclosures offer protection whereas others maintain they are a menace

Insectivorous species including yellow warblers cut damaging borer-beetle infestation by half in Costa Rica

Barbary macaques with lots of friends are more likely to live through natural disasters than those who are less gregarious