American Museum of Natural History

09/29/2020

Here’s a fun coffee fact to consider this National Coffee Day. Have you ever heard of “civet coffee?” It’s coffee that has been harvested from the poop of the Malayan civet (Viverra tangalunga)! Part of this mostly nocturnal omnivore’s diet includes coffee cherries; when consumed, it digests the flesh of the fruit, and then excretes the beans! This critter is native to Southeast Asia, where it lives in a variety of habitats, including forests and grasslands. It’s a member of the Viverridae family, which includes more than 30 species of civets, genets, linsangs, and binturongs across Southeast Asia and Africa.
Photo: Cloudtail the Snow Leopard, flickr

09/29/2020

To remember frequented paths and keep track of its territory, the red river hog (Potamochoerus porcus) scrapes tree trunks and uses scent marks. It spends the majority of its time in search of food, leveraging its sharp sense of smell to track down snacks like fruits, seeds, grasses, and nuts. It isn’t a picky eater and may even eat carrion or elephant dung if there are undigested seeds in it. This clever swine is native to parts of western and central Africa and Madagascar, where it lives in a variety of habitats such as forests, savannas, and swamps.
Photo: Rufus46, CC-BY-SA-3.0, Wikimedia Commons

09/28/2020

Meet the Agami Heron (Agamia agami)! You can find this bird in wetland habitats in parts of Central and South America, specifically around the Amazon and Orinoco rivers—if you can spot it, that is. One might think that this bird’s ornate plumage would make it easy to find, but it’s known to keep super still for extended periods of time, making it difficult to discern. It often stands motionless in or along shallow water, waiting for prey, like fish, to come near. Then its long, powerful neck darts out to strike.
Photo: Chris Jimenez, flickr

09/28/2020

In honor of Katmai National Park & Preserve's #FatBearWeek, we’re highlighting a couple of the Museum’s heftiest bears: the Alaska brown bears! Did you know? Thanks to nutrient-rich salmon, brown bears on the Alaska Peninsula coast and islands are some of the largest terrestrial carnivores today. Brown bears that live inland (such as the grizzly bears) eat mainly plants—and can be half the size. This diorama features two bears who have gathered at a stream near Canoe Bay, Alaska, lured by the first fish of the salmon run. The millions of salmon that swim upstream each summer are a huge boon for bears, helping them regain body mass after winter hibernation.
Photo: © AMNH

09/28/2020

Cotton ball or bat? It’s the Honduran white bat (Ectophylla alba)! Scientists think that the white fur on this 1.5 inch (3.8-centimeter)- long bat helps to camouflage it when it’s roosting under a leaf. How so? When sunlight hits the foliage, it casts a green tinge on the bat’s white fur, allowing it to better blend in with its surroundings! This fruit-eating bat is also known for building its own leaf tents, cutting a leaf along the midrib so that the sides fold down to create cover. It usually seeks out leaves with a waxy surface for a waterproof shelter.
Photo: EricksonSmith, flickr

09/27/2020

Did you know? The Amur leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis) is the northernmost subspecies of all leopards. It once ranged from the Amur River Basin, at the border between eastern Russia and northeastern China, to the Korean peninsula. But today the critically endangered cat is found mostly in the Russian Far East. Well adapted to the extreme cold, it has a pale, thick coat of fur with hair that can grow to up to 2.7 inches (7 centimeters) long in the winter—longer than its counterparts in warmer climates!
Photo: smerikal, flickr; Amur leopard cub pictured

09/27/2020

Behold, the queen triggerfish (Balistes vetula)! This vibrant ocean dweller lives around coral reefs along the eastern and western Atlantic Ocean. When being pursued by a predator, this fish will seek shelter in a crevice and clinch its dorsal fin tightly against the walls. By locking its fins into such a position, it makes it hard for the foe to drag it out. The same defense also makes it difficult for a predator to swallow it!
Photo: zsispeo, flickr

09/27/2020

Meet the Sulawesi bear cuscus (Ailurops ursinus)! Pro tip: it’s not actually a bear. It’s an arboreal marsupial native to certain islands in Indonesia. In the tropical forests where it lives, the Sulawesi bear cuscus uses its long claws and prehensile tail to aid it in cruising between branches in the canopy. What’s daily life like for this critter? It moves slowly and spends a good deal of its time resting and digesting all of the fruits, flowers, and leaves that it eats.
Photo: Zweer de Bruin, flickr

09/26/2020

Have you ever heard of a Volcano Junco (Junco vulcani)? It's a bird that’s native to montane forests in Costa Rica and Panama. The highlands that it inhabits are often volcano sites, or scrub or grasslands that have grown in the place of previous eruptions. It’s a member of the sparrow family and is notable for its bright yellow eyes and pink bill.
Photo: Cephas, CC-BY-SA-4.0, Wikimedia Commons

09/26/2020

If you’re going on a treasure hunt, we don’t suggest taking directions from a false map turtle (Graptemys pseudogeographica)! This critter’s name refers to the (non-navigational) pattern on its carapace, which shouldn’t be used for navigation! This turtle can be spotted in rivers, lakes, or ponds in Mississippi, Missouri, Arkansas, and Louisiana. It spends its time basking in the Sun, munching on insects, fish, or aquatic vegetation.
Photo: Peter Paplanus, flickr

09/26/2020

What’s a Hamerkop (Scopus umbretta)? It’s a bird, named for its hammer-shaped head! Pointed feathers that jut out behind its head contribute to its signature look. This bird has a wide range south of the Sahara Desert and in Madagascar, inhabiting wetlands where it feeds on fish, amphibians, and crustaceans. Pairs build big domed nests that are among the largest nests made by any bird in Africa. Unoccupied nests are popular among other species, such as weavers and Verreaux’s Eagle-owls, who like to repurpose the shelter for their own needs.
Photo: Frans Vandewalle, flickr

09/25/2020

You may be familiar with the wombat, but do you know the numbat (Myrmecobius fasciatus)? This carnivorous marsupial is Australia’s only native mammal to keep exclusively daytime hours! It’s easily recognizable for its unique fur: black-and-white bands adorn its back and face, while a reddish-brown hue tints the rest of its body. It specializes in eating termites, using its sharp sense of smell to find them. Once the termites are located, the numbat uses its long, sticky tongue to scrape them out from their hiding place, eating up to 20,000 a day!
Photo: Seashalia, pixabay

09/25/2020

Happy Fossil Friday! Meet Nyctosaurus. It lived about 85 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous. With a wingspan of 6 to 10 feet (1.8 to 3.0 meters), this pterosaur also had two long, thin bones sticking out of its head, probably connected by soft tissue, forming a large crest. Scientists have many theories about why pterosaur crests evolved, which include recognizing one's own species, cooling, or even steering through the air. But without living descendants for comparison, and because pterosaur fossils are so rare, it's impossible to say for sure. Another leading theory for why pterosaurs evolved crests is sexual selection—perhaps, as with peacocks’ tails, the larger the crest, the more likely a pterosaur was to attract a mate.
Photo: C. Chesek/©AMNH

09/25/2020

Have you ever heard of the Australasian Grass-Owl (Tyto longimembris)? It’s native to parts of northern and northeastern Australia, where it’s more commonly referred to as the Eastern Grass Owl. As its name suggests, this owl prefers to live, breed, and nest in areas with tall grass. It dines on a wide variety of critters including rodents, marsupials, birds, reptiles, lizards, and large insects.
Photo: Ronny Overhate, Pixabay

09/24/2020

The Scientist Is In: Biodiversity Conservation in the Time of COVID

Join the Museum’s Jaffe Chief Conservation Scientist Eleanor Sterling of the Center for Biodiversity and Conservation as she explores some of the ways in which the COVID-19 pandemic has affected biodiversity conservation efforts.

09/24/2020

Happy birthday to astrophysicist Charlotte Moore Sitterly, born on this day in 1898! Dr. Sitterly’s love for mathematics led her to astronomy—and to the study of sunlight. As a computer at Princeton, she researched binary stars and analyzed spectra while auditing astrophysics courses. After working at the Mt. Wilson Observatory in California on the solar spectrum, she went on to the University of California at Berkeley for her Ph.D. She worked for decades at the National Bureau of Standards (now the National Institute of Standards and Technology), where she created essential tables of atomic energy levels, and continued her study of the Sun. “My greatest pleasure over the years has come from the research on the solar spectra,” she once told an interviewer. The first woman to be elected an associate of the Royal Astronomical Society, in 1949, she continued her research until her death in 1990, at the age of 91.
Photo: NIST

09/23/2020

Learning from Our Past: Understanding Earth's Climate History and Future

Join scientists from the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) for a panel discussion of different moments in the history of Earth's climate–from the extinction of the dinosaurs, to different ice ages–that shed light on the current climatic moment, and its potential consequences, moderated by Ro Kinzler, senior director for science education at the Museum, and introduced by Museum Curator Nathalie Goodkin, an oceanographer.

09/23/2020

Meet the Purple-crowned Fairywren (Malurus coronatus)! It’s native to parts of northern Australia, where it inhabits areas that offer lush tropical vegetation and are near freshwater. It dines on a range of invertebrates such as beetles, grasshoppers, and spiders. How do you tell a male from a female? Males have black cheek patches, while females have reddish-brown ones. During breeding season it’s even easier to distinguish the two: males have the characteristic purple crown, while females have gray plumage on their heads.
Photo: Graham Winterflood, flickr

09/23/2020

On this day in 1846, the ice giant Neptune was discovered. It had been predicted mathematically and even observed centuries earlier by Galileo, who hadn’t recognized it was a planet. At about 2.8 billion miles away from the Sun, Neptune is the only planet in our solar system that cannot be seen with the naked eye (not counting the possible Planet 9). It has a very active atmosphere with supersonic winds and giant storms—in fact, Neptune's Great Dark Spot is a storm about the size of the Earth!
Photo: NASA/JPL

09/23/2020

Welcome to Trilobite Tuesday! Would you guess that these two photos are of the same trilobite? These images demonstrate the degree of work that goes into the preparation process of freeing such Paleozoic remnants from their eons-old sedimentary encasements. Pictured is a 3-inch (7.6-centimeter)-long Liexiaspis from the 450-million-year-old Ordovician rocks of Hunan Province, China. The photo on the left depicts 30 minutes of work during which about 50% of the overlaying rock was removed. The photo on the right showcases the same fossil after about another hour’s work—the final result!

09/22/2020

Did you know? Today is World Rhino Day! There are currently five species of rhino; some have two horns while others have one. The black rhino and white rhino are native to Africa, and both have two horns. The greater one-horned rhino, Javan rhino, and Sumatran rhino live in Asia—only the latter has two horns. Unfortunately, all five species are under threat of extinction due to poaching for their horns, which are seen as a status symbol or used in traditional medicine in some cultures, as well as loss of habitat. Ongoing conservation efforts include relocating rhinos to sanctuaries, educating the public to lower rhino horn demand, and reducing poaching.
Photo: Colin the Scot, flickr

09/22/2020

Fall is here—and to help get you into the seasonal spirit, soak in the colors of the fall foliage in the Museum’s Stissing Mountain diorama. This scene is set on an October afternoon near Stissing Mountain, located 90 miles north of New York City in Dutchess County. This region has mountains, natural lakes, forests, a variety of rock formations, and both wild and cultivated land, which is why it was chosen as the basis for our Hall of New York State Environment. Visit the Museum to see this autumn diorama—and other festive exhibits—up close, and learn more about New York’s living landscapes.
Photo: R. Mickens/© AMNH

09/22/2020

What’s that bird? It’s the Rainbow Pitta! A native to parts of northern Australia, it lives in a variety of forest habitats such as monsoon rainforests and gallery forests. It hops about the forest floor foraging through leaf litter to find snacks like snails, worms, and spiders. To get the meat inside a snail shell, it will crush the shell against a hard surface. It grows up to about 7 inches (18 centimeters) tall.
Photo: Brian McCauley, flickr

09/21/2020

Peek-a-boo: It’s the corn snake (Pantherophis guttatus)! You might spot this stealthy reptile within its wide range across the eastern United States, in a variety of habitats including meadowlands and rocky hillsides. It’s most active at night, when it’s slithering its way through rodent burrows or up into trees looking for a meal like a rat, lizard, bird, or bat. Even though it can be brightly colored, the corn snake isn’t venomous. In order to take down prey, it coils itself tightly around its meal to suffocate it before swallowing it whole. Wondering where its name comes from? Some think that the pattern on its underside resembles maize!
Photo: Josh More, flickr

09/21/2020

t’s mountain nyala (Tragelaphus buxtoni) Monday! This Ethiopian native lives in montane forests, shrublands, and grasslands, where it feeds on heath plants, leaves, grasses, and legumes. It’s one of the larger antelope species, reaching over 4 feet (1.2 meters) at the shoulders and weighing as much as 660 pounds (300 kilograms)! Unfortunately, it’s endangered, threatened by illegal hunting and loss of habitat due to human expansion. Find the Mountain Nyala diorama in the Museum’s Hall of African Mammals.
Photo: © AMNH

09/21/2020

Why hello there! Meet the Spot-backed Puffbird (Nystalus maculatus). It’s native to woodlands and savannas in parts of eastern and central South America, such as Argentina and Brazil. Did you know? There are around 36 different species of puffbirds that inhabit the neotropical region. This particular species is notable for its bold patterning, red bill, and tendency to sing with one to two others. It mainly eats insects, but has also been observed feeding on small snakes.
Photo: Nick Athanas, flickr

09/20/2020

Neither birds nor bats, pterosaurs were reptiles, close cousins of dinosaurs who evolved on a separate branch of the reptile family tree. They were also the first animals after insects to evolve powered flight—not just leaping or gliding, but flapping their wings to generate lift and travel through the air. They evolved into dozens of species; one such example? Eudimorphodon ranzii! This Triassic pterosaur is best known for its 114 specialized teeth: large fangs jut from the front of the jaws and behind them lie rows of small teeth with multiple cusps, or points. This arrangement is unique among pterosaurs, and it may have been especially useful for catching and crushing fish.
Image: © AMNH

09/20/2020

While most land mammals use their legs to get around, the white-handed gibbon (Hylobates lar) relies mostly on its upper limbs! Using its long arms and strong fingers, it swings through trees with grace and speed—a method of movement called brachiation. This primate can be found in the tropical rainforests of Southeast Asia. It seldom touches the forest floor and prefers to spend its time in the treetop searching for ripe fruit.
Photo: Rushen, flickr; White-handed gibbon in Kaeng Krachan National Park, Thailand

09/20/2020

The evolution of a star is governed primarily by its mass. A star’s mass determines its nuclear fusion rate, and thus its luminosity (energy output) and its life expectancy. We define four broad mass categories (low-mass, intermediate-mass, high-mass, and very-high-mass), based on a star’s lifetime, how it dies, and the stellar remnant it leaves. The “life” of a star is the stable stage when it is fusing hydrogen to helium in its core. Astronomers also analyze starlight in exacting detail. Every kind of light—radio, microwave, infrared, visible, ultraviolet, x-ray, and gamma-ray—carries valuable information about a star’s physical properties.
Photo: NASA; "This is a Hubble Space Telescope image of a vast nebula called NGC 604, located 2.7 million light-years away in the constellation Triangulum. This is a site where new stars are being born in a spiral arm of the galaxy."

09/19/2020

It’s the Pink-necked Green-pigeon (Treron vernans)—try saying that common name three times fast! The colorful bird can be found throughout Southeast Asia, including parts of Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. It lives in forest habitats, where it hangs out in small flocks in the treetops, foraging mainly for fruit. Distinguishing a male from a female isn’t too difficult: females lack the pink neck and are mostly an olive-green color!
Photo: e-wander, flickr