Leopards

Where the wild things are is a shifting concept influenced by culture, upbringing, environs, what we watch on our screens, and, for me, the tussle between my education as a wildlife biologist and my experiences in the field. Taking to heart a core tenet of conservation science—that wild animals, certainly large carnivores, belong in the wilderness—I began my career in the 1990s by visiting nature reserves in India to study Asiatic lions and clouded leopards. When in the new millennium I stumbled on leopards living in and…

Humpback whales hunt using one of the most hilarious strategies in nature. Groups of whales swim in a circle around their prey … and blow bubbles. As the bubbles rise, they form a column that acts as a virtual net and concentrates prey. The whales swim upward in a spiral, spewing bubbles all the way, then lunge into the center of the column to grab an enormous mouthful of krill. But how do these gigantic creatures find patches of tiny krill in the first place? Scientific American's evolution and ecology senior editor Kate…