American Museum of Natural History

A daily dose of science from the AMNH. Central Park West at 79th St., NYC, amnh.org ➡️linktr.ee/amnh

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Heads up… it’s Fossil Friday! 🦕 The Museum's Apatosaurus, collected at the turn of the 20th century, was the first sauropod ever mounted. But did you know that for years, this mighty dinosaur was displayed with the wrong skull? Using incomplete remains, scientists speculated that Apatosaurus was closely related to another sauropod: Camarasaurus. As a result, a similar skull to Camarasaurus was sculpted and placed atop Apatosaurus’ body (pictured), where it remained for decades. As new research emerged, this reconstruction was updated. To this day, only one Apatosaurus has ever been found with its skull attached!   You can visit Apatosaurus in the Museum’s Hall of Saurischian Dinosaurs. We’re open daily from 10 am–5:30 pm. Plan your visit.

Photo: Image no. 45615 / AMNH Library

Alt: A photo of a Museum preparator working on a speculative skull of Apatosaurus. It is huge with a domed head and peg-like teeth. 

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Surprise! Scientifically described in 1898—and last spotted in 1913—the red-crested tree rat (Santamartamys rufodorsalis) was thought to be extinct for more than a century. That changed in 2011, when two observers in a Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta nature reserve in Colombia stumbled upon this critter. This long-whiskered rodent can grow up to 17 in (45.7 cm) long. It’s nocturnal and arboreal, though little is known about this species’ behavior. The red-crested tree rat is listed as Critically Endangered, due to loss of habitat. 

Photo: ProAves Colombia, CC BY-SA 2.0, flickr

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It's time for Trilobite Tuesday! Though disarticulated trilobite parts are a regular occurrence at the Massie Formation outcrops of Indiana, complete specimens of Spathacalymene nasuta––like the 2.5-in- (6.4-cm-) long example pictured here––are rarely found. With its pronounced cephalic rostrum and caramel-colored shell, this Silurian trilobite is among the most instantly recognizable species in the world.

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Meet Davy’s naked-backed bat (Pteronotus davyi)! This species, which can be found in parts of Central and South America, preys mostly on moths and flies. It uses echolocation to hunt by night, and can detect prey as small as 0.08 in (0.2 cm) in size from nearly 2.46 ft (0.75 m) away in darkness. Often feeding above water, this bat also has the ability to drink on the go—a phenomenon known as “drinking on the wing.”

Photo: Geoffrey Gomes, CC BY-NC 4.0, iNaturalist

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Watch it buddy, my eyes are up here! And… down there? 👀Meet the bee fly (Geminaria canalis). This insect inhabits parts of the southwestern United States and Mexico, using its long proboscis to feed on nectar. Notice the “eyes” on its back? They aren’t eyes at all: They’re actually part of this critter’s scutellum—the shield-like structure between its wings. Scientists think the extra set of “eyes” are a defense mechanism, giving the bee fly the appearance of less desirable prey like jumping spiders.  

Photo: Saumitra Kelkar, CC BY-NC 4.0, iNaturalist 

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Na-Na-Na-Na-Na Bat Hawk (Macheiramphus alcinus)! Named after its favorite snack, and not to be confused with your favorite superhero, this raptor mainly feeds on small bats. It has a wide but fragmented range and might be seen in parts of Africa, Southeast Asia, and Papua New Guinea. It lives in a variety of habitats, such as forests, wetlands, and savannas, where it spends most of its day roosting on a perch. But when the Sun starts to set and bats come out, this bird is quick to strike. Within about a 20-minute timespan, it can catch and gulp down as many as 11 bats!

Photo: Gary Albert, CC BY-SA 2.0, flickr

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Meet The Titanosaur!  🦕 At 122 ft (37.2 m) long, Patagotitan mayorum is the Museum’s largest dinosaur on display and one of the largest animals to have ever walked the Earth! This gigantic herbivore, which lived some 95 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous, was heavier than 10 African elephants—tipping the scales at roughly 70 tons. In fact, The Titanosaur is so big that it barely fits in the Museum’s halls: It’s longer than the gallery it sits in—and its head, which would graze the ceiling, extends outwards toward the elevator banks! Spot this sauropod, and so much more, at the Museum. Plan your visit.

Photo: © AMNH 

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Rabbit or squirrel? Neither: It's the southern viscacha (Lagidium viscacia)! This gregarious rodent lives in colonies of up to 70 individuals and inhabits mountainous areas in South America. It’s an agile climber that can be found at altitudes as high as 16,000 ft (5,000 m). Because its habitat is sparsely vegetated, this herbivorous critter dines on whatever it can find, including mosses, lichens, and grasses.

Photo:Gonzalo Sepúlveda, CC BY-NC 4.0, iNaturalist

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Another day, another doggy you can’t pet. Meet the dhole (Cuon alpinus). Found widely across parts of Asia from India to China to Indonesia, this social canid typically lives in groups of up to 12 individuals. Sometimes it even socializes with other groups of dholes to form “super packs” of more than 30 members! Teamwork enables these hunters to take down prey ten times their size. And unlike many other species of canid, dholes allow their pups to feed first on kills. Their diet includes pigs, deer, and buffalo.

Photo: mihail1981, iStock 

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My, my… what big teeth you have! Meet the Pacific stargazer (Astroscopus zephyreus). Found in coastal waters from California to Peru, this fish is an ambush hunter. Spending most of its life buried beneath the sand, the stargazer’s upturned face is an adaptation that allows it to see even when most of its body is concealed. What’s more? This species is capable of stunning prey with electrical shocks of up to 50 volts! Photo: alboertoalcala, CC BY 4.0 iNaturalist

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The titan arum (Amorphophallus titanum) flower rarely blooms, but when it does, the sight—and smell—can be utterly breathtaking. This plant’s giant bloom can grow up to 9 ft (2.7 m) tall and emits a powerful perfume that resembles the stench of rotting flesh. Why? To some insects, it’s a seductive scent, luring potential pollinators toward the female parts of the flower, where they can pick up pollen and carry it off to fertilize other flowers. This spectacular display is short lived, occurring for only about three days once every two or three years.

Photo: Yash Bhagwanji, CC BY-NC 4.0, iNaturalist

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Have you ever seen one of these critters at the beach? Also known as “sand crabs” or “sand fleas,” Pacific mole crabs (Emerita analoga) can be found across the western coasts of North and South America. East Coast residents might encounter their relatives, the Atlantic sand crabs (Emerita talpoida), during summertime beach trips. Mole crabs migrate with the tides, keeping up with breaking waves to filter feed on plankton brought in by the crashing waters. These critters use their back legs to get around, and they burrow backwards, too.

Photo: eeowes, CC BY-NC 4.0, flickr

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Did you ever wish you had a built-in blanket? Well, this cephalopod doesn’t need to wish… Meet the Indo-Pacific violet blanket octopus (Tremoctopus gracilis)! While males are tiny, rarely growing more than a few centimeters long, females are more than 10,000 times that size—reaching lengths of up to 6 ft (2 m)! Females also sport massive “blankets,” which are actually webs of skin connecting their dorsal arms. When threatened, they can drop these appendages, distracting predators as they make their escape. 

Photo: mbartick, CC BY-NC 4.0, iNaturalist

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Have you ever seen the polka dot wasp moth (Syntomeida epilais)? This insect inhabits neotropical regions in parts of South America, Central America, and North America. It can grow up to 2 in (5.2 cm) long. Males and females both sport striking blue colors, with white spots and red-tipped abdomens. While these insects don’t sting like true wasps, they are toxic to predators. 

Photo: Andrea Diaz,CC BY-NC 4.0, iNaturalist

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Who’s a pretty bird? We’d like to nominate the Marabou Stork (Leptoptilos crumeniferus). This large African wading bird, which can grow up to 5 ft (1.5 m) tall, is nicknamed the “undertaker bird” because of its dark plumage—and its tendency to dine on carrion alongside vultures. Its strong wedge-shaped bill is great for pulling flesh off carcasses, though the Marabou Stork also feeds on fish, small rodents, reptiles, and even food scraps from human settlements. 

Photo: gillbsydney, CC BY-NC 4.0, iNaturalist

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Act like a jumping spider and jump for joy! Except, these tiny arachnids actually jump for something else: prey. True to their name, jumping spiders don’t use webs to catch their next meal. Instead, they leap—pouncing on their food. There are more than 6,000 known species of jumping spiders in the family Salticidae, like the Habronattus sansoni pictured here. They can be found on all of Earth’s continents, except Antarctica, and are recognizable thanks to their large, forward-facing eyes.

Photo: jeepgirlco, CC BY-NC 4.0, iNaturalist

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Behold the striking colors of the red-bellied mud snake (Farancia abacura)! Growing up to 6.8 ft (2.1 m) long, this reptile can be found in swampy areas of the southeastern United States. Though it uses its bright colors as a warning to foes, this critter is non-venomous and would sooner flee than fight! When threatened, it might roll over to flash its vibrant underbelly, intimidating would-be predators by mimicking the look of venomous coral snakes. It can also excrete a foul-smelling musk from glands in the base of its tail.

Photo: Peter Paplanus, CC BY 2.0, flickr