Cat Watch

Cats are king, and they are everywhere. There are 38 species of felids, ranging from the seven-pound tabby in your lap to 500-pound Siberian tigers—with cheetahs, leopards, ocelots, and other striped and spotted cats in between.

Tornadoes and Global Warming

Scientists can't say yet whether global warming will increase tornadoes. Linking any particular weather event to climate change is always tricky, because weather is inherently random. But weather patterns can speak to a warming planet. Scientists can detect that extreme rain events, for instance, are already happening more often than they used to, and that a warmer atmosphere with more water vapor in it is making such events more likely.

3-D Scans Reveal Caterpillars Turning Into Butterflies

Left: Chrysalis of a painted lady butterfly, showing breathing tubes (blue) and guts (red), at day 1 (left), day 13 (centre) and day 16 (right). Credit: Lowe et al. 2013. Interface.

The transformation from caterpillar to butterfly is one of the most exquisite in the natural world. Within the chrysalis, an inching, cylindrical eating machine remakes itself into a beautiful flying creature that drinks through a straw.

Eastern Screech Owl

Masters of disguise. The Eastern Screech Owl is seen here doing what they do best. You better have a sharp eye to spot these little birds of prey. Location: Okefenokee Swamp, Georgia, USA

Wrangel Island, Muskoxen

Explore a haven for wildlife, frozen in space in time. Here, two male muskoxen size each other up during mating season.

Why the Ocean Matters - National Geographic Education

Why the Ocean Matters - National Geographic Education
A Healthy Ocean Means a Healthy Planet

Covering 72 percent of the Earth and supplying half its oxygen, the ocean is our planet's life support system

Strange-Looking Sea Creature Photos -- National Geographic

Strange-Looking Sea Creature Photos -- National Geographic