I love her funny face.

Hey Philly! I need your help finding 3 walls for 10x10ft murals this fall all about the most charismatic bugs in the city. Each mural must be in a different neighborhood, so we have to cast this net as wide as possible. Please help us spread the word! Submit your wall at bit.ly/bugwalls

This is what 37.9 inches of snow looks like! From outside Providence, RI.

Y'all there are bats that build TENTS to roost. They chew specific parts of a leaf to make it flop into the shape they want. And they are STUNNINGLY cute lil' guys. www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti... By @marybates.bsky.social

These bats make intricate tents out of leaves

A team of National Geographic Explorers is studying how these bats developed their architectural expertise—while cataloguing the various styles of tents they make.

nationalgeographic.com

Another fun story for Nat Geo: Tent-making bats are skilled architects with integral roles in the health of forests - and they're adorable!

These bats make intricate tents out of leaves

A team of National Geographic Explorers is studying how these bats developed their architectural expertise—while cataloguing the various styles of tents they make.

nationalgeographic.com

I had the opportunity to write about a simply superlative serpent for Nat Geo. At 23 feet 8 inches long, a reticulated python dubbed "The Baroness" is the world's longest wild snake.

Meet ‘The Baroness’—the world’s longest wild snake

She's more than 23 feet long, and verified by Guinness World Records.

nationalgeographic.com

Sure, opportunities to play are important contributors to the welfare of captive animals - but observing play behavior may also provides clues to an animal's emotional state. My latest post at Psychology Today:

The Role of Play in Animal Welfare

Play is important for animals in captivity, both as an indicator of their emotional states and as a contributor to their long-term welfare.

psychologytoday.com

Fist bump to anyone else caught between the need to bow down & accept the dire, broken reality of the attention economy to continue surviving via their creativity & a desire to disconnect which becomes more vast, and more potentially vital to their sense of inner peace, with every year that passes.

In humans, personality similarity between partners can lead to better compatibility and well-being. Is the same true for other pair-bonding primates? Check out my latest blog post:

Monkey Matchmaking and Why It Matters

In humans, personality similarity between partners can lead to better compatibility and well-being. Is the same true for other pair-bonding primates?

psychologytoday.com

Watch the sinuous dance of this newly discovered dwarf mantis species in my new @nationalgeographic.bsky.social story. The male performs a snake-like courtship dance - and he avoids getting eaten by his mate! www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti...

Newly discovered mantis species dances like a snake to avoid death after sex

The snake-tail mantis shows there’s more to these insects than just cannibalism.

nationalgeographic.com

A few photos from my trip last month to Monteverde, Costa Rica - a beautiful place with wonderful people and amazing wildlife.

What are rats to bats? Video from recent research shows rats can be predators, competitors - and sometimes prey!

Rats wage war on bats in stunning new footage

New videos reveal the surprising dynamics of bat-rat relationships—and suggest how human activity is fueling these interspecies conflicts.

nationalgeographic.com

What happens when bats meet rats? New research suggests it's complicated. For my latest Nat Geo article, I wrote about the the surprising dynamics of bat-rat relationships — and how human activity is fueling these interspecies conflicts.

Rats wage war on bats in stunning new footage

New videos reveal the surprising dynamics of bat-rat relationships—and suggest how human activity is fueling these interspecies conflicts.

nationalgeographic.com

This time of year, spiders receive a lot of attention for their creepier qualities. But researchers value them year-round for pulling off impressive cognitive feats with very little brains.

Spiders Are Smart, Not Scary

Spiders aren't just spooky Halloween mascots. Their keen senses, complex behaviors, and diverse lifestyles make them excellent subjects for cognitive studies.

psychologytoday.com

Cephalopods have plenty of tricks, and they may be strategic about using them, demonstrating sophisticated cognitive abilities like understanding others' perspectives. www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/anim...

Do Octopuses Mean to Deceive?

Cephalopods like octopuses, cuttlefish, and squid display a range of deceptive behaviors, which may rely on sophisticated cognitive abilities such as Theory of Mind.

psychologytoday.com

Human exceptionalism - the idea that we are somehow separate from nature and not inherently linked to (or even like) other beings - is a myth. www.scientificamerican.com/article/huma...

Whales Mourn, Birds Show Self-Awareness, Plants Remember—Are Humans Really So Special?

Other species exhibit capabilities that were once thought to be exclusive to Homo sapiens

scientificamerican.com

Some captive apes have more experience participating in research than others. Could this prior experience affect how they think and behave, biasing results from cognitive studies? Check out my latest blog post!

Are Research-Savvy Chimpanzees Skewing Study Results?

Some captive apes have more experience participating in research than others. Could this prior experience affect how they think and behave, biasing results from cognitive studies?

psychologytoday.com

Morris and Pepper wonder how you are celebrating International Cat Day.

Are consumer neurofeedback devices more than just hype for brain health? My latest for IEEE Pulse:

Why Consumer Neurofeedback Devices Are More Than Hype for Brain Health - IEEE Pulse

Mind-reading headphones that prevent burnout and boost focus may sound like science fiction. But according to Ramses Alcaide, the co-founder and CEO of Neurable, that’s exactly what his company’s MW75...

embs.org

Please enjoy some of my embroidered brains and neurons for #worldbrainday.

What's your call on the golden snub-nosed monkey: cute or terrifying? Yes, they can stare into your soul, but they also love hugging.

The Creature Feature: 10 Fun Facts About the Golden Snub-Nosed Monkey — Mary Bates, PhD

Get to know a most unusual primate: the golden snub-nosed monkey ( Rhinopithecus roxellana ). These colorful, social, and tough monkeys live in the mountains of central and southwestern China - and it...

marybatessciencewriter.com

We are six months into the second Trump administration and the scale and severity of its assault on our nation's science and democracy has been unrelenting. Today, @ucs.org releases a detailed assessment of the damage so far and where we go from here: www.ucs.org/resources/sc... #ProtectScience

Science and Democracy Under Siege

Documenting Six Months of the Trump Administration’s Destructive Actions

ucs.org

Does playfulness support a cooperative and tolerant society? A new study links play, tolerance, and empathy in elephants.

Play Encourages Cooperation and Tolerance in Elephants

Signals used by elephants to manage competitive play sessions provide hints to the roots of empathy in social mammals.

psychologytoday.com

Mexico's "Batman," ecologist Rodrigo Medellín, shares his love and admiration for bats. They are incredibly ecologically important - and look at those adorable faces!

Protecting Mexico’s bats | CNN

Encountering vampire bats and snakes in dark caves may sound like the stuff of nightmares, but for Mexican ecologist Rodrigo Medellín it’s just another day at work. As part of the Rolex Perpetual Plan...

cnn.com

Playful pachyderms promote peace! Rapid motor mimicry of play signals may help keep elephant play sessions from getting too rough.

Play Encourages Cooperation and Tolerance in Elephants

Signals used by elephants to manage competitive play sessions provide hints to the roots of empathy in social mammals.

psychologytoday.com

I love this article by @brandonkeim.bsky.social asking if animals can appreciate beauty. psyche.co/ideas/what-i...

Thinking about my guinea pig companions over the years on this Guinea Pig Appreciation Day - including Tiger, Stella, Stanley, Lentil, and Garbanzo. They were all very good pigs.

Trail cameras in the Amazon captured an odd couple - an ocelot and an opossum - wandering around together. “Like two old friends walking home from a bar,” according to one scientist. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/15/s...

Videos From the Amazon Reveal an Unexpected Animal Friendship

nytimes.com

It was a pleasure talking to Mary about our apparatus to take fish cognition research into the wild! 🐟🧠 Read it on Psychology Today ⬇️⬇️ with @kotrschal.bsky.social and @amydeacon.bsky.social

Mary Bates@marybates.bsky.social · last yr.

Hey, I'm back to blogging about animal behavior at Psychology Today! Check out my article on studying fish cognition in the wild, featuring the work of @catarina-vp.bsky.social and colleagues.

Fish are smarter than you think! They can distinguish and remember individuals, navigate with mental maps, cooperate and communicate with one another, build complex structures, use tools, and keep track of quantities.

Fish Are Smarter Than You Think

Researchers developed a way to run tests on fish learning and memory in the animals' natural environments. The results may reveal that fish are smarter than previously assumed.

psychologytoday.com