Looking for the legacy site? Click here

Welcome to Ask A Biologist. This site has a large collection of biology learning materials that includes stories, games, activities, videos, and a podcast.

Read our stories

Listen and watch

Enjoy our activities

View zoom galleries

Solve puzzles

An interview with myrmecologist Rüdiger Wehner from University of Zurich. Listen in as Dr. Biology learns how these desert animals are revealing their success in the Sahara Desert. Don't know what a myrmecologist is? This is a good show to find the answer.

Dr. Biology along with a group of curious high school students learn why Detective Flora Delaterre is investigating plants and how they can be the perfect medicine for what makes you sick.

Melissa Wilson Sayres never expected that her love for both math and biology would lead her to studying genetics and sex chromosomes. But the newest surprise in her work comes from finding out about some very colorful monsters.

Much like a mechanical watch, living things only work when all the gears work together. Some of the tiniest of gears are proteins. Learning about the shape and size of these proteins is the job of X-ray crystallography.

Dive into the behavior and physiology of two different primate species that are helping biologists explore the science of stress, aging, and immunity. Dr. Biology sits down with scientist Noah Snyder-Mackler from Arizona…

Have you ever wondered how complex science jargon is translated into a story that captivates and educates? We've got you covered! Dr. Biology chats with James Gorman, a veteran science reporter from the New York Times, we peel back the layers…

An interview with arachnologists Eileen Hebets and Lisa Taylor. Two women that defy the convention that women are all afraid of spiders. Listen in as Dr. Biology learns there are no Miss Muffets in this show.
An interview with biologist Dave Pearson research professor in the School of Life Sciences at Arizona State University and Audubon environmental educator Cathy Wise. Dr. Biology learns from his two guests that bird watching is pretty cool and fun.
An illustration of DNA-themed award winners

DNA Discovery Awards

Let's take a dive into the history of genetics research... and see who helped build the foundations of knowledge that we still build new understanding on top of today.
Manduca Caterpillar Growth Experiment

Manduca Caterpillar Growth Experiment

Dr. Biology has teamed up with with the scientists in the laboratory of Jon Harrison and started an experiment to see how different temperatures can change how an animal grows. The Virtual…

An illustration of three monsters with different features, like number of horns

Monster Inheritance

In this lesson, with a few rolls of a die, our Monster Maker game, and a presentation, you will learn a bit about how traits are inherited. Explore the activities for the basics, or dive in further…

Pollen Gallery (Pollen up-close)

Pollen comes in many shapes and sizes. These are just a few of the thousands of examples.

Plankton Zoom Gallery (Plankton up-close)

Plankton comes in many shapes and sizes. These are just a few of the thousands of examples.

Feather Zoom Gallery (Feathers up-close)

There is nothing like seeing a feather up close.

Tiger Beetle Zoom Gallery (Up-close with tiger beetles)

Some of the fastest animals on Earth are below. That’s right, if these tiny insects were as large as a horse they would be running 200 miles an hour.

A classroom Globe

Where In The World Is Kazakhstan?

Where in the world is Kazakhstan (Ka-zakh-ston)? This may be a puzzling question to some, but no longer. This story we will help put the pieces together.

Wordsearch | Crossword
Two-headed kingsnake

The Tale of the Two-Headed Lampropeltis getula californiae

A Common Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula californiae, but this snake was anything but common. From the title of our story, you may have guessed that our snake, or maybe we should call it snakes…

Wordsearch | Crossword
Saguaro

Sonoran CSI

Little water, sweaty, hot summer days and frigid winter nights make the desert an uninviting place for most animals and plants. But hiding just below the surface, the desert is alive with…

Wordsearch | Crossword
Nerve impulse thumbnail

A Nervous Journey

Let’s take a ride. It is going to be a fast one, so be prepared. Where are we going? We are going to start at your head and end up at your toes. It may not seem like a long trip, but it is…

Wordsearch | Crossword