Read our stories
Listen and watch
Enjoy our activities
View zoom galleries
Solve puzzles
Welcome to Ask A Biologist. This site has a large collection of biology learning materials that includes stories, games, activities, videos, and a podcast.
Almost everyone has wished at one time or another to be able to fly like a bird. Just the thought of soaring above your city or town without any mechanical device gives us a reason to envy these feathered animals. Also in: Français |…
When you visit a pond or the beach, what kinds of living things do you see in the water? Depending on the environment, you might find fish, frogs, crabs, insects, seaweed, or lily pads. Don’t let your eyes fool you, though… there’s a hidden world in water full of creatures too small to be…
Medicinal plants come in all shapes and sizes. Probably some of the weeds growing in your yard, fields, or even cracks in your sidewalk are medicinal. Who knew there was a different kind of drugstore—a vital and ancient one—all around us? Also in: …
You sleep every night, but do you know what happens when your body sleeps or why we sleep the way we do?
Dr. Biology sits down with biologist E. O. Wilson to talk about science, his writing including his book, Superorganism, and future new novel, as well as his art. Along the way they discuss the Encyclopedia of Life web project and a very cool outdoor activity called a "Bioblitz…
Part of what makes science fun and challenging is solving puzzles and investigating mysteries. For this episode, Dr. Biology sits down with ecologist Charles Brown and the two talk about his 40-year journey of discovery and rediscovery. This is a curious story that involves an…
Dr. Biology gets the skinny on our largest organ - our skin. Professor and author Nina Jablonski talks about the important ways our skin works for us each day.
Make Your Own Podcasts
Join the revolution. You can now produce podcasts for classroom, school, and beyond. Very little equipment required and costs are low. The benefits can be high. Clearly there are many different…
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.
Plankton Zoom Gallery (Plankton up-close)
Plankton comes in many shapes and sizes. These are just a few of the thousands of examples.
Pollen Gallery (Pollen up-close)
Pollen comes in many shapes and sizes. These are just a few of the thousands of examples.
Ant Gallery (Get up-close to ants)
Now is the time to check out these amazing animals from the safety of your own computer.
How Do Beetles Reproduce?
Every living thing must be able to reproduce and make offspring. Most of us are familiar with how humans and mammals make babies, but do all creatures reproduce in the same way? Do insects,…
Wordsearch | Crossword
Time Traveling Plants
Every year billions of babies are dried and buried, not to be unburied for weeks, months, years or even decades. Don't worry, these are not babies like your little brother or sister, these are…
Wordsearch | Crossword
Mighty Morphing Tree Lizards
Biologists at Arizona State University hope that by learning more about animal behavior, they will also be able to understand why people act the way they do. Also in:…
Wordsearch | Crossword
Building Blocks of Life
All living beings are made up of cells. Some of them are made up of only one cell and others have many cells. Also in: Español |…
Wordsearch | Crossword