Neuro’s ark

Recent articles

This series highlights neuroscience research in nontraditional organisms and the questions those animals are well suited to help researchers answer.

Ground squirrel.

How thirteen-lined ground squirrels illuminate retinal development

In most mammalian retinas, rods outnumber cones. But that ratio is flipped in ground squirrels, a quirk that helps Seth Blackshaw explore how retinal cells develop their identities.

By Sarah Thau
31 July 2026 | 5 min read
Mosquito.

What mosquitos lay bare about proprioception

By comparing the proprioceptive systems of mosquitos and fruit flies, Sweta Agrawal aims to uncover fundamental features of the ability to sense self-movement.

By Calli McMurray
1 July 2026 | 5 min read
Illustration of spiny mouse.

Learning why spiny mice play well with others

Aubrey Kelly studies the gregarious mammal to explore how the brain controls complex social behaviors “akin to friendship.”

By Hannah Thomasy
2 June 2026 | 5 min read
Sanguessuga medicinal.

O que as sanguessugas revelam sobre o movimento

Lidia Szczupak recorreu a esses animais para investigar como o sistema nervoso coordena o movimento.

By Claudia López Lloreda
1 May 2026 | 6 min read
La sanguijuela medicinal.

Lo que las sanguijuelas revelan sobre movimiento

Lidia Szczupak recurrió a los animales para explorar cómo el sistema nervioso coordina el movimiento.

By Claudia López Lloreda
1 May 2026 | 6 min read
leech illustration.

What leeches reveal about movement

Lidia Szczupak turned to the animals to explore how the nervous system coordinates movement.

By Claudia López Lloreda
1 May 2026 | 6 min read
Gecko with circular pulses emanating from its head.

What geckos tell us about the evolution of hearing

Catherine Carr explains her discovery that geckos retain a vibration-sensing pathway previously thought to be lost when animals moved onto land.

By Helena Kudiabor
1 April 2026 | 5 min read
Tick on a leaf raises its forelegs.

The secret sensory world of ticks

Carola Städele, a self-proclaimed “tick magnet,” studies the arachnids’ sensory neurobiology—in other words, how these tiny parasites zero in on their next meal.

By Calli McMurray
3 March 2026 | 6 min read
Illustration of a star-nosed mole.

Why star-nosed moles are such fast foragers

“MacArthur genius” Kenneth Catania outlined the physiology behind the moles’ stellar foraging skills two decades ago. Next, he wants to better characterize their food-seeking behavior.

By Lauren Schneider
4 February 2026 | 7 min read
Two goats headbutting.

How goats can model neurodegeneration

Since debunking an urban legend that headbutting animals don’t damage their brain, Nicole Ackermans has been investigating how the behavior correlates with neurodegeneration.

By Calli McMurray
7 January 2026 | 6 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Piggy bank with blindfold.

Future remains uncertain for U.S. federal funding of behavioral, cognitive science

The National Science Foundation did not include any solicitations for its social, behavioral and economic sciences directorate in its latest round of funding opportunities, nor replace any outgoing program officers—which poses an existential threat for the program, says nonprofit executive Wendy Naus.

By Calli McMurray
26 August 2026 | 5 min read

How energy determines where proteins are produced in neurons

Tatjana Tchumatchenko explains how mathematical modeling elucidates whether ion-channel proteins are produced locally in the soma or in the dendrites.

By Gaute Einevoll
26 August 2026 | 104 min listen
A brown mouse between a red cube and blue cylinder looks curiously at the top of the cylinder, standing on hind legs.

Wouldn’t you like to know? A mouse would

Mice seek information for curiosity’s sake—and their desire for knowledge versus a payout is represented distinctly in the brain, new findings suggest.

By Sarah Thau
26 August 2026 | 5 min read