Secret Lives of Frogs
Many scientists believe the red-eyed tree frog developed its vivid scarlet peepers to shock predators into at least briefly questioning their meal choice.
These iconic rain-forest amphibians sleep by day stuck to leaf-bottoms with their eyes closed and body markings covered. When disturbed, they flash their bulging red eyes and reveal their huge, webbed orange feet and bright blue-and-yellow flanks. This technique, called startle coloration, may give a bird or snake pause, offering a precious instant for the frog to spring to safety. Read more...
Still Peaking
Ed Viesturs, a high-altitude mountaineer, isn’t afraid to not make a summit. In his first attempt to climb Mount Everest, he turned around just 300 feet short of the top because conditions weren’t ideal.
Viesturs has a motto: "Getting to the top is optional, getting to the bottom is mandatory." This has earned him a reputation as a cautious climber. However, it has saved his life more than once and hasn’t prevented him from achieving his goals.
It’s no wonder Piccard has made a name for himself as a scientist and as one of modern Read more...
Life On the Edge
Free soloing—climbing without a rope—represents the ultimate extreme in rock-climbing, and Alex Honnold is perhaps the most gifted free soloist on the planet right now. Meet Alex and watch as he conquers both Half Dome and El Capitan.
Honnold was attempting something no one had done before: climb the three biggest rock faces in the California park in succession, alone, and in less than 24 hours. Dubbed the triple, the task would mean scaling the sheer walls of Mount Watkins, El Capitan and Half Dome for a total of about 7,000 vertical feet of sheer Read more...