How do leeches find their hosts? We explore how leeches sense heat, chemicals, and movements in their environments.

Meet the leech, the misunderstood hero of aquatic ecosystems all over the world, who does not always suck blood!

The first time I was bitten by a leech, I was swimming in a West Virginia river. I remember the scene perfectly: I crawled ...

Leech bites are often misunderstood. These myths spread fear and misinformation. Here are some myths you must know about ...

Learn about a 480-million-year-old leech fossil that revealed that ancient leeches didn’t have the biological components necessary to suck blood.

Scientists found a 430-million-year-old leech fossil, Macromyzon siluricus. It shows leeches first lived in oceans and did ...

You might think you know leeches: Go for a swim in the wrong shallow lake, and you’ll emerge covered in sleek black bloodsuckers that have decided you’re their next meal. But inside a leech, ...

A 430-million-year-old fossil has rewritten leech history, showing they are at least 200 million years older than previously ...

A chance video by a grad student relishing her first big field trip might help resolve an argument that’s raged among biologists for more than a century. The question: Can leeches jump? Yes, at least ...

Scientists have also long thought that the earliest leeches were bloodsuckers. All modern leeches, including species that do not consume blood, possess a suite of anticoagulants. But Macromyzon lived ...