Vampires get all the attention at this time of year, but bloodthirsty leeches, insects and birds are just as compelling — and they’re real. Leeches feeding on a homemade “blood sausage,” made from cow ...

A broad survey conducted across southern Asia reinforces the idea that the mammal biodiversity of an area can be determined by looking at the DNA found in leeches' blood meals. The new study also ...

Good news: A new species was discovered on the Atlantic Coast. Bad news: It’s a bloodsucking leech that feeds on humans with three jaws and as many as 59 teeth. In a recently published journal, ...

Scientists have identified mammals present at sites in Asia by examining the DNA in the blood sucked by leeches. They found that the nearly 750 Haemadipsa (blood-sucking) leeches stored the DNA of a ...

The oldest leech ever discovered has turned out to be a shape shifter of expectations, preserving a body plan that looks ...

Macrobdella mimicus, the first new species of medicinal leech discovered in over 40 years. (The Smithsonian Institution) Macrobdella mimicus, the first new species of medicinal leech discovered in ...

On July 29, 2008, Mark Siddall answered selected viewer questions about leeches large and small, the best way to remove one from your skin, whether he'd undergo leech therapy himself, and more. Please ...

Mark Ferns, the producer and presenter of NATURE’s BLOODY SUCKERS, believes in first-hand experience. While making the film, he decided the best way to inform and entertain viewers was to become a ...

There’s one more species to add to the list of parasites that feed on human blood. Macrobdella mimicus has three muscular jaws, each of which are lined with 56 to 59 teeth, research zoologist Anna ...

Yelena Titova shakes a jar holding a few dozen leeches writhing in slightly murky water. When one of them sinks to the bottom, motionless, she plunges her hand in and retrieves the late bloodsucker.

A backpacker from Scotland recently found that the cause of her frequent nosebleeds was a 3-inch-long (7.5 centimeters) leech living inside her nose. Twenty-four-year-old Daniela Liverani, of ...