For a look back at the headlines Mother Nature made this year, check out National Geographic’s top ten list of news stories from 2005. The readers’ choice list includes stories big and small, from Hurricane Katrina and the Asian tsunami to a nine-foot-long catfish caught in Thailand and a lifelike android created in Japan.

More fascinating than the stories may be this sneak peek into what sparks readers’ interest. (A photo of a python who died after trying to eat an alligator comes in at number seven.)

The magazine’s web site also features a top ten list of nature and science videos from 2005. Watch footage of an elusive giant squid, a simulation of Katrina’s path of destruction across the Gulf Coast, conservationist Michael Fay’s 15-month flight across Africa in a small plane, and killer hornets attacking bees.

Photo credit: South Florida NRC/National Geographic News