The Darwin’s bark spider is nothing special to look at — black, reddish-brown, and white, they resemble a bit of bark or a dry leaf, and even the larger females are less than an inch in size. In fact, they’re so average-looking that it wasn’t until 2010 when they were first classified by scientists. Yet […] More
Trigger warning: If you already have a fear of spiders, this story is definitely not going to help with your arachnophobia. There is a species of spider that ensnares its prey with a web of venomous silk spit before it gorges on it. Spitting spiders are members of the Scytodidae family, and more than 150 […] More
Wildlife officials hatched a delicious plan to save the 300 endangered black-footed ferrets in Montana: peanut butter vaccine pellets to fight the sylvatic plague. But the best part of the plan? The morsels are going to drop from the sky. During the trials, the pellets or “bait” were distributed by hand, but there was too […] More
There was a lot of head-scratching going on when a young scientist first stumbled on what looked like a tiny replica of Stonehenge in 2013 in the jungles of Peru. He posted a photo of the curious mini constructions on Reddit, but no one seemed to have any idea how or why they were erected […] More
So-called “sea mice” are not actually mice at all. While they sometimes can resemble furry mice, they are actually marine worms whose spines can reflect a rainbow array of light. And despite the fact that they have no eyes and spend their time with their heads burrowed in the sand searching for food, their bristles […] More
There are 703 species and sub-species of primates around the world, and more than half of them are facing extinction. International experts released a chilling report last year identifying the apes, lemurs, monkeys, and other primates that are at risk of dying out, and the factors that are causing their numbers to dwindle. It’s a jungle […] More
Conservationists do a lot to protect terrestrial wilderness areas and animals, but when it comes to the marine world, it can be out of sight and out of mind. There are different factors at play, but overfishing and climate change are laying waste to what used to be thriving coral reefs and abundant sea life. […] More
Image: Wikimedia Commons Some animals are normal sized, and some are, well, SUPERSIZED! Let’s take a look at some extraordinary animals that are unusually gigantic: Giant Oarfish These enormously long, ribbon-shaped creatures are probably what has been mistaken for a “sea serpent,” because of the undulating motion they use when swimming. But they are actually […] More
When wild animals decide to enter human territory, the results can be funny, adorable or downright scary. Here are some recent (extremely bizarre) wildlife break-ins: 15. Bears Tries to Crawl Through Door Image via YouTube Speaking of bears, an Idaho man captured photos of a cub trying to squeeze through his cat door. But that […] More
For the last couple of decades, the only place you could see a Scimitar-horned Oryx was in a zoo. These creatures had become extinct in the wild, after being aggressively hunted for their horns and losing habitat due to a rapidly changing climate. But last August, that all changed. Conservationists released 23 of the captive […] More
If you were on a surf trip in Baja California, Mexico, and you saw this creature crawling around in the sand and thought, “hmmm, a worm with arms,” you’re probably not the only person who’s been fooled. It is not a worm, even though it looks exactly like a worm — it’s actually a relative […] More
You don’t need to have eight arms to be a supermom, but maybe it helps. Scientists trying to discern how long this deep-sea octopus broods its eggs were shocked — they went back 18 times, and every time it was still holding its unborn babies, for a total of 4.5 years. Yes, you read that […] More
