The coldest time of year can be a bitter inconvenience for humans, but for many species, surviving winter temperatures means wielding evolved biological tricks that appear to cheat Death itself — all of which make grumbling about donning a hat and extra layers a little trivial, in retrospect. From frozen frogs to butt-breathing turtles, here […] More
As humanity becomes increasingly interconnected across the globe, the unintentional spread of non-native species into vulnerable habitats is creating a growing crisis. Wherever they go, invasive species have the potential to wreak havoc on ecosystems and economies alike, occasionally swelling to scourge status in the absence of native predators or meaningful restrictions on their reproduction. […] More
When it comes to snakes, most of the attention goes to highly venomous varieties (like cobras and vipers) and constrictors (like boas and pythons.) This makes sense since many of these species are either quite dangerous to humans or, at least, perceived to be. But there’s a remarkable diversity of snakes and their lifestyles—and some […] More
Native Florida species may stand a chance, after all. Biologists noticed some unexpected behavior on trail cam footage recently: A male bobcat was captured in images raiding and destroying an invasive Burmese python’s nest, then batting at the reptile when she returned to protect the brood. The event is believed to be the first ever […] More
The number of Adélie Penguins, the species most common on the Antarctic Peninsula, has been steadily declining for several decades. At least, that’s what scientists thought, until researchers from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and NASA discovered something interesting in satellite imagery of the Danger Islands, off the peninsula’s northern coast. The images revealed guano (bird […] More
The world’s tiniest monkeys are actually not one, but two separate species, researchers using the latest genomics techniques learned recently. First discovered by a German researcher named Johann Spix in 1823, the itty bitty creatures, which average 0.2 pounds in weight, were named Cebuella pygmaea. Now, researchers have discovered there are actually two tiny species of marmoset […] More
A brave dog was captured on video holding its ground against a pack of wolves. The footage, documented by Abruzzo local Paolo Forconi in southern Italy, shows three tenacious wolves nipping at the pup’s heels as it looks for an escape along a barbed wire fence. The canine — likely a livestock guardian or working […] More
As global temperatures rise, ecosystems and the species they harbor are adjusting in response. Many habitats are either shifting their boundaries polewards—or disappearing altogether—sending wildlife into new regions, where they interact with resident creatures in surprising and often unprecedented ways. When this geographic collision is between two closely related species, they sometimes cross-breed, leading to […] More
Unbelievable footage of a polar bear chasing a reindeer into the water, dragging it ashore and eating it was captured on video in the arctic. The young female bear drowned the sizable male reindeer in the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard, which lies about halfway between Norway and the North Pole. Rare events like these are […] More
Meet the olinguito, a tiny elusive mammal described by scientists as a cross between a teddy bear and a house cat. Olinguitos were misidentified for over a century, despite the fact that there are many specimens in museum collections and some have even resided at zoos. It wasn’t until 2013 that a team researching its […] More
Believe it or not, Americans once considered importing hippos from Africa so we could raise them for meat. The idea was proposed back in 1910, while the United States was in the middle of a serious meat shortage. A massive population explosion combined with overgrazed farmland resulted in skyrocketing beef prices as farmers scrambled to […] More
Every feathered thing — from the hummingbirds flitting near your feeder to the falcons that haunt lonely cliffs — has something in common, and it’s not just that they’ve got wings. Today’s modern birds descended from a single, surviving line of carnivorous, theropod dinosaurs that became small, delicate, covered in feathers, and were gifted with […] More
