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Animals

Trending Today

An Oregon Town Tried (and Failed) to Scare Off Sea Lions With a Fake Orca

“Fake Willy” nearly drowned on its mission to drive sea lions out of Astoria, Oregon

Fossils of an ancient mini beaver suggest it may be related to the modern American beaver (Castor canadensis)

Cool Finds

Mini Beavers Once Roamed Oregon

Fossils of a squirrel-sized from in eastern Oregon may be related to modern beavers

The attack on a female tourist should serve as a reminder that lions are not only wild animals, they're perceptive predators.

Yes, Lions Will Hunt Humans if Given the Chance

The tragic attack at a South AFrican park serves as a reminder that lions are predators and humans are prey

New Research

Chimpanzees Can Learn to Cook

Given a microwave-like tool, chimpanzees become chefs

The nose knows.

New Research

Mouse Noses Can Bypass the Brain to Make Females Blind to Males

Hormones direct the nose to signal when potential mates are about—and when to erase their scent

Male wolf spiders vibrate dead leaves to create purring noises and court females.

Cool Finds

Listen to the Dulcet Purr of a Wolf Spider

Males seduce females by making leaves vibrate

The dusty white rock of the Las Vegas Formation, near the edge of Tule Springs National Monument, bakes in the midday heat.

Urban Explorations

Discover a Fossil Jackpot Off the Las Vegas Strip

Remains of mammoths, camels and other beasts of the Ice Age tempt visitors out of Sin City and into Tule Springs National Monument

The Grevy's zebra (left) and the plains zebra may be tough to tell apart—until you examine their dietary preferences via their poop.

New Research

Big African Animals Are Pickier Eaters Than We Imagined

To the surprise of ecologists, plant-eaters manage to coexist on the savanna by each choosing different favorite foods

Texas longhorn cattle.

How “Meat Banks” Are Helping Farmers Preserve Precious Livestock

Frozen sperm and tissue are being stored to protect commercial animals and help save rare heritage breeds

New lanes on London's Regents Canal urge human bikers, runners and walkers to break for ducklings.

Cool Finds

London Adds Special Lanes for Ducks

A city charity has painted pathways for waddlers on Regents Canal walkways

Unearthed at the Cova Negra site in Spain, skull fragments from a Neanderthal child have telltale punctures in the right parietal region.

New Research

Ancient Carnivores Had a Taste for Neanderthal Meat

Researchers link bite marks on a Neanderthal skull to the fangs of an ancient big cat

Shortly after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill, dolphins were observed swimming through an oil slick. Their exposure to petroleum fumes may have wrought serious consequences.

New Research

Research Confirms Fears that Deepwater Horizon Spill Contributed to Dolphin Deaths

Dead bottlenose dolphins stranded in the Gulf of Mexico had lesions linked to petroleum exposure

Java sparrows are both vocalists and percussionists.

New Research

These Sparrows Sing to the Beat of Their Own Drum

Java sparrows amp up their tunes with acoustic beak taps synchronized with chirps

What Makes the “Lion Whisperer” Roar?

He’s famous for getting dangerously close to his fearsome charges, but what can Kevin Richardson teach us about ethical conservation—and ourselves?

Meet the Prize-Winning Spiders From the British Tarantula Society’s Annual Competition

Now in its 30th year, the arachnid-equivalent of the Westminster Dog Show showcases the strange beauty of an eight-legged obsession

Cool Finds

How Feral Donkeys Saved a Lost Hiker’s Life in Death Valley

But not everyone loves shaggy wild donkeys

A trap-jaw ant opens its massive mandibles.

New Research

Watch These Ants Hurl Themselves Out of Death Traps With Their Mouths

At least one trap-jaw ant species has coopted its exceptionally strong mandibles to escape its nemesis, the ferocious antlion

Riders view the incredible vista in Dýrafjörður, Iceland, alongside their equine companions.

Why the Best Way to See Iceland Is by Horse

The country’s landscape is surreal and one-of-a-kind—so is a ride on the Icelandic equine

A blood-sucker creeping around on a potential victim's pristine white sheets.

Cool Finds

How Our Modern Lives Became Infested With Bed Bugs

After being bitten by the tiny pests, author Brooke Borel set out to learn all she could about her blood-sucking foes

The marbled salamander is increasing its distribution and range in response to warming winter temperatures.

Anthropocene

Climate Change Will Accelerate Earth’s Sixth Mass Extinction

The pace at which species disappear is picking up as temperatures rise, and things are looking especially troubling in the tropics

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