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Conservation

The mother lion, her lion cubs and her adopted spotted leopard baby, all got along just fine.

In a ‘Bizarre’ Biological Twist, a Mother Lion Adopted a Leopard Cub in India

There have been only two other documented instances of interspecies adoption—and never between animals that strongly compete for resources in the wild

Artemisia Gentileschi's newly attributed David and Goliath painting

Cool Finds

Once Attributed to a Male Artist, ‘David and Goliath’ Painting Identified as the Work of Artemisia Gentileschi

Conservation efforts uncovered the Baroque artist’s signature along the hilt of David’s sword

This Cranwell's frog fluoresces green in blue light

New Research

In Blue Light, Most Amphibians Have a Neon-Green Glow

Researchers at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota shed light on frog and salamander bioluminescence

Mo‘omomi Preserve on the north coast of the Hawaiian island of Moloka‘i protects a dune ecosystem that boasts rare coastal species.

Hawai‘i’s Last Dunes Are Home to Species Found Nowhere Else on the Planet

A nature preserve on Moloka‘i reveals rare life forms—some ancient and others just newly established

The common merganser appears to have the ring from a plastic bottle stuck around its mouth and neck.

Duck Ensnared in Plastic Sparks Rescue Mission in Central Park

Rangers and bird enthusiasts are searching for a common merganser that appears to be unable to eat due to plastic debris that has become stuck in its bill

At Pablo Escobar's former hacienda, tourists are warned about the dangerous presence of an expanding hippo population.

Pablo Escobar’s Pooping Hippos Are Polluting Colombia’s Lakes

A new study suggests the hulking creatures are changing local water bodies with their bathroom habits

Mexico City Is Proposing to Build One of the World’s Largest Urban Parks

More than twice the size of Manhattan, the park could restore the water systems of the region and serve as a model for cities around the world

Numbers of these charismatic, blubbery birds have decreased by about half across Antarctica's northwest.

Preliminary Census Documents Antarctica’s Chinstrap Penguins in Sharp Decline

Climate change is the likeliest culprit, researchers say

Fuzzy and fast flying, bumblebees tend to run warm, and are best adapted to cooler climes.

Climate Change Has Driven Serious Declines in World’s Bumblebees

The number of habitats in North America that bumblebees occupy has fallen by almost 50 percent

Asiatic cheetahs—like this one photographed in Iran—haven't had a stable population in India in decades. Now, the government has clearance to introduce African cheetahs into several wildlife ranges in the Indian subcontinent.

After Decades-Long Battle, Cheetahs Can Be Reintroduced in India

Officials will now move forward with an experimental—and controversial—plan

A researcher holds a platypus for a Melbourne Water study conducted in 2017.

Australia’s Droughts and Fires Present New Dangers to the Platypus

Threats to the semi-aquatic, egg-laying mammals demand action, experts say

A Jamaican fruit bat (Artibeus jamaicensis), one of the species that contributed to the guano researchers used to study the climates of the past.

Ancient Bat Guano Reveals Thousands of Years of Human Impact on the Environment

Like sediment cores, ice samples and tree rings, bat excrement can be used to study the climate of the past

Coyotes are about to enter South America, a move that could soon make the species, native to North America, one of the most widespread carnivores in the western hemisphere.

Coyotes Poised to Infiltrate South America

The crab-eating fox and the coyote may soon swap territories, initiating the first American cross-continental exchange in more than three million years

A Chinese paddlefish specimen made in 1990 is seen on display at the Museum of Hydrobiological Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Wuhan, China. The Chinese paddlefish's sharp, protruding snout made it one of the largest freshwater species in the world.

The Chinese Paddlefish, Which Lived for 200 Million Years, Is Now Extinct

New research concludes the freshwater species likely disappeared between 2005 and 2010 due to human activity

After seeing their numbers slashed due to overhunting in the 20th century, North Atlantic right whales still face plenty of threats, including ship strikes, habitat degradation and pollution. A mother and her calf are seen in this aerial image from 2005.

Can Scientists Protect North Atlantic Right Whales by Counting Them From Space?

A new collaboration between the New England Aquarium and the engineering firm Draper seeks to use satellite sonar and radar data to create a global watch

Athena, a two-toed sloth who recently made her debut at the National Zoo.

Will Love Bloom Between Two Sloths at the National Zoo?

Keepers are gradually introducing Athena, who made her debut at the zoo in December, to fellow two-toed sloth Vlad. Sparks have not flown—yet

On December 24, 2019, the Potter Park Zoo in Michigan welcomed a healthy male black rhino calf.

Baby Black Rhino Born at Michigan Zoo on Christmas Eve

The birth of the yet-to-be-named male calf marks a milestone for conservationists trying to save the critically endangered species

Employees are contributing to the initiative by supplying reusable cups, plates and utensils for meetings, as well as bringing used plastic packaging materials from home.

Art Meets Science

A Hawaii Museum Has Eliminated the Sale of All Single-Use Plastics

The Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum in Honolulu hopes to set a positive example in the fight for a more sustainable future

A rancher tends to several small feral hogs in a pen in Texas. But in the wild, these hogs are considered invasive—and they're headed north.

Feral Pigs Are Invasive, Voracious and Resilient. They’re Also Spreading

The destructive swine are expanding their range in the United States and appear to be encroaching from Canada

An infant mountain gorilla from the Katwe group in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda.

Endangered Mountain Gorilla Populations Are Growing

But the animals remain threatened with extinction

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