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Mammals

New Research

Why Are Whales So Massive? It’s All About Energy

Marine mammal size is a delicate balance between chowing down and chilly waters

For all their flaws, lab mice have become an invaluable research model for genetics, medicine, neuroscience and more. But few people know the story of the first standardized lab mice.

Women Who Shaped History

The History of Breeding Mice for Science Begins With a Woman in a Barn

Far more than a mouse fancier, Abbie Lathrop helped establish the standard mouse model and pioneered research into cancer inheritance

Thousands of years ago, a herd of Columbian mammoths trudged across present-day Oregon to an ancient lake, recording their interactions in the muddy sediments.

New Research

Rare Mammoth Tracks Reveal an Intimate Portrait of Herd Life

Researchers piece together a 43,000-years-old tableau of an injured adult and concerned young

Many animals, like this red sphinx cat, are bred to be hairless. Other times, animal baldness is a symptom of stress and other factors.

Ask Smithsonian

Do Other Animals Besides Humans Go Bald?

From Andean bears to Rhesus macaques, non-human mammals have hair woes of their own

It turns out the story of the domesticated bunny is a lot fuzzier than the legends tell it.

The Odd, Tidy Story of Rabbit Domestication That Is Also Completely False

New study lends weight to the idea that domestication isn’t a point, but a process

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Cool Finds

Dinosaur and Ancient Mammal Stomping Ground Found in NASA Parking Lot

The slab is covered in 70 foot prints and is one of the best collections of animal traces yet found

Ask Smithsonian

Can All Living Things Exhibit Albinism?

You asked, we answered

While highly social and cooperative among themselves, dwarf mongooses take a while to warm up to newcomers.

New Research

For Immigrant Mongooses, It Can Take Time to Earn Society’s Trust

In some species, however, deporting your own family members is the norm

Cool Finds

Skeleton of a Massive Extinct Sea Cow Found on Siberian Island

Remains of the Steller’s sea cow shed light on one of the first animals that taught humans about extinction

Using seal bombs to deter marine mammals is legal, though using them to round up target species is not.

Why California Fishermen Are Throwing Deafening “Seal Bombs” at Sea Lions

…and why no one is stopping them

Floating sea pen designed to hold captured vaquitas

Trending Today

Critically Endangered Vaquita Porpoise Dies After Capture in Latest Rescue Effort

Conservationists are attemping a risky last-ditch plan to move the remaining creatures to a sanctuary in the Gulf of California

New Research

When the Dinos Went Away, Mammals Came Out (in Daylight) to Play

While it’s challenging to imply one caused the other, a new study shows that mammals came into the light of day soon after the dinos disappeared

New Research

Noisy Colonies Help Bat Babies Learn Different Dialects

A new study has found that baby bats mimic the vocalizations that surround them

“And bats with baby faces in the violet light / Whistled, and beat their wings”—T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land

How a Deadly Flesh-Eating Fungus Helped Make Bats Cute Again

A silver lining to the worldwide epidemic of white nose syndrome: People like bats more now

New Research

Shrews Shrink Their Skulls and Brains for the Winter

The tiny animal have some surprising reactions to the changing seasons

A Paradise for Grizzly Bears Gets an Up-Close Look

This unique North American sanctuary lets a few lucky observers see the besieged species in its wildest state

New Research

Why Wolves Work Together While Wild Dogs Do Not

Contrary to popular belief, domestication has made dogs less likely to cooperate to get food than wolves

Cool Finds

Stunning Video Captures Humpback Whales Catching Fish With Nets of Bubbles

It’s a complicated but ingenious way to catch a meal

A European bison, also referred to as a wisent

A Wild Bison Was Spotted in Germany for the First Time in Two Centuries. Then It Was Shot

As conservationists work to restore the once mighty European bison, they must face misunderstandings from concerned citizens

Dave Eggers

Dave Eggers’ Animals Might Be “Ungrateful,” But They Go to a Good Cause

The author discusses a return to art and his forthcoming book Ungrateful Mammals

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