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Mammals

The cheetah population almost halved since 1975 with only an estimated 7,100 left in the wild today.

Future of Conservation

How to Help Cheetahs Live Longer in Captivity

The key is in what we feed them, researchers surmise

New Research

What Is the Key to Predict Animal Speed?

The biggest animals aren’t always the fastest

How Do Sea Lions Swim, Glide and Sometimes Even Nab Humans?

These living torpedoes pull themselves through the water using their front flippers, unlike other ocean creatures

I can haz a sense of inequity?

New Research

Wolves and Dogs Both Have a Sense of Fairness

But wolves seem to take inequity much more seriously than dogs

How Mastiffs Became the World’s Top Dogs

The large, furry dogs of Tibet took an evolutionary shortcut millenia ago

Naked Mole-Rats Can Survive for 18 Minutes Without Oxygen

Just when you thought the wrinkly creatures couldn’t get any stranger

A sea otter floats in Kachemak Bay, Alaska.

Future of Conservation

The Remarkable Return of Sea Otters to Glacier Bay

Rarely do apex predators recover from human oppression. These otters are an exception

The tick discovered preserved in amber

New Research

30-Million-Year-Old Tick Full of Monkey Blood Found in Ancient Amber

Scientists think the tick was plucked from a primate before being dropped in a puddle of sticky tree resin

Outside of the U.S., international whale capture is alive and well.

What Will It Take to End International Killer Whale Capture?

The West may have rejected whale captivity, but the painful relationship between humans and orcas is far from over

Nearly blind, Typhlomys cinereus thrives in the high forests of southeastern China and Vietnam—with a little help from another sense.

New Research

This Echolocating Dormouse Could Reveal the Origins of One of Nature’s Coolest Superpowers

Mice, moths and even humans use clicks and echoes to “see” the world around them

Ōkunoshima

The Dark History of Japan’s Rabbit Island

The heroes of the movie Kong: Skull Island prepare to encounter the 104-foot-tall ape King Kong.

Science in the Movies

How Big Can a Land Animal Get?

King Kong’s biggest enemy isn’t humans—it’s the laws of physics

How the Desert Oryx Stops Its Brain From Frying

How does the desert-dwelling oryx survive a body temperature that would kill other mammals? The answer lies in a panting mechanism

Incredible: A Cheetah Sprints to Catch a Springbok

A cheetah mother caring for her cubs stumbles across an opportunity too good to pass up: a herd of springbok, grazing casually nearby

Why Elk Calves Are Undetectable to Yellowstone’s Wolves

In Yellowstone, elk calves are left unprotected by their herd and are the easiest prey for wolves to catch. Luckily, the newborns have no scent

Tracking individual lemurs—such as the endangered red-bellied lemur pictured here—is no easy task. But researchers hope that facial recognition software can help in the fight for the survival of the bushy-tailed primates.

New Research

How Do You Pick a Lemur Out of a Lineup? This Software Makes the Leap

Facial recognition software can identify individuals, helping researchers conserve the endangered primate

Rothschild’s giraffes typically have five nubby horns, or ossicones, instead of the usual two.

Future of Conservation

To Save Giraffes, We May Need to Put Our Necks Out

With populations plummeting, researchers race to understand a beloved but enigmatic animal

Think human dating is hard? Try being a panda.

Pandamonium

Why Panda Sex Isn’t Black and White

Reproductive experts weigh in on panda porn, panda Viagra and other biological myths

New Zealand volunteers formed a human chain in the water at a remote beach on Friday as they tried to save about 100 whales after more than 400 of the creatures beached themselves in one of the worst whale strandings in the nation's history.

Trending Today

Hundreds of Pilot Whales Stranded on New Zealand’s Farewell Spit

Up to 300 have died and volunteers are scrambling to get the remaining creatures back in the water

Meet the Echidna, an Incredible, Fire-Proof Spiny Anteater

The echidna, or spiny anteater, is a marvel of defensive self-preservation, from its impenetrable spikes to its ability to breathe through bushfires

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