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Weird Animals

Flat-headed cats are rarely observed in the wild, in part because of their nocturnal habits.

This Wild Cat Is Considered ‘Possibly Extinct’ in Thailand. Researchers Just Caught It on Camera for the First Time in About 30 Years

Findings from the largest-ever survey of endangered flat-headed cats may help change the species’ official conservation status in Thailand

Remoras hitch a ride on a humpback whale.

Watch Suckerfish Hitch a Wild Ride on Humpback Whales in Rare Video Footage

Suckerfish—also known as remoras—are harmless, but the whales didn’t seem to be fans of their hitchhiking

Tiny but mighty: Downy woodpeckers drill into trees with a force 20 to 30 times their body weight.

Downy Woodpeckers ‘Grunt’ as They Turn Their Bodies Into Hammers to Drill Into Trees

Researchers studied the combination of muscles and breaths that the tiny birds use as they strike trees with their beaks

More than 200 river dolphins died in Brazil's Lake Tefé in the fall of 2023, with water temperatures soaring as high as 105.8 degrees Fahrenheit, according to a new study.

Water Temperatures in Amazon Lakes Reached Hot Tub Levels in 2023, Killing Fish and Dolphins

Brazil’s Lake Tefé reached 105.8 degrees Fahrenheit during the severe drought and heat wave

Eastern hellbenders are known as "snot otters" because they're covered in a slimy, protective coating.

Scientists Are Releasing the Lovingly Nicknamed ‘Snot Otters’ Into Ohio Waterways in a Big Success for Conservation

Eastern hellbenders, the largest amphibians in North America, are in trouble, but conservationists are hard at work to help the wrinkled wonders survive

The giant structure—made up of thousands of individual funnel-shaped webs—spans over 1,000 square feet.

This Massive Web—Home to More Than 100,000 Spiders—Found in a Cave in Europe Could Be the World’s Largest

The cavern along the border of Greece and Albania is home to a terrifyingly high number of two species of arachnids that live together peacefully in complete darkness

While seaching for Ernest Shackleton's lost ship Endurance in 2019, researchers stumbled across clusters of indentations on the seafloor.

Researchers Found Hundreds of Mysterious Dimples on the Seafloor Near Antarctica. Now They Know What Creature Made Them

The indentations are nests of fish called yellowfin notie, and they are not randomly scattered—rather, they appear to have been arranged in distinct patterns

The newly discovered carnivorous "death-ball sponge" 

Researchers Discover ‘Death Ball’ Sponge and Dozens of Other Bizarre Deep-Sea Creatures in the Southern Ocean

So far, two expeditions have yielded 30 new species—and researchers say there’s more to come

Bat? Meet rat. Scientists recorded brown rats snatching bats from the air and eating them.

Rats Are Snatching Bats Out of the Air and Eating Them—and Researchers Got It on Video

Rodents in northern Germany were spotted using two different hunting strategies at major urban bat hibernation sites

For two days at the start of monsoon season on the Indian subcontinent, male Asian common toads (right) turn bright yellow, while females (left) stay brown.

For Two Days Each Year, These Drab Brown Toads Turn a Dazzling Neon Yellow—and Scientists Finally Know Why

When monsoon rains begin to fall on the Indian subcontinent, Asian common toads congregate at temporary puddles for a frenzied, two-day mating spree

An illustration shows the types of megafauna that may have lived near Australia's Mammoth Cave about 50,000 years ago. From left to right: Murrayglossus hacketti, a giant long-beaked echidna; Procoptodon browneorum, the giant kangaroo whose bone is the subject of new research; Zygomaturus trilobus, a giant diprotodontid; and Thylacinus cynocephalus, a Tasmanian Thylacine

A Giant Kangaroo Bone Is Challenging the Idea That Humans Wiped Out Australia’s Megafauna

Indigenous Australians may have been early “paleontologists,” not big-game hunters, according to a new analysis

One of the finalists, titled "I Just Can't Wait to be King," captures lions appearing to sing.

See This Year’s Hilarious Finalists From the Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards, From Gossiping Leopards to Breakdancing Foxes

The 40 shortlisted photographs pair talented nature photography with humorous captures that often rely on clicking the shutter at just the right moment

Cameras captured nematodes attaching themselves to electrically charged fruit flies. 

These Parasitic Worms Use Static Electricity to Hitch a Ride on Flies

The tiny experiment yielded big results, showing how nematodes hop onto fruit fly hosts

The otter-surfer interaction last Wednesday 

‘Feisty’ Otters Are Once Again Hijacking Surfboards in Santa Cruz

Is the playful otter stealing surfboards a repeat offender?

Jackie's unusual coloring results from changes to her natural pigmentation process.

Meet Jackie, a 1-in-30-Million Calico Lobster Caught Off the Coast of Massachusetts

Now living at Northeastern University’s Marine Science Center, the striking crustacean has a bright orange shell with black freckles and blue joints

Coins left behind as offerings helped the researchers measure the size of the imprint from photos.

Chicago’s Famous ‘Rat Hole’ Wasn’t Actually Made by a Rat, According to a Statistical Analysis

Scientists are almost certain the viral imprint in a city sidewalk was actually made by an unlucky squirrel

Researchers equipped the bats with "backpacks" filled with monitoring instruments.

This Chilling Recording Reveals Large Bats Catching, Killing and Eating Birds Midflight

The data answers an enduring question about the greater noctule bat

Two new studies are shedding more light on the behavior and lifespans of naked mole rats.

Scientists Explore the Mysterious Lives and Longevity Superpowers of Naked Mole Rats

The nearly hairless rodents are extremely resistant to cancer—and can live to be 37 years old

A sea lamprey shows off its nightmarish mouth.

This Invasive Vampire Fish Is Helping Researchers Understand the Human Nervous System in Jaw-Dropping Ways

The sea lamprey looks like it’s from another planet, but this ancient creature has a surprising amount in common with humans

A male blue jay on the left, a female green jay on the right and a hybrid offspring of the two species in the center.

Strange Bird Spotted in a Texas Backyard Is the First Known Hybrid Between a Blue Jay and a Green Jay

The ranges of the two parent bird species have expanded due to climate change and now overlap around San Antonio, researchers say

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