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Wildlife

Jackie was brought to the Ojai Raptor Center in July.

Wildlife Experts Stunned to Find That Bird Flu Killed Jackie, the Beloved, Internet-Famous Bald Eagle

Jackie died in August after receiving weeks of intensive care at the Ojai Raptor Center in California. The necropsy results are surprising, given that Jackie’s symptoms were unusual for bird flu and there is no ongoing outbreak among bald eagles

Biologists are running a pilot project with up to 100 birds on Albatross Island.

Wildlife Biologists Start Vaccinating Shy Albatrosses by Hand, Taking Aim at the Spread of Avian Flu in Tasmania

If all goes to plan, officials hope to vaccinate up to 100 of the large seabirds on Albatross Island, giving each two doses of the vaccine. Afterward, they plan to keep tabs on the birds using remote cameras and follow-up visits

Customs officers discovered two blue grosbeaks when they searched Alberto Hernandez Castillo.

Birds in Their Pants: Two Men Accused of Smuggling 21 Avians After Miami Airport Bust

Customs officers say they found the creatures hidden in the men’s clothes after they touched down on separate flights from Cuba, and it’s unclear whether the two incidents are related. Wildlife trafficking is the world’s fourth-largest form of organized crime

Coyotes and people coexist in San Francisco, despite an effort to eradicate the canines a century ago. This image and its portfolio won the Photojournalist Story Award.

See the Stunning Winners of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year Contest, Capturing the Splendor and Drama of Nature

These 19 recognized images highlight the diversity across our planet and the value in appreciating and protecting the natural world

The nocturnal barn owls have drawn crowds of birders at night.

A Family of Barn Owls Has Moved Into New York City’s Upper West Side, Perhaps the First to Nest in Manhattan in Modern History

The feathered residents have attracted lots of attention, as their species is considered an extremely rare sight in the city

Jonathan stands on the lawn of Plantation House, the governor's residence in Saint Helena. The Aldabra giant tortoise holds the world record for being the oldest living land animal.

Scientists Took a Cheek Swab From the World’s Oldest Tortoise. His DNA Could Reveal Hints to Longevity

Jonathan, an Aldabra giant tortoise, is about 194 years old and the oldest land animal alive today. Discoveries about his genetics could provide clues to extending lifespan in humans

The bare-throated bellbird is among the world’s loudest birds.

These South American Birds Can Match a Jackhammer’s Ear-Splitting Volume, Making Them Some of the World’s Loudest Known Avians

The bare-throated bellbird and the red-legged seriema can produce sounds at amplitudes that exceed 120 decibels, which puts them on par with a trumpeting elephant or a chainsaw

Elephant rumbles include frequencies that are below the range of human hearing.

African Elephants Often Produce Choruses of Low-Pitched Rumbles. Now, Scientists Are Using A.I. to Decode the Joint Vocalizations

New research suggests the animals’ overlapping calls serve as coordinated group messages and may contain additional information beyond what’s encoded in individual rumbles

The specimen of the last known passenger pigeon, Martha, preserved in the Smithsonian’s collection. Martha died in 1914 at the Cincinnati Zoo.

These Five Birds Have Disappeared Forever. Their History Offers a Valuable Lesson for the Future

In an exhibition celebrating the natural history of the United States, a small group of taxidermy birds stands as a reminder of loss—and a symbol of hope

The indri is the only known species of lemur that sings.

These Wild Lemurs Sing Just Like Opera Stars, Widening Their Mouths as They Hit the High Notes, Study Suggests

Scientists suspect this musical trait arose independently in humans and indris, which split from a common ancestor some 74 million years ago. Today, the lemurs make loud, haunting calls to communicate with one another in the dense forests of eastern Madagascar

Osiris is one of three beluga whales that died at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. The other died at Oceanografic Valencia in Spain.

Four Beluga Whales Died Weeks After Being Rescued From a Defunct Marine Park in Canada. Were the Animals Too Sick to Be Moved?

They were among 30 whales transferred from the facility over the summer. It had faced multiple allegations of animal neglect and cruelty before closing in 2024

Backpack has a quiet presence on the river—and his size suggests his peaceful strategy is effective.

Meet This Year’s Chonky Champion of Fat Bear Week: Backpack, a Laid-Back 20-Year-Old Male Who’s a ‘Stoic Presence on the River’

The brown bear, who now weighs between 1,000 and 1,200 pounds after fattening up on salmon, earned his nickname as a cub. When he was little, he enjoyed riding on his mom’s back as she swam across a river

Parts of New Jersey experienced severe flooding over the weekend during the nor'easter.

A Shark Was Spotted Swimming Through the Flooded Streets of New Jersey During the Nor’easter

The creature has been identified as a smooth dogfish, a harmless species found throughout the western Atlantic Ocean. It wasn’t the only animal caught in the chaos brought by the storm system

The rare two-headed turtle was found at a proteted nesting site.

Two Heads Are Better Than One: Rare, Double-Headed Turtle Hatchling Discovered on Cape Cod

The tiny diamondback terrapin was brought to a wildlife center on September 17. At the time, the creature weighed about as much as a nickel

A giant isopod plucked from the ocean near China

This Massive, Deep-Sea Roly Poly Can Go Years Without Food Thanks to a Huge Stomach and a Stolen Gene, Study Suggests

The ancestors of the giant isopod Bathynomus jamesi—a seafloor-dwelling creature that resembles a huge pill bug—acquired the snippet of DNA from bacteria more than 16 million years ago, according to a new study. The gene helps the animal slow its metabolism

A newly identified stick insect species, Anchiale mabiensis, can be found in the Mabi Forest of Australia.

Two New Stick Insect Species Have Been Discovered in Australia—and Another One Was Hiding in Plain Sight

The new discoveries emphasize that scientists have a lot left to learn about insect diversity, even in areas with many observations

The common vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus) is one of 1,500 species of bats around the world.

Where Did Bats Originate? Huge Genetic Study May Have Settled the Longstanding Debate and Rewritten the Creatures’ Evolutionary Tree

The flying mammals likely arose 65 million years ago in Europe, before spreading to Africa and then the rest of the world, according to the new research

A lion surveys his vast territory in Maasai Mara.

These 15 Wonderful Photographs of Kenya’s World-Class Wildlife Will Have You Booking a Flight to the Savanna

The East African nation is home to a number of conservation parks where its impressive animals roam free

Participants in Germany liked the Eurasian blackbird's call the most out of a list of vocalizations made by more than 100 birds.

Some Birdsongs Are More Pleasing to Human Ears Than Others. Higher-Pitched, Complex Calls Tend to Sound More Beautiful to Us

In a new study, more than 80 participants rated the pleasantness of vocalizations made by 123 European bird species. Researchers then looked at the acoustic qualities of the most—and least—liked songs

Members of the public are invited to vote for their favorite name for the otter: Nessie, Ruthie or Morgan. The selections are a nod to community changemakers who have made a positive impact on the river and the Bronx more broadly.

An Otter Just Returned to New York City’s Bronx River for the First Time in a Century. Now, You Can Help Name It

A trail camera photographed the animal earlier this summer, offering a hopeful sign that the once-polluted urban waterway is recovering after decades of restoration work

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