animals

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Saving Nature Will Require a Societal 'Transformation'

World Wildlife Fund calls for revamping food, energy, finance systems amid wildlife destruction

(Newser) - Enough is enough, says the World Wildlife Fund's Living Planet Report , released Wednesday, calling on governments and companies to "act rapidly to eliminate activities with negative impacts on biodiversity and climate" before it's too late. The report describes a 73% decline in the average size of monitored...

Canadian Marathon Gets Unexpected Runner

Joshua the goat is having a viral moment after escaping to join a marathon

(Newser) - Runners in a recent Canadian half-marathon were joined by a surprise competitor of the four-legged variety—a Newfoundland goat who escaped from his pumpkin patch to join the fun. The goat, named Joshua, broke away from a tether to jump in the race, and per CBC News , he completed almost...

Banksy Is Going Full-On Animal
Banksy Is Going Full-On Animal
Aug 12, 2024 1:00 PM CDT

Banksy Is Going Full-On Animal

Famed street artist is dotting London with depictions of a rhino, wolf, piranhas, and more

(Newser) - Street artist Banksy on Monday unveiled a new mural of a rhinoceros that looks like it's climbing on top of a car in London—the eighth animal-themed artwork he has posted in the past week in a collection that includes elephants, a goat, a wolf, pelicans, and more. The...

When Other Pets Die, Cats Go Into Mourning
When Pets in the House
Die, Cats Go Into Mourning
NEW STUDY
Aug 7, 2024 2:35 PM CDT

When Pets in the House Die, Cats Go Into Mourning

New research suggests kitties grieve the loss of other pets they live with, both cats and dogs

(Newser) - Past studies have suggested that cats aren't as aloof and uncaring about what's going on around them as they might seem, and now a new one lends some weight to that. Researchers out of Michigan's Oakland University say that when other pets in the household die, cats...

Century-Old Koala Sanctuary Puts End to Cuddling

Australia's Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary says move comes at visitors' request

(Newser) - For nearly 100 years, Australia's Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary has set out to protect koalas. It opened in 1927 in response to the practice of culling the animals for their fur at the time—and it's now putting an end to a practice it has long espoused: koala...

Chimp Has Been Carrying Dead Infant for 3 Months

Possible mourning ritual observed at Spain's Bioparc Valencia

(Newser) - A chimpanzee born at a zoo in Valencia, Spain, survived only two weeks before dying in February. Three months later, the infant's decomposing body remains in its enclosure at Bioparc Valencia with no current plan to remove it, despite the alarm caused to visitors. That's because the infant'...

Rogue Raccoon Delights Fans at Major League Soccer Game

'SIGN HIM NOW!' was MLS' response in Philly

(Newser) - "We need to find him a ball because he's moving very well in the center of midfield." Those were a commentator's words during a Major League Soccer matchup this week between the Philadelphia Union and New York City FC, though the description wasn't about one...

Man Loses Emotional Support Gator: 'Bring My Baby Back'

Joie Henney was vacationing in Georgia when Wally vanished

(Newser) - A Pennsylvania man who credits an alligator named Wally for helping relieve his depression for nearly a decade says he's searching for the reptile after it went missing during a vacation to the coast of Georgia. Joie Henney has thousands of social media users following his pages devoted to...

Scientists Find 'Super Cool' Way to Spy on Insects
'Super Cool' Mapping
Tracks Down Tiny Invaders
NEW STUDY
Apr 2, 2024 2:11 PM CDT

'Super Cool' Mapping Tracks Down Tiny Invaders

Airborne laser mapping could speed tracking of invasive insects, study finds

(Newser) - Scientists in search of insects can spend 1,000 hours checking roughly 10,000 trees across 40 acres. Or, with a more convenient approach, they can do the same in about an hour. More and more, researchers are turning to remote sensing technology to ease the burden of searching landscapes...

What Does a Dog See in Its Mind When You Say 'Ball'?

Scientists cite pups' 'referential understanding,' with mental images hinting at deeper grasp of language

(Newser) - Many dog owners believe their pets understand and respond not only to commands such as "sit" and "stay," but also to words referring to their favorite objects. "Bring me your ball" will often result in exactly that. But science has had trouble determining whether dogs and...

Tiny Bird Is First Non-Primate to Make Symbolic Gesture

Japanese tits seem to say 'after you' to partners

(Newser) - We humans think we know a lot. But when it comes to how animals communicate, we have a lot to learn, according to new research boasting the first known case of symbolic gesture in a non-primate. Many animals display body parts and some, including birds like magpies and ravens, make...

Why Are Medium-Sized Animals the Fastest? A Theory
Why Are Cheetahs the
Fastest? A Study Explains
NEW STUDY
Mar 13, 2024 4:03 PM CDT

Why Are Cheetahs the Fastest? A Study Explains

They fall in a 'sweet spot' while larger, smaller animals hit muscle limits

(Newser) - Lifespan, strength, and brain size tend to increase with an animal's size, yet speed does not. The largest land animal, the elephant, wouldn't come close to catching the fastest land animal, the cheetah. It's no anomaly. The fastest animals on land, in water, and in air are...

These Tiny Fish Are Louder Than Elephants
These Tiny Fish Are
Loud as a Gunshot
NEW STUDY
Feb 27, 2024 10:57 AM CST

These Tiny Fish Are Loud as a Gunshot

And elephants, according to new research on Danionella cerebrum

(Newser) - Often in nature, the larger the animal, the louder the noise. The sperm whale, for instance, can make clicks as loud as 200 decibels , while the elephant can trumpet as loud as 117 decibels . But as we know, nature is full of surprises, and in one such surprise, researchers have...

How a Cushion of Fat Helps Whales Sing

Researchers may have figured out how baleen whales vocalize

(Newser) - Whales sing loud enough that their songs travel through the ocean, but knowing the mechanics behind that has been a mystery. Scientists now think they have an idea, and it's something not seen in other animals: a specialized voice box. Experts say the discovery, while based on a study...

Zoo's Alligator Had 70 Coins in His Stomach
Zoo's Alligator Had
$7 in His Belly
Feb 20, 2024 7:43 AM CST

Zoo's Alligator Had $7 in His Belly

Thibodaux of Nebraska's Henry Doorly Zoo is now a bit lighter

(Newser) - A zoo alligator was carrying around quite a bit of extra weight until a stomach procedure to remove 70 US coins. The 36-year-old American alligator named Thibodaux, an "iconic" resident of Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, Nebraska, due to the leucism that causes his white coloration, was undergoing routine...

Blue Whales Carry Surprising Levels of Another Species' DNA

North Atlantic blue whales receiving fin whale DNA through mating with hybrid offspring

(Newser) - The blue whale population has started to recover from the devastation brought by commercial whaling in the early 20th century. But the world's largest ever animal isn't quite the same. In analyzing the genomes of Balaenoptera musculus musculus—the "most endangered" of four subspecies of blue whale,...

Footage Points to the 'Holy Grail of Shark Science'

Scientists describe what is believed to be the first sighting of a newborn great white

(Newser) - Scientists have spotted juvenile great white sharks, but never before had they caught a glimpse of a newborn. That reportedly changed this past July when a drone captured a 5-foot-long pup, apparently still covered with its embryonic layer. There's some doubt given the novelty of the situation, but the...

Female Animals Grow Bigger Brains, Males Bigger Antlers

Scientists aren't quite sure why, but they have some theories

(Newser) - While it's hard to overlook the giant antlers and horns that animals like moose and rams wave around, researchers recently made a fascinating discovery by checking out what's going on with their un-horned, female counterparts. National Geographic dives into the study, which examined over 400 specimens of ungulates...

Hundreds of Animal Species Hit by 'Catastrophic' Flu Strain

Elephant seals, seabirds, and now a polar bear—could humans be hit hard next with H5N1?

(Newser) - "It is catastrophic ... the largest die-off for the species, period." That's how Martin Mendez, a marine biologist with the Wildlife Conservation Society, describes to the Washington Post the fate of hundreds of elephant seals last fall in Argentina, found dead along the shore of the Valdes Peninsula....

'True Miracle' Arrives at Animal Shelter for the Holidays

Pennsylvania-based SPCA announces it has no more dogs at facility, for first time in 47 years

(Newser) - In what staff is calling a "true miracle," a Pennsylvania animal shelter has some good news for Christmas: Before the long holiday weekend, it had a grand total of zero dogs housed within its walls. CNN reports on the impressive accomplishment of the Adams County SPCA, which noted...

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