The 6-year-old girl is in a stable condition following the attack by an untagged male dingo while she was swimming on K’gari, or Fraser Island, Queensland, Australia A dingo recently attacked a 6-year-old girl while she was paddling in a shallow lagoon in Australia, holding her underwater and repeatedly bitingContinue Reading
Exposure to sulfur-rich, volcanic soil appears to encourage the production of reddish pigments Life on a volcanic isle appears to give barn owls a blush of red-brown plumage. The high-sulfur environment on such islands influences the birds’ coloration, researchers report March 13 in the Journal of Biogeography. Darker feathers mightContinue Reading
Fossils from New Zealand reveal the existence of a giant petrel with a wicked sharp beak that lived 3 million years ago. About 3 million years ago, giant petrels terrorized the skies and seas of the Southern Hemisphere with their deadly hooked bills and piercing eyes, a new study onContinue Reading
Humans and animals have cooperated throughout history. But it’s rare and at risk of disappearing We’ve all heard that dogs are a man’s best friend, but our canine companions don’t make up the entirety of humankind’s friend circle. Humans have cooperated with wild animals throughout our evolutionary history, forming reciprocallyContinue Reading
Tiny protrusions on the bears’ paws offer greater friction Tiny “fingers” can help polar bears get a grip. Like the rubbery nubs on the bottom of baby socks, microstructures on the bears’ paw pads offer some extra friction, scientists report November 1 in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface.Continue Reading
Pahrump poolfish react oddly to danger, a new study finds Getting out into society after a long isolation gets awkward. Ask the Pahrump poolfish, loners in a desert for some 10,000 years. This hold-in-your-hand-size fish (Empetrichthys latos) has a chubby, torpedo shape and a mouth that looks as if it’sContinue Reading
The virus is thought to be predominantly carried by shrews An international team of scientists is tracking a newly-identified, potentially dangerous virus that has jumped from animals to humans to infect at least 35 people in northeast China. The Langya henipavirus, also called “Langya” or “LayV,” was first detected inContinue Reading
Sheepshead fish chew their food. Sheepshead fish (Archosargus probatocephalus) are a species of ray-finned, predominantly marine fish commonly found along the eastern coastline of North America and South America. They are known for their front teeth, which can look uncannily like human teeth(opens in new tab). Sheepshead fish should notContinue Reading
Don’t hold your breath on Bigfoot. In 2020, researchers saw for the first time what may be the longest animal ever. The creature, spotted in a deep-sea canyon off Australia, was a roughly 150-foot-long (45 meters) siphonophore. Each member of this group of species is made up of lots ofContinue Reading
No one knew if orcas could take down the largest animal on the planet – until now Killer whales are skilled assassins, hunting everything from herring to great white sharks. Now, for the first time, scientists witnessed a pod of killer whales bring down the world’s largest animal: an adultContinue Reading