The evolutionary pros and cons of group living vary for males and females, according to a study of ostriches reported today in eLife. The findings help explain why the size of ostrich groups living can vary so widely in the wild, showing that the optimal size of a group depends on the balance of males […]
Tag: mating
Some female bears may select dens near to people to keep the threat of males away
Some female bears may select dens for hibernation in areas nearer to human activity to keep the threat of males from them and their vulnerable newborn cubs, researchers suggest. A study led by conservation experts at Nottingham Trent University and European partners involved monitoring populations of brown bears in the Cantabrian mountain range in northern […]
Video: Tense Standoff With a Male Elephant in Mating Mode
“About 97 percent of all the elephants were killed, and the ones that are left don’t like us very well,” says National Geographic filmmaker Bob Poole, referring to the elephants who live in Gorongosa National Park, a population that was heavily hunted by soldiers during Mozambique’s civil war. During the 15-year war, elephants in Gorongosa […]
Summer Lust
Damselflies pulse with the wild frequency of summer lust, tangled up in a humid breeze, their mating a river-mad embrace. • Ebony Jewelwing damselfly | Calopteryx maculata