Many mammals indulge in mutual grooming to remove ticks and other parasites from their fur and skin but, aside from the occasional intriguing anecdote, it is unheard of for one mammal species to groom another. But Andy Plumptre of the Wildlife Conservation Society reports that just such cross-species co-operation regularly occurs between warthogs and banded mongooses […]
Author: Supertrooper
Founder and Executive Editor
Judge rules 2,000 Catalina Island deer can be killed to save native plant species
Locals and tourists have long fawned over Catalina Island’s mule deer population. For nearly a century, the ungulates have roamed the land’s waterfronts and woodlands, so comfortable around humans that it is not uncommon to spot deer roaming downtown Avalon. But that sight will soon disappear, after a judge this week paved the way for […]
“It thrusts its spear into the cavity, killing or severely wounding any dozing animal inside before pulling out its skewered quarry…”
Did you know there are animals that use weapons to kill? The chimpanzees that live in the savannahs of Senegal are such animals. There is considerably less food available in this arid habitat than in the forests occupied by other populations, so the great apes of the savannah have learned to fashion and use spears to take advantage of […]
Kākāpō rising: 90 chicks swell population of the world’s heaviest parrot
The population of the world’s heaviest parrot, the kākāpō, has surpassed 300 birds for the first time in 75 years, after a record breeding season triggered by the mass fruiting of a native New Zealand tree. Ninety chicks were officially added to the population of the critically endangered birds on 1 September, pushing the total to […]
“They were bouncing off umbrellas and pavements and hopped off in their hundreds…” 10 times it rained animals
You’ve heard of it raining cats and dogs. Thankfully, it’s just a figure of speech, but did you know that sometimes it really does rain animals? From starfish and shrimp to fish and frogs, sometimes creatures really do fall from the sky. The episodes leave people running for cover and scratching their heads, prompting explanations […]
When Truth Becomes Optional: The War on Grizzly Bears
There is something deeply disturbing about the way grizzly bears are being talked about today. It isn’t simply that people disagree about grizzly bear management. Disagreement is healthy. Debate is necessary. Science should be questioned and management strategies should be examined. But that is not what we are watching. We are watching a growing willingness […]
Can Modern Humans Survive Without Technology? A Look at Life Without Digital Devices
Modern tech shows up in daily life all the time. Many people rely on phones for chats, computers for jobs, websites for classes, and online tools for daily tasks like money and travel. That leads to a simple question. Could someone live now without any of it? Yes, people could do it. But going without […]
How old are polar bears? Just when did these fearsome Arctic giants first appear?
The oldest known polar bear fossils hail from Svalbard and northern Norway and are dated at 115,000–130,000 years old, before the beginning of the last Ice Age. But some biologists think that polar bears diverged from brown bears as early as 600,000 years ago. According to research, polar bears evolved from brown bears that ventured onto […]