On Royal Street in Quincy, Massachusetts, Andrew Chieu was apprehended by the police on charges of animal cruelty after allegedly setting a raccoon on fire. The horrifying episode came to light when officers responded to a heated argument between two neighbors, ultimately discovering a caged raccoon displaying burn injuries. Source: CBS Boston/YouTube According to […]
Category: News
Invasive, carnivorous frogs are now breeding in Georgia, biologists say
An invasive species of carnivorous tree frogs that feed on native wildlife are now breeding in Georgia, a sign that the amphibians have gained a stronger foothold in the state, biologists say. Cuban treefrogs, Osteopilus septentrionalis, are a mostly canopy-dwelling species native to the Caribbean. It’s unclear exactly when they made the leap across the […]
Dracula parrots: what are they and do they feed on blood?
With a gothic sartorial elegance worthy of a Transylvanian count, it’s not hard to see how the Dracula parrot got its name. Even the swept-back hairstyle fits the bill. If it could talk (and there seems to be no indication that it can), it would surely be parroting “I varna drinka your blard” rather than […]
Two Software Engineers Are Revolutionizing India’s Fight Against Poaching and Wildlife Trafficking
Rather than taking their software and programming degrees into the tech sector, two young Kerala men are using them to bring India’s efforts to track, prevent, and punish wildlife crime into the 21st century with a suite of sophisticated apps and tools. They believe they are the first to bring this level of digitization into […]
African elephant populations stabilise in southern heartlands
African elephant populations have stabilised in their southern heartlands after huge losses over the last century, according to the most comprehensive analysis of growth rates to date. The latest analysis also provides the strongest data so far showing that protected areas that are connected to other places are far better than isolated “fortress” parks at […]
Salmon Escaping Farms Are Wreaking Havoc on Wild Fish
Wild populations of salmon in the Atlantic Ocean continue to face trouble from an unusual source: farmed salmon. On Monday, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) released its first red-list assessment for the freshwater fish category, finding that roughly 20 percent, or one-fifth, of all such species now face the threat of extinction. […]
Japan zoo probes possible mass squirrel poisoning
A Japanese zoo has launched a probe after apparently massacring 31 of its 40 squirrels by mistake with treatments meant to kill parasites, officials said. Keepers at the Inokashira Park Zoo in Tokyo injected the animals with anti-parasitic medicine on December 4 as part of a sanitary precaution, while also spraying insecticide over their nest […]
Many Australians believe Christmas beetles are disappearing. Is it true?
In eastern Australia the arrival of the summer holidays has traditionally been heralded by big iridescent beetles known as Christmas beetles due to their appearance during the festive season. Public perception seems to suggest these lovely insects may no longer be arriving in high numbers. Each year insect scientists like us field questions from the […]