During his 1991 field season, Claudio Sillero-Zubiri trekked through the rugged highlands of Ethiopia’s Bale Mountains for his PhD research, searching for the world’s rarest canid: the Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis). Fewer than 1,000 wolves remained, making conservation work on the species imperative. But even Sillero-Zubiri began having trouble finding them alive. Instead, he came […]
World’s biggest birds are stellar dads and unusual lovers
When Nathan Young asked “What’s the difference between an emu and an ostrich?” Weird Animal Question of the Week decided to explore the whole group to which those birds belong, the flightless ratites. As you’ll see, these birds are odd ducks (though there isn’t a duck in the bunch). Big Birds Don’t Fly The ratites […]
VOTE for the Best Photo of the Week 17 Sep 2016
Welcome to the “Best Photo of the Week” competition showcasing and celebrating the biodiversity of Planet Earth. Voting is easy and lots of fun. First click an image and browse through the slideshow. Then select the three images you like best of all and click the VOTE button at the bottom of the page. […]
POLL: Should there be a ban on driven grouse shooting?
MPs will debate whether to ban driven grouse shooting after a petition created by a leading conservationist passed the threshold of more than 100,000 signatures. Mark Avery, a campaigner and former head of the RSPB, launched the petition in March with backing from broadcasters Chris Packham and Bill Oddie, and the League Against Cruel Sports, […]
POLL: Should humpback whales be taken off the endangered species list?
Federal authorities are taking most humpback whales off the endangered species list, saying they have recovered enough in the last 40 years to warrant being removed. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) said on Monday that nine of the 14 distinct populations of humpbacks would be removed, while four distinct populations remain listed as endangered […]
POLL: Should there be a worldwide ban on the pangolin trade?
Governments and NGOs are pushing to ban the commercial trade in pangolins, the world’s most trafficked mammal.They passed a motion last week at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Hawaii urging all IUCN members to support the transfer of all eight pangolin species from Appendix II to Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade […]
POLL: Should Japan’s killing of dolphins and whales be stopped?
Twenty dolphins were slaughtered on Friday in the southwestern Japanese town of Taiji, marking the beginning of the cove’s infamous annual dolphin hunt, according to local media, Agence France-Presse reports. The hunt has attracted global condemnation since 2009, when it was featured in the Academy Award-winning documentary The Cove, which depicted how fishermen round up […]
POLL: Should anti-Zika toxin be sprayed over public areas?
Huddled around their hives, beekeepers around the south-eastern US fear a new threat to their livelihood: a fine mist beaded with neurotoxin, sprayed from the sky by officials at war with mosquitos that carry the Zika virus. Earlier this week, South Carolina beekeepers found millions of dead honey bees carpeting their apiaries, killed by an […]