The US Senate rejected an effort on Wednesday to halt a contentious US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) plan to kill nearly half a million barred owls in order to save their cousin, the northern spotted owl. John Kennedy, the Republican senator from Louisiana, had hoped to block the proposal by bringing the matter to […]
Is this the world’s most aggressive animal? Just the size of a fox, this badass raids beehives, steals from lions, shrugs off snake venom and never backs down…
Also known as the ratel, the honey badger is famous for its seemingly fearless and aggressive attitude to other animals, even larger predators such as lions and leopards – but does the honey badger live up to this infamy, and if so, just why is it so aggressive? What is a honey badger? The honey […]
Infectious diseases are killing deer and risking rural US economies: ‘You smell the dead everywhere’
When landowner and hunter James Barkhurst went scouting his property about a month ago to assess the local deer population ahead of the fall hunting season, he was left in shock. “I’ve seen about 14 dead in less than a mile stretch. There’s a lot of does, big bucks and even fawns. You smell the […]
Scientists say North Atlantic right whale population slowly increasing
One of the rarest whales on the planet has continued an encouraging trend of population growth in the wake of new efforts to protect the giant animals, according to scientists who study them. The North Atlantic right whale now numbers an estimated 384 animals, up eight whales from the previous year, according to a report […]
‘Destructive’ swans in the crosshairs as California allows hunting
Hunters will soon be allowed to kill mute swans as part of an effort to cull the “destructive, non-native” species statewide, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Starting Jan. 1, anyone with a valid hunting license will be able to kill the invasive waterfowl at any time, according to an agency news […]
Petition: Demand Mental Health Evaluation and Animal Ban for Florida Man Who Killed His Peacocks
A man in Florida grew so angry with his neighbor that he decided to eat his own pet peacocks to try and upset her. Sign the petition to demand this man get the mandated mental health counseling he clearly needs! Apparently, his neighbor had a soft spot for these birds, and had been feeding them. […]
Bonobos transformed how we think about animal societies. Can we save the last of the ‘hippy apes’?
Afew dozen large nests appear in the mist of equatorial dawn, half-hidden behind a tangle of vines and leaves. That is where the bonobos sleep, 12 metres above the ground. But it has rained all night, and the primates are in no hurry to get up. It is 6.30am when the first head emerges. It gives […]
The True Tale of the Man-Eating Lions of Tsavo
The man-eating lions of Tsavo, also known as the Tsavo Lions or the Ghost and Darkness, were two male African Lions that famously went on a killing rampage along the railway line between Mombasa and Nairobi in Kenya. During their nine-month reign of terror, they killed an estimated 28 to 135 victims, making them one […]