Changes like increasing geological and glacial instability driven by the warming climate are a growing concern across the Himalayas. Our hearts go out to the thousands of families across Nepal, China, and around the world grieving their loved ones and searching for those missing after the recent catastrophic flash flood at the Nepal-China border. Though […]
Tag: Weasel
It might look like a bit like your pet cat – but this fierce predator is a skilful swimmer who can sprint at 30mph and is anything but cuddly…
While at first glance you may think it resembles a domestic cat, a bobcat (Lynx rufus) is a much bigger and and more fierce hunter. It’s a medium-sized species of lynx, whose name comes from is short tail, which looks cut or ‘bobbed’. It roams the deserts and forests of Canada, the United States and […]
“It’s the size of a house cat, with all the charisma of rusty-red teddy bear…”
These tree-dwelling cuties are the original panda, having been described by scientists nearly 50 years before their black and white namesakes. They’re not actually even close relatives of the giant panda, belonging to their own unique family (Ailuridae) and sharing traits withracoons, weasels and skunks. How big are red pandas? Brilliantly adapted against the cold and for life in the […]
“This was a disaster for native wildlife that had few defences. This small, agile predator can find its way into the narrowest burrow”
A mink eradication plan in the High Weald of Sussex is proving so successful that Defra has given the go ahead to extend the project across southern England from the Kent coast to the Dorset border. It raises the realistic prospect that this invasive aquatic mustelid – a diminutive relative of otters, badgers and weasels – may be removed from […]
Is it an otter or a cat? Long-bodied, short-legged and weasel-headed, this is one of the most bizarre felines on the planet
The jaguarundi is one of the strangest-looking cats in the Americas. Long-bodied, short-legged and sleek, it has more than a hint of otter or weasel about it, which explains why it is sometimes called the otter cat. Yet this elusive hunter is very much a felid, and a close relative of the puma. Found from […]
Love Island: Rare berry bonanza spurs Kākāpō baby boom
The biggest berry bloom in New Zealand‘s forests in decades has set off a mating frenzy among the critically endangered Kākāpō, the world’s beefiest parrots. With the face of a Muppet and the physique of a Furby, the Kākāpō is an all-around preposterous creature. It’s nocturnal and lime green, and, as science-fiction writer Douglas Adams wrote, […]
Predators in peril: Protected areas cover just a fraction of global carnivore ranges
Slinking beneath the greenery of the Amazon is a cat whose territory far exceeds its stature. Despite weighing less than the average housecat, scientists say the northern tiger cat (Leopardus tigrinus) stalks a territory of up to 50 square kilometers (around 20 square miles). And this small, spotted feline is not alone — carnivores around […]
There’s an adorable animal in the Rockies that yells at hikers. Experts are worried its call may be fading
American pikas are small, mountain-dwelling lagomorphs that look like a cross between their rabbit cousins and rodents such as guinea pigs or hamsters. They’re common throughout the Rocky Mountains in the USA and southern Canada up to elevations over 4,000 metres. They specialise in inhabiting broken rocky habitats known as talus and are not considered […]