Animals

Hummingbird Feathers Reverberate Like Violin Strings Creating Unique Songs

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The Earliest Known Primate Weighed Less Than a Golf Ball

The primate's Latin name translates as "ancient monkey," and the fossil is about 7 million years old

Dead Male Guppies Can Make Babies

Female Trinidadian guppies store sperm from males that they mated with and use it to make babies long after the males they mated with died

A pair of romantic southern bottletail squids.

Female Squid Use Sperm for Both Reproducing And Snacking

Females may even be eating sperm from unattractive males and fertilizing their eggs with sperm from their favorite mates.

The Hula painted frog

An Extinct Frog Reappears in Israel

In addition to coming back from extinction, the amphibian also represents the only living species of a unique class of frogs

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The Death of a Conservationist Who Fought Poachers and the Drug Trade That Funds Them

Conservationist Jairo Mora Sandoval's passion for protecting sea turtles likely cost him his life

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Some People’s Feet Are More Ape-Like Than Others’

One in about 13 people have more floppy feet, pointing toward a bone structure more akin to that found in fossils of 2 million-year-old human ancestors

Legendary Human-Eating Bird Was Real, Probably Could Have Eaten People

In Maori legend, Te Hokioi was a giant bird that preyed on children, and science says that's probably the truth

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To Measure Elephant Obesity, One Researcher Assesses Pachydermal Butts

It turns out that it's really hard to figure out if an elephant is fat

Batang, a female orangutan at the National Zoo, snacks on a pumpkin.

How to Cook Meals for the 2,000 Animals at the National Zoo

Secretary Clough explains how the Zoo’s chefs prepare food for 400 different species

Britain Will Decide If Badger Culling Is Humane Based on the Noises the Dying Animals Make

The similarities between how the shot badgers thrash about compared to harpooned whales will also be factored in

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What Animal Sounds Look Like

Mark Fischer, a software developer in California, turns data from recordings of whales, dolphins and birds into psychedelic art

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Sloths Are Number One on the List of Illegally Traded Pets from Colombia

While Asian trade mostly stems from a desire for exotic meat and medicinal ingredients, in Colombia the pet trade rules the market

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The Gruesome ‘Atlas of Vertebrate Decay’ Does Have a Practical Purpose

Some of the earliest ancient vertebrates were too squishy to leave easily identifiable remains that lasted through millennia, so researchers are creating a rot look-book

An endangered fin whale

Endangered Whales Are Being Sold as Dog Treats to Rich People in Japan

Luckily, it seems that many Tokyoites aren't buying into the endangered treats, which sell at around $37 for 500 grams

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Tiger vs. Lion—Who Would Win?

Lions are the king of the plains. Tigers rule the jungle. But face to face, which would win?

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One Slight Genetic Tweak Gave White Tigers Their Pale Coats

That same gene change that gives white tigers their snowy coat also affects some fish, chickens, horses and even European humans

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Scottish Wildcats Are Interbreeding Themselves Into Extinction

One researcher thinks Scottish wildcats could be gone within two years thanks to hybridization with domestic house cats

Dawww

Bears That Have No Fish to Eat Eat Baby Elk Instead

The illegal introduction of lake trout in Yellowstone's lakes is having wide-reaching consequences

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Navy Dolphins Turn Up a Rare 19th-Century Torpedo

Called a Howell torpedo, the old military relic was a marvel in its day, and only 50 were ever made

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