Weird Animals

While highly social and cooperative among themselves, dwarf mongooses take a while to warm up to newcomers.

For Immigrant Mongooses, It Can Take Time to Earn Society’s Trust

In some species, however, deporting your own family members is the norm

A CT scan of Pseudoliparis swirei

Meet the Record-Breaking Fish That Lives 26,000 Feet Under the Sea

The creature is a type of snailfish, and has adapted to survive crushing pressures

One of the samples sequenced by the yeti researchers

Most "Yeti" Evidence Is Actually From Brown Bears

The results dispel the idea of these mythical beasts while providing clues to the ancestry of the elusive Himalayan and Tibetan bears

"Perhaps you'd be interested if I had a sponge?"

Male Humpback Dolphins Woo Mates By Presenting Sponges as Gifts

They also use "wingmen" and occasionally sport the sponges as hats—but researchers aren't sure just how much game they really have

Since commercial harvesting of sea cucumbers began in British Columbia, indigenous people have grown more worried about the long-term sustainability of catching them.

Is the Mysterious Sea Cucumber Slipping Out of Our Grasp?

The slimy, tasty enigmas have long been over-harvested. An indigenous community in Canada could be close to finding a sustainable solution

Noisy Colonies Help Bat Babies Learn Different Dialects

A new study has found that baby bats mimic the vocalizations that surround them

Decennatherium rex

Four-Horned Giraffe Ancestor Unearthed in Spain

The fossil is an unusually complete individual of an ancient giraffid species

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Why Did Dozens of Octopuses Crawl Onto a Beach in Wales?

Scientists aren’t sure, but recent storms or burgeoning populations might be to blame

An illustration of the raccoon-like Sinosauropteryx, which lived 130 million years ago in the Early Cretaceous.

This Adorable Bandit-Faced Dinosaur Will Steal Your Heart

Some dinos were small, fluffy and frankly adorable, a new analysis shows

“And bats with baby faces in the violet light / Whistled, and beat their wings”—T.S. Eliot, The Waste Land

How a Deadly Flesh-Eating Fungus Helped Make Bats Cute Again

A silver lining to the worldwide epidemic of white nose syndrome: People like bats more now

Shrews Shrink Their Skulls and Brains for the Winter

The tiny animal have some surprising reactions to the changing seasons

Surprising Footage Captures Arctic Jellyfish Lurking Under the Ice

The creatures were previously thought not tough enough to survive the harsh winters

Lugworm "casts" on a beach.

Scientists Need Your Help Peeping on the Lugworm’s Weird Mating Habits

UK scientists are recruiting volunteers to look for the critters’ “sperm pools”

A harmless toilet plunger really takes the snap out of a snapping turtle.

The Musk Turtle Beer Koozie and Other Household Items We Use for Science

When the going gets tough, creative researchers turn to plastic lizard protectors, monkey loofahs and deer vagina trackers

Stunning Video Captures Humpback Whales Catching Fish With Nets of Bubbles

It's a complicated but ingenious way to catch a meal

Explore the Secret Lives of Animals With These Marvelous Maps

A new book considers how sophisticated tracking technology and the data it collects can improve conservation strategies

A horsehair worm seen in its adult state, in which it lives only to breed

This Jumble of Writhing Sticks Is Actually a Bizarre Parasite

Observed flailing around in Taiwan, this so-called 'alien' turns out to be a horsehair worm

Oxpeckers hang out with large ungulates–animals with hoofs like rhinos, giraffes and water buffalo.

Those Little Birds On The Backs Of Rhinos Actually Drink Blood

You think that’s ticks they’re eating?

"Endangered, you say?"

Five Fascinating Facts About the Amazing Cassowary

They may look pretty scary, but they’re actually pretty cool

Two tree frogs share an intimate moment. The eye-popping yellow of the male only emerges in mating season.

The Color-Changing Marvel of Tree Frogs Looking for Love

A new study sheds light on the wild world of "dynamically dichromatic" amphibians

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