Land Mammals, features and articles | Educational Science

Oct 31, 2018

How Do Squirrels Remember Where They Buried Their Nuts?

Few things symbolize the onset of fall quite so well as the sight of a squirrel scampering around a park, industriously burying nuts. As the weather cools and the leaves turn, squirrels engage in this frantic behavior to prepare for the upcoming shortages of wintertime. But have you ever wondered...

Sep 30, 2018

Bats: Fuzzy Flying Mammals

As the only mammal that can fly, there's no doubt that bats are exceptional creatures. Common misconceptions and fears about bats have led many people to regard these nocturnal flyers as nothing more than frightening disease carriers, but bats are crucial for a healthy environment. Bats disperse seeds, eat loads...

Aug 31, 2018

'Lucky' Raccoon Survives 9-Story Leap from Building

Did word get out that raccoons scaling buildings is a thing? Seems that way. This past June, a raccoon made Earthlings swoon when the masked daredevil scaled 23 stories up a vertical concrete wall in St. Paul, Minnesota, all the way to the safety of the roof. Now, perhaps a...

May 31, 2018

There Are More 'Pet' Tigers Than There Are in the Wild. How Did That Happen?

Thousands more tigers may be living in private captivity or as exotic pets in the United States alone than there are anywhere in the wild, based on shocking estimates from a number of conservation organizations, Smithsonian recently reported. Estimates of the U.S. pet-tiger population range from 5,000 to 7,000, according...

May 31, 2018

Someone Just Killed One of the Last Remaining Jaguars in the US

One of just three jaguars known to be living in the U.S. was recently killed by poachers. Experts identified the jaguar's pelt in a recent photo and say it is Yo'oko, a male jaguar (Panthera onca) that was known to roam the Huachuca Mountains in southern Arizona, the Arizona Daily...

Apr 30, 2018

These Two Angry, Yelling Lynx Are Probably Fighting About Sex

Two lynx face off on the side of a road in Ontario. RNAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH, says one. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHNHHNHAAAHHH, says the other. YYYYYYAAAAAAAHHHHHSSSSS, they say in unison, tapping their foreheads together before suddenly darting apart. This fight, captured on video by passerby Edward Trist and shared on Twitter by the website Globalnews.ca, is...

Oct 31, 2019

Does This 'Unicorn Puppy' Really Have an Extra Tail?

This puppy may not be quite as unique as a unicorn, but he's close: The pint-sized pup appears to have a tail protruding out of his face. The 10-week-old puppy was rescued this month by Mac's Mission, an animal shelter in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, that works with special-needs dogs, according...

Sep 30, 2019

The Scoop on Slime — Hyenas Squeeze It from Their Butts and Parrotfish Sleep in Snot Balloons

Goopy, sticky slime, whether it intrigues or disgusts you (or both), has more practical uses than you may expect. In fact, many animals and even plants make their own goo. Creatures might slime things up to help with reproduction, as protection against drying out or even as a defense against...

Jul 31, 2019

A Woman Needed Her Hands and Legs Amputated After Contracting Infection from Dog 'Kisses'

A little lick from a puppy may have led to a life-threatening infection for one woman in Ohio, who ended up needing her hands and legs amputated to save her life, according to news reports. The woman, Marie Trainer, went to the emergency room on May 11 after developing a...

Jun 30, 2019

This Common Sugar Substitute Can Be Deadly for Dogs, FDA Warns

You should always be careful about what you let your dog eat — case in point, a common sugar substitute found in everything from chewing gum to peanut butter can be deadly for man's best friend, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This week, the FDA warned...

Jun 30, 2019

Why haven't all primates evolved into humans?

While we were migrating around the globe, inventing agriculture and visiting the moon, chimpanzees — our closest living relatives — stayed in the trees, where they ate fruit and hunted monkeys. Modern chimps have been around for longer than modern humans have (less than 1 million years compared to 300,000...

May 31, 2019

Dogs Evolved Sad Eyes to Manipulate Their Human Companions, Study Suggests

About 30,000 years ago, a wolf decided to give up the wild life, commit to a steady relationship and become the first dog. Today, dogs and humans are the undisputed best friends of the animal kingdom — and, according to a new study, that comraderie may have been propelled by...

Apr 30, 2019

Botswana Just Lifted Its Ban on Elephant Hunting. Conservationists Are Appalled.

Botswana has lifted its elephant hunting ban, after a five-year probation period. The country's officials said that the reversal of the ban followed extensive consultations with all the stakeholders, in a statement published yesterday (May 22) by Botswana's Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources Conservation and Tourism. The move was deeply...

Apr 30, 2019

Why These Human-Sized Beavers Suddenly Died Out 10,000 Years Ago

Giant beavers the size of black bears once roamed the lakes and wetlands of North America. Fortunately for cottage-goers, these mega-rodents died out at the end of the last ice age. Now extinct, the giant beaver was once a highly successful species. Scientists have found its fossil remains at sites...

Feb 28, 2019

Why Are There So Many Marsupials in Australia?

Australia is the kingdom of marsupials, home to furry kangaroos, koalas and wombats. The continent has so many marsupials, it raises the question: Did these pouch-bearing mammals arise Down Under? The answer is an unqualified (or un-koalafied) no. Marsupials were around for at least 70 million years before they made...