Land Mammals, features and articles | Educational Science

Mar 31, 2013

Secret Population of Orangutans Found

A population of 200 of the world's rarest orangutans was found tucked away in the forests of the island of Borneo, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). All subspecies of Bornean orangutans are listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. But scientists estimate just 3,000...

Mar 31, 2013

How Red Squirrels Are Like Tiger Moms

Red squirrel moms know how to give their offspring an early edge in a crowded forest. New research shows the animals can speed up the growth rates of their pups to help ensure they'll be able to compete for turf when populations are dense. Surprisingly, stress, not more food, is...

Jan 31, 2013

Dogs Can Spot Fellow Furballs in a Crowd

Dogs can pick out the faces of other dogs in a virtual lineup of humans and other animals, a new study shows. And it doesn't matter if it's a German shepherd looking at a standard poodle. Dogs still know who's one of their own, researchers say. Previous research has shown...

Jan 31, 2013

Chimps Have Better Short-term Memory Than Humans

Boston — Chimpanzees may have more smarts than humans, at least regarding short-term memories, new research suggests. A Japanese researcher presented a video showing the remarkable abilities of a chimpanzee named Ayumu, here at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Thursday (Feb. 14)....

Jan 31, 2013

Man Arrested for Harassing Baby Manatee in Florida

A man has been arrested in Florida after posting pictures on Facebook that showed him harassing a baby manatee, authorities announced this week. The incriminating images show Ryan William Waterman, 21, and his two children petting a manatee calf at Taylor Creek in Fort Pierce last month, according to the...

Jan 31, 2013

Nut-Cracking Monkeys Show Humanlike Skills

Nut-cracking monkeys don't just use tools. They use tools with skill. That's the conclusion of a new study that finds similar tool-use strategies between humans and Brazil's bearded capuchin monkeys, which use rocks to smash nuts for snacks. Both monkeys and humans given the nut-smashing task take the time to...

Dec 31, 2012

Chimps Learn Tool Use by Watching Others

Chimpanzees can learn to use tools more efficiently by watching how others use them, new research suggests. The findings help illuminate ways that culture could evolve in nonhuman animals. Social learning is very important to maintaining a culture, study researcher Shinya Yamamoto, of Kyoto University in Japan, told LiveScience. For...

Oct 31, 2014

47-Million-Year-Old Pregnant Mare Sheds Light on Ancient Horses

When a thirsty pregnant horse drank from a freshwater lake 47 million years ago, she was unaware that poisonous volcanic gases might lead to her sudden demise. Now, the fossilized remains of the mare and her tiny, unborn foal are revealing new insights into reproduction in ancient horses, including surprising...

Aug 31, 2014

Wild Monkeys Learn to Puzzle Out Banana Video

The wild marmosets living in the Brazilian forest have never seen a television show and certainly have never watched a movie in their jungle homes, until now. When scientists showed the newbies a short flick of a marmoset stranger opening a box to get a banana slice, they were likely...

Aug 31, 2014

Gorilla Facts

Gorillas are large apes that are native to Africa. They are typically divided into two groups. The mountain gorilla lives in the mountainous regions of central Africa, while the lowland gorilla lives in the flat, dense forests of central and western Africa. Though the two types are very similar, they...

Jun 30, 2014

Pumas, Panthers & Cougars: Facts About America's Big Cats

The puma is the big cat of the Americas. At one time, it ranged from the Yukon in Canada to the Strait of Magellan at the tip of South America. Because these cats were found in so many places, local tribes or explorers had their own name for the large...

May 31, 2014

4 Baby Horses Born from Frozen Embryos

Attention horse lovers: A new technique could make it easier to breed the next Secretariat or Flicka. Four new foals have been born from frozen embryos, a tricky task given the structure of horse embryos. The baby horses were born healthy after spending 11 months gestating in mares at a...

May 31, 2014

Animal Sex: How Koalas Do It

With a diet based on eucalyptus leaves that are very fibrous and low in nutrition and calories, koalas live a pretty lazy life, spending between 18 and 22 hours a day asleep. But does this lethargy also translate into the bedroom, or do koalas maintain an exciting sex life? Found...

Feb 28, 2014

Tiger Mom Welcomes Cubs in London

Three baby Sumatran tiger cubs were recently born at the London Zoo. After a pregnancy that lasted 106 days, the 5-year-old Sumatran tigress Melati gave birth to three cubs in her den on Feb. 3. Since then, keepers say they've been watching the family by a remote camera. While we...

Nov 30, 2015

Animal Sex: How Manatees Do It

Despite their languid nature and bulky bodies, manatees are surprisingly graceful in their watery habitat. But do the mating behaviors of these so-called sea cows rival the elegance of synchronized swimmers, or are the mammals even more cowlike than meets the eye? Manatees are generally solitary animals. Females (cows) are...