animals

Weighing just 0.035 pounds (16 grams), it’s understandable why the Subantarctic rayadito has only just been discovered. Scientists recently discovered the species on the Diego Ramírez Islands, off the southern tip of South America.

With the world experiencing more extreme weather due to climate change, landscapes are being altered and ecosystems are having to respond quickly. So which species are going to struggle and which are going to fare relatively well as extended droughts, heavy rains and floods reshape the world’s terrain? In a new study, biologists Christie Le […]

Extreme heat in Kases last month killed so many cattle that carcases were dumped in landfills or buried in unlined graves, Reuters reports. Normally processed as pet food or fertilizer, the 2,117 cows that died from heat exhaustion the weekend of June 11 overwhelmed standard operating procedures. Burying cattle in unlined pits is a risky option and last resort because of the potential for waste to seep into groundwater.

Humans share 98.7 percent of their DNA with two species of endangered great apes: bonobos (Pan paniscus) and chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). Bonobos — which can only be found in forested regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), south of the Congo River — differ from chimpanzees in appearance and behavior. They are usually smaller, and their societal groups are led by females and are generally more peaceful.

As climate change erodes the icy habitats of polar bears, they are left stranded from their usual food sources for longer periods of time. So instead of filling up on seals, a new study has found that polar bears are supplementing their diets with garbage, which is expected to become a growing threat to the species.

Police are investigating the mysterious injuries of more than 30 endangered green sea turtles on the remote Japanese island of Kumejima. The turtles–discovered by locals July 14–had been stabbed in their necks and flippers and were lying motionless on the beach, The Asahi Shimbun reported.

Wild bison haven’t been seen in Britain for thousands of years, until this morning, when three of the herbivores — known as “ecosystem engineers” for their ability to naturally impact the landscape in positive ways — set hoof in the countryside near Canterbury, in Kent.

The heat wave that broke records across the South and Central U.S. this week had a devastating impact on cattle in Kansas. The combination of high heat, high humidity and low wind proved too much for thousands of the animals to handle, AP News reported.