Animal news, feature and articles

Editor's Picks

A collage of a woolly mammoth inside a petri dish with a pipet above it
'Closer than people think': Woolly mammoth 'de-extinction' is nearing reality — and we have no idea what happens next Scientists are getting very close to bringing a few iconic species, like woolly mammoths and dodos, back from extinction. That may not be a good thing.
An illustration of two mosasaurs swiming underwater
'Red flags' raised over ancient sea monster pulled from Moroccan mine A mosasaur species with saw-like teeth that was described by scientists in 2021 may have been based on forged fossils, and researchers are now calling for CT scans to determine the creature's origin.
European shore crab.
Do crabs feel pain? A growing body of research suggests crabs, lobsters and other animals caught for seafood can feel pain. Scientists are pushing for legal protections to ensure they are treated humanely.

Latest about Animals

a baby eats next to a dog

Are cats and dogs smarter than babies?

By Marilyn Perkins published

It's possible to compare some aspects of animal and human intelligence, but not all researchers like to.

Animals
Tahlequah, or J35, carrying her dead calf in Puget Sound on Jan. 1.

Grieving orca mom carries dead calf around on her head for a 2nd time

By Patrick Pester published

An orca famous for carrying a dead calf around has once again been spotted with a deceased newborn on her head in Puget Sound, but there's some good news for her endangered southern resident killer whale pod.

Orcas
An artist reconstruction of Dewars Farm Quarry during the Jurassic period. Megalosaurus walks near Cetiosaurus.

Weird bumps in UK quarry turn out to be 166 million-year-old dinosaur 'highway' for some of Jurassic's biggest dinosaurs

By Patrick Pester published

Researchers have excavated the largest dinosaur footprint site in the U.K. after a quarry worker found tracks left by two of Britain's biggest Jurassic dinosaurs.

Dinosaurs
European shore crab.

Do crabs feel pain?

By Olivia Ferrari published

A growing body of research suggests crabs, lobsters and other animals caught for seafood can feel pain. Scientists are pushing for legal protections to ensure they are treated humanely.

Crustaceans
A picture of three frogs sitting in little holes in a concrete "frog sauna"

Fungus is wiping out frogs. These tiny saunas could save them.

By Anthony Waddle published

Our purpose-built "frog saunas" allow amphibians to warm up in winter and bake off chytrid infections. You can even DIY and build a frog sauna for your own backyard with our step-by-step guide.

Frogs
Dryptosaurus (formerly Lealaps) confronting Elasmosaurus orientalis, with Mosasaurus and Osteopygis behind. Hadrosaurus forages in background, and Thoracosaurus crawls up on the banks.

A sea monster with its head on its butt? 10 times we were completely wrong about dinosaur-age creatures

By Patrick Pester published

Humans have a long history of misinterpreting ancient fossils. Here are 10 creatures from the dinosaur age that looked way different than we thought.

Dinosaurs
A hairy spider.

Hairy giant tarantula: The monster among mini tarantulas with 'feather duster' legs

By Lydia Smith published

The newly discovered tarantula Trichopelma grande has unusually hairy legs for a ground-dwelling species. It's also much bigger than its relatives — and scientists aren't sure why.

Spiders
Orca swims close tot he ocean surface with a salmon balancing on its head.

From orcas with salmon hats to the resurrection of the mammoths — this year in animal news

By Hannah Osborne published

There were sharks eating sharks, snakes eating snakes, and ants chopping each other's legs off. Here is a roundup of some of the best animal news stories from 2024.

Animals
A green viper holds onto a brown tree frog with its jaws, the frog looks as though it is screaming.

Venomous pit viper devouring a frog as it takes its final breath captured in gruesome photo

By Elise Poore published

From bloodsucking fly mites to fish being swallowed whole, photographers get up close and personal with an array of animals in this year's shortlisted entries for the Close-up Photographer of the Year 2024.

Animals
Southern right whales; a mother and calf swim beside each other.

These endangered whales can live up to 150 years — twice as long as previously thought

By Kristel Tjandra published

Life expectancy prediction using data collected over four decades reveals southern right whales' exceptionally long lives — far longer than scientists previously thought.

Whales
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Archives