animals

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Animals Move Alike &mdash;via &#39;Magic Formula&#39;
Animals Move Alike
—via 'Magic Formula'
STUDY SAYS
Feb 23, 2014 9:07 AM CST

Animals Move Alike —via 'Magic Formula'

Birds, fish, and other creatures use the same basic mechanics, says study

(Newser) - When it comes to movement, human engineering has much to learn from Mother Nature, says a new study in Nature Communications . Researchers found that animals of all kinds use the same essential mechanics to move whether on land, air, or water, reports the Houston Chronicle , which likens it to a...

Biologists Can&#39;t Find Mexico&#39;s &#39;Water Monster&#39;

 Biologists Can't 
 Find Mexico's 
 'Water Monster' 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Feb 2, 2014 5:40 PM CST

Biologists Can't Find Mexico's 'Water Monster'

Leading to fears the axolotl has gone extinct in nature

(Newser) - The disappearance of a "water monster" sounds like a good thing—but in this case, it's not. The salamander-like axolotl has but a single habitat, the Xochimilco network of lakes and canals in Mexico, and researchers spent four months in skiffs trying to net the "water monster"...

Gifts Also Rule Animal Kingdom

They offer piggyback rides, share food

(Newser) - Many species of animals are just as into gift-giving as we are, though they may be better at avoiding that last-minute shopping rush. Often, the New York Times explains, the presents are tied to mating. "This is an incredibly cool and important topic in sexual selection that we’re...

Whales Record Years of Pollution —in Their Earwax

10-inch tube shows when animal was exposed to chemicals

(Newser) - Learning the story of a blue whale's life is easy, if a little disgusting: It's all in the earwax. It forms a tube in the animal's long ear canal, "kind of like a candle that's been roughed up a bit," a researcher tells NPR...

New Threat: Silent Rattlesnakes

South Dakota snakes appearing without rattling ability

(Newser) - It may be terrifying to hear a rattlesnake's signature sound—but, hey, at least it's giving you a heads-up. Now, hikers in South Dakota's Black Hills have to keep their eyes peeled for rattlesnakes that can't rattle, NPR reports. These snakes have curled tails like pigs...

Endangered US Tortoises to Be Euthanized

Funding for Las Vegas-area conservation center dries up

(Newser) - For decades, the vulnerable US desert tortoise has led a sheltered existence on a sprawling conservation reserve outside Las Vegas. But the pampered desert dweller now faces a threat from the very people who have nurtured it. Federal funds are running out at the Desert Tortoise Conservation Center and officials...

Church's Pet Cemetery Sparks Holy Row

Plan to house cremation urns upsets the devout

(Newser) - A plan to house pet cremations under a San Francisco church has sparked a theological debate about souls, sacred spaces, and the meaning of St. Francis, the Los Angeles Times reports. The notion didn't seem odd to church friars—after all, the church is named after St. Francis, patron...

Veterinary First: Pig Treated for Lymphoma

730-pound Nemo's procedure a success

(Newser) - Experts are seeing a bright future for cancer treatment in big animals after a 730-pound pig was successfully treated for lymphoma, Reuters reports. When 4-year-old Nemo, a pet, was diagnosed with B-cell lymphoma, a type of blood cancer, researchers at Cornell gave his owner a warning: They knew of no...

20K Rats, Snakes So Abused Rescuers Needed Counseling

Bosses charged with 106 counts of animal cruelty

(Newser) - Following what PETA is calling the biggest animal seizure in California history, rescuers were so disturbed by what they saw that they needed crisis counseling. A warehouse near Los Angeles was full of some 20,000 rats, snakes, and other reptiles who faced long-term mistreatment; many were dead and maggot-ridden,...

This Rodent Could Save Your Life

Naked mole rats appear to be cancer-proof: researchers

(Newser) - The naked mole rat is one lucky rodent: It not only lives more than 30 years, it's also seemingly immune to cancer, according to a new study published in Nature . While 95% of lab mice die of cancer, per Bloomberg , scientists were unable to trigger cancer in naked mole...

4 Animals With Crazy Abilities
 4 Animals With Crazy Abilities 
Jun 18, 2013 7:06 PM CDT

4 Animals With Crazy Abilities

Sierra Club list includes tigers, thanks to their whiskers

(Newser) - How does a tiger know when its prey is dead? It uses its ultra-sensitive whiskers to detect a pulse, or lack thereof. So says the Sierra Club in rounding up four animals with "superhero" abilities. Those whiskers have sensitive nerve endings, and after a tiger takes down its prey,...

Explained: Why Penguins Can't Fly

Theory: They're just too good at swimming

(Newser) - Wouldn't the March of the Penguins have been a whole lot easier as Flight of the Penguins? Perhaps—but if penguins were able to fly, they might have to give up their incredible swimming ability, scientists say: It's a tradeoff. A team looked at the guillemot, a relative...

Louisiana Is Shrinking, Thanks to Giant Swamp Rats

Beaver-like creatures behind vast erosion

(Newser) - When it comes to invasive species, Louisiana may have Florida and its giant snails beat: The state's beloved swampland is literally vanishing at the hands of gigantic swamp rats . Nutria—described by a documentarian tracking the creatures as "a cross between a beaver and a New York sewer...

Driver Busted With 53 Cobras: Cops

Their meat is a delicacy in Vietnam

(Newser) - A driver in Vietnam was arrested over some unusual cargo. His car was slithering with snakes—53 cobras in green sacks, to be specific, police say. The driver reported being paid less than $50 to haul the animals, whose meat is a delicacy in the country, the AP reports. If...

Dolphins Can't Sleep Because of Annoying Tourists

Animals sleep during day; hunt at night

(Newser) - Dolphins in Hawaii are losing sleep over annoying tourists: A local species known as spinner dolphins likes to slumber during the day and feed at night. But kayaking tourists, eager to view the dolphins' skillful acrobatics, are harassing the marine animals during daylight hours, leaving them tired and cranky, reports...

Elderly Termites Grow Suicide Backpacks
 Elderly Termites 
 Grow Suicide 
 Backpacks 
weird science
Jul 27, 2012 4:58 PM CDT

Elderly Termites Grow Suicide Backpacks

... and then explode them when enemies invade

(Newser) - Some termites grow up to be suicide bombers. Researchers observing the termite species Neocapritermes taracua found that certain workers, when they became elderly, grew a pair of dark blue spots between their abdomen and torso. When invaders raided their colony, these aging workers bit the intruders and then exploded the...

10 Ways Pets Make You Healthier

Animals can guard against asthma, allergies, and more

(Newser) - It's not all bad news when it comes to pets and their effect on your health: A recent study found that babies who live with pets may be healthier , and other studies have shown similar benefits to pet ownership. The Huffington Post rounds up nine more:
  • Asthma: Sure, no
...

Look Out Black Widow, Here Comes Brown Widow

Less toxic rivals may be taking over in West

(Newser) - Good news: You may now be slightly less likely to find a black widow spider hiding in your shoe. Researchers discovered that the deadly arachnid is being crowded out of swaths of its native US territory by a new creepy crawler to the scene—the brown widow, reports LiveScience . The...

Chimps Maul US Student at Goodall Sanctuary

Texan loses fingers, part of his ear in South Africa

(Newser) - An American grad student is in critical condition after being attacked by chimpanzees at Jane Goodall's sanctuary in South Africa. The student from the University of San Antonio, Texas, was guiding a group of tourists at the sanctuary for abused chimps when two large males pulled him under a...

Tortoises Break Up —After a Century Together

Bibi finally got sick of Poldi

(Newser) - They were together as a couple for more than a century until out of the blue, Bibi and Poldi—two giant Galápagos tortoises who live in an Austrian zoo—broke off their relationship. The split was anything but cordial, reports Der Spiegel . A belligerent Bibi bit off part of...

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