Now here’s a great conservation success story: After more than 100 years, Galápagos giant tortoise hatchlings finally have a chance to thrive and survive on their native Pinzón Island, after conservationists cleared it of the invasive rats that nearly wiped out the animals.
Nine lives won’t help to perpetuate a cat species unless the cats manage to reproduce. The decline of wild cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus), classified as “vulnerable” by the IUCN, led to the coordination of captive breeding programs in zoos and other breeding facilities.
Image of the Week #102, July 31st, 2013: From: How the Fleas’ Next of Kin Ended up Living on a Liverwort in Alaska by Jennifer Frazer at The Artful Amoeba.
Look at this soft, fluffy bundle of newness. This little man is the Lavasoa dwarf lemur (Cheirogaleus lavasoensis), a newly described species of dwarf lemur from southern Madagascar.
Suddenly and unexpectedly, I have the urge to write about frogs. Today we look briefly at the first of two behaviourally peculiar, anatomically surprising groups, both of which are endemic to sub-Saharan Africa, both of which belong to a major neobatrachian frog clade called Allodapanura, and both of which have been united in a clade [...]
“Why is it that an animal that is actively trying to kill us, such as a lion, gets more respect than one that is only trying to nibble on us a little, without causing much harm?” -Piotr Naskrecki Biologist Piotr Naskrecki, who traveled with me to Belize last year, returned home to find himself incubating [...]
First a moment to celebrate Octopus Chronicles‘ 100th post! Little could I have imagined when I started this blog in November 2011 that there would be so much amazing octopus research to cover—and so many wonderful readers.
The amazing power duo of Flora Lichtman and Sharon Shattuck (Sweet Fern Productions) has come out with a new animated short on the discovery of microbes.
Last summer, researchers demonstrated that non-invasive imaging combined with a staining technique enables the fast comparison and study of earthworm species and other animals in unprecedented detail.
South Africa has finally finished compiling its report on the number of rhinos poached in the country last year and, as expected, the news is terrible.
Personal feelings can complicate science journalism. I dislike some scientists whose views I admire, and like some whose views make me squirm.
I'm still not sure whether I blog about Mesozoic archosaurs - specifically dinosaurs and pterosaurs - too often, or too infrequently. As I always say, the problem as I see it is that dinosaurs and pterosaurs have so much presence in the blogosphere that writing about them always feels like jumping on a bandwagon.
It only took about half a century, but the once-rare Delmarva fox squirrel (Sciurus niger cinereus) now has a healthy population once again, placing it in a position to finally leave the protection of the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
Those of you following this blog know that I love me a great science music video parody. This awesome one from College Humor does not disappoint!
I'm an unashamed fan of cryptozoology - this being (for the two of you that don't know) the field of study that revolves around those creatures thought to exist by some, but which remain unrecognised by mainstream science in general.
Who could be better positioned for a bit of speculative biology than a parasitologist? Artist and parasitologist Tommy Leung has a mind for puzzling out species networks, and he puts it to – no other word fits – fantastic use when thinking up new creature-relationships.
This post is one in a series covering, and expanding on, topics in the book The Copernicus Complex (Scientific American/FSG). The conversation usually goes like this: Do you think we’re alone in the universe?
Today I'd like to focus on passerine birds again, and this time on a group that I don't think I've ever blogged about before: the certhioids.
Think of the last time you were in the presence of something really old. Was it a cherished possession of one of your family members? Was it a used book or antique that spoke to you from a dusty hole-in-the-wall shop?
Photograph by Glen Mitchell In a recent article over at Slate, I reviewed an astonishing new set of findings from Japan showing that subjects can correctly match people to their pets when given only a paucity of physical cues.
