Despite being most associated with cold Arctic waters, the Greenland shark - the world’s longest-living vertebrate - aren't born in Greenland or anywhere else in the Arctic, while the species’ nursery is most likely Skagerrak.
It was what the military calls an encircling maneuver. After 2.5 million years thriving throughout Eurasia, the woolly rhinoceros (Coelodonta antiquitatis) retreated further and further east and further and further north, as they fled the unfavorable climate. The species was then finished off by Neanderthals and modern humans. In the end, when the Ice Age had passed and the planet was entering the present era, only a few remained in the extreme northeast of Siberia. They did not make it across the Bering Strait to America; they became extinct earlier. Now, the modeling of that retreat has made it possible to apportion the blame: climatic swings created their deathbed and human hunting put the nail in the coffin. The authors of the new study believe that four of the five remaining rhino species are also on the same highway to extinction. But they have a few ways out left.
A few weeks ago, it was learned that researchers had seen an orangutan applying a poultice with leaves from a medicinal plant to a serious wound on its face. Now, thousands of miles away, on another continent, it has been revealed that another great ape — the chimpanzee — uses a range of plants, from leaves to tree bark, to treat its ailments. The analysis of these plants, some commonly found in traditional medicine, has shown that most have antimicrobial properties, while a third have anti-inflammatory properties. The authors of the work believe that great apes may one day help humans discover new drugs.
Researchers used artificial intelligence algorithm to analyse calls by two herds of African savanna elephants in Kenya
Elephants call out to each other using individual names that they invent for their fellow pachyderms, according to a new study.
The pet I’ll never forget: Buddy the rescue dog, whose final walk brought him so much joy
Loving us but hating other dogs, Buddy was a delight at home and a nightmare away from it. When his time came, we decided to give him one last outing
My partner, Paul, and I are dog lovers through and through but our office jobs meant it had never been practical, or fair, to have a dog of our own. In lockdown our working situations changed, however, so we visited Oxford Animal Sanctuary and met Buddy, a labrador/border collie cross. He was nine and very reactive to other dogs. Knowing he had spent three years in and out of kennels, we couldn’t bear the thought of leaving him in what must have been an incredibly stressful environment. So on 4 July 2020 we brought him home.
THE LONG READ
200 cats, 200 dogs, one lab: the secrets of the pet food industry
Pet food is a £120bn industry, with vast resources spent on working out how best to nourish and delight our beloved charges. But how do we know if we’re getting it right?
Florence Meowmalade came to me on a chilly winter’s night last year. A one-year-old orange tabby with a little pink nose, she arrived at my door in London after travelling for three days in a van with 30 dogs across continental Europe. She brought with her an EU pet passport, a soiled pink blanket and a penchant for snuggling into any available lap.