A family decorated their Christmas tree. Then a venomous snake appeared among the ornaments.
A family in South Africa discovered a boomslang — a very venomous snake — hiding inside their Christmas tree.
By Lindsey BeverDecember 15, 2021Eight wolves have been poisoned in Oregon, stumping police and renewing calls for more protections
Numerous conservation and animal protection groups are also offering a combined $26,000 reward for information leading to a conviction in the poisonings.
By Paulina FiroziDecember 5, 2021Watch a bear wander into a 7-Eleven and casually trigger the hand sanitizer dispenser
The bear places his paws on what appears to be a freezer, stands on his hind legs and looks around as if waiting to be served.
By Marisa IatiNovember 17, 2021A zoo’s three ‘beloved’ snow leopards die of covid-19
The big cats were one of the Nebraska zoo’s main attractions, delivering a dose of mountain majesty to the Great Plains for years.
By Reis ThebaultNovember 14, 2021‘Cheeky’ sea lions are returning to New Zealand’s shores — and locals are learning to share the coast
The sea lions have turned up in unexpected places, including a golf course and a forest.
By Rachel Pannett and Ellen FrancisNovember 13, 2021Giant ‘murder’ hornets can decimate honeybees. A new study highlights one of their defenses: Screaming.
Giant "murder" hornets can decimate entire beehives, but scientists have discovered another way bees can defend themselves: by screaming.
By Julian MarkNovember 12, 2021California condors almost went extinct. Now, scientists say, they are capable of reproducing without males.
California condors are the largest flying birds in North America and can soar 15,000 feet in the air. Now, scientists say they've achieved another feat: reproducing without males.
By Julian MarkNovember 5, 2021The ‘Bird of the Year’ is ... a bat: Winner of New Zealand vote ruffles feathers
Critics say the tiny flying mammal should have been disqualified from an annual competition previously hit by claims of Russian meddling and voter fraud.
By Rachel PannettNovember 1, 2021Western monarch butterflies have been vanishing. This week, a sanctuary saw thousands return.
Last year marked a historic low for a population of western monarchs that has struggled in recent years, according to the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.
By Paulina FiroziOctober 22, 2021When a fisherman pulled in his line, he knew he had ‘something weird’: A 40-pound alligator gar
The fisheries team at the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks fisheries hopes DNA samples can help determine how this fish, whose fossil records trace back nearly 100 million years, wound up in the state.
By Paulina FiroziOctober 14, 2021A ‘McNugget’-size turtle hatchling born with two heads is doing well, but survival is uncertain
The single hatchling with two heads has six legs, separate gastrointestinal tracts and two spines. A CT scan to assess its internal organs may help determine whether it will survive.
By Paulina FiroziOctober 11, 2021Ndakasi, beloved mountain gorilla whose photobomb led to global fame, dies in caretaker’s arms
Virunga National Park said in a statement that Ndakasi died on Sept. 26 after battling a prolonged illness and “took her final breath in the loving arms of her caretaker and lifelong friend, Andre Bauma.”
By Timothy BellaOctober 7, 2021Florida man wrangles alligator his ‘own way’ — with a trash bin
Video of the encounter spread so widely, and with such interest, that the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission told people who are concerned about alligators: “Don’t grab a garbage can.”
By Brittany ShammasSeptember 29, 2021A man awoke to a bat on his neck and declined a vaccine. Weeks later, he died of rabies.
Human rabies is preventable and rare, experts say. But once contracted, it is almost always deadly.
By Caroline AndersSeptember 29, 2021What a catch: fans use American flag to save cat who fell from football stadium’s upper deck
The stunning rescue happened during the University of Miami's home opener on Sept. 11.
By Kim BellwareSeptember 13, 2021A group of gorillas is being treated for covid. The great apes will soon get their shots, too, zoo says.
More animals across the country have been receiving vaccine doses, as zoos respond to and try to prevent coronavirus outbreaks among animal populations.
By Paulina FiroziSeptember 12, 2021Okefenokee Joe, ‘an amazing old’ alligator named after a Georgia singer, has died
The reptile had become a beloved fixture at Okefenokee Swamp Park in Georgia.
By María PaúlSeptember 11, 2021A mysterious sickness blinding birds has disappeared as suddenly as it arrived
Virginia wildlife officials have given bird lovers the greenlight to put their feeders back up. But they still don’t know what caused the crisis.
By Teo ArmusAugust 22, 2021Thousands of specially bred honeybees mysteriously went missing. The beekeeper wants answers.
The saga of Chris Kelly’s heisted honeybees would rattle the beekeeper and the clients who sought after his specially-bred bees.
By Caroline AndersAugust 13, 2021Virtually all emperor penguin colonies doomed for extinction by 2100 as climate change looms, study finds
The United States is moving to list emperor penguins as a threatened species based on new evidence that colonies are imperiled by shrinking sea ice.
By Rachel PannettAugust 4, 2021