Category: Animals
Cyprus Cat COVID Strain Thought to Have Reached UK
In Cyprus, thousands of cats have died from the consequences of a viral infection. Now, a research team has discovered the variant, which is harmless to humans, in the United Kingdom – the implications are unclear.
Long-Lost Mammal Rediscovered in Indonesia
The creature has the spines of a hedgehog, the snout of an anteater, and the feet of a mole. For the first time in 60 years, British researchers in Indonesia have observed a rare egg-laying mammal. It was long considered extinct.
The Secret of Hummingbirds’ Incredible Agility Finally Revealed
A new study reveals the two distinct flight techniques used by hummingbirds to pass through tiny openings up to half their wingspan.
Number of Species at Risk of Extinction Doubles to 2 Million, Says Study
According to a new analysis, there are around 2 million endangered species in the world, twice as many as previously estimated by the UN.
‘Chimaera’ Monkey With Glowing Fingertips and Eyes Created by Chinese Scientists
Chinese researchers have developed a chemical macaque with fluorescent fingers and green eyes.
How the Boxfish Got Its Spots
Dots, spots, and stripes: Researchers show how the patterns of animals could arise. According to them, it could be the same physical process that helps to remove dirt from laundry.
Researchers Rediscover Rare Butterfly Species After 86 Years
The mountain frost moth is nocturnal and is only known from Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro. The species was last sighted in 1937. Researchers have now embarked on a search for the butterfly.
Do Horses Even Know That They’re Racing?
During a horse race, are the horses aware that they are in competition? Do they want to win the race?
Have Orcas Become More Intelligent?
While a recent orca attack occurred in Spain, the behavior of these cetaceans continues to raise concerns and questions. Multiple theories are emerging, one of which ponders whether the intelligence of orcas, already remarkable, is evolving.
Gene Editing Can Make Chickens Resistant to Bird Flu
Future chicken cutlets may come from birds that have been genetically modified to resist bird flu, after a breakthrough in Britain announced this week. Researchers have produced chickens that cannot spread avian flu to other chickens, a major step toward protecting birds — and humans — from the deadly virus. The transgenic cluckers still died…
Starfish Bodies Aren’t Bodies at All, Study Finds
The morphology of starfish is one of the greatest zoological puzzles. Although they evolved from a bilateral ancestor, they have developed a perplexing five-fold radial symmetry. Even more surprisingly, a new study suggests that these animals lack a trunk and are entirely composed of a large, flat head. Analysis of their gene expression has revealed…
A New Anti-Ageing Treatment (called E5) Reverses Ageing by 67% in Rats
By injecting a treatment primarily composed of young pig plasma nanoparticles into elderly rats, researchers have managed to reverse their aging by over 67% (67.4%). If this result were extrapolated to humans, it would be equivalent to reverting a person of 80 years to a biological age of 26 years.
Scientists Reconstruct the Genome of the Woolly Rhinoceros From Hyena Dung
Studying the genome of an extinct species through predator droppings? This is the ambitious endeavor undertaken by scientists who have made a major breakthrough in understanding the woolly rhinoceros, a prehistoric mammal.
It Was the Final Blow to the Reign of the Dinosaurs After the Impact of the Giant Asteroid
While the Chicxulub asteroid is often recognized as the catastrophic event that definitively ended the reign of the dinosaurs, doubts remain about the cause of the devastating impact of the winter that followed. However, a new study sheds further light on the causes of this terrible catastrophe.
Rats Have an Imagination, Brain Research Reveals
Rats with imagination. It’s a bit… unimaginable! No ? Yet that’s exactly what researchers have just demonstrated.