Welcome to my blog.
All in Human Interest
In December 2023, marine biologists in New Zealand’s Hauraki Gulf came upon an unusual sight: an octopus riding on the back of a shark. The team was looking for “workups,” or feeding frenzies, according to University of Auckland professor Rochelle Constantine.
It took Guinness World Records several months of counting, but finally it’s official: last fall the German town of Regensburg hosted the largest gathering of dachshunds ever. An estimated 897 of the long-eared, stump-legged wieners paraded through the medieval town while their humans marched alongside, many dressed in festive top hats and lederhosen.
The lowly blobfish, long recognized as the world’s ugliest animal, has resurfaced this week to win a comelier title: Fish of the Year. New Zealand environmental group Mountain to Sea Conservation Trust holds the annual contest to raise awareness for freshwater and marine life.
It takes patience, luck, and a lot of skill to capture memorable images of wildlife, where subjects tend to be in constant motion. Photographer Maruša Puhek of Slovenia has all three attributes, but her prizewinning shot of a pair of deer galloping across a snow-covered orchard was the result of a happy accident: she didn’t have a zoom lens with her for the money shot.
The company trying to bring back the extinct wooly mammoth last week announced an important first step toward their project: they’ve created “wooly mice.” The mice, little puffballs with shaggy fur, were developed by editing mouse genes associated with hair color, growth, and texture.
A giant schnauzer named Monty with a pronounced beard and a jaunty gait wins Best In Show this week at the Westminster Dog Show. The 5-year-old had reached the final round in the previous two years; he finally won it all, besting an impressive field of competitors.
Four Los Angeles area residents were arrested last week after they allegedly claimed a bear had caused damage to their luxury vehicles – but the real perp turned out to be a human in a bear costume. The four are charged with insurance fraud and conspiracy, and an arrest warrant has been issued for a fifth suspect.
When we last checked in on Björk, she was raising awareness on the environmental impacts of her country’s salmon farms. This week Iceland’s most famous singer announced her “Immersive Auditory Experience,” an art installation to open this month in France, intended to sound the alarm on biodiversity loss and the collapse of ecosystems.
“Why are one of my puppies that my American Pit had ... green?” dog owner Annise Tooley asked Google last week.
Visitors to the zoo in Shanwei were outraged to learn that a pair of “pandas” on exhibit were in fact dogs that had been dyed to look like China’s iconic bears.
There is something about ginger cats. They tend to be more confident, more outgoing, and generally more cheeky – especially the toms. BBC News asked biologist and cat behavior expert Roger Tabor if there was a reason for ginger adventurousness.
A doglike, headless robot named “Aurora” has been hired to work at Fairbanks International Airport in Alaska. Her job: to spook the migratory birds and other wildlife that can disrupt operations on and near the tarmac.
Researchers at the Einstein Center for Neuroscience in Berlin noticed a strange clicking sound coming from the aquariums where they kept tiny fish from Myanmar, Danionella cerebrum. Their investigation revealed a very loud noise coming from a very small fish.
What next for Ko Muang Phet, a ginormous albino water buffalo that has soared to celebrity status in Thailand? His burgeoning bulk and fame earned him a recent meet-and-greet with Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, who must be hoping some of that bovine popularity rubs off.
A fossil discovered in Texas four decades ago has sat unexamined in the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, until now. The 270-million (ish) year-old amphibian fossil has finally been described and named, Kermitops gratus, after beloved Muppet, Kermit the Frog.
When vandals chopped down the famous “Sycamore Gap” tree in the UK last September, local horticulturist Rachel Ryver immediately collected young twigs and buds from the felled tree, thinking it was possible to graft genetic copies of the specimen.
Last month the journal Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology published an article on the function of stem cells associated with rat testes. Despite the rigors of a peer review and multiple levels of checks, the paper was published with AI-generated illustrations that are downright bizarre.
When beloved cat Krusty Noodles concluded his earthly existence, owner Kate Swan just couldn’t let go. To keep Krusty’s memory alive, Swan enlisted the services of Beth Beverly, a Pennsylvania taxidermist, who stuffed the dead cat – along with an equally dead mouse in his maw – and mounted it for the wall.
Something funny is going on with our closest relatives – chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans, and gorillas. Like humans, our cousins seem to revel in comedy – slapstick mainly, but comedy nonetheless. The Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior is looking into the fun.
