Animals

Florida Weather Forecasters Warn Of Falling Iguanas

6:07am January 22, 2020

Iguanas can fall into a deep slumber in the cold, and it's not uncommon for them to tumble from trees. The reptiles won't necessarily die — as many wake up as the temperatures rise.

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Environment

Tropical Fish Are No Longer Just In The Tropics As Climate Change Affects Habitats

5:07pm January 20, 2020

by Jay Price

Climate change is fueling some big changes under the sea. Tropical reef fish are being found much farther north, far from the tropics. Scientists worry about what the shifts will mean for ecosystems.

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Elk graze in Skagit Valley, an area north of Seattle, Wash., populated for centuries by Native Americans and, more recently, by farmers.

Elk Raise Tensions Between Tribes And Farmers In Washington's Skagit Valley

7:55am January 18, 2020

by Eilís O'Neill

In Washington state's Skagit Valley, a conflict is unfolding between Native Americans and farmers. Elk are making a comeback there. Local tribes are thrilled, but the agriculture industry is not.

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Spotify Launches Podcast For Dogs Left Home Alone

10:46am January 17, 2020

The podcast features "dog-directed praise and stories" from actors like Ralph Ineson along with soothing sounds and relaxing music. Spotify says if your pet listens it may "bark less and sleep more."

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A team of Stanford University researchers designed the PigeonBot.

Science

'PigeonBot' Brings Robots Closer To Birdlike Flight

6:27pm January 16, 2020

by Merrit Kennedy

Birds change the shape of their wings far more than planes. The complexities of bird flight have posed a major design challenge for scientists trying to translate the way birds fly into robots.

Scientists put several litters of wolf puppies through a standard battery of tests. Many pups, such as this one named Flea, wouldn't fetch a ball. But then something surprising happened.

Science

Fetching With Wolves: What It Means That A Wolf Puppy Will Retrieve A Ball

4:40pm January 16, 2020

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

Some wolf puppies will unexpectedly play "fetch," researchers say, showing that an urge to retrieve a ball might be an ancient wolf trait and not a result of dog domestication.

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Canada Zoo Cancels Penguin Walk Because Of Extreme Cold

6:30am January 15, 2020

The daily activity at the Calgary Zoo where you can watch king penguins waddle around was called off because of cold weather. Zoo officials caution these are not Antarctic penguins.

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Hundreds Of Vultures Take Over Trump Border Patrol Radio Tower

7:11am January 13, 2020

In Texas, 300 vultures are roosting and nesting in a radio tower. The bird droppings are a safety hazard. U.S. Customs and Border Protection is seeking a "vulture deterrence netting system."

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Why Coyotes — Up To 4,000 Of Them — Are Turning Up In Chicago

4:48pm January 10, 2020

NPR's Audie Cornish talks to Stanley Gehrt of the Cook County Coyote Project about coyotes biting a 5-year-old boy and a man in Chicago. Cook County is home to 4,000 of the animals.

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Australia's Record Wildfires Are Catastrophic For Animals

6:46am January 10, 2020

The fires are ravaging already vulnerable koala habitats and those of other animals. An ecology professor in Sydney says it is probably the worst fire season on record for native animals.

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