Animals

'All My Penguins' Tells Tales Of Love And Friendship At Chicago Zoo

5:37pm September 07, 2017

A new penguin blog from the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago tells tales of love and friendship. The soapy blog recounts the escapades of the zoo's new African penguin colony.

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Look deeply into those soulful eyes ... but watch out for that nose. When it comes time to decide whether to leave, this African wild dog may be trying to say more to its pack with the latter.

Democracy By Sneeze: When Wild Dogs Must Decide, They Vote With Their Noses

5:36pm September 07, 2017

by Colin Dwyer

When it might be time to move, African wild dogs take a poll with an odd electoral instrument: sneezing. The more sneezes, the more likely it is the pack will move, according to a new study.

Parrots at an exposed cliff in Peru, where they gather to eat clay, which is richer in sodium than plants in the area.

Why Do Parrots (And People) Eat Clay?

12:16pm September 07, 2017

by Carolyn Beans

Several species of parrots in Southeastern Peru regularly gather at a cliff face in the Amazon basin to eat clay. So do other animals, including humans.

As Human Rescues Wind Down, Helicopters Drop Hay To Stranded Cattle

5:04am September 05, 2017

by Brian Mann

Hurricane Harvey stranded thousands of cattle along the south Texas coast. Ranchers are flying hay to the animals — trying to keep them fed and alive until the animals can be rescued.

Amy Walters from Copperas Cove, Texas, with a horse she rode as she rounded up lost cattle and brought them to the makeshift shelter in Beaumont, Texas.

National

From Pets To Livestock, Lost Animals Rounded Up In Beaumont's Makeshift Shelter

4:50pm September 04, 2017

by Brian Mann

Volunteers have transformed two county fair pavilions the size of baseball diamonds into a livestock yard and animal shelter. There are horses, geese, cats, pigs — and a lot of Chihuahuas.

The Bumblebee Hunter

8:07am September 03, 2017

by Jes Burns

The Franklin bumblebee is so small and hard to track that it's not clear if it's gone extinct. We tag along as one man makes his annual trek to try to find it.

The notion that every dog or cat should be neutered at 6 months isn't based on evidence, says veterinarian Brennen McKenzie, author of The SkeptVet blog. It depends on the breed and other factors. Talk to your vet, he advises, about pros, cons and timing.

Pets Deserve Evidence-Based Medicine, Too, Says The SkeptVet

7:37am September 03, 2017

by Ingfei Chen

Veterinarian Brennen McKenzie writes The SkeptVet, a blog that pushes for evidence-based medicine instead of relying on tradition, anecdotes or pseudoscience in the treatment of cats and dogs.

National

Talkin' Birds: Urban Birding

8:04am September 02, 2017

You can see terns on Governors Island in New York City. Ray Brown, host of Talkin' Birds, espouses the joys of urban birding with NPR's Scott Simon.

Andrew White helps a neighbor — and a dog — get to safety after their street was flooded by Hurricane Harvey.

A Bipartisan Bill Helped Save Pets From Harvey, And Maybe Their Humans Too

6:59am September 02, 2017

by Scott Simon

In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, many people who lost their homes to flooding were able to save their pets. NPR's Scott Simon reflects on the importance of those relationships.

Honeybee (Apis mellifera) workers tending larvae on brood comb. The larvae that will grow up to be workers have a plant-based diet of a mix of honey and pollen.

The Divisive Diet of Honeybees: Why Some Will Never Be Royals

3:51pm September 01, 2017

by Courtney Columbus

That stings! A new study suggests that fragments of plant genetic material in the pollen-rich diets of worker bee larvae ensures that they never grow up to be queens.