Animals

Kyara, the 3-month-old calf born at SeaWorld in San Antonio, died Monday after battling "some very serious and progressive health issues over the past week," the company announced.

National

Last Orca Born In Captivity At SeaWorld Dies At Just 3 Months Old

4:37pm July 25, 2017

by Colin Dwyer

Kyara died Monday after battling "very serious and progressive health issues," the company says. SeaWorld ended its breeding program last year after significant backlash from animal rights activists.

A promotional image from Skunk Bear's video on Ape Language.

What Are The Planet's Real 'Talking' Chimps And Gorillas Saying?

12:50pm July 25, 2017

Movies are full of loquacious chimps, but could nonhuman apes really use language? NPR's Skunk Bear sorts through the disturbing history of research on ape language to sort fact from wishful thinking.

The akikiki bird is endangered and only found on Kauai.

National

Warming Climate Is Quieting Kauai's Colorful Forest Birds

9:40am July 25, 2017

by Gloria Hillard

Once considered a paradise for the colorful songbirds, Kauai has lost more than half of those native species due to invasive species and a warming climate.

Queue Listen Now

Man In Northern Ireland Takes His Sheep Shopping

7:11am July 25, 2017

The store's sign read no dogs — it didn't mention sheep. The man who took his sheep into the store quickly found out that sheep were also not welcomed inside.

Fiona, a hippo calf born six weeks premature, on Jan. 24, now weighs at least 375 pounds.

National

While Fighting The Odds, Fiona The Hippo Became A Social Media Star

11:43am July 24, 2017

by Wynne Davis

Born six weeks premature, Fiona's odds didn't look good. Now the baby hippo is celebrating her six-month birthday alongside all of her followers, who cheer her on through social media.

As the drought has extended into yet another rainy season, some herders walk for hours to get to this dam.

As The Climate Changes, Kenyan Herders Find Centuries-Old Way Of Life In Danger

8:47pm July 23, 2017

by Eyder Peralta

Nomadic herders in Kenya's northwest are having to move farther afield as sustained drought fundamentally changes the landscape. The result: no grasses for their herds.

Queue Listen Now

Snooty the manatee, seen here in 2013, died after becoming trapped in an underwater plumbing area, according to the South Florida Museum in Bradenton, Fla.

National

Snooty The Manatee Dies, And A Florida Community Mourns

4:22pm July 23, 2017

by Bill Chappell

Snooty was the oldest manatee in captivity — and he was believed to be the oldest on record, according to the South Florida Museum in Bradenton.

Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in various stages of development displayed in Brazil in 2016.

To Shrink Mosquito Population, Scientists Are Releasing 20 Million Mosquitoes

4:51pm July 21, 2017

by James Doubek

Scientists plan to release millions of sterile, male bacteria-infected mosquitoes in California, to breed with wild females. They're hoping for a "steep decline" in the species that carries Zika.

Cecil the lion, photographed in 2013, was killed by a trophy hunter in Zimbabwe in 2015. Two years later, his son Xanda came to the same end nearby.

World News

Xanda, Son Of Cecil The Lion, Also Killed

3:18pm July 21, 2017

by Amy Held

A trophy hunter shot and killed the 6-year-old lion near Zimbabwe's Hwange National Park, near where his father was killed two years ago.

A Ugandan baboon sits in a farmer's jackfruit tree.

Is It A Good Idea To Pay Villagers Not To Chop Down Trees?

4:30pm July 20, 2017

by Angus Chen

Governments dole out millions each year. Researchers debate whether the payouts actually work. A new study from Uganda offers some answers.