Once an adult swift (Apus apus) leaves its breeding colony and takes to the air migrating south, it won't touch down again until returning home to nest 10 months later. "Common swifts are exceptional in their level of adaptation ...
Ecology
Nov 19, 2018
0
13
Bothersome insects are a predicable summer hazard. Swatting them can almost become a sport, but some irritable horses enjoy taking shots at something larger. 'I have been hit many times in the face, and even the eye, by a ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 15, 2018
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7
When dinner is encased in a robust shell, brute force is often the only solution, but ingenious sea otters (Enhydra lutris) have been more ingenious. Some pound clams and snails on a rock balanced on their chests, while others ...
Ecology
Sep 17, 2018
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9
A polar bear plunges into the icy Arctic waters in search of firmer ice; its world, which was once a sea of white, is melting beneath its paws. 'Research has documented declines in polar bear populations in some regions of ...
Ecology
Jun 19, 2018
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16
For a tiny crustacean, Caribbean rock mantis shrimp (Neogonodactylus bredini) pack a ferocious punch. Bludgeoning the shells of snails and other crustaceans to gain access to the tasty snail within, mantis shrimp flick their ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 15, 2018
0
4
Killer whales have a formidable reputation as one of the ocean's most ferocious predators. Hunting stealthily in packs, some populations pursue ocean-going mammals, however, other killer whales prefer to dine on a diet of ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 12, 2018
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8
Slipping beneath the surface of the water in pursuit of food sets the timer ticking for hungry dolphins; the pressure is on to locate food and make it back to the surface before they run out of oxygen.
Plants & Animals
Feb 28, 2018
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159
Imagine trying to get close to your dinner only for it to be swept aside by your approach; this is the scenario faced by aquatic creatures every day as they try to snap up a tasty morsel.
Plants & Animals
Jan 11, 2018
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12
The endurance of emperor penguins, trudging through the perpetual Antarctic night to their breeding colonies, is legendary. Many trek more than 100 km from their ocean feeding grounds to rookeries at inland locations in preparation ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 9, 2018
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10
It's a depressingly familiar sight when an oil well blows or a tanker runs aground: thousands of stranded, helpless animals wallowing in cloying crude oil. 'Birds are often used as the poster children for the deadly effects ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 5, 2017
0
1
