Carnivores, in the context of the biological order Carnivora, comprise a diverse clade of mostly mammalian predators characterized by specialized dentition, particularly enlarged canines and carnassial teeth adapted for shearing flesh. Members of Carnivora include families such as Felidae, Canidae, Ursidae, Mustelidae, and others, exhibiting a wide range of dietary strategies from obligate carnivory to omnivory. They share morphological and physiological traits such as a generally well-developed sense of smell, often acute vision and hearing, and cranial and limb adaptations for hunting, scavenging, or opportunistic feeding, making the order ecologically pivotal as apex and mesopredators in many terrestrial and some aquatic ecosystems.
We are used to seeing a strict order in nature, with apex predators at the top feeding on those lower down the pecking order. But in video footage from a nature reserve in Italy, we see a red fox turning the tables, attacking ...
Mammals are not especially diverse. Roughly 6,800 mammal species are known to exist, compared with about 8,800 species of amphibian, 11,000 species of bird and 12,500 of reptile. Yet when most people picture biodiversity, ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 6, 2026
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Wild animal species respond very differently to human development, and as a result, they use ecological corridors in agricultural and urban areas in distinct ways. This emerges from research in Botswana by ecologist Marlee ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 5, 2026
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A new study reveals that habitat fragmentation can lead to sudden "tipping points" where a species' genetic health unexpectedly collapses after appearing stable for long periods. By merging network theory with population ...
Ecology
Mar 5, 2026
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A five-year study on California's Central Coast, led by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Western Center for Food Safety at the University of California, Davis, is helping scientists better understand how harmful ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Mar 5, 2026
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Researchers from the University of Nottingham have uncovered a surprising biological quirk in domestic cats that may help explain why they are so prone to chronic kidney disease. Unlike dogs and most other mammals, cats appear ...
Veterinary medicine
Mar 4, 2026
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Using AI to identify wildlife reveals a potential "transferability crisis," researchers say. Marketing for AI imaging systems often suggests that models can easily tackle novel scenarios across ecosystems and settings, much ...
Ecology
Mar 3, 2026
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Currently, Australia is the only continent in the world still free from the highly contagious H5 bird flu. But that status faces an ongoing threat.
Veterinary medicine
Mar 2, 2026
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Adaptation is essential for survival. Across species, it occurs over many generations through evolution and natural selection. Individual animals, however, can also adapt within their own lifetimes—through learning. For many ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 2, 2026
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More than four out of every five dead black vultures examined by University of Georgia researchers tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza, according to a new study published in Scientific Reports. The actual ...
Ecology
Mar 2, 2026
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