Odd-toed ungulates, comprising the order Perissodactyla, are large, herbivorous mammals characterized by an odd number of functional toes on each hind foot, with the main limb axis passing through the third digit (mesaxonic condition). Extant members include horses and donkeys (family Equidae), rhinoceroses (Rhinocerotidae), and tapirs (Tapiridae). They possess hindgut fermentation with an enlarged cecum and colon for cellulose digestion, typically have simple stomachs, and show specialized dentition for grazing or browsing. Perissodactyls exhibit cursorial or semi-cursorial limb morphology and have experienced substantial historical diversity, though their extant diversity is relatively limited and several species are conservation-dependent or critically endangered.
A quick heart trace taken during a warm-up trot could identify racehorses at risk of cardiac arrhythmias during high-intensity exercise, according to a new study led by the University of Surrey. The screening method analyzes ...
Veterinary medicine
Apr 4, 2026
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19
Infants' helplessness demonstrates unique social implications for human development. In a new paper developmental psychology researchers from the University of Ottawa explored human infants' helplessness as a key to human ...
Other
Mar 24, 2026
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16
The performance horse industry had a problem: Some of their most beloved and sought-after mares simply couldn't have foals safely. To make matters more complicated, in vitro fertilization (IVF) had not yet produced a healthy ...
Biotechnology
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23
Many of the most damaging invasions do not simply subtract species; they fundamentally remodel the environment, altering habitats, rewiring interactions, and shifting processes in ways that species lists alone cannot reveal.
Ecology
Mar 12, 2026
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11
In 1974, philosopher Thomas Nagel posed a deceptively simple question: "What is it like to be a bat?" His point wasn't really about bats. He was offering a provocative challenge about the limits of understanding another mind: ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 11, 2026
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37
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Ecology
Mar 11, 2026
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27
A Purdue University contraceptive vaccine seeks to address animal overpopulation by markedly reducing fertility in feral horses, deer, swine and other animals. Dr. Harm HogenEsch, distinguished professor of immunopathology ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Mar 8, 2026
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23
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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74
A recent study published in PLOS ONE has shed light on public perceptions of assisted reproductive technologies (ART) in wildlife conservation across Czechia, Germany, and Italy. The research, conducted as part of the BioRescue ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 3, 2026
0
16
Protected natural areas across Europe are changing. Climate change, with rising temperatures and heavy rainfall, is turbocharging the growth of shrubs and trees, choking the flowers and insects that need the light and heat ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 2, 2026
1
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