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.
For over 20 million years, the landscape of Europe has been a tree-rich mosaic of grasslands, scrubs and more or less open woodlands with an abundance of wildflowers. This is the conclusion of a new and comprehensive study ...
Ecology
Mar 2, 2026
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1824
A horse's whinny is an unusually distinctive mix of sounds including both high and low frequencies. Reporting in Current Biology, researchers demonstrate how horses produce high-frequency sounds that defy their large size ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 23, 2026
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84
Just as for humans, sufficient sleep supports learning and coping for horses. A recent study at the University of Helsinki indicates that short periods of REM sleep impair horses' perseverance and performance in demanding ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 17, 2026
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80
If you've watched a giraffe browsing in the tree canopy, a white rhino meandering across open grassland, or a warthog shuffling around on its knees in South Africa's Kalahari desert, you know what they eat: leaves, grass, ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 4, 2026
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32
Three years ago, Penn Vet researchers reported a major breakthrough in equine assisted reproduction. Katrin Hinrichs, Harry Werner Endowed Professor of Equine Medicine, and colleagues developed a technique that would allow ...
Veterinary medicine
Feb 1, 2026
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20
A team of scientists from EPFL and Alaska Pacific University has developed an AI program that can recognize individual bears in the wild, despite the substantial changes that occur in their appearance over the summer season. ...
Plants & Animals
Jan 29, 2026
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128
A study of wild African herbivores offers new insight into how environmental conditions—not just diet and anatomy—can influence the evolution of gut microbes that play a critical role in animal health and well-being.
Evolution
Jan 26, 2026
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26
These days, the mention of a carthorse or mule plowing a field would transport many people back in time to an era of horse-drawn carriages and pre-industrial agriculture.
Plants & Animals
Jan 18, 2026
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2049
Horses can smell your fear. If you are experiencing this emotion while standing near a horse, they will be able to detect it through your scent alone, which changes their behavior and physiology. That's the conclusion of ...
In Kosciuszko National Park in Australia's alpine region, the landscape is slowly changing. Patches of native vegetation cropped bald by horses are regrowing. Some long-eroded creek banks look less compacted along the edges. ...
Ecology
Jan 5, 2026
0
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