Rescued Green Sea Turtle’s Digestive System Was Jammed Full of Plastic Trash
You’ve probably heard that trash dumped into waterways around the world makes its way to the ocean, where it’s endangering the lives of all manner of marine life. It can be a difficult problem to look directly at because no one wants to see animals hurting because of human behavior, but until we recognize the...
Biology Professor Breaks Down Why Defining Sex and Gender Is Actually Not Simple At All
Sex and gender are more complicated than people want to believe. And in a world where many, many brave folks are coming forward to say that they don’t want to be categorized with the sex they were born with, or that they don’t identify with a particular gender at all, or a hundred other combinations...
Those Roly-Poly Bugs You Loved As a Kid Actually Play an Important Environmental Role
If you spent any time poking around in the dirt in your yard as a kid, you’ll no doubt remember those little silver bugs with short legs, cute antennae, and the ability to roll up into a tight ball at any sign of danger. Like, you know, prodding kid fingers. We called them roly-polys, but...
Woman Finds 3 Deer in Her Living Room After Leaving Her Back Door Open in a Storm
Deer are known for being rather shy around people. They startle easily, and their particular brand of fright has even inspired common sayings like “like a deer in headlights.” But on rare occasions, deer can actually get really comfortable around people. In one woman’s case, maybe a little too comfortable… The woman, Kathie Tietze, helps raise orphaned...
Why Are Humans the Only Animals with Permanent Breasts?
First off, yes… not all of us have breasts that are permanent, for various reasons. But we’re talking in evolutionary terms, and in that sense, yes, human women do have permanent breasts. The weird thing is that when speaking about the evolutionary and biological reasons females possess breasts at all, there is no obvious reason...
Male Giant Tortoise Saves His Species From Extinction After Fathering 800 Babies
A species of tortoise has been saved from the brink of extinction, all thanks to one male’s successful fathering of 800 babies. Giant tortoises are the largest living tortoises in the world – they really are genuinely huge. There are several different species, and they’re all extremely rare. They exist only on the Galápagos islands...
This Woman’s Office Was Trashed by an Extremely Cute, Slightly Apologetic Possum
Heading into your office and finding a complete and utter mess isn’t anyone’s idea of a good morning – not even when the culprit is totally cute. As a mom of a toddler, I can definitely attest to that fact. When Australian Bree Blakeman opened the door to her office at Australian National University in...
15 Pets Who Definitely Won’t Be Playing with Bees Anymore
Pets can be a lot like little kids sometimes: they’re stubborn, they don’t like to be told ‘no,’ they think they know better than you, and, yes, many times they have to learn their lessons the hard way. For instance, you can tell your dog (or your toddler) that we don’t mess with bees because...