Burmese pythons breeding in the Florida Keys
For the average person, finding a giant invasive snake might sound worse than finding a small one. But the opposite is true on Key Largo in Florida, where locals and...
Endangered ferrets thrive in their ancestral home
This past September in Meeteetse, Wyoming, biologists panned spotlights over a moonlit prairie dog town. Each flash of emerald eyeshine marked a captive-bred ferret living wild in its ancestral home. “Once...
How bats hunt in noise pollution
Robotic frogs with inflatable throat pouches are revealing how bats hunt in noisy conditions. Ordinarily, the bats locate their amphibian prey by following frog mating calls. But when noise pollution...
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Western land, wildlife contaminated with mercury
An extensive analysis led by the U.S. Geological Survey has found widespread mercury contamination in western habitats and wildlife. Mercury levels varied from place to place, fluctuating with factors such...
JWM study: Wind farms in Canada kill tens of thousands of bats
Each wind turbine in Canada kills an average of 15.5 bats per year, adding up to a death toll that could someday threaten populations, according to new research. In Canada’s...
Multiple males help female pheasants with parenting
Few females are lucky enough to have a group of males doting on their offspring. But female pheasants in Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park are getting exactly that, thanks to an...
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Chytrid fungus survivors suffer stunted growth
It’s easy to see that frogs are in trouble when their breeding ponds are littered with carcasses. But even in places with no visible die-offs, the fungal disease that is...
Migrating birds rush to spring breeding grounds
When it comes to spring migrations, the early bird gets the best breeding site. Now, radar data have revealed that birds rush for that advantage, flying faster than they do...
Climate change wipes out pikas on isolated peaks
Pikas are a textbook climate tragedy. As temperatures rise, the fluffy, cold-loving mammals retreat higher and higher up mountain slopes, eventually perishing on the too-warm peaks. But that isn’t happening...
