The COVID-19 pandemic brought zoonotic diseases into the global spotlight in a way nothing has done for a century, even though zoonoses — diseases passed between humans and animals —…
MANILA — The eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines in 1991 spewed enough volcanic ash into the atmosphere to cool the world. In the immediate vicinity of the volcano,…
The naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber), a hairless rodent that lives in the arid areas of eastern Africa, is one of the strangest-looking creatures in the animal kingdom. But what it…
Today we speak with Dawn Biehler, an associate professor at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, whose research focuses on the history and public health impacts of rats and other…
A student-led research team from three California universities has shown that desert kangaroo rats frequently avoid predation by rattlesnakes through a combination of speedy reaction times, powerful near-vertical leaps, and…
Wearing nothing more than leaves hanging from belts of woven vegetation, the three scientists stand in the rain with little idea of what to expect. They’ve lived and worked with…
We discuss one of the world’s most overlooked keystone species, the beaver, on this episode of the Mongabay Newscast. Listen here: Most of us might not think of beavers…
Plant numbers have surged in a group of islands in the Pacific Ocean following the eradication of invasive rats that gobbled up seeds and gnawed away at vegetation, a new…
TOULOUSE, France -- Rats exact a punishing toll on island seabird colonies, decimating their numbers as they eat the birds’ eggs and young. Research has shown that fewer birds, and…
Evolution takes time and space. Enough time needs to pass for genetic differences to crop up in a population of animals and make them distinct from their forebears. And enough…
Ejidos are part of a land tenure system in Mexico by which land is communally managed by local villages. Many ejidos, such as Ejido Caoba in the state of Quintana…
Though the approximately 465,000 islands on planet Earth represent just over five percent of total global land area, they are disproportionately rich in threatened biodiversity — and researchers have now…
There’s still so much we don’t know about life on planet Earth that scientists discover new species with whom we share this planet nearly every day. For instance, this year…
For a long time, people living on the Vangunu Island in the Solomons spoke about the "vika", a giant rat on the island that lives in trees and cracks open…
In 2012, Dr. Milada Rehakova’s research brought her back to Dinagat Island, Philippines. It was her second expedition to the island in pursuit of insights on the tarsier, but she…
Deforestation and forest degradation are typically considered to be the most significant threats to tropical biodiversity, but a new study finds that hunting is “by far” the most severe immediate…
In May 2011, two volunteer researchers had an unexpected visitor at the El Dorado Nature Reserve Ecotourism lodge in northwestern Colombia. A rare, tiny rodent called the Santa Marta Toro or the Santa Marta…
A team of researchers has concluded that, in addition to being the Philippines’ largest and most populous island, Luzon Island is also home to the greatest concentration of unique species…
Researchers in Australia say they’ve discovered the first mammal to go extinct due to human-induced climate change: the Bramble Cay melomys, also known as the Bramble Cay Mosaic-tailed rat, a…
A recent report, published by the Biological Society of Washington, details the discovery of a new rat species, Batomys uragon, on the mountainous island of Luzon in the Philippines.A member…
Scientists have discovered a new species of rat in Sulawesi, Indonesia that’s so unique it’s been placed in its own genus. The Hog-nosed shrew rat (Hyorhinomys stuempkei) is a carnivorous…
Researchers have discovered a species of rodent in the mountainous interior of Sulawesi, a Indonesian island known for its high rates of endemism. The new species, dubbed Hyorhinomys stuempkei, is…
Capybaras, here in Colombia, are the world's largest rodents today. But even they would have been dwarfed by Josephoartigasia monesi. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. The world's largest rodent today…
One of the female reintroduced agoutis with a radio collar. Photo by: Rui Salaverry. When one thinks of Rio de Janeiro, one usually doesn't think: rainforest. However, in the heart…
This potentially new lizard species was discovered on the last day of a survey in a cloud forest in Andean Peru. Photo: Luis Mamani. A group of Peruvian and Mexican…
Specimen represents entirely new genus Researchers have discovered a new carnivorous water rat on the island of Sulawesi that's so unique it represents an entirely new genus. They believe many…
Of mice and men: deforestation linked to human disease Deforestation is wiping out habitat for plants and animals around the world. It is linked to reductions in air and water…
A brood of barn owls. Photo by: chdwckvnstrsslhmn/Creative Commons 2.0. This year the Hanta virus has already caused 15 deaths in Chile, according to reports in The Santiago Times. It…
One of the difficulties of studying rare and endangered species is that they are, by definition, hard to find. Scientists attempting to understand their distributions and the threats to their…
Scientific American magazine recently ran an article on the rediscovery of the smoothtooth blacktip shark (Carcharhinus leiodon) in a Kuwaiti fish market. Believed extinct for over 100 years, the smoothtooth…
