The ocean is vast, mainly unexplored, and a bit of a mystery to us all. Here are some ocean fun facts you never knew, you never knew. The Ocean Glows Or at least, the ocean can glow. It can look like sparkling stars, and it’s all from tiny marine organisms that live in the ocean. …
Continue reading “Ocean Fun Facts That Will Blow Your Mind: Part One”
Did you know that frogs and toads have been around for more than 200 million years? It’s true — they shared the planet with dinosaurs once. Since they’ve survived for so long, they must have thoroughly figured out procreation. A recent discovery has shed new light on the sex life of ancient amphibians. Today we …
The death of your favorite celebrity can hit you surprisingly hard. Although you’ve never actually known them, it can feel like you’ve lost a family member. But what if the celebrity is a 1,300-pound walrus? Does that change anything? Not really, at least if you look at Norway. The Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries recently euthanized …
Continue reading “Norway Divided Over Decision to Kill Celebrity Walrus”
Ah, Hawaii! Sunshine, sandy beaches, tropical warmth — and thousands of aggressive feral chickens. That’s probably not what you’d want from your Hawaii vacation. But if you head over to the island of Oahu right now, it’s what you’ll get. For months, Hawaiians have been dealing with an overabundance of feral chickens running amok. The …
Continue reading “Hawaii Is Battling Hordes of Feral Chickens (and the Chickens Are Winning)”
Those monkeys are up to something. There have been strangely many stories popping up lately about macaques. In Japan, the authorities recently executed a macaque that had been attacking people. But in Indonesia, the macaques are… Well, doing something completely different. There’s no tactful way to put this so we’ll just be blunt. The macaques …
Continue reading “Dirty Monkey Business: Macaques Learn to Use Stones as Sex Toys”
Do spiders even sleep? Does everyone remember hearing that people swallow like 7 spiders a year or something like that? Or just me? In a study by Daniela Roessler and her colleagues, baby jumping spiders were watched by cameras at night. Footage caught showed sleep cycle-like patterns. During this time, the spiders’ legs twitched and …
Continue reading “Spiders Sleep Just Like We Do, According to a New Study”
Think the world is a weird place today? Oh please. Had you been around a few million years earlier, the whole planet basically looked like a fever dream. We’ve written quite a bit about the terrifying creatures of the prehistoric world. But we’ve realized that we’ve almost completely ignored the strange and wonderful animals of …
Capital punishment is a divisive topic. But in a recent spate of assaults in Japan, the authorities felt the death penalty was warranted. The criminal wasn’t a person, mind you. Instead, it was the potential leader of a rampaging pack of macaques. The monkeys have terrorized the city of Yamaguchi for more than a month. …
Continue reading “Japanese Hunters Track Down and Execute Marauding Mad Macaque”
There are many animals that scare us — and for a good reason. Then there are those that look cute or are really tiny but can still murder you. And finally, there are animals that will send you running and screaming. But if you got over that initial instinct to run for the hills, you’d …
Continue reading “5 Creepy and Scary Animals That Are Actually (Mostly) Harmless”
Extended droughts are just one side effect of climate change and they’re becoming more common. Case in point, southwestern Europe is currently kind of on fire. But Europe’s not the only place struggling with the lack of rain. In India, with temperatures way above 90 degrees Fahrenheit, both commercial and subsistence farmers are desperate for …
Continue reading “Indian City Married Two Frogs to Bring Rain — And It Worked”