Animal Facts
“That’s never going to heal.” A lion suffers a broken leg in Botswana. Will he be able to survive?
In north Botswana, there’s a lion who has faced an extraordinary set of challenges – and conquered them all
"It makes one or two priming pumps of its abdomen, before starting to secrete the first of many clear liquid droplets from its anus..."
Nick Baker takes a look at cuckoo spit, a common sight in our countryside also known as spittlebugs, and its role in protecting and nourishing the juvenile common froghopper
6 biggest spiders in the UK, including one with a humongous 7cm leg-span: look for them in canals, gardens, ditches... and under your bed
Don't be fooled in thinking large spiders live on exotic shores as the UK is home to a few giants..
"Just like that, ‘plonk’, I had an exhausted and soaking wet adult badger on my lap..."
In the aftermath of floods in Upton-on-Severn, a valiant badger rescue mission unfolds. Louise McGowan from Nature England reports on this heart-warming tale.
“It was just bones all over the floor.” Fossil hunters make astounding discovery in Texan water cave
A flooded cave in central Texas has yielded the remains of Ice Age animals that have never been found in the region before…
What's new?
They sleep for just 30 minutes a night and only drink a couple of times a week... 15 crazy facts about the world's tallest animal
Impress your family and friends with your giraffe knowledge
"She emerges, not looking like a moth at all, but rather a peculiar pale thing with reduced legs and antennae that you could easily mistake for a maggot..."
Nick Baker takes a look at the weird and fascinating life of a bagworm
What’s the fastest land mammal in Australia? It can outpace a human thanks to giant ‘springs’ in its legs
It can outrun a human and has giant spring-like legs – meet the quickest terrestrial mammal Down Under
How long can a fish live out of water? Meet one weird fish that can survive two months on dry land...
The amount of time a fish can survive out of water depends on the type of fish, and there is one species that is particularly adept...
How do birds sleep? Can they sleep when flying? And why don't they fall out of trees when asleep?
How do birds sleep? Can they sleep when flying? And how do they sleep in trees without falling out? A lot depends on the species.
Amphibians
When 30 tiny concrete 'apartments' popped up in an Australian rainforest, a bunch of elusive animals moved in
Scientists built tiny shelters for ground-dwelling frogs in Queensland to see which ones they liked the best. Here's what they discovered...
A fiery belly, jagged crest and long, broad tail – this may be the closest thing to a real-life dragon
Male great crested newts are at their most dragonesque in spring.
When scientists descended into an unexplored cave in the Cambodian mountains, they found a “treasure trove” in the darkness
A team of researchers discovered species new to science, as well as threatened wildlife, in these vast underground habitats
Animal ID
Mountain chicken, guinea pig, honey bear, bearcat – 10 animals with completely the wrong names, misleading monikers and curious cases of mistaken identity
Common names for animals are often easier to remember than their Latin names, but they can often lead to confusion. Here are 10 animals with some very misleading names.
A snake the weight of a grizzly bear and a giant centipede that hangs from cave ceilings – meet 11 of the Amazon's deadliest animals
From a huge carnivorous centipede to a tiny poisonous frog, here are some of the of the deadliest creatures in the Amazon.
It's sleek, black, incredibly beautiful and very fast – and is known as the 'cheetah of the deep sea' despite weighing over a tonne
Learn all about the unmistakable pilot whale, from their diet and size to life in the pod and why, sadly, they're prone to beaching
Birds
"Its iridescent green head and wings, spiky crest, blood-red breast, and flamboyant twin tail plumes, is like a carnival dancer." In the forests of Guatemala lives an elusive creature few will ever see
Guatemala's national bird is one of the hidden gems of Central America. Read the story of one woman's quest to track it down in the cloud forest
“I’m awoken by a rumble and look across the Danube to see smoke rising.” These predators are reclaiming their home in the middle of a warzone
Eagle owls were once heavily persecuted. But thanks to a new initiative, these magnificent birds are reclaiming a wetland home
Great crested grebe seen drowning and eating chiffchaffs in Spain
Birdwatcher and photographer Juan Montiel captured the unusual grebe behaviour on camera.
Fish
They can have 30,000 teeth and some really do die if they stop swimming: 35 incredible, hard-to-believe, fascinating shark facts
Celebrate the wonder and variety of sharks, an ancient and much-misunderstood fish.
It’s a slimy, prehistoric, grisly parasite with the mouth of an alien. And two fearless photographers are obsessed with finding it
The sea lamprey is not a creature with mass appeal, yet there is something about this ancient and mysterious eel-like fish and its extraordinary life-cycle that fascinates photographers Sébastien Barrio and Aurore Barrio.
For 50 years, there have been rumours of these fish climbing waterfalls. Scientists just filmed them doing it for the first time
Remarkable footage shows hundreds of shellear fish scrambling up Luvilombo Falls in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Insects & Invertebrates
"It has five limbs covered in hundreds of hydraulic, rubbery feet and no head – or even a defined front, back, left or right" – what on Earth are echinoderms?
Stuart Blackman explains all you need to know about echinoderms and how they evolved
"While all insects could be called creepy-crawlies, not all creepy-crawlies are insects." What are insects? And just how many insects are there in the world?
What are insects? And how many species of insects are there? Stuart Blackman explains
Could climate change bring malaria to the UK?
Entomologist Richard Jones answers your wild question.
Mammals
Fascinating facts about our warm blooded friends - the mammals.
Do lemmings really have a death wish and jump off cliffs?
Do these small mammals actually jump to their deaths? We investigate
What’s the fastest land mammal in the Americas? Meet the speed demon that could outrun a cheetah in a long-distance race
We all know that the fastest animal in the world is the cheetah – but what about the Americas?
Could a human have a blood transfusion from a chimpanzee?
If animals have different blood types, then can they be used in blood transfusions?
Marine Animals
Crab wanders through Suez Canal into Mediterranean Sea. Now scientists are worried
The portunid crab is native to the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, but now it’s being found in the Mediterranean. Here's why that could be a problem.
Researchers tracked 9 great hammerhead sharks off Florida and the Bahamas. Here's what they discovered
Scientists wanted to learn more about how the largest hammerhead species on the planet may cope as the climate changes.
"It has – proportionally – the longest penis in the animal kingdom. The human equivalent would be a man impregnating his neighbour via the letterbox."
Nick Baker reveals all you need to know about acorn barnacles
Reptiles
"One bite contains enough venom to kill at least 100 adult humans" 13 deadliest, most venomous, snakes on the planet
Snake bites constitute a major cause of animal-related deaths, with the WHO describing it as a “a neglected public health issue”. Here is our list of the deadliest snakes with bites that can kill...
How on Earth do sea turtles find their way back to where they hatched?
Female turtles return to the beach where they originally hatched to lay their eggs, but how do they know where it is?
“It’s a bit like sea turtle forensics." Scientists looked inside 24 turtles – and uncovered secrets from the past
Sea turtle shells are helping researchers learn more about major environmental changes in the ocean's past.
