Animal Facts
Meet the birds visiting the UK for autumn and winter
Migrating birds are arriving in the British Isles this autumn – find out which species and how to see them
It contains the world’s deadliest snake and one of the only venomous mammals – so why does Australia have so much deadly wildlife?
Is the wildlife really more deadly 'down under'? Helen Pilcher takes a look at why Australia has so many dangerous animals
Watch this adorable baby owl make a dramatic leap for survival
When it’s time to leave the nest, these baby owls take their first steps with sweet – if not wholly successful – results
Cheeky macaques vs Japanese farm dogs – watch this Shiba Inu showdown
One of the world’s oldest dog breeds has been trained to protect fruit from thieving monkeys in Japanese farms
“I almost didn’t dare to breathe. Then, a pointy nose peered from around the trunk.”
When birdwatching in Canberra, Olivia came across one of Australia's most elusive animals
What's new?
There's a mysterious animal in the tropical forests of Panama that waves at predators – in a very scary way
The creature's strange leg-waving display has baffled scientists for years. Now they know why it does it...
85-million-year-old dinosaur eggs found in China. What they reveal is wild
What the researchers discovered could change our understanding of not only dinosaur evolution and extinction, but global environmental change too…
Octopuses could help us build robots that rescue people from collapsed buildings. Here's how
New research reveals octopuses use all their arms for different tasks – a discovery that could inform the design of life-saving robots.
Satellite images capture great wildebeest migration from space. A close look reveals something startling
Taken 400 miles above the Earth's surface, the images suggest East Africa's Serengeti-Mara wildebeest population may be less than half the size previously estimated.
Which animal has the longest intestine in the world? Surprisingly, scientists don’t actually know for sure – but they have a pretty good guess...
Ever wondered which animal has the longest intestine? Well, so do scientists...
Amphibians
“They parasitise their sexually reproducing cousins’ sperm for their own purposes”: Meet the self-replicating sisterhood
These unisexual gene thieves have survived for millions of years by cloning (and sometimes stealing) DNA
It sounds like a chicken, tastes like a chicken and raises its young like a chicken – but it isn't one
Despite its name, the mountain chicken isn't actually a chicken...
Why do frogs scream?
Jules Howard discusses possible reasons frogs scream
Animal ID
10 animals with the wrong names: Discover 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.
How to identify mammal skulls - and work out the creature they once belonged to
Skulls can be found virtually anywhere, but skull identification can be difficult. Learn how to identify common mammal skulls in our expert guide.
How to identify animal droppings: Our guide to the wildlife poop you might find in your garden or out on a walk
Droppings or scats can tell us a lot about which animals have been visiting our gardens, parks and countryside, including hedgehogs, foxes and badgers. Our expert guide explains how to identify which poos belong to which species. Plus, animal droppings from species from around the world – and fungi and insects you might spot on droppings.
Birds
10 deadliest birds on the planet: From slashing humans with razor sharp talons to kicking prey to death, discover the world's savagest, most brutal avian killers
Are these the world's most dangerous birds?
There's a bird in Africa that kills nestlings and then throws them out of trees – and researchers have no idea why
Sociable weavers have been observed killing unrelated birds before tossing them out of their huge nests. Scientists are trying to figure out what's going on.
“They produce 7 tonnes of guano – nightly”: Romans in biohazard suits are facing a relentless rain of oily poop. Here’s what’s going on
Millions of starlings descend upon Rome every year, creating spectacular murmurations – and a mess
Fish
Megafish the size of grizzly bears. But now scientists say these giants of the Mekong River are shrinking – and they know why
Once weighing hundreds of kilograms, these enormous riverfish are decreasing in size, highlighting the need for enhanced protection.
'Ghost sharks' are lurking off the coast of Washington – and they have teeth growing out of their foreheads
Researchers have discovered that the bizarre-looking spotted ratfish has a row of real teeth between its eyes.
Are sharks losing their deadliest weapon?
Ocean acidification could leave the ocean’s top predators with crumbling teeth
Insects & Invertebrates
It’s as loud as an aeroplane but smaller than your thumb – so just how is this winged creature SO noisy?
Despite their small size, cicadas sure are noisy. So how do they produce such big sounds?
What is the fastest flying insect? Meet the speed machines that can fly at 145km/h
How fast are the fastest flying insects? We take a look
This bizarre ocean creature has 8 legs, looks like an alien and sucks up and spits out its prey after taking a tasty bite
Sea spiders are strange creatures, and the gangly lancer sea spider is one of the strangest of all
Mammals
Fascinating facts about our warm blooded friends - the mammals.
Scientists just discovered a new (amazing) use for this strange monkey's gigantic nose
Only found on the island of Borneo, the proboscis monkey is one of the world's most bizarre-looking animals. Now a new study has revealed a hidden function for its peculiar nose.
Camera trap hidden deep in Amazon Rainforest captures elusive predators doing something never filmed before
The footage was captured in the Serra do Pardo National Park in the Brazilian Amazon.
What do dolphins do during storms?
Author and wildlife guide Jon Dunn explains how dolphins cope with stormy weather.
Marine Animals
When a colossal sea creature washed up on a beach in Britain, experts were called in to solve the mystery
Arriving at the scene, they identified the animal as a fin whale, the second largest creature on Earth after the blue whale.
Critically endangered sharks being sold as food in US grocery stores, new study finds
Shark meat sold in grocery stores, seafood markets and via online vendors often comes from endangered species and is frequently mislabelled, say researchers.
Peculiar deep-sea creature with huge eyes discovered 3,628m down off Californian coast
Scientists say the strange-looking animal is one of three new species of snailfish found on a recent expedition to the bottom of the Monterey Canyon off the west coast of USA.
Reptiles
It is one of the most deadliest and feared snakes in the Americas, able to kill a person with one bite. Fortunately you can hear it coming...
Keep an ear out for their infamous rattle if you are spending time in the American wilderness!
India's deadliest snakes to become even more dangerous, new study suggests
A new study warns shifting snake ranges driven by climate change could put millions more people at risk of deadly bites.
Researchers deploy 120 robots in Everglades National Park. Their mission is to help catch 20ft snakes
The fluffy robots – designed to mimic marsh rabbits – are part of a new approach to try and remove invasive Burmese pythons from the Florida wetlands.
