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These species skip the tadpole stage entirely, an incredibly rare phenomenon among toads and frogs. In A Nutshell Scientists identified three new toad species in Tanzania that give birth to live babies instead of laying eggs, bringing the global total of live-bearing frogs and toads to just 20 species. DNA extracted from museum specimens collected in 1899 helped researchers solve a 115-year-old mystery about where these toads actually live, with genetic analysis showing populations previously thought to be one species are actually four distinct species separated by mountain ranges. The newly described species face serious conservation threats, with ranges as...

Nov. 5 (UPI) -- A diaper-wearing sheep's journey aboard a high-speed train in Poland is going viral after video was captured by a lawmaker who was not amused by the spectacle. Mariusz Krystian, a member of parliament for the conservative Law and Justice Party, posted video he captured aboard a PKP Intercity train on the Pendolino line between the cities of Krakow and Warsaw. The video shows a sheep, dressed in a diaper, walking through the train's aisle in between seats. "I am currently on a train to Warsaw. And I wonder, is this still a passenger train, or a...

'Two messages, first one saying ''I just killed Iris and the kids''. The second message was ''with a gun.'' I knew that man was very unstable. I knew he had a very, very dark side. I didn't know it was this dark,' Wogas told the outlet. According to Dusterhoft, Ross was fixated on his celebrity persona, fueled by weight-loss motivational speeches, but relied on his estranged wife, Iris, to bankroll the lifestyle he craved. Then, she filed for divorce. 'His five minutes of daytime TV fame was up. The money, the success - all a façade. And so was the...

Scientists have unlocked a surprising clean energy breakthrough using an unlikely source from the poultry industry. In a potential breakthrough for green energy technology, scientists at ETH Zurich and Nanyang Technological University Singapore (NTU) have developed a membrane for hydrogen fuel cells made from discarded chicken feathers—an abundant waste product in the global poultry industry. The new membranes are made from keratin, a structural protein that makes up the bulk of feathers. Extracted and processed into amyloid fibrils, the keratin forms a thin, proton-conductive layer at the heart of a hydrogen fuel cell. According to the research team, the material...

Alligator gars: putting the “gar” in gargantuan for 100 million years. Dr Solomon David, AKA The Gar Guy, said it’s the largest alligator gar he’s ever seen in the field. Image courtesy of Dr Solomon David ================================================================== The Mississippi River floodplains are home to one of Earth’s most impressive river monsters: the alligator gar. Known to science as Atractosteus spatula, it is the largest of the gar species alive today and among the largest fish in North America. Dr Solomon David, AKA “The Gar Guy”, has had more experience than most with these freshwater giants. So, when he messages you...

The octopus stinkhorn, also known as devil's fingers, is a type of fungus that grows from egg-like spores Surely one of the weirdest fungi in the British Isles, or indeed anywhere in Europe, is the octopus stinkhorn, otherwise known as devil’s fingers. It’s actually a southern hemisphere species, originally native to New Zealand and Australia – the leading theory is that its microscopic, dust-like spores hitched a lift to Europe in shipments of wool, timber and other natural products. Though it is still rare in its adopted range, sightings of the stinkhorn are now increasing in England, for reasons that...

Warmer waters might be bringing more juvenile white sharks to the Gulf of California, where they are easy prey for killer whales, say researchers. Researchers have filmed orcas bringing down juvenile great white sharks in the Gulf of California. They say this is the first record of killer whales hunting juvenile white sharks in Mexican waters, and the second globally. To take down their prey, the killer whales flip the young sharks belly up to put them into a state of paralysis called tonic immobility. When the orcas have subdued the shark, they rip out and feast on its energy-rich...

As many people have pointed out, it's basically the case that we don't actually like the taste of "fish." After all, one of the worst things you can say about a food — particularly fish! — is that it smells or tastes "fishy." So you can imagine how difficult it was for this Portuguese family when their son started smelling, well, exactly like that. Via Live Science: Shortly after eating different types of fish, the child would develop an odor of rotting fish emanating from his body. The smell was noxious and powerful, especially around his head and hands. He...

According to a local legend, the Texas horned toad can live a century without food or water. One local Texas man put that idea to the test, using his son's frog Blinky. Ol' Rip, the Texas horned toad that allegedly lived over 30 years. Image credit: ToddKent/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) If you go to the Eastland County Courthouse in Texas, you may lay your eyes on an unusual sight: a dead Texas horned lizard on display in its own velvet-lined coffin. According to local legend and newspaper reports from the 1920s, the reptile certainly earned this honor, living an...

MERCED, Calif. (FOX26) — Wendy, a mischievous foster cat, was caught on her owner's kitchen cam adding her own "spice" to the family dinner. The owner says she was out feeding the dogs, when Wendy snuck into the kitchen and decided to contribute her own meat to the soup pot. Her mom only discovered the feline's culinary surprise after reviewing the footage when she found Wendy sitting on the floor, continuously crying and staring at the pot.

When Chen Chung-ho strolled up to two African lions at Taipei Zoo, nearly 21 years ago, visitors were left confused and stunned. Some are said to have believed it was all part of a show, while others thought he was a trained worker who had access to the beasts' enclosure. But soon after Chen stood in front of the lions, his bizarre behaviour made it increasingly clear that an impending danger loomed. Armed with a Bible, he had one motive - to preach the gospel and 'convert' the lions on November 3, 2004. Witnesses said he shouted 'Jesus will save...

Laura Torrent did not know that the tiny brown bat she caught in early 2024 would become a global milestone for biodiversity and conservation. She had suspected the small creature, caught during an expedition in Equatorial Guinea, could match a mysterious bat specimen collected more than 30 years ago, but it would take months of work and scientific review to confirm. That bat — which Torrent dubbed Pipistrellus etula — marks the 1,500th species of bat to be discovered. Bats are the second-most diverse group of mammals. Of the more than 6,800 mammal species known to scientists today, bats make...

Greek scientists have confirmed a rare genetic event deep in the wild—one that blurs the line between domestic and untamed. A team of Greek wildlife biologists has confirmed the country’s first genetically verified wolf-dog hybrid, identified during a multi-year study of wild wolf populations. The animal, discovered in the forests of northern Greece, carries a genetic profile of 55% domestic dog and 45% gray wolf, according to data released by the conservation group Callisto. The finding was made during an analysis of 50 biological samples collected from wolves across mainland Greece. DNA sequencing revealed one specimen with clear hybrid characteristics....

Chimpanzees are not “persons” capable of being “imprisoned” for purposes of habeas corpus. It’s not every day a court is asked whether chimpanzees have constitutional rights just like people do, but that was the novel question before a three-judge panel of the Michigan state court of appeals earlier this month. The answer, of course, was no. Chimpanzees are not “persons” in the eyes of the law, the appellate court held, denying the petition for habeas corpus filed on behalf of seven chimps by the Nonhuman Rights Project, an advocacy group dedicated to securing legal rights for “nonhuman animals.” In fact,...

“This disproves the claim we don't know anything about the deep sea." VIDEO AT LINK.............. It might be much of a looker, but this is one of the deepest fish ever seen on camera. Image Credit: Minderoo-UWA Deep Sea Research Centre ====================================================================== In 2023, scientists captured fish at depths exceeding 8 kilometers (4.8 miles) and recorded them even deeper. These findings not only set new records for deep-sea fish, but also suggest we may be nearing the maximum depths at which fish can exist. At the western edge of the Pacific Ocean lies a series of trenches down to 11,000...

It won’t catch any fish, but the discovery of as many as 20,000 silver coins and pieces of jewelry dates back to the early Middle Ages. Here’s what you’ll learn when you read this story: A fisherman digging for worms at his summer home in Sweden instead discovered over 13 pounds of buried silver treasure. The hoard comes from the early Middle Ages, and includes mostly coins (and some jewelry). The entire cache of silver was tucked inside a copper pot. A Swedish fisherman searching for gooey, juicy worms to use as bait near his summer home near Stockholm instead...

2025 headed toward both record dog attack fatalities & record pit bull-inflicted fatalities BAXLEY, Georgia; DAYTONA BEACH, Florida; NASHUA, New Hampshire; BACLIFF, TEXAS––Nine pit bulls killed four people in five days between October 8, 2025 and October 12, 2025. That brought the 2025 U.S. dog attack death toll to 70, just five behind the record toll of 75 reached in 2024, with 52 confirmed deaths by pit bull, five behind the record toll of 57, reached in 2023. The four most recent victims included three people who were killed by their own or their own family’s pit bulls, plus 86-year-old...

We spoke to the Dogs of Chernobyl program to find out what's going on. Three blue dogs were pictured in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone on October 6, 2025. Image courtesy of Clean Futures Fund Dogs with blue fur have been spotted snooping in Chernobyl, the restricted area surrounding the epicenter of the infamous nuclear disaster. Rest assured, the dogs have not changed color due to any freakish mutation from decades of radiation – the explanation is likely to be far more mundane, if not a little bit gross. Speaking to IFLScience, researchers from the Dogs of Chernobyl program confirmed that...

Whales are great security, but it’s not always the gentlest rescue. Image credit: Andrea Izzotti / Shutterstock.com ========================================================== While filming on location off Rarotonga in the Cook Islands, whale scientist Nan Hauser was swimming towards two humpback whales when one of them started charging at her. When it approached, it started moving as if it were trying to tuck her under its fin – not a very comfortable maneuver for a human being hugged by a multi-ton giant with razor-sharp barnacles on its fins. Fearing for her life, things only got scarier as the humpback whale hoisted her out of...

A new species of butterfly has just been named after Iryna Zarutska, the Ukrainian refugee who was brutally murdered on the Charlotte, NC light rail in August. The butterfly is very beautiful and has been officially named “Iryna’s Azure.” Take a look: Matt Van Swol @matt_vanswol · Follow 🚨#BREAKING: A scientist who discovered a new species of butterfly has named it after Iryna Zarutska to ensure "she is never forgotten." The scientist said, "Her name will be forever immortalized as a butterfly..." The butterfly is called "Iryna's Azure." 🚨WOW! A scientist has just named a newly-discovered butterfly species after Iryna...