Praying mantises are what scientists call “generalist” hunters, meaning they eat pretty much whatever they want. Despite their eclectic taste, however, no one has ever seen a praying mantis eat fish—until now.
Do you ever get so excited about something that your whole face starts to turn red? Well, it seems that blue-and-yellow macaws do the same thing, according to new research—though the exact reason they go red in the face is still unknown.
Great tits appear to have nearly as much self-control as chimpanzees, if a new experiment’s results are accurate. They might even have more self-control than the humans who still make jokes about the name “great tit.”
Parrots are known for their intelligence, but why they should be so much smarter than other birds isn’t entirely clear. New research suggests parrots have an enlarged brain circuit responsible for higher-order thinking—a brain circuit with strikingly mammalian-like characteristics.
New research shows that crows can recreate tools from memory, a capacity previously thought impossible for birds.
Koko, arguably the world’s most famous gorilla, has died at the age of 46. Known for her ability to communicate through sign language, Koko forever changed our conceptions of primate intelligence and emotional capacities.
Humans have relegated insects to the lower levels of the cognitive totem pole, but scientists are increasingly showing it’s a mistake to underestimate invertebrate intelligence. As a case in point, new research by French and Australian researchers suggests honey bees understand the concept of zero—a rare and complex…
The life of a bottlenose dolphin can be surprisingly rough, with individuals chasing, biting, and smashing themselves against each other in the struggle for social dominance. Sometimes, males form long-lasting alliances with each other to gain an edge, but as new research shows, not at the expense of losing an…
A video of a cockatiel singing a famous ringtone melody has us wondering why these birds are so good at mimicking sounds they wouldn’t normally hear in their natural environment. Come to think of it, why are these feathered impersonators such copycats in the first place?
Yesterday, the Nonhuman Rights Project filed a petition on behalf of three elephants being kept at a Connecticut zoo. The suit demands that the court recognize these animals as “legal persons” and release them to sanctuary, but given that the same legal team failed to secure similar personhood rights for chimps in New…
Humans and dogs have a long history of working together, leading to the assumption that the collaborative abilities of dogs are the result of domestication. New research suggests this isn’t the case, and that wolves are far better at cooperation than their domesticated cousins, at least when they’re cooperating with…
From a young age, human children learn that a rattle won’t make a noise until it’s shaken, and that placing fingers on a hot stove is a terrible idea. New research suggests that wolves, like humans, have a knack for identifying these kinds of cause-and-effect relationships, but that domesticated dogs do not. This…
Like a baseball player running to make a catch, dragonflies are also capable of predicting the trajectory of a moving object, typically its next meal. New research is revealing the mechanisms behind this complex cognitive task, which was once thought to be exclusive to mammals. It’s hoped that these insights will lead…
New research shows that ravens can plan ahead for different types of events, and even resist the urge to take an immediate reward in favor of getting a better one in the future. These capacities are often considered the exclusive domain of humans and great apes, so their presence in birds comes as a surprise.
Everyone is talking about ticks this year, for good reason: This year’s tick forecast is especially bad. But humans aren’t the only ones worried about the horrible little buggers. It seems like at least one bird species safeguards its nests against ticks with a surprising piece of litter. Cigarette butts.
Yesterday, a New York state appeals court rejected an appeal filed by the Nonhuman Rights Project (NhRP) seeking legal rights for a pair of captive chimpanzees. It’s a major setback for the group, but the battle to secure human-like legal protections for highly intelligent and self-aware animals is far from over.
It’s hard to know how smart animals are for the simple reason that they’re not able to come right out and tell us. Scientists have developed various methods over the years to assess animal intelligence, but a simple new body-awareness test involving elephants may be a promising new tool to add to the arsenal.
Given their size and limited brain power, ants have an uncanny ability to find their way home after lengthy foraging excursions. To figure out how they do it, scientists from Germany have developed an innovative, but surprisingly simple spherical ant treadmill made from styrofoam.
The ability to look into a mirror and recognize oneself is a cognitive skill we all take for granted, but very few animals outside of humans are able to do it. New research shows that monkeys can be trained to pass the so-called “mirror test,” suggesting that more species may be self-aware than previously thought.…
You know that thing you do where you talk to your dog like it’s a baby? New research shows that puppies respond well to this silly form of speech, but older dogs could give a crap. So, stop doing it when your dog grows up.
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