Scavengers

Photo: Katmai National Park and Preserve

Why We Need Fat Bear Week

For devoted online fans, watching chunky bears interact in the wild provides a much-needed escape from the sometimes sad realities of everyday life.

Conservation Brianna Provenzano Oct 4

Photo: National Park Service/Explore.org

2021’s Best Fat Bears, Ranked

These are the top five fat bear contestants. I will not be taking questions at this time.

Conservation Dharna Noor Sep 28

That Grizzly Bear Killed by a Mountain Goat Was Innocent

A mountain goat conspired with climate change to commit the stone-cold murder of a grizzly bear in Canada. This act of aggression must not stand.

Conservation Dharna Noor Sep 24

Fat Bear Junior Week Is Here

Two baby bears are going head to head in a competition of corpulence and cuteness.

Conservation Dharna Noor Sep 24

Badass Mountain Goat Kills Grizzly Bear in Canadian National Park

Attacks by bears on mountain goats are common—but the horned herbivores have the means to defend themselves.

Biology George Dvorsky Sep 23

Would Your Dog Give You Treats If He Could?

A new experiment found dogs didn't reciprocate giving food to people who had fed them, but the results highlight the challenges of animal behavior research.

Biology Ed Cara Jul 14

Montana and Idaho Have Legalized Killing Wolves on a Massive Scale

The two Republican-controlled states have passed laws that could decimate the wolf population and endanger a major conservation success story.

Conservation Richard Pallardy Jul 5

Conservation Project Goes Awry as Tasmanian Devils Start Killing Penguins

Put on Maria Island for their own protection, the Tasmanian devils have been terrorizing local birds.

Conservation Isaac Schultz Jun 22

Photo: Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

Birth of 3 Wolf Pups Means Colorado Has Its First Native Wolves Since the 1940s

Wildlife officials have documented at least three pups born to the gray wolf parents John and Jane.

Conservation Ed Cara Jun 10

Puppy Experiment Shows How Dogs Connect With Humans From Birth

New research published this week suggests that dogs are born to understand people, at least to some extent. The study showed that 8-week-old puppies preparing to become service dogs were already capable of communicating with humans, even without formal training. Moreover, they found that genetics played a large role in determining how well these puppies…

Biology Ed Cara Jun 3

All the Animals American Men Think They Can Beat in a Fight and Why They Can’t

According to a YouGov poll released on Friday, some humans have extremely poor judgment when it comes to determining which animals they could win a one-on-one, unarmed fight against. Namely, they think they can win those fights at all. For example, 6% of respondents believed they could beat a grizzly bear, 8% are confident of…

Biology Tom McKay May 14

Polar Bear-Grizzly Hybrids, Aka Pizzly Bears, May Be Growing More Common Due to Climate Crisis

What do you get when you cross a polar bear and a grizzly bear? A fluffy reminder of how climate change is transforming our planet at an alarming rate. These hybrids, sometimes called pizzly bears or grolar bears, have been spotted in the wild as far back as 2006. But with global temperatures rising as…

Earther Alyse Stanley May 1

Eagles Are Filled With Rat Poison

Eagles are majestic, beautiful, and full of toxins that we’ve pumped into the environment. A new study finds that 82% of dead eagles examined between 2014 and 2018 had detectable levels of rat poison in their systems. The study, published on Wednesday in PLOS One, was, happily, made possible by the fact that eagle populations…

Conservation Molly Taft Apr 7

A Mystery Brain Condition Is Making Bears Friendly, Then Killing Them

An unknown neurological condition is sickening and often killing young black bears in California and Nevada. The illness also seems to make the bears unafraid of people. Though the condition doesn’t appear to be severely harming the bear population at large, scientists and wildlife officials are still trying to figure out its cause. According to…

Biology Ed Cara Mar 29

How Do Some Dogs Learn Words So Quickly?

Vicky Nina, a Yorkshire terrier, and Whisky, a border collie, were given a straightforward task that few dogs can complete: Amid a trove of toys the two pets were already familiar with, they had to identify a new toy by name—more specifically, by the fact that it was the only object they didn’t know the…

Biology Isaac Schultz Jan 28

Scientists Found the Oldest Known Grizzly Bear in Yellowstone

Scientists found a 34-year-old grizzly bear in southwest Wyoming, identifying him by a mark on his lip made by biologists in 1989. That’s the oldest grizzly ever known in the Yellowstone region that includes parts of Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. Respect your elders. There’s no telling if there are older grizzly bears currently roaming Yellowstone,…

Conservation Dharna Noor Jan 25

Dead Alligators Dropped to the Bottom of the Sea Make for a Rare and Delicious Meal

An experiment to see how deep-sea creatures might react to the presence of an uncommon food source—alligator carcasses—has resulted in some fascinating new science. As many of you will recall, Gizmodo covered some of this research in April of last year. The marine biologists responsible for the experiment have finally published their long-awaited results in…

Biology George Dvorsky Jan 10

Creatures of the Deep Are Feeding on a Whale Carcass and You Can Watch It Live

Marine scientists aboard the E/V Nautilus, a research vessel that prowls the high seas in search of oceanic discoveries, have stumbled upon the rare skeletal remains of 16-foot long whale. With bits of flesh still clinging to the bones, the dead whale has attracted an assortment of strange sea critters, including worms, octopuses, and eels.…

Conservation George Dvorsky Oct 16

Unsettling Video Shows What Happens to a Dead Alligator at the Bottom of the Sea

For the first time ever, scientists placed alligator carcasses at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico to see which bottom feeders might make a meal of the dead reptiles. The results came as a surprise even to the researchers. Astounding new video taken at a depth of 2,000 meters (6,650 feet) by a remotely…

Biology George Dvorsky Apr 8

Rotting Wildebeest Carcasses Are a Force of Nature in the Serengeti

Each year, thousands of wildebeest drown while making their annual migration through the Serengeti. New research shows how the resulting two million pounds of rotting flesh performs a crucial role in maintaining the region’s vibrant ecosystem. In what is the largest remaining overland migration in the world, some 1.2 million wildebeest make the yearly trek…

Tech News George Dvorsky Jun 20

Why We Need Fat Bear Week

2021’s Best Fat Bears, Ranked

That Grizzly Bear Killed by a Mountain Goat Was Innocent

Fat Bear Junior Week Is Here

Badass Mountain Goat Kills Grizzly Bear in Canadian National Park

Would Your Dog Give You Treats If He Could?

Montana and Idaho Have Legalized Killing Wolves on a Massive Scale

Conservation Project Goes Awry as Tasmanian Devils Start Killing Penguins

Birth of 3 Wolf Pups Means Colorado Has Its First Native Wolves Since the 1940s

Puppy Experiment Shows How Dogs Connect With Humans From Birth

All the Animals American Men Think They Can Beat in a Fight and Why They Can’t

Polar Bear-Grizzly Hybrids, Aka Pizzly Bears, May Be Growing More Common Due to Climate Crisis

Eagles Are Filled With Rat Poison

A Mystery Brain Condition Is Making Bears Friendly, Then Killing Them

How Do Some Dogs Learn Words So Quickly?

Scientists Found the Oldest Known Grizzly Bear in Yellowstone

Dead Alligators Dropped to the Bottom of the Sea Make for a Rare and Delicious Meal

Creatures of the Deep Are Feeding on a Whale Carcass and You Can Watch It Live

Unsettling Video Shows What Happens to a Dead Alligator at the Bottom of the Sea

Rotting Wildebeest Carcasses Are a Force of Nature in the Serengeti

Trump’s War on American Cybersecurity Ramps Up With Planned $700 Million Cuts to CISA

Artemis 2 Day 7: Follow the Mission With Our Live Updates 🔴

10 Years Ago Today, ‘Star Wars’ Changed Its Future With the First Look at ‘Rogue One’

Mysterious VHS Tapes May Herald the Release of a New Boards of Canada Project

‘Exit 8’ Is a Satisfying, Scary Twitch Stream Come to Life

Sam Altman Says It’ll Take Another Year Before ChatGPT Can Start a Timer

SpaceX Starship V3 Engine Goes Up in Flames at Texas Site

Rise and Shine and Grab the Breakfast Drugs: the ‘Rick and Morty’ Season 9 Trailer Is Here

Aqara Thermostat Hub W200 Review: Almost Better than My Ecobee

HP Omen Max 45L Review: 4K60 Gaming Has Never Been So Easy

Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Review: Window Cleaning Robots Have a Long Way to Go

AirPods Max 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen): Which ANC Headphones Win?

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

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