Animal News Feed
Hormel ending tight confinement for pregnant pigs (AP)
Yahoo Animals and Pets - Thu, 02/02/2012 - 17:29
AP - Hormel Foods Corp.'s company-owned farms are phasing out the use of small metal crates for confining pregnant hogs by the end of 2017 — a move welcomed Thursday by the Humane Society of the United States, which had pushed for the change.
Group opposes plan to make "Toto" breed Kansas state (Reuters)
Yahoo Animals and Pets - Thu, 02/02/2012 - 13:59
Reuters - An animal rights group is objecting to proposed Kansas legislation that would make the Cairn terrier the state dog in honor of Toto, Dorothy's loyal pooch in the movie classic "The Wizard of Oz."
Lions apparently not enough to keep intruders out (AP)
Yahoo Animals and Pets - Wed, 02/01/2012 - 22:51
AP - With 120 lions, tigers and other big cats on the grounds, the owner of a Colorado refuge didn't think he needed a security system.
Feds declare Atlantic sturgeon endangered species (AP)
Yahoo Animals and Pets - Wed, 02/01/2012 - 13:58
AP - The Atlantic sturgeon, a prehistoric fish whose once bountiful populations were depleted by anglers seeking its coveted caviar, has been declared an endangered species by federal officials, a decision that could lead to moves to protect its habitats along the East Coast.
Fewer zoos may have elephants under new standard (Reuters)
Yahoo Animals and Pets - Wed, 02/01/2012 - 10:25
Reuters - Fewer zoos of the future may have elephants but those that do would have happier animals under a new policy requiring American zoos with two elephants to add space for a third in case one dies.
China streams live panda video to foster conservation (Reuters)
Yahoo Animals and Pets - Wed, 02/01/2012 - 01:49
Reuters - China began Wednesday streaming live video footage of its pandas around the world via webcam in an attempt to boost awareness of conservation efforts for its beloved but endangered animal ambassadors.
New species of ancient crocodile discovered; 'Sheildcroc' was ancestor of today's species
Science Daily Animal News - Tue, 01/31/2012 - 15:56
A new species of prehistoric crocodile has been discovered. The extinct creature, nicknamed "Shieldcroc" due to a thick-skinned shield on its head, is an ancestor of today's crocodiles.
Two pig farms in Oklahoma accused of abuse (Reuters)
Yahoo Animals and Pets - Tue, 01/31/2012 - 15:47
Reuters - The Humane Society on Tuesday accused two pig-breeding facilities, one of which supplies retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc, of mistreating the animals by confining sows in cages during pregnancy.
Volunteers clear tiger snares in China
Science Daily Animal News - Tue, 01/31/2012 - 11:54
Volunteers working in northeast China have cleared 162 illegal wire snares in an ongoing effort to protect the nation’s remaining population of critically endangered Amur (Siberian) tigers.
Severe declines in Everglades mammals linked to invasive pythons, researchers find
Science Daily Animal News - Tue, 01/31/2012 - 11:52
New research links precipitous declines in formerly common mammals in Everglades National Park to the presence of invasive Burmese pythons.
Ancient DNA holds clues to climate change adaptation
Science Daily Animal News - Tue, 01/31/2012 - 08:25
Thirty-thousand-year-old bison bones discovered in permafrost at a Canadian goldmine are helping scientists unravel the mystery about how animals adapt to rapid environmental change.
Severe python damage to Florida's native Everglades animals documented in new study
Science Daily Animal News - Mon, 01/30/2012 - 17:32
Precipitous declines in formerly common mammals in Everglades National Park in Florida have been linked to the presence of invasive Burmese pythons, according to new research. The study, the first to document the ecological impacts of this invasive species, strongly supports that animal communities in the 1.5-million-acre park have been markedly altered by the introduction of pythons within 11 years of their establishment as an invasive species. Mid-sized mammals are the most dramatically affected, but some Everglades pythons are as large as 16 feet long, and their prey have included animals as large as deer and alligators.
Livestock, not Mongolian gazelles, drive foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks
Science Daily Animal News - Mon, 01/30/2012 - 15:24
Wildlife health experts from the Wildlife Conservation Society have published evidence which supports the conclusion that Mongolian gazelles -- one of the most populous large land mammals on the planet -- are not a reservoir of foot-and-mouth disease, a highly contagious viral disease that threatens both wildlife and livestock in Asia.
Mammals shrink at faster rates than they grow: Research helps explain large-scale size changes and recovery from mass extinctions
Science Daily Animal News - Mon, 01/30/2012 - 15:19
It took about 10 million generations for terrestrial mammals to hit their maximum mass: that's about the size of a cat evolving into the size of an elephant. Sea mammals, such as whales took about half the number of generations to hit their maximum.
Mouse to elephant? Just wait 24 million generations
Science Daily Animal News - Mon, 01/30/2012 - 15:19
Scientists have for the first time measured how fast large-scale evolution can occur in mammals, showing it takes 24 million generations for a mouse-sized animal to evolve to the size of an elephant.
Edinburgh Zoo pandas back on display after illness (AP)
Yahoo Animals and Pets - Mon, 01/30/2012 - 11:38
AP - Two giant pandas on loan to a Scottish zoo are back on public display after they were removed to be treated for colic.
Chimp 'X factor': Extensive adaptive evolution specifically targeting the X chromosome of chimpanzees
Science Daily Animal News - Mon, 01/30/2012 - 11:08
Genetic mutations that boost an individual's adaptability have greater chances of getting through to X chromosomes -- at least in chimpanzees, according to new Danish research. An analysis of the genes of 12 chimpanzees has now demonstrated that the chimpanzee X chromosome plays a very special role in the animal's evolutionary development.
AP Enterprise: Monkey owners flee La. crackdown (AP)
Yahoo Animals and Pets - Mon, 01/30/2012 - 06:44
AP - Even in their Texas hideout, Jim and Donita Clark are terrified that wildlife agents from their home state of Louisiana will descend on their motorhome and seize the four Capuchin monkeys they've reared for 10 years.
What do killer whales eat in the Arctic?
Science Daily Animal News - Sun, 01/29/2012 - 21:28
Killer whales are the top marine predator. The increase in hunting territories available to killer whales in the Arctic due to climate change and melting sea ice could seriously affect the marine ecosystem balance. New research has combined scientific observations with Canadian Inuit traditional knowledge to determine killer whale behavior and diet in the Arctic.
Colicky Edinburgh Zoo pandas removed from display (AP)
Yahoo Animals and Pets - Sat, 01/28/2012 - 10:54
AP - Two giant pandas on loan to a Scottish zoo have been removed from display while being treated for colic.