Developing countries suffer the most in the conflict between large carnivores and humans. We need better financial incentives for these communities to make sure these iconic predators are protected.
Collared leopard being released into North Ossetia, Russia in 2022.
Pavel Padalko
Polar bears and wolves may get the glory, but small predators like weasels, foxes and their cousins play outsized ecological roles. And many of these species are declining fast.
A species that is an “apex” predator in one environment won’t necessarily remain so in another.
Diegoalerus was probably around the size of a bobcat.
Erick Toussaint, San Diego Natural History Museum (licensed under CC by 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
African wild dogs are used to evading hyenas and lions. Genetic research suggests they are using the same strengths to get around human development as well.
The researchers found tooth shape varied, depending on the types of food a carnivore regularly bites into – in much the same way we choose a kitchen knife depending on what we’re cutting up.
Small but fierce: Grasshopper mice can eat prey that are toxic to other mice.
Lauren Koenig
For the first time in the US, a ballot measure will ask voters whether to restore wolves to a place where they’ve been eradicated. Coloradans have strong views on both sides.
The invasive species was likely brought to Australia unintentionally by ship. Now found in every state and territory, the wasps are decimating our ecosystems.
A bear leaving its calling card.
Dean Harvey/Flickr
Denisova Cave in Siberia has a rich fossil history of early humans - and deposits of droppings from hyenas, wolves and even bears, according to a new analysis of the cave’s dirt floor.
Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Zoology, University of Venda, Researcher at IGDORE, and Honorary Research Fellow in the Department of Anthropology, Durham University