Tracing the origins of the animal rights movement to one truly bizarre 1922 court case.

The extravagant splendor of the animal kingdom can’t be explained by natural selection alone — so how did it come to be?

Could you survive in pitch-black conditions? Meet the animals that not only survive but thrive. By Jonathan Amos.

The cryobank is a rich source of genetic knowledge of hundreds of creatures. It may one day be used to bring endangered species back from the brink and deepen the gene pool of wild populations.

Time to end the debate: Here are the best horns, ever.

A species of duck thought to have been wiped out a decade ago is re-released at a lake in Madagascar.

One conservation group warns that the move shows "a troubling disregard for international rule".

One of America’s native wild canines, the red wolf, has teetered on the brink of extinction for decades. And despite the efforts of a captive breeding program started in the 1970s, only about 40 such wolves are known to be still living in the wild today, all in North Carolina. But researchers at Princeton University have made a strange discovery that might spell good news for the future of the species: A population of wild dogs, isolated off the coast of Texas, that seem to carry red wolf genes, including remnants of DNA thought to be lost forever.

Wildlife expert Chris Packham believes people wouldn't eat meat if they knew how animals were treated, Plant Based News can reveal. He made the comments while talking with Veganuary - a charity that supports people as they try and vegan diet throughout January. A staggering 300,000 people are expected to sign up for the initiative this year. Packham will also be doing Veganuary this year and has joined the organization as an ambassador, joining actors Evanna Lynch and Peter Egan, TV presenters Sarah-Jane Crawford and Jasmine Harman, comedians Sara Pascoe and Carl Donnelly and chef Derek Sarno.

A report that a fish can pass the “mirror test” for self-awareness reignites debates about how to define and measure that elusive quality.

Gene targeted for its role in HIV is linked to increased severity of other infectious diseases — and could affect learning in mice.

At last, we’ve reached the conclusion of this scintillating drama: the National Zoo’s naked mole-rat colony has chosen its queen. In case you’ve been living under a rock, let us catch you up: the Small Mammal House at the Smithsonian National Zoo is home to a colony of naked mole-rats, and for the last several months they’ve been engaged in a quiet—but brutal—battle for political supremacy. Naked mole-rats are one of just two eusocial mammalian species, which means they live much like colonies of bees or ants...

How my suburban-hewn world-view was flipped on its head. By Jesse Bering.

In Disney’s The Lion King, little Simba grows up to become the ‘King of Beasts’, but did you ever wonder where the whole idea of the lion as king of beasts comes from? The answer lies in the medieval bestiary, along with a host of other wondrous and exciting discoveries.

Just a few short days after her daring run down Route 80, recently rescued Brianna the cow gave birth to a female calf Saturday afternoon. Brianna fell 8 feet out of the second level of a truck headed to a Paterson slaughterhouse around 2:45 a.m. on Thursday night. She wandered around the highway until Skylands Animal Sanctuary and Rescue came to corral her.

In an ironic twist, the mammals also dine on carcasses of their main predator, the Canada lynx, a new study says.

A beaver was captured on camera in northeast Italy, marking the first sighting of the animal in that country since 1471.

Many of us have had wild nights. It’s a rite of passage during college years here in the States. But in New Zealand, a 23 year old man has given a new meaning to the term. John Casford of Wellington described himself as ‘high as a kite’ the night he decided to steal a squirrel monkey for his girlfriend.

Scientists discover how the marsupials are the only known species producing cube-shaped faeces.

Mammals that defecate in the same fashion as humans all excrete waste within the same time frame, no matter their size, a new study finds.

A big game hunter who sparked worldwide fury when he posed next to a lion he had killed has died after falling 100ft down a ravine while shooting birds. Vet Luciano Ponzetto, 55, received death threats and hate mail after he posted the snaps of him with the lion on social media last year.

An African grey parrot has made headlines recently for inadvertently making orders via his owner’s Amazon Echo. Originally reported via The Times of London, the parrot — whose name is Rocco — would mindlessly activate Alexa and have the virtual assistant tell jokes and play music. Rocco even tried to order a few items from Amazon, but the owner wisely had set up controls to prevent unauthorized purchases.

Scientists break the rules of reproduction, so what does it mean for the future of sex?

There are plenty of great wildlife photographers who take awe-inspiring and interesting shots. But when these animals do funny things and take silly poses: it adds a whole new level to wildlife photography. The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards is centered on the photos of animals that are sure to improve your day.

Well, we didn't think it was possible, but we should have had more faith in our feathered corvid friends: crows just got even cooler. Researchers have discovered that crows don't just use single objects as tools; they can also make them out of multip

The long read: We like to think fish have no feelings. And yet the idea that they have both memory and a capacity for suffering is gaining ground among scientists

Introducing the Guardian’s new series The Age of Extinction, the renowned primatologist describes the dramatic vanishing of wildlife she has witnessed in her lifetime – and how we can all play a vital role in halting its destruction

The world is bad, but babies remain good.

Vault50.com is a completely independent review guide covering medical, business and industrial products and software. If readers choose to buy our selected editorial picks, we sometimes earn affiliate commissions that support our work. Lulu the pot-bellied pig created quite the media storm back in 1998.

A top Egyptian antiquities official says local archaeologists have discovered seven Pharaonic Age tombs near the capital Cairo containing dozens of cat mummies along with wooden statues depicting other animals and birds.

In Mozambique, researchers are racing to understand the genetics of elephants born without tusks—and the consequences of the trait.

Destruction likely to be just the tip of the iceberg, campaigners warn

Researchers are just now beginning to understand what happens when one whale species attacks another

A few years ago I wanted to visit the best egg farm I could find. I had been inside an egg factory farm. I had seen a dozen sheds, each with a dozen rows of wire cages stacked two high and 150ft deep. Those cages were so small the birds inside couldn’t even spread their wings. They were half-starved, diseased, and undeniably miserable. Factory farming was clearly wrong, so I wanted to instead find a farm that represented an ethical and humane way to raise animals for food.

Wombats are the only animals in the world that produce cube-shaped scat. But how and why do they do it? Scientists now have a better idea.