animal behavior

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Democrats and Republicans Behave Like Schools of Fish
 Political Parties Act 
 Like Schools of Fish 
study says
Dec 19, 2011 1:23 PM CST

Political Parties Act Like Schools of Fish

Vocal minorities can temporarily sway the masses

(Newser) - Wondering about the future of the Tea Party, or what affect the Occupy Movement might have on Democrats? Try asking a bunch of fish. Scientists have found that in a school of fish, a "vocal minority"—that is, a group determined to swim in a certain direction—can...

DC Zoo Animals Sensed Quake
 DC Zoo Animals Sensed Quake  
Aug 25, 2011 3:43 AM CDT

DC Zoo Animals Sensed Quake

Apes starting climbing seconds before ground started shaking

(Newser) - In a mysterious phenomenon that has been observed since ancient times, animals at the National Zoo in Washington, DC, appear to have sensed Tuesday's earthquake before humans did. Seconds before the ground began to shake, gorillas and orangutans dropped their food, grabbed their young, and climbed as high as...

How Dolphins Can Help Us Meet Aliens

Before we talk to ET, let's chat with our fellow Earthlings

(Newser) - Scientists have been discovering plenty of new planets, and eventually, perhaps one will contain life—but we’d have no way to talk to the aliens. Until then, we can practice on creatures here on Earth: dolphins, who are capable of some surprisingly sophisticated thinking. We’ve tried to chat...

Pigeons Love to Gamble: Study
 Pigeons Love to Gamble: Study 
Oct 13, 2010 9:22 AM CDT

Pigeons Love to Gamble: Study

Research suggests gambling is natural urge, even at lousy odds

(Newser) - Gambling may be a fundamental part of human—and avian—nature, according to researchers who were surprised to learn that pigeons like gambling as much as people do. In the "pigeon casino" the researchers set up, trained birds given a choice of pecking a button that delivered three pellets...

What Your Dog's Thinking
 What Your Dog's Thinking 
Apr 29, 2010 11:22 AM CDT

What Your Dog's Thinking

Guess what: When he slobbers all over your face, that's not love

(Newser) - When your dog licks your face, he's not trying to “kiss” you or demonstrate his affection; he's hoping to lap up any regurgitated food you might have to offer him. That's just one of the many unsettling revelations doled out by Alexandra Horowitz in an interview with ABC News...

Dogs, Whales Display Special Connection

Video, anecdotes support notion of interspecies bond

(Newser) - Do dogs and whales share a mysterious special bond? Yes, according to Discovery News writer Jennifer Viegas. For proof, she offers the YouTube clip above and some anecdotal evidence from Carrie Newell, who runs Whale Research EcoExcursions. Newell often brings her dog on her whale watching expeditions, and she reports...

Temple Grandin a 'Captivating' Look at Autism

Claire Danes shines in title role as animal behavior expert

(Newser) - Temple Grandin, the renowned animal behaviorist who credits her achievements to her autism, values "tangible results" over emotion—and so does her HBO biopic. The eponymous film, debuting tomorrow, "avoids the mawkish clichés" so typical of made-for-TV movies, instead delivering "a movie that is funny, instructive,...

Crocs Know Their Names, Open Up on Call

Brit aquarium has reptiles answering to Paleo, Suchus

(Newser) - Two crocodiles at a British aquarium have been taught to recognize their own names, a feat that works with mammals in captivity but rarely with reptiles. “They are very intelligent and started responding to their names in just a few days,” the zoo’s manager tells the Telegraph...

Pair of British Swans Gets Rare 'Divorce'

The birds usually mate for life, but not this time

(Newser) - A pair of British swans has done the unthinkable for the loyal species, which usually mate for life: It split up. Sarindi and Saruni had been together for two years, but both returned to an English bird sanctuary from their annual Arctic migration with brand new partners. It's only the...

Study of Obsessive Dogs Turns up OCD Gene

Study sheds light on OCD cause in both humans and dogs

(Newser) - Dogs that engage in compulsive behavior like tail-chasing and blanket sucking share a genetic variation, according to new research. The researchers believe the study of Doberman pinschers—a breed especially vulnerable to canine OCD—sheds new light on the causes of the disorder in both humans and animals, the New ...

Hooker Crabs Swap Sex for Safety
 Hooker Crabs 
 Swap Sex for Safety 
SEEDY CRUSTACEANS
Nov 4, 2009 4:17 AM CST

Hooker Crabs Swap Sex for Safety

Male crabs rewarded with sex for defending neighbors

(Newser) - Selling sex is the key to survival in the seedy world of fiddler crabs, according to Australian researchers. Scientists studying the burrow-dwelling, highly territorial creatures found that male fiddler crabs fought off intruders to protect female neighbors—who lack the male's huge claw—far more often than they would aid...

Some Male, Mom Baboons 'Just Friends'

Primatologists baffled by sexless simian friendships

(Newser) - Scientists are trying to figure out why many male baboons enter into platonic friendships with single moms, the BBC reports. Researchers probing relationships within baboon tribes found that the friendships, which did not appear to involve sex in about half the instances, helped mother and offspring dodge the unwanted attentions...

They Don't Call Him Fido for Nothing

Dogs are ethical, full of natural goodness, scientist says

(Newser) - Science is finally catching up to what dog owners have known all along: Canines are ethical. After thousands of hours studying dogs—once dismissed as "furry automatons," an author said—animal behaviorist Marc Bekoff concluded that they possess the capacity for empathy and compassion, the hallmarks of morality....

Chimp 'Prostitutes' Trade Sex for Meat

Male chimps who shared hunt spoils had twice as many partners

(Newser) - Male chimps who get lucky hunting are a lot likelier to get lucky with female chimps if they share the spoils, a new study finds. Researchers tracked a band of chimps in the wild and found that while all were promiscuous, male hunters who shared meat—generally a rare treat...

Mating Calls Bare More Than Desire
Mating Calls Bare More
Than Desire
Jan 18, 2009 4:52 AM CST

Mating Calls Bare More Than Desire

Courtship 'song' of desert creatures conveys complex info

(Newser) - Like human songs, animal calls are said to spur courtship, but what exactly does each wail and snort signify? To find out, a pair of Tel Aviv zoologists studied the mating songs of furry little rock hyraxes in the Judean desert. The researchers found that male hyrax courtship "songs"...

Berlin Divided Over Wild Boars
 Berlin Divided Over Wild Boars 
Dec 16, 2008 9:54 AM CST

Berlin Divided Over Wild Boars

Some locals call for extermination, shocking others

(Newser) - Berliners are sharing their city with thousands of wild boars—and citizens are split on how to treat the porkers, the Wall Street Journal reports. Some prefer a more aggressive approach: Don’t feed them corn, says one licensed urban boar hunter, “feed them lead." But others are...

Mating Antelope Show Off Knees. Seriously.

Sound communicates animal's strength, prevents conflict

(Newser) - Doesn't sound all that sexy, but Africa’s male eland antelope has developed his own way of demonstrating its sexual prowess and warding off rivals. Males click their knees to establish mating rights and avoid brawls: the louder the click, the larger the animal, and the more likely he is...

Beer-Loving Mare Banned From UK Bar
Beer-Loving
Mare Banned
From UK Bar
Sep 30, 2008 2:00 PM CDT

Beer-Loving Mare Banned From UK Bar

Pub owner gets new carpet, puts end to horsin' around

(Newser) - A beer-swigging mare has been kicked to the curb following renovations at her favorite British watering hole, reports the Evening Chronicle. Peggy, a regular at the establishment since following her owner into the pub years ago, has been told to keep her hooves off the new carpeting. “Although she...

In Love With the Pet-Sitter? You Dog!

Companion animals loyal to their humans, except when they're not

(Newser) - It can lead to tearful separations, but cheating is natural—for quadrupeds, that is. It really is them, not you, a veterinarian tells MSNBC. Pets may gravitate toward a new owner for any number of reasons. “Hallie was my dog, but I always sensed her unhappiness at having to...

Baby Turtles Go Out for Italian
 Baby Turtles Go Out for Italian 
Aug 19, 2008 11:34 AM CDT

Baby Turtles Go Out for Italian

(Newser) - Sixty baby turtles took Rome restaurant-goers by surprise when they showed up under a table, Reuters reports. The newly hatched creatures normally instinctively head toward the sea from their beach birthplace, but “they saw the artificial lights and took the wrong route,” said a wildlife conservator. “The...

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