Semipalmated plovers are small, plump shorebirds with a short bill, long orangish legs, and a single black „necklace“ of feathers. They travel across North America each year to their remote sub-Arctic nesting grounds.
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The Rüppell’s griffon vulture is the world’s highest-flying bird. This critically endangered species is vital to Africa’s ecology, flying long distances to eat carrion and keep ecosystems healthy.
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Things are hop-penning at Small Mammal House! On Jan. 24, a wallaby joey popped its head out of mom Victoria’s pouch. Get the scoop on the young joey from animal keeper Esther Wray.
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Instantly recognizable, striped skunks are known for their signature coloration and for their ability to emit a strong and pungent odor when upset. They are native to the United States and Canada.
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Can sloth swim? What do they eat? And why are they so slow? Impress your friends and ace your next online quiz with these fun facts about sloths to celebrate International Sloth Day on Oct. 20.
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Sand cats are a small, solitary cat native to deserts in Africa and Asia. Superbly adapted to life in the desert, they can live without water, run on shifting sand and detect prey underground.
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Famous from innumerable trips to the seaside as well as Pixar’s short film Piper, sanderlings are the most prevalent sandpiper in the world. On almost any gentle, sandy beach, the little birds you see running back and forth are probably going to be sanderlings.
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One of only two species of cranes native to North America, the sandhill crane is an impressively large bird that can be identified by its bright red forehead and long neck. Once nearly extinct east of the Mississippi River, their populations have rebounded thanks to dedicated conservation efforts. In the winter months, they form huge colonies sometimes numbering in the tens of thousands.
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Red knots are stocky shorebirds known for their rusty red plumage during the breeding season. As champions of long-distance migration, many individuals fly nearly 19,000 miles annually between their breeding and wintering grounds.
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Norway rats, also called brown rats, are foragers that can survive on a wide range of food, which has helped them successfully spread across the world.
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