Giant Andean Condor Can Fly Without Flapping Its Wings for Over 5 Hours

Looking at an Andean condor, one might wonder how such an enormous bird flies at all, let alone achieves an altitude of over 16,000 feet (5,000 meters). This giant species of vulture can have a wingspan of 10 feet and a body weight comparable to a human toddler, between 20 to 30 pounds. Recently, researchers at Swansea University collaborated with scientists in Argentina to study the flight of Andean condors in their habitat. They sought to answer how often and in what weather conditions the large birds flap their wings in flight, thereby using precious energy to remain at or change their altitude.

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Scientists Find 33 Creatures Living In A Cave That Was Sealed Off For 5 Million Years

After 5 million years of total isolation from the world, what do you think you’d find inside a totally sealed off cave? Dinosaurs? Prehistoric bugs? Evidence of alien life? No one knew until Dr. Christian Lascu finally opened up Movile cave in Romania. Before that point, the cave had gone completely untouched for somewhere around 5 million years…except by the few creatures who adapted to be able to survive there.

Being closed off from the world for so long caused fresh air to become completely nonexistent in the cave, rendering the air inside toxic and oppressively humid. However, these conditions not only allowed for incredible life to be formed, but to thrive. Some creatures are just so adaptable and so different from humans that they can survive in areas where we’d never dream of living!

To read more on this story, click here: Scientists Find 33 Creatures Living In A Cave That Was Sealed Off For 5 Million Years

Stunning Glasswing Butterflies Have Wings That Look Like Transparent Windows

The glasswing butterfly (scientifically known as Greta oto) might be the most beautiful bug you have never heard of! Their delicate wings have a frame of orange and white colors similar to the monarch butterfly. However, the rest of their fancy wings are made of flawless clear panes that look like windows. A recent video from KQED provides a “Deep Look” at these special creatures. You will discover that their gorgeous wings serve two purposes: the white stripe warns predators of toxicity, and the clear panes allow the butterfly to disappear into its surrounding (making it almost invisible).

To read more on this story, click here: Stunning Glasswing Butterflies Have Wings That Look Like Transparent Windows

Rare Yellow Turtle Spotted For Only Second Time Looks Like Melted Cheese

 

The unusual bright yellow creature, an albino Indian flapshell turtle, got rescued in West Bengal, India. And the internet thinks it looks like cheese, or an egg yolk.

Turtles don't just come in shades of green. They come in yellow too. A rare yellow version of the albino Indian flapshell turtle was just spotted and rescued from a village pond in West Bengal, India.

Indian Forest Service officer Debashish Sharma posted photos of the rare yellow turtle (Lissemys punctatais) on Twitter last week. 

To read more on this story, click here: Rare Yellow Turtle Spotted For Only Second Time Looks Like Melted Cheese

Creepy Crawler: Fisherman Catches Rare ‘Ghost’ Lobster

STONINGTON, Maine - A fisherman got a Halloween surprise when he pulled out a “ghost” lobster.

Bennett Gray trapped it along the Maine coastline on Oct. 25.

The lobsterman posted pictures on Facebook of a rare albino lobster that he snagged. The odds of catching one have been reported to be one in 100 million.

“Caught this beauty in the very first trap of the day,” Gray wrote in his caption.

Gray also wrote he will “notch” its tail and release the lobster back into the sea.

To read more on this story, click here: Creepy Crawler: Fisherman Catches Rare ‘Ghost’ Lobster

Unfur-Gettable: Puppy With Green Fur Born In Sardinia

ROME (Reuters) - Italian farmer Cristian Mallocci could not believe his eyes when Spelacchia, one of his eight dogs, gave birth to a green-furred puppy.

The tiny dog, immediately named Pistachio, was part of a five-dog litter born on Oct. 9, all with white fur, the same colour as their mixed breed mum. Except him.

To read more on this story, click here: Unfur-Gettable: Puppy With Green Fur Born In Sardinia

Scientists Have Found A Rare Half-Male, Half-Female Songbird

(CNN)It may not be one in a million, but it's pretty close.

Researchers have discovered a rare songbird that is male on one side of its body, and female on the other.

It's being described as a "once in a lifetime" discovery.

The last time the Powdermill Nature Reserve at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History found another was 15 years ago, and it's only the fifth to be discovered out of the nearly 800,000 birds that the nature reserve has seen.

To read more on this story, click here: Scientists Have Found A Rare Half-Male, Half-Female Songbird

Dressed to Impress: Florida Police Dog Wears Uniform and Tie for His Official K-9 Badge Photo

The good boy often makes appearances on the Orange County Sheriff's Office's social media feeds

Say cheese!

On Thursday, the Orange County Sheriff's Office in Florida shared with followers on social media the brand-new official badge photo of their furry K-9 member Chico.

The steadfast pup, dressed in a decorated law enforcement uniform, looks directly at the camera for the picture as he poses for the shot in front of an American flag.

"K-9 Chico posed for his new ID badge today. He even wore a tie for the photo," the department wrote alongside the picture on Instagram.

To read more on this story, click here: Dressed to Impress: Florida Police Dog Wears Uniform and Tie for His Official K-9 Badge Photo

A Piglet Had A Newborn Photoshoot And The Pictures Will Make Your Day

If there is one thing that all of us need these days, it’s a little break from the bad news we are hearing. Between the coronavirus pandemic, social unrest, and natural disasters, we are ready for a big smile and happy heart.

We are pleased to be able to bring that to you, thanks to a baby piglet named Dynamite. When her pictures were posted online, they went viral for all the right reasons.

To read more on this story, click here: A Piglet Had A Newborn Photoshoot And The Pictures Will Make Your Day

The Year's Best Wildlife Photos Reveal A Super-Chill Monkey, A Rare Siberian Tiger, And An Ant Clinging To A Beetle's Leg

• The London Natural History Museum's annual Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition awards photographers who highlight the fragility of Earth's wildlife. 

• This year, the contest drew over 49,000 entries from photographers in 25 countries.

• The winning images, announced this week, show a serene proboscis monkey, an iridescent squid, and a clownfish with a parasite for a tongue.

Sergey Gorshkov was determined to find a Siberian tiger. He knew it wouldn't be easy. The species is known to live only in sections of Russia and China and was hunted almost to extinction in the 20th century. In the wild, only about 540 of the tigers remain, and they're spread across vast territories.

To read more on this story, click here: The Year's Best Wildlife Photos Reveal A Super-Chill Monkey, A Rare Siberian Tiger, And An Ant Clinging To A Beetle's Leg

Why is My Older Cat Refusing to Use the Litter Box?

DEAR JOAN: One of my cats is a 15-year-old male that was feral. We’ve had him a good long time in the house, and, finally, after 10 years, he isn’t spending most of his time under a bed because there was a noise.

He has never had a problem holding everything until he could sneak out to the litter box in the dark and do his business. Then all of a sudden about two months ago he started peeing on the bath mat in one of our bathrooms. This was usually at night.

We started keeping the door shut, but he then started using the carpet in my office as his private commode, both peeing and defecating on it sometimes. I tried using some repellent that contained methyl nonyl ketone (didn’t want coyote pee smell, too) on the carpet with little or no effect on his behavior. I ended up discarding the carpet and now keep the door closed.

To read more on this story, click here: Why is My Older Cat Refusing to Use the Litter Box?

An Ohio Man Built a Backyard Squirrel Bar with Seven Varieties of Nuts on Tap

(CNN) — People are going nuts for an Ohio woodworker's latest creation: A bar that caters to neighborhood squirrels.

Michael Dutko, a 35-year-old hobbyist, has been creating art and household items from wood for most of his life, and even chronicles it on his YouTube channel Duke Harmon Woodworking. But it's his fun twist on a squirrel feeder that's made him Internet famous.

"The Nutty Bar," which is attached to his backyard fence in Hilliard, looks just like a real bar, and even has a range of nuts on tap.

To read more on this story, click here: An Ohio Man Built a Backyard Squirrel Bar with Seven Varieties of Nuts on Tap

It’s Illegal To Own Just One Guinea Pig In Switzerland Because They Get Lonely

Guinea pigs are adorable creatures who are often kept as pets. While most people immediately think of a cat or dog when contemplating a family pet, guinea pigs bring something a bit more unusual to the table (and can be a fine option for those who are allergic to cats and dogs).

Guinea pigs can be very loving and are totally lovable themselves. But, like many creatures, they can get lonely — even with an incredibly caring human owner. So it’s important that they have another guinea pig around to keep them company.

While this is just a suggestion in most countries, it’s the law in Switzerland.

To read more on this story, click here: It’s Illegal To Own Just One Guinea Pig In Switzerland Because They Get Lonely

Rare Horse Cloned From Cells Taken From A Stallion In 1980

Little Kurt looks like any other baby horse as he frolics playfully in his pen. He isn't afraid to kick or head-butt an intruder who gets in his way and, when he's hungry, dashes over to his mother for milk.

But 2-month-old Kurt differs from every other baby horse of his kind in one distinct way: He's a clone.

The rare, endangered Przewalski's horse was created from cells taken from a stallion that had sat frozen at the San Diego Zoo for 40 years before they were fused with an egg from a domestic horse.

To read more on this story, click here: Rare Horse Cloned From Cells Taken From A Stallion In 1980