Land Mammals, features and articles | Educational Science

Mar 1, 2016

Photos: Elusive Jaguars Take Center Stage

El Jefe (Image credit: Conservation CATalyst & the Center for Biological Diversity)El Jefe, the only known jaguar in the United States, has been in southern Arizona for at least three years. The male jaguar dispersed from the nearest jaguar breeding population in Mexico's Sonora state and has made his territory...

Mar 3, 2016

Arizona's Only Jaguar Prowls a Difficult, But Hopeful, Path

On video, the United States' only jaguar is a graceful presence. He pads through the forest of Arizona's Santa Rita Mountains, sunlight dappling his spotted coat. The phrase charismatic megafauna never seemed so apt. After the release of this jaguar video by two conservation organizations in early February, El Jefe...

Jun 13, 2014

Yes, You Can Get Your Cat to Behave

Wayne Pacelle is the president and chief executive officer of The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). This Op-Ed is adapted from a post on the blog A Humane Nation, where the content ran before appearing in Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. I wouldn't say my cat,...

Jun 25, 2014

Six Adorable Exotic Kittens Born at Scottish Zoo

Six rare kittens were recently born at a Scottish zoo, and hidden cameras caught the creatures' first steps outside their nest box. The baby Pallas's cats somewhat resemble Persian cats, though they are more suited for the high plateaus and mountainous parts of central Asia than a litter box. The...

Jul 23, 2014

Your Cat's Poop Could One Day Treat Cancer

A microscopic organism that lives in cat poop could one day be used as a cancer treatment, researchers say. Toxoplasma gondii is a single-celled parasite that lives in cats' intestines, but can infect other animals and people as well. Although infections with the Toxoplasma parasite are common among people, very...

Aug 14, 2014

In Photos: Elusive, Threatened Wildcats Found

Big Cats (Image credit: Stefano Anile)The European wildcat, a distant relative of domesticated cats, looks like a large tabby with long legs and a thick, black-tipped tail. Say Cheese (Image credit: Stefano Anile)A researcher placed heat and motion sensing cameras in the forest around Mount Etna in Sicily to take...

Aug 14, 2014

Elusive European Wildcats Found Hiding Out on Mount Etna

A healthy population of European wildcats has been discovered living in the forest surrounding Mount Etna, an active volcano in Sicily, researchers say. The rare, elusive wildcats typically avoid people, making them difficult to study. By tallying the cat's numbers across Europe, researchers hope to understand how urgently the animals...

Sep 24, 2014

Suspenseful Video: Alligator Attacks Scaredy Cat

An amazing video from the Florida Keys shows a curious domestic cat nearly become a midnight snack for an American alligator. The suspenseful, infrared footage of the attack evokes a classic black-and-white horror film. Shot from a camera trap in the National Key Deer Wildlife Refuge, it caught the cat...

Sep 29, 2014

In Photos: Urban Bobcats Stroll through the American Southwest

Welcome to the neighborhood (Image credit: Linda & Dr. Dick Buscher)Bobcats, Lynx rufus, are small, burly cats that are found throughout North America. There are 12 recognized subspecies of bobcats that range from southern Canada to northern Mexico. In the American Southwest, where man has continued to build his homes...

Nov 10, 2014

Will Purr for Treats: How Cats Became Domesticated

Thousands of years ago, a wildcat first started lingering on the outskirts of a human camp, perhaps to eat the mice living in people's granaries. Now, billions of house pets and countless cat videos later, researchers have revealed the genetic roots of the special relationship between humans and cats. A...

Mar 3, 2015

New Pet Therapy Guidelines: No Cats in Hospitals

A visit from a furry companion can give comfort to patients in the hospital, but new guidelines recommend that only dogs — and not cats — be allowed in hospitals for pet therapy programs. The guidelines, from the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA), are aimed at reducing the...

May 18, 2015

Kitty Kickstarter: See the Microbes That Live in Your Cat

Every person carries trillions of bacteria in his or her gut. But what about humans' closest companions? Four enterprising biologists plan to find out. Their citizen-science project will examine the microbiome of cats' digestive systems, in both house pets and wild animals. The microbiome is the bacteria and other microorganisms...

Jun 18, 2015

Internet Cat Videos Keep You Purring, Study Finds

Internet cat videos don't just result in major LOLs, they also deliver significant health benefits, a new study suggests. That's right: Watching the online antics of Lil Bub, Grumpy Cat, Colonel Meow and all their kitty friends can boost your energy level, heighten your positive emotions and decrease your negative...

Jul 2, 2015

Cats Are City Slickers

Editor's Note: This story was updated at 12:20 p.m. E.T. Cats may be city slickers that rarely venture out into the wilderness, a new study suggests. In fact, the new study shows that feral cats roam in urban and suburban parks and yards, but they rarely set their paws down...

Aug 7, 2015

Why Cats Have Vertical Pupils

Have you ever wondered why your cat's eyes have those creepy vertical slits for pupils? A new study suggests the reason may lie in cats' preferred mode of hunting. Vertical-slit pupils are most common among nocturnal predators that ambush their prey, according to the new research, published today (Aug. 7)...