Paleoburrows The science of paleontology relies heavily on fossils. This statement is a bit inane, as paleontology is defined as the study of prehistoric life, broadly covering anything that lived before the Holocene epoch (our current age, which stretches to a point a little more than 10,000 years ago). Obviously, to glean anything about organisms […]
Kelping Whales Earlier in 2023, we investigated the strange behavior of orcas in Portuguese waters. Not only were they attacking boats, but they seemed to be teaching the behavior to other orcas. One theory that might explain the behavior relates to fads. The intelligent creatures who run in tight groups sometimes display odd conduct for certain
Puffling Patrol The Atlantic Puffin loves rocky coasts. Cliffs on remote islands without natural predators provide wonderful nesting habitats for these birds. Puffins inhabit a wide swath of land from North America to Europe and northward toward the Arctic Circle. Despite this wide home base, puffins really love one place above all others: Iceland. More than 60% of all Atlantic puffins
Dalmatia Make a list of the world’s 101 Most Recognizable Dog Breeds and one type of canine will likely top it. Photo by Bradlien Photo by Carlos Estrada Disney’s 101 Dalmatians A white coat punctuated by black dots can mean only one type of pupper. Adored by firefighters and bizarrely coveted by Disney villains, the Dalmatian is
Fat Bear Week Katmai National Park in Alaska is a massive tract, larger than Connecticut. It’s home to one of the most alien locations on the planet: The Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes. The result of the largest volcanic eruption by volume in the 20th century, the valley is strewn with ash, in some places as
Do the Ankole-Watusi The amount of money that he’s spent on this whole darn project between the car and the bull I could’ve had a brand new kitchen. — Rhonda Meyer Americans are most likely familiar with the word “Watusi” thanks to a 1960s dance craze. In 1962, the Orlons scored a number-two hit with The Wah
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The Meg Jaws doesn’t own a monopoly on horror films with giant sharks. 1999’s Deep Blue Sea features a glorious death scene, where Samuel L. Jackson proselytizes in a way only he can, before being devoured by genetically modified makos. In 2013, SyFy introduced the world to the Sharknado universe, in which sharks emerge from tornados inside hurricanes. Most shark
Deep Blue & Haole Girl In the novel Jaws by Peter Benchley, the great white shark that terrorizes Amity Island in New York is approximately 20 feet long. For the film version, Steven Spielberg created an animatronic beast they dubbed Bruce, who reached 25 feet in length. As the sequels rolled in over the years, the sharks
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Shark Week In July 1988, Discovery Channel launched a programming block based on sharks. The first iteration of the theme began with a piece called Caged in Fear, about abalone divers who developed a contraption to keep them safe during their harvests. Now in its 36th season, Shark Week is the longest-running cable television event in history. The
Mocha Dick Consider the subtleness of the sea; how its most dreaded creatures glide under water, unapparent for the most part, and treacherously hidden beneath the loveliest tints of azure. — Herman Melville, Moby-Dick Instead of projecting his spout obliquely forward, and puffing with a short, convulsive effort, accompanied by a snorting noise, as usual with