Birds

March 14, 2022

Photographer Befriends the Birds in Her Backyard and They Become Her Best Models

Photographer Jessica Kirste‘s work proves that you don't need to go to an exotic location to take incredible photos of wildlife. Her own backyard is fertile ground, and she made good use of it in 2021 to capture the birds that call it home. After slowly earning their trust, she was able to transition from photographing them through a window to joining them outside. That's when the magic really started.

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February 3, 2022

Male Same-Sex Foster Penguins Are Proud Parents of an Adorable Newborn Chick

Congratulations are in order for two male Humboldt penguins at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse, New York. After adopting an egg last year, Elmer and Lima—the same-sex foster couple—successfully incubated an egg and became parents to the new hatchling on January 1, 2022. Elmer and Lima formed a “pair bond” for the current breeding season and are the first same-sex foster couple at the zoo.

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July 21, 2021

New Study Finds That Crows Are So Intelligent They Understand the Concept of Zero

Crows are incredibly smart. Researchers have already discovered that these sleek, dark birds possess primary, or sensory, consciousness—the ability possessed by humans and some primates to merge memories to think in terms of past and present. A recent paper published in The Journal of Neuroscience expands the wealth of knowledge on these clever creatures. In the study, researchers discovered that crows can comprehend the concept of zero. Zero is actually a rather recent mathematical invention.

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