Climate Change Could Kill 534,000 People In 2050

The Silent Flying of an Owl. 

The video shows how effortlessly an owl fly’s compared to other bird species. 

A pigeon that has a relatively large body and small wings needs to flap furiously to produce enough lift. A falcon has large wings that move more aggressively so the bird can gain much faster speeds. 

Both birds create large turbulence in the air and noise as a result. Comparatively, the owl is the perfect night time hunter, silently flying through the sky.

Uncovering the Willow Ptarmigan Diorama 

OKAY SO THIS IS COOL. The Reptile Hall is getting ready to undergo some renovations, and the first step in the process was to dismantle the square diorama case which previously housed Carl Akeley’s striped hyenas in the corner of the hall. But what NOBODY EXPECTED was to find a hidden diorama that had been blocked from view for ??? years. 

Not only that, this is a really, really cool diorama because it’s actually two dioramas in one. The lighting mechanism isn’t functional right now, but when you approach you notice that it’s dark. The idea is that there’d be two lighting sources, two scenes (with two animals) that mirror one another, and a two way mirror. 

The photos I snapped depict a willow ptarmigan (Lagopus lagopus) in a summer scene, sporting its summer plumage. In the winter, the bird’s plumage turns white. Here, the summer diorama is actually mounted to the ceiling of the diorama case, so when you shine a light through the front of the glass, that’s what is reflected back from the two way mirror. That means, behind the mirror is the second diorama: the winter scene, with a reversed taxidermied ptarmigan in a mirrored, winter landscape. Visitors could then approach the diorama and experience two different camouflage phases of the same animal, seamlessly fading from one to the other. 

I hope we can fix up the lights again soon because this is AWESOME 

Ptarmigan Bird Exhibit, Seasonal Plumage, Hall 20 diorama © The Field Museum, Z86694 and © The Field Museum, Z86693.

It’s a cute little thing though.

Photograph of a pregnant uterus (womb) from a New Forest pony, approximately five months into the pregnancy. The developing pony (fetus) is outside the uterus but remains attached by its membranes and umbilical cord. The bent back legs of the fetus are sticking out from the membranes (top right-hand side). The uterus has been cut open to reveal its vast blood supply, which is visible on the inner surface. This historical specimen is from a cull animal that happened to be pregnant at the time. It is preserved in formalin in a Perspex container and was photographed in the Anatomy Museum of the Royal Veterinary College in London. (Credit: Michael Frank, Royal Veterinary College / Wellcome Images)

Just some lesser known facts about octopuses you guys might like.

Every shark week special ever

Presenter: Sharks are actually quite gentle creatures see?

Presenter: Gets into the water

Narrator: HE JUMPS INTO THE OCEAN PUTTING HIS LIFE IN MORTAL DANGER

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Meet the orchid mantis.

Orchid mantises—particularly juveniles—seem aptly named. They’re predominantly white with pink or yellow accents, similar to some orchids and other flowers, and their four hind legs are lobed, like petals. But if you search for an exact floral counterpart, as behavioral ecologist James O’Hanlon did, you probably won’t find one. “I spent forever looking for a flower that they look just like,” he says, to no avail.

As it turns out, rather than mimicking one floral species, the insect instead may embody a “generic or an average type of flower” in order to attract bees and other pollinating insects as prey.

What’s more, as far as O’Hanlon can tell, it’s the only animal on record that “takes on the guise of a whole flower blossom” as a predatory strategy. 

Learn more here.