In some cases, these health problems arose as byproducts of inbreeding. Because breeds are genetically closed populations, a disease-causing mutation that just happens to pop up in one dog can quickly become common in future generations. “Especially if the animal with that mutation is otherwise a prize specimen,” Dr. Serpell said. “Because everyone will want…
The English language is full of wonderful words, from “anemone” and “aurora” to “zenith” and “zodiac.” But these are special occasion words, sprinkled sparingly into writing and conversation. The words in heaviest rotation are short and mundane. And they follow a remarkable statistical rule, which is universal across human languages: The most common word, which…
Dairy cows in Nevada have been infected with a new form of bird flu that is distinct from the version that has been spreading through herds over the last year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced on Wednesday. The finding indicates that the virus, known as H5N1, has spilled from birds into cows at least…
The first great white shark was found dead in August 2023 on a beach in a national park on Prince Edward Island, Canada: a young male, 500 pounds, 8 feet 9 inches from snout to tail. Park workers soon arrived with a pickup truck, loaded the carcass and drove it to a cooler at the…
The first great white shark was found dead in August 2023 on a beach in a national park on Prince Edward Island, Canada: a young male, 500 pounds, 8 feet 9 inches from snout to tail. Park workers soon arrived with a pickup truck, loaded the carcass and drove it to a cooler at the…
Federal officials who spent the last year grappling with a surge of bird flu infections in cows and people are now confronting a spate of new cases in cats, some of which have died after eating contaminated, uncooked pet food. Since early December, more than two dozen cases have been confirmed in domestic cats in…
Parents and their children, or people who know each other well, often share some expression that is unique to them — a phrase or gesture that began by happenstance but gradually acquired a meaning that only they know. The same is true of Beryl, a chimpanzee living in Kibale National Park, in Uganda, and her…
