Olaf (pictured) is the first amphibian born via IVF. Previously thought to be extinct, 300+ members of this critically endangered species, the Puerto Rican Crested Toad, were born from sperm previously frozen - hence named after the Disney character - in order to save the species from extinction.

4yr ⋅ ⋅

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Australian Firehawk Raptors, such as this Black Kite, have recently been found to purposefully spread wildfires, by carrying smouldering branches to unburnt areas, to flush out prey, confirming long-held traditional Aboriginal knowledge.

6yr ⋅

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Leave flowers in a vase containing highlighter fluid and shine a UV light, and voila! Avatar!

8yr ⋅

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Unlike their chubby sociopath cousins, wild pygmy hippos are shy and timid, tending to ignore one another over being aggressive. Getting only to about knee-height, fewer than a couple of thousand of these wee beasties survive in the wild due to pressures from habitat loss and hunting.

7yr ⋅

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This creature's entire head is one big mouth (x-post r/interestingasfuck)

7yr ⋅

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Sloths climb down from the canopy about once a week to poop in one of several favourite spots. They do this to encourage moths to lay their eggs, which later infest their fur and die, providing nutrients that promotes algal growth in their coats which, in turn, gives sloths excellent camouflage.

5yr ⋅

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Francois' langur babies are born with conspicuous orange fur - thought to elicit attention, protection and caregiving by adults - which fades to black as they age. Hunting and habitat loss have caused an extreme and continued decline in their numbers, and less than 1,600 remain in the wild.

6yr ⋅

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Today is World Frog Day! Paedophryne amauensis is the smallest frog, and vertebrate, species in the world. Discovered in 2009, the average body size is only 7mm long. Lacking a juvenile tadpole stage, even teenier versions of the adult frogs, called 'hoppers', emerge directly from their eggs.

6yr ⋅

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Once thought extinct, a small population of Pygmy Hogs was rediscovered in the 1970s. This dwindled to fewer than a hundred individuals, before a captive breed-to-release scheme was set-up in the '90s. Twenty years on, the 100th piglet was released into the wild last year; there's still hope yet!

7yr ⋅

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Take me to the top floor, please! - Siberian Flying Squirrel found trapped in an elevator

7yr ⋅

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A study published today announces the discovery of a new species of great ape, the Tapanuli Orangutan. With fewer than 800 individuals left, it's the most endangered great ape on Earth.

7yr ⋅

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This isn't a snake, but a juvenile legless lizard - the slow worm. Leglessness has evolved more than 20 times independently within the reptiles, the various snakes just being one of those lineages.

8yr ⋅

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Jellies! (x-post r/woahdude)

7yr ⋅

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The Lesser Mole-Rat is a rodent whose small eyes are covered by a layer of skin, making them completely blind. Unlike most fossorial mammals, they don't dig with their front feet; rather, they burrow through the soil using a powerful set of teeth. They're also remarkably resistant to cancer.

6yr ⋅

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The way these two rhinos line up

8yr ⋅

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Humpback whales and bottlenose dolphins are known to play together. Observed off the coast of Hawaii, whales lifted dolphins high into the air so the dolphins could use the whale's head as a slide back into the water.

8yr ⋅

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Once common across Europe, Wisent or European Bison were almost hunted to extinction in the early 20th century. As a great conservation success story, a captive population survived, and this week Rewilding Europe and WWF Romania finished releasing 53 bison back into their former habitat in Romania.

6yr ⋅

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The title smallest vertebrate in the world goes to Paedophryne amauensis, discovered in Papua New Guinea in 2012. Only 7.7mm in length, they're smaller than most house flies!

8yr ⋅

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Once thought to be relatives of the shrew, Round-Eared Sengis are actually closely related to elephants and manatees - exemplified by their small trunk-like snout. Mating for life, they don't spend much time together, but pairs regularly sniff scented trails to check up on each other’s whereabouts.

6yr ⋅

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Lava timelapse: nature's terrain modifying tool

8yr ⋅

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Toughie, the last Rabb's Fringe-Limbed Tree Frog on Earth, died this week at Atlanta Botanical Gardens. Only discovered in 2007, it was declared extinct in the wild just two years later.

8yr ⋅

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This creature's entire head is one big mouth

7yr ⋅

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Elusive Strap-Toothed Whale males have two teeth that wrap over the upper jaw, preventing the animals from opening their own mouths, almost at all.

8yr ⋅

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Two years ago today, Toughie - the last Rabb's Fringe-Limbed Tree Frog on Earth - passed away in captivity, and with him his entire species. Amphibian populations worldwide are being decimated by the spread of Chytridiomycosis, a fungal disease for which there is no known in-situ cure.

6yr ⋅

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Dwarf sloths are found only on a single small island off the coast of Panama - only 79 are known to exist, making them critically endangered. Every birth is therefore more than precious!

8yr ⋅

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The Panda Ant is actually, despite the name, a type of solitary wasp, whose females have one of the most painful stings known to man.

8yr ⋅

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Sperm Whales have a language, similar to Morse code, of several dozen click patterns with specific meanings, known as codas - including their own names. A young whale takes about two years of 'baby talk' babbling before it learns to say it's own family name.

7yr ⋅

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Embryonic Epaulette Shark practising to swim inside the egg (x-post r/gifs)

7yr ⋅

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We all have shitty days every now and then (xpost /r/pics)

8yr ⋅

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^_^

8yr ⋅

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At just over 1cm long, the recently discovered Japanese Pygmy Seahorse is amongst the smallest fish in the world. Though relatively common, they're remarkably well camouflaged, explaining how they've managed to elude discovery for so long.

6yr ⋅

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Excuse me, sir. Do you know how fast you were going?

7yr ⋅

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The older the bonobo, the greater the distance it puts between itself and a fellow ape it’s grooming - suggesting long-sightedness that comes with age is not just a problem for humans.

8yr ⋅

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This is Brookesia micra, the smallest chameleon and one of the teeniest vertebrates in the world. Discovered only in 2012, adult males only reach 1.6cm in length!

8yr ⋅

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This isn't a fictional creature, but Yi Qi, a bat dinosaur from the Jurassic period - only discovered in 2015 from a single fossil dug up in China.

8yr ⋅

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Hole in one!

6yr ⋅

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Japanese Macaques on the island of Yakushima are known to ride local Sika Deer for transportation; in return they groom the deer and share food with them (x-post /r/todayilearned)

8yr ⋅

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We all have bad days every now and then

7yr ⋅

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Anyone keen for an otter photo?

8yr ⋅

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Short-Beaked Echidna, from Australia, represent one of five species of egg-laying mammal. Spending much of their time burrowing underground hunting for grubs, they're unusually tolerant to high CO2 concentrations which, like in naked mole rats, may explain their particularly low incidence of cancer.

4yr ⋅

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^_^

8yr ⋅

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A tiny money spider encapsulated inside a single raindrop on a washing line in a back garden in Surrey, England. Photo by Duncan McMorrin [1920x1440]

7yr ⋅

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The Yapok is the only surviving marsupial wherein both sexes have a pouch. Instead of rearing young however, males use their pouch to store their testes before swimming to prevent them getting tangled in underwater vegetation.

7yr ⋅

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A butterfly parasitised by the fatal mind-controlling Cordyceps fungus

7yr ⋅

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Tuataras have a third skin-covered 'eye' atop their head, complete with a lens, cornea, retina with photoreceptors and degenerate nerve cord to the brain - suggesting it evolved from a real fully-functioning eye.

8yr ⋅

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Steller Sea Lions (Eumetopias jubatus) in Avacha Gulf, Kamchatka, Russia - taken by Yuri Smityuk [1920x1314]

7yr ⋅

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In Bazoule, Burkina Faso, villagers happily share their local pond with the 'sacred' local wildlife. According to legend, the relationship dates back to the 15th century when the village was in the grip of an agonising drought until the crocodiles led some women to a hidden pond, saving them.

6yr ⋅

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Though usually almost exclusively herbivorous, some iguana species have a more predatory appetite. This young Peruvian Pacific Iguana has set up camp inside the head of a sealion corpse, feasting on the scavengers that are attracted to the stench.

6yr ⋅

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Bonobo (Pan paniscus): Portrait of 'Mikali' by Anup Shah [1920x1287]

7yr ⋅

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Lil' dinosaur is camera shy!

7yr ⋅

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Embryonic Epaulette Shark practising to swim inside the egg

7yr ⋅

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Conservationists working to save the endangered pygmy hog (Porcula salvania) have just released their 100th captive-born hog back into the grasslands in Assam, India. taken by Craig Jones, 2016 [1920x1341]

7yr ⋅

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Epaulette Sharks, just under 1m long, are the only sharks that can literally walk on land. Their fins have essentially become 'prototype legs' which they can move independently to go for a stroll.

7yr ⋅

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This pocket-sized beastie is not a worm, but rather the Barbados Threadsnake, the world's smallest snake. Discovered in 2008, they're only as wide as a spaghetto, and can grow up to about 10cm in length.

6yr ⋅

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The salmon run is in full swing over at Kamchatka, Russia this week. Unfortunately, for many of the fish, they're meeting a grizzly end. (x-post r/AnimalPorn)

7yr ⋅

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The Secretary Bird (Sagittarius serpentarius) - taken by Nic Bothma [1920x1207]

7yr ⋅

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Coconut Crabs can have a crushing force greater than that of the jaws of most terrestrial predators, with exception to alligators. A very large crab of 4kg would have an estimated pinching force of 3300 Newtons! Enough to break human bones.

8yr ⋅

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It's World Frog Day! Mimic poison frogs are attentive parents; carrying tadpoles on their backs to safe pools, guarding and feeding them 'round the clock until they become adults. Given the high investment in their young, mimic frog parents stick together, and are the first known monogamous frogs.

6yr ⋅

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A butterfly parasitised by a Cordyceps fungus in French Guiana, taken by Mailis Huguin [1920x1280]

7yr ⋅

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When under threat, the spiny newt will tear open its own skin, forcing out its spear-sharp ribcage in order to inject painful skin secretions into the mouths of would-be predators.

8yr ⋅

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Lights, camera, action!

7yr ⋅

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Some Primates, including Tarsiers, Lemurs and Lorises, have a second tongue underneath their primary one. Lacking taste buds, it's thought to be used to pick out stray hair from between their front teeth after grooming.

6yr ⋅

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N'aaaw! A rescue hedgehog shortly before release (x-post r/AnimalPorn)

7yr ⋅

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Cotton-Top Tamarins don't care for NineInchNails or Samuel Barber's 'Adagio for Strings', but are significantly influenced by music composed specifically for their own species ('monkey music' audio in comments).

6yr ⋅

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Someone had a lil' too much bud-weis-errrr.

8yr ⋅

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Chicks of the Crested Coua have little bulls-eyes inside their mouths, telling their parents exactly where to place food.

8yr ⋅

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This Penis Snake is a legitimate animal from South America.

8yr ⋅

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This isn't a teeny snake, but a juvenile legless lizard - the slow worm. Leglessness has evolved more than 20 times independently within the reptiles, all the various snakes just being one of those lineages.

7yr ⋅

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A marine iguana hatchling takes its first glimpse at the world.

8yr ⋅

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This isn't a teeny snake, but a juvenile legless lizard - the slow worm. Leglessness has evolved more than 20 times independently within the reptiles, with all the various snakes just being one of those lineages. (x-post r/pics)

7yr ⋅

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Crabs produce tiny free-floating larvae, like this one, which swim and feed in the open ocean, before metamorphosing and finally coming down to the ground. They can also be really cute!

8yr ⋅

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Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas) swims underneath athletes at the 2016 Ironman World Championship triathlon in Kailua Kona, Hawaii. Photo taken by Donald Miralle [1920x1395]

7yr ⋅

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Secret Toadhead Agama (Phrynocephalus mystaceus) by Milan Zygmunt [1500x1000]

7yr ⋅

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Crabs produce tiny free-floating larvae, like this lil' fella, that swim and feed in the open ocean, before metamorphosing and finally coming down to the ground. They can also be really cute!

7yr ⋅

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We all have shitty days every now and then

8yr ⋅

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Pelican grabbed and held in the jaws of an enormous, feeding Humpback Whale

8yr ⋅

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Goosander chicks are well developed at hatching, leaving the nest after only 1-2 days. Chicks catch their own food for themselves, but their mother will still look after for them for several weeks, ferrying them to and from feeding sites.

7yr ⋅

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A baby Mountain Gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei), and member of the Agashya family - taken by Ivan Lieman [1920x1286]

7yr ⋅

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Any ideas on this rescued frog?

7yr ⋅

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Not bird poop - this is a spider

8yr ⋅

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