Jenna: Love (and conservation) is in the air! These Hainan gibbons, highlighted in this Mongabay article, have paired up and given new hope to primate conservationists. Hainan gibbons are known as “the rarest primates in the world,” so this new couple brings a more positive outlook for their species’ future. The gibbons could be even expecting a baby towards the end of the year.
AJ: Love might be in the air for those gibbons, but lots of noise is under the sea thanks to European spiny lobsters. This piece also from Mongabay brings attention to the loud ruckus these lobsters create using their antennas. The noise, thought to be used for sending messages or deterring predators, can be heard from almost 2 miles away. Talk about a noisy bunch!
Jenna: Speaking of the ocean, researchers were amazed to find a “Dumbo” octopus at 7,000 meters under the sea. BBC covered this story, explaining that this is the deepest recorded depth of the Dumbo octopus to date. Named after the elephant cartoon animal, the dumbo octopus has huge ear shipped fins. This octopus sparks the question on how deep can these animals really go, and what was it doing at these depths? There is so much “unknown” about seafloor dwelling creatures that it could take even more extensive research for these questions to be answered.
AJ: Do remember watching Sunday morning cartoons and seeing the coyote chasing the roadrunner and alway failing? Well according to this article by The Dodo, a real wild coyote was seen being comically outsmarted by a roadrunner. This comical encounter provides more than just entertainment; we get to see a rare glimpse to see how intelligent some animals have become to survive in the wild.
Jenna: The wildfires that scorched Australia left many habitats destroyed for thousands of species. After such a devastating blow to the ecosystem, every conservation victory is celebrated, especially this exciting koala joey birth seen in this video by ABC News. In the video the koala’s happiness cannot be contained, as you can see a huge smile on his face.
AJ: To wrap things up this week, we would like to share that the Fanimal team stands in solidarity with the black community. Racial justice is critical to both the animal rights movement and an equitable future. There cannot be justice for all living things when there is still not justice for the black community. Please check this link for resources compiled by some other animal rights organizations on anti-racism and equity in the animal rights movement.
This week’s animal news:
JUST Egg Partners With Michael Foods To Bring Delicious & Healthy Plant-Based Eggs To Millions More People In The United States from World Animal News
Fox Den Captured by Camera Trap from BBC
World’s Deepest Octopus captured on camera from BBC
The week in wildlife – in pictures | Environment from The Guardian
Video: Siberian zoo sees animal baby boom during lockdown from ABC News
Video: Australian zoo welcomes 1st koala joey since destructive wildfires from ABC News
Guy Spots A Roadrunner Outsmarting A Coyote In Real Life from The Dodo
Five Questions the Puppy Industry Doesn’t Want Dog Lovers to Ask from ASPCA
Snakes have friends too from National Geographic
An Incredible New Bumble Bee Behavior Was Just Discovered – So Sophisticated, Scientists Cannot Reproduce from SciTechDaily
53-Year-Old Tortoise Left Homeless by COVID-19 Gets New Home from U.S. News
When the world’s rarest primate couples up, it’s a win for the species from Mongabay
Spiny lobsters raise an undersea racket that can be heard miles away from Mongabay
Birds Of A Feather Vanish Together from Faunalytics
Taco Bell, KFC, and Pizza Hut Launch Vegan Meat Options in China from LiveKindly
Thank you to John Delconte for sending in articles!
Photo credit to Roger Darnell from Unsplash