Land Mammals
Latest about Land Mammals
![A camera trap picture of a Vangunu giant rat on the Solomon islands.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/dy3PoiXHehgc99qswG7384-320-80.jpg)
Giant 1.5-foot-long rat that can crack open coconuts photographed for 1st time on remote island
By Sascha Pare published
After years of failed attempts, scientists have finally succeeded in snapping images of an extremely rare, enormous rat that is so big it can reportedly chew through coconuts on the Solomon Islands.
![A serotine bat lies on its belly with its mouth open and showing teeth.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/QuQww44dcmBn8E49JEtE3e-320-80.jpg)
Bats with weirdly giant penis have sex for up to 12 hours in a way never seen in mammals before
By Sascha Pare published
Serotine bats that have penises seven times longer and wider than their female counterparts' vaginas are the first known mammals to engage in non-penetrative sex.
![A brown and white St. Bernard puppy chasing his tail in studio.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/MzDK4sCKEtsYxtX4bar2WT-320-80.jpg)
Why do dogs chase their tails?
By Charles Q. Choi published
Why are dogs, especially puppies, in endless pursuit of their tails?
![Norway Lemming (Lemmus lemmus) among autumn coloured bearberries and blackberries.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/oZWqqe8kPUmqTMU8HKPi4E-320-80.jpg)
Do lemmings actually jump off of cliffs?
By Hannah Loss published
Do these tundra-inhabiting rodents actually jump to their deaths as depicted in a 1958 wildlife documentary?
![A cat getting measured by a vet](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/jKwT5tGfT6rEKEDwwXG8TD-320-80.jpg)
Here's what happens when cats get too fat (it involves acidic poop)
By Jennifer Nalewicki published
Obesity is wreaking havoc on cats' digestive systems, causing "significant changes" in their gut microbial compositions and giving them highly acidic poop.
![Two people stand next to the model of a woolly mammoth in a workshop.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/yqbCsRKhfM2qKx8JbkAB6n-320-80.jpg)
'It's really quite remarkable': An interview with elephant expert Ross MacPhee about the giant pachyderms
By Laura Geggel published
In this interview, elephant expert Ross MacPhee explains how the giant animals' tusks record every week of their lives and why their noses are so remarkable.
![A woman and child look at the full-size model of a woolly mammoth with curly tusks at a museum exhibit.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/Zx6WAUDZXyZTDznsooKoUj-320-80.jpg)
Dwarf elephants and shedding mammoths shine at NYC's 'Secret World of Elephants'
By Laura Geggel published
A new show on "The Secret World of Elephants" at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City dishes on the evolution and remarkable lives of these huge (and sometimes dwarf) pachyderms.
![Elephants of different sizes march towards the camera, kicking dust up from the dry mud beneath them](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/jpq2UVvhn3cv3hEXLSVvC-320-80.jpg)
Elephants give each other names — the 1st non-human animals to do so, study claims
By Richard Pallardy published
Elephants in Kenya's Amboseli National Park appear to call to each other with individual names using low, complex "rumbles," a study has found.
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