Any of the organisms which exhibit the qualities necessary to be classified under the kingdom Animalia.
0
votes
0answers
164 views
Can extinct animals be cloned? [migrated]
Scientists have found mammoth blood, and are planning to clone a mammoth.
How does one go from having its blood to a full blown living mammoth? Is it possible?
Why does it matter if the blood is ...
8
votes
2answers
246 views
Did an orangutan learn to pick locks?
Just read about this orangutan called Fu Manchu who allegedly crafted a self made key for his zoo cage, kept it hidden in his mouth all day and regularly escaped during the night.
Mother Nature ...
-4
votes
0answers
54 views
Are mice and rats capable of showing gratitude? [closed]
I want to know if a mouse or rat would recognize it was being helped if a person freed it from a trap, for example.
35
votes
1answer
33k views
Do sea otters rape baby seals to death?
Popular facebook group
Nature isn’t always kind and cuddly. A study showed that sea otters
will restrain baby seals and then begin copulation; sometimes drowning
it during the 105-minute-long ...
17
votes
1answer
927 views
Do wild dogs use trains to commute to and from Moscow?
An article in The Sun describes how wild dogs near Moscow have been living in the suburbs, yet commuting daily to the city via trains.
These complexes were used by homeless dogs as shelters, so ...
7
votes
3answers
902 views
Are humans the only animals that kill for pleasure or no purpose?
“Wild animals never kill for sport. Man is the only one to whom the
torture and death of his fellow creatures is amusing in itself.”
James Anthony Froude (British historian, 1818-1894)
Is ...
3
votes
1answer
330 views
Are yowies real?
According to several articles, yowies (i.e. wild, unidentified, hominids, reputed to live in Australia) have been allegedly observed by many.
For example, in this Herald Sun article about a man in ...
9
votes
1answer
585 views
Are pigs man-eaters?
This BBC news article reports that a farmer was eaten by his pig:
Authorities are investigating how a farmer in the US state of Oregon was devoured by his pigs.
Terry Vance Garner, 69, went ...
11
votes
1answer
452 views
Do fish feel pain?
As a small kid, I was told that fish don't feel any pain when they bite into a fishing hook. I'm not sure if this was just something made up so I didn't feel sorry for the fishies.
It appears that ...
7
votes
0answers
291 views
Do cats have a chemical in their brains that resembles LSD?
So while our cat was acting "crazy" this evening tearing from room to room and pouncing on on nothing, my wife and I were laughing at its behaviour. During discussions she mentioned hearing that cats ...
22
votes
1answer
726 views
Did rescue St. Bernard dogs carry barrels of brandy around their necks?
We all know this from cartoons and stuff and off course it doesn't make sense today but are there any evidence that the dogs really carried barrels of brandy?
I'm not sure the Wiki is saying a ...
6
votes
1answer
452 views
Can a skunk spray with its feet off the ground?
A colleague has a family story that if confronted by a skunk, if you can get its rear feet off the ground, it's unable to release its foul-smelling spray.
Evidence for or to the contrary?
5
votes
0answers
112 views
Is Frontline (fipronil) an effective treatment for cat fleas?
Frontline Spot On (active ingredient fipronil) is advertised as a treatment for cat fleas:
Kills fleas within 24 hours
Kills fleas for up to 5 weeks in cats
My mum recently went to her vet ...
2
votes
1answer
153 views
Can dolphins learn a symbol based language?
I recently stumbled across the following article:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1240334/Dolphins-clever-humans--treat-like-people-say-scientists.html
which makes the claim that ...
6
votes
1answer
570 views
Do chameleons change colour for a reason other than camouflage?
I recently stumbled across the following article:
http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/why-do-chameleons-change-their-colors/ which made the claim:
Many people believe chameleons change colors to ...
-6
votes
1answer
113 views
Does killing an animal cause stress/pain in its relatives? [closed]
Let's say the animal being killed don't feel very much or anything at all, but what about the calf having her mother taken from her for example, or vice versa? Does this in any way cause any stress or ...
6
votes
1answer
2k views
Do bullfrogs sleep?
Today I came across this picture:
So I searched a bit about it. In this wiki answer it is stated that:
Bullfrogs do sleep. They sleep underground from 2- 4 weeks.
Sounded ok, but in this ...
6
votes
1answer
199 views
Do hares chew cud?
In Leviticus 11:6, a hare is referred to as a "chewer of the cud." What evidence is there on this matter?
It is not necessary, strictly speaking, that the evidence be on chewing cud in the same sense ...
11
votes
1answer
2k views
Is fish-flavored cat food bad/dangerous to a cat's health?
Our (two male) cats normally eat turkey and chicken flavoured canned wet cat food from our favorite cat food brand. However, we don't feed the cat's any other flavours which all contain fish, such as ...
7
votes
1answer
540 views
Can birds scream as loud as a jet engine?
I'm moving into an apartment with my cockatoo, and in thinking about sound level I realized I've never actually seen a source for the claim I've heard quite often and passively believed myself:
...
11
votes
3answers
2k views
Is the theory of evolution disproved by bats?
For some species, the Darwin's theory of evolution makes perfect sense to me. I can easily imagine how, for example, the giraffe has evolved to its current appearance: the natural selection was ...
27
votes
2answers
918 views
Do cats have a notable dislike of water compared to other animals?
The common knowledge goes that cats, in general, have a particular dislike of water compared to other animals. Is this true?
11
votes
1answer
540 views
Are 100 million sharks killed by humans per year?
I've read from several sources that humans kill 11,000 sharks per hour or 100 million per year, for example :
The Humane Society of the United States, quoting Jean-Michel Cousteau
Look at what ...
15
votes
1answer
1k views
Do lizards drink water?
Is it true that lizards don't drink water?
My friend told me that lizards don't drink water, they lie upside down whenever they get thirsty. I found that some desert lizards absorb water instead of ...
4
votes
1answer
281 views
Does the Humane Society of the United States provide only 1% of their budget to pet shelters?
This is a meme going around Facebook. From the HumaneWatch's Facebook page:
Does the Humane Society of the United States only budget 1% for actually helping animals as claimed here?
11
votes
1answer
534 views
Can a pair of rats multiply to 200 within a year?
A story on the BBC News website makes the following claim:
Brown rats are one of the planet's most serious mammalian pests, ruining crops and harbouring disease. Expert jumpers, climbers and ...
4
votes
1answer
3k views
Are all white cats with blue eyes deaf?
I was told that all pure white cats with both eyes being blue are completely deaf, and that all pure white cats with one blue eye are deaf on the side that has the blue eye.
If the cat has even a ...
3
votes
1answer
4k views
Can frog pee cause warts?
The title says it all. Here in the United States, especially the south, I've heard growing up never to hold a frog because it will pee on you and the pee causes warts.
5
votes
0answers
364 views
Does wearing a mask on the back of one's head protect against tiger attacks?
Today while visiting the tiger exhibit at my local zoo, I read that in areas where tiger attacks on humans are common, people will often wear a mask on the back of their head to ward of tiger attacks, ...
22
votes
1answer
11k views
Do dolphins have homosexual “blowhole” sex?
In his comedy act, Ricky Gervais shows examples of homosexuality in nature, all of them from the book "Biological Exuberance, animal homosexuality and natural diversity" by Bruce Bagemihl. One of the ...
5
votes
1answer
3k views
Are bagged turtles and goldfish sold as keychains in China?
So there is this letter going around facebook:
PLEASE SHARE IT , HUMBLE REQUEST ----
On a commercial street in China, little tortoises are found packaged as souvenir!!! These little tortoises ...
16
votes
1answer
3k views
Under the right circumstances, can lobsters live indefinitely?
I've been reading a lot about longevity and I came up with this Wikipedia article where it states that it might be possible for lobsters to live indefinitely.
Recent research suggests that ...
3
votes
1answer
254 views
Is there enough tetrodotoxin in a single fugu (blowfish) to kill 30 people?
As a section about Fugu fish in the "Top 10 Most Dangerous Foods" article on the Time magazine website suggests
The toxin is so potent that a lethal dose is smaller than the head of a pin, and a ...
18
votes
1answer
780 views
Do ducks' quacks echo?
I have read about this in an app on my android phone which gives out random interesting facts. This particular fact sounded kind of stupid, but I can't find any information about it on the internet.
3
votes
0answers
287 views
Can a dog remember 1400 names of toys?
In the video PETA: People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, at approximately 06:12, the woman says that there is/was a dog that was trained to have memorized 1400 names of toys. Its master would ...
10
votes
1answer
878 views
Does genital-electrocution of animals cause immediate death?
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) claim that fur-farms use genital electrocution techniques to kill animals without damaging the fur:
Animals have clamps attached to or rods ...
13
votes
2answers
1k views
Does plucking the feathers from live and conscious birds cause them pain?
From: http://www.peta.org/issues/Animals-Used-for-Clothing/down-and-silk-birds-and-insects-exploited-for-fabric.aspx
Plucking birds causes them considerable pain and distress.
Is there any truth ...
2
votes
3answers
3k views
Did dragons exist?
Dragons have been common to many cultures and mythologies. Some famous are St. George slaying a dragon and Chinese dragons, such as the symbol used for the Emperor of China.
Creationists and Bible ...
9
votes
1answer
2k views
Can small bags of water repel mosquitoes?
I was in Nicaragua recently and noted many restaurants and convenience stores had small sandwich sized bags filled with water hanging at their entrances. When I asked why, they said it was to repel ...
10
votes
1answer
935 views
Is the total biomass of ants roughly equal to the total biomass of humans?
According to About.com
The total biomass of all the ants on Earth is roughly equal to the total biomass of all the people on Earth.
Is the above statement just a myth or its in fact real?
Are ...
10
votes
1answer
370 views
Can dolphins accidentally detonate naval mines?
According to animal rights activists, U.S. Navy's usage of dolphins to locate naval mines is questionable, as they may cause mine to explode:
The ethics behind using these mammals during war is ...
24
votes
1answer
13k views
Does a lobster feel little/no pain when boiled alive?
Image Source
I have just read Cracked.com's "9 Ridiculous Cooking Myths You Probably Believe", where it says:
... [the lobster's] nervous system isn't very complex, so it's feeling little to no
...
8
votes
1answer
429 views
Are there no camels in the Qur'an?
It seems to be an often-repeated saying that "there are no camels in the Koran".
But I just repeated this factoid in the presence of a guy from Syria who insisted it's not true and that there is a ...
-3
votes
3answers
711 views
Are pet RFID chips (eg: “HomeAgain”) capable of fulfilling Revelations 13:16-17?
Regardless of the veracity of the Christian bible in general, could the technology behind the microchips (RFID tags) implanted into pets--used to re-unite lost pets with their owners--be used to track ...
5
votes
1answer
243 views
Do maneaters exist?
Can an animal develop an affinity for manflesh? Would a tiger like human meat so strongly that it goes after humans?
5
votes
0answers
190 views
Does chicken manure keep cats away from garden areas?
This article mentions that chicken manure can keep cats away.
Chicken manure around established plants can also deter cats as they don't like the smell.
Is it true?
4
votes
0answers
102 views
Do Vitamin B1 patches prevent mosquito bites? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Is Vitamin B12 an effective mosquito repellent?
This Denver Post article suggests that mosquitoes dislike biting people who have excess vitamin B1.
The notion behind ...
11
votes
4answers
1k views
Do we know why animals have evolved to have sex for reproduction?
I've been reading 13 Things That Don't Make Sense: The Most Intriguing Scientific Mysteries of Our Time (2010) and Chapter 10 concentrates on the subject of Sex. The author argues that we do not know ...
7
votes
1answer
3k views
Is the “dancing squid” odori-don dead?
In these videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ug6pVj0Lq9w
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzj95jHuPiw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqphVlp2VJI (shows what I think is the brain)
Soy sauce is ...
10
votes
0answers
299 views
Did travelers by troika throw passengers before the wolves, to save others?
In several places, I have seen reference to the story that in the past in Russia, travelers by troika might throw one of the travelers before chasing wolves in order to save the other travelers ...
