Meet the new baby Asian elephant at the Fort Worth Zoo

Inside the world's largest two-headed calf collection

The Two-Headed Calf MOOseum in San Francisco contains 50 taxidermied cow heads, all of which are paired with another one. They are the result of rare genetic mutations called polycephaly, that is, two-headedness. The museum is run by punk musician Henry Rosenthal, who first became captivated by the rare phenomenon in his 20s. Learn more about the exhibit here.

See photos of rare spotless giraffe born at zoo

A spotless giraffe was born at a zoo in Tennessee in the summer of 2023, with experts claiming the specimen is the only solid-colored animal of the species with genes for "reticulation," or the normal patchwork look. The phenomenon is so rare many...

Zoo animals have developed allergies, too

Although scientists do not know if allergies manifest among wild animals—and if animals can survive with them—in a zoo setting, veterinarians have observed zoo animals with common allergy symptoms, including itchiness, crusty skin, and runny eyes. Veterinarians have identified Asian elephants with pollen allergies and at least one jaguar with an allergy to fleas.

See a wild bear observe fellow bears at the zoo

At the Sequoia Park Zoo in California, a wild bear visited the bear enclosure to see three bears in captivity. Zookeepers referred to him as a "polite visitor," adding, "He stayed on the boardwalk path, kept two feet on the ground, and didn't try to climb over the railings!"

Watch wild elephants 'mourn' their dead

Wild elephants in Samburu National Reserve in northern Kenya visited their dead matriarch's body weeks after her death and displayed behaviors that researchers are hesitant to call "mourning" though they do believe the animals are displaying a specific reaction in response to the death. The video shows elephants using their trunks to touch and explore the carcass while standing in place for extended periods, which is uncommon for the animals.

See photos of a 200-pound Burmese python is captured in Florida

Conservationist Mike Elfenbein and his son, along with three other hunters, captured a massive 198-pound Burmese python in Florida's Big Cypress National Preserve in the fall of 2023. See images of the hunters and their prey here.

Dolphins have doulas too?

For the first time in over a decade, a dolphin gave birth at Brookfield Zoo, and she didn’t do it alone. Right beside her was another dolphin, acting as a doula. Why do dolphins support each other this way? The answer reveals something incredible about how animals care for one another.

YouTube's first video was grainy video of co-founder Jawed Karim at the zoo

Some 500 hours of content are posted to YouTube every minute. The video at the beginning of that massive growing stream of content is this one—"Me at the Zoo." Uploaded in April 2005 by YouTube co-founder Jawed Karim, it shows him at the San Diego Zoo talking about elephants.

World's first cloned yak

China has successfully cloned a yak for the first time, using somatic cell cloning and genome selection to enhance traits like strength, health, and disease resistance.

In 1924, elephants from the Central Park Zoo marched in Macy's inaugural parade

Enormous balloons didn’t make an appearance until 1927, and the parade wasn’t televised until 1948. But no matter the decade, a visit from Santa Claus has always been a highlight.

Why do humans have such long childhoods?

Humans have over twice as long childhoods than other animals with similar lifespans like whales and elephants. A human child can grow for nearly 20 years before they become a reproducing adult. Researchers believe there's a connection between long childhoods and human's unusually large brain size, though the science is not totally clear. Dive into what scientists know here.

A year's name is determined by the 12-year Chinese zodiac cycle

According to Lunar New Year traditions, the coming year gets its name based on the 12-year Chinese zodiac cycle. The animals, in order, are rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog, and pig. 2026 is the Year of the Horse, an animal known for its strength and momentum, while 2027 will be the Year of the Goat.

Deep Blue is the largest great white shark ever caught on camera

In 2019, Deep Blue was one of three huge great whites spotted off the coast of Oahu, Hawaii, an uncommon place for sightings of white sharks. The unique series of sightings aroused curiosity and amazement from islanders and scientists alike.

Washington systematically introduced and popularized mule breeding in the United States

Known as "the father of the American Mule," Washington imported a prized Spanish donkey and bred it with a female horse at Mount Vernon. He promoted mules as stronger, more efficient farm animals, helping spread their use across the South and transforming American agriculture.

For 'Secret Lives of Orangutans,' David Attenborough became the oldest Emmy Award winner

In 2025, won the Outstanding Daytime Personality, Non-Daily category at 99 for his work documenting a group of apes in the jungles of Sumatra, Indonesia. The previous record had been held by Dick Van Dyke, who won at 98 for his guest appearance on "Days of Our Lives" in 2024. (Some readers may experience a paywall.)

Huge tyrannosaur wore a fuzzy coat

It’s not your dad’s tyrannosaur: Yutyrannus huali, a newly discovered ancestor of Tyrannosaurus rex, was covered from head to tail in downy feathers.

Mark Zuckerberg owns a cattle ranch in Hawaii

Zuckerberg owns a cattle ranch on Kauai, where he says his goal is to raise the best beef in the world. Zuckerberg has said that he raises Wagyu and Angus and feeds them macadamia meal and beer, both of which are produced on the cattle ranch. In January 2024, Zuckerberg said his daughter thought his full-time job was cattle ranching.

See how Budweiser's famous Clydesdales spend their days at Warm Springs Ranch, where roughly 70 to 80 of the beer brand's giant horses can be found at any given time.

Watch Budweiser's 2026 Super Bowl ad

Budweiser's Super Bowl LX commercial is called "American Icons" and features a Clydesdale foal.

Jakarta surpassed Tokyo as the world's largest city in 2025

Asia is the epicenter of global urban population, hosting most of the world's ten largest cities by population. The top three are Jakarta, Indonesia, Dhaka, Bangladesh, and Tokyo, Japan.

Teen rides stranded scared horse to safety—14 miles out of burning canyon

When wildfires tore through the Los Angeles area in 2025, resulting in one of the worst natural disasters on record, one 16-year-old equestrian named Kalyna Fedorowycz bravely rescued an animal. She saw a horse named Sovereignty in the evacuation zone of the still-raging Palisades Fire, and led and rode him for 14 miles to safety. Sovereignty was eventually reunited with his owner.

Watch the birth of a tornado in real time

While driving through suburban Oklahoma in May 2013, National Geographic explorer and storm researcher Tim Samaras witnessed the formation of a tornado from a thunderstorm and captured footage of the descending funnel cloud before it touched down.

An 1898 Supreme Court case confirmed birthright citizenship for children of immigrants

In 1898, the Supreme Court ruled that the 14th Amendment guaranteed US citizenship to Wong Kim Ark, born in San Francisco to Chinese immigrants—establishing a lasting precedent for birthright citizenship regardless of parental status.

Family offices are estimated to manage more assets globally than hedge funds

As baby boomers prepare to transfer more than $84T in assets to the next generation over the next 20 years, family offices’ impact is expanding.

What’s up with the new Texas Stock Exchange?

The two biggest stock exchanges in the U.S. are both based in New York—the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq. But a potential new “Texas Stock Exchange”—which would be based in, you guessed it, Texas—could change that. To find out more about the project, backed by enormous companies such as BlackRock and Citadel, watch this video.

Six-year-old boy in wheelchair surprises his family by walking at his graduation

The young boy was diagnosed with Noonan syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that impacts mobility and development, at just 2 months old. He usually needs a wheelchair or walker to get around, but he shocked and thrilled his parents by standing up to receive his kindergarten diploma.

Larger animals like giraffes, elephants, and blue whales have developed a unique defense against cancer, a phenomenon known as Peto's Paradox

NBA superstar Victor Wembanyama spent the 2025 summer training with monks in central China to enhance his body and mind.

Three Ebola species are responsible for most large outbreaks of the disease, yet the only approved Ebola vaccine is known to work against just one of them.

See how each of the more than two million known species relates to each other—and to common ancestors—in this zoomable tree of life.

Double world record holder Hunter Ewen helped conquer his fear of balloons, called globophobia, by training to win Guinness World Record titles for balloon inflation.

'Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone,' a work by American painter Thomas Moran, inspired Congress to establish Yellowstone National Park.

For centuries, Niagara Falls has been a magnet for daredevils seeking to conquer one of nature's most powerful wonders, with its 200-foot drop and water rushing at 32 feet per second with 280 tons of force.

About 2,000 US babies are born annually without some portion of their limbs, potentially leading to a lifetime of pricey prosthetics.

While the first exchange-traded fund (a 'basket' of different assets that can be bought and sold on a stock exchange) in the US only launched in 1993, the global ETF market has grown to more than $10T in the short time since.

See a 3D reconstruction of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital that was home to an estimated population of 200,000 to 400,000.

In 2026, Finland was named the world's happiest country for the ninth consecutive year based on its wealth, social safety network, and high life expectancy, among other factors.

One of the most famous portraits ever taken is 'Afghan Girl' (1984) by Steve McCurry, yet the subject Sharbat Gula went much of her life without being identified or benefitting from the image's success.

The syncytiotrophoblast is the outer layer of the placenta and the largest human cell, spanning an area about twice that of a king-sized bedsheet.

Watch a 1934 short film starring jazz legend Cab Calloway, a major figure in the Harlem Renaissance's music scene

Explore fun facts from the USPS, including unique post office buildings, a stamp that traveled past Pluto, and more.

El Niño, Spanish for 'the boy,' was named after Jesus Christ because the phenomenon resembled the weather changes observed around Christmastime.

Legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed the SC Johnson headquarters in Wisconsin, aiming to make a cathedral-like workplace

See a ranking of the best (and worst) Federal Reserve Chairs since 1914 out of the 16 men and women who have held the office since.

'Shogun,' a 1980s TV series, helped popularize sushi in the US by stimulating an American interest in Japanese culture.

In recent years a child anxiety expert has created and tested a novel phobia and anxiety treatment approach for children, focused on changing how parents respond to the fears.

The US Constitution is widely regarded as the longest-standing written national constitution still in force—see how it has influenced rights worldwide.

Electrical grids worldwide must double their power delivery capacity by 2050 to meet surging demand from AI and electric vehicles.

The first robot in literature may have been a 'mechanical man' in 1907's 'Ozma of Oz,' a book in L Frank Baum's 'Wizard of Oz' series.

Poison ivy was sent to Europe in the 1600s as an exotic, ornamental oddity, where it was purposefully grown in the English royal gardens at Kew, the Faculty of Medicine in Paris, and a few other locations.