A tiger at the Endangered Animal Rescue Sanctuary and a mugshot of Joe Exotic from Santa Rosa County Jail. – Photo credit: via Christine Leiser/Flickr and Wikimedia Commons
Netflix’s “Tiger King” will go down in history as the collective distraction that helped America get through the dark, depressing days of early COVID-19 lockdowns. The show followed the true story of the feud between private zoo owner Joe Exotic, the self-described “gay, gun-carrying, redneck with a mullet,” and Carole Baskin, founder of Big Cat Rescue.
Exotic is currently serving out a 21-year prison sentence for animal rights abuses and hiring someone to kill Baskin.
The show was a raucous look inside the world of big cat owners and brought a lot of attention to the animal abuse that runs rampant in the industry. The light it shed on the industry was so bright it led Congress to take action. The Senate unanimously passed the Big Cat Public Safety Act on December 6. The House had already passed the bill in July.
The White House has signaled that President Biden will sign the bill into law.
VICTORY! The Big Cat Public Safety Act—championed by Carole & Howard Baskin & backed by PETA—passed the Senate!
Our lawsuits against the biggest #TigerKing villains nearly annihilated the cub-petting industry.
The legislation prohibits keeping tigers, lions and other big cat species as pets and bans public contact with these animals, including paid interactive experiences like cub petting. Those who currently own big cats will be able to keep their animals so long as they register them with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and do not allow them to have direct contact with the public.
There are an estimated 7,000 captive tigers in America living either in zoos or with private owners.
“I am harder to intimidate and kill than some thought!” Carole Baskin joked in a video celebrating her legislative victory. “The passage of the bill is the successful culmination of many years of battling against narcissistic, abusive, dangerous men who dominated the cruel trade and did everything they could to stop its passage, including wanting to intimidate, discredit and even kill me,” Baskin added.
“Within a decade, most of the thousands of big cats living this way will have passed away, and in 20 years, no big cats will be living in this kind of misery,” she continued.
The passage of the legislation was also applauded by The Humane Society.
“An extraordinarily cruel era for big cats in the U.S. finally comes to an end with the passage of the Big Cat Public Safety Act. We’ve been fighting for this moment for years because so many so-called ‘Tiger Kings’ have been breeding tigers and other big cats to use them for profit,” Kitty Block, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States, said in a statement.
The legislation is a big win for the animals and people as well. The Humane Society reports that since 1990, there have been more than 400 incidents involving captive big cats, and five children and 19 adults have been killed and hundreds of others injured.
Many objected to how Joe Exotic was celebrated for the few weeks that “Tiger King” ruled popular culture because he was, in the end, a man who profited from animals’ misery. Now, we can look back at the show’s popularity and see that it’s played a positive role in protecting these majestic animals from abuse for the foreseeable future.
In a small village in Pwani, a district on Tanzania’s coast, a massive dance party is coming to a close. For the past two hours, locals have paraded through the village streets, singing and beating ngombe drums; now, in a large clearing, a woman named Sheilla motions for everyone to sit facing a large projector screen. A film premiere is about to begin.
It’s an unusual way to kick off a film about gender bias, inequality, early marriage, and other barriers that prevent girls from accessing education in Tanzania. But in Pwani and beyond, local organizations supported by Malala Fund and funded by Pura are finding creative, culturally relevant ways like this one to capture people’s interest.
The film ends and Sheilla, the Communications and Partnership Lead for Media for Development and Advocacy (MEDEA), stands in front of the crowd once again, asking the audience to reflect: What did you think about the film? How did it relate to your own experience? What can we learn?
Sheilla explains that, once the community sees the film, “It brings out conversations within themselves, reflective conversations.” The resonance and immediate action create a ripple effect of change.
MEDEA Screening Audience in Tanzania. Captured by James Roh for Pura
Across Tanzania, gender-based violence often forces adolescent girls out of the classroom. This and other barriers — including child marriage, poverty, conflict, and discrimination — prevent girls from completing their education around the world.
Sheilla and her team are using film and radio programs to address the challenges girls face in their communities. MEDEA’s ultimate goal is to affirm education as a fundamental right for everyone, and to ensure that every member of a community understands how girls’ education contributes to a stronger whole and how to be an ally for their sisters, daughters, granddaughters, friends, nieces, and girlfriends.
Sheilla’s story is one of many that inspired Heart on Fire, a new fragrance from the Pura x Malala Fund Collection that blends the warm, earthy spices of Tanzania with a playful, joyful twist. Here’s how Pura is using scent as a tool to connect the world and inspire action.
A partnership focused on local impact, on a global mission
Pura, a fragrance company that recognizes education as both freedom and a human right, has partnered with Malala Fund since 2022. In order to defend every girl’s right to access and complete 12 years of education, Malala Fund partners with local organizations in countries where the educational barriers are the greatest. They invest in locally-led solutions because they know that those who are closest to the problems are best equipped to solve and build durable solutions, like MEDEA, which works with communities to challenge discrimination against girls and change beliefs about their education.
But local initiatives can thrive and scale more powerfully with global support, which is why Pura is using their own superpower, the power of scent, to connect people around the world with the women and girls in these local communities.
The Pura x Malala Fund Collection incorporates ingredients naturally found in Tanzania, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Brazil: countries where Malala Fund operates to address systemic education barriers. Eight percent of net revenue from the Pura x Malala Fund Collection will be donated to Malala Fund directly, but beyond financial support, the Collection is also a love letter to each unique community, blending notes like lemon, jasmine, cedarwood, and clove to transport people, ignite their senses, and help them draw inspiration and hope from the global movement for girls’ education. Through scent, people can connect to the courage, joy, and tenacity of girls and local leaders, all while uniting in a shared commitment to education: the belief that supporting girls’ rights in one community benefits all of us, everywhere.
You’ve already met Sheilla. Now see how Naiara and Mama Habiba are building unique solutions to ensure every girl can learn freely and dare to dream.
Naiara Leite is reimagining what’s possible in Brazil
Julia with Odara in Brazil. Captured by Luisa Dorr for Pura
In Brazil, where pear trees and coconut plantations cover the Northeastern Coast, girls like ten-year-old Julia experience a different kind of educational barrier than girls in Tanzania. Too often, racial discrimination contributes to high dropout rates among Black, quilombola and Indigenous girls in the country.
“In the logic of Brazilian society, Black people don’t need to study,” says Naiara Leite, Executive Coordinator of Odara, a women-led organization and Malala Fund partner. Bahia, the state where Odara is based, was once one of the largest slave-receiving territories in the Americas, and because of that history, deeply-ingrained, anti-Black prejudice is still widespread. “Our role and the image constructed around us is one of manual labor,” Naiara says.
But education can change that. In 2020, with assistance from a Malala Fund grant, Odara launched its first initiative for improving school completion rates among Black, quilombola, and Indigenous girls: “Ayomidê Odara”. The young girls mentored under the program, including Julia, are known as the Ayomidês. And like the Pura x Malala Fund Collection’s Brazil: Breath of Courage scent, the Ayomidês are fierce, determined, and bursting with energy.
Ayomidês with Odara in Brazil. Captured by Luisa Dorr for Pura
Ayomidês take part in weekly educational sessions where they explore subjects like education and ethnic-racial relations. The girls are encouraged to find their own voices by producing Instagram lives, social media videos, and by participating in public panels. Already, the Ayomidês are rewriting the narrative on what’s possible for Afro-Brazilian girls to achieve. One of the earliest Ayomidês, a young woman named Debora, is now a communications intern. Another former Ayomidê, Francine, works at UNICEF, helping train the next generation of adolescent leaders. And Julia has already set her sights on becoming a math teacher or a model.
“These are generations of Black women who did not have access to a school,” Naiara says. “These are generations of Black women robbed daily of their dreams. And we’re telling them that they could be the generation in their family to write a new story.”
Mama Habiba is reframing the conversation in Nigeria
Centre for Girls' Education, Nigeria. Captured by James Roh for Pura
In Mama Habiba’s home country of Nigeria, the scents of starfruit, ylang ylang and pineapple, all incorporated into the Pura x Malala Collection’s “Nigeria: Hope for Tomorrow,” can be found throughout the vibrant markets. Like these native scents, Mama Habiba says that the Nigerian girls are also bright and passionate, but too often they are forced to leave school long before their potential fully blooms.
“Some of these schools are very far, and there is an issue of quality, too,” Mama Habiba says. “Most parents find out when their children are in school, the girls are not learning. So why allow them to continue?”
When girls drop out of secondary school, marriage is often the alternative. In Nigeria, one in three girls is married before the age of 18. When this happens, girls are unable to fulfill their potential, and their families and communities lose out on the social, health and economic benefits.
Completing secondary school delays marriage, and according to UNESCO, educated girls become women who raise healthier children, lift their families out of poverty and contribute to more peaceful, resilient communities.
Centre for Girls’ Education, Nigeria. Captured by James Roh for Pura
To encourage young girls to stay in school, the Centre for Girls’ Education, a nonprofit in Nigeria founded by Mama Habiba and supported by Malala Fund and Pura, has pioneered an initiative that’s similar to the Ayomidê workshops in Brazil: safe spaces. Here, girls meet regularly to learn literacy, numeracy, and other issues like reproductive health. These safe spaces also provide an opportunity for the girls to role-play and learn to advocate for themselves, develop their self-image, and practice conversations with others about their values, education being one of them. In safe spaces, Mama Habiba says, girls start to understand “who she is, and that she is a girl who has value. She has the right to negotiate with her parents on what she really feels or wants.”
“When girls are educated, they can unlock so many opportunities,” Mama Habiba says. “It will help the economy of the country. It will boost so many opportunities for the country. If they are given the opportunity, I think the sky is not the limit. It is the starting point for every girl.”
From parades, film screenings to safe spaces and educational programs, girls and local leaders are working hard to strengthen the quality, safety and accessibility of education and overcome systemic challenges. They are encouraging courageous behavior and reminding us all that education is freedom.
Experience the Pura x Malala Fund Collection here, and connect with the stories of real girls leading change across the globe.
Which is why what happened on February 20, on a remote volcanic island in the Pacific Ocean feels so extraordinary.
A species that, by all accounts, should have been extinct returned home. That morning, rangers on Floreana Island in Ecuador’s Galápagos Islands set down their packs and gently placed 158 juvenile giant tortoises onto the wet ground—the first of their lineage to set foot on the island in roughly 175 years.
These animals weren’t supposed to exist. Their subspecies was declared extinct in the 1850s. The forces that wiped them out—overhunting, invasive predators, habitat destruction—are exactly the kinds that usually can’t be reversed. But this time, somehow, they have been.
First, here’s what was lost
Long ago—before whalers, settlers, feral cats, and invasive rats—Floreana Island was home to as many as 20,000 giant tortoises. These weren’t just large, slow animals living out their days in the sun. They were ecosystem engineers that carved trails through the vegetation, swallowed whole fruits and deposited seeds miles away, planting forests with every lumbering step. The island’s entire web of life depended on these tortoises.
By the time anyone thought to do something, it was too late. Or so everyone thought.
A wild tale
In 2008, scientists exploring Wolf Volcano on Isabela Island noticed something strange. Some of the tortoises had an unusual shell shape: the unique saddleback shell associated with Floreana.
They conducted DNA tests, and the results were nearly unbelievable. These tortoises carried the genetic fingerprint of the “extinct” Floreana lineage.
It turns out that centuries earlier, those same whalers who had stripped Floreana of its tortoises had occasionally offloaded live tortoises onto Isabela Island, as provisions to be retrieved later or to lighten their ships. Some of those tortoises survived, bred, and passed their genes on for nearly 200 years.
The Floreana tortoise had been hiding in plain sight the whole time.
Scientists sprang into action. They selected 23 hybrid tortoises from Wolf Volcano that showed the strongest Floreana genetic signal and brought them to a breeding center on Santa Cruz Island. Starting in 2017, they carefully bred them over generations, patiently guiding their lineage back toward its original form.
Dr. Jen Jones, chief executive of the Galápagos Conservation Trust, described the moment as “truly spine-tingling,” adding that it validated two decades of collaboration among scientists, charities, and the local community.
But wait—they didn’t just show up and release tortoises
Before a single tortoise set foot on Floreana, the island needed years of preparation.
Remember, Floreana had been overrun with invasive rats and feral cats, the same forces that drove the tortoises to extinction in the first place. They needed to go. In October 2023, the Floreana tortoise team launched a massive eradication campaign with helicopters, aerial baiting, and ground traps.
Before the baiting began, community members set up protective enclosures for their pets to prevent harm. Farmers adapted their agricultural practices to best serve the project. Locals also helped with the trapping.
The results were almost immediate. Native Galápagos rails—small birds that disappeared from the island entirely because of rat predation—have already started coming back on their own. Nature, it turns out, is extremely ready to bounce back the moment you give it a chance.
And they’re watching every step
Each of the 158 released tortoises carries a GPS tracker that pings its location every hour via satellite.
On top of that, NASA Earth observation data is overlaid to map vegetation, rainfall, and soil conditions across the island. Scientists use all of this information to build habitat models that can project ecosystem conditions decades into the future, which matters a lot when you’re dealing with an animal that can live over a century.
The plan is to release 25 to 100 more tortoises each year, with each group’s release location guided by data on where current tortoises are thriving. Slow and steady. Rather fitting, really.
This is just the beginning
The 158 tortoises are Phase One of a plan to reintroduce 12 locally extinct species to Floreana over the coming decade. Next up? The Floreana mockingbird, a fascinating species that arguably inspired Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution when he visited the island in 1835. Sadly, it now only exists on two tiny offshore islets.
After that: Darwin’s finches, Galápagos racer snakes, the lava gull (the world’s rarest gull), and, eventually, the Galápagos hawk, the apex predator whose return would signal a fully restored food chain.
Each species added to the island increases the likelihood that the next will succeed. That’s how ecosystems work. And honestly, it’s a pretty good lesson for the rest of life.
Dogs are considered invaluable police helpers for their tracking abilities. But performing CPR? That’s certainly not on anyone’s bingo card.
However, footage released on X by Madrid Municipal Police shows a dog named Poncho doing just that, or at least performing CPR in a training simulation.
In the clip, an officer pretends to faint, triggering Poncho to rush to the rescue. Wearing a harness fitted with a small blue light, Poncho quickly begins jumping on the officer’s chest with his forepaws, mimicking chest compressions. After every few jumps, he appears to check for a pulse or breath before continuing the drill.
By the end, the officer miraculously jumps up, and Poncho’s tail wags in gleeful triumph.
The Municipal Police of Madrid wrote that the “heroic” dog “did not hesitate for a moment to ‘save the life’ of the agent, practicing the #CPR in a masterful way.”
Adorable? Definitely. Effective? Eh, not so much.
As many were quick to point out in the comments, this “masterful” performance is certainly heartwarming, but it likely wouldn’t hold up in a real emergency.
While CPR, or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, can be performed using chest compressions alone (as Poncho was demonstrating), even that requires a level of precision that man’s best friend might find challenging.
As Jonathan Epstein, senior director of science and government relations for the American Red Cross, told The Washington Post in 2018, that technique involves pushing down about two inches into the patient’s chest at a rate of 100 to 120 compressions per minute until the patient regains consciousness or until someone else can take over to attempt traditional CPR or other revival methods.
That level of control is difficult even for humans who have not been properly trained, much less a creature without opposable thumbs.
Video goes viral
Still, it could be argued that Poncho revived millions of hearts after his video went viral, and he certainly received applause from his new fans.
“This is the cutest thing I’ve ever seen 🥺🥹”
“Lol 😂most ineffective compressions I’ve ever seen but ok cute.”
“Cutest, most ineffective bounces I’ve ever seen, but what a good way to go! lolol 😍”
Plus, dogs have proven themselves to be incredible creatures many times before, whether saving people from drowning or rescuing avalanche victims.
And for what it’s worth, the Madrid police department wasn’t trying to convince anyone that Poncho could perform CPR. They actually had much more wholesome intentions.
According to NBC News, the Municipal Police of Madrid hoped the video would inspire pet adoptions. The department also quoted American author Josh Billings in an X post, saying, “A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than you love yourself.”
So while Poncho might not have pulled off a medical miracle, he is undoubtedly a hero in our eyes.
One of the best things about house pets is that few of us expect them to be smart. There are the occasional owners who rigorously train their dogs, but most of us are perfectly happy with friendly, dumb pets—as long as they love us unconditionally and like to snuggle. However, every now and then, they surprise us and reveal just how smart they really are.
Extending to the wider world of animals, most people simply have no idea how intelligent some species can be. It’s honestly mind-boggling.
A recent viral Reddit thread asked people about the “creepiest” signs of intelligence they’d ever seen. Though the prompt didn’t specify animals, countless users chimed in with moments when they witnessed an animal do something so smart it made their jaws drop. It can even be a little unsettling.
1. The canine empath
“I was dog-walker when my daughter was a baby, and I had one dog who absolutely understood every word I said. … If she didn’t want to do something, such as cross the street to a trash can, you just had to explain why it was necessary and she’d cooperate.
One time she got irritated because I wasn’t feeling well and was walking super slowly. She kept tugging on the leash til I finally told her I was feeling sick. She immediately lead me to a bench and sat there, totally calm, for like 10 minutes before leading me back home again.”
Dogs can’t speak English, but they pick up on far more than you might realize. The smartest ones can learn hundreds of words, and many can even recognize when you’re speaking gibberish (or another language). They’re also exceptionally good at picking up on human nonverbal cues.
Put it all together, and it can sometimes seem like they understand everything you’re saying.
2. The guard crows
“I’ve been feeding this family of 5 crows for years. They have gotten comfortable enough with me that they’ll come get snacks while I’m still sitting next to the food. I can call them with a specific whistle I use just for them, and they make a rattle noise (that sounds like the Predator) with me to thank me for food.
One late night I hear this horrible loud screeching. It woke me up, so I ran outside to see what it was. There was a guy trying to break into a window in my house and the 5 crows were dive bombing him screaming as loud as they could. He ran away. … So I guess I have guard-crows now.”
Crows are not only sneaky-brilliant, but they can also become your best buds if you treat them well. According to MIT Technology Review, “A 2020 study published in Science found that crows can think about their own thoughts. They can also recognize individual human faces, associate them with friendliness or danger, and pass that knowledge along to their peers.”
If you’re cool with the local murder of crows, word may just spread.
3. Puzzling crows
“Seeing a crow solve a puzzle box in seconds after watching it once gave me chills, it felt like it was actually thinking things through. Stuff like that makes you realize some animals are way smarter than we usually give them credit for.”
Crows are thought to be about as intelligent as a 5- to 7-year-old human child. Not only can they make friends, but they can also invent and use tools, solve puzzles, and maybe even count. By all accounts, they’re among the smartest animals in the world, and they may be hanging out in your backyard right now.
4. The magpie truce
“I ended up working as an adult really close to my family home I lived in since I was born. The area has always been occupied by Magpies which swoop at you all through summer. For those who don’t know, it’s terrifying.
At work there was an injured Magpie that we fed and took care of for ages. When it got better enough to roam, it ‘told’ all the other magpies in the area and since then, about a decade ago, all the magpies in the area never swooped any of us who worked at the store again. And Alfred the magpie used to fly beside me when I’d ride my bike to work! And on the way back too, to make sure I was safe. So insane.”
Though notoriously territorial and “swoopy,” magpies, like crows, can remember human faces. They can form strong bonds with humans who are friendly and helpful to them.
5. The dog that needed thumbs
“My dog starts barking at the door so I open it to see what’s going on. there’s a border collie sitting there waiting. I go to check on the dog and he gets up and walks a bit away, sits and stares at me. I follow him. this goes on till I’m in front of a house in my neighborhood.
Collie stares at the doorbell. I ring it. no one answers. collie stares at the door. I knock, no answer. dog gets up and walks to the side gate and stares at me and then up at the latch. I open the gate for the dog. the dog walks into the back yard, turns around, sits and stares at me and then at the open gate. I close the gate and watch the dog relax. dog used me for my thumbs and wouldn’t even let me pet him.”
Dogs frequently turn to humans for help in tough situations—it’s in their nature. When an owner or friendly human isn’t around, they’ll even seek out a stranger for a helping hand. It’s a distinctly social brand of genius.
6. The sneaky octopus
“I heard of an octopus who would break out of its tank at night and eat the crabs in a neighbouring tank. The aquarium staff didn’t understand how the crabs kept getting eaten until they watched cctv and saw what the octopus was doing. Creepy thing is, the octopus knew to replace the lids and return to its own tank. That must mean it understood the need for deception.”
Variations of this story have been going around for years. It’s even a plot point in the popular novel Remarkably Bright Creatures.
While the original source is difficult to verify, the story isn’t all that far-fetched. Octopuses are extremely gifted escape artists, able to solve puzzles, unscrew jars, and navigate mazes. They also seem to possess a strong understanding of what others—prey, humans, and other octopuses—may be thinking, and they have been known to use intentional deception.
“Was at a party and had a sudden mid conversation realization that we were all standing uncomfortably close to each other. My buddies border collie had slowly herded us all to the center of the room.”
Herding is an instinct hardwired into the Border Collie. Needless to say, it can take some owners by surprise just how eerily good they are at it.
“You will never remove herding instinct from a Border Collie and neither should you want to,” writes trainer Sarah Hedderly at DingBatt Dog Training.
8. The ham dog
“My dad’s German Shepherd figured out how to open the fridge, take out one slice of ham, and close it again. We only caught him because my dad set up a camera thinking my brother was sneaking food at night. The dog looked directly at the camera once and never did it again while we were home.”
Similar to octopuses, dogs understand deception. They can sometimes tell when a human is lying to them and have even been shown to distinguish between an honest mistake and an outright lie. In turn, they can be pretty sneaky themselves.
9. The dog that found its way home
Move over, Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey.
“Not necessarily creepy, but I have no explanation for it – I’ve told this story before but when our dog was maybe 6 months old we took her to the groomers for the first time. My wife took her there in a taxi, she was lying on the floor the entire way with no way to see out. She had never been to that area before, and it was about 4 miles from our apartment, which itself was on the third floor of an apartment block. We get a call about 30 min later saying our dog had jumped a gate and ran out of the groomer, everyone’s freaking out, she’s a labradoodle but still a puppy, and she’s alone and scared in central London in the middle of the day.
We started searching and my wife was inconsolable so I said maybe she should wait at home – she got there and our dog was sitting on our doorstep on the third floor, happy as Larry, just chilling her beans. She had jumped a 4 foot fence, got out of a locked door, then ran across 4 miles of central London traffic, crossing at least one highway, through streets she’d never been to or even seen, and got home around 25 minutes after she left the groomers.”
It may be hard to believe, but dogs can follow a scent for miles. In one widely reported case, a dog returned to its owner after an 11-mile journey. Bonnie Beaver, executive director of the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists and a professor at Texas A&M University, told Time, “An eleven-mile distance is actually not terribly long for a dog.”
10. The cozy pup
“My dog knows how to turn on my wife’s heated blanket, and he knows he likes it on the 2 setting. He will change it to the 2 setting if she has it warmer or colder.”
All the different things dogs can learn to do never cease to amaze. They can operate appliances, dial a telephone, and apparently even use a heated blanket. What’s creepy—in the best way—is that your dog may know things you don’t even realize it knows. Like humans, dogs can learn remarkably well through observation.
It’s one thing to watch documentaries or learn in school about the brilliance of dolphins, crows, and even ordinary house dogs. But seeing surprising displays of animal intelligence for yourself can be downright eerie, in the coolest way.
Beau, a golden retriever, is a very big deal. Like many dogs in the modern age, he has his own social media accounts. But one particular Instagram post went so viral that he’s gaining followers by the minute—and for good reason.
His “person” happened to be filming him being his adorably goofy self one day in a parking lot. That’s when he spotted a tiny gray mouse. Some were concerned it wouldn’t end well. But Beau, tail wagging and fur shedding, immediately circled around it and lay down as though he’d known the mouse his entire life. His mom asked, “What are you doing? Did you find a mouse? Is that your friend?” Beau’s tail continued to wag as he occasionally side-eyed the little critter.
In less than a week, the clip had 1.6 million likes and over 9,000 comments from new fans around the world. Both Beau and his new, unassuming pal seem to have become a symbol of hope—or at the very least, a gentle distraction.
His bio is written in the first person on another Instagram post. While we can’t confirm or deny that Beau actually wrote it, it states:
“Hello to all my new friends 🥰 I’m Beau 👋🏻🐾
I was born in Utah and spent a year on the farm with my golden family, before my parents found me in March 2025 and moved me to Denver 😍
I love tennis balls, morning cuddles, fresh snow, frozen cucumbers, and spending time in Minnesota with my cousin @cocobabydoodle ❤️
My superpower is giving hugs. I learned it from my grand-doggy 🫶🏼
During the week, I go to mom’s office and shed my hair all over her coworkers 💁🏽♀️
My parents spoil me with toys, but my favorite is my Simba. He goes where I go 🥺
I recently went viral for making friends with a mouse. I’m not sure why because I make friends with everyone, but I appreciate all the love ❤️”
His new fans seem overjoyed. One person notes, “This is the most Golden Retriever behavior I’ve ever seen.”
A few jokingly point out that if that mouse—or any mouse—crossed paths with THEIR breed of canine, it might not fare as well: “Our dachshund would have swallowed it whole. Ask me how I know.”
Others seem to resonate with how wholesome the short clip is: “This needs to be a Disney movie.”
Some animal experts might argue that Beau was “resource guarding” rather than becoming actual besties with the cute rodent. In a Los Angeles Timesarticle, Kevin Spencer explains:
“Resource guarding in dogs is a common canine behavior that does not always initially manifest as something dramatic. Sometimes resource guarding refers to a subtle head turn when a dog guards a food bowl. Other times, the same guarding behavior escalates into something far more obvious and unsettling. At its core, resource guarding describes a dog’s attempt to protect a valuable resource it finds important. This may be food, toys, bones, a dog bed, or other items dogs steal and stash. It might even be a favorite human.”
It seems Beau has lots of cute quirks. Other photos on his Instagram page show him loving car rides, park days, and chasing balls. In one photo, Beau snuggles onto the couch with a leaf in his mouth. The caption reads, “Beau has been really into eating leaves lately.”
While Upworthy wasn’t able to confirm with Beau (or his family) that the tiny mouse wound up having the best day ever, it seemed the dog’s owner did her best to keep him safe. All in all, Beau’s wagging tail was a delight to see—so much so that another commenter suggested maybe Beau needs his own pet buddy, writing, “Buy him a puppy!” Someone seemingly in the family replied, “We’re working on it!”
It’s not easy being a river in the desert under the best of circumstances. The ecosystem exists in a very delicate balance, allowing water sources to thrive in the harsh conditions. These water sources in otherwise extremely dry areas are vital to the survival of unique wildlife, agriculture, and even tourism as they provide fresh drinking water for the people who live nearby.
But man-made problems like climate change, over-farming, and pollution have made a tough job even tougher in some areas. Rivers in Utah and Colorado that are part of the Colorado River Basin have been barely surviving the extremely harsh drought season. When the riverbeds get too dry, fish and other aquatic creatures die off and the wildfire risk increases dramatically.
About six years ago, one team of researchers had a fascinating idea to restore the health of some of Utah’s most vulnerable rivers: Bring in the beavers.
In 2019, master’s student Emma Doden and a team of researchers from Utah State University began a “translocation” project to bring displaced beavers to areas like Utah’s Price River, in the hopes of bringing it back to life.
Why beavers? It just makes dam sense! (Sorry.)
Beaver dams restrict the flow of water in some areas of a river, creating ponds and wetlands. In drought-stricken areas, fish and other wildlife can take refuge in the ponds while the rest of the river runs dry, thus riding out the danger until it rains again.
When beavers are present in a watershed, the benefits are unbelievable: Better water quality, healthier fish populations, better nutrient availability, and fewer or less severe wildfires.
It’s why beavers have earned the title of “keystone species,” or any animal that has a disproportionate impact on the ecosystem around them.
Doden and her team took beavers who were captured or removed from their original homes due to being a “nuisance,” interfering with infrastructure, or being in danger, and—after a short period of quarantine—were brought to the Price River.
Despite the research team’s best efforts, not all the translocated beavers have survived or stayed put over the years. Some have trouble adapting to their new home and die off or are killed by predators, while others leave of their own accord.
But enough have stayed and built dams since 2019 that the team is starting to see the results of the effort. In fact, beaver projects just like this one have been going on all over the state in recent years.
The water levels in the river are now the healthiest they’ve been in years. The fish are thriving. Residents of Utah are overjoyed at the results of the experiment.
A column in The Salt Lake Tribune from 2025 (six years after the beaver translocation began) writes that the revitalization of the Price River “helped save our Utah town.”
“A tributary of the Colorado River, the Price River runs through downtown Helper. On a warm day, you’re likely to find the river filled with tourists and locals kayaking, tubing and fishing along its shore. A decade ago, it was hard to imagine this scene—and the thriving recreation economy that comes with it—was possible.”
Of course, it wasn’t JUST the beavers. Other federal water cleanup investments helped remove debris, break down old and malfunctioning dams, and place tighter regulations on agriculture grazing in the area that depleted vital plant life.
But the experts know that the beavers, and their incredible engineering work, are the real MVPs.
An actual beaver dam on the now-thriving Price River Public Domain
In other drying, struggling rivers in the area, researchers are bringing in beavers and even creating manmade beaver dams. They’re hoping that the critters will take over the job as the rivers get healthier.
Utah’s San Rafael river, which is in bleak condition, is a prime candidate. In on area of the river, a natural flood inspired a host of beavers to return to the area and “riparian habitat along that stretch had increased by 230%, and it had the most diverse flow patterns of anywhere on the river,” according to KUER.
It’s hard to believe that beavers nearly went extinct during the heyday of the fur trapping industry, and continued to struggle as they were considered nuisances and pests. Now, they’re getting the respect they deserve as engineer marvels, and their populations have rebounded due to better PR and conservation programs.
To that I say…it’s about dam time!
This article originally appeared last year. It has been updated.
A baby monkey named Punch has captured the hearts of people around the world. The now seven-month-old Japanesemacaque, who lives at Japan’s Ichikawa City Zoo and Botanical Garden, was rejected by his mother shortly after birth. Videos of him clinging to zookeepers coming into the enclosure broke people’s hearts, but that was just the beginning of the saga.
Zookeepers gave Punch a stuffed orangutan toy as a surrogate “mom” to cuddle with. Naturally, that has only increased the “Awww” factor. Punch drags the toy around with him and runs back to it for comfort when he’s scared or lonely, and he’s been scared and lonely a lot since he was introduced to the larger macaque troop in January. Videos show him being pushed away and even dragged around by older macaques, after which he runs back to cling to his stuffed mama.
People can’t take watching a baby monkey be rejected
However, things have not been quite as dire for Punch as they may appear. The zoo has reassured the public in a statement that the “bullying” Punch has endured is actually a pretty normal part of primate socialization. Being “disciplined” by other macaques will teach him appropriate behavior in the troop, even if it appears mean to our human sensibilities.
People’s reactions to Punch and his struggles to fit in have been emotional and fierce, though. It’s like Punch’s story was designed to trigger every compassionate, protective instinct we have as humans. The motherless outcast who just wants to be loved. The big, mean bullies who knock him around. The rejection when he attempts to make friends. The finding comfort wherever he can, even in an inanimate object.
Comedian Britt Migs captured the emotional investment people have in this monkey in a parody video. It may be hilariously over the top, but it’s actually not far off from how many people feel after watching Punch videos.
Comments on the videos range from sadness to empathy to rage:
“Punch needs to have his own kingdom.”
“At dawn we ride for Punch.”
“How do I apply to foster and ultimately adopt punch. He can stay with me.”
“This story has wrecked my life this week.”
“I love Punch and I’ve never met him!”
“Every video I see of punch I’m crying, He’s so cute and innocent.”
Punch is doing better than people think, thankfully
There has been good news on the Punch front, thankfully. The zoo says he “shows resilience and mental strength” even as he goes through his social pitfalls. And he has started making friends with others. Newer videos show him being carried and cuddled by at least one older macaque, playing with a peer, and even being groomed. All good signs.
Ichikawa Zoo has seen a massive influx of visitors since Punch’s story went viral and has had to make adjustments. They have asked visitors to limit their time on Monkey Mountain (where the macaques live) and observe quietly so as not to disturb them.
The zoo has been keeping people posted on how Punch is doing. A zookeeper update from February 22 reads (translated from Japanese on X): “Thanks to everyone’s good manners, it was a calm atmosphere with no fights or anything like that. Punch, around 5 PM, was meticulously groomed by two monkeys and is steadily fitting into the group.”
The reality of zoos can often give people pause and prompt concern for the well-being of the animals in human care. Dr. Tessa Wilde, executive director at For the Love of Primates, shared some insights into how macaques live in the wild and how that influences the way enclosures are designed.
It’s #MonkeyMonday 🐒❄️ You asked about #PunchTheMonkey and Japanese macaque enclosures, so let’s break down how snow monkeys live in the wild—and how zoos and sanctuaries can mirror those rocky, mountainous habitats. #AnimalCare#fyp#viral
There’s a rather fuzzy line between caring for animals and anthropomorphizing them to the point where we might interfere with normal behavior, such as the socialization we’ve seen Punch going through. Wilde pointed out in a previous video that early rejection and scolding are not unusual in a case like Punch’s. And we’re seeing progress as he gets integrated into the troop, so that’s promising.
It is hard to watch, though, and our feelings of compassion for a creature we think is going through a hard time certainly isn’t a bad thing. We need more compassion in the world, even if it comes through a monkey with a stuffy just trying to find a family.
Punch the 6-month-old macaques monkey has gone viral for seeking comfort in a stuffed orangutan that is like his “surrogate mom.” Punch was abandoned by his real mom shortly after birth and the staff at Ichikawa City Zoo near Tokyo, Japan have been raising him. Punch, however, has hit some bumps in the road while trying to learn how to socialized with the other monkeys. In one viral video, another monkey is seen getting aggressive with him, but the zoo explained why that may happen. Here’s what the zoo says about Punch’s development – and why his “surrogate mom” stuffed animal is helpful. #monkey#punch
If you’ve ever seen a turkey in real life, you may already have questions about the odd birds. Can they fly? Why do they have those dangly things on their faces and necks? How can you tell a male turkey from a female? Can you eat turkey eggs?
One question you’ve probably never asked is, “Do turkeys have to be burped?” But after watching this turkey-burping demonstration, you might (along with about a dozen other questions, starting with “What on Earth did I just watch?”).
You’re not alone. So many commenters found themselves in the same boat:
“I am the first in my bloodline to see a turkey burped.”
“Do they explode if you don’t do this ?”
“Why did I just watch a tutorial on burping a turkey?”
“Will I ever be in a situation where I need to burp a turkey? No. Did I watch this to the end? Definitely.”
“Me watching this whole video like I have a turkey to burp.”
The Canadian homesteader who burped her “little dinosaur” Eli in this video shares all kinds of interesting facts about turkeys on her TikTok channel, @tallqueenbaby. She raised Eli from the time he was two weeks old and brings him in front of the camera for a good burping every once in a while.
Why, though? She explained everything in a follow-up video:
“It doesn’t smell pleasant,” she said. “They eat grains and corns and things like that and it’s mixed with hot air, so it’s kind of just this weird, unpleasant smell. It’s not something I’d want to smell all the time.”
Do turkeys need to be burped?
“No. It is not a necessity,” she said. “It’s moreso for bonding and for excess relief.”
She explained that both male and female turkeys will strut, puffing out their chests, but male turkeys have a different air sac system, so more air accumulates in them. She added that burping them shouldn’t be done often and can hurt them if not done properly. Therefore, it’s not something to try randomly on your own (in case you had any ideas).
Can wild turkeys be burped?
She doesn’t know. She doesn’t mess with wild turkeys. It’s probably best not to try.
She’s also not the only one sharing turkey burps on TikTok. Here are a few more big burpers:
That air will eventually make its way out of the turkey without any assistance, but we all know how satisfying it is to have a nice, big burp.
Sadly, our little dinosaur friend Eli is no longer with us, as he passed away from an unexpected injury in January 2026. He was a beloved pet, and @tallqueenbaby created a lovely tribute to him on her TikTok channel:
it’s with a heavy heart that i type this. Eli past away yesterday from an unexpected injury. Eli was my pet. he was the protector of my flock, my sweet boy. i’m truly devastated. i want to thank everyone who gave Eli love. he is so missed but is now reunited with his wife Dumplin. #elitheturkey#turkey#turkeyburp#farm#loss
She continues to share videos with Eli from before his passing, and the people who only just met him through his virality are grateful. Eli served as a guardian on the farm, as well as a sweet, feathered friend.
“We truly had a beautiful bond,” she wrote. “He was such a good boy and did his job as protector so well. I’m so grateful to have experienced this.”
“Sharing this moment with Mãhina and her protective mother is a memory that will live with me forever,” Allen said in a press release. “It was undoubtedly one of the most extraordinary days I have ever experienced in the ocean—and perhaps ever will. To be announced World Nature Photographer of the Year through capturing this unique mother and calf bond has made what was already a truly life-changing encounter even more profound and humbling. I feel beyond honoured to receive this award.”
The World Nature Photography Awards were founded on the belief that “small positive actions can help shape the future of our planet, and that photography has the power to influence perspectives and inspire change.”
The 2026 competition saw entries from 51 countries across six continents. Here are 14 of the gold medal–winning photos from the competition.
1. World Nature Photographer of the Year 2026 Grand Prize Winner — Jono Allen (Australia) “Mãhina,” Humpback Whales in Vava’u, Tonga
“Captured in the tropical waters of Vava’u, Tonga, this rare white humpback calf – named Mãhina, meaning “moon” in Tongan – glowed like a beam of light as she travelled through the deep blue water with her protective mother. With only 1 in 40,000 humpbacks born with this lack of pigmentation, her presence was not only breathtaking but symbolic. Watching this spectacular and curious moon white whale calf play and roll through the water represents the remarkable success story of a species given the chance to recover after being heavily targeted by whaling and once being brought to the brink of extinction. Considering the resilience of this awe-inspiring species, sightings of such rare individuals renews hope in what can happen when conservation is championed and wildlife is allowed to thrive. Mãhina is a living reminder of what is possible when conservation works – a species once on the brink, now rebounding.” — Jono Allen
2. Gold: Animal Portraits — Mary Schrader (South Africa) “Shared Wonder,” Gorilla and Butterfly in Bwindi, Uganda
“It was a day defined by quiet connections. Beneath the lush canopy of Bwindi, I observed a young female gorilla gently nestled against the protective bulk of a silverback. The atmosphere was serene, filled with gentle sounds of the forest, until a sudden burst of delicate color broke through the calm. An unexpected visitor, a vibrant butterfly, appeared out of nowhere, fluttering gently through the air. Captivated, the young gorilla’s eyes widened, and in that moment, a beautiful interaction unfolded as a silent, shared wonder between two vastly different beings.” — Mary Schrader
3. Gold: Behaviour Mammals — Vaidehi Chandrasekar (Singapore) “Giraffe Water ballet,” Giraffe in Makgadikgadi Pans National Park, Botswana
“As the sun dipped low over the dry Makgadikgadi landscape in Botswana, a lone giraffe stepped to the water’s edge. Towering and graceful, it bent its long legs, lowering its neck for a drink. Then came a moment of magic. Having taken its fill, the giraffe lifted its head – and with a gentle swish, expelled a stream of water in an arc that shimmered in the golden light. The droplets danced in the air, forming a near-perfect circle before falling back to the earth.”— Vaidehi Chandrasekar
4. Gold: Behaviour Amphibians and Reptiles — Dewald Tromp (South Africa) “Stoicism in a Sandstorm,” in Makgadikgadi Pans National Park, Botswana
“The Namib Desert is one of the most extreme environments on Earth, with no surface water and daytime temperatures exceeding 45 °C. Despite this, life is abundant, you know, where to look. Sandstorms are frequent, with wind blowing down from inland mountains that stir up fine sediment and particles. A Namaqua chameleon has to endure the sting of pebbles blowing against its skin,while we were lucky enough to escape to the relative comfort of our 4×4.” — Dewald Tromp
5. Gold: Behaviour Invertebrates — Minghui Yuan (China) “Home on the Leaves,” Moth Moss Larva in Xishuangbanna, China
“In the tropical rainforest of Xishuangbanna, I found a moss moth larva creating a protective net nest on newly grown, tender plant leaves. Moss moth larvae bite off their toxic hair-likestructures and use their sticky saliva to build their own houses. It uses its own poisonous fur as building material, which can resist attacks from parasitic wasps and ants. In the net nest, the moss moth larvae form some very thin and difficult to see silk, hanging themselves in the air as if they were lying in a hammock.” — Minghui Yuan
6. Gold: Behaviour Birds — Fenqiang Liu (USA) “Arrival,” Great Egret in Winter Park, Florida
“Each spring, great egrets gather at Kraft Azalea Garden in Central Florida to nest high in the trees. Photographing from below, I look for moments when backlight reveals the elegance and structure of their wings in flight. I captured this image on an early April morning, as an egret passed between me and the sun just before landing.” — Fenqiang Liu
7. Gold: People and Nature — Deena Sveinsson (USA) “The Wildlife Photographer,” Bull Moose in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming
“After an evening snowfall in the Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, USA, the photographers woke up to a blanket of snow covering the sage flats. It was a relatively slow and boring morning watching the many bull moose eat their morning breakfast of bitter brush. A group of us photographers was photographing the bull moose making its way in our direction. He would eat for about 10 minutes, then take a few steps, only to start eating again. At some point, the bland bitter brush bored him, and he decided to go on his walkabout. But he decided to do his walkabout toward all the photographers. We quickly moved away to give the moose his space, but in all the haste, a tripod and a camera ended up being left behind. At first, the bull moose ignored the gear and started to thrash his antlers on the bitter brush. After his curiosity got the best of him, the bull moose decided to check out the camera gear.” — Deena Sveinsson
8. Gold: Plants and Fungi — Duncan Wood (Scotland) “Elder in Flame,” Elder Birch in Glen Affric, Scotland
“Golden autumn colours explode in this intimate portrait of an incredible, lichen-laden elder birch in full seasonal display — bold, brilliant, and full of character, like a woodland peacock. Taken in Glen Affric, this image captures a fleeting moment of drama and beauty from one of Scotland’s most vibrant autumn landscapes.” — Duncan Wood
9. Gold: Nature Art — Simon Biddie (UK) “Ghost of the Reef,” Ghost Goby in Marsa Alam, Egypt
“Small reef fish, unassuming and often unseen, contribute to 70% of the fish biomass, making them a critical part of reef food chains. Small fish, like many of their land-based insect equivalents, evade predators by being experts in hiding. These small reef fish are also known as ‘cryptobenthic’ fish – crypto as they hide in crevices, or use camouflage.” — Simon Biddie
10. Gold: Urban Wildlife — Robert Gloeckner (USA) “Trash Trail Temptations,” in Manitoba, Canada
“In this striking image, a polar bear in Churchill, Manitoba, investigates a heap of discarded electronics and household items – part of a growing and very human-made trash trail that’s reshaping how wildlife interacts with civilization. In 2024, the town’s only trash facility burned to the ground. The incident underscored a growing concern: polar bears were increasingly scavenging garbage during the ice-free months, leading to a rise in human-wildlife conflicts.” — Robert Gloeckner
11. Gold: Earth’s Landscapes and Environments — Miki Spitzer (Israel) “The Eye of the Dragon,” Geothermal Pool in Iceland
“This is a drone photo of a natural geothermal pool in central Iceland at Hveravellir. In the photo, you can see the pool, which I think looks like a dragon’s eye.” — Miki Spitzer
12. Gold: Black and White — Christopher Baker (USA) “Sunbathing,” Slider Turtle in Madison, Alabama
“An adult pond slider turtle perched atop a stump, bathing in the early morning sun. I lay on the ground to get a low-angle perspective of the scene and converted it to black and white to enhance the textures of the turtle’s shell and skin, as well as the stump.” — Christopher Baker
13. Gold: Animals in their Habitat — Charlie Wemyss-Dunn (UK) “Splash,” a Brown Bear and Sockeye Salmon in Katmai National Park, Alaska
“A hungry brown bear launches headlong into a creek in Alaska’s Katmai National Park to try to catch one of the many sockeye salmon spawning in large numbers during their seasonal migration. Each August, large concentrations of brown bears gather along the rivers and creeks in Katmai, waiting for the annual arrival of salmon from the coast. I observed this scene after a two-hour walk from our camp from atop a cliff. I positioned myself at the cliff’s edge to get a unique perspective looking down on the action below and used a polarizing filter to cut any glare from the water’s surface.” — Charlie Wemyss-Dunn
14. Gold: Nature Photojournalism — Alain Schroeder (Belgium) “Chimp Paradise,” Chimpanzee and Humans in Fort Pierce, Florida
“Kayla, a 37-year-old 61.2 kg female, was in the procedure room, and her stomach was shaved for an ultrasound. Socks have been placed on her extremities, and a fur hat with flaps has been placed on her head to avoid hypothermia. General caption Founded in 1997, Save the Chimps is the largest privately funded chimpanzee sanctuary in the world. Its mission is to provide a safe haven for captive chimps who have been exploited by humans for research, testing, and entertainment. The 150-acre state-of-the-art facility in Florida is home to over 220 rescued chimpanzees living their best possible lives among peers, thanks to a team of passionate veterinarians, caretakers, and volunteers who provide personalized care and nutritious, individually tailored feeding and enrichment plans in a spacious island habitat. The sanctuary is working tirelessly to welcome all captive chimpanzees across the United States who need refuge and expert loving care for the rest of their lives.” — Alain Schroeder
