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Manuela Hoelterhoff

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Manuela Hoelterhoff
JOURNALIST | AUTHOR
Green Pit Bull Puppy  Pops Out of the Chute in  Mississippi 
Nov 12

Nov 12 Green Pit Bull Puppy  Pops Out of the Chute in  Mississippi 

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animal Companions, Animal Welfare, Human Interest

“Why are one of my puppies that my American Pit had ... green?” dog owner Annise Tooley asked Google last week.

It’s a Party: Animals All Over the World Enjoy Booze
Nov 11

Nov 11 It’s a Party: Animals All Over the World Enjoy Booze

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Nature, The Natural World

There are plenty of anecdotes about animals getting squiffy on fermented fruits in the wild, but we tend to think of these drunken episodes as rare and accidental. New research, which appears in Trends in Ecology & Evolution, challenges this assumption.

New Pygmy Hippo Is by Far the Cutest Baby in Scotland
Nov 8

Nov 8 New Pygmy Hippo Is by Far the Cutest Baby in Scotland

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animals, Conservation

A pygmy hippo calf entered the world in Scotland a couple weeks ago, far from its natural stomping grounds of the forests and swamps of West Africa. Born at the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland's Edinburgh Zoo, the baby girl has been named after the national dish, Haggis.

Qing Bao &Bao Li Get Prepped For Million Dollar Debut at Washington Zoo
Nov 8

Nov 8 Qing Bao &Bao Li Get Prepped For Million Dollar Debut at Washington Zoo

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animals, Conservation

The giant pandas Qing Bao and Bao Li arrived in Washington, DC on October 15 after their long journey from Sichuan, China. Now the National Zoo is preparing the pandas and their habitat for the big public debut on January 24, 2025.

County Must Pay $300K for Butchering  Young Girl’s Goat
Nov 6

Nov 6 County Must Pay $300K for Butchering  Young Girl’s Goat

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animal Welfare

A 9-year-old girl who fell in love with the goat she raised for a California county fair was devastated when deputy sheriffs seized, and eventually had butchered, the floppy-eared pet named Cedar. Now the County Sheriff's office must pay $300,000 to settle this atrocity. 

Good News? Thousands of Giant Spiders on the Loose in UK
Nov 5

Nov 5 Good News? Thousands of Giant Spiders on the Loose in UK

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Conservation, Insects

Thousands of giant spiders are on the prowl in the UK and that’s a good thing, according to the Chester Zoo, which is responsible for setting the arachnids loose.

Peanut the Influencer Squirrel Euthanized by Speedy State
Nov 4

Nov 4 Peanut the Influencer Squirrel Euthanized by Speedy State

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animal Welfare

A squirrel with a huge social media following was taken into custody last week and euthanized by New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation. The DEC said it had received reports of “unsafe housing of wildlife that could carry rabies and the illegal keeping of wildlife as pets.” 

Marilyn Perry Honored at WMF Hadrian Gala
Nov 4

Nov 4 Marilyn Perry Honored at WMF Hadrian Gala

Manuela Hoelterhoff
Human Interest
You Must Remember This: A Kiss Is Just an Adaptive Trait
Nov 1

Nov 1 You Must Remember This: A Kiss Is Just an Adaptive Trait

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animals

Humans have been kissing each other – for one reason or another – for thousands of years. Evolutionary psychologist Adriano Lameira wants to know why, so he’s been spying on our kissing cousins (other apes) to see if they offer any clues that might reveal the purpose, if any, of a good smooch.

Seven New Frog Species Named After Star Trek Captains
Oct 31

Oct 31 Seven New Frog Species Named After Star Trek Captains

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animals, Conservation

Scientists have identified seven new frog species in Madagascar. The herpetologists who found them happen to be Star Trek fans, so each of the new species are named after characters from the sci-fi show.

World Monuments Fund celebrated Marilyn Perry and Peter Marino at its 35th Annual Hadrian Gala
Oct 31

Oct 31 World Monuments Fund celebrated Marilyn Perry and Peter Marino at its 35th Annual Hadrian Gala

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
A Cougar, a Coatimundi and a Pot-Bellied Pig Get New Life
Oct 29

Oct 29 A Cougar, a Coatimundi and a Pot-Bellied Pig Get New Life

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animal Welfare

It’s usually good news when a roadside zoo shuts down. One of the worst of these miserable facilities was Waccatee Zoo in Myrtle Beach, which was closed down last year following a prolonged lawsuit with PETA.

Namibia and Zimbabwe Set to Butcher Elephants for Food (And Profit?)
Oct 28

Oct 28 Namibia and Zimbabwe Set to Butcher Elephants for Food (And Profit?)

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animal Welfare

A brutal drought in southern Africa threatens food supplies across at least six countries. Among them, Namibia and Zimbabwe have recently announced plans to cull hundreds of wild animals, including nearly 300 elephants, as they struggle to feed their populations.

Five Elephants In Colorado Up for Personhood
Oct 25

Oct 25 Five Elephants In Colorado Up for Personhood

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animal Welfare

This week the Colorado Supreme Court heard arguments on behalf of five elephants in the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. The question at hand: Shall the pachyderms have the same rights as “persons” under the law?

Congresswoman Boebert Grouses About Protecting ‘Ugly’ Bird
Oct 24

Oct 24 Congresswoman Boebert Grouses About Protecting ‘Ugly’ Bird

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animal Welfare, Conservation, Environment

This week the Bureau of Land Management finalized plans to protect the Gunnison sage-grouse, a threatened species in western Colorado and eastern Utah.

Unsinkable Cat Survives Hurricane, Reunites with Family
Oct 23

Oct 23 Unsinkable Cat Survives Hurricane, Reunites with Family

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animal Heroes, Animal Welfare

When Hurricane Helene blew through Burnsville, North Carolina last month, flooding forced evacuations as the Cane River swelled to 20 feet above normal. One family watched in horror as their beloved cat, Ricardo Blanco, was swept away in the waters.

No One Is Claiming Escaped Emus on Long Island
Oct 21

Oct 21 No One Is Claiming Escaped Emus on Long Island

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animal Welfare

Do three emus constitute a mob? That’s how many were rescued on a busy roadway in Selden, New York a few weeks ago.  The Strong Island Animal Rescue said in a Facebook post that they were alerted to a baby emu loose on Middle County Road, but when arrived on the scene they found not one but three juvenile emus, running around and “in danger of getting hit by cars.”

Montana Man Gets Six Months for Cloning Giant Sheep
Oct 21

Oct 21 Montana Man Gets Six Months for Cloning Giant Sheep

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animal Welfare, Conservation

A rancher in Montana illegally used tissue and testicles from wild sheep to breed “giant” hybrids, which he planned to sell to private hunting grounds in Texas and Minnesota, where they would have been slaughtered by trophy hunters.

Female Gibbons Dance to Their Own Tune
Oct 18

Oct 18 Female Gibbons Dance to Their Own Tune

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animal Welfare, Conservation

Researchers have found that female gibbons sometimes move in ways that look for all the world like dancing. Zoologist Kai Caspar and colleagues have analyzed these stylized movements in a study to be published in the journal Primates (a preprint is available here).

There's Hope for North America's Most Endangered Bird
Oct 18

Oct 18 There's Hope for North America's Most Endangered Bird

Manuela Hoelterhoff & Mike DiPaola
Animal Welfare, Conservation

Just a few years ago the population of the Florida grasshopper sparrow, a “critically imperiled” species and the most endangered bird on the continent, was hanging by the thread.

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