On April 23, 2025, the Philadelphia Zoo introduced four female hatchlings of the critically endangered Western Santa Cruz Galápagos tortoises to the public. The new arrivals were named Dorothy, Rose, Blanche, and Sophia — after characters from the iconic television series The Golden Girls. They are the first of their kind to be born at the zoo in its 150-year history. Prior to this, there were only 44 Western Santa Cruz tortoises in US zoos, including three at Philadelphia.
Read news articleSharks have always been considered silent swimmers. Unlike most fish, these top ocean predators lack sound-producing organs. But recent research suggests this might not be true for all sharks. At least one species produces noise, challenging our understanding of these stealthy hunters.
Read news articleFast fashion has made clothing cheaper than ever, but at a high environmental cost. Earth.org estimates that about 92 million tons of unwanted clothing end up in landfills every year. That is the equivalent of a garbage truck full of clothes being dumped every second. Thomas Harter and his team at Austria's Graz University of Technology hope to help reduce this waste by using discarded clothes to create stronger packaging material.
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