January’s Wildest: 7 Amazing Animals That Stole the Headlines!

The internet is an endless museum of irresistibly adorable animals content. In fact, not only can you be enthralled by the tons of cute movies and photos shared every day, but you can also learn about the latest and most exciting scientific advancements in the animals state.

Luckily, January saw multiple fascinating testimonies about the natural world around us. From unlikely interspecies friendships that saved lives to studies proving a link between sleep deprivation and reproduction, we’ve had quite the eventful month when it comes to animals-related information.

Bored Panda has selected seven delightful animals encounters that have generated media interest during the first month of 2019.

#1 Deer Animals Fawn Rescued From Drowning

It seemed like something terrible was about to happen when a video of a dark animals grabbing a fawn between its teeth became popular on X, the latest version of Twitter.

However, consideration shortly shifts to astonishment when you recognise that the wicked creature is not a desirous alligator, but a fearless ebony Labrador retriever who retrieves the little fawn from drowning.

The individual who intercommunicated the videotape on the sociable media platform remarked: “It created my daytime.”

After the fine feat, the dog’s owner behind the camera can be heard praising him for saving the little deer’s life, as the frightened little fawn continued to bleat.

#2 first IVF rhino pregnancy offers hope for nearly extinct animals

With just two females in total, the northern white rhino is considered the world’s most endangered species. But this could make way for IVF.

Scientists and conservationists have successfully transferred an embryo to a southern white rhino surrogate mother, a step forward that opens the door to northern white rhino embryo transfer in the future.

“The embryo transfer procedure is widely known for its work on humans and domestic animals such as horses and cows, but it has not yet been tested on rhinos. The BioRescue project led by Thomas Hildebrandt. The BioRescue project led by Thomas Hildebrandt leader at the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Natural World Studies, told The Telegraph.

“It took a few years to get it right, and we are amazed that we have evidence that this method works perfectly.”

Since the 1960s, the northern white rhino population has declined from 2,000 to just a few females today – mother and daughter Najin and Fatu – who are protected by Armed security on duty at the Ol Pejeta Reserve, which is next to Mount Kenya.

This sharp decline in numbers can be explained by several factors, including poaching (illegal trafficking and killing of wild animals), habitat loss and civil war.

#3 An unusual(animals) traveller At a New Zealand airport

On the evening of January 12, an Air Chathams pilot at Wellington Airport in New Zealand spotted a baby blue penguin (also called a kororā) on the airport runway minutes before takeoff.

“The pilot and passengers waited patiently as the team of Wellington Airport workers rushed to pick up and assist the traveller,” the airport announced in an Instagram post.

“We have conducted some penguin testing on our fences to keep our flippered friends out of trouble in the future,” the post announced.

The lost animals, just six weeks old, was taken to Wellington Zoo for veterinary care in a section of the zoo known as “The Nest.”

According to airport wildlife officer Jack Howarth, the penguin was in an “unimpressed mood,” which he attributes to the runway sensors that scan 50 levels.

“There are no reports of a penguin visiting anything like this before,” he stated. “It’s an extremely rare event.”

In a video shared via Wellington Zoo showing the penguin being cared for, staff members said the little tourist “probably got lost on the way home.”

#4 The First Sighting of a Baby Great White SharkWildlife (animals)

filmmaker Carlos Gauna and UC Riverside biology PhD student Phillip Sternes were scanning the waters for sharks near Santa Barbara on California’s central coast when they spotted a pet shark unlike any they’d ever seen before, the University of California shared in an official press release on January 29.

Super whites, called great whites by scientists, are grey on top and white on the bottom. However, the five-foot-long type of shark seen in the drone camera viewfinder was naturally white.

After zooming in on the footage, the duo realized the predator’s white coat was shedding from its body as it swam, leading them to agree that they had, for the first time, seen a great white shark and that the fearless creature was shedding its embryonic coat.

“The time during which high-quality white sharks give birth is one of the wonders of shark generation. “No one has been able to pinpoint exactly where they are born, nor have we ever seen a newborn baby shark alive,” Gauna said of the interesting find.

“Dead great white sharks have been found inside deceased pregnant mothers, but nothing like this.”

In the weeks leading up to the unprecedented sighting, the filmmaker had noted the presence of great white sharks, likely pregnant, at this location, seeming to confirm that he saw A young shark pup of a vulnerable species that may only be a few hours or a day old.

#5 Screech Owl(animals) Captured Correctly From Connecticut Home

A Connecticut family’s game night seemed a little exclusive during the final days of January, as the family was joined by an unexpected guest: an owl perched on a shelf between a Battleship game and Kidz Cardz.

After the screech owl was found, West Hartford police contacted an animals control officer and a team of workers from an area called Hope Rehabilitation Center to return the wayward bird to its natural habitat.

Christine Cummings, president of a place called Hope, believes the owl, presumed to be a male based on its size, found its way into the basement of the home through an exposed chimney that sparked either a basement fire or a fire.

According to Cummings, the bird was very hungry and thirsty upon arrival. Fortunately, it escaped unharmed. It is not known how long it was held captive there.

The eastern screech owl was later taken to an aviary to be prepared for release onto the property.

“Once the owl was skillfully trapped, the rescue team successfully rehabilitated it. At the time of this posting, the owl is in exceptional condition and is expected to be released soon,” West Hartford police stated in a Facebook post.

#6 Tiny male marsupials trade sleep for sex

Scientists have recently discovered that a mouse-sized species of male marsupials in Australia, called antechinus, is willing to sacrifice hours of sleep for reproductive activities. What’s better, the tiny male antechinus dies once their intense mating season is over.

The study is the first to reveal direct evidence of such a “high” sleep limit in any land mammal, CNN stated.

“Humans and elephants are examples of species that live a long time and do not face urgent pressures to reproduce quickly. They have the luxury of being able to sleep as much as (as) they want (and) need each day,” Erika Zaid, lead author of the study, told the news outlet.

However, the story changes in this species of marsupial, which lives for eleven months and can only reproduce once in its life.

This stress leads them to compete with other males to reproduce with as many females as possible before dying shortly after their first (and last) mating season.

Males sleep 3 hours less per night, every night, for three weeks (roughly the length of the mating period) compared to females, who can reproduce more than once, the statistics showed.

Still, the difference between females and males was no longer large, Zaid explained, which could also suggest that females are also sleep-deprived due to harassment by males during the mating period.

#7 Monkey on the run in Scotland

On January 28, a Japanese macaque, also known as a snow monkey, escaped from the Cairngorm National Park in Scotland. Zookeepers responded by deploying thermal imaging drones to find the elusive wild animals.

The macaque’s escape was first noticed by locals, who spotted it in a garden in the nearby village of Kincraig.

After its escape, the monkey, known as Honshu, was seen stealing from bird feeders and running around the small village of Kingussie in Scotland, the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland said.

“It’s just the most surreal thing. I’ve seen snow monkeys in the wild, but you don’t expect to see them in your garden in the Highlands,” Carl Nagle, who spotted the seven-year-old primate from his patio door, told The Independent.

After a five-day search, the wayward monkey was finally recaptured the previous day (February 1) after a drone team fired a tranquiliser at it, the BBC reported.

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