Albuquerque police stumbled into an unlikely surprise while chasing down the source of gunfire in Albuquerque, New Mexico last month. They followed the sound of shooting to a mobile home, where they found the culprit—as well as a four-month-old baby tiger. The tiger, which had likely been obtained illegally as part of the black-market pet [...]

When a huge fire broke out at The Dog Resort, a doggy daycare facility in Seattle, this month, staff members didn’t think they’d be able to get all the dogs out in time.  A dryer had caught flame, and thick gray smoke poured through the building. It was hard to see inside, let alone breathe. [...]

Last February, Leland Nisky, a professional climbing guide, was nearing the top of The Ribbon, a 600-foot ice climb in Ouray, Colorado. As he swung an ax into the ice near the top of the climb, a massive slough avalanche came surging out of nowhere, swamping him in a deluge of snow. One minute he [...]

In Taiwan, a local population of wild pangolins—one of the world’s most endangered animals—is recovering a little too well. In most places in Southeast Asia, pangolin numbers are critically low after decades of hunting and poaching. (Prized for their unique scaly skin, the anteater-like creatures are the most-trafficked mammal on earth.) But near the Taipei [...]

After weeks of waiting, visitors to Yosemite National Park were treated to a fiery spectacle this weekend. When the conditions in California’s Yosemite Valley are just right, the sun rises behind Horsetail Falls, one of the park’s marquee cascades. When that happens, the falls light up as if on fire.  This “firefall” is a stunning [...]

You might think the name “giant phantom jellyfish” is a little dramatic, but you’ve never come face to face with a Stygiomedusa gigantea. Just recently, a group of international scientists with the Viking Expedition Team became the first to nab photographic evidence of the elusive creature — and prove that it definitely lives up to [...]

Think getting your pet to the vet is a pain? Now imagine if Fido had four-inch claws and weighed as much as a horse. That’s the situation Canada’s Quebec Aquarium staff found themselves in when they had to take their polar bear to the vet this past December. The bear, a four-year-old named Kinuk, had [...]

James York took a trip to the Cataloochee Trail in the Smokies, set up his equipment along the side of the road and began shooting photos. That’s when a bull elk made its way down the road, past the designated “safe” area and headed straight toward him.  York remained still, kept his face and head [...]

Hiking with your headphones on is all fine and good, but new research suggests that blocking out the birdsong might be doing your health a disservice. According to a recent study published in the journal Scientific Reports, birding — not just walking or hiking — might be the secret to reducing stress, alleviating depression and [...]

Over the past few years, millions of people have either moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, or visited to hike and ride the region’s world-class trails. But now the Great Salt Lake is drying up, releasing chemicals so toxic that it may soon be unsafe to hike or bike at all.  The Great Salt Lake [...]