Skeptics Stack Exchange
Skeptics Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [zoology]

Use this tag for questions involving animal biology; evolution, ecology, physiology, behavior, genetics, and marine biology.

Zoology the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct, and how they interact with their ecosystems.

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Will a mother bird abandon her young if touched by a human?

Welcome to installment #2 of my "the science of animals falling" series of questions.... I've heard it said many times since childhood that if you are to find a baby bird on the ground which appears to have fallen from the nest you should not pick…
Monkey Tuesday
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Do cats always land on their feet?

Assuming a fall from a survivable height, will a cat always land on its feet? Has this been studied? Is there real data to back it up?
Monkey Tuesday
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Is it illegal to own a rabbit in Queensland unless you're a magician?

From all that is interesting How Bunny Rabbits Took Over Australia — And What The Government Is Doing About It In Queensland, Australia, it’s illegal to own a pet rabbit unless you’re a magician. Why? Because for the past 150 years, rabbits have …
Andrew Grimm
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Is bread bad for ducks?

This image has being going around (e.g. Facebook with a message attributed to The Friends of Bushy and Home Parks: Transcript: Please don't kill us with bread! Bread is actually a danger to us ducks and other water birds It causes Angel Wing,…
user48565
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Does every species get around a billion heartbeats on average?

I read this webcomic today: From: abominable.cc I have no idea where the author got his factoid about the billion heartbeats. But it sounds interesting. The examples I can think of (rabbits, humans, elephants, said hummingbird) seem to support the…
rumtscho
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Do Ostriches bury their heads in the sand

I have always believed that Ostriches when frightened bury their heads in the sand. Upon closer re-examination of this belief, I came to the following conclusions: Ostriches typically live in arid areas. Arid areas have dry surfaces. Dry surfaces…
funkymushroom
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Do sea otters rape baby seals to death?

Popular facebook group Nature isn’t always kind and cuddly. A study showed that sea otters will restrain baby seals and then begin copulation; sometimes drowning it during the 105-minute-long process. Even after the seal is dead, the otter…
Wertilq
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Are raptors in Australia intentionally spreading brush fires to smoke out prey?

Articles have been popping up with headlines like the Daily Mail's "Birds of prey are starting fires DELIBERATELY: Kites and Falcons are 'intentionally dropping smouldering twigs' to smoke out mice and insects in Australia". The claim is that some…
RToyo
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Does dyeing elephant tusks help discourage poachers?

Recently, I've often seen this image claiming that some people are dying elephant tusks to prevent individuals from hunting them. Has this actually been done? Is it common? Initially, this seemed a fair idea. However, implementing a staining…
Lonidard
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Are spiders unable to hurt humans, especially very small spiders?

In an episode of Peppa Pig, one of the characters says that spiders are very very small, and that they can’t hurt you. Broadcasters in Australia have avoided broadcasting the episode involved, because they’re worried that viewers will regard the…
Andrew Grimm
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Have we wiped out 60% of vertebrate populations since 1970?

According to The Guardian (reporting an analysis by WWF) humanity stands on the verge of an ecological catastrophe as: Humanity has wiped out 60% of mammals, birds, fish and reptiles since 1970, leading the world’s foremost experts to warn that the…
matt_black
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Can cats survive a fall from any height?

So here's the premise. A cat reaches its terminal velocity after around 10meters of free fall. A cat can survive a landing from a speed equal to its terminal velocity. Therefore a cat can survive a fall from any height. This seems actually quite…
user2869
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Are humans the only species to have homophobes?

Here's a quote that's being passed around: Homosexuality is found in over 450 species. Homophobia is only found in one. Which one seems unnatural now? With all the good intentions behind what's being said -- and as much as I'd really want to…
Sal Rahman
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Can trained humans run faster than all other animals on a marathon distance?

During the athletics world championship, a commentator mentioned casually during the marathon discipline that humans are faster over long distances than all animals. I'm unsure if this can be said generally. Obviously some individuals cannot run,…
Hauser
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Do mice love cheese?

It's common knowledge that mice love cheese. Do they, or is it just that they'll eat anything that's available? What's the origin of the mouse-cheese belief?
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