Latest news with #NationalZooandConservationBiologyInstitute
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Koala moms make their kids eat poo. It's for their own good.
When it's time to feed the kids, koala moms do their doody. Then the little ones snack on it. Before you poo-poo the idea, a koala mom feeding a form of excrement to their young is a life-saving precaution called papping. 'Pap is a different type of feces than their normal feces,' says Sally Bornbusch, a research associate at the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. Adult koalas eat only eucalyptus leaves, which are toxic to most animals—and baby koalas, aka joeys, can't digest them yet. When they're born, koalas are less than an inch long, and they look more like a gummy bear than a koala bear. They make their way from the birth canal to mom's pouch, where they will stay and nurse for about seven months. The babies don't have the guts, so to speak, to break down those toxic and fibrous eucalyptus leaves. But pap provides joeys with the microbes, literally passed on from mom, 'to digest complex plant fiber and probably to also start detoxifying some of those nasty compounds in eucalyptus,' Bornbusch says. Joeys instinctively know they're ready to add pap to their diet, says Chris Massaro, senior vice president and chief zoological officer at ZooTampa at Lowry Park, in Florida, who helped welcome koala baby Sydney in 2019. Pap is 'a mushy substance that's produced in the cecum,' a part of the digestive tract beginning at the large intestine, he says. That mushiness makes it different in appearance from regular feces, which is pellet-like. At around 5 to 6 months old, when they're still in the pouch, the joey is ready and starts initiating pap production. Like urine and feces, pap comes out of the mother koala's cloaca, a multipurpose opening for the urogenital and digestive tracts, as captured on film recently in National Geographic's new Underdogs series. 'They joey will kind of hang down and stimulate down by the cloaca to get this pap out,' Massaro says. In short, koala moms are the world's cutest soft-serve machines. Within a few weeks, joeys start to experiment with eating leaves on their own, but will continue to nurse until they're one year old. Bornbusch compares pap to the cecotropes consumed by both adult and baby rabbits, which allows them 'to get a second crack at nutrition from their diet that potentially was missed during the first run at digestion,' says Erin Kendrick, clinical nutritionist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute. Many animals, including guinea pigs, capybaras, and naked mole rats all produce and eat cecotropes. 'They get sick and sometimes even die if they don't eat the soft feces,' Bornbusch says. 'It's part of their natural ecology.' Bornbusch and Kendrick's 2024 paper in the journal Animal Behaviour notes there are more than 150 species that consume their own regular fecal matter 'at some point in their lives for nutritional reasons,' Bornbusch says, including juvenile animals, such as ostriches, iguanas, and African elephants. Adult animals who routinely order their meal 'to go' include western lowland gorillas, leopard tortoises, and of course dung beetles, whose common name comes from their propensity to eat other species' feces, which provides them with important nutrients and, remarkably, helps with waste management and keeping flying populations under control. Thankfully, there are always some folks that will go for seconds. Underdogs will premiere on National Geographic June 15th and stream the next day on Disney+ and Hulu. Please check local listings.
National Geographic
6 days ago
- Health
- National Geographic
Koala moms make their kids eat poo. It's for their own good.
An adult koala eats a eucalyptus leaf. Joeys can't break down the toxic, fibrous plants on their own yet. Photograph By David Marks/National Geographic When it's time to feed the kids, koala moms do their doody. Then the little ones snack on it. Before you poo-poo the idea, a koala mom feeding a form of excrement to their young is a life-saving precaution called papping. 'Pap is a different type of feces than their normal feces,' says Sally Bornbusch, a research associate at the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. Adult koalas eat only eucalyptus leaves, which are toxic to most animals—and baby koalas, aka joeys, can't digest them yet. When they're born, koalas are less than an inch long, and they look more like a gummy bear than a koala bear. They make their way from the birth canal to mom's pouch, where they will stay and nurse for about seven months. The babies don't have the guts, so to speak, to break down those toxic and fibrous eucalyptus leaves. But pap provides joeys with the microbes, literally passed on from mom, 'to digest complex plant fiber and probably to also start detoxifying some of those nasty compounds in eucalyptus,' Bornbusch says. Joeys instinctively know they're ready to add pap to their diet, says Chris Massaro, senior vice president and chief zoological officer at ZooTampa at Lowry Park, in Florida, who helped welcome koala baby Sydney in 2019. Pap is 'a mushy substance that's produced in the cecum,' a part of the digestive tract beginning at the large intestine, he says. That mushiness makes it different in appearance from regular feces, which is pellet-like. At around 5 to 6 months old, when they're still in the pouch, the joey is ready and starts initiating pap production. Like urine and feces, pap comes out of the mother koala's cloaca, a multipurpose opening for the urogenital and digestive tracts, as captured on film recently in National Geographic's new Underdogs series. 'They joey will kind of hang down and stimulate down by the cloaca to get this pap out,' Massaro says. In short, koala moms are the world's cutest soft-serve machines. Within a few weeks, joeys start to experiment with eating leaves on their own, but will continue to nurse until they're one year old. Have your poo and eat it too Bornbusch compares pap to the cecotropes consumed by both adult and baby rabbits, which allows them 'to get a second crack at nutrition from their diet that potentially was missed during the first run at digestion,' says Erin Kendrick, clinical nutritionist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute. Many animals, including guinea pigs, capybaras, and naked mole rats all produce and eat cecotropes. 'They get sick and sometimes even die if they don't eat the soft feces,' Bornbusch says. 'It's part of their natural ecology.' Bornbusch and Kendrick's 2024 paper in the journal Animal Behaviour notes there are more than 150 species that consume their own regular fecal matter 'at some point in their lives for nutritional reasons,' Bornbusch says, including juvenile animals, such as ostriches, iguanas, and African elephants. Adult animals who routinely order their meal 'to go' include western lowland gorillas, leopard tortoises, and of course dung beetles, whose common name comes from their propensity to eat other species' feces, which provides them with important nutrients and, remarkably, helps with waste management and keeping flying populations under control. Thankfully, there are always some folks that will go for seconds. Underdogs will premiere on National Geographic June 15th and stream the next day on Disney+ and Hulu. Please check local listings.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Yahoo
Spring's annual hummingbird migration is reaching Michigan. Where the tiny birds are now
The annual migration of hummingbirds has reached Michigan, according to bird spotters in the Midwest. The most common Michigan hummingbird, the ruby throat hummingbird, has been spotted in Michigan's Lower Peninsula. "Research indicates a hummingbird can travel as much as 23 miles in one day. However, during migration as they cross the Gulf of Mexico they may cover up to 500 miles at a time. Their average speed in direct flight is in the range of 20-30mph, and up to three times that fast during courtship dives," Hummingbird Central's website says about the migration. The spring 2025 hummingbird migration season has been tracked northward by Hummingbird Central's digital map. Here's what to know. Ruby throated hummingbirds have been spotted arriving north in Michigan for the season, in the southern part of the state's Lower Peninsula, Hummingbird Central's 2025 Hummingbird Spring Migration Map shows. The map is updated as of April 22, 2025. Hummingbirds are tiny birds with long bills and small wings, the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute explained. Hummingbirds have various colored feathers, with male birds typically featuring brighter colors. More: A 17-year cicada brood is set to emerge. Will Michigan hear the big-eyed insects? Hummingbirds typically migrate north in the late winter and spring after spending their winters in parts of Central America or Mexico, Hummingbird Central said. According to there are six different hummingbird species you may spot in Michigan, although most are rare visitors. More: Want to encourage pollinators to visit your garden? How you can attract Michigan's bees The most common is the ruby throated hummingbird. Named for the iridescent orange-red throat patch of the male. Females are white-throated. Both sexes exhibit a metallic-green hue on the upperparts and pale-gray, faintly scalloped underparts. Males are slightly smaller than females and have forked black tales. Rufous hummingbirds generally live west of the Rocky Mountains, but sometimes are seen in Michigan. Anna's hummingbird is a stocky little hummingbird with green and gray-brown plumage. The male has a bright-pink iridescent head and throat. Its call is scratchy and metallic-sounding. White-eared hummingbird is named for the white stripe that extends over the ears towards the neck on either side. Broad-billed hummingbird is named for its broad bill. It is similar in appearance to the white-eared hummingbird. Males are bright green, with a blue throat patch and a black-tipped red bill. Females are lime-green above and gray-brown below with a white eye stripe. Mexican Violetear. They are uncommon visitors to the southern United States. Vagrants make rare appearances across the continent, as far north as Canada, and have been occasionally spotted in Michigan. Contact Jenna Prestininzi: jprestininzi@ This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Spring's hummingbird migration reaches Michigan. Where to find them
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Yahoo
When do hummingbirds come to NJ? Check out this migration tracker
Spring is in the air, and for bird lovers across New Jersey, that means one thing: the return of the dazzling hummingbird. But when exactly will these tiny travelers arrive in our backyards? Well, thanks to an interactive map from Hummingbird Central, we can now follow their journey north in real-time. It's like watching a real-life nature documentary unfold on your screen, and the anticipation is building as we see them inch closer to the Garden State. Here's what to know: Hummingbirds are tiny birds with long bills and small wings, per the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. Hummingbirds have various colored feathers, with male birds typically featuring brighter colors. Hummingbird Central offers the chance to track the migration path of hummingbirds across North America with the 2025 Hummingbird Spring Migration Map. The map is currently updated as of March 11, 2025. Hummingbirds typically migrate north in the late winter and spring after spending their winters in parts of Central America or Mexico, per Hummingbird Central. Southern Living, a home and garden website, spoke with hummingbird feeder experts and tested 10 popular feeders for two months. Here's what they found: Best overall: Aspects HummZinger HighView Hummingbird Feeder Best budget: First Nature Hummingbird Feeder Best glass: Bolite Hummingbird Feeder Best decorative: Grateful Gnome Large Blue Egg Hummingbird Feeder Best antique-style: Perky-Pet Antique Bottle Glass Hummingbird Feeder Best metal: Perky-Pet Elegant Copper Hummingbird Feeder Best window: Kingsyard Window Hummingbird Feeder Best handheld: Zummr Hummingbird Ring Feeder Best large: More Birds Big Gulp Hummingbird Feeder Easiest to clean: Perky-Pet Top-Fill Pinch-Waist Glass Hummingbird Feeder Here's how to make hummingbird nectar, according to Audubon magazine: Materials: 1/4 cup refined white sugar 1 cup boiling water bowl spoon Steps: Mix sugar and boiling water until sugar is dissolved. Cool and fill feeder. Hang up your feeder outside and wait for the hummingbirds to come. Jenna Prestininzi from the Detroit Free Press contrbuted to this story. This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Hummingbird migration map 2025: When will they arrive in New Jersey?
Bloomberg
19-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Bloomberg
The David Rubenstein Show: Brandie Smith
Brandie Smith is the John and Adrienne Mars Director of the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. In an episode of "The David Rubenstein Show: Peer to Peer Conversations," she talks about the history of the giant pandas first arriving in the United States in the early 1970s as a state gift from China, the National Zoo's wider conservation efforts, and what it's like to have the popular pandas back in the US. This interview was recorded January 13 in Washington DC. (Source: Bloomberg)
