Led recognition of “metric tons” of fish as millions of sentient lives UNIVERSITY PARK, Pennsylvania––The biggest news in the watery world of fisheries in early October 2019 was the appearance of the 447-foot Margiris, reputedly the world’s second-largest trawler, through the mists of the English Channel just 14 miles off Brighton, East Sussex. “For […]
Dog brain study refutes every major claim of pit bull advocacy
Looking at normal dogs’ brains shows how “fighting breed” brains differ BOSTON, POMONA––There may already be weeping and gnashing of teeth among pit bull advocates, and perhaps significant fundraising underway to trump up rebuttals, too, following the September 2, 2019 Journal of Neuroscience publication of “Significant neuroanatomical variation among domestic dog breeds,” by Harvard […]
“Send Ndume back to Cinci!” says gorilla case Solomon
“Enough poop––move him or lose him,” judge tells Gorilla Foundation SAN FRANCISCO––The Gorilla Foundation, of Woodside, California, ain’t said @#$%, either to mass media or through social media, since Judge Richard Seeborg of the U.S. District Court of Northern California, who was asked to play Solomon between claimants to Ndume the feces-flinging silverback gorilla, […]
Four people who changed how humans see animals
Charlie Russell, Mary T. Hoffman, Aubrey Manning, & Dorothy Cheney Russell made “Spirit Bears” famous Canadian bear researcher and author Charlie Russell, 76, died on May 7, 2018 in Calgary, Alberta, from complications after surgery. Born in Pincher Creek, Alberta, where his parents Andy and Kay Russell were hunting outfitters and guides, Charlie Russell […]
“Meat-eating is never neutral”: Mary Midgely, 99
Author of Animals & Why They Matter NEWCASTLE ON TYNE, United Kingdom––“The symbolism of meat-eating is never neutral,” wrote Mary Midgely on page 27 of her 1983 opus Animals & Why They Matter. “To himself,” Midgely observed, “the meat-eater seems to be eating life. To the vegetarian, he seems to be eating death. There […]
The Tangled Tree: A Radical New History of Life
by David Quammen Simon & Schuster 461 pages, $30.00 hardcover. Reviewed by Merritt Clifton At a glance, The Tangled Tree: A Radical New History of Life, by veteran science writer and historian David Quammen, might seem to most ANIMALS 24-7 readers far removed from our usual topics of animal use, abuse, and consumption; dog attacks; […]
Death of Koko, 46, raises question what will become of her rejected mate Ndume?
Koko was among the last great apes used in still controversial 1970s language research WOODSIDE, California––With Koko deceased, what now will become of Ndume, 37, the last and least famous of the three gorillas who once shared the Gorilla Foundation sanctuary and primate language research laboratory in the Santa Cruz Mountains, south of San […]
Are feminists right to resist comparison with the females of other species?
by Karen Davis, PhD., president of United Poultry Concerns A woman employed on a chicken “breeder” farm in Maryland wrote a letter once to the local newspaper berating the defenders of chickens for trying to make her lose her job, threatening her ability to support herself and her daughter. For her, “breeder” hens were “mean” birds who […]
Beyond sentience: will Brexit halt live animal exports from the U.K.?
Minister for Agriculture & Rural Affairs confirms her government is “considering options to control live animal exports” LONDON, U.K.––British cabinet ministers, after the exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union, called “Brexit” for short, “must have regard to the welfare needs of animals as sentient beings in formulating and implementing government policy,” according to draft […]
Naming Nature: The clash between instinct & science
by Carol Kaesuk Yoon W.W. Norton & Co. (500 5th Ave., New York, NY 10110), 2009. 344 pages, hardcover. $27.95. Reviewed by Merritt Clifton Though you may never have heard of either “taxonomy” or “cladistics,” the two central concepts in Carol Kaesuk Yoon’s 2009 opus Naming Nature, it remains a fascinating read for […]