How smart are turtles? Everything we know about their intelligence is discussed in this article. Turtles are much different than humans. They spend a lot of time in the water,… Read More
By Kristen Holder 4 months ago
Kristen Holder is a writer at A-Z Animals primarily covering topics related to history, travel, pets, and obscure scientific issues. Kristen has been writing professionally for 3 years, and she holds a Bachelor's Degree from the University of California, Riverside, which she obtained in 2009.
After living in California, Washington, and Arizona, she is now a permanent resident of Iowa. Kristen loves to dote on her 3 cats, and she spends her free time coming up with adventures that allow her to explore her new home.
How smart are turtles? Everything we know about their intelligence is discussed in this article. Turtles are much different than humans. They spend a lot of time in the water,… Read More
By Kristen Holder 4 months ago
Tiger ownership is a farfetched proposition for most people. Owning a tiger breaks the law in most places, and tigers themselves are not domesticated which makes them dangerous. However, this… Read More
By Kristen Holder 4 months ago
Key Points: What sets king cobras apart from other snakes in mental capability is their ability to hunt in a variety of different ways using situation-specific tactics, rather than be… Read More
By Kristen Holder 5 months ago
Key Points Rough green snakes are their striking green color so that they blend into their natural environment. Garter snakes usually are 2-3 feet long, though the longest garter snake… Read More
By Kristen Holder 5 months ago
The world seems divided into cat and dog lovers, but what if you could have the best of both worlds? We’ll review 10 dogs that look so much like cats… Read More
By Kristen Holder 5 months ago
Anything that eats and drinks must produce waste. Since ants eat, they must pass something. So, do ants poop? Yes, ants poop. They have an excretory system that allows them… Read More
By Kristen Holder 5 months ago
Coachwhip snakes and cottonmouths have overlapping ranges, so understanding their differences is vital to proper identification. While they try to flee from humans, both will stand their ground if they… Read More
By Kristen Holder 5 months ago
Macaws are New World parrots which means their natural ranges are in the Americas. Specifically, macaws are found in the Caribbean as well as in Central and South America. Blue… Read More
By Kristen Holder 5 months ago
Rattlesnakes have that characteristic rattle on the ends of their tails, and coachwhip snakes are crosshatched like old leather worked whips. The way they get their name is different, so… Read More
By Kristen Holder 6 months ago
Fitting a snake in a tank doesn’t mean that a snake that is the length of the tank is capable of living in your setup. We’re going to analyze 6… Read More
By Kristen Holder 6 months ago
Domesticated cats (Felis catus) are some of the most popular pets on the planet. While researchers previously believed that the ancient Egyptians domesticated the first cats, studies show cats started… Read More
By Kristen Holder 6 months ago
Garter snakes are named for their resemblance to the garter belt, a narrow band of fabric used to hold up stockings on the leg. Copperheads get their common name from… Read More
By Kristen Holder 6 months ago
Betta fish, or Siamese fighting fish, are very popular aquatic pets. These fish come in a wide variety of colors and typically have beautiful, colorful dorsal and caudal fins. Although… Read More
By Kristen Holder 7 months ago
Some snakes don’t bite people…usually. It’s important to snake breeders that the snakes they propagate have easy-going temperaments. The most docile snakes are usually bred for those characteristics, just like… Read More
By Kristen Holder 7 months ago
Mammals have existed for 170-225 million years and some ancient mammals that lived alongside dinosaurs were called mammaliaforms. The defining differences between the terms are fuzzy so we’re including examples… Read More
By Kristen Holder 7 months ago
Snakes are often portrayed as aggressive, but almost all snakes retreat at the sight of humans. They’ll only attack if they’re cornered or surprised. However, if this attack comes from… Read More
By Kristen Holder 8 months ago
Georgia is a hotbed for snakes because of its warm and humid climate. There are approximately 46 species of snakes in Georgia, and 10 of them are black snakes that… Read More
By Kristen Holder 8 months ago
Keep in mind that most snakes in Virginia, even if they’re venomous, are not aggressive. The chances that you’ll be able to spot the 8 black snakes in Virginia on… Read More
By Kristen Holder 8 months ago
Traveling to bodies of water for relaxation and to take in the sights is a common recreational goal. Most of these bodies of water play host to entire ecosystems full… Read More
By Kristen Holder 8 months ago
With hundreds of different kinds of sharks in our oceans, it’s no surprise that there’s a diversity in reproduction methods among the different species. Most other fish lay eggs, so… Read More
By Kristen Holder 8 months ago
While not every snake that gets aggressive is deadly, venomous snakes can be some of the most aggressive. It's important to remember that no matter how aggressive a snake is,… Read More
By Kristen Holder 8 months ago
Most animal species last a few million years before going extinct but there are always exceptions called living fossils. Some of these animals have been around for hundreds of millions… Read More
By Kristen Holder 8 months ago
Since our planet’s living conditions changed throughout existence, living animals adapted to this change or went extinct. Some animals have managed to adapt for millions of years and still exist… Read More
By Kristen Holder 8 months ago
Can you keep a great white shark in an aquarium? Has anyone tried? We’ll go over a comprehensive history of great whites in aquariums even though the longest stay was… Read More
By Kristen Holder 8 months ago
Most of us associate a love of sweets with mammals. However, birds love a sugary treat as well as it provides a quick energy boost during their travels. A food… Read More
By Kristen Holder 11 months ago
Dr. Carl Sagan once stated that the absence of evidence does not mean that evidence is absent. Thought processes like this give hope to people seeking to find things that… Read More
By Kristen Holder 12 months ago
Goldfish (Carassius auratus) are cheap and proliferous which means that most people in the United States will own one at one point in their lives. Unfortunately, most people don’t know… Read More
By Kristen Holder 12 months ago
Platypuses (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) are endemic Australian animals that are icons of the continent. They are often depicted as cute animals on merchandise like stuffed animals or posters, but are they… Read More
By Kristen Holder 12 months ago
In August 2023, devastating fires affected the island of Maui in Hawaii. Over 100 people died as a direct result of the blaze that swept through Lahaina on August 8.… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
Taylor Swift is a proud cat mom in her 30s who’s vocal about how much her feline clan means to her. She also reached billionaire status in 2023 and has… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
Not many animals can recognize their reflections in a mirror. Even humans don’t gain the ability to recognize themselves in reflections until they’re over a year old. Gorillas, dolphins, and… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
About eighteen different species of hummingbirds live in the United States, and lots of Americans look forward to seeing these little birds in their backyards. Are bird enthusiasts technically dinosaur… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
Foodies and hunters know that there are many types of consumable meat outside of what’s normally available at the supermarket. Animals like pigeons, bears, kangaroos, alligators, and others all qualify… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
In 1999, a clay Aztec death whistle was discovered in a grave in the Ehecatl-Quetzalcoatl Temple in the Tlatelolco archaeological site in Mexico City. A skeleton missing its head had… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
Crab-like animals have evolved into existence at least five unrelated times. It’s an intriguing enough phenomenon that scientists call it carcinization. Here’s why animals keep evolving into crabs, discussed in… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
People love to eat seafood, and various crab species are local specials around the world. Coconut crabs are famous for being huge, but are they edible? Can humans eat coconut… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
The Van Meter Visitor is a mysterious Iowan cryptid whose story began in the first decade of the twentieth century. Its legend endures today, and sightings or hoaxes still occur… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
Salmon undergo huge migrations to the sea as juveniles and back up into their home streams to spawn at the end of their lives. As they travel, their bodies change.… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
There are 4 migratory flyways for birds running north to south across North America. One of these flyways runs up the length of the East Coast. What is the Atlantic… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
North America has four migratory bird flyways, one running down the continent's middle. These flyways are generally used to connect birds with their preferred northern nesting grounds and their southerly… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
A lot of birds follow weather conditions that are ideal for their survival, so they travel south in the Fall and head back north in the Spring. As they do… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
Antarctica is a polar continent at the bottom of the planet in the Southern Hemisphere. It is the coldest and driest continent on Earth, and its ice sheet is so… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
The area that now makes up the State of New Jersey has a deep history going back thousands of years. Since the arrival of colonizers almost half a century ago,… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
The Mongolian death worm is an elusive desert cryptid. It has captured the fascination of locals and the international community to the point that the Mongolian government has sponsored expeditions… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
Most people know that animals that evolved in the world’s oceans eventually became land animals, but did you know that some land animals evolved back into species that live in… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
Sculptures are 3-dimensional pieces of art viewed much differently than flat pieces like paintings. Throughout history, they’ve held a prominent role in public places and private collections, and as time… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
Since the dawn of human consciousness, reverence has been shown to the dead members of many societies. As a result, many burial places exist as archaeological sites or active cemeteries.… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
Any city or suburban dweller will inevitably come in visual contact with a poorly camouflaged cell tower. These conspicuous towers come in many shapes and sizes, but they are sometimes… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
Sky islands refer to mountains tall enough to have a completely different ecosystem at higher elevations than the surrounding lowlands. The surrounding lowlands are almost always desert environments that contrast… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago
Albino alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) are like normal green alligators except that they’re white. They behave the same, eat the same foods, and live in the same territories around the southeastern… Read More
By Kristen Holder 1 year ago