Discvr Blog

A red-tailed hawk made a close pass at Shadow on Big Bear’s Lookout Snag. 🦅

Friends of Big Bear Valley’s Cam 2 captured the September 22 encounter, and its observers logged the hawk’s strafing pass while Shadow occupied the perch. Two raptors, one close encounter, and a question a single image can’t answer.

Friend or foe? The hawk’s motive remains unknown. There’s no confirmed battle or winner here, but the official timeline adds some interesting context. Check the comments below. ⬇️

Fat Bear Week voting runs today from noon to 9 p.m. ET. 🐻

The bracket is open, and every matchup asks the same deceptively simple question: which Katmai brown bear best represents a summer spent preparing for winter?

Cast your vote, then tell us which bear earned your pick.


Check comments for the full story ⬇️

Katmai Conservancy’s announcement described the turnout as the largest for an opening day in the event’s history. 😱🤯🐻

Fat Bear Week 2026 adds voting time after opening-day overload Fat Bear Week 2026 extended its opening matchups after record turnout overloaded the polls. Here’s what changed and how to vote.

Fat Bear Week had its biggest opening day ever, and the voting system struggled to keep up. 🐻

Explore.org said its poll provider throttled simultaneous viewers after record Day 1 turnout caused slow loads and access problems. Votes that went through still counted, and opening-round voting was extended into September 23.

The bears are ready for winter. Apparently, the internet needed to bulk up too.


Check comments for the full story ⬇️

Four belugas transferred out of Marineland have now died, and concern hangs over the remaining 26. 🐋

Peekachu, Rain and Osiris died after moving to Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium. Jelly Bean died after arriving at Oceanogràfic in Spain. Causes remain under investigation, while the facilities described feeding difficulties and serious health vulnerabilities.

A marine-mammal scientist told CBC the others are on a “death watch,” but no investigation has established that transport caused any of the deaths.


Check comments for the full story ⬇️

Small holes in your lawn may mean a skunk is working the night shift. 🦨

Skunks forage for grubs, insects, mice and other small prey. Their digging can leave shallow holes, but the same behavior may reduce pests hiding beneath the soil.

Give a passing skunk room and it will usually move on.

Check comments for the full story ⬇️

Three red panda cubs are giving the Smithsonian’s conservation program a reason to celebrate. 🐾

Sequoia and Mow Mow welcomed a male and female on May 29, while Keahi and Rocket added a female on June 11. All three were doing well as of September 19, and their different personalities were already emerging: one bold singleton and two shy twins that rarely separate.

Each birth carries genetic diversity forward for an endangered species with fewer than 10,000 animals believed to remain in the wild.


Check comments for the full story ⬇️

Kaydee keeps inching closer to Shadow—and this perch made the change hard to miss. 🦅

On September 21, cameras caught her moving along the Lookout Snag until the two sat unusually close. The moment adds to a pattern of shared perches, vocals and nest visits, but one close seat alone cannot prove a settled pair bond.

For now, the story is in the shrinking space between them.



Check comments for the full story ⬇️

Eight moves in 17 months reshaped how the Endangered Species Act is applied. 🦅

The sequence runs from an April 2025 proposal to remove habitat modification from the regulatory meaning of “harm,” through 2026 rules on threatened species and critical habitat, a Gulf oil-and-gas exemption, and a White House order reviewing federal protection for gray and Mexican wolves.

The administration says the changes restore statutory limits and reduce regulatory burdens. States and conservation groups are challenging key actions, so the legal outcome remains unsettled.


Check comments for the full story ⬇️