An aquarium near Asheville, N.C., posted updates for weeks after saying in February that Charlotte, a round stingray, was pregnant. The news drew international headlines — but the facility now says the ray is sick, not pregnant. In this image from an April video update, the ray has a noticeable bulge on her back. Aquarium & Shark Lab by Team ECCO / Screenshot by NPR hide caption
Members of the Life Guards, a division of the Household Cavalry in London, on June 8, 2024. Three military horses have been recovered after bolting through central London on Monday morning. Benjamin Cremel/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Reconstruction of a Lokiceratops rangiformis being surprised by a crocodilian in the 78-million-year-old swamps that would have existed in what is now northern Montana. Andrey Atuchin/Museum of Evolution hide caption
This photo shows a white buffalo calf born on June 4, 2024, in the Lamar Valley in Yellowstone National Park, a spiritually significant event for many Native American tribes. Jordan Creech/via AP hide caption
Cows graze in a field in Luncavita, Romania, in this file photo. Denmark will impose cattle farmers with a tax on livestock carbon dioxide emissions starting in 2030, claiming it will be the first country to do so in a move to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from each of its cows. Vadim Ghirda/AP hide caption
K-9 Maggie returns to her handler, Special Agent Lindsey Bates, during a demonstration of an explosives search following a graduation ceremony for Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Special Agent Canine Handlers and their dogs at the ATF training facility in Front Royal, Va., on June 21. Nathan Howard/for NPR hide caption
Individually, periodical cicadas aren’t especially noisy, but when they cluster, their collective song can get as loud as a gas-powered lawnmower. Professor Kasey Fowler-Finn holds one in St. Louis last month. Zach Dyer/KFF Health News hide caption
The 'i'iwi is one of Hawaii's honeycreepers, forest birds that are found nowhere else. There were once more than 50 species. Now, only 17 remain. Ryan Kellman/NPR hide caption
Ahmad Jumaa, Fathi Jumaa's son, holds parrots from their zoo in Rafah. Anas Baba for NPR hide caption
Suppressing mosquitoes could give birds like the kiwikiu a chance to survive. “There is no place safe for them, so we have to make that place safe again,” says Chris Warren of Haleakalā National Park. “It’s the only option.”
Robby Kohley/DLNR/MFBRP
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This adult elephant in Kenya was named "Desert Rose" by researchers, but does she have her own elephant name? George Wittemyer hide caption
In this image provided by the Baker County Sheriff's Office, responders aid in rescue efforts after a vehicle went into an embankment on U.S. Forest Service Road 39 on June 3, 2024, in Oregon. A dog helped his owner get rescued after the crash by traveling nearly four miles to the campsite where the man was staying with family, which alerted them that something was wrong, authorities said. Baker County Sheriff's Office/AP hide caption
The illegal wildlife trade is estimated to be a multi-billion dollar enterprise. Live animals that are caught, like this box turtle, need immediate and long-term care at facilities like The Turtle Conservancy. Ryan Kellman/NPR hide caption
FWS Inspector Mac Elliot looks over a legal shipment while Braxton, a dog trained to smell heavily trafficked wildlife like reptiles and animal parts like ivory, enthusiastically does his job. Wildlife trafficking is one of the largest and most profitable crime sectors in the world. Estimates of its value range from $7-23 billion annually. Ryan Kellman/NPR hide caption
Cicadas from brood XIX are seen on a tree in Angelville, Ga., in May. Elijah Nouvelage/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
A Joro spider is seen in Johns Creek, Ga., on Oct. 24, 2021. Populations of the species, native to East Asia, have been growing in parts of the South and East Coast for years and many researchers think it's only a matter of time before they spread to much of the continental U.S. Alex Sanz/AP hide caption
Three-day eventing rider Jonathan Holling competes with his gelding Fernhill Copain. Courtesy Jonathan Holling hide caption
A herd of bison are seen in the Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park on Aug. 3, 2016. Matthew Brown/AP hide caption
Beyonce, a beagle with one ear, pictured at Homeward Trails Animal Rescue in Fairfax, Va., in 2022 after being rescued from the Envigo breeding and research facility. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images hide caption
An aquarium said in February that Charlotte, a round stingray, was pregnant, drawing international headlines. But the facility near Asheville, N.C., now says the ray is sick, not pregnant. In this image from an April video update by the Aquarium & Shark Lab by Team ECCO, the ray has a noticeable bulge on her back. Aquarium & Shark Lab by Team ECCO / Screenshot by NPR hide caption
Daniel is part of a tight-knit ranching community in western Wyoming. Caitlin Tan/Wyoming Public Media hide caption
Woodpeckers are known for banging on wood, but some individuals living in urban environments also bang on metal. Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images hide caption
Former President Franklin D. Roosevelt in his car with his Scottish terrier, Fala, in 1941. Hulton Archive/Getty Images hide caption