/oss/taxonomy/term/3074/all en /oss/article/did-you-know/peckers-get-smaller-where-it-gets-colder <p>Charles Darwin postulated that Toucan’s massive beaks might be for sexual selection purposes. Other scientists have theorized that it could be for shows of intimidation, for actual defense or for peeling fruit. Given the beak’s serrated edge, it was once thought that toucans used it to catch and eat fish. We now know that toucans are almost entirely fructivorous, although they do opportunistically eat insects, lizards, and even small birds.</p> Fri, 16 Dec 2022 11:00:00 +0000 Ada McVean M.Sc. 9325 at /oss /oss/article/did-you-know/tinies-bodies-giant-ears-rabbits-have-super-specialized-physiologies <p><span>We’ve already seen that rabbits and hares have quite interesting physiology, but for certain species of </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leporidae">leporidae</a> the adaptations get even more extreme.</p> <p><span>The smallest rabbit in existence is the </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pygmy_rabbit">pygmy rabbit</a>, who weighs on average only 450 grams! They’re found in the western US and are one of the only rabbit species who dig their own burrows, as opposed to repurposing the found burrows of other animals.</p> Fri, 30 Mar 2018 21:54:33 +0000 Ada McVean B.Sc. 6983 at /oss