(VIDEO) Watch squirrels perform parkour-like stunts for peanuts By Nicoletta Lanese - Staff Writer FROM Live Science

PARKOUR: According to the strictest definition, Parkour is the act of moving from point “a” to point “b” using the obstacles in your path to increase your efficiency. 

SOURCE: https://parkour.sport/history.php

Whales Are Being Killed by Noise Pollution By Ben Wolford FROM Newsweek

Do Dogs Speak Human? Megan Erickson FROM Big Think

http://bigthink.com/think-tank/do-dogs-speak-human

Can Losing a Pet Hurt More Than Losing a Spouse? by Susan Pease Gadoua FROM Psychology Today

"What has been astounding to me is how many people have told me that they had a harder time when their dog died that when they split up with their spouse."

Scales of Justice: In Zurich, Even Fish Have a Lawyer by DEBORAH BALL FROM The New York Times

"He became interested in animal rights at the age of 23, when an accident left him unable to speak for 10 days, helping him understand the plight of animals who can't express themselves."

Pet Project By Jesse Ellison FROM Newsweek

"I never thought I'd get so carried away, but here I am, spending most of my money and time on a nine-pound creature who likes to eat garbage, lick himself at inappropriate times, and sully the most heavily trafficked part of the sidewalk he can find."

Smaller Families Face Higher Extinction Risk by Darren Osborne, ABC Science Online

Patterns in human demography are consistent with patterns seen among wild species, he says.

"As humans become richer and their environments become safer, we see parents investing more resources into their offspring and family sizes decreasing," Falster said.

He added that the model helps explain differences in family size between developed and developing nations.

"Predictions from the model are exactly what we've observed when comparing across countries," Falster said.

My Comments
So what is the safety or wealth threshold at which parents decide that it is not worth having any children? Joseph A. Schumpeter argued that only religious exhortations to have children could overcome the desire for a comfortable childless life.

False Eyes

FROM Daily Speculations by Victor Niederhoffer

It's common among fish and butterflies to have false eyes, usually directly opposite from the placement of the real eyes.

There appear to be three reasons for this. The eyes often mimic dangerous prey like snakes and scare off potential predators. The eyes also serve to fool predators who focus on the eyes of the prey and try to approach from the opposite direction so as not to be seen. The false eyes allow the butterfly or fish to escape in exactly the opposite direction from what is expected, after getting a good look at the killer. Finally, sexual selection seems to be involved with the false eyes being a conspicuous mark of health and attraction to the opposite sex, thereby increasing reproductive potential.