Photo via kasei.co.uk

It turns out that a surprisingly high number of grade schools in Japan are serving their students more than just a well-rounded education.

Sharks are normally considered solitary hunters, but one

Photo from one of Captain Dave's Dolphin and Whale Safari Boat Tours

In the past week, copious amounts of planktonic krill have drawn large groups of blue whales off the coast of Long Beach in Southern California.

Image Credit: Mehgan Murphy, National Zoo

If you've been to the Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C.

Photo: Elephant being bathed in a temple in Thrissur (K.C. Sowmish via The Hindu)

As long-standing icons of its unique cultural psyche, India's threatened elephants are finally getting the protection -- and well-deserved recognition -- they need.

Photo via qmnonic

Nothing like a flood of minks loose in a country's already fragile ecosystem to put environmentalists in a tough spot. Two fur farms in northern Greece were raided, the results of which saw 50,000 minks running for the hills. Fortunately for everyone (except the minks) the problem could solve itself in a short time.

Photo via National Geographic

We've got a new regular slideshow here on TreeHugger: The Week in Animal Photos.

Photo via Animal Planet

Each year in early September, Japan opens season on dolphins, and today marks the start of the season in Taiji, a now notorious place for slaughtering cetaceans thanks to the Oscar-winning docume

Photo via Brian Gratwicke

Does the intelligence of an animal factor in on your decision whether or not to eat them? Many people consider pigs to be incredibly intelligent, but they're still mostly factory farmed in often abhorrent conditions. Scientists are pushing for dolphins and other cetaceans to have non-human person status, complete with inalienable rights.

Photo via The Daily Mail

The ocean's whales are some of the Earth's most massive and majestic animals, reaching sizes of up to 80 feet long and 150 tons. As the targets of centuries of whaling, they have a violent history -- and are still recovering from an industry that depleted their numbers substantially.