Wildlife

Dallas Needs a Pop-Up Pestaurant

Did you make it to El Come Taco for the tacos de chapulines? Owner Luis Vilallva got a batch of grasshoppers in from Mexico and turned them into delicious tacos. While I was there, a number of customers were also enjoying the delicacy. I saw a good bit of chatter about the tacos on Twitter and Faceb ... More >>

The Feds Say They Caught a Dallas Man Smuggling Dead Hummingbirds from Mexico

You can, provided you're willing to break a handful of federal laws and international treaties and locate a willing buyer, sell a dead hummingbird. A well-preserved specimen of certain varieties will fetch upward of $350 on the U.S. black market, according to federal prosecutors. Who, you might won ... More >>

A Swarm of Bees Killed Two Horses in Tarrant County. Be Afraid. Be Very Afraid.

Meet Chip and Trump, Pantego resident Kristen Beauregard's prize miniature ponies. As of Wednesday afternoon, they were healthy and contented. By that evening, they were dead. Their end came after the pair was swarmed by 30,000 bees that emerged from a nearby shed. "They were chasing us down, they ... More >>

Fangs For The Memories

The Lizard King: Now an Actual Giant Lizard. Thanks, Science!

When the fossils of a giant plant-eating reptile were found in South East Asia, paleontologists wanted to give the world's largest lizard ever discovered a proper name. They just couldn't decide between Jim Morrison, a rocker with an affinity for lizards, or Hunter S. Thompson, a rock & roll journal ... More >>

Crazy Ants, Discovered in Houston a Decade Ago, Are Swarming Toward Dallas

First, the good news: Crazy ants don't sting. They do sometimes bite, but the pain is mild, and it fades quickly. Even better, they drive out their stinging cousins, fire ants, which have been tormenting Texans for decades. Now, the bad news: When entomologists say "crazy," they mean it. "When you ... More >>

Carrollton is Desperately Trying to Fend Off the Coming Egret Invasion

Two summers ago, more or less out of the blue, a couple of thousand egrets descended upon a neighborhood off Josey Lane in Carrollton, just north of Frankford Road. It was an ideal spot for the birds: They liked the dense tree canopy and sizable pond, and there no predators to speak of. It was less ... More >>

Pumpkin Season Means Good Times and Happy Eating for the Animals at the Dallas Zoo

Yesterday I drove past a pumpkin patch that had at least 200 large round squashes still remaining. Their lonely abandonment made me a bit sad. Would they ever serve a purpose in this world? Last year the Dallas Arboretum told me they send some of their leftover pumpkins to local zoos. So, I called t ... More >>

John Cornyn Seeks to Fend Off Latest Threat to Texas Economy: Salamanders

I suppose it was only a matter of time before Texas politicians, still on a high from their glorious victory over the evil, job-killing dunes sagebrush lizard, turned their attention to similarly insidious threats to our economic well-being. This time, the threat comes from four species of salamand ... More >>

Killer Whales

Homeland Security Arrests Dinosaur Believed to Be in Country Illegally

Earlier this week, a federal judge signed an order directing the U.S. government to take possession of the Tyrannosaurus bataar skeleton that had been sold last month by Dallas' own Heritage Auctions. The fossil, the government said, had been looted from the Gobi Desert some time between 1995 and 2 ... More >>

I Just Ate Twisted Root's Beaver Burger and Everything Is OK

If you saw the story we published yesterday (after we published it the day before), you know Twisted Root is currently selling beaver burgers. The company announced that it had purchased 60 pounds of river rodent to be offered up as burgers for $7.99 each. I dropped in to order one just after they o ... More >>

Twisted Root is Going to Serve Beaver Burgers for "the Jokes." What Jokes? (Updated)

Update: Yesterday we told you that Twisted Root would be serving beaver burgers tomorrow, which is now today. Today we're told that the beaver burgers will not be available until tomorrow, which is still tomorrow. Are we clear? Crystal. Original item: Deep Ellum's location of Twisted Root, the burg ... More >>

I Ate Baby Butterflies in Carrollton, and I Think I Liked It. (Then Again, I Was Trashed.)

Don't worry they're not moving.​During my second trip to Tto Tto Wa, the Korean fried chicken joint I reviewed this week, I was determined to blow it out. I'd tried dumplings, chicken feet and some other dishes -- none of it as good as the spicy chicken, mind you -- and wanted to work even fur ... More >>

Panda Bear

Tuesday, September 27, at the Granada Theater

What the Duck: Why Do Duck Breeds
Get Short Shrift?

​Even eaters who dine out only on special occasions have typically been exposed to Berkshire pork and Waygu beef. But when it comes to duck, few restaurants bother to reveal which breed they're serving. "Every time I see duck on the menu, it just says duck," says Ted Hill, co-chair of the Dal ... More >>

Don't Fear The Beaver

Shearwater, Wye Oak, Hospital Ships

Saturday, April 10, at The Loft

Who Goes There?

Mighty Wings

Fret Not, Those Coyotes 'Round White Rock Lake Are Merely Looking for Love

A good Friend of Unfair Park has been yammering for weeks about coyotes roaming around White Rock Lake. And while that isn't uncommon, it does seem as there have been more sightings than usual, especially near the Bath House Cultural Center at dusk. Which comes as no surprise to the folks over at th ... More >>

Probably Not Our Last Item About Jenny the Elephant, Just Sayin'

Jenny For the Friends who might have missed the news -- and, really, don't know how that's possible -- there will be a "Save Jenny" rally on Sunday, from 1 to 2 p.m., in front of the Dallas Zoo next to the the giant giraffe. Organizers -- and, of course, council member Angela Hunt and PETA bigwigs - ... More >>

A Case of Hives

Couple encourages local homeowners to be sweet on bees

Ooo, Jenny, Jenny

Pack a Trunk

Despite efforts by animal welfare activists, the zoo decides to ship a problem elephant out of the country

The Elephant in the Room: The Dallas Zoo's Response to Concerned Citizens

Sean Greene, the Dallas Zoo's director of community relations, read yesterday's item about folks protesting the zoo's moving Jenny the elephant to the Africam Safari Park in Puebla, Mexico. Then he read the comments, which keep piling up from people who'd rather see Jenny sent to an elephant sanctua ... More >>

Blue Symphony

The DSO dives in

Canvas Safari

Jennifer Morgan takes over the Belmont

Buggin' Out

Get buzzed at Texas Discovery Gardens

For the Birds

Meet some undocumented immigrants that aren't illegal

Sea Otter on the Loose!

The missus just called from the Dallas World Aquarium, where officials have just closed off part of the Orinoco -- because a sea otter's gotten loose! Yup, seems Muneca jumped the fence on the backside of his (her?) tank and is running through the open public area, and actually put its hands on a ki ... More >>

PETA, Don't You Have Anything Better to Do?

PETA wants to protect these cockroaches, which are being served in the Six Flags buffet line. To PETA, an exterminator must be like Idi Amin. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals usually protests against the fur and cosmetics industries' abuse of animals. Yesterday it took up the mighty cause ... More >>

A Letter to the Editor (of The New York Times)

White Stripes, Black Stripes

Meet the zebras of Fossil Rim

Flying Feathers

Here Kitty, Kitty

Flying Lies

TDG kills our dream

Zoo-hoo

One thing that emerged loud and clear from two of the recent neighborhood town hall meetings is this: Dallas residents want a first-class zoo, and they're willing to pay for it. Dick Geiger, for one, is sick of the Dallas Zoo's reputation as the ugly stepsister to the slick, kid-friendly Fort Worth ... More >>

Amphi-Theatre

Animal Crackers

In Madagascar, the wild things romp, then roam

A Monster Hit

Discovery Channel's Steve Watson talks shop

Lion Around

Celebrate the Year of the Rooster with Team White Leopard

Distress Call

Answer the Call of the Wild

Best Kids Day Trip

Fossil Rim Wildlife Center

Best Use of Humidity

The Dallas World Aquarium

Best Outing With the Kids

Fossil Rim Wildlife Center

Pass the Buck

Zoo on the cheap

Flock to It

Take your gaggle, bevy or fleet to Bird Bonanza

Sour Hereafter

Life after death looks like hell in two surreal new comedies at Undermain and Kitchen Dog Theater

Going to the Birds

The Celtic Cauldron helps bring R.E.L.E.A.F. to local birds