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This is Defector, a new sports blog and media company. We made this place together, we own it together, we run it together. Without access, without favor, without discretion, and without interference.

Defector

charismatic megafauna (they/them)

Sabrina Imbler

the water scavenger beetle Regimbartia attenuata

Even After Being Eaten, This Beetle Has Two Ways Out Alive

a bright pink insect called a katydid against a dark background

This Pink Bug Is Not A “Rare Freak Mutant” After All

White-faced Plover Charadrius dealbatus, Great Kinmen Island, Taiwan.

Newly Poly Plover Dad Still Figuring Out His Time Management

Chimp Toti attentively observes the quartz crystal during Experiment 1.

Which Chimp Should Wield The Crystal?

Baby monkey named 'Punch' is seen with a stuffed animal at a zoo on February 20, 2026, in north of Tokyo, Chiba Prefecture, Japan. Abandoned by his mother at birth, the monkey found comfort with a stuffed animal.

The Mournful Ballad Of Punch The Monkey

the ancient fish Haikouichthys, which resembles a blue noodle with four eyes

Finally! An Ancient Fish That Understood Life’s Terrors

David Roth

A Pomeranian is groomed backstage during the Group Judging (Hound, Toy, Non-Sporting, Herding) at 149th Annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in 2025.

Podcasts

Choosing Your Pomeranian, With Kathryn Xu

The President of the Lombardy Region, Attilio Fontana, is welcoming the mascots Tina and Milo of the XXV Winter Olympic Games Milano Cortina 2026 in Piazza Citta di Lombardia, in Milan, Italy, on February 27, 2024.

Olympics

Which Other Olympic Mascots Could Italian Stoats Tina And Milo Slaughter In Cold Blood?

Heather Chen is a former Defector intern and the managing editor at the Columbia Daily Spectator. She loves hockey, photography, and the good ol’ state of Michigan.

Heather Wei-Xi Chen

Animals

The Westminster Dog Show’s Youngest Handlers Don’t Know If They Want To Do This Forever

fake berries called bulbils of the black-bulb yam

This Week In Delicious Scams; Or, I Yam Not What You Think I Yam

Kathryn Xu

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 02: Aslan, a Pomeranian, 2nd place winner of Toy Group, competes during the 150th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show – Group Judging (Hound, Toy, Non-Sporting, Herding) &amp; Westminster Legends Presentation at Madison Square Garden on February 02, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for Westminster Kennel Club)

My Life Among The 33 Pomeranians (And A Few Thousand Other Dogs)

The Secrets Of Human And Canine Fashion At The Westminster Dog Show

Artist impression of what Prototaxites would have look like in life

Who The Hell Was This?

A Boston Terrier is examined in the judging area during day one of the 150th Annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City on February 2, 2026.