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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.

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Animals

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Science

<a href="http://www.ddavisla.com">David Davis </a>is the author of Wheels of Courage: How Paralyzed Veterans From World War II Invented Wheelchair Sports, Fought for Disability Rights, and Inspired a Nation and Waterman: The Life and Times of Duke Kahanamoku. He lives in Los Angeles.
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David Davis

UNIONDALE, NEW YORK - CIRCA 2000: Photographer Bruce Bennett photographers a battle between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the of the New York Islanders circa 1990 in Uniondale, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Bruce Bennett Studios via Getty Images)

Shots

After 50 Years Of Shooting Hockey, Bruce Bennett Finds An Even Tougher Challenge: Birds

charismatic megafauna (they/them)

Sabrina Imbler

A photo of a green fla-necked chameleon posing against a swirly yellow and green background

Chameleons Endure Tiny Knock To Colorful Reputation

Mods Asleep

How Climate Change Is Transforming The Soundtrack Of The Natural World

a 3D-printed crab named Wavy Dave is waving his claw at a fiddler crab in the distance

The Brief Adventures Of Wavy Dave

Behold: A Surprisingly Beautiful Depiction Of Being Swallowed By A Toothy Penis Worm

the behind of a chimp named Juma, who is displaying a behavior called grass-in-rear, in which a strand of grass dangles from his rectum

Innovation Strikes In The Field Of Chimpanzee Rectum Adornment

a trio of chilean flamingos, with the Bills Week logo

Bills Week

Why Do Flamingos Eat So Weird?

Barry Petchesky

28 April 2024, Baden-Württemberg, Donaueschingen: A mallard duck swims in a pond in Donaueschingen Castle Park. Photo: Silas Stein/dpa (Photo by Silas Stein/picture alliance via Getty Images)

Bill Shapes, Ranked

Kathryn Xu

Common loon flapping its wings in the morning

Fatal Battles In Common Loons: A Subsequent Analysis

Dan McQuade was a founding member of Defector. He died in January 2026.

Dan McQuade

A cat on a fake baseball card. He's grey and little and next to a keyboard. There is a wood border around the card, with the Toledo Mud Hens logo in the corner, and a Defector logo in the other corner, and WEBLEY: Toledo Mud Hens

The Newest Toledo Mud Hen Is A Purrfect Midseason Addition

CT scan of the front of a skate, showing the hard, tooth-like denticles on its skin (shown in orange)

The “Tooth Hurty” Joke Has Its Origins In Ancient, Armored Fish

Patrick Redford

A baseball game being projected onto the side of a French bulldog.

This Is So Stupid

Let’s Figure Out What Dodgers Game They Watched On The Bulldog

Picture of Colossal’s Dire Wolves; Romulus and Remus at age three months. Born 10/1/2024

Colossal Biosciences Can’t Have It Both Ways

Diana Moskovitz is Defector&#8217;s investigations editor. You can contact her at diana@defector.com or dfmoskovitz@protonmail.com. She&#8217;s also on Signal @dmoskovitz.99

Diana Moskovitz

A photo of two cats, Chuck and Purrle. Chuck is a brown and golden striped tabby, toward the back, while Purrle is a black cat toward the front. They are sitting next to each other on a bed.

Meet Chuck And Purrle, The Newest Members Of The Defector Pet Family

Albert Burneko

For Bea

A grey tabby cat with some white features on the bottom of her head in a small yurt-like cat cave. She has one paw out, and is looking at the camera.

Oh No, It’s Another Emotional Story About My Cat!

three bone collector caterpillars, which are caterpillars covered in the bodies of insects they've eaten

The Very Grisly Caterpillar

a close-up shot of a large gray bird called a harpy eagle looking unrepentant in a tree

Yes, I Attacked That Woman, And I’d Do It Again

Samer Kalaf

The Nationals Know What Goes Great Together: Dogs And Fireworks

Participants take part in the Corgi Derby at Musselburgh Racecourse, Musselburgh, East Lothian, as part of its Easter Saturday race day celebration. Picture date: Saturday April 19, 2025.

Please Enjoy These Images Of The 2025 Corgi Derby

two caterpillars having a face-off on a leaf tip until one launches itself off the leaf

This Leaf Tip Ain’t Big Enough For The Two Of Us

For Chop

1990s Single Male Anna Hummingbird Calypte Anna Western USA And Canada (Photo by T. Ulrich/Classicstock/Getty Images)

The Hummingbirds Brought Me Around

Do Not Be Bamboozled By The New Fluffy Mouse

Clark's anemonefish​ Amphiprion clarkii in a bubble-tip anemone Entacmaea quadricolor