If you follow news on endangered species, it can get pretty depressing to see so many animals facing extinction. But not all news about endangered animals is bad news. In fact, on TopTenz, you can read about 10 animals who have been removed from the endangered species list -including the panda that has served as an icon for conservation of endangered species since the WWF chose the bear as their icon in 1961. And while we so often hear about poachers decimating rhino populations in Africa, their cousins in India have also been taken off the endangered species list in the last decade.

There might still be a lot of animals that need our help out there, but articles like this are a reminder that we can make a difference and bring animal populations back from the brink. So see the whole list over at TopTenz.

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Nature is as ugly as it is beautiful -and it's very, very dangerous. In this incredible video, you can see the horrifying mob violence that occurs when spider crabs get their claws on an octopus -and completely rip it open. 

One thing's for sure -the video will make you think twice before messing with these spider crabs.

Via Foodbeast

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It's a question nearly as age long as which came first the chicken or the egg or if a tree falls in the woods, and the debate still rages on- how would a dog wear pants? On all four of its legs and half its body or just on the back legs?

This topic has been discussed online quite a bit, and the debate heated up again when writer Jared Keller posted this meme on Twitter:

pic.twitter.com/JRp6RjvNOb

— Jared Keller (@jaredbkeller) December 29, 2015

When asked 81 percent of people thought the two legged style seemed best, but then a few weeks ago Jared was finally able to put the debate to bed when he spotted a dog IRL wearing pants.

finally pic.twitter.com/NP3FHQBRCW

— memes (@memeprovider) February 21, 2017

Four legged style it is, folks! And in case you couldn't see the dog pants well enough in that pic here's a closer shot of a different dog wearing the same pants:

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-Via Daily Dot

Darla the chicken dares to defy convention- when folks said she was going to die she lived, when they said chickens don't wear clothes she put on a tutu, and when they said chickens aren't therapy animals she became fully certified.

Darla was brought home by rescue group Green Dogs Unleashed founder Erika Proctor and her son Finn, who raised Darla to be an individualist and a survivor.

She sports her tutu and hair bow with pride, uses the doggy door and likes to hang out with the Proctor's other pets, and her laid back nature made it possible for her to become a certified therapy animal.

The Proctors hope to get Darla approved for a school therapy animal program someday soon so kids can see how cool a chicken can be.

-Via Bored Panda

In 2008, a farmer in the Chita region of Russia (north of Mongolia) found that a new litter of kittens had been born in his barn. They were unlike any kittens he'd seen before. He called the office of the Daursky Nature Reserve, and an officer came who identified the kittens as Pallas's cats, also called manul. They waited for the mother to return, but she didn't, so the kittens were taken to the wildlife office. The Fedotov family volunteered two nursing mother cats, and brought them in (with a remaining kitten) to feed the wild kittens.

The nature reserve sheltered the kittens for six months, then released them with radio collars. But it was autumn, and the hand-raised Pallas's cats had trouble hunting in winter, so they were found and brought back to the preserve.

Once spring arrived, and the cats were older, they were released again, this time successfully. The source of the story is in Russian, but there's an English version here both with more pictures.  -via reddit

(Images credit S. Balzhimaevoy)

When cats have chosen your home to be their new home there's nothing you can do but accept their choice and make their stay a little more comfortable. But what if the cat has chosen a police station as her new home?

If you're the Boston Police Department's SWAT Team you build your furry little calico colored guest a cozy cat condo so she can stay warm in those chilly winter months yet maintain her outdoor lifestyle.

Officer Jaime Pietrosk spearheaded the campaign to build SWAT Cat a home she can call her own, and now the station is safe from mice and invading birds, but criminals not so much...

-Via The Dodo

Rachel and Jun (previously at Neatorama) already had two cats, but then they found Poki, injured and malnourished, on a highway. After his recovery, he showed his true personality. Poki is annoying, selfish, persistent, obsessive, and won't take "no" for an answer. Those traits are fairly typical of cats, and we find them endearing up to a point. Poki takes them to extreme.  

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In this video, Poki has become obsessed with the plastic recycling bin, in addition to his other annoying habits. What can Rachel come up with to keep him out of it? Nothing, it seems. Poki is going into the garbage bin again. -via Metafilter

Pigs are surprisingly intelligent animals that make excellent pets. In fact, they're very similar to dogs as far as personality goes. And while porcines may not be as popular as pooches, they still have their loyal fans. 

This Mental Floss article by our own Miss C features 15 of the most popular pet pigs on Instagram. Aside from reading their individual stories on the article, you can also see their profile links to see more of their pictures and see just how adorably endearing a pet pig can be -like Bitsy the Mini Pig above and Kana the Surfing Pig below.

So see all the cute little piggies here.

Dogs can't use their words to express their displeasure so they resort to visual and auditory clues like snarling, barking and growling to warn people and other animals that they're not okay.

And yet people don't seem to be picking up on these signals, so they're constantly getting bitten by dogs who just want to be left alone.

That "smile" on a dog's face when a stranger approaches them and tries to pet them without a proper introduction?

It may mean the dog wants to bite the stranger's hand for being such a pushy jerk, but most socialized dogs who have been raised around people resist the urge to snap.

Their wagging tail can also be misconstrued as a positive reaction to a person:

The tail can send a bunch of different emotional signals, depending on the kind of wag. For instance, look at the height of the tail -- if Spot is holding his tail up high, he's warning you.

If the tail is a little lower, he's more calm. If he's keeping it down near the "between the legs" position, he's scared.

Then you also have to consider the direction of the wag. A dog wagging its tail more to the right has noticed something it is cool with and would like to approach. However, if the wagging is switched to the left, it indicates anxiety. All of these nuances of wagging can convey a wide spectrum of different emotions to other dogs from a safe distance.

See 5 Adorable Behaviors That Mean Your Dog Hates You here (NSFW language)

The Okhotsk Tokkari Center in Monbetsu, Hokkaido, Japan, is a marine conservation facility that takes care of seals found injured or trapped in fishing nets, until they can be returned to the sea. They posted pictures of this adorable earless seal looking contented as can be while clutching his/her plush seal toy.  

Say it with me now- "Awww." -via Boing Boing

(Images credit: @mombetsu_land‏)

Looks like the dogs are ready for a fight, defending their territory! Let's see how that plays out.

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Animals know when to pick their battles, because otherwise the species would not survive. This video has been likened to arguments on the internet. It's easy to be badass when there's no chance of getting your head bashed in, whereas in real life, people tend to bite their tongues and remember that discretion is the better part of valor. -via reddit

Mother Nature has an extremely high record of success, and the vast majority of her creations are so good they're able to survive and thrive on Earth for millennia.

But every once in a while Gaia's creations forget they're supposed to coexist in harmony with the rest of the animals on Earth, and some poor, dumb human pays the price.

It's not surprising Mother Nature's feral children have adopted an "attack first, ask questions later" policy when it comes to people, considering how much damage humans have done to Ma Nature's home.

But you'd think domesticated animals would have learned to be nicer to humans by now, considering we breed them, feed them and give them something better to do than walk around scrounging for food all day!

See 35 People Who Are Clearly Not One With Mother Nature here

Robot Cat is a lethal humanoid mecha controlled by an adorable but ferocious kitten. Robot Cat rescues animals and seeks revenge on animal abusers! However, the robot doesn't always function at peak efficiency in this video by Sylwester Wardęga (previously at Neatorama). 

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English captions are available, but not really necessary. You'll need to turn them on if you watch the making-of video, which is in Polish. It's quite funny, and you get to see more of the kitten. -via Metafilter

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Even though full grown cats will act like kittens, and some may look like kittens their whole lives, it's easy to tell a kitten apart from a catdult- because kittens can't contain their frisky side.

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Some catdults start acting like kittens after hitting the catnip, but they come down from their high pretty quickly, while kittens keep going and going and going until their batteries run out.

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As we all know growing up can be a scary experience, and catdults look scary to a little kitten, so kittens should be encouraged to stay small and kitten-y for as long as possible.

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See 19 Insanely Cute Kittens Who Just Don't Know Any Better here

A border collie goes to Canadian Tire and picks up several bags of dog treats. Meaning, he picked them out himself, presented them to the cashier, and carried the bag himself. Like some humans, he was too proud to count the change.  

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Border collies are the smartest dogs on the planet. Somehow I got one that would walk straight into a wall. But she was lovable anyway. -via Tastefully Offensive