Even though dinosaurs have been extinct for millions and millions of years, they are still part of childhood memories (lol. Barney? ) Dinosaurs can either be carnivorous or herbivorous. Sometimes, they’re even omnivorous. Now, not all dinosaurs are quite like Barney. They can’t talk, or dance, really. They aren’t typically purple and not as adventurous as Barney, but they’re still extremely fun.
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Unicorns are extremely majestic creatures. With their blindly white hair, and sharp, spiral-like horn, they are extremely rare creatures, and can mean good luck if one is seen.
Unicorns were first spoken about by the Ancient Greeks. They became very popular during the middle ages and Renaissance. It was usually described as a “wild woodland creature, a symbol of purity and grace.”
Unicorns are often thought to be the offspring of a narwhal and a horse, but what do you think? They also have a strict diet of rainbows and the souls of young children.
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We are going to look at the Golden Orb Weaver today which is truly an incredible spider. This particular spider is also known as a Giant Wood Spider or Banana Spider. Their name, Golden Orb Weaver, does not come from the color of the spider but instead the color of their web. That’s right spider fans, the Golden Orb Weaver will actually spin a gold web. Now before you run out and try to collect these gold webs to send into “Dollars 4 Gold” you need to know that they aren’t real gold. Actually, I think I would like to try this experiment to see if they will send you a check for your gold web. Although the gold color of these webs are impressive I find the size far more interesting. Believe it or not the Golden Orb Weaver is capable of making a spider web with the circular center section being more than 3 feet across and can have supporting threads ranging much further. Some reports identified the webs being 18 feet high by 6 feet wide. Basically, they make really big and really strong spider webs. In fact these silk webs are so incredibly strong that they have been known to catch small birds. Usually the spider won’t eat the birds but, that isn’t always the case. Again, the strength of these webs allows the spider to keep them for several years. You have to figure that if the webs are that big than the spider must be pretty big as well. Typically the female version of the Golden Orb Weaver will be about 2 inches from toe to toe while the males are considerably smaller. Again, there have been reports from Australia that some of these spiders grow as large as your hand and in some cases may get even larger. That would be one big spider, my friends. Golden Orb Weaver Fast Fact - The silk created from the Golden Orb Weaver is almost as strong as Kevlar. You know that stuff found in bullet-proof vests. Yeah, that strong! The poor bird didn’t stand a chance, heck even a gun would have been useless for the surprised bird.
Even though the Dodo Bird has been extinct for over 300 years they are still one of the most popular bird species out there. Heck, they even have their own expression named after them, “Dead as a Dodo”. Not exactly the saying I would want to have named after me but at least they have one. It is believed that the Dodo was related to modern-day pigeons and doves. They were about a meter (3.3 feet) tall and weighed about 20 kg (44 lbs). Obviously since they couldn’t fly they nested on the ground and would pluck the fruit from low lying bushes. It sounds like they had a pretty good life so what went wrong? Well I will give you three guesses to the cause of their extinction and the first two don’t count. Unfortunately, humans played a huge role in the demise of this awesome bird. You see the Dodo grew up on the island of Mauritus (east of Madagascar) where it had no predators. So when humans came over with their dogs, cats, pigs, rats and Crab-eating Macaques. The Dodo was fearless towards these new island inhabitants. Naturally this fearless behaviour and their inability to fly lead to major population declines. Apparently it was the pigs and Crab-eating Macaques (seriously, who brings monkey’s with them when they travel?) that did the most damage. They raided their nests and destroyed the future. To make matters worst Scientists have discovered mass mortality at the hands of flash floods. This would have just compounded the problem. Poor little guys didn’t stand a chance. Dodo Bird Fast Fact – The common view of the Dodo Bird being a fat and clumsy animal has been challenged by researchers. It is believed that the old drawings of Dodo Birds were that of captive, over-fed birds. As well it is probable that the Dodo Bird fattened themselves up during the wet season in order to survive through the harsh dry season when food was limited.
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Today we are going to look at a substantially small creature but very dangerous to the organisms that make the mistake of touching it. So, let’s take a look at the deadly sea anemone! The sea anemone are relatives of coral and the jellyfish. They are usually nicely coloured and extremely poisonous. So, how does a creature that simply attaches itself to the ocean floor cause so much havoc for fish? If an unsuspecting fish swimming by a sea anemone triggers the highly sensitive tentacles then that fish will all of a sudden be having the worst day of their life (they will also be having the last day of their life). Even the slightest touch will trigger the sea anemone to fire off a harpoon-like filament into the body of the fish. This filament is filled with neuro-toxins that will paralyze the fish. Now that the fish is no longer moving the sea anemone is able to use the tentacles to direct the fish into its mouth and voila they have dinner! An interesting side note, the sea anemone only has a single opening to the outside environment. This means that the anemone’s mouth is also it’s anus, and they wonder why their food always tastes so bad. Don’t judge a book by it’s cover. If you did then you would think that the blue whale would be the most dangerous animal on the planet while the beautiful sea anemone would be no more dangerous than a pretty daisy. Nature is mysterious and within that lies all kinds of intriguing discoveries. Are you starting to see why I love nature so much?
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Mermaids are masters of the ocean, and are indeed real. Most people think mermaids are just mythical creatures, but no, as you can see, mermaids are real. Mermaids are half fish, half human, and usually sing beautifully. Mermaids have been in countless stories, including Christian Hans Andersen’s tale The Little Mermaid.
Mermaids have a vegetarian diet. They mainly eat seaweeds and algae, but don’t have very large appetites. Mermaids are permitted to live on land, but only for so long. Then they must return to the water. Most live near oceans because they do need water to survive.
photo credit : http://avoiceasbigasthesea.tumblr.com/
11 If there’s any animal you’re interested in learning more about, leave a request in our ask and we can look up some stuff for you. :3
These creatures are known to be a type of primate and they are found in several parts of Madagascar. No worries, Aye Aye’s aren’t harmful to humans. However, there are rumors that if the primate points at you with their abnormally long middle finger, it’s sentencing you to death. This has never been proven, so there’s really nothing to worry about.
They are known to be the last living member of their genus Daubentonia and the family Daubentoniidae. They have a diet of bugs, fungi, fruits, and nuts, classifying it as an omnivore.
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Giraffe
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The long-eared jerboa has long legs similar to that of a kangaroo. These little critters use these long legs to hop hop hop around all night. As well, you may have noticed that I said they hop around all night. The long-eared jerboa is a nocturnal animal that feeds mostly on insects. If you are interested in seeing these guys then you best take a trip to China or the Gobi Desert in Mongolia. As you can imagine the impacts from humans in these areas are severely hurting the long-eared jerboa population. In 2007 the long-eared jerboa was put on the Top 10 Focal Species as part of the Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered (EDGE) project. There have been reports that they use their ears to pinpoint the location of flying insects at night. Once they have their target they will spring into action with their long legs and have a nice yummy meal!
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Due to malaria carrying parasites transferred by the mosquito, it is responsible for the deaths of more than two million people per year. In addition, Mosquitos are estimated to transfer diseases to more than 70 million people per year. Even in countries such as the UK, New Zealand, and Japan, where the more temperate climate has reduced mosquito bites to mostly an annoyance, they still cause some deaths every year.
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The backs of the poison dart frog ooze a slimy neurotoxin that is meant to keep predators away. Each frog produces enough of the toxin to kill 10 humans, though, strangely, in captivity, the frogs do not secrete this poison. The frogs are brilliantly coloured and live mainly in Central and South America.
3 The recluse spider is, in fact, a recluse! That means that it likes to live alone. This species can be found in Canada and the U.S. as well as in other parts of the world. It is considered armed and dangerous because its venom is quite harmful to people. Although it is not the type to attack, when disturbed or frightened it will bite. These guys are often found hiding in dark places like garages, closets and sometimes in clothing, bedding or shoes that haven’t been worn for sometime. This is when most people are likely to get bitten. They really do prefer biting (and eating) insects, though! The Recluse spiders will lay their eggs a couple times a year. These spiders weave sheet webs to catch their prey.
Bite:
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The strange solenodon is a mammal found primarily in Cuba and Hispanola. Sure, it looks cute and manageable enough – sort of like an over-sized hedgehog. Too bad the solenodon injects rattlesnake-like venom through its teeth, the only mammal to do so. Easily annoyed, the solenodon bites at the drop of a banana leaf. Still, being both a carrion feeder and insectivore, it is a vital species in its ecosystem. It was thought to be extinct until scientists found a few still alive in 2003. It is in grave danger of extinction. One reason why it was so long before scientists got to know of solenodons is that they are nocturnal. They are also not very numerous. During the day they lie up in burrows, in hollow trees and logs or in caves, well out of sight. When they do come out they run on their toes with a stiff ungainly waddle, following an erratic almost zigzag course. The local people claim that Solenodons never run in a straight line. Moreover, when a solenodon is alarmed and tries to put on speed it is as likely as not to trip over its own toes or even tumble head- over-heels. Like some of the shrews which they resemble, although they are not closely related to them, they have a poisonous saliva. The second incisor on each side in the lower jaw is grooved. Indeed, solenodon means grooved tooth. At the base of each of these incisors is a gland from which the poison runs along the groove in each tooth. When solenodons fight in captivity the light wounds inflicted are fatal.
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this is the penis bug, aka pendoxyriphoa cannus.
it’s a very tiny, harmful, parasite that lives at the base of your pubic hairs. this parasite is very small and tiny, but it is still possible to see. it’s only up to .5cm long. the maximum size ever recorded is 1.5cm long.
these parasites are attracted to the smell of sperm and body odors. you’ll find them crawling into your laundry basket, your bed sheets, and even your closet.
they spread rather very quickly. if your pubic hair is itchy for some odd apparent reason, maybe it’s these little fellas. it’s a relative to crabs. not exactly a crab, but even worse.
do you see those little mandingo looking things on the back of this little parasite? it’s called a barracade. that’s where it stores it’s toxic waste. they enter either into your skin, genital areas, or even your mouth to release them. it causes the victim to become dizzy and depending where the bug has entered— there will be rashes and bumps. your heart rate slows down, and it’s best to see a doctor.
to live healthy and be free of these parasitic bugs just wash your pubes, genital areas, laundry, and your bed sheets often.
(Source: alfiebooty, via anhiie-deactivated20111023-deac)
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