Here are a few of the best tricks animals can do!
9 - Cuttlefish Tricks When humans get on the internet and pose as
the opposite sex, we call that a Catfish.
Don't do that, by the way.
But in the wild, there's a fish that does it all the time.
Meet the cuttlefish.
Apparently mating is a pretty competitive activity among Cuttlefish.
The larger male cuttlefish more or less rule the roost and make sure the smaller guys don't
have a shot at sowing their wild oats.
Knowing they're physically outmatched, the smaller males conjure up one of the most devious,
duplicit and brilliant tricks in all of nature.
They pose as FEMALES to fake out the bigger males.
You see, in order to attract mates, female cuttlefish extend their tentacles to show
"hey, I'm ready and willing."
So the smaller males will extend their own tentacles, change their colors and shack up
with a larger male who has already found a mate.
Thinking he's now bedding two female cuttlefish, the larger males falls for this trick like
clockwork.
Meanwhile, the smaller cuttlefish slips underneath and mates with the female.
And you thought YOUR love life was complicated….
8 - Stone Eating Crocodiles If you've learned anything from this channel
it should be this….Crocodiles are some pretty tough animals.
With razor sharp teeth, ninja like reflexes, and incredible size and strength, a crocodile
more or less has a wide array of dinner options.
I mean, when a croc strolls down the river, just about anything they see could be on the
menu.
So it might surprise a few folks to know that crocodiles are known to sometimes swallow
stones whole.
Now it's not that crocs are just gluttons who will stuff their reptilian faces with
anything and everything they can find.
They swallow stones whole because it helps their digestive system.
Since a lot of crocs eat large mammals whole, they need some help digesting all that….I
mean, can you imagine what having an entire wildebeest inside you must feel like?
Umm inside your stomach that is.
Anyways, with stones resting deep in their bellies, they provide a hard surface which
grates the bones and shells, and whatever else might come in a crocodile's meal.
Crocodiles aren't the only ones who swallow stones.
Alligators, birds, seals and sea lions are among the other animals who use this digestive
tactic.
Whereas we might just eat tums or take an X-lax, some animals use rocks, stones and
pebbles to assist their digestive system.
Rocks that are swallowed for this purpose are known as Gastroliths.
The more you know…….!
7 - Pearlfish Hangouts In Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, Luke
Skywalker famously was placed inside the carcass of a Tantuan to save his life during a blizzard.
It seemed a bit extreme, but hey it worked.
But you know who doesn't think it's extreme?
Pearlfish.
When trying to escape predators, a Pearlfish will hide inside the butt of a sea cucumber.
Talk about extreme survival.
Sometimes, more than a dozen pearlfish will slither their way inside of a sea cucumber's
butt in order to stay alive.
Now, while that might make your average prostate exam seem like a cakewalk, Sea Cucumbers never
evict these slithering parasites from their own body, and nobody knows exactly why.
It makes no sense, because sea cucumbers actually breathe through their butts, which becomes
more difficult when a group of pearlfish just make themselves at home.
In some cases, pearlfish are even believed to gnaw away at their host's gonads, which
must….okay I can't even imagine.
Long story short, be thankful you're not a sea cucumber.
And if you're ever invited to some sort of weird underwater costume party, make sure
you don't go as a sea cucumber.
6 - When Baboons Stop Caring Whether it's apes, chimps or whatever we're
dealing with, primates are usually quite social and playful creatures.
That's why the case of the apathetic baboons is truly a puzzling one.
In 2013, Zookeepers in the Netherlands were baffled as to why an entire colony of baboons
in captivity all of the sudden just all of a sudden started seeming all depressed.
The once playful and active baboons suddenly started acting apathetic and kept their backs
turned to visitors!
Wijbren Landman, a biologist and spokesperson for the Enman Zoo, described the strange emotional
journey of the Baboons to the Spiegel Online.
In a four day arc they went from being hysterical to depressed and apathetic.
Even when zookeepers brought food for them they still weren't happy.
And we're not just talking about a sad monkey here and there.
This colony consisted of 112 baboons, all of whom seemed to be down in the dumps.
Landman suggested that perhaps the leader of the colony was upset, which caused the
rest of the group to be upset as well.
Oddly enough, it had happened three previous times at that same zoo, and to the best of
their knowledge, it doesn't seem to happen anywhere else.
And while the gloomy state of affairs was thankfully a temporary thing, it's still
a weird situation to say the very least.
Maybe one day someone will crack this mystery, because no one wants monkeys to be sad….at
least I think that's the case.
5 - Parrot Talk You know, one thing that doesn't get enough
credit for being flat out weird is the fact that parrots can talk.
This odd little quirk of nature has led to some interesting characterizations, such as
Iago, the wisecracking and at times, diabolical sidekick of Jafar from Aladdin.
It's also been rumored that Andrew Jackson, the 7th President of the U.S, had a pet Parrot
who often imitated Jackson's vulgar language.
Okay, so what actually makes a parrot talk?
It's not so much that they have command over any particular language, but rather how
their brains are wired.
In 2015, The Telegraph reported that scientists discovered key differences in parrots' brains
that allow them to imitate all kinds of sound, including human speech.
It was always known that Parrots were among a handful of birds known as vocal learners.
But the new research revealed that Parrots have layered brains.
There's the core of the brain, which is pretty much the center.
Then there's these outer rings known as shells.
Both of these areas of the brain control vocal learning.
But in Parrots, these shells are bigger than in other birds, which allows them to absorb
more information and imitate behavior.
This brain pattern appeared to be consistent across different Parrot Species.
So whatever Neural gene parrots have that allows for vocal learning, gives parrots the
ability to imitate sounds and speech.
They're so effective at this that in 2014, a pet African Grey Parrot named Nigel escaped
his home in Britain.
He somehow wound up in Southern California four years later where he was found by a lady
who used his microchip to track down his original owner.
Long story short, Nigel, who once spoke English with a british accent, now spoke spanish.
Amazing right?!
4 - Bowerbird Nests We all know those people who go above and
beyond to make their front yards looks really nice.
Or tacky depending on how you feel about it.
But we hopefully don't know anyone who would sabotage their neighbor's yard to bring
more attention their own.
Wellllllll, meet the Bowerbird.
As part of their bizarre mating ritual, the male birds build and decorate these intricate
looking nests in order to court a prospective female mate.
BUT these guys ALSO go out of their way to mess up each other's nests in order to bring
more attention to their own.
Wow, can you guys imagine how crazy things would be if people did this in real life?!
Bowerbirds are even known to create optical illusions that demands more attention from
a prospective mate.
By arranging objects from largest to smallest, it creates a forced perspective from their
mate and increases their chances of mating.
Well, maybe we can all learn something from this crazy bird!
Which is don't mess with other people's houses!
3 - Dogs and their Tail We've all seen it and most of us find it
hilarious.
A dog can entertain him or herself to no end when they chase their own tail.
The question we all wonder is….why?
It turns out there are a number of reasons why a dog might engage in this crazy behavior.
The most obvious thing isn't really that surprising…..dogs just want attention.
And chasing their own tail is a good way to draw attention to themselves.
Boredom is another reason.
When we get bored we play on our phone.
But dogs have fewer options, so they chase their own tail.
In some cases it's just genetics at work.
Certain breeds, such as German Shepards, are far more likely to chase their own tail than
other breeds….and we're not really sure why.
Finally, and perhaps most surprisingly, sometimes it's actually a weird compulsive disorder.
Past trauma, such as physical abuse, confinement and separation anxiety can cause a dog to
compulsively chase their own tail.
If that's the case, please get that dog help.
Obviously compulsive tail chasing cause serious injury and pain to the dog because of them
continuously chewing on their own tail.
2 - Penguins Hiding Their heads We've all heard of the Headless Horseman.
But considerably less well known is the wild tale of the Headless Penguin.
In 2010 these photos of two seemingly headless penguins captivated the internet.
I mean, what's going on here?!
Did they lose their heads in some freak accident?!
Is it some sort of weird optical illusion?!
There's actually a reasonable, biological explanation for all of this.
These two King Penguins found on the South Georgia Island in the South Atlantic have
double jointed necks, which allows them to essentially bend their heads in ways you'd
have to see to believe.
This weird phenomenon allows some King Penguins to twist and bend their necks in bizarre ways.
It probably makes it much easier to scratch those otherwise hard to reach places on their
backs.
Beyond their strange ability to look headless, King Penguins are fascinating birds.
As the second largest penguin, behind the Emperor Penguin, these guys are found primarily
in the South Atlantic and Northern Arctic Oceans, and there are more than 2 million
penguins among their ranks.
And while we live in an age where many of nature's creatures see their numbers dwindling,
the King Penguin population is actually increasing.
Nice!
1 - Jesus Lizard The Bascalus lizard has been nicknamed The
Jesus Lizard...not to be confused with the rock band.
They've earned this distinctive nickname because of their incredible ability to run
across water.
Yeah bruh….a lizard who runs on water!
In case you guys aren't familiar with one of the most famous stories ever, Jesus walked
across the Sea of Galilee during a storm.
Apparently, these lizards can do it too under dire circumstances.
Whether it's a miracle of Evolution or a pure adrenaline rush, Jesus Lizards can flee
across the water when a predator attacks.
They achieve this amazing feat by reaching an incredible velocity and expanding these
fringes they have on their hind toes.
This allows them to basically run across the water long enough to elude
their attacker.
Here's what's next!
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