Crazy Facts About Animals

Interesting and Crazy Facts About Animals

• A South African monkey was once awarded a medal and promoted to the rank of corporal during World War I.
• The abdomen of the ant contains two stomachs. One stomach holds the food for itself and second stomach is for food to be shared with other ants.
• Adult ants cannot chew and swallow solid food. Instead they swallow the juice which they squeeze from pieces of food.
• Ants use their antenae not only for touch, but also for their sense of smell.
• The average life expectancy of an ant is 45-60 days.
• An ant brain has about 250 000 brain cells. A human brain has 10,000 million so a colony of 40,000 ants has collectively the same size brain as a human.
• Ants can lift 20 times their own body weight.
• Ants know when they are going to die.
• Ostriches live about 75 years and can reproduce for 50 years.
• The largest bird in the world today is the Ostrich Struthio camelus. The North African Ostrich subspecies is the tallest of all the Ostriches. Males can be 2.74 m tall. The head and neck can be 1.4 m long. The average height is around 2 m.
• The smallest bird in the world is either the Bee Hummingbird Mellisuga helenae from Cuba and the Isle of Pines or the Little Woodstar Acestrura bombus of Ecuador and northern Peru. The male hummingbird is 57 mm and weighs 1.6 g. Half of its length is taken up by the bill and the tail. Some experts think the Woodstar is even smaller.
• The bird with the largest wingspan is the Wandering Albatross Diomedea exulans which lives in the southern oceans. Its wings average 2.54 - 3.51 m. The largest recorded wingspan was of a very old male whose wings measured 3.63 m.
• The Australian Pelican Pelecanus conspicillatus has the longest bill of any bill measuring 34 - 47 cm.
• The bird with the longest bill to body size is the Sword-billed Hummingbird Ensifera ensifera that lives in the high Andes from Venezuela to Bolivia. Its bill is 10.2 cm long, four times longer than the bird's body, not counting the tail.
• Ostriches Struthio camelus have the longest legs. Their legs can be up to 1.3 m long.
• A number of swifts have the shortest legs. Their family name Apodidae means 'lacking legs'.
• Jacanas (Jacanidae family) have the longest toes relative to body length. Some of the larger Jacanas can have 'toespans' of at least 15 cm.
• The Phoenix Fowl has the longest feathers. The upper tail can grow for six years and one measured 10.6 m. The Phoenix Fowl has been bred as an ornamental bird in Japan since the mid 17th century and is a breed of the Red Jungle Fowl Gallus gallus.
• The longest feathers of a wild bird relative to body size, are the central tail feathers of the male Ribbon-tailed Bird of Paradise Asptrapia mayeri. It lives in the mountain rainforest of New Guinea.
• The most feathers ever counted on one bird was 25 216 on the Tundra Swan Cygnus columbianus. 80 per cent of feathers were on the bird's head.
• The Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus is the fastest bird and fastest of any kind of animal. It can reach speeds of at least 200 km when diving for prey in the air.
• Hummingbirds have the fastest wingbeat. The Horned Sungem Heliactin cornuta, in tropical South America beats its wings at 90 beats per second.
• Hummingbirds, Family Trochilidae have been recorded in experiments, hovering for 50 minutes.
• Relative to body size the Long Rufous Humingbird Selasphorus rufus makes the longest migration. It measures 10 cm and flies from as far north as Alaska to Mexico and back again - 10 000 km.
• The highest recorded altitude for any bird was 11 277 m for a Ruppell's Griffon Vulture Gyps Rueppellii. It flew into a plane.
• The largest bird egg is from the Ostrich Sturthio camelus. The egg measures 15 - 20 cm long, 10 - 15 cm in diameter and weighs 1 - 1.78 kg.
• The smallest known egg is the egg of the Vervain Hummingbird Mellisuga minima of Jamacia and nearby islets. The egg is barely the size of a pea and measures less than 10 mm in length and weighs 0.356 g.
• Emperor Penguins Aptenodytes forsteri make the deepest dive of any bird ranging from 444 - 483 m. They also stay under water the longest. The maximum dive time recorded has been 18 minutes.
• The only poisonous birds known are the three species of Pitohui from Papua new Guinea - the Hooded Pitohui Pitohui dichrous the Rusty Pitohui P. ferrugineus and the Variable Pitohui P. kirhocephalus. The Hooded Pitohui is the deadliest. The skin and feathers contain almost the same homobatrachotoxin as the Poison Arrow Frogs.
• The rhinoceros's horn is made of the same stuff found in our hair and fingernails which is called keratin. It also contains something called gelatin.
• The typical laboratory mouse runs 2.5 miles per night on its treadmill.
• A cheetah can run 76 kilometres per hour.
• The largest frog in the world is called Goliath frog. Frogs start their lives as 'eggs' often laid in or near fresh water.
• Frogs live on all continents except Antarctica. Frogs belong to a group of animals called amphibians.
• A chimpanzee can learn to recognize itself in a mirror, but monkeys can't.
• A rat can last longer without water than a camel can.
• A woodpecker can peck twenty times a second.
• The hippopotamus gives birth under water and nurses its young in the river as well, though the young hippos do come up periodically for air.
• A cow gives nearly 200,000 glasses of milk in her lifetime.
• The world's largest mammal, the blue whale, weighs 50 tons at birth. Fully grown, it weighs as much as 150 tons.
• The world's largest rodent is the Capybara. An Amazon water hog that looks like a guinea pig, it can weigh more than 100 pounds.
• The world's smallest mammal is the bumblebee bat of Thailand, weighing less than a penny.
• At 188 decibels, the whistle of the blue whale is the loudest sound produced by any animal.
• The fastest dog, the greyhound, can reach speeds of upto 41.7 miles per hour. The breed was known to exist in ancient Egypt 6,000 years ago.
• A cat sees about six times better than a human at night because of the tapetum lucidum , a layer of extra reflecting cells which absorb light.
• A cat uses whiskers to determine if a space is too small to squeeze through. The whiskers act as antennae, helping the animal to judge the precise width of any passage.
• A cat will clean itself with paw and tongue after a dangerous experience or when it has fought with another cat. This is an attempt by the animal to soothe its nerves by doing something natural and instinctive.
• The grizzly bear can run as fast as the average horse.
• The female lion does more than 90% of the hunting while the male simply prefers to rest.
• At birth, a panda is smaller than a mouse and weighs about four ounces.
• Polar bears are left handed.
• A hippopotamus can run faster than a man.
• Snails produce a colorless, sticky discharge that forms a protective carpet under them as they travel along. The discharge is so effective that they can crawl along the edge of a razor without cutting themselves.
• A whip makes a cracking sound because its tip moves faster than the speed of sound.
• The heaviest fish ever caught was the OCEAN SUNFISH. It weighed 4,928 lbs.
• A crocodile cannot stick out its tongue.
• Turtles can breathe through their butts.
• It is possible to lead a cow upstairs...but not downstairs.
• A dogs sense of smell is one of the keenest in nature. If a pot of stew was cooking on a stove, a human would smell the stew, while the dog could smell the beef, carrots, peas, potatoes, spices, and all the other individual ingredients in the stew. In fact, if you unfolded and laid out the delicate membranes from inside a dogs nose, the membranes would be larger than the dog itself.
• Jellyfish have no brains, yet they can tell light from dark, and sence movement.
• Shrimps' hearts are in their heads.
• Starfish don't have brains.
• A barnacle has the largest penis of any other animal in the world in relation to its size.
• Some carnivores, rodents, bats and insectivores have a penis bone, called a baculum.
• Swans and Ducks are the only birds with penises.
• When a giraffe's baby is born it falls from a height of six feet, normally without being hurt.
• A donkey will sink in quicksand but a mule won't.
• The way to get more mules is to mate a male donkey with a female horse.
• Horses cannot vomit.
• A pig's penis is shaped like a corkscrew.
• The muzzle of a lion is like a fingerprint - no two lions have the same pattern of whiskers.
• A dog can hear sounds 250 yards away.
• There are penguins in Africa.
• Penguins don't have teeth but they still can bite.
• An octopus's testicles are in its head.
• A cat purrs at he same rate as a diesel motor.
• Dragonflies have six legs but cannot walk.
• The outdoor temperature can be estimated to within several degrees by timing the chirps of a cricket. It is done this way: count the number of chirps in a 15-second period, and add 37 to the total. The result will be very close to the actual Fahrenheit temperature. This formula, however, only works in warm weather.
• Bees have 5 eyes. There are 3 small eyes on the top of a bee's head and 2 larger ones in front.
• Ants stretch when they wake up. They also appear to yawn in a very human manner before taking up the tasks of the day.
• Every night, wasps bite into the stem of a plant, lock their mandibles (jaws) into position, stretch out at right angles to the stem, and, with legs dangling, fall asleep.
• If one places a tiny amount of liquor on a scorpion, it will instantly go mad and sting itself to death.
• Mosquitoes are attracted to the color blue twice as much as to any other color.
• Only female mosquitoes bite.
• Most elephants weigh less than the tongue of the blue whale.
• Birds do not sleep in their nests. They may occasionally nap in them, but they actually sleep in other places.
• Crocodiles and alligators are surprisingly fast on land. Although they are rapid, they are not agile; so if you ever find yourself chased by one, run in a zigzag line. You'll lose him or her every time.
• Bees die when they after they sting.
• The erect penis of a blue whale is approximately 9.5 feet long.
• The sound made when a duck passes gas is the precise acoustic opposite of its quack.If it does both simultaneously theres no audible sound.
• The only two animals that can see behind themselves without turning their heads are the rabbit and the parrot.
• Giraffes are the only animals born with horns. Both males and females are born with bony knobs on the forehead.
• Penguins are not found in the North Pole.
• The porpoise is second to man as the most intelligent animal on the planet.
• Guinea pigs and rabbits can't sweat.
• Ostriches are often not taken seriously. They can run faster than horses, and the males can roar like lions.
• A father sea catfish keeps the eggs of his young in his mouth until they are ready to hatch. He will not eat until his young are born, which may take several weeks.
• There are more than 50 different kinds of kangaroos.
• Alligators hunt mainly at night when the temperatures rise between April and October(northern hemisphhere).
• A chameleon's tongue is twice the length of its body.
• The largest cockroach on record is one measured at 3.81 inches in length.
• Australian termites have been known to build mounds twenty feet high and at least 100 feet wide.
• Ants don't sleep.
• Found in Argentina, the ornate horned frog can eat an entire mouse with one swallow.
• Cholesterol is a vitamin for insects.
• Monarch butterflies are poisonous.
• Catfish have over 27,000 taste buds.
• Butterflies taste with their feet.
• A duck can't walk without bobbing it's head.
• Cats sleep for 14 hours a day.
• Polar bears are the only mammal with hair on the soles of its feet.
• Dolphins don't automatically breath; they have to tell themselves to do it.
• The cockroach has a high resistance to radiation and is the creature most likely to survive a nuclear war.
• Termites eat wood twice as fast when listening to heavy metal music.
• Snails can sleep for 3 years without eating.
• A lion's roar can be heard from five miles away.
• Naturalists use marshmallows to lure alligators out of swamps.
• Whales die if their echo system fails.
• The pet ferret was domesticated more than 500 years before the house cat.
• Dry fish food can make goldfish constipated.
• The dumbest domesticated animal is the turkey.
• Scientists have determined that fungi are more closely related to human beings and animals than to other plants.
• Camel's milk, which is widely drunk in Arab countries, has 10 times more iron than cow's milk.
• When snakes are born with two heads, they fight each other for food.
• Tigers have striped skin, not just striped fur.
• There are over 52.6 million dogs in the U.S.
• The starfish is one of the only animals who can turn it's stomach inside-out.
• The praying mantis is the only insect that can turn its head.
• The placement of a donkey's eyes in its' heads enables it to see all four feet at all times.
• The penguin is the only bird who can swim, but not fly.
• The oldest known goldfish lived to 41 years of age. Its name was Fred.
• The longest recorded flight of a chicken is thirteen seconds.
• The katydid bug hears through holes in its hind legs.
• The giant squid has the largest eyes in the world.
• The elephant is the only mammal that can't jump.
• The blesbok, a South African antelope, is almost the same color as grapejuice.
• Studies show that if a cat falls off the seventh floor of a building it has about thirty percent less chance of surviving than a cat that falls off the twentieth floor. It supposedly takes about eight floors for the cat to realize what is occurring, relax and correct itself.
• Spotted skunks do handstands before they spray.
• Some ribbon worms will eat themselves if they can't find any food.
• Slugs have 4 noses.
• Reindeer like to eat bananas.
• Polar Bears trying to blend in with the ice will sometimes cover up their black nose with their paws.
• Penguins can jump as high as 6 feet in the air.
• Owls are one of the only birds who can see the color blue.
• Over 1000 birds a year die from smashing into windows.
• Most cows give more milk when they listen to music.
• Mosquitoes have teeth.
• Millie the White House dog earned more than 4 times as much as President Bush in 1991.
• Many hamsters only blink one eye at a time.
• It takes a lobster approximately seven years to grow to be one pound.
• If NASA sent birds into space they would soon die; they need gravity to swallow.
• Honeybees have hair on their eyes.
• Giraffes have no vocal cords.
• Emus and kangaroos cannot walk backwards, and are on the Australian coat of arms for that reason.
• Dolphins sleep with one eye open.
• Dogs and cats consume almost $7 billion worth of pet food a year.
• Cats can produce over one hundred vocal sounds, while dogs can only produce about ten.
• Cat's urine glows under a blacklight.
• Camels have three eyelids to protect themselves from blowing sand.
• Camel's milk does not curdle.
• Ben and Jerry's send the waste from making ice cream to local pig farmers to use as feed. Pigs love the stuff, except for one flavor: Mint Oreo.
• Bats always turn left when exiting a cave.
• Baby robins eat 14 feet of earthworms every day.
• Armadillos have four babies at a time and they are always all the same sex.
• Armadillos are the only animal besides humans that can get leprosy.
• An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.
• An iguana can stay under water for 28 minutes.
• An animal epidemic is called an epizootic.
• All porcupines float in water.
• A whale's penis is called a dork.
• A skunk can spray its stinky scent more than 10 feet.
• A shark can detect one part of blood in 100 million parts of water.
• A shark is the only fish that can blink with both eyes.
• A pregnant goldfish is called a twit.
• A pig's orgasm lasts for 30 minutes.
• A monkey was once tried and convicted for smoking a cigarette in South Bend, Indiana.
• A mole can dig a tunnel 300 feet long in just one night.
• A male emperor moth can smell a female emperor moth up to 7 miles away.
• A jellyfish is 95 percent water.
• A hummingbird weighs less than a penny.
• A hippo can open its mouth wide enough to fit a 4 foot tall child inside.
• A hedgehog's heart beats 300 times a minute on average.
• A goldfish has a memory span of three seconds.
• A giraffe can go without water longer than a camel can.
• A giraffe can clean its ears with its 21-inch tongue.
• A dragonfly has a lifespan of 24 hours.
• A cow produces 200 times more gas a day than a person.
• A cockroach can live several weeks with its head cut off.
• A cat has 32 muscles in each ear.