Weird Animals

A round goby (Neogobius melanostomus) in a plastic pipe in the lab.

Some Fish Fins Are as Sensitive as a Primate's Fingertips

Experiments reveal fish fins aren't just for getting around. They could have implications for underwater robotics

A stunned iguana lying on the ground during a cold snap in Florida on January 22, 2020. When temperatures dropped into the 30s and 40s, some of these cold blooded lizards lost their grip and fell from their nighttime perches up in the trees.

Lizards Fell From Palm Trees During a Florida Cold Snap, but Now They've Toughened Up

New research finds the lizards are now able to withstand temperatures up to 7.2 degrees colder than lizards tested in 2016

Platypuses' nocturnal nature made researchers suspect they might glow under ultraviolet light.

Platypuses Glow Green Under Ultraviolet Light

The web-footed monotremes join a small cast of fluorescent, nocturnal mammals

A still from the first ever video of a live ram's head squid in the wild.

See Strange Squid Filmed in the Wild for the First Time

The elusive creature is called the ram’s horn squid after a spiral-shaped internal shell that is often found by beachcombers

New research identifies a previously unknown type of nerve cell inside octopus suckers that the cephalopods use like taste buds.

Octopuses Taste Food With Special Cells in Their Suckers

New study reveals biology behind one of the octopus' many super powers

A swordfish photographed underwater southwest of Tampa, Florida.

Shark Stabbed Through the Heart and a Swordfish Is to Blame

Recent research documents the latest instance of a strange but not unheard-of phenomenon in which swordfish impale sharks with their bills

Rattlesnakes can bite after death.

14 Fun Facts About Frightening Animals

From snakes that eat their prey alive to primates that inject their peers with flesh-rotting venom, these are the scariest deeds committed by critters

The ogre-faced spider earns its name from its large eyes and mandibles.

How Ultra-Sensitive Hearing Allows Spiders to Cast a Net on Unsuspecting Prey

Sounds trigger the ogre-faced spider to backflip and shoot a silk trap on other insects

Two-headed snakes struggle more when their heads are joined close together.

In Florida, Pet Cat Brings Home a Rare Two-Headed Snake

The snake is now in the care of Florida Wildlife Conservation's Fish and Wildlife Research Institute

An entomologist with the Washington State Department of Agriculture vacuums invasive Asian giant hornets out of a nest discovered last week in the city of Blaine on October 24, 2020.

Entomologists Destroy Asian Giant Hornet Nest Found in Washington

The crew sucked nearly 100 hornets from the tree-hollow hive—the first ever found in the U.S.—using a vacuum and captured escapees with nets

The Gollum snakehead is unusual among subterranean critters because it has both eyes and a colorful complexion.

Subterranean Fish Named 'Gollum' Belongs to a New Family

The freshwater fish belongs to a never-before-described taxonomic family, making it one of the biggest finds of the last decade

A diabolical ironclad beetle can withstand the crushing force of 39,000 times its own body weight.

The Secrets of the Diabolical Ironclad Beetle's Almost Unsquishable Strength

Researchers hopped in a Toyota Camry and drove over the beetle twice...for science—and it survived

Javan slow lorises are now one of only six mammal species known to use venom against individuals of their own species.

The Cute-but-Deadly Slow Loris Reserves Its Flesh-Rotting Venom for Its Peers

The world's only venomous primates just got weirder

Last month in Brooklyn, a man dumped two bags full of eels into Prospect Park Lake. They're thought to be Asian swamp eels, seen here.

Man Seen Dumping Bags of Eels Into Lake at New York City Park

Officials say the non-native eels are unlikely to survive the winter, but experts caution that the serpent-like fish could still disturb the ecosystem

Conservation groups released Tasmanian devils in mainland Australia earlier this month, marking a major milestone in the process of restoring a species that has been missing for thousands of years.

For the First Time in 3,000 Years, Tasmanian Devils Return to Mainland Australia

The marsupial carnivores will roam the outback once again

A small-banded kukri snake seen with its head thrust inside the body of an Asian common toad. This snake does this to feed on its prey's internal organs, and, perhaps, to avoid the poisonous milky secretions that can be seen on the toad's back.

This Snake Slurps Organs of Living Toads in Grisly Feeding Strategy

Researchers say no other snakes are known to feed this way, adding that the snakes may feed this way to avoid toxins secreted from the toads’ backs

The results of a new study suggest crows are aware of their own sensory perceptions, a hallmark of what's called primary or sensory consciousness.

Do Crows Possess a Form of Consciousness?

New study suggests the corvids may join humans and some primates as one of the rare animals capable of having subjective experiences

Artist's interpretation of a toothy Spinosaurus.

Fossil Teeth Bolster Notion That Spinosaurus Was a ‘River Monster’

A selection of some 1,200 teeth found in ancient riverbeds was dominated by Spinosaurus, suggesting they made their home in the water

A deadly Australian funnel-web spider bares its fangs.

Deadly Spiders Evolved Venom to Safely Search for Love

Male funnel-web spiders evolved deadly venom to protect themselves from vertebrate predators when they leave the safety of their burrows to find a mate

This cave bear probably lived between 22,000 and 39,500 years ago, and researchers hope to get a better estimate with closer study.

Ice Age Cave Bear Found Preserved in Permafrost on Siberian Island

According to preliminary analysis, the bear is between 22,000 and 39,500 years old

Page 12 of 37