We all know the universe has a twisted sense of humour at the best of
times, but it must have been having a particularly bad day when it
decided to come up with these bizarre animals.
1. Blobfish
Psychrolutes Phrictus (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
First
up on the list is the aptly named Blobfish. The best way I can describe
this thing is by asking you to remember those old Wild West movies.
Remember how everyone was always spitting their
chewing tobacco
into those metal bins? Well, imagine you looked into the bin after a
couple of hours. What you’re looking at is basically a massive slimy
blob of phlegm and snot. Throw in a two googly-eyes and use some
lipstick to draw a mouth like the Joker’s. That is essentially your
Blobfish.It’s a
pretty
lazy animal too. It doesn’t even waste energy swimming. Found at the
bottom of the sea near Australia and Tasmania, its largely gelatinous
body allows it to just float on the sea floor, swallowing any edible
matter that happens to float in front of it. You cannot get lazier than
that.
2. Proboscis Monkey
Proboscis Monkey (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Second
is the Proboscis Monkey. Also known as Long-Nosed Monkeys, these are
located in the South-East Asian island of Borneo. Imagine a normal sized
monkey with a massive beer-gut and a deflated balloon attached to its
face. They usually just hang high in the trees and don’t come down
unless they’re looking for food.They eat mainly leaves and
seeds but due to their diet, they’ve developed a large belly. At least,
that’s what scientists tell us. But we know the truth; this is one
binge-drinking monkey.
3. Glass Frog
Glass Frog (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
In
late 2007, in the Hiroshima University, some scientists were ecstatic
that they had created a translucent frog. What they didn’t know was that
in Venezuela, there existed a (hipster) Glass Frog which was
translucent before it was cool.It’s easy to see (or is it?)
that this frog isn’t very easy to hunt since it’s mostly active at night
and is relatively small, only ranging from 3 to 7.5 centimetres. If
you’re ever lucky enough to find one, get close enough and you might
actually see its heart beating.
4. Philippine Tarsier
Philippine Tarsier (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The
Philippine Tarsier got its name from the fact that it has really long
tarsus bones in its feet. Its fingers are also elongated and the third
finger is roughly the same size as its
upper arm.
But none of that matters because the thing you’ll notice first is its
eyes – they’re 16 mm in diameter and are as large as its entire brain!This
creature may look cute, but it is not to be messed with. Not only will
it flip you the finger, but it’s the only entirely carnivorous primate
still alive, meaning it attacks birds, snakes, bats and
lizards.
Judging by the size of its eyes, it must have been strapped to a chair
and forced to watch the entire Twilight Saga. I suppose that would
explain why it attacks bats.
5. Yeti Crab
Yeti Crab (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The
Yeti crab is a recently discovered animal which lives in the South
Pacific Ocean. The Yeti crab looks like it’s always wearing the bright
yellow crab-mittens its grandmother gave it for Christmas one year. It’s
roughly 15 cm long and its
pincers contain bacteria which it can use to clean the water around its body. It usually eats green algae and small shrimp.
6. Star Nosed Mole
The Star Nosed Mole must have jumped straight out of a
Bugs Bunny
cartoon. It looks as if its head just got blown up, an effect made even
more realistic by the pink tentacles stretched out on its nose. This
weird creature is found in Canada and in the north-eastern part of the
US. The name comes from its strange nose (which is more like a squished
octopus attached to its face than a nose). The tentacles on the nose
help the mole find snails, molluscs, worms, and other small creatures it
likes to eat. They probably see it coming and die laughing, allowing
the mole to simply walk up and gobble them up.
7. Angora Rabbit
Angora Rabbit (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The
Angora rabbit is an animal that seems to have an eternally
bad hair day. One of oldest types of rabbit in the world, it’s bred for its long, soft, silky hair. This is a very
high maintenance
animal since it needs to be sheared every few months. Apparently, their
long fur can cause these rabbits to sometimes overheat. And we all know
there’s nothing worse than having a rabbit melt on your carpet.
8. Hungarian Komondor
Hungarian Komondor (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The
Hungarian Komondor, known as the Komodorok, is essentially a pile of
spaghetti with eyes. The entire body of the dog is covered by dense,
white strands of hair, giving it the look of a gigantic mop with legs.
However, its coat is especially useful in protecting the dog against
predators and extreme weathers.The Komondor is extremely fast
and agile, so it is usually used as a guard dog to protect flocks of
sheep from predators such as other dogs, wolves, and coyotes. Because
it’s not a hero. It’s a silent guardian. A watchful protector. A dark
white knight.
9. Sea Pig
Sea Pig (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Number nine on the list is the Sea Pig, which looks nothing like a pig. What it
does look like
is as if someone decided to detach a cow’s udders and give it eyes.
These weird creatures are found in oceans all over the world and are
usually 10cm long. They eat deep-sea mud particles and don’t really do
much. One cool thing is that they can actually inflate and deflate their
tentacles at will.
10. Aye-Aye
Aye Aye (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Last
on the list is the world’s largest nocturnal primate: the Aye-Aye. It’s
found in Madagascar and acts like a primate version of a
woodpecker.
It taps on trees to find food, expertly cuts a hole into the tree using
its teeth, and then uses its elongated finger to snatch out the grub
and eat it.Unfortunately, these creatures were considered to
be bad luck and were hunted down. Although, let’s be honest: if you look
like Gollum from Lord of the Rings, you can hardly be expected to bring
good luck, can you?
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