More Random Animal Facts
- A horse expends more energy lying down than it does standing up
- Female spiders spin better webs than males do
- Eagles can’t hunt when it’s raining
- The right whale’s eyeball is about as big as an orange
- Both bees and foxes pollinate plants
- Earthworms have 5 hearts
- There are 1,000 barbs in a single porcupine quill
More Strange But True Animal Facts
- The blood vessels of a blue whale are wide enough for an adult trout to swim through
- Hawaii’s state fish is the humuhumunukunukuapua’a
- The top speed of an abalone on the move is 5 yards per minute
- Sheep snore
- A group of jellyfish is know as a “smack”
- One-humped camles run faster than two-humped camels
How Far Can A Kangaroo Jump?
From Can Elephants Swim? by Robert M. Jones
“One large kangaroo, at a single desperate bound, is reported to have cleared a pile of timber 10 1/2 feet high and 27 feet long.”
Do Animals See Color?
We often act as if they do, but the truth is, most don’t.
From The Book of Answers, by Barbar Berliner
“Apes and some monkeys perceive the full spectrum of color, as may some fish and birds. But most mammals view color only as shades of gray. … Bulls don’t charge because a cape is red. They charge because of the movement of the cape.”
Rabbit’s Foot Origin
From the Encyclopedia Of Superstitions,
“The origin of the superstitions concerning the luck of the rabbit’s foot lies in the belief that young rabbits are born with their eyes open, and thus have the power of the Evil Eye, and can shoo away the Evil One.”
The Cat’s Purr
Random Cat Facts: On average, cats spend 30 percent of their waking hours grooming themselves. They purr at 26 cycles per second, about the same frequency as an idling diesel engine.
Can Porcupines Shoot Their Quills?
Myth: When provoked, porcupines can shoot their quills.
Fact: Porcupines tend to run from danger when frightened. If caught or cornered, porcupines do tighten up their skin making their quills stand up which makes them easier to get lodged into anything they touch.
Bat Myths
From the National Geographic:
“There are no blind bats. They see extremely well.”
In fact, Tuttle has tried to make this happen, but bats just won’t tangle. He notes that echolocation, their sophisticated sonar system, allows bats to dodge wires as fine as human hairs—in the dark.
Bats are actually clean, meticulous groomers. They can contract rabies like most mammals, but as Tuttle advises, “you rarely have to worry about a sick bat if you just leave them alone and go about your business.” In 40 years of studying bats, he’s never been attacked or harmed by one.
Most bats are nocturnal and eat insects. Some eat fruit, and a few are predators of small vertebrates. Only three of the one thousand or so bat species ingest blood. They live only in Latin America, and only one feeds on livestock while the others feed on the blood of birds.
Bats are no more related to rodents than humans are. Evolution studies show that bats are more closely related to primates than to rodents.
On this, Tuttle responds: “Realistically, there’s nothing more ugly than an elephant. Its eyes are too small, its nose too long, its ears too big. It’s heavy. But we love them, and that’s because we understand them.” Along those same lines, he mentions that photographing bats as they are most of the time—instead of in defensive, snarling positions—has greatly improved their image. “Many are cute, and all are fascinating,” Tuttle says.
Strange Animal Facts
Top speed of an abalone on the move? 5 yards per minute.
Hawaii’s state fish is the humuhumunukunukuapua’a.
Chimpanzees will hunt ducks if given the opportunity.
A bear in hibernation can go as long as 6 months without going potty.
On average, a cow will produce 70,000 glasses of milk in her lifetime.
