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Silly Animal Facts & Trivia
Cats, camels and giraffes are the only animals
in the world that walk right foot, right foot, left foot, left foot, rather than
right foot, left foot.
Of the 4000 species of mammals on the planet,
there are 900 different species of bats.
The duckbill platypus (male) is the only
venomous mammal in the world.
In England, the hedgehog is greatly respected,
often kept as pets even though they are hard to hug!. The English are very
concerned about the wild hedgehog, to the point where tunnels have been dug
under motor ways to enable the prickly beasties to get across the road without
being killed.
Guinea Pigs, another family favorite, absolutely
NEED vitamin C. To make sure they receive a good supply, they should be fed a
diet including kale, cabbage, spinach and chicory.
One of the worlds oldest breeds of dog is the
Saluki. It is thought to have been developed in ancient Mesopotamia around 3000
B.C.
What's the origin of the word 'barbecue?' It's
derived from French speaking pirates, who called this Caribbean pork feast 'de
barbe et queue,' which translates 'from beard to tail.' In other words, the pig
roast reflected the fact that the hog was an eminently versatile animal that
could be consumed from head to toe.
Pigs are NOT the only animals that can get
sunburned. Beluga whales can obtain severe sunburns; dog's noses are also
subject to sunburn.
The zoo in Tokyo closes for two months of the
year so animals can have a holiday from visitors
Fleas are attracted to animals by body heat,
movement, and the carbon dioxide they exhale.
European explorers asked aborigines what these
strange hopping animals were called, and they replied, 'Kangaroo,' which meant,
'I Don't understand.' Kangaroos are called wallabies by the natives of
Australia.
In medieval times, a primitive form of
biological warfare was used, called trebuchet. A catapult would fling a dead,
rotting animal carcass into enemy territory, spreading disease.
The bat is the only mammal that can fly (without
a plane).
The easiest way to tell if an animal is a
carnivore or a vegetarian is by looking at the EYES! Hunting animals have
eyes located in the front of their heads, (dogs, tigers, owls) so they can focus
in on the prey that they are stalking. Vegetarian animals have eyes on the
side of their heads (rabbits, deer, canary) so they can see hunters coming at
them
from all directions.
No other animal gives us more by-products than
the hog. These by-products include pig suede, buttons, glass, paint brushes,
crayons, chalk, and insulation to name a few.
The world's smallest mammal is the bumblebee bat
of Thailand, weighing less than a penny.
Armadillos are the only animal besides humans
that can get leprosy.
Carnivorous animals will not eat another animal
that has been hit by a lightning strike.
Anthrax was the first bacillus ever seen and
identified under the microscope. The discovery by Robert Koch in 1876 led Louis
Pasteur to developed an attenuated anthrax vaccine, the first such vaccine. This
in turn led him to develop the rabies vaccine. Anthrax is a highly infectious
animal disease which can be transmitted to humans on contact.
Australia is the only country to have monotremes.
These are mammals that lay eggs but suckle their young on milk once they have
hatched. The animals are the platypus and the echidna.
The Amazon region contains the largest body of
fresh water and the largest rain forest in the world. It is home to at least
15,000 documented animal species, 8,000 of which were new to biology when they
were discovered. At least 40% of the world's freshwater fish and 25% of the
world's bird species reside there.
The common goldfish is the only animal that can
see both infra-red and ultra-violet light.
Proportional to their size, cats have the
largest eyes of all mammals.
The Emperor penguin is the largest type of
penguin.
Hippos are the largest member of the pig family.
They are thought to be distantly related to whales.
The largest jellyfish ever found had tentacles
that were more than 118 feet long.
The largest turtle ever found weighed 2,016
pounds.
The largest insects that ever lived on the earth
were giant dragonflies with wing spans of over 3 feet.
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