Pub trivia: Weird creatures
Weird creatures
Many weird creatures roam the natural world almost unnoticed by the untrained eye, not just Bill Odie on safari watch. Here are some other odd-animal facts for you to read about from a safe distance.
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Fact
The mop budgerigar is a beautifully feathered creature. Bizarrely, it is this beauty that means they only ever live for under a year. The small birds have long, curly feathers that grow up to 6 centimetres in length. Scientists believe the fatal protein deficiency that kills them is caused by their excess feather production.
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Fact
The star-nosed mole has developed a peculiar shaped nose to help it find its food. The snout is surrounded by ‘tentacles’, which constantly move around as it searches. The 22 fleshy appendages are crammed with over 25,000 sensors which feel the ground to find anything edible. Once located, the tentacles retract so that the mole can get the food into its mouth.
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Fact
The giant squid has the largest eyes of any living creature on Earth. It also has the ugliest face.
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Fact
Fainting goats were discovered in America in 1880. The breed suffer from a condition called myatonia. This causes them to lock up and fall over whenever they are startled. They don’t actually lose consciousness, but remain rigid on the ground for about fifteen seconds. The condition is not harmful, but simply a genetic quirk.
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Fact
The Gulper eel is formed almost entirely of one giant, razor-toothed mouth attached to an expandable stomach. Grotesque in appearance, they are found at depths of 6,500 feet. The jaws are detachable, allowing a Gulper to eat food of its own size. The eel hangs vertically in the water, until prey is engulfed in one gulp - its entire frame opens like an umbrella.
