spacebug
02-09-2011, 02:16 PM
There's a whole bunch of these "10 most something somethings"...meh, not interactive enough. Lets make our own list of
As Many As We Like Most Bizarre Creatures!
Bristlenose Plecostomus
Why it's bizarre:
Aside from being fantastically ugly (http://www.fishlore.com/Pictures/Profiles/bristlenose-pleco.jpg), the supposed purpose of the bristles is quite bizarre!
The male fish has a cave, it attempts to lure a female into its cave to deposit her eggs, and the male will then guard the eggs as they develop. The female doesn't develop the bristles, only the male does. The theory is that the bristles on the face of the male look rather like baby Bristlenoses. And the female is supposed to be attracted by this.
I'm not sure whether it's supposed to be a "Ooooh, this male must be good and fertile, look at all the babies he's looking after already" or just a generic female "OOOOH BABIES ^_^" reaction, but I have to say that I find the thought of being attracted to a male because he looks like he has babies growing out of his face to be just a little bit strange.
Anglerfish
Why it's strange:
Remember this scary fellow? (http://s3.amazonaws.com/readers/2010/05/10/anglerfishfull300x256_1.jpg)
Actually it's a scary lass. Scientists were puzzled when they started studying this fish because all the specimens they found were exclusively female. Also, they were covered with strange lumps like some kind of parasite or weird warty growth.
Further investigation revealed that the little lumps were actually little fishy gonads.
See, the male Angler fish is born with a very good sense of smell, his purpose in life is to find a female. When he does, he goes "YOMP" and bites onto the side of her. He produces enzymes that digest the skin and fuse their two bodies together. Then he atrophies away until all that is left is a pair of gonads. That way, the female can obtain sperm immediately when she is ready to spawn, and usually from a range of donors! :eek:
Lybia
No not the country. It's a kind of crab. Common names are Boxer Crabs and Pompom Crabs.
Here's why he's called that. (http://www.daveharasti.com/Bali/Tulamben/20%20Boxer%20Crab.jpg)
The Boxer Crab has a mutually beneficial relationship with sea anemones. The sea anemone is actually classified as animal too and is quite bizarre in itself...but anyway, this little crab takes cuttings from this sea anemone and holds one in each claw. When something comes along that the crab thinks might bother it, it shoves the anemones towards the intruder as though it's boxing. "Stay back! I've got anemones and I'm not afraid to use them!" The anemones actually do have a powerful sting that predators will try to avoid.
The crab holds the anemones almost all of the time. It puts them down when it moults, then picks them back up again immediately! Because its claws are holding anemones all the time, it's had to adapt its first set of walking legs to use as feeding arms! It feeds by wafting the anemones about in the water, or mopping them across a surface to catch bits of floating food. It then picks the bigger bits out and eats them, while the anemone digests the smaller pieces. Apparently the anemone does quite well out of the arrangement, getting fed, and transported about, as wiki says "finding new places to eat and mate" O_o
Here's a video of one catching food (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJO5qRF-Uw0)
Also they're supposedly a bit thick. If they don't have an anemone in their claw for some reason, they'll still behave as though they to, shoving their empty claw towards a predator "LOOK! I've got an invisible anemone, keep back!"
Add some more bizarre creatures to this list!
As Many As We Like Most Bizarre Creatures!
Bristlenose Plecostomus
Why it's bizarre:
Aside from being fantastically ugly (http://www.fishlore.com/Pictures/Profiles/bristlenose-pleco.jpg), the supposed purpose of the bristles is quite bizarre!
The male fish has a cave, it attempts to lure a female into its cave to deposit her eggs, and the male will then guard the eggs as they develop. The female doesn't develop the bristles, only the male does. The theory is that the bristles on the face of the male look rather like baby Bristlenoses. And the female is supposed to be attracted by this.
I'm not sure whether it's supposed to be a "Ooooh, this male must be good and fertile, look at all the babies he's looking after already" or just a generic female "OOOOH BABIES ^_^" reaction, but I have to say that I find the thought of being attracted to a male because he looks like he has babies growing out of his face to be just a little bit strange.
Anglerfish
Why it's strange:
Remember this scary fellow? (http://s3.amazonaws.com/readers/2010/05/10/anglerfishfull300x256_1.jpg)
Actually it's a scary lass. Scientists were puzzled when they started studying this fish because all the specimens they found were exclusively female. Also, they were covered with strange lumps like some kind of parasite or weird warty growth.
Further investigation revealed that the little lumps were actually little fishy gonads.
See, the male Angler fish is born with a very good sense of smell, his purpose in life is to find a female. When he does, he goes "YOMP" and bites onto the side of her. He produces enzymes that digest the skin and fuse their two bodies together. Then he atrophies away until all that is left is a pair of gonads. That way, the female can obtain sperm immediately when she is ready to spawn, and usually from a range of donors! :eek:
Lybia
No not the country. It's a kind of crab. Common names are Boxer Crabs and Pompom Crabs.
Here's why he's called that. (http://www.daveharasti.com/Bali/Tulamben/20%20Boxer%20Crab.jpg)
The Boxer Crab has a mutually beneficial relationship with sea anemones. The sea anemone is actually classified as animal too and is quite bizarre in itself...but anyway, this little crab takes cuttings from this sea anemone and holds one in each claw. When something comes along that the crab thinks might bother it, it shoves the anemones towards the intruder as though it's boxing. "Stay back! I've got anemones and I'm not afraid to use them!" The anemones actually do have a powerful sting that predators will try to avoid.
The crab holds the anemones almost all of the time. It puts them down when it moults, then picks them back up again immediately! Because its claws are holding anemones all the time, it's had to adapt its first set of walking legs to use as feeding arms! It feeds by wafting the anemones about in the water, or mopping them across a surface to catch bits of floating food. It then picks the bigger bits out and eats them, while the anemone digests the smaller pieces. Apparently the anemone does quite well out of the arrangement, getting fed, and transported about, as wiki says "finding new places to eat and mate" O_o
Here's a video of one catching food (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJO5qRF-Uw0)
Also they're supposedly a bit thick. If they don't have an anemone in their claw for some reason, they'll still behave as though they to, shoving their empty claw towards a predator "LOOK! I've got an invisible anemone, keep back!"
Add some more bizarre creatures to this list!