Unusual animals unknown to science. The most unknown animals
The variety of shapes, colors and sizes of creatures inhabiting our planet surpasses even the richest imagination. We are pleased to present to you the most unusual animals in the world. Some of them look like characters from a science fiction movie about Mars, others seem to come from another dimension, but they all live on Earth and were created by Mother Nature.
25. Octopus Dumbo
The funny octopus opens the hit parade of amazing creatures. It lives at great depths (from one hundred to five thousand meters) and is primarily engaged in searching for crustaceans and worm-like creatures on the seabed. The octopus got its name, reminiscent of a baby elephant with large ears, thanks to its two unusually shaped fins.
24. Darwin's Bat
Creatures from the bat family are found in the waters around the Galapagos Islands. They are terrible swimmers and have instead learned to navigate the ocean floor on their fins.
23. Chinese water deer
This animal has earned the nickname "Vampire Deer" for its prominent tusks, which are used in battles for territory.
22. Star-nosed
The small North American mole gets its name from the circle of 22 pink, fleshy tentacles at the end of its snout. They are used to identify starfish food (worms, insects and crustaceans) by touch.
21. Aye-aye
This photo shows one of the most unusual animals in the world called “aye-aye” or “little arm”. This native of Madagascar is distinguished by its unique method of foraging; it knocks on trees to find larvae and then chews holes in the wood and inserts an elongated middle finger to pull out its prey.
20. "Living Stone"
Pyura Chilensis are living, breathing organisms found on Chilean beaches. Their appearance allows them to avoid predators. Interestingly, these creatures have both male and female organs and can reproduce without the help of a partner.
19. Pacu fish
Freshwater fish with human teeth are found in rivers in the Amazon and Orinoco basins, as well as in Papua New Guinea. A nightmare for local fishermen who are afraid to swim in the water because pacu confuse male testicles with nuts falling from trees into the water.
18. Drop fish
One of the strangest animals in the world. From the appearance of this creature, one can say that it is despondency incarnate. Lives in deep waters off the coast of Australia and Tasmania.
The blobfish lives in the depths and its flesh is a gel-like mass with a density slightly less than that of water. This allows the “dull” creature to stay afloat.
17. Eastern long-necked turtle
These turtles can be found throughout Australia. Their remarkable necks can reach a length of up to 25 cm.
16. Surinamese pipa
The leaf-like appearance of the Suriname pipa is a natural defense against predators. These toads have a unique method of reproduction: the female lays eggs and the male simultaneously releases sperm. The female dives down and the eggs fall onto her back, into the cells, where they remain until the time comes for the young peeps to be born.
15. Yeti Crab
The “hairy” claws of this crustacean, which lives in the depths of the southern part, contain many filamentous bacteria. They are needed to neutralize toxic minerals from water and, possibly, serve their host as food.
14. Bearded man
These beautiful birds live on Everest, the Himalayas and other mountainous areas in Europe and Asia. They were almost destroyed because people were afraid that bearded men would attack animals and children. Now there are only 10 thousand of them left on Earth.
13. Pike blenny
Found in the waters off the west coast of America, they can grow up to 30cm in length and have intimidatingly large mouths. Their pike blennies show each other as if they are kissing. Whoever has the biggest mouth is more important.
12. Decorated Tree Serpent
Many people's nightmare comes to life: a snake that climbs trees and then jumps down. Before jumping, the reptile curls up into a spiral, and then sharply turns around and rushes into the air. In flight, it stretches out and lands smoothly on a lower branch or other tree. Fortunately, flying snakes do not pay attention to people; they are more interested in bats, frogs and rodents.
11. North American kakimitsli
This cute animal from the raccoon family is native to the arid regions of North America. Cacomitsli are so easy to tame that miners and settlers once kept them as companions and gave them the nickname "miner's cat."
10. Striped Tenrec
It lives only in the tropical forests of Madagascar. The tenrec is somewhat porcupine-like, and the quills on the central part of the back can vibrate. With their help, animals locate each other.
9. Pink sea cucumber
He looks like a character from a science fiction film, but in reality he is a harmless creature. And it looks more like a jellyfish than its fellow sea cucumbers. Around its red mouth are tentacles that dig up edible mud from the bottom of the sea. From there it enters the creature's intestines.
8. Rhinopithecus
Famous TV presenter and naturalist David Attenborough once remarked that these amazing monkeys with their stub noses and blue “mask” around their eyes look like “elves.” Or, looking at them, you can say that “plastic surgery has gone too far.” Rhinopithecus lives in Asia, at altitudes up to 4000 meters and is rarely seen by humans.
7. Mantis crab
The colorful stomatopod, or mantis, spends most of its life hiding in burrows. Capable of breaking through the walls of aquariums by moving at speeds of up to 80 km per hour. During mating displays, mantis crabs actively fluoresce, and the fluorescence wavelength corresponds to the wavelength that the pigments in their eyes can perceive.
6. Panda Ant
Among the most unusual animals on the planet is a furry creature with the coloring of a panda. In fact, this is not an ant, but a wingless wasp that lives in South America. It is very similar in appearance to an ant, but, unlike it, it has a powerful sting.
5. Leaf-tailed gecko
Master of disguise originally from Madagascar. Thanks to its leaf-shaped tail, it can fit into the interior of the local jungle.
4. Gerenuk
It's hard to believe that this long-necked cutie is not a mini-giraffe, but a real African gazelle. In order to reach high branches, the gerenuk lacks only the length of its neck. You still have to stand up on your hind legs.
3. Chinese giant salamander
It can grow up to 180 cm long and weigh up to 70 kg. If you are in China and see such a creature in a local pond, then know that the water in this reservoir is very clean and cold.
2. Angora rabbit
It looks like the result of an experiment on crossing a Bigfoot with a kitten. Angora rabbits were extremely popular in the 17th and 18th centuries among European nobility. They were not eaten, but kept as pets.
1. Goblin shark (aka goblin shark)
Number one on our top 25 weird creatures is a rare shark, sometimes called a “living fossil.” It is the only surviving member of the family Scapanorhynchidae, with a pedigree of about 125 million years. Goblin sharks live all over the world at depths of more than 100 m, so they are not dangerous to swimmers.
Not only stone monuments remind us of ancient times. Living nature in different manifestations and forms still poses many mysteries to us.
The International Union of Cryptozoologists (cryptozoology is the science of rare animals) unites 800 scientists from 20 countries. Relying on legends and myths, they conduct a targeted search for mysterious animals and incomprehensible phenomena of living nature.
And this is not a pursuit of sensation, but painstaking scientific work to understand the Earth’s biosphere. Here they often face failure. But there are also victories...
A snail that weighs more than one and a half kilograms. Scientists knew about it from the stories of the blacks of Central Africa, and it even happened that giant shells of these gastropods were found. But a living snail was discovered absolutely by accident among logs brought to Marseille. The Gulliver snail was triumphantly demonstrated in Paris, Los Angeles, San Francisco, London...
Among the corals of the Great Barrier Reef of Australia, cryptozoologists relatively recently caught eight new species of exotic fish, no one even suspected that they existed...
A large (120 cm) lizard, a relative of the Central Asian monitor lizard, was caught in the sands of Arabia. Following the legends of the Arabs, they searched for her for 15 years to no avail...
The list can be continued for a long time. It included not only small animals, but also very large ones. And even one monster. There is no longer any doubt that it lives on Earth. And it lives not somewhere, but in the notorious.
On the ocean floor, near one of the islands, cryptozoologists, checking an ancient pirate legend about a giant octopus, installed a steel trap with bait. And when they lifted it aboard the oceanographic vessel, they saw twisted metal. However, in the sharp claws of the ingenious device, remnants of living tissue, skin and muscles of an unknown animal were preserved.
Analyzes showed that the trap was broken by a multi-armed Hercules, which is capable of wrapping its tentacles around even a submarine. Judging by the degree of deformation of the alloy steel, it should weigh at least three tons. Before this, researchers considered such a large cephalopod an idle invention of sailors.
One of the main trump cards of cryptozoologists is the lobe-finned fish coelacanth, which lives near the Comoros Islands. Paleontologists believed that it became extinct 200 million years ago. If the ancient coelacanth lives to this day, why not its other contemporaries?
1998 - Residents of the Canadian province of British Columbia literally bombarded local newspapers with reports of a mysterious sea giant spotted in coastal waters. According to the description of many eyewitnesses, the unknown animals are covered with green fur, have a long neck and a round head. The creature feeds on fish and often breaks nets, carrying the catch from them.
I wonder what. Although this was reported by people of different ages, different levels of education and professions, the descriptions of the unknown animal coincided almost completely. Researchers have determined that the “photo sketch” of the mysterious monster coincides with the appearance of the plesiosaur as paleontologists imagine it today.
Here is a list of supposed candidates for the title of “unknown freshwater animals”, which was compiled by researcher Yuri Raitarovsky. Undoubtedly, you should not trust everything that is written or told. But still…
The most famous freshwater monster is, of course, Nessie. This now legendary monster lives in the freshwater Scottish lake Loch Nsss. There is an eyewitness account from the 16th century, according to which “an unprecedented beast climbed out of the lake with great ease and began to uproot large trees with its tail. Hunters who were nearby attacked the monster, but it killed three and calmly returned to the lake."
An equally bloodthirsty unknown freshwater animal is mentioned in one of the publications of our science fiction writer and prominent paleontologist Ivan Efremov, who was keenly interested in the problem of giant monsters. He talked about a researcher who observed Nessie’s “relative” on Lake Victoria in Africa: the monster suddenly rose from the water and grabbed the unwary native! The monster had a long strong neck, a small head and a massive body...
For more than two centuries, the pygmies of Central Africa have a belief about the terrible beast moxle-mwembe, which can be translated as “the one who eats the tops of palm trees.” Witnesses describe him as “half elephant, half dragon”...
In Zambia, according to the local population, there lives an unknown animal that looks like a huge lizard. It is called Chipeque - "hippo eater". The famous hunter J. A. Jordan, who personally met the Chipeque, also talks about it...
Dr. Marcellin Anyanya, who led the Congolese expedition to Lake Tele in the northern part of Congo, in the summer of 1983, filmed a snake head on a massive neck rising above the water surface with a movie camera at a distance of 300 meters from the shore. The filming continued for 10 minutes, and the unknown animal majestically turned its head in different directions, and then went under the water. According to Dr Anyanya, the monster "approximates our understanding of brontosaurs, which went extinct 70 million years ago." The media ignored the sensational report about this shooting...
The unique footage never became public knowledge. However, with any film, photo or video materials that supposedly record something unusual, something always happens...
Reports of freshwater monsters go back to ancient times and continue to come. An interesting selection of such messages was published in the American magazine Faith in February 1998 by one of the leading American cryptozoologists, Dr. Karl Schacker.
According to a Reuters report from April 1997, residents of the village of Bisho near the Umzimkhlawa River in the Traxy region of South Africa claim that a monster lives in this river, supposedly devouring people, and has the head of a horse and the body of a fish! Moreover, the Minister of Agriculture of the South African Eastern Cape region, Ezra Sigwela, reports that recently 7 people have already become victims of an unknown animal!..
Despite the skepticism of local scientists who attribute these rumors to folk myth-making, Sigvela promises to send a special expedition to the village of Bisho.
Another freshwater creature in South Africa, supposedly living at the bottom of the 90-meter Howick Falls in the Kwa-Zulu-Natal region, is similar to the legendary Nsssi. Rumor ascribes to the monster the magical ability to attract unwary people to itself and carry them into its underwater lair!..
This legend quite effectively attracts tourists who flock here in droves in the hope of seeing an unknown inhabitant of the local waters. Apparently, someone is succeeding at something. At least in 1996, several photographs of the monster had already been taken. According to the tradition of cryptozoology, they look extremely indistinct, although, according to the English newspaper The Guardian, in one of the photographs it is possible to see “a long, skinny neck rising above a swollen body, and three accompanying small creatures, presumably ducks.”
The newspapermen add that “either ducks are not part of the monster’s diet, or all the rumors about the inhabitant of Howick Falls are also ducks”!..
Lake Qian Chei in China's northern province of Jilin has been featured as the home of another freshwater monster for more than 100 years...
Previously, all such creatures were considered “dragons”, which is why in pre-communist times Qian Chey was called the Lake of Dragons. Its inhabitants were described as having a golden or black color, were compared in size to a cow, the head (with horns!) was for some reason considered square, the neck seemed long to eyewitnesses. Sometimes the duck-billed “beak” is mentioned.
However, recently the appearance of the “dragons” has somehow changed. Now they talk about a light-headed creature moving in the water at the speed of a walking man. According to high-ranking official Kim Taik, on September 2, 1994, at 15.25, the monster appeared on the surface and swam from north to southwest for 10 minutes. When diving, he raised a 2-meter wave.
It should be noted that Qian Chei Lake was formed in the crater of the Baitoushan volcano, which last woke up in 1702. So, monsters have been living there for less than 300 years? Where did their ancestors come from?
1997, June 12 - a message appeared about video filming of an unknown animal on Lake Van in Turkey. Unal Kozak, a 26-year-old teacher at a local university, was lucky enough to do this. The recording of the creature lasted only a few seconds...
In the image you can see a black-brown object with a hump, with an eye visible from the side. The film was sent for examination to the University of Cambridge, England.
Unal Kozak interviewed about a thousand (!) eyewitnesses who observed the monster, and based on their testimony, he reconstructed its appearance. According to Kozak, the monster is about 15 meters long.
As the next representative of the new generation of freshwater monsters, we must name the pink saw-toothed dolphin. It was photographed in 1995 by writer Jeremy Uzdom on a lake near one of the southern tributaries of the Amazon in Brazil. The unknown animal appears to resemble a river dolphin called Inia geoffrensis, with one important exception: the photographed dolphin had a tall, jagged fin resembling a segment of a buzz saw. 1996 - the writer visited the lake again and filmed a sawtooth dolphin...
Some experts suspected that it was a mutant Inii geoffrensis or a common river dolphin with a fin mangled by the propeller of a passing motor boat. But this is contradicted by the geometric regularity of the notches on the fin.
According to the Edmonton Journal newspaper for September 10, 1927, published in British Columbia (Canada), hunters Harold Parnell and Ed Noble, sailing on a raft down the Athabasca River (Canadian province of Alberta), saw a suspicious whirlpool. Suddenly they heard a strange rumble from under the water. The hunters headed towards the source of the rumble, and water suddenly foamed in front of them.
A serpentine body six meters long, topped with a lizard-like head, appeared on the surface! The body was smooth, without scales. Frightened by such an amazing sight, they swam down the river at full speed, leaving far behind a monster that was perhaps no less surprised...
Legends about mysterious monsters also existed in Russia.
The coat of arms of the city of Moscow is known to everyone - it depicts St. George the Victorious, who pierces the Serpent with a spear. But it is possible that this same Serpent may well be a real creature that once lived in Russian forests.
Legends say that once upon a time there were bloodthirsty monsters in the European part of Russia. Similar to dragons, they had a ferocious disposition, pounced on foot and horsemen, tearing them to pieces. Fabulous Russian heroes fought against them. And in Western Europe, medieval knights fought with them in order to win the favorable gaze of their ladies. And who knows, maybe, not without heroic participation, some species of prehistoric lizards, which even survived the Ice Age, disappeared from the face of the earth.
This is not as absurd as it might seem at first glance.
After all, not only legends and fairy tales tell about unknown animals whose descriptions resemble primitive lizards. There are other, completely trustworthy sources that talk about unknown dragon-like creatures.
If you open the 30th volume of the Complete Collection of Russian Chronicles, you can find an amazing entry dating back to 1582:
“...In the summer, the corcodiles of Lutia were taken out of the river and the path was closed, many people were eaten and terrified and people prayed to God throughout the whole earth. And she hid again and beat up others. That same year, Tsarevich Ivan Ivanovich introduced himself in Sloboda, on the 14th day of December..."
What kind of corcodiles (crocodiles?) came out of the river and attacked people? After all, it was not in distant Africa, but near Novgorod. Maybe the chronicler simply lied for the sake of saying something cool?
But here is another entry made by an agent of an English trading company named Jerome Garcia. 1589 - in Poland, on the way to Russia, he witnessed an incredible event. There is this entry in his diary:
“...I left Warsaw in the evening, crossed the river, where a poisonous dead crocodile lay on the bank, whose belly was torn by my people with spears. At the same time, such a stench spread that I was poisoned by it and lay sick in the nearest village, where I met such sympathy and Christian help that I soon recovered..."
Mysterious lizards, uncharacteristic of our fauna, are also found in the memoirs of the Austrian ambassador to Russia Sigismund Herberstein, who visited us in 1517 and 1526. Here's what he wrote:
“...This area is replete with groves and forests in which it is possible to observe terrible phenomena. It is there that to this day there are a lot of idolaters who feed in their homes some snakes with four short legs like lizards, with a black and fat body... with some kind of fear they reverently worship them as they crawl out to the food provided...”
Three historical sources that tell of very similar phenomena. Isn't this worthy of attention?
Of course, one can try to dismiss these eyewitness reports, since they clearly do not fit into the usual picture of the world. This is exactly what scientists once did with the story of a pilot who crashed on Komodo Island in the Java Sea.
1912 - having returned to his homeland, the pilot began to tell incredible stories about some bloodthirsty monsters supposedly living in those places. Only in the summer of 1926 did an expedition of zoologists arrive on the island and actually discover giant relict lizards, which they called “dragons of Komodo Island.”
These prehistoric animals, numbering no more than a thousand individuals, reach a length of 3.5 meters and weigh about 150 kg. Giant monitor lizards are quite aggressive, sometimes stealing sheep from local peasants, hunting antelopes...
...The famous German hunter, who killed many lions, tigers and other dangerous predators in his life, died on the island of Komodo under unclear circumstances. He went to photograph a flock of monitor lizards and did not return. On the shore of the swamp, only his shoes and a mangled movie camera were found. Maybe he tragically became convinced of the authenticity of the existence of relic creatures, becoming a victim of these ancient creatures...
Perhaps something similar was once found in Russian forests?
I would like to believe that one day cryptozoologists will become interested in the legends about “Russian crocodiles.” After all, repeatedly, checking such rumors, they were convinced that folk legends do not arise out of nowhere.
What if the crocodiles of the Novgorod forests are also miraculously surviving prehistoric lizards that lived on the territory of Russia several centuries ago? No answer.
And I would like to give potential researchers of this mystery a little more food for thought.
An unknown crocodile, this time given the name “Arzamas monster,” appeared again on Russian soil at the beginning of the 18th century. Evidence of this event was found in the archives of the city of Arzamas. Here is a short excerpt from the document.
“...In the summer of June 1719, for 4 days there was a great storm in the district, and a tornado and hail, and many livestock and all living creatures perished. And the serpent fell from the sky, scorched by God’s wrath, and stank disgustingly. And remembering the Decree of God by the grace of our All-Russian Sovereign Peter Alekseevich from the summer of 1718 about Kunshtkamora and the collection for her of various wonders, monsters and all sorts of freaks, stones of heaven, and other miracles, this serpent was thrown into a barrel of strong double wine ... "
The document was signed by Zemstvo Commissioner Vasily Shtykov.
Unfortunately, the barrel did not reach the St. Petersburg museum. Either it got lost along the way, or the disdainful Russian men poured “double wine” (as vodka used to be called) from the barrel, using the other contents as a snack...
The nature of the Arzamas monster remains a mystery.
According to legend, a foul-smelling monster with short legs and a huge mouth full of sharp teeth “fell from the sky.” Didn't a tornado bring a real crocodile to us from distant countries?!..
Or perhaps, somewhere in the then dense Russian forests, the last mysterious creatures mentioned in the Novgorod chronicle lived out their lives?
Or perhaps they are still alive today?
I. Tsareva
Incredible facts
Looking at some representatives of the animal world, it is impossible not to be amazed at the imagination and ingenuity of Mother Nature.
Here are some examples of the most unusual and strange animals on our planet:
The most unusual animals
1. Angora rabbit
The Angora rabbit is one of the oldest breeds of rabbits, named after the capital of Turkey - the city of Ankara. These cute animals look like real fluffy clouds with ears, and were popular pets among the royal families of France in the 18th century.
2. Star-nosed
This unusual mole, native to North America, has a strange, fleshy nose. At the end of its muzzle there are 22 moving pink tentacles, which are very sensitive and are used by it as a kind of antenna. The mole also sports scaly paws and a thick, fluffy, water-repellent tail, where fat reserves are stored.
3. Aye-aye
The aye-aye is a rodent-like animal that lives in Madagascar. With squirrel-like teeth and a slender middle finger, the aye-aye forages for food from trees.
4. Pink Spadefish
Unlike most fish, this pink spadefish uses its fins to literally walk along the bottom of the sea. A strange species was discovered in Tasmania, Australia, but scientists found only four representatives.
5. Striped Tenrec
If you could cross a bumblebee and a hedgehog, they would probably end up with a striped tenrec. Found in Madagascar, this bristly animal is covered in stripes of yellow and brown spines, which they use to attack enemies.
6. Pacu fish
Pacu fish are related to piranhas and are distinguished by human teeth. Pacu feed mainly on plants and nuts, but there have been cases where they have bitten off the testicles of men.
7. Gerenuk
The gerenuk, also known as the giraffe gazelle, is a species of long-necked antelope that lives in the deserts of eastern Africa. Its thin and long neck helps it reach leaves that other antelopes cannot reach. Moreover, they are able to stand on their hind legs and become even taller.
8. Cassowaries
These flightless birds are among the most dangerous creatures in the world. Cassowaries take the defense of their territory very seriously, and in case of danger they will brutally deal with you with their razor-sharp claws. They can reach 2 meters in height.
Unusual animals of the world
9. Giant isopod
The giant isopod, which looks like a woodlice or Colorado potato beetle, grows to 19-37 cm in length and reaches a weight of about 1.7 kg. These incredible creatures live underwater at depths of 170 to 2000 meters. They lead a solitary life and are scavengers, feeding on dead whales, squid and fish. But they are also adapted to long periods of fasting, going without food for up to 8 weeks.
10. Snakehead
This scary-looking fish is called a snakehead. It has an insatiable appetite, eating almost all the fish in a pond or lake and even its own young. In addition, the snakehead can crawl on the ground and remain on land for up to 3 days in search of new food sources. Once they are on the ground, they are capable of eating any small animals in their path. There have even been cases of snakeheads attacking people.
11. Saiga
The saiga or saiga antelope is one of the world's oldest mammals, living on Earth along with saber-tooth tigers and woolly mammoths 250,000 years ago. Although at one time they were considered extinct, they are now often referred to as living fossils.
12. Australian snake-necked turtle
Looking at it, it looks like someone passed a snake through a turtle. This species of turtle has a neck so long that they cannot pull it back into its protective shell. However, they have a secret weapon, releasing a foul-smelling liquid when in danger.
13. Dumbo the Octopus
Grimpoteuthis, or as it is also called the octopus Dumbo, looks like the famous Disney character - the flying elephant Dumbo and is distinguished by funny ears. It lives at depths of 900 – 4900 meters below sea level and is considered the deepest-sea octopus ever discovered. There were cases when representatives of grimpoteuthys were found at a depth of 7000 meters.
14. Proboscis
The proboscis monkey is a medium-sized monkey that can only be found in the rainforests of Borneo. Male proboscis monkeys are the largest monkeys in Asia, and with their large, fleshy noses, they are probably the most unusual mammals.
15. Scorpion flies
From a distance, these insects look like ordinary dragonflies, but if you look at them under a microscope, you will see a real scorpion tail. Fortunately, it does not sting and is presented to females as a gift.
Unusual animals (photo)
16. Water deer
This miniature deer resembles a vampire when viewed closely, thanks to its large, curved, saber-shaped fangs that reach up to 8 cm in length. However, there is no need to worry, these deer are quite harmless and there have been no cases of them attacking people.
17. Blue Parrotfish
This strange but wonderful fish is considered a delicacy in many countries around the world. In Polynesia it is served raw and was once considered a "royal food". They are classified as parrotfish that are able to envelop themselves in clear mucus to protect themselves from predators. Males can grow up to 120 cm in length.
18. Red-lipped damselfish
It looks like this fish has decided to wear bright red lipstick. Red-lipped fish live at a depth of 30 meters in the Galapagos Islands. Interestingly, they are better suited to walking on the seabed rather than swimming. When the fish reaches maturity, it begins to use its dorsal fin to lure prey.
19. Axolotl
Axolotl refers to the larvae of the Mexican Ambistoma or Tiger Ambistoma. The larvae of this species do not undergo metamorphosis, and the adults remain aquatic and have gills. The axolotl is highly valued by scientists for its ability to regrow new limbs and even body parts, including a spine and part of the brain if they are lost.
20. Cyclops Shark
The Cyclops shark is one of the strangest creatures discovered by scientists in 2011. A large eyeball is the result of a disorder called cyclopia, which also occurs in humans. Researchers have found Cyclops shark embryos several times, but the fact that they have not been found outside the womb suggests that Cyclops sharks do not survive in the wild.
It seems that in our time everything has been studied far and wide, but over time our planet presents us with more and more surprises. Today, people know about 15% of all living organisms on our planet, and 85% remain a mystery to us.
Sometimes, having discovered the corpses of unknown animals, science comes to a dead end and cannot explain what kind of creature it is and where it came from. Sometimes, of course, it happens that these “corpses” are just falsifications and are made in order to increase their own popularity, and sometimes just for fun.
Trunko
On October 24, 1924, near the city of Margate in South Africa, local residents witnessed an unusual sight. In the ocean, not far from the shore, two completely ordinary killer whales fought with a huge strange creature of milky white color, whose body was completely covered with thick fur. One of the eyewitnesses later said that the creature vaguely resembled a “polar polar bear,” although it had fins and a whale’s tail. The animal used this tail for attack - first the animal attacked the killer whales, jumping out of the water to a height of about six meters, and then hit them with its tail.
The white giant was defeated in the battle. In the evening of the same day, his bloodless carcass washed ashore. It turned out to be even larger than it seemed at first: the body length was about 14 m in length, three m in width and 1.5 m in diameter. The tail was three meters long and shaped like a lobster's tail, and the body was indeed covered with thick fur 20 cm long. Instead of a nose, the creature had a trunk similar to an elephant's, 1.5 m long and 14 cm in diameter. The creature was named Trunko.
But bad luck - eyewitnesses examined the body, measured it and told everyone about it to everyone possible. But scientists never saw the unknown monster, despite the fact that the carcass lay on the shore for ten whole days until the tide dragged it back into the ocean. Hoax? Speculation of ordinary people? Not at all.
In 1924, information about a strange creature was published in several reputable newspapers, but the case did not attract public attention. People talked about it a little and forgot for many years. But in 2007, cryptozoologist Markus Hemmler published photographs of Trunko that he found in a newspaper archive, which confirmed that the case really took place. Careful analysis of the photographs revealed that Trunco was just a globster - a massive, tough "bag" of fat and skin containing collagen. This sometimes happens to dead whales: when a whale dies, its skull and skeleton are separated from the body and sink to the seabed, leaving the remains to “drift” in the ocean. As for the battle with killer whales, they could simply eat the corpse.
Unfortunately, often the solution to the mystery is the most mundane - as, for example, it was in this case.
Pedro
In October 1932, two gold miners, Cecil Main and Frank Carr, were searching for gold in the San Pedro Mountains. During the blasting work, a cave that was clearly man-made suddenly opened before their eyes: the walls and ceiling were reinforced with beams hardened over time. The cave was small: only 1.2 m in height and width and 4.5 m in length. But that’s not what’s strange: the fact is that the cave turned out to be “inhabited.”
To tell the truth, the “owner” of the cave was dead. And to be even more precise, he was a mummy. At the far wall, in the lotus position, with his arms crossed, sat on a small ledge a tiny man who, no doubt, had once been alive. The height of the mummy did not exceed 17 cm in a sitting position, therefore, if it were possible to straighten the mummy, then the height of the man would have been no more than 35 cm. The mummy was preserved so well that the prospectors were able to examine it in great detail: a flat skull, bulging eyes with heavy centuries, a flat nose, thin lips and a wide mouth, brown wrinkled skin... Even flat nails on thin elongated fingers were visible.
The prospectors removed the man from the cave and took him to the nearest city, Casper, where the mummy immediately fell into the hands of researchers. In honor of the mountains where she was found, she was given the name Pedro. The mummified remains were carefully studied for many years, and in 1950, X-rays were taken, which clearly showed a well-preserved skeleton and internal organs that were very reminiscent of human ones. It is noteworthy that the creature’s fangs were disproportionately large in relation to all other parts of the body.
An anthropologist from the American Museum of Natural History, Henry Shapiro, carefully examined both the mummy and the photographs, and concluded that the death of the creature was unlikely to be natural - some bones were broken, and dried blood was found on the head. Consequently, someone killed the creature, or it was involved in a terrible accident and received injuries incompatible with life. Pedro was apparently about 65 years old at the time of his death.
True, other theories also appeared later: for example, it could have been the body of a child from some unknown Indian tribe. This hypothesis is supported by the second find made in the same places - a woman’s mummy ten cm in height. The researchers again suggested that it was an infant. But babies don’t have such teeth - strong, healthy and with disproportionately long fangs.
Science has not given any answers, since both Pedro and his “girlfriend” were bought by an unknown businessman in the 1960s, and since then no one has ever seen the mummies. Now a reward of ten thousand dollars has been announced for them. But the Indians who inhabit those places have their own version, in whose folklore there are many legends about tribes of little people who inhabited America in ancient times. Legends say that these little men were harmful and evil creatures, and when they grew old, their fellow tribesmen simply hit them on the head with a stone so that they would not eat food in vain. And all these legends arose long before prospectors found Pedro’s mummy in the mountains.
Persian princess from Balochistan
On October 19, 2000, a strange mummy was discovered in Baluchistan. Oddly enough, it was sold on the local black market for the fabulous sum of $20 million and would probably have fallen into the hands not of scientists, but of some wealthy lover of antiquities, if a certain Ali Akbar had not sent Pakistani scientists a videotape where the mysterious remains were shown in all the details.
Further more. Akbar was found, he testified, and the police arrived for the mummy in the city of Kharan. The mummy was discovered in the house of Wali Mohammed Riki, who explained that the mummy was “gifted” to him by the Iranian Sharif Shah Bahi, who accidentally discovered the corpse near Queta after the earthquake.
The story itself would be quite ordinary - a mummy is like a mummy, in Egypt, for example, there are many of these. However, careful research made it possible to establish the identity of the mummified woman - it turned out that her name was Rodugune, she was the daughter of King Xerxes I of Persia from the Achaemenid dynasty. The information was obtained after deciphering the inscription on the golden crown that lay on the princess’s head. In addition, initially the mummy was in a gilded coffin, and the embalming mixture was not cheap - wax and honey.
Rodugune died 2,600 years ago, and it seemed a great success that the remains were so perfectly preserved. In addition, it was previously believed that the Persians did not embalm the dead. In this regard, there was a stir in scientific circles. But the problem is that the ancient princess turned out to be fake. Professional Ahmad Dani, after a careful study of the remains, found out that “Rodugune” died only in 1996 at the age of 20 - the young woman was first killed and then made the subject of speculation. The real identity of the “princess” has not yet been established, and since she is not of scientific interest, according to the laws of human morality she should have been buried, but due to bureaucratic intrigues, the body still rests in some Pakistani morgue.
Baby mammoth Lyuba
Lyuba was found by reindeer herder Yuri Khudi in May 2007 in Yamal. In permafrost conditions, the baby mammoth carcass was perfectly preserved, and it was possible to transfer it to scientists without any damage - even the internal organs, fur and eyes remained intact, not to mention the skin and fur. The find allowed us to learn a lot about mammoths, their life and structural features.
The little mammoth died 42 thousand years ago. Then, according to DNA analysis, she was only a month old. Lyuba weighed 50 kg, reached 85 cm in height, and 1.3 m in length. Remnants of mother’s milk were preserved in the animal’s stomach, and feces were preserved in the intestines.
It is noteworthy that the baby mammoth died, apparently as a result of a fatal accident: it got stuck in the mud and could not get out, and subsequently suffocated. Scientists made this conclusion because the animal’s body was in perfect condition - there were no signs of disease or physical damage. In addition, Lyuba’s DNA is also perfectly preserved, and thanks to this, it is possible to someday clone a mammoth.
Montauk monster
The corpse of a mysterious animal was discovered on one of the American beaches in the summer of 2008. The body was found by four young men walking along Ditch Beach near East Hampton, New York. They were unable to identify the type of animal, and then, of course, the case was transferred to scientists. They, however, also could not immediately identify him. There was absolutely no hair on the body, the skin was smooth and thick, and the shape of the muzzle did not suit any animal living in these places.
But the story was quickly picked up by local newspapers. There were many versions of the origin and type of the creature: they said that it was simply the remains of a strange sea turtle, or even a raccoon. Or maybe a water rat, a coyote, a dog, a feral cat... A more fantastic version in the spirit of Stephen King’s novels said that this was a mutant who escaped from the Animal Disease Research Center, on whom insidious scientists experimented, did not keep track, and are now denying their involvement to history. They even promised a reward of several thousand dollars for such a monster alive. True, no one else has ever found anything like it - neither alive nor dead.
However, this one monster also disappeared quite quickly - after scientists got hold of the carcass, the public had to be content with a few photographs taken by journalists. Based on the same photographs, the animal was eventually officially declared an ordinary raccoon - the body could have decomposed and swollen in the water beyond recognition, and the lack of hair can also be explained by exposure to water.
Panamanian monster
In September 2009, near the Panamanian city of Cerro Azul, children playing on the shore of a lake discovered a strange hairless creature. The children in Panama, apparently, were not timid - they stoned the animal, and later explained their action by saying that the animal crawled out of the cave and crawled towards them. After killing the animal, the children took photographs of it and threw the corpse into the water.
The photographs show that the animal's muzzle was disgusting in appearance, and its limbs were disproportionately long. Moreover, in shape, these limbs resembled human hands, only unusually thin.
One way or another, the body was pulled out of the lake a few days later and handed over to scientists. As a result of DNA analysis, it was found that it was just a sloth. It is not clear, however, what the sloth was doing in the cave, why there was no fur on his body, and why the shape of his body was so strange. This can be partially explained by the effect of water on the body, but why then did the corpse move, as the children said? However, the children could have exaggerated.
However, the official version is simple - it was a sloth.
Canadian monster
In May 2010, two women were walking with their dog along the shore of one of the lakes in the Canadian province of Ontario. Suddenly the dog broke off the leash and ran somewhere. The women followed her and saw that the dog was sniffing the body of a strange small animal the size of a large water rat. Eyewitnesses were frightened, took photographs of the body and hurried to leave the scene.
The picture, as usual, was published on the Internet and attracted the attention of researchers. Analysis of the image showed that the muzzle of the dead animal was somewhat unusual for a water rat or warthog: although the tail was “rat-like,” the fangs in the animal’s mouth were long for a rat and protruded strongly forward, and there was no hair on the muzzle at all. It’s a pity that when the group of researchers found themselves on the shore of that lake, there was already no trace of the animal’s body.
Where science fails, legends come into play. In the folklore of some American Indian tribes there are references to omajinaakoos (literally translated, this word means “freak”). The habitat of the legendary “freak” is the swamps of Canada. According to legend, whoever finds the body of this creature will soon be befallen by terrible misfortunes. However, given the fact that both women and their dog are still okay, it remains to be assumed that it was still a dead rat or a mink whose body was damaged by water.
Unusual animals live everywhere. They hide from people underground and in the depths of the sea, in the hot sands of deserts and in impassable jungles, in mountain caves and swamps. Of course, all representatives of the animal world are amazing in their own way, but on our planet there are many truly mysterious and strange animals about which most people know almost nothing. Some creatures have such a strange appearance that you can’t help but wonder if these are aliens trying to get lost in the diversity of our fauna. Want to know more about them? Then we present to your attention a rating of the most amazing and unusual animals on our planet.
The naked mole rat (Heterocephalus glaber) is an extremely interesting rodent native to Africa.
The naked mole rat (also called the desert rat) lives in underground tunnels and rarely comes to the surface. The sausage-like creature is notable not only for its specific appearance, although the naked, sparsely haired, wrinkled pale skin, and especially the protruding teeth, you will agree, make an indelible impression. They say that with its sharp and hard, diamond-like teeth, the beast is able to gnaw through even concrete!
These animals are also unusual in that they have an exceptionally high life expectancy for rodents (up to 30 years). Naked mole rats do not have strokes, heart attacks, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, fatal liver or kidney diseases, and their organs and tissues do not wither at all over time. This is the only creature that practically does not feel pain. Another unique feature of the animal is that it can do without oxygen for up to 20 minutes! This ability is similar to plants!
The naked mole rat has recently come under close attention from scientists. Perhaps someday, thanks to this very creature, gerontologists will be able to answer the question: How to slow down aging?
Herbivore Dracula
The herbivorous dracula (Sphaeronycteris toxophyllum) is an unusual bat, a very rare and little-studied species. Found in northern South America. Despite the terrifying name and specific appearance, these creatures are harmless. They feed exclusively on plant foods – ripe fruits and berries.
Gymnur
Gymnurs (lat. Galericinae) are the closest relatives of the prickly hedgehogs familiar to us, but their appearance is not at all like that of a hedgehog. These strange creatures are more reminiscent of possums, shrews or rats, but they are enormous in size - up to 45 centimeters in length, and a few tens of centimeters more on their hairless, rat-like tail. Gymnur even has a middle name - moon rat. But the most important thing is that they have no thorns at all!
Moon rats live in the tropical rainforests of Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia. If ordinary hedgehogs use spines as protection from enemies, then the gymnur is more original here: near the base of the moonrat’s tail there are glands that secrete a liquid with a strong unpleasant odor. They say that the animal smells very strongly of onions!
Madagascar bat
In the dry forests of Madagascar lives a very unusual one, completely different from its relatives. The little arm, or aye-aye (aye-aye) (Daubentonia madagascariensis) is a mammal from the order of prosimians, the only representative of the family of armlets. This is truly an amazing creature! Expressive orange-yellow or greenish eyes, huge leathery ears and a fluffy tail about 60 long are the main decoration of the little arm. The body of the animal, about 40 cm long, is covered with hard, straight dark hair. A distinctive feature of the animal is its elongated, thin fingers with long and slightly bent nails.
There have been heated debates among zoologists for a long time: which species should this amazing creature be classified as: rodents or lemurs? In the end, they nevertheless came to the conclusion that this was a lemur that had only deviated slightly in the course of evolution from the general trunk of the group. You can read more about the Madagascar monkey.
Cuban slittooth
The Cuban slittooth (Solenodon cubanus) is an extremely interesting relict animal. Scientists thought that it disappeared more than a hundred years ago, but it has appeared again! Compared to other insectivores, this animal is quite large - body length 28-35 cm plus a long bare tail, weight - no more than 1 kilogram. Externally, the slittooth looks like a rat, a shrew, and a hedgehog. This unusual animal lives in the mountain forests of Cuba. The animal's muzzle is elongated into a proboscis. The front paws are equipped with long, thick and hard claws that help it dig holes.
The animal was called a slit-tooth because in one of its lower front teeth it has a groove-slit, and poison passes through this groove! Few people find this animal dangerous, but its bite is poisonous! The poison is not fatal to humans, but poisoning of the body is guaranteed.
Poisonous mammals are extremely rare in nature - these are platypuses, some species of shrews and insectivorous gaptooths living in Cuba and Haiti. The venom of gap-toothed animals is not inferior in toxicity to that of snakes, but nature, having provided these cute animals with such a formidable weapon, played a truly cruel joke on them. The fact is that gaptooths are very temperamental, but at the same time they are not immune to their own poison and die en masse even from light bites received during mating fights.
When a gaptooth gets angry, the fur on its back stands on end, and the animal begins to squeal and grunt loudly, just like a pig. In general, this animal is a coward, and even an ordinary house cat can easily cope with it. That is why there are very few gaptooths left in nature; they hide well and are not so easy to find.
Muskrat
One of the rare and unusual animals rightfully includes the muskrat (Desmana moschata). This animal of the mole family has lived on Earth for more than 30 million years! Today it is found only in the basins of the Volga, Don, Dnieper and Ural rivers. Read more about muskrat.
Binturong
This mammal from the civet family can be found in the tropical forests of India, Nepal and Burma. Due to its appearance, it is also called the "bear cat" or "coon bear". Indeed, disheveled and massive, the binturong (Arctictis binturong) very much resembles a round-headed bear cub, only with a long tail and squirrel-like tufts on its ears. The unusualness is enhanced by the clumsiness of the animal, as well as the grunting sounds it makes.
In its diet, consisting mainly of fruits, it also differs from other viverrids: it uses insects, birds, fish or carrion for food less often than its relatives. The animal sleeps all day in the treetops, and only when it gets dark does its active life begin. Weighing more than 10 kg, it is not at all convenient for the binturong to run and jump along branches on its short legs, so it moves slowly from branch to branch. In this he is helped by powerful legs, sharp claws and a tail reaching a length of 90 cm. With his tail, he can hold on to a branch like a hand. Also, thanks to its tenacious tail, the massive animal can hang upside down on a branch. This grasping tail is unique among Old World mammals.
Surprisingly, bunturong smells like popcorn! Under the tail there is a scent gland that secretes a secretion with which the binturong marks trees, thus transmitting information to its fellow tribesmen.
Sirichta
Sirichta (Tarsius syrichta), or as it is also called, the Philippine tarsier, is found in the Philippines - in rain forests or in bamboo thickets. This tiny animal, whose body length is about 15 cm, 8 of which is in the tail, and whose weight does not exceed 100 grams, leads an arboreal lifestyle. A distinctive feature of the sirikhita is that its eyes are simply huge for such a tiny thing; in addition, the eyes can glow in the dark! The animal's head can rotate almost 180 degrees on its neck. A wide mouth and large bare, very mobile ears give the appearance of this creature even more originality. Yes, it’s difficult to call him handsome; local residents are even a little afraid of tarsiers, considering them ghosts.
Tarsiers are famous for their jumping ability - they jump very far compared to their own size - up to a distance of 1 meter.
The star-nosed mole (Condylura cristata) is found in marshy areas and wet grasslands of North America. It is unique in that on its face there are twenty-two skin growths (or tentacles) resembling a star. Star-nosed spends his entire life underground, where his eyes are completely useless, and his nose helps him find his way among the labyrinth of tunnels. The starnose feeds on worms, snails and insects, which it finds with its sensitive nose, using both its sense of smell and touch.
Platypus
The platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) lives in streams, ponds and rivers in Australia. These animals usually reach a length of 30–40 centimeters and weigh about 2 kilograms.
The unusual thing about the platypus is that it combines the features of mammals, birds, reptiles and even fish. Looking at it, you won’t immediately understand whether it’s a bird or some kind of animal... In fact, these creatures are mammals, although they lay eggs. The platypus is a bit like a beaver, but with a soft beak covered with elastic skin, which is not found in any other animal. Underwater, the platypus closes its eyes and uses its beak, with which it senses weak electrical impulses emanating from its prey. Using its beak, the platypus digs through the mud in search of small fish, frogs and insects. Scientists are still arguing about the origin of this species, but only one thing is clear - this is a unique creation of Mother Nature, which differs from all other species currently living on planet Earth.
Male platypuses have poisonous spurs on their hind legs. The animal's venom is unlikely to kill a person, but it causes severe pain at the injection site. But for small animals this poison is often fatal.
Sloth
This unusual cat-sized mammal lives in South and Central America. The sloth (Bradypodidae) became famous for its extraordinary slowness. He sleeps 15 hours a day, and he can do this while hanging on one leg, and his long claws help the animal hold on to a branch. The rest of the time, he slowly moves from branch to branch, absorbing the leaves of tropical trees.
During the rainy season, a sloth can hang motionless for weeks, and blue-green algae multiply in its fur, giving the animal's skin a greenish color.
Pygmy marmoset
The pygmy marmoset (Cebuella pygmaea) is the most amazing species of monkey living on planet Earth. The size of an adult animal is 11-15 cm plus a tail up to 22 cm long, weight does not exceed 150 grams. The little ones live in the forests of South America, settling on the edges of forests and along river banks. They spend almost all their time in trees, feeding mainly on tree sap, sometimes insects and fruits. They rarely descend to the ground.
fennec
This unusually cute creature is a tiny fennec fox. It lives in the deserts of North Africa. The fenech differs from its relatives in its miniature body size and disproportionately large ears. These huge ears, up to 15 cm in length, are not only a unique tool for catching the slightest rustle, but also for cooling the body, because the desert fox does not have sweat glands, and the extensive surface of the ears is a kind of thermoregulation tool. The animal's sensitive ears cannot tolerate sharp sounds.
The little fox is also famous for its jumping ability - the baby can easily jump 70 cm up and 120 cm forward. More information about fennec can be found in the article.
Okapi
The okapi (Ornithorhynchus anatinus), or forest giraffe, lives in the forests of the Congo. This animal is very rare, and the story of its discovery is one of the most notorious zoological sensations of the 20th century.
There is a sad donkey in front, a zebra in the back, and overall a forest giraffe. Okapi has such a long (up to 35 cm) tongue that it can clean its ears with it. The coloring is also very unusual: the body is reddish-brown, the legs are white with dark transverse stripes on the thighs; the tail ends in a tassel.
Zebu
Zebu (Bos taurus indicus) is a humpbacked bull native to Southeast Asia. This is the most ancient and mysterious representative of bovid ungulates. Scientists around the world are puzzling over its origin. The unusual animal has a high, prominent hump on its back and short, widely spaced horns.
The health of humpbacked bulls is excellent: they easily tolerate diseases that kill cattle of other breeds. Domesticated zebu are mainly used as draft and pack animals, and in some places in Southeast Asia, zebu racing is very popular. Of course, a humpbacked bull is not nearly as graceful as a thoroughbred horse, but it can compete with any racer.
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