Obscure Facts you Know—animal edition

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There is a creature that lives deep below the ocean's surface called the vampire squid. Contrary to its name, it does not suck blood, it just gets its name because the webbing on its tentacles make it look something like a vampire's cloak and it's very dark where it lives. I think it looks like a swimming umbrella.

Sloths can swim. The sloth moth has exclusively evolved to live in the fur of the sloth.

Some dolphins do spins and twirls in the air.

The ball python gets its name from the fact that it curls itself into a ball when threatened. It is considered a good pet because of its docile nature and for being smaller than other pythons.

Starlings are all-too-common birds found the length and breadth of the lower 48 United States.

But they are not native to North America. There were no starlings in the USA prior to 1890. All American starlings are descended from about 100 that were released in Central Park NYC that year. Released with great fanfare by a club of people. The reason they did it? The club was devoted to the cause of introducing into America all of the birds mentioned in the works of William Shakespeare.

Folks have done stuff for crazier reasons than that I suppose. Lol!

Rats are obligate nose-breathers and can't throw up.

(They're also very bright and extremely affectionate pets, but their life spans are short, and it really hurts to lose them.)

As I understand it most mammals are "obligate nose breathers" (though most mammals are capable of vomiting). Humans are the one except. And that's because most mammals have separate passage tubes, one for the mouth that goes to the stomach, and for the nose that goes to the lungs. Humans merged the two tubes so we can control breath to speak. The downside is that humans are the only mammal that can choke to death on food, but the upside is that we can communicate with language (and the resulting reproductive benefits out weighs the few hundred humans who choke to death on food every year).

Domestic cats with tortoiseshell markings (orange and black splotches) are almost always female.

This is because the genes responsible for such markings require a certain arrangement of X chromosomes. It is possible to have a male tortoiseshell cat, but they are incredibly rare and are automatically infertile due to their unusual arrangement of chromosomes not typically found in male cats.

Here is an example of a tortoiseshell cat:



Cats that are orange, black, and white fall under the calico category, this type of marking is also referred to as tortoiseshell and white:

Ragdoll cats get their name from the way they get all limp and floppy when they are picked up. They're also called "puppy cats", due to their being unusually affectionate, following their owners from room to room, and even being trained to fetch toys.

Calico cats are reputed to be especially lucky. In the USA, they are sometimes called "money cats", and Japanese sailors prefer Calicos as their ship's rat-catcher.

Orange tabby cats are almost always male, for the same reason that calicoes are almost always female.

While black cats are considered "unlucky" in the US, in Japan they are actually considered good luck.

This is a really morbid/sad fact, but animal shelters in the US don't usually let people adopt black cats around Halloween because there have been reports of superstitious people who have allegedly adopted black cats around Halloween for the sole purpose of killing/sacrificing them.

^ I heard that black cats and even black dogs often don't get adopted in animal shelters, also for superstitious reasons. My only worry about owning an all-black cat (my younger cat is a tuxedo), is that it would be hard to see them in the dark.

In the Sims 4 Cats and Dogs, if you select a tuxedo cat, they will have "aloof" as a default trait. My own tuxedo cat is anything but aloof. He must be the friendliest cat ever, likes and trusts pretty much everyone. Fortunately you can change their trait.

Horses can't throw up either. Neither can they burp. It's why colic is such a problem for them. They have a completely one way gastric system. I wonder if rats can burp?

Black cats have eyes that are pea green. I wish I was a black cat, so I can pea out at everyone with my eyes.

Hummingbirds can drink 10 drops of nectar within 15 miliseconds.

Budgerigars can remember sequences of sounds, and sometimes mimic them, but not all can.

Guinea pigs eat some of their own feces. This is necessary to guinea pig health, because guinea pigs who don’t eat some of their feces daily eventually fall ill.

In Switzerland it is illegal to keep only one guinea pig as a pet. You're supposed to keep at least two, preferably siblings, so they don't get lonely.

Hamsters however, have no problems living alone. In fact, having more than one in a cage may cause them to fight.