Interesting and Unbelievable Facts

Orangutans are one of great apes. They are the only great apes native to Asia ( Indonesia and Malaysia). Orangutans are the only primates, other than humans, that can   talk about their  experiences . They talk about the danger even after the departure of their predators. ( Source ) Orangutans are the smartest nonhuman primates . They proved their superior IQ level by performing best in nine types of task intelligence. ( Source ) Orangutans are the  most distant relatives  of human beings among great apes. They share 97% of their DNA with humans, compared to around 99% of genes similarity between humans and  chimpanzees . ( Source ) In contrast to knuckle-walking in  African  apes ( gorillas  and chimpanzees), orangutans are primarily  fist walkers . ( Source ) Infanticide behavior is common among primates. But unlike most other primates, male orangutans  don’t practice infanticide . ( Source ) There are 3 species of orangutans. ...

Hedgehog is a spiny mammal . However, it is not related to other common spiny animals like porcupines and echidnas .  The  closest relatives  of hedgehogs are shrews, moles, and moonrats. There are at least 16 recognized species of hedgehogs. They are native to Asia , Africa , and Europe . Hedgehogs can  climb trees up to 30 feet tall . They do so while looking for  insects  or other food sources. They sometimes fall from trees intentionally or accidentally. The intentional fall is either to save from predators or to reach the ground quickly. These mammals roll over their quills to survive such falls. ( Source ) Hedgehogs perform a special behavior known as  self-anointing . In this process, the animal foams in the mouth and spreads this foam all over its body by licking. It is probably a self-defensive technique, which either removes its scent or spreads toxic saliva to its body. There are several differences between  hedgehogs and porcupines . ...

A flamingo is a tall wading bird . These birds are present in parts of Africa, Asia , Europe , and the Americas. Flamingos fly at an  average speed of 60 km/h and can cover a distance of 375 miles in a single night. This bird can attain a height of 15,000 feet during its flight. Before their flight, they take a short runway by flapping their feathers and running on water. Flamingos eat with  heads upside down . Unlike other birds, flamingos have a much larger lower bill while their upper bill does not attach. It helps the bird to eat with an upside-down head. Their Mouth keeps the food in and water out. ( Source ) Flamingos are one of the few  birds  that  produce “bird milk,”  also known as crop milk. Both male and female feed their chicks with crop milk for two months. It has a higher fat and lower protein content than pigeon’s milk and is also rich in red and white blood cells. ( Source ) The world’s  oldest flamingo  died at the age of 83...

The bottlenose dolphin belongs to the oceanic dolphin family.  They have three species:   common bottlenose dolphins (in warm and temperature seas worldwide), Indian Ocean bottlenose dolphins (in the  Indian Ocean ), and southern  Australian  bottlenose dolphins (in Australia’s southern and southeastern shores). Dolphins and whales can only taste the salty flavor. However, bottlenose dolphins are unique as they can  taste sweet, sour, bitter, and salty flavors. ( Source ) Bottlenose dolphins use different eyes to observe  different types of objects. They use their left eye to see familiar objects and view unfamiliar objects from the right eye. ( Source ) Bottlenose dolphins are the only known nonhuman mammals  that use learned signals as labels to identify various social companions. ( Source ) Bottlenose dolphins are one of the few aquatic mammals that are known to  use tools . They use different tools for foraging and o...

Narwhal, also called narwhale, is a toothed whale with a unique long protruding tusk.  They live in the Arctic waters of Canada,  Russia , Greenland, and  Norway . The scientific name of the narwhal is “ Monodon monoceros ”. It means “one tooth, one horn.” The length of narwhals is between 13 and 20 feet. They can weigh up to 1.5 tons.  Narwhal tusks can grow up to  10 feet long . Scientists have collected data from narwhals to study the effects of global warming  on the Arctic. For this purpose, they attached sensors to the cartilage and blubber of 14 narwhals between 2005 and 2007. It was helpful to retrieve data on the ocean ’s temperature and salinity up to the depth of 1,800 m (6,000 ft.). ( Source ) Animals usually flee or freeze while facing humans, and their heart rate changes accordingly. But the  heart rate of narwhals has the opposite effect while escaping from humans as it goes extremely low. It shows that human interactio...

Hyenas are carnivorous mammals. There are 4 extant species of hyenas: spotted hyena, brown hyena, striped hyena, and aardwolf.   Spotted, brown, and striped hyenas belong to the bone-crushing type of hyenas. Aardwolf is the only extant member of dog-like hyenas.  Dog-like hyenas perished around 1.5 million years ago due to climate change and competition from canids (dog-like animals) in Eurasia. But aardwolf survived the extinction thanks to its insectivorous diet. The main diet of aardwolf is termites . Three species of hyenas live exclusively in Africa . The striped hyena is the only species native to parts of Asia (Middle East, Central Asia, and the Indian Subcontinent) along with northern and eastern Africa. Hyenas have the largest jaw pressure among land animals . Their jaws can apply 800 pounds of pressure per square inch. It is the reason that they can easily grind down hard bones. ( Source ) Hyenas have the largest jaw pressure among land animals Hyen...

The Komodo dragon is the largest species of lizard on earth . It can reach a length of 3 m (10 ft.) and weigh up to 70 kg (150 lbs.). Komodo dragons are  dangerous to humans . Several incidents of these lizards attacking and killing humans in their native range and captivity have been recorded. ( Source ) According to a study, the blood of the Komodo dragon contains a compound that has  antibacterial properties . This protein heals infected wounds in mice and is helpful as an antibiotic against multidrug-resistant pathogens. ( Source ) Like few other reptiles, female Komodo dragons  can reproduce asexually . Females live alone in many zoos where they can give virgin births. But unlike most other asexual births, these Komodo dragons give birth to male babies. ( Source ) According to a study, a female Komodo dragon  lays 60% of its eggs in nests of orange-footed scrubfowl, a chicken -like bird locally known as a gosong bird. Komodo dragons eat a wide  variety of...