If you’re a wildlife fanatic and claim to know the best of wildlife beauty and terror, then let these five animals stand as testament to your knowledge. Or lack of. Unrefined and intense—prepare for Mother Earth.
1. Giant Isopod:
Here’s a little something to freak the hell out of your little brother. These beasts are found in the cold waters of the deepest parts of the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Ocean. They have a maximum approximate weight of 1.7 kilograms and length of 76 centimeters with their large mirror-like compound eyes and bear seven pairs of limbs. The species is essentially thought to be a result of a physical phenomenon known as ‘deep-sea gigantism’, where the creatures in deep waters develop a much larger build than the creatures of the same species in shallower waters.
2. Glaucus Atlanticus:
Following the Giant Isopod comes this tiny little piece of beauty. Referred to as many different nicknames like the ‘blue dragon’, ‘blue angel’, and ‘sea swallow’, the Glaucus Atlanticus is found floating on the surface of sea waters and is essentially a sea-slug. Their primary prey is the venomous Portuguese man o’ war. They float upside down with their bluish dorsal side facing the surface and the silvery bottom facing the seabed. But hey, don’t underestimate these tiny beautiful beings. Because they feed on the extremely poisonous Portuguese man o’ war, the nematocysts from the prey is reserved in its own tissue. Thus, any human that makes contact with the blue dragon might get an extremely painful sting.
3. Atretochoana:
And now comes a glance at the unbelievable—we know how you feel. The “penis snake” is actually an extremely rare amphibian found in parts of Brazil and the Amazon. The creature is believed to have no lungs and breathes through its skin, navigating through landscapes with the help of its strong sense of smell. They are essentially predators, feeding on small fishes, worms, and insects. With the extremely rare sighting of the species in Brazil and the construction of multiple dams on the Amazon, it’s very unlikely that the rare species will ever be found in abundance in the near future.
4. Goblin Shark:
Banging in to your eyesight, with the promise to re-appear in your nightmares, is the Goblin Shark. This monstrous fish is a very rare and misunderstood species, and is often referred to as “the living fossil” due to its unusual face structure, having a long snout resembling a sword, with both its jaws situated below this at an angle of around 10 degrees. The species settles in oceans at depths greater than 100 meters and is therefore harmless to humans.
5. Panda Ant:
Don’t get confused by the black and white color of these species, and don’t let its name confuse you, too: Panda ants are not ants (and are obviously, not pandas). They are actually female wasps of the Multillidae family that feed on nectar. Abundantly found in Chile, these wingless insects – boasting black and white fuzzy hairs – are known for their extremely painful stings. They are also called “cow-killers” for the intensity of the pain their stings can cause.
