Archive for the ‘animal oddities’ category

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Attack of the Killer Shrimp!

May 2, 2012

– – Some people have bucket lists of things that they want to do before they “kick the bucket,” that is, die…but I have a list of things to be worried about or afraid of, and I’ve just added something to that list…Run, ’cause there’s an invasion of Asian Tiger Shrimp!  I can see a Saturday night movie on the SciFy channel coming out of this, folks…

Now Asian Tiger Shrimp are not hideous mutants or skilled in the martial arts, although I could see them developed as potential adversaries for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. They are, however,  jumbo shrimp, which as George Carlin pointed out was an oxymoron.  These are big suckers, measuring up to thirteen inches long and weighing up to a quarter pound, and they are cannibalistic…that’s right, shrimp that eat other shrimp.- -Isn’t that redundant?

Also known as tiger prawn, the black-and-white striped creatures are showing up in the Gulf of Mexico and Southeast coast, and are preying on smaller, native sea life as well as competing for resources and carrying  diseases…a triple threat, if you will.  Scientists don’t know exactly how the Asian variety got to the Gulf Coast, but marine ecologists are looking into the shrimp’s DNA for clues, with breeding in the local waters or conveyance by ocean currents possibilities.

And if Asian Tiger Shrimp team up with Asian Carp, we could have seafood that would eat you…or at least take your computers for their young!  I’m paying protection money while I still can…

Categories: animal oddities, animals, aquatic, environmental, science
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Mythic Mayhem!

March 29, 2012

— It’s not easy being a demigod; everyone expects great things out of you!  Pity poor Perseus; as if whipping the Kraken wasn’t enough in 2010’s Clash of the Titans, now he has to beat a whole host of other assorted monsters in Wrath of the Titans.  There will be a slew of them to boot in this special effects extravaganza, everything from a thirty-foot high Cyclops to a Minotaur to my personal fave, a Chimera…I just like things with multiple heads and incongruous parts that spew fire, that’s the way I roll!  Mighty Kronos himself enters the fray,  just dripping with lava…what more could a boy want?  Yes, I know, robots, zombies, mummies, aliens, and werewolves are extremely cool too, but you can’t have them all in the same movie and preserve artistic integrity.- -Besides, I’d die of too much happiness!

While most of the beasties are computer generated, the Minotaur is played by an actor in a latex suit who underwent four hours of makeup for each day on the set!   You’ll also see Perseus’ noble winged steed Pegasus, and the demonic Makhai, who attack like whirling dervishes.  

This isn’t Shakespeare, but it’s good guy fun…and what’s wrong with that?  Wrath of the Titans opens March 30th…and it’s a cornucopia of creatures!!!– -Woo-hoo!

Categories: animal oddities, animals, anomalies, anthropomorphic, cool things, creature features, fantasy, furry, imaginary animals, movies
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Cyclops Shark!

October 25, 2011

  – – It looks like it’s made of rubber, but it’s real…an albino fetal Cyclops shark cut from the belly of a pregnant dusky shark in the Gulf of Mexico this past summer.  Shark researchers have examined the preserved creature and found that its single eye is made of functional optical tissue…it’s unlikely, however, that the malformed shark would have survived outside of the womb. 

Less than 50 examples of an abnormality like this have been recorded in sharks.   Cyclopia is a rare developmental abnormality in which only one eye develops,  and it has been seen in a variety of species…

Categories: animal oddities, animals, aquatic, cool things, strange
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Janus Cats…

October 7, 2011

 – -They are not Photoshopped or the product of trick photography; meet Frank (left) and Louie (right), the world’s longest surviving Janus cat.  Named for the figure in Roman mythology with two faces on one head,  Janus cats seldom survive due to congenital defects that include cleft palate, often causing the afflicted animal to starve or choke to death.  Frank and Louie, however, beat the odds handsomely, using only one mouth to feed and making it to the ripe old feline age of 12 years. 

Originally taken by his breeder to be euthanized at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University, Frank and Louie were instead adopted by a worker there, and have fared well since.  Residing in Worcester, Mass. the exotic blue-eyed rag doll cat boasts two faces, two mouths, two noses, and three eyes, and is a friendly soul who walks on a leash and loves car rides…

Categories: animal oddities, animals, anomalies, furry, rare animal, science
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Howl Hitler?

May 27, 2011

 – – The Nazis weren’t much on human rights, but apparently were fond of animals and liked the idea that dogs were intelligent and could communicate with people.   According to a new book “Amazing Dogs:  A Cabinet of Canine Curiosities,”  Nazi specialists attempted to train an elite group of dogs regarded as intelligent to read, write, and speak!

Research from Cardiff University associate professor Dr. Jan Bondeson found that the Nazis collected pups from across Germany and put them through intensive training in the 1930’s at the Tier-Sprechschule ASRA (School for Dog-Human Communication) in the town of Leutenberg.  According to Dr. Bondeson, the hope was that the superior dogs would eventually communicate with their SS masters and act as the ultimate guard dogs. Where it gets really strange is in the contention that an institute-trained dog such as one named Rolf the Airedale could communicate with humans on such topics as  religion and mathematics by tapping out an elaborate code with his paw!  Another dog, Kurwenal, supposedly could crack jokes.

Hitler himself was widely recognized as a dog lover, and had two German Shepherds named Blondi and Bella.  Where talking dogs are concerned, we of course will always have Scooby-Doo…


Categories: animal oddities, animals, historical perspectives, strange happenings, weird
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Cartoon Cryptids

May 2, 2011

 – – Gossamer is a hulking, hairy reddish monster somewhat reminiscent of Bigfoot who is part of the Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies universe.  He wears enormous tennis shoes,  and has a heart-shaped face in which may be seen oval eyes and a wide mouth.  Beyond these features and dirty clawed fingers, little else may be discerned about Gossamer, whose primary characteristic is the trademark hair; indeed, Gossamer may be made entirely of hair!   He is anything but gossamer, a name referring to a delicate type of spider silk.

First appearing in the 1946 film Hair-Raising Hare, Gossamer was the henchman of a mad scientist who bears a strong resemblance to Peter Lorre; if you don’t know who that is, you don’t watch enough old classic films !  Anyways,  Bugs Bunny is lured by a mechanical female rabbit to the lair of the mad scientist to be a meal for Gossamer, but makes merry sport of the monster instead (“I’m always interested in meeting interesting people!,” Bugs tells the creature while working on his nails).  Gossamer is revealed to be frightened of people, who it must be admitted can be pretty frightening. 

Originally nameless, Gossamer was referred to as Rudolph in a 1952 short, and didn’t land the name Gossamer until such was bestowed on him by none less than Marvin the Martian in the 1980 Duck Dodgers feature.  Gossamer has enjoyed small roles in a number of Warner Bros. productions since…

Categories: animal oddities, anomalies, cartoons, furry, imaginary animals, weird
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Grin and Bear It!

April 16, 2011

– – During medieval times, animals were at times tormented as public entertainment through such displays as bear-baiting and what was termed the “horse and ape” spectacle; dogs were also trained to fight bears and bulls confined in a pit.  To add insult to injury, animals were occasionally even put on trial!   In 1499, a bear was charged with terrorizing villages in Germany.   Defense lawyers cried foul (not bruin), and pleaded that the defendant should be tried by a jury of its peers…peer bears, that is!

If,  however,  Yogi Bear is ever put on trial, I’d volunteer to be judge, jury, and Lord High Executioner…sorry, Boo-boo!

Categories: animal oddities, animals, furry, historical perspectives, strange happenings, weird
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“Sheep-Dog” Offspring Not Likely…

April 10, 2011

– – We all know that there are sheep and there are dogs as well as sheepdogs, of the Old English variety among others…but could a sheep and a dog produce an offspring?

Well, a farmer in western China’s Shaanxi province is claiming that such a miracle of nature happened, with the, umm, puppy-lamb having a white woolly coat with a mouth, nose, paws, and tail that look very similar to a dog’s features.   Experts say, however, that the animal is just an abnormal lamb, or perhaps a fuzzy-furred young canid that was found born near sheep.– It’s also as cute as the dickens!

Sheep and dogs are of different species that diversified about 80 million years ago from a common ancestor, and they are in separate orders or taxonomic designations.  They have been isolated genetically for so long that they differ greatly in their chromosome numbers.  While hybrids can occur such as the ligers possible between lions and tigers, dogs and sheep are just too genetically different for an offspring to be biologically possible…





Categories: animal oddities, animals, furry, strange
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Thumb Fun, Eh?

March 6, 2011

– – Jimmy the cat is a polydactyl cat, sometimes referred to as a Hemingway cat because the writer Ernest Hemingway grew to love them after being given a six-toed cat.  Extra digits are a fairly common physical anomaly that’s sometimes caused by a genetic defect.  With an extra toe, Jimmy the cat can give the famous thumbs-up gesture made famous by the Henry Winkler super-cool character Fonzie on the 1970’s show “Happy Days.” He’s currently enjoying his fifteen minutes of fame on youtube.

The official Guinness World Record holder for the cat with the most digits is Jake, a Canadian cat with 27 digits.  A 29-toed cat from Hoboken in the U.S. named Bandit is in the process of applying for recognition…

Categories: animal oddities, animals, anomalies, cool things, furry
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Cross-Eyed Heidi…

January 15, 2011

– – Not to be confused with Cross-Eyed Mary,  Heidi is a cross-eyed opossum who lives at the Leipzig Zoo in Germany.  Originally from Denmark, Heidi is both adorable and cross-eyed, a condition which would make her more vulnerable to predators in the wilderness.

Heidi is not in any danger at the zoo, however, and her optical flaw is painless while of unknown origin.  She follows in the legacy of other adored and well-known German animals that have recently included Paul the psychic octopus (RIP) and Knut the polar bear…

…Heidi should not be confused with cats that look like Hitler…

 

Categories: animal oddities, animals, anomalies, furry
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