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Animal Kingdom is full of surprises! We never get tired of learning something new about animals. Did you know that sloths can hold their breaths longer than dolphins? Do animals have fears? This and many more questions about animal kingdom will be answered in this video.
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00:00Lions, elephants, and bears. Oh my!
00:03Three of the most beautiful yet intimidating members of the animal kingdom.
00:07But what intimidates these creatures, if anything?
00:11You might be surprised. Let's take a look.
00:14How about we start with the universally recognized king of the jungle, the lion.
00:19We'll get to the elephants in a moment, but there's actually one in the room.
00:23You know, the one that claims that a certain jungle cat is afraid of the most vital substance known to
00:29man?
00:30A small hint, it covers 70% of Earth's surface.
00:34So, is it true? Is the ferocious lion afraid of water?
00:38It's actually a myth.
00:40Lions enjoy taking a dip in the water because it allows them to cool off.
00:45This makes sense if you think about the climates the creatures have to face.
00:49Temperatures in a savanna climate range from 68 to 86 degrees Fahrenheit.
00:55You know all of us humans hit the beach whenever the weather is like that.
00:58So, why should we expect anything different from the lion?
01:02Especially given that the creatures typically carry around between 280 and 420 pounds of weight, as well as a thick
01:09coat of fur.
01:11The ironic thing about this whole, lions are afraid of water myth, is that they're actually fantastic swimmers.
01:17The same goes for all of your other favorite large cats from these warm weather climates, such as tigers, leopards,
01:24jaguars, and ocelots.
01:26It's actually large cats from cold climates that do their best to avoid water.
01:31This applies to such felines as bobcats, lynxes, and snow leopards.
01:36The latter lives in places like the cold alpine tundra biome.
01:40That's a rocky mountainous area.
01:42Temperatures there, on average, get as low as 33 degrees Fahrenheit.
01:47Again, it makes perfect sense that these big, cold-weather cats despise water.
01:53Getting their fur coats wet would dampen their chances of staying warm, pun intended.
01:58I don't think you have to look too far to piece together where this
02:02lions are afraid of water myth comes from.
02:05In fact, there's a good chance for some of you watching this video that the reason is
02:10near your computer screen right now, jumping around and causing mischief.
02:14That's right, we may have jumped ourselves to a conclusion that certain behavioral aspects
02:20of our own pet cats would match that of a lion.
02:24House cats, though related to all the previously mentioned big cats, are not actually directly
02:29descended from them. They instead have developed over millions of years from a single wild ancestor
02:35that still exists in the wild today, the Near Eastern Wildcat.
02:40As water is not plentiful in the Middle East, these cats were not exposed to it to any great degree.
02:46Like their descendants, they only appreciate it as a food source.
02:50As you likely see with your pet, they hardly bathe, swim, or interact with water in general.
02:56Lucky for them, they don't even need to.
03:00These domestic felines use their tongues to clean themselves.
03:03They can do this because their tongues have tiny hook-shaped papillae.
03:08They assist cats in grooming out knots and keeping the coat clean, sweet-smelling, and in overall immaculate shape.
03:16Cats, in general, are individualistic creatures.
03:19And you may be screaming at your screen right now proclaiming that your cat, in fact, loves water.
03:25And this is definitely possible. Some cats even like to play with water.
03:29For example, drips from the tap or bubbles in the bath.
03:34There are specific breeds of house cats that are known to enjoy the aqua life more than others.
03:40The Turkish Van, for example, which is also appropriately known as the swimming cat.
03:45It's believed that the breed developed an affinity for water by swimming in Lake Van to cool down.
03:52This lake is in the area the animals evolved from.
03:55Moving on to a problem a cat definitely doesn't have to deal with.
03:59Have you ever heard of musophobia, also known as suriphobia?
04:05Both words are valid names for a fear of mice and rats.
04:09There is a common belief that one particular animal that has this fear is the beautiful elephant.
04:15That's right, the same animal that, depending on the species, stands at the height of roughly 10 feet and weighs
04:22about 9,000 pounds.
04:24It's supposedly afraid of a creature that is a mere 4 inches in length and weighs less than 1 pound.
04:30But why did this belief appear?
04:32Well, the reasoning for this rumor is based on the possibility that elephants are paranoid about mice climbing inside their
04:40trunks.
04:41If a mouse succeeded in doing this, there would be a potential that it could cause irritation and blockage within
04:47the trunk.
04:49Now, I'm not trying to be the guy who spoils parties, but it looks like this belief is also a
04:54myth.
04:55Researchers claim that there's no concrete evidence that suggests elephants are afraid of mice.
05:00The most they'll conceive is that the giant animal may sometimes take fright by the sudden appearance of the tiny
05:07rodent, which is the exact same for ourselves.
05:10Experts also claim that even if a mouse did get inside an elephant's trunk, the latter could effortlessly blow it
05:17back out with a puff of air.
05:19There's also some evidence that, in most cases, the animal remains unbothered by rodents and even allows mice to climb
05:26on their heads and trunks.
05:28Researchers are sure that as long as an elephant is healthy, there's no other animal that it fears simply because
05:34of its size.
05:36So, lions aren't afraid of water, elephants don't seem to be afraid of mice, then are any of these animal
05:43fear rumors real?
05:44Hmm, we're probably going to be left just as disappointed by asking if a bear has any legit fear, right?
05:51Well, ladies and gentlemen, please give a round of applause for none other than people's best friend.
05:58That's right, bears do feel quite uncomfortable whenever they are around dogs, and all this despite a very distant genetic
06:06link to them.
06:07When the two creatures encounter each other, the dog has the ability to chase, intimidate, corner, or antagonize the bear.
06:15As for the powerful animal, it will instead try to avoid any run-ins with the dog.
06:20There's even a type of Finnish dog breed known as the Corellian Bear Dog.
06:25This dog species is specifically used for standing up to large animals, such as bears.
06:31This dog has a great sense of direction, body flexibility, and control, courage, sense of smell, and persistence.
06:39So, does this mean you can walk with your dog through an area known to have bears, and feel absolutely
06:45calm and confident because of the presence of your loyal companion?
06:49Not really.
06:50Despite the fact that bears may be nervous around dogs, we can't forget their size and power.
06:55The American Black Bear can reach a height of nearly 7 feet, and weigh up to 660 pounds.
07:01If a mother bear has nowhere to run, or feels that her cubs might be in danger, it's extremely possible
07:08that she will lash out, which can only mean big trouble for you or your dog.
07:13So, nobody should ever test this theory.
07:17Instead, if you're ever planning to visit an unknown area with your dog, you should first plan ahead and familiarize
07:24yourself with the wildlife you may encounter there.
07:26Because you never know what a bear will do when it notices you and your pooch, especially given their mild
07:33case of cynophobia, which is the name given to a fear of dogs.
07:37At least we were able to find one genuine fear of another animal out of these three tough members of
07:43the animal kingdom.
07:44Weird that a dog, something that gives so many of us such joy and comfort in our own homes, is
07:50still the creature that's brave enough to take on a bear if need be.
07:55Well, not all heroes wear capes. Some just wear fur and a dog collar.
08:00Why don't we take a look at what frightens these great companions of ours?
08:04Ever wondered why your own dog becomes uncomfortable when it hears loud noises?
08:09The degree of fear differs in each dog.
08:11But it's the simple unpredictability of thunder and flashing lightning, or loud bangs that accompany firework displays, that causes your
08:19dog uneasiness.
08:20The inability to understand what's causing this deafening noise may cause your dog to tremble, tuck its tail between its
08:28legs, or even run away from home.
08:31Another thing that can really frighten our loyal pets is when we leave them all alone by themselves.
08:37This can, unfortunately, lead to being a nightmare for your next-door neighbors, because a common symptom of this fear
08:44is excessive barking.
08:46This fear may also cause problems closer to home.
08:49Ever asked yourself why your dog chewed up your sofa?
08:53Housebreaking accidents are typical when a dog has separation anxiety.
08:58You can't stay mad at your dog for long, though, right?
09:01Your pooch will make it up to you when you guys run into a bear.
09:06Now, sloths can hold their breath longer than dolphins.
09:09Yep, incredible, but true.
09:11They slow their heart rate so much, they can stay under the surface for up to 40 minutes.
09:17Unlike fish, dolphins and whales are aquatic mammals, which means they can't breathe underwater.
09:23When it comes to breathing, they're more similar to us than the fish.
09:26Both of them have lungs, and they breathe air through something we know as a blowhole.
09:31When they're under the surface, they hold their breath until they come up for some air again.
09:36Dolphins can stay under the water for 10 minutes.
09:39A sperm whale can hold its breath for 90 minutes,
09:42while an elephant seal holds the record when it comes to aquatic mammals
09:46and can stay under the water for 2 hours without having to go up.
09:51There's a wasp so tiny, much tinier than its name, it's smaller than an amoeba,
09:57even though amoebas are made of one cell only.
09:59You can see this wasp has the same body parts as the rest of the bugs – wings, brain, eyes,
10:05and the rest –
10:06but it's really a tiny version of an insect, since it's only 8 thousandths of an inch long.
10:13And the smallest adult insect we know of is a parasitic wasp with a big name, also known as the
10:19fairy fly.
10:20Their males don't have wings, they're blind, and only 5 thousandths of an inch long.
10:25Now, it's no coincidence each animal species has different colors and patterns.
10:31One of the reasons for that is to help them stand out when looking for their potential mating partners,
10:36or to send a warning to predators they're poisonous and hope they get the message right.
10:41Then, there are ambush predators, such as tigers.
10:45It's very important for them to remain invisible, because the difference is huge.
10:49If their prey sees them before they get there, no dinner that night.
10:54But why exactly are tigers orange?
10:57For us, orange is a color used for things that need to be ultra-visible.
11:01For example, items such as safety vests or traffic cones.
11:06To the human eye, orange will mostly stand out in the environment.
11:10So, if there's a tiger coming for you, you'll spot it relatively easily.
11:14But humans have so-called trichromatic color vision.
11:18When light from your surroundings enters your eye, it hits the retina, a thin layer located in the back.
11:24To process that light, the retina uses two kinds of light receptors, rods and cones.
11:31Rods can only distinguish differences in light and darkness.
11:34They can't sense color.
11:35Our eyes will mostly rely on rods in dim light.
11:39Cones are in charge of color perception.
11:42Humans mostly have three types.
11:44Cones for green, blue, and red.
11:46That's exactly why we call our vision trichromatic.
11:50Most humans see three primary colors, together with their colorful combinations.
11:55Apes and some monkeys also have such a style of vision.
11:59But most mammals that live on land, including cats, horses, deer, and dogs, have dichromatic color vision.
12:07Retinas in their eyes have cones for two colors only, green and blue.
12:11When humans get information from their green and blue cones only, they're considered colorblind since they can't, for example, tell
12:19the difference between green and red shades.
12:21This is similar with mammals that live on land.
12:24Deer are surely tigers' prey way more than humans.
12:28And deer don't see tigers as orange, but green.
12:32Green tigers would surely be more difficult to spot, which would mean more dinner for tigers.
12:38But evolution still decided to go with orange, because it's simply easier to produce such a color.
12:44The only green mammal is a sloth, but its fur is not naturally green.
12:49It's because of the algae that grows in it.
12:51And they can hold their breath for 40 minutes.
12:54The water around the poles can get very cold during certain periods of the year.
12:59There's plenty of fish that live there, but when that happens, they need to swim away to survive.
13:04But there's a special group of fish native to the southern ocean near Antarctica.
13:10The temperatures there are from 28 to 39 degrees Fahrenheit.
13:15Technically, that's below freezing, but all those dissolved salts in the seawater don't allow it to freeze over.
13:21And these fish can survive because they have a special feature called glycoprotein.
13:27It helps them stay in their home because it acts as sort of a natural antifreeze.
13:32It's a protein that prevents all those ice crystals from forming in their blood and helps it continue to flow
13:38normally.
13:39Have you ever wondered how tiny animals like ants breathe?
13:43Try to open your mouth and throat, but at the same time, hold your chest and diaphragm still.
13:49The diaphragm is a muscular structure that separates the chest and abdominal cavities in all mammals.
13:55It expands as you breathe.
13:57If you can't do this, you can't hold your breath, because oxygen will still find its way into your lungs.
14:04At least, enough of it to keep up with your body's demands.
14:07But generally, when you breathe, diaphragm is actively pumping air in and out of your body.
14:13To survive without the diaphragm doing so, you'd need more than one throat and a way smaller body.
14:20Now, ants have 9 or 10 pairs of openings along the sides of their tiny bodies.
14:26They're called spiracles, and each is connected to branching series of tubes.
14:31It's a system similar to human lungs.
14:33Their blood doesn't carry oxygen from those tubes to the rest of the body.
14:37Instead, the tubes spread this oxygen.
14:40The endings of these branches directly touch the membranes of their cells.
14:44This can only work in really small animals.
14:48When the body is bigger than 8 tenths of an inch, these tubes are too long, so they can't diffuse
14:53air fast enough.
14:55There are a couple of reasons why giraffes have long necks, which, by the way, can grow up to be
15:026 and a half feet long.
15:03From first glance, it seems evolution gave them those to reach the sweetest, topmost leaves of the trees.
15:10It's exclusive access other animals can only dream of, so giraffes don't have to compete for the best bites.
15:17But, over time, researchers realized it's not the only reason.
15:22They also think the neck could be a good factor when male giraffes go into combat.
15:27The same as male antelopes will use their prongs or when a stag uses its antlers.
15:33The thicker the neck, the bigger the chances to win the combat.
15:37Some insects play possum when there's a predator nearby.
15:41For instance, in one research, scientists have observed an ant-lion larva insect.
15:47It played possum for 61 minutes.
15:50How does this even help?
15:51Well, let's say you're in a garden where you see a bunch of identical bushes with soft fruit.
15:57You go to the first bush and start collecting and eating fruits.
16:00Mmm, yummy! It's so simple!
16:03And you're doing it relatively fast.
16:05But, as you strip that bush, it's getting harder for you to find more fruits.
16:10Plus, it's kind of irritating because it takes way more time now than at the beginning.
16:15So, now you need to decide whether to stay there and try to find more,
16:19or simply switch to another bush to have it all easy and fast once again.
16:24Assuming you are the predator, and predators are greedy, you'll just look for ways to eat as much fruit as
16:30possible in the shortest period of time.
16:33This means you'll go on and start collecting fruits from another bush, and the next one, and so on.
16:39Researchers use the same logic when it comes to bird and ant-line larvae.
16:44It appears that insects waste the predator's time when playing possum, which has a significant impact on how things go
16:51later.
16:52That way, they encourage the predator to look for food elsewhere, because the predator doesn't have that much time to
16:58waste.
16:59So, pretending to be not alive is actually a good way to stay alive.
17:04Depending on the species, young birds spend from 10 to 30 days in their eggs.
17:09There's no air inside, but Mother Nature created a perfect mechanism for them to still be able to breathe.
17:16As a young chick is developing inside the egg, it grows some kind of hollow, sack-like structure from the
17:22gut.
17:23It's like a tiny pouch that fuses with a second membrane that goes around the chick and its yoke.
17:29So, one end is attached to the chick, while the other is close to the inner surface of the eggshell.
17:36That way, this special membrane acts like lung tissue and connects the outside world with the chick's circulatory system.
17:43Most animals have two eyes, but some species need more.
17:48For example, some reptiles, amphibians, and fish have a third eye on top of the head.
17:54It's not something that improves their vision that much, but it simply helps them navigate via the sunlight and regulate
18:01their body temperature.
18:02Many invertebrates have more than two eyes.
18:05Most spiders have eight of them, because that way, they can spot their prey easier.
18:11Hmm, looking for something slimy?
18:14Well, many people tend to believe that snails are just slugs with shells.
18:18But even though they look so similar, they're a completely different species.
18:22Slugs don't need any protective shells, as all their internal organs are, well, internal, inside their slimy bodies.
18:31They can squish themselves and get into hard-to-reach places.
18:34Which is why slugs can often be found in the most unlikely spaces, like under tree bark, or inside tiny
18:41crevices, or at the library pretending to study for exams.
18:46Snails, on the other hand, are tightly connected with their shells and can't survive without one.
18:51Unlike hermit crabs, which replace their shells as they grow, snails are born with a shell on their back.
18:58Baby snails look adorable with those fragile, translucent bubbles that calcify and become bigger and tougher with age.
19:05Cute?
19:05Well, you beat the judge.
19:07Many of the snail's internal organs are inside the shell, too.
19:11Meaning that if it gets crushed or damaged, well, the animal would probably not survive.
19:16Still, a snail can repair small scratches and cracks in the shell, with the help of proteins and calcium secreted
19:23by its mantle.
19:24Now, turtles are very close to snails in this regard.
19:27By the way, because, contrary to common myth, they can't leave their shell at a whim, either.
19:32A turtle's shell is an integral part of its body, and despite the reptile being able to hide its head
19:38and paws inside to protect itself from predators, its skeleton is fused with the hard shell.
19:44And just like any other animal skeleton, it grows with the turtle itself.
19:49Now, koalas do only eat eucalyptus leaves, but there are over 600 different kinds of those.
19:56And koalas only munch on 30, or just 5% of what's available on the menu.
20:01So it has to be a very specific eucalyptus tree to make a good meal for a picky koala.
20:07These adorable creatures also have something in common with domestic cats.
20:11They sleep for 18 to 20 hours a day.
20:15Polar bears aren't at all white.
20:17Their skin is black under the fur.
20:19They need the white color to disguise themselves while on the hunt.
20:23The color black absorbs the sun better than any other, while white fur doesn't stop sunlight.
20:29Rays pass right through it.
20:31In a sense, a polar bear has transparent fur.
20:35There's a myth that dogs and cats see the world in black and white.
20:39In reality, they just can't distinguish some colors.
20:42Nobody knows how exactly dogs see.
20:45Some think they only distinguish two colors.
20:47Could be blue and yellow, for all we know.
20:50But they can see shades of other colors better than people.
20:53And cats have wonderful night vision.
20:56They need about 7 times less light than a human to see in the dark.
21:01Now, giraffes were thought to be mute.
21:03But recently, it's been found that they make low-frequency sounds at night to communicate with each other.
21:08During the day, they don't say a word and warn each other of danger in a very unusual way, by
21:15moving their well-developed eyebrows.
21:18It's likely that at night, it's difficult to see the eyebrows.
21:22So, they start talking for real.
21:24While we're on the topic of giraffes, these animals sleep much more than 30 minutes a day, but probably not
21:30as much as you do.
21:31Their sleeping pattern is quite typical.
21:33After researchers monitored a herd of giraffes, they found out they slept at night and took short naps in the
21:40afternoon.
21:41In total, each giraffe had around 5 hours of sleep every day.
21:45Oh, and by the way, a herd of these guys is actually known as a tower of giraffes.
21:50Makes sense with the long necks.
21:53Seagulls can drink seawater.
21:54There are salt-recreting glands near their eyes.
21:57These glands purify seawater very quickly.
22:00And the salty residue comes out through the nostrils.
22:03Yep, you guessed it.
22:04Salty snot.
22:06The Adelaide penguins are real romantics.
22:09They only have one partner for life.
22:12The male must give a smooth stone to the female to create a family.
22:16You could say that's kind of an engagement ring.
22:18Like humans, though, a female penguin may refuse and not accept the ring.
22:23Hmm.
22:24Speaking of animal love, foxes are romantic, too.
22:28Male foxes are good fathers and husbands.
22:30They're devoted to their loved ones for life.
22:33They look after the females and even pick fleas from their fur.
22:37Aww.
22:38Male foxes improve their whole houses and take an active part in their baby's upbringing.
22:44Dolphins can sleep with one eye closed and the other one open.
22:47Half of the brain dreams and rests, and the second half closely monitors the environment for signs of danger.
22:53The perfect brain for sleeping during boring classes and meetings.
22:57Hey, I didn't say that.
22:59Besides, dolphins manually control their breathing.
23:02They can simply drown if their whole brain is sleeping.
23:05Sea otters are the cutest sleepers among all animals.
23:09In the summer, because of the heat, sea otters spend all the time in water.
23:13They swim on their backs and sleep in that position.
23:16The babies are sleeping on their mother's stomach.
23:18And two adults hold each other by the paws so that they're not carried apart by water currents.
23:25Ostriches don't stick their heads in the sand when threatened.
23:27In fact, these guys don't bury their heads at all.
23:30This myth has spread thanks to that famous idiom to hide one's head in the sand.
23:35In real life, ostriches have to dig holes in the sand for their eggs because they're flightless birds.
23:40To make sure they're evenly heated, ostriches put their heads in there to rotate the eggs from time to time.
23:47But ostriches still have some escaping mentality.
23:50When they face some threat, they can flop to the sand and stay perfectly still, pretending they aren't alive.
23:57Now, according to a popular misbelief, sharks can breathe only while moving because swimming helps them push water over their
24:05gills.
24:05Although many kinds of sharks are designed this way, many others, like bottom-dwelling nurse sharks, don't need swimming to
24:12pump oxygen-rich water over their gills.
24:15Meanwhile, all sharks do lack swim bladders, so if they stop swimming, they'll probably sink to the bottom.
24:22But luckily, a shark's body can't be compressed.
24:26That's why rapid descents or ascents are safe for them.
24:30Scientists from Japan played audio recordings for cats to prove they're truly dismissive.
24:37In those recordings, the owners of the cats called them by their names.
24:41Cats' pupils dilated, the animals moved their tails, legs, or ears.
24:46Cats heard people, but rarely responded.
24:48It's all about evolution.
24:50Cats came to people because they were attracted by mice that ate grains.
24:54They lived close to people, but were never tame.
24:57And yet, we keep feeding them.
25:00Birds are actually the only surviving dinosaurs.
25:04They evolved from theropods, the dinosaurs that ran on two legs.
25:08Yep, T. rex is a distant relative of chickens, ostriches, and even hummingbirds.
25:14In reality, flamingos are white.
25:17The bird turns pink due to beta-carotene.
25:20This pigment is found in the algae and the shrimp that it feeds on.
25:23You can change your color, too.
25:25If you eat a lot of carrots, your skin will turn slightly orange.
25:29This will happen because of the high beta-carotene content in the vegetable.
25:33Sailors from all over the world talked about the giant squid they met on their voyages.
25:38For many years, scientists considered monsters with long tentacles to be a myth.
25:43But in 2004, the first photo of a giant squid was taken.
25:48They actually exist.
25:50Scientists have registered an animal that has grown to 43 feet.
25:55Mosquitoes actually bite some people more than others.
25:57The most delicious humans are those with type O blood.
26:01Also, these insects have really good eyesight.
26:04They're attracted by green, black, and red colors.
26:07So, check the color of your clothes before you go camping.
26:11You can actually put a shark in a trance for 15 minutes.
26:15To do this, you need to stroke the nose of a dangerous animal with your hand.
26:20This sort of hypnosis is called tonic immobility
26:23that happens thanks to the receptors in the shark's nose.
26:26When stroked, the receptors send a lot of signals,
26:29and the shark's brain is unable to process them off.
26:33Now, what it doesn't say here is exactly how you get close enough to a shark to rub its nose.
26:38I'd say that's important information, don't you think?
26:41Elephants aren't afraid of mice, per se.
26:44But these massive animals have bad vision.
26:47They also move fairly slowly.
26:49That's why they can get startled by a bird or a small creature,
26:52like a mouse, darting past them.
26:54Just the element of surprise, nothing more.
26:58The chameleon can change its color.
27:00But this creature doesn't do it to camouflage itself.
27:03The color change helps the animal regulate its temperature and communicate with peers.
27:09Now, when most dogs pant, their tongues hang out of their mouths.
27:13That's why many people think that's how they sweat.
27:16In reality, dog's sweat glands are located on their paw pads.
27:20Plus, there are other sweat glands all over their bodies.
27:23Dogs pant to evaporate moisture from their nasal passages, tongues, and the lining of their lungs.
27:29This also helps to cool them down.
27:32You might leave wasps alone, but don't be so sure they'll do the same.
27:37Bees do respect human boundaries.
27:39And if you don't bother them, they won't hurt you.
27:41But wasps are so bad-tempered, they can sting you even if you're just walking by their nest.
27:47Well, phooey on them.