| Centipede Until recently, no centipede found wthoutodd # leg pairs; 15-191 pairs. Recently 48 pairs; maybe genetic mutation. Spiders eyes Have either 0, 2, 4, 6, or 8 eyes. Spiders don't get stuck in own webs They make web so know where sticky areas are (web not uniformly sticky; use2 types of silk.) If gets in sticky area to get prey, uses ultrasensitive hairs to tiptoe across adhesive. If does get stuck, strong enough to pull free. Black widow spiders Don't always eat their mates; male spider who hangs around too long or doesn't send the proper signals before approaching eaten by larger female 'cause his behavior indicates intruder, not lover. Survives If leaves 'fore female's hunger causes her to become predatory again. Portuguese man-of-war jellyfish Is a colony of animals--made up of 100s of individuals of same species, adapted to perform different funct'ns. 1 forms a float, others provide tentacles for fishing, others digest food caught. Octopus An Octopus has 3 hearts. Animal sounds in French -duck "coin coin" (pronounced more like *kwah* with very short nasal sound at end; has nothing to do with money) -cow "meuh;" bull "beuh" -horse in English whinnies, which in French translates as verb "hennir" -rooster "cocorico" (think cock-a-doodle-doo) -pig "groin groin" (pronounced in nose) -chicken "cot cot" (said more like *cut*) -chick (baby chicken) "pit pit" -turkey "glou glou," according to Asterix comics Research animals Most used scientific & medical experiments animals (in order:) mouse, rat, chick, rabbit, guinea pig. Colors of blood Mammals: red; insects: yellow; lobsters: blue. Cephalopod (squid, octopus...) blood: copper based, light blue when holds oxygen. Human blood: iron based, red when holds oxygen. Migration Sunlight/darkness ratio signal birds to migrate; air pressure, cold fronts push them. Arctic tern: migrates from Arctic to Antarctic each year, 22k mi.; animal with greatest migratory range. Takes half yr. Gray whale: mammal with longest migration; 12k mi./yr. (6k 1 way;) Alaska to Baja, CA, 7 wks. Arctic caribou: longest land mammal migrat'n, 15k+ mi. (7k+ 1 way;) follow ancestoral trails. Roadrunners & coyotes Roadrunners sprint 15 mph; coyotes run 40 mph. Wile E. Coyote just wasn't trying hard enough. Carnivores Descended from animals called miacids (small mammals;) lived during dinosaur age 60 mil. yrs. ago. Evolved over mil.s of yrs into 100s of species--cats, bears, dogs, weasels... Glow in the dark eyes Many nocturnal animals have a mirrorlike, reflective surface layer (tapetum) behind cells of the retina to help gather more light; can see clearly in very low levels of illumination. Among animals with this ability: rabbit, deer, cat, raccoon, wolf, bullfrog; glow different colors depending on type of animal--red, green, yellow, golden, white. Hearts Only mammals and birds have two-part hearts. |
| Facts: animals, other |
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| This page revised 4-11-04 |