Birds do not urinate.
Horses and cows sleep while standing.
The bat is the only mammal capable of flight. Its leg bones are so thin that it cannot walk.
Even when a snake’s eyes are closed, it can still see through its eyelids.
Despite their fluffy white fur, Polar Bears actually have black skin.
The average housefly lives only 2 to 3 weeks.
For every human, there are approximately one million ants.
A small amount of alcohol on a scorpion will drive it insane and send them into a state of panic
Alligators and sharks can live for up to 100 years.
A honeybee has two stomachs: one for honey and one for food.
Elephants weigh less than the tongue of a blue whale. A blue whale’s heart is the size of a car.
A cockroach can survive for about a week without its head before dying of starvation.
When a dolphin is sick or injured, its cries of distress prompt other dolphins to assist.
A snail can sleep for up to 3 years.
The fastest bird, the peregrine falcon, can fly at speeds of up to 390 kmph or 108 mph.
A cow produces nearly 200,000 glasses of milk in her lifetime.
The leech has 32 brains.
The average outdoor cat lives only 3 years, while indoor-only cats can live 16 years or longer.
Sharks are immune to every disease, including cancer.
A mosquito’s proboscis has 47 sharp edges to help it cut through skin and even protective clothing.
An octopus has three hearts and blue blood.
Sloths can hold their breath longer than dolphins – up to 40 minutes.
A shrimp’s heart is located in its head.
Starfish have no brains or blood; they pump seawater through their bodies instead.
Kangaroos can’t walk backward. See Advance Australia [RR4:03].
Sea otters hold hands while sleeping so they don’t drift apart.
A woodpecker’s tongue wraps around its brain to cushion it from the impact of pecking.
A newborn kangaroo is smaller than a jellybean.
Wombat poo is cube-shaped to prevent it from rolling away.
A male seahorse carries and gives birth to its young.
The lyrebird can mimic almost any sound, including chainsaws and camera shutters.
An ant can survive falling from almost any height because of its small size and low terminal velocity.
Male penguins propose by offering a female a perfect pebble. See Pebbling [RR4:54].
A flea can jump 200 times its own body length – equivalent to a human leaping over the Eiffel Tower.
A jellyfish's body is 95% water, and some species are biologically immortal.
The axolotl can regenerate entire limbs, its spine, and even parts of its brain.
Goats have rectangular pupils, which give them a wide field of vision to spot predators.
Pigeons can recognise themselves in mirrors, a sign of self-awareness shared by only a few animals.
Frogs can freeze solid in winter, and when they thaw out in spring, they continue on as if nothing happened.
Dogs have a sense of time and can predict their owners' routine

Story Idea: Melanie Giuffré
______________________________

Images

1. Scorpions really don't like alcohol. Credit: osu.edu
2. Snake with keyhole-shaped pupils
3. Shorn polar bear with black skin. Credit: r/Awwducational
4. Peregrine falcon in full fast flight. Credit: r/NatureIsFuckingLit
5. Mosquito proboscis. Credit: Martin Hogan
6. Octopus hearts diagram. Credit: Raja Lockey via BBC
7. Australian Coat of Arms [RR4:03]
8. Wombat poo cube. Credit: Yang et al
9. Male seahorse with babies
10. Goat pupils are rectangular. Credit: CSIRO