Ugly Animals: Ugly Animals

Showing posts with label Ugly Animals. Show all posts

Solifugae AKA Scorpion Spider

Well, I had to post this one because one of my blog visitors commented about this. Spiders are already creepy in nature. They are venomous too. Here is one kind known as camel spiders, wind scorpions and sun spiders or solifuges.

They may grow to a length of 300 mm (12 in) including legs, and have a body comprising an opisthosoma (abdomen) and a prosoma (head) with conspicuously large chelicerae, which are also used for stridulation. Most species live in deserts and feed opportunistically on ground-dwelling arthropods and other animals. A number of urban legends exaggerate the size and speed of Solifugae, and their potential danger to humans.

Ugly Animals - Solifugae AKA Scorpion Spider

Sloth

Sloths are extremely slow-moving mammals found in the rainforest canopies of Central and South America. There are two species of sloths:two-toed and three-toed. Most sloths are about the size of a small dog and they have short, flat flat heads. Their hair is grayish brown but, at times they look grey-green in color because they move so slowly that tiny camouflaging algae grow all over their coats.

Sloths are nocturnal and sleep curled up with their head placed between the arms and the feet drawn close together. This disguises them as part of a tree so that its enemies like the jaguar do not see them. Sloths rarely climb down from the trees and can live for up to 30 years.

Ugly Animals - Sloth

Coconut Crab

As per Wikipedia, "The coconut crab, Birgus latro, is a species of terrestrial hermit crab, also known as the robber crab or palm thief. It is the largest land-living arthropod in the world, and is probably at the upper size limit of terrestrial animals with exoskeletons in today's atmosphere at a weight of up to 4.1 kg (9.0 lb). It is found on islands across the Indian Ocean and parts of the Pacific Ocean as far east as the Gambier Islands, mirroring the distribution of the coconut palm; it has been extirpated from most areas with a significant human population, including mainland Australia and Madagascar."

The Robber (or Coconut) Crab, Birgus latro, is not only the world’s largest land invertebrate, it’s also a thief that climbs trees at night and steals coconuts! These huge crustaceans of the south-west Pacific and Indian Oceans, can grow to a length of 60 cm (2 ft), from head to tail. They sneak out of their burrows at night, climb the trunks of coconut palms or other fruit trees, and snip off the coconut or fruit with their two giant pincers. They climb back down the tree and gather up the food, then use the pincers to chip at the coconut until it opens.

It is named as the "Coconut Crabs" as it can break a coconut with its strong pincers. They have eight legs and the other two legs have claws, which help them to climb a coconut tree. These species can be of tinged red or deep blue. The females of these species have three large feathery appendages to support the eggs. The length of their body can grow up to a size of 40 cm and weigh up to 17 kg. Their body structure resembles to that of an insect as it lives on the land. The young ones use their shell to protect themselves. They also use the broken shell of coconut in their moulting stages. They have an antenna, which consists of aesthetascs and this provides them an excellent sense of smell.

The coconut crabs mature, either when they grow up to 3.5 meter in size or when they grow up to age of 5 years. The mating season for these species is between May to September. The male and the female are known to fight during the time of mating. During the mating process the male pushes the female onto her back. After that, it places the sperm-sac over the gonopore of the female. The female holds the eggs for (1 to 2) weeks till it gets fertilized. Moreover, the eggs take (3 to 6) weeks to get mature. When the eggs get transformed into juvenile crab, it leaves secretly for (1 to 2) years in their burrows. They have a life span of around 60 years.

Ugly Animals - Coconut Crab

Proboscis Monkey

I personally like monkeys but this is one is quite an exception!

What can we say about this animal other than "that's a whole lot of nose!" This unusual-looking primate is called the proboscis monkey for the pendulous nose of the male. It is believed that the long nose is used in mating, possibly to produce loud resonating vocalizations that attract females. Interestingly, proboscis monkeys are born with a blue face and a small nose. The color of the face changes and the nose enlarges with age. Females also have a large nose, though not nearly as large as the male's.

Ugly Animals - Proboscis Monkey

Sea Wolf

No, I am not talking about the indie folk musician based in Los Angeles; neither I am talking about the movie released in 1941. This Sea Wolf is one of the Ugly Animals... Fishes to be specific.

Sea Wolf are also known as Wolf Fish. Sea Wolf is the largest fish in the suborder of blennies, a species resembling eels that have been around for the last 50 million years. It inhabits the northern waters of both hemispheres, finding shelter under large rocks near the bottom. It has powerful teeth with which he crushes its prey and breaks down into edible pieces.

Atlantic wolf-fish use their strong jaws to eat hardshell mollusks, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Sea Wolf fishes do not eat other fish.

The manner of which Atlantic wolf-fish fertilize their eggs distinguishes them from many fish. Instead of the female depositing her eggs in the open ocean for the male fish to fertilize and then continue on his way, they are internally fertilized and the male wolf-fish stays with the nest and protects the eggs for as long as four months, until the brood is strong enough to gain independence.

Enough with the story... Here are a few pictures of the Ugly Sea Wolf

Ugly Animals - Sea Wolf

Vampire Bats

The vampire bat is one of the ugliest and most feared animals in the Western Hemisphere. This repulsive-looking creature has huge ears and a wrinkled-up nose that sits atop large fang-like teeth. And if its looks weren't bad enough, this animal also has the nasty penchant for mammal blood. At night these bats emerge from their caves to search for unsuspecting cows, horses, birds, pigs or even humans. Then, often without waking their victim, the bat uses its sharp teeth to shave away pieces of flesh and then lap up the oozing blood with their tongues. On the plus side, these "attacks" often go unnoticed and rarely hurt the victim.

The vampire bat is of course impeccably adapted to drinking blood. He will fly in absolute darkness to slurp on mammals, while its two closest relatives prefer birds. He first detects its prey through the snuffling and snoring that we animals do when we sleep, and indeed the bit of its brain that deals with this information is rather pronounced - much like the bit in the Pilkington-Smythe’s bonce that locates booze.

Ugly Animals - Vampire Bat

Dealth Stalker Scorpion

Fortunately, while a sting from this scorpion is extremely painful, it would be unlikely to kill a healthy, adult human. Young children, the old, or infirm (with a heart condition) are at the biggest risk. Death stalker scorpions are spread in North Africa and Middle East.

Death Stalker Scorpions (Leiurus quinquestriatus) can cause a highly dangerous situation for someone who has been stung. Highly aggressive in nature, these reptiles can cause fatal results within seconds. They come in different shades and hues and this color variation mainly depends on the locality where they reside. A member of the arachnid family, Deathstalker Scorpions are also known as Omdurman scorpions or Israeli desert scorpions in some places. The literal translation of the binomial name of this species is "five-striped smooth-tail".

The females Death Stalkers are larger in size, than the males. This helps them accomplish their reproductive tasks. Handling of this animal, for the purpose of study and research, should be undertaken with care, as a single sting is enough to cause immediate death. It is for this very reason that this species is housed in escape-proof enclosures. A very easy way to identify and distinguish the Death stalker is from its thin cauda or tail and its thin claws or pedipalps.

Ugly Animals - Death Stalker Scorpions

Stone Fish

A stone fish. they are absolutely hideous ((cringe)), are poisonous, and can be deadly!

About 20 species of stone fish occur in the Indo-Pacific. Wounds from a stone fish can kill any human unlucky enough to tread on the spines. This species is typical of its family, with its rough, scaleless body, large, upward-turning head and protuberant eyes. As its name suggests, the stone fish's coloring and shape camouflage it perfectly as it lies half-buried among stones or in rock crevices.

Do you know that Stone fish is considered to be the most venomous fish in the world, with its venom consisting of proteins. When a stone fish bites a person, its venom can be partially denatured by the application of a very hot compress on the site of injury. Stone fish, usually, release their toxin when in danger. They have 13 spines on their back that inject the toxin when pressure is placed on them. For instance, when a larger fish attacks or a person steps on stone fish, the pressure leads to release of the venom.

Enough with details now let us look at this sucker Lol