5 Fun Facts About Sea Sponge


Here are 5 fun facts about them: 





These characteristics makes sea sponges inherently animal-like.




Would you use them?


Tidal zones


Sea Sponge 2


Sea Sponge 3


Sea Sponge 4




P.S: Featured image source

5 Fun Facts About Okapi






Video: An okapi in the wild


Okapi 1
An okapi 


Okapi 4
Okapi 5
Okapi 2
A mother-calf pair feeding




5 Fun Facts About Barn Owls

  1. Barn owls screech. In fact, other than the tawny owl that hoots, all owls screech.
  2. Barn owls never make nests. Instead, they lay eggs on their own pellets and droppings.
  3. Barn owls are monogamous pairs who breed only once in their life, laying up to 7 eggs. If food supplies are very high, they may brood again, but with a much smaller nest of 2-3 eggs.
  4. Barn owl chicks are the only birds in the world who sacrifice their share of the food to feed siblings who have less to eat or are ill and need more.
  5. Barn owls have the most sensitive hearing of all animals on the planet and can hear sounds between 0.5 to 10 kHz. They have lopsided ears, with one ear positioned higher than the other. This difference in placement means the birds can listen for the most minute sounds both from the air and the ground simultaneously.



Barn owls were voted Britain’s favourite farmland birds in 2017. It’s not uncommon to find artificial nest boxes in homes across Britain, that are created specifically to encourage barn owls to nest.


Barn Owl India 2
Indian barn owl


Barn owl Australia 4
Australian masked barn owl


Barn Owl Celadonia 2
New Celadonian barn owl


Barn owl 4
A common barn owl




5 Fun Facts About Bearded Dragons

  1. Bearded dragons get their name from the folds of skin underneath their throats, which when enlarged with an inhale of air, appears like human beards.
  2. If a bearded dragon loses or breaks its teeth in a hunt, a new set grows back within days. But unlike other lizards, the broken tail of the bearded dragon never grows back.
  3.  Baby bearded dragons weigh only 2 grams at birth. That’s the same weight as 5 paperclips!
  4. Bearded dragons can change the colour of their skins if they are stressed out or need to change their body temperature. Lighter colours like yellow are taken on when they need to cool their bodies and darker colours like black, when they need more warmth. Bearded dragons choose fiery colours like orange and red to scare-off predators.
  5. Bearded dragons have a very unique way of showing their submissiveness to a dominant male. They repeatedly wave one of their legs in the air in a counter clockwise direction, while placing the other three firmly on the ground. Imagine them waving hello to someone and you’ll understand what this gesture looks like. But if you want to see it, visit the link here.   



In hot and dry places, bearded dragons will open up the spines on their back and collect any water that falls as rain. They then store this water in their back and use it for hydration by licking their backs occasionally.


Video: Two-headed baby bearded dragon. This happens due to a genetic mutation that fuses the embryos together. (viewer discretion is advised)


BD 3
Bearded dragon with its flared beard
BD 2
Different morphs of the bearded dragon family, created through selective breeding




5 Fun Facts About Magpies





One for sorrow,

Two for joy,

Three for a girl,

Four for a boy,

Five for silver,

Six for gold,

Seven for a secret,

Never to be told.

Eight for a wish,

Nine for a kiss,

Ten for a bird,

You must not miss.


A magpie nest with newborns and unhatched eggs
Magpie 3
Magpies are indiscriminate eaters and eat everything from worms to bird chicks





5 Fun Facts About Elephant Seals

  1. Adult elephant seals can grow up to 20 feet  (6 meters) in length and weigh 8800 pounds (3991 kgs). That’s almost twice the length & weight of a midsize truck or SUV!
  2. Elephant seals can hold their breath underwater for more than two hours straight.
  3. Elephant seals get their names from their large trunk-like snouts called “proboscis”. These appendages grow only on males and develop during puberty. Males use this appendage during mating to attract females (using a series of snorts & grunts) and as shields to protect themselves during fights with competing males.
  4. Elephant seals produce concentrated, jelly-like urine when there is a lack of drinking water in their surroundings. This concentrated urine helps them conserve water in the body for later use. But the moment they drink water, their urine becomes normal and more liquid-like.
  5. Beachmasters are the alpha adult males in a group of male elephant seals. They are the ones who are the strongest of the lot and who possess the best spots on the beach. It is important for the beachmasters to create a big space on the rookery (the beach selected for breeding) if they wish to attract & control a large harem of females.



Elephant seals usually mate a few months before winter. This is to ensure that the pups are born during the ideal breeding season when the weather isn’t too cold or too hot. But, females have what is called a “delayed implantation”.

The normal gestation period for elephant seals is 9 months. However, due to the delayed implantation it takes up to 12 months for pups to be born. So, if the weather is not right for the pups’ birth or males haven’t established their territories on the rookery in time, this delayed implantation gives them sufficient time to create or wait for better breeding conditions. This is nature’s way of ensuring greater number of live births during the harsh winter.


Video: Epic fights and all the excitement of the breeding season




Elephant seal 5
A harem of female elephant seals. Each harem can cross a 100 females.
Elephant Seal 1
Just-born seal pup. Sea gulls feed on the placenta and broken umbilical cord of the newborns.
Elephant Seal 2
A seal pup
Elephant Seal 3
Seal pups feeding. The milk is extremely nutritious and helps the pups gain three times their birth weight in blubber, in under a month.





5 Fun Facts About Fruit Flies

Am not I

A fly like thee?

Or art not thou

A man like me?

(The Fly, William Blake)


  2. Fruit flies’ chromosomes look like barcodes.




So, what did fruit flies help us understand?

  • Role of chromosomes in heredity
  • Role of radiation in genetic mutation
  • Control of embryonic development through genetic experimentation
  • Role of the olfactory system
  • Activation of immunity in organisms
  • Molecules that control the circadian rhythm
  • Mechanism of cellular healing in severe wounds


Fruit fly 1
Fruit flies mating


Fruit fly 2
A fruit fly consuming fruit




5 Fun Facts About Hippos







Hippo 2


Hippo 3




5 Fun Facts About Plecos aka Suckerfish

  1. Plecos are a type of catfish.
  2. When we refer to plecos, we refer to the 138 species of fish that come under the  genus Hypostomus.
  3. The plecos’ skin may look slimy, but its texture is like that of a rocky armour.
  4. Plecos are gentle with most fishes except their own species, who they can be very aggressive towards.
  5. Plecos never reproduce in captivity, but females can lay up to 300 eggs in the wild!



Veteran aquarium keepers never write or say aloud the plecos’ full name “plecostomus” because of an old superstition that says “speaking or writing the name will cause the fish to die”.


Pleco 2


Pleco 1



5 Fun Facts About Puppies

  1. What do French bulldogs, Scottish terriers, Clumber spaniels, German wirehaired pointers, Mastiffs and Pekingese have in common? 80% of their species are born via C-section!
  2. Puppies are born blind and deaf at birth and only get their eyesight and hearing around the 7 week mark. They get their sense of smell at 3 weeks.
  3. Puppy dog face is a real phenomenon. Research shows puppies deliberately make puppy eyes and cutesy expressions when they’re being watched by owners. This is a tactic to get attention, hugs and treats.
  4. There are instances of identical twin pups, although they’re very rare. In 2016, an Irish wolfhound in South Africa delivered twin pups who shared the same placenta.
  5. Puppies learn important lessons from other dogs and humans before 7 weeks of age. They must be introduced to humans and other animals by this age or they’ll never get over their fear of other creatures and become anti-social.


The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston is training a Weimaraner pup named Riley to find and hunt pests that may damage irreplaceable artwork.

Here’s a cute video on puppy behaviour:


Pup 1


Pup 2





5 Fun Facts About The Cheetah


cheetah 3


cheetah 2





Usain Bolt vs the Cheetah




5 Fun Facts About Gorillas




Gorilla 3



Gorilla 2






If Poison Were A Colour…

Here’s a short poem before we start:


Five Little Crayons

Five little crayons coloured a scene.

Yellow, blue, orange, red and green.


Blue said, “Great! My river’s just right!”

Orange said, “Flowers! I’ll draw something new.”



And grass and bushes and tiny leaves.

I think I’ll draw a big green cloud!”

“A big green cloud should be allowed!”

The crayons all smiled and didn’t think twice

A big green cloud sounded rather nice!





Say hello to Aposematism






1) Amazonian Poison Dart Frog




Amazon red frog
Red Striped Poison Dart Frog
Amazon blue frog
Blue Poison Dart Frog
Golden Poison frog
Yellow-Banded Poison Dart Frog
Golden Frog
Phyllobates terribilis aka Golden Poison Frog


2) Caterpillars




Saddleback caterpillar.jpg
Saddleback Caterpillar
Stinging Rose Caterpillar.jpeg
Stinging Rose Caterpillar
Gypsy Moth Caterpillar
Gypsy Moth Caterpillar
Spiny Oak Slug Caterpillar
Spiny Oak Slug Caterpillar


3) Hooded Pitohui

Did you ever think a bird would be on this list?




Hooded pitchoui 1
Hooded Pitohui
Hooded pitchoui 2
Hooded Pitohui
Variable pithoui
Variable Pitohui
Brown pitchoui
Brown Pitohui


4) Pufferfish




Puffer fish 2
Guineafowl Puffer Fish
Puffer fish 3
Blue Spotted Puffer Fish
Puffer fish 4
Yellow Spotted Puffer Fish
Puffer fish 6
Diodon Puffer Fish


5) Cone snails





Conus geographus
Conus Geographus, aka the Cigarette snail
Marbled cone snail
Marbeled Cone Snail
Cone snail
Types of Poisonous Cone Snails






P.S: Featured Image: Poison Dart Frog