Most of us don’t grasp the variety of animals species that inhabit the Earth today, and
some even get surprised as they find out there’s an animal they haven’t heard of before.
Out of more than 1.5 million identified non-insect animal species that live on Earth today, how
do you expect to know every single one of them?
Scientists themselves keep discovering new species every year and admit that modern science
is not familiar with all existing animals.
Here are some selected collection of such strange, bizarre or unheard-of creatures you
probably didn't know existed.
Warning – not all of them are super cute and fluffy!
Peacock mantis shrimp These colorful shrimp are in a league of their
own.
Their protuberant eyes can seeten times more color than a human can, but the real punch
is in their club-like attack arms, which they shoot at prey (or anyone they don't like)
with the speed of a .22-caliber bullet.
The water can actually boil in their wake.
They're extremely belligerent and are difficult to keep in captivity because they can break
right through an aquarium tank.
Patagonian mara These cute rodents look like a cross between
a deer and a rabbit.
They live in Argentina and form monogamous pairs, and closely resemble their cousin the
capybara.
Bush viper These dragon-like snakes live in the tropics
of sub-Saharan Africa and come in a stunning variety of colors.
They're only around two feet in length but are quite venomous to humans.
Hooded seal Male hooded seals have sacs on their faces
that they can inflate into large red balloons and then flail around as a sign of aggression.
They're found in the north Atlantic and males measure around 9 feet long.
Long-wattled umbrellabird Found in Colombia and Ecuador, the males of
this species have a long wattle — flesh hanging from their neck like those found on
turkeys — that they can inflate for use in courtship.
Coconut crab These three-foot wide hermit crabs are the
largest terrestrial invertebrates and are found near the Indian Ocean and parts of the
Pacific.
While babies live in shells like normal hermit crabs, adults grow out of them and develop
a protective shell of their own.
They can live 60 years or longer and are named for their love of coconuts, which they can
deftly break open.
They're often killed for their meat and have become increasingly rare in human-populated
areas.
Gharial This crocodile looks like most others — except
for his long, skinny snout.
They're found in and around India and can grow to be 20 feet long.
Eastern long-necked turtle These Australian turtles are half turtle,
half snake.
They use their necks, which they tuck sideways into their shells rather than withdrawing
like most turtles, to quickly strike at passing prey.
Fossa The fossa is the largest predator on Madagascar
and is a strange mix between a weasel and a cat.
Growing up to six feet in length, including their tails, they're believed to have descended
from a mongoose-like animal.
Atretochoana This animal's colloquial name is — you guessed
it — the penis snake.
The first living specimen was only discovered in the wild a few years ago in the Amazon
and they're actually amphibians, not snakes.
Seapig These odd sea cucumbers may look rare but
are actually extremely common.
Just a few inches long, they're found on sea floors around the world.
Sunda colugo Also known as the Sunda flying lemur, these
big-eyed primates live in Southeast Asia and spend their time gliding between trees.
Purple Atelopus Almost too bright to be real, these toads
are a member of the colorful Atelopus family and were just recently discovered in 2007
in Suriname, a small country in South America.
Bald uakari Perhaps the most shocking monkey out there,
bald uakaris, also known as red uakaris, have a shaggy orange coat with a bright red bald
head.
They live near the Amazon River and their bright red appearance is due to capillaries
beneath their skin.
Hairy frogfish These odd fish look more like coral than frogs
— which is excellent camouflage.
They have a very wide territory and use their arm-like fins to "walk" across the sea floor
and hunt prey.
Pygmy seahorse At less than 2 centimeters long, the pygmy
seahorses' tiny size and incredible coloring helps them blend in with the coral they live
near.
In fact, their camouflage is so skillful that even scientists fell for it — most species
have only been documented since 2000.
Hispaniolan solenodon This odd mammalian insectivore is in a class
all its own and diverged from other mammals an incredible 76 million years ago.
It lives in Haiti and the Dominican Republic and injects its prey with toxic saliva.
One of two remaining members of the solenodon family, a nocturnal, burrowing species, the
Hispaniolan solenodon is endangered due to habitat loss and being hunted by pet cats
and dogs.
Tibetan sand fox This little-known fox is native to parts of
Tibet, China and a few other Asian countries.
Their behavior is similar to that of other fox species, but they stand out for their
unusual facial features.
Long-eared jerboa This tiny rodent was first caught on film
in 2007.
They live in parts of China and Mongolia, and it's believed that their ear's help them
cool off in the desert.
Chevrotain Also known as mouse-deer, chevrotains live
in parts of Asia and Africa.
There are several different species, but the smallest ones weigh as little as 4.4 pounds
are the tiniest known ungulates.
Babirusa These wild pigs are native to Indonesia.
Males have unusual upward-curving tusks that actually pierce through the top of their snout;
if not worn down, the tusks can actually curve back and into their skull.
Panda ant These furry creatures are actually wingless
wasps — and despite their cute appearance, they pack quite a sting.
Glaucus atlanticus Commonly known as blue dragons, these tiny
sea slugs have been found in warm waters across the world.
They float along on water currents and attack prey with a venomous sting.
Honduran white bat At less than two inches long, these bats would
be cute even if they weren't fuzzy.
They make tents out of leaves to shelter themselves and their white fur helps them blend into
the green glow of the leaves when the sun shines on them.
They live in Honduras and other parts of South America.
Shoebill These prehistoric (and angry) looking birds
are found in the swamps of South Sudan and neighboring African countries.
Reaching up to five feet in height, they're related to pelicans and use their notable
beaks to go after fish, turtles and even small crocodiles.
Leaf-tailed gecko This unusual gecko is endemic to Madagascar,
where it uses its leafy shape to — of course — camouflage.
Also known as the satanic leaf-tailed gecko, its scientific name, Uroplatus phantasticus,
was chosen because of the creature's unbelievable appearance.
Gelada Geladas live in the Ethiopian mountains and
are the last living species of grass-eating primates.
They're noteworthy for their impressive hair coats and the patch of hairless skin on their
chests that can be a bright crimson color.
Glass frog These unusual frogs look normal from the top,
but their stomachs are highly translucent.
There are several species of glass frogs, which can be found in Mexico and South America.
Golden snub-nosed monkey This monkey's heavy coat helps it survive
the cold mountain climate of central China.
They're endangered due to habitat loss and poaching for fur, meat and use in traditional
medicine.
Orange tortoise spider While this rare spider is almost too cute
to be real, very little is known about the species except that they live in South America.
Gerenuk Gerenuk means "giraffe-necked" in Somali and
it's easy to see why.
These unusual antelope stand on their back legs to feed, allowing them to reach branches
and vegetation their short-necked cousins can't get.
They're found predominately in Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania.
Proboscis monkey These unusual monkeys are endemic to Borneo,
where males use their prominent noses to attract mates.
It's believed that their noses create an echo chamber to amplify their mating call.
They're unfortunately endangered due to habitat loss from logging and human expansion and
are hunted for meat and bezoars, stone-like objects found in their stomachs that are used
in traditional Chinese medicine.
Waxy planthopper nymph This nymph is just one of the thousands of
the planthopper insect species, many of which exude colorful, artistic wax displays from
special glands.
The displays serve several purposes, including protecting them from predators.
Species can be found worldwide.
Maned wolf These long-legged canids (they're not actually
wolves) look like a cross between a fox and a deer, and can be found in South America.
The hair on their necks can stand erect when they're alert, giving them their namesake
manes.
Goblin shark These rare, prehistoric-looking sharks live
in deep seas around the world and can grow up to 20 feet long.
They catch prey using an eerie extending jaw motion.
Blanket octopus These animals are even stranger than they
look.
The six-foot-long females display a stunning webbing between their tentacles, which trails
behind them like a cape.
But the males are only a few centimeters long.
When the male finds a female he likes, one of his arms breaks off and crawls inside her
to deposit sperm.
Then he probably dies.
Pink fairy armadillo These tiny armadillos, which look like furry
beetles, are endemic to Argentina.
They're less than five inches long and are excellent burrowers.
Narrow-headed softshell turtle Growing up to 45 inches long, these unusual
turtles are found in southern Asia.
They bury themselves in sandy rivers and shoot their heads up to grab prey as it passes by.