We learn more about animals every day as science continues to unlock the great mysteries of
why these non-humans do what they do... but we don't know everything.
There's still a ton about nature's creations that baffle us to this day.
Here are a few animal behaviors that still can't be explained.
Why do cows face north or south when eating?
You probably don't think much about what direction you face when you eat, aside from "towards
the TV", but cows do.
Almost universally, a cow will face either north or south come dinnertime.
And while we know how they do it, we don't actually know why.
According to one German study, cows can sense Earth's magnetic field and will align their
bodies to face north or south while eating, sort of like a compass that goes great with
A-1 sauce.
What's more, the study discovered that deer also adhere to the north-south thing —
but why?
When birds conform to the planet's magnetic field, it's for navigational purposes, but
mammals don't migrate the way birds do, rendering this magnetic path seemingly pointless.
And a later study revealed that, in larger herds, the cows paid less attention to the
direction they faced while chowing down.
But why the change?
Animals rarely do stuff for no reason.
Biologist Richard Holland's best theory is that mammals did once routinely migrate a
lot, and the north-south thing is a leftover evolutionary feature.
But that, like everything else, is simply a theory.
How do animals predict earthquakes?
We've known for a very long time that animals know when the Earth is about to start shaking,
and we even know why.
You learned this stuff in basic Earth Science: an earthquake produces two types of waves:
a small P-wave, and a larger S-wave.
Animals can sense the tiny P-wave that comes before the S-wave much better than humans
can, so when they do, they know it's time to run.
What's baffling, however, is that some animals can sense an earthquake weeks before it actually
happens.
According to historical records, in 373 BC, a huge earthquake rattled Greece, but the
rats, snakes, and even centipedes all got to stepping long before the natural disaster
made its presence known to humans.
To this day, we have no idea why.
Researcher Joseph Kirschvink theorized that there may be more warning signs to earthquakes
than we can currently sense, which animals are reacting to.
But despite all of our fancy equipment, we still haven't sensed a thing.
Point, snakes.
How do sharks navigate?
Despite Shark Week being America's #1 holiday, there's plenty we don't know about sharks,
like how exactly they navigate the ocean.
Despite much of it being dark, empty, watery space, sharks can effortlessly go wherever
they need to go, sometimes over thousands of miles, without getting lost.
Scientists from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography think it has to do with the sharks
sniffing their way home.
There, scientists took several wild leopard sharks, moved them roughly six miles from
home, plugged their noses with cotton, and released them in the opposite direction of
their stomping grounds.
Other sharks without cotton in their nostrils returned right to their hideout, but the ones
who couldn't smell wandered aimlessly.
"Whoa, you smell that?"
But despite the experiment's findings, not everyone's convinced.
Marine biologist Kim Holland from the University of Hawaii at Manoa thinks the cotton-balled
sharks' confusion was just due to having stuff shoved up their noses, which would probably
disorient anyone.
Other studies dispute the chemical idea, suggesting that sharks use changes in light and temperature
as clues they're near the finish line.
For now, both sides' guesses are as good as any.
Why do crows hold grudges?
Crows are scary smart and, as it turns out, surprisingly petty.
As researchers in Seattle learned in 2011, not only do they remember the faces of humans
who held them captive, they'll foster grudges to the point where they'll attack, peck, and
dive-bomb their ex-captors, even years later.
To a crow, revenge is a dish best served forever.
Why they do this, however, is unknown.
We know crows have incredible memories, but we don't know why they insist on attacking
somebody they don't like.
Instead, researchers are focusing on ways to keep the crows from dive-bombing people
into oblivion — like treating them better while in captivity.
Whether that works to curb their revenge-fueled minds remains to be seen, but it certainly
never hurts to be nicer to animals.
Especially the ones who remember.
Why do lonely ants die?
Ants are incredibly social creatures.
If you run into one, chances are there are about 15 million more nearby.
But as it turns out, they're not just social because there's strength in numbers.
In fact, if an ant's left alone, they will literally die — and do so super-fast.
In a 2015 study, a species of carpenter ants was shown die off after a mere six days after
being separated from their friends, who lived an average of two months when allowed to be
social.
Kinda makes A Bug's Life seem extra dark now, huh?
The isolated ants were observed walking much more than social ants.
And while they ate as much as social ants, much of the food never left the crop area
of their stomach, where ants store food meant to be regurgitated for family.
So, they ate a lot, but very little wound up in their digestive tracts, so they all
but starved to death.
And we don't know why.
It certainly sounds like depression, but why do their digestive habits change so much?
Are they looking for family, as the study theorizes?
"I'm gonna follow him home.
Kill his whole family."
Right now, all that's certain is that a lonely ant is destined for death.
That is, until science figures out a way to create…
Anti-deppressants.
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