Frogs Can't Jump! Nature's Way of Trying To Be Funny.

Image generated by Midjourney

Nature is a funny thing. From the tiniest insects to the largest mammals, there's always something strange and unusual to discover. When I saw the first animal on this list, I was actually in tears from laughter. That made me curious enough to go look for some of the funniest and weirdest things animals do. Today is a short post day haha, but nevertheless hope you get some entertainment out of it.

Brachycephalus Frogs

Image by Diogo Luiz

Take, for example, the brachycephalus frogs. These little guys are native to South America, and they are known for their extremely short and wide heads. But what's even more unusual about them is that they can't jump like normal frogs. Apparently it's the problem with the size of their ear canals, once they jump they can't keep track of their position so they do something weird. It's the funniest thing I saw recently. Just look at this, now this is funny as hell:

Turkey Vultures

Image by Rhododendrites

So, it turns out that Turkey Vultures are gross. These birds are known for their impressive sense of smell, which they use to find carrion. But did you know that they have a unique way of keeping cool? They pee on themselves! That's right, turkey vultures will urinate on their legs to cool down in the hot sun. Nobody needs to see a video about that, so moving on.

Exploding Ants

Image by Bernard DUPONT

Have you heard of the exploding ant? Also called the yellow goo ant, these species of ant are found in the forest of Borneo, an Island in the southwest Pacific and they have a rather unique defense mechanism. When threatened, they will sacrifice themselves by exploding, releasing a sticky, toxic substance that can immobilize predators. Talk about dedication to the colony! haha If you want to see more about them watch this.

Trap-Jaw Ants

If you think exploding ants are crazy, wait till you hear about trap-jaw ants. These ants have jaws that can snap shut with incredible speed and force. They use this to capture prey and defend themselves, timing their snaps perfectly to catch unsuspecting victims. This maybe doesn't sound wild or impressive until you see how they jump using their jaws:

Phasmatodea

Image by John A. Alaban

Last but not least, stick insects, like Phasmatodea. I mean, it's basically a walking stick... a stick... that walks. That's pretty much it. Sorry for the disappointing ending.

Oh, you silly nature you. What have you done? It's actually amazing how this is a result of evolution. In some objective way, this all made sense for these species to evolve like this in their environments. Some of them are obvious why but some of them are like, "WHY?". If you know of any species doing weird things like this please share so we can laugh or maybe even gross out together haha.

As always, thank you for reading!

Sources:

• phys.org - Tiny Brazilian frogs are poor jumpers because their ear canals are too small
• Wild Republic - Turkey Vulture
• Live Science - Exploding Ants Kill Foes, and Themselves, with a Blast of Toxic Goo
• Entomology Today - Trap-Jaw Ant Jumps with Its Legs or Its Mandibles
• Wiki - Phasmatodea