[raydan]

I thought maybe we could start a thread so we can present and discuss strange life.
I'll start, so you'll understand where I'm going.

The cookiecutter shark (Isistius brasiliensis), also called the cigar shark

Why it's strange...
...it migrates vertically up to 3 km (1.9 mi) every day
...light-emitting photophores covering its underside except for a dark "collar" around its throat and gill slits, these dark spots being used as a lure for attracking prey.
...The name "cookiecutter shark" refers to its feeding habit of gouging round plugs, like a cookie cutter, out of larger animals. Marks made by cookiecutter sharks have been found on a wide variety of marine mammals and fishes, as well as on submarines, undersea cables, and even human bodies. So normally but not always, it doesn't kill prey, just takes a bite out of them.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cookiecutter_shark

[DrCaleb]

The Horseshoe Crab. It's not a crab, it's more closely related to a spider.

And it does not have iron in it's blood, but copper. It's blood is not red, but blue.

[raydan]

DrCaleb wrote:

The Horseshoe Crab. It's not a crab, it's more closely related to a spider.

And it does not have iron in it's blood, but copper. It's blood is not red, but blue.

Saw quite a few of these things in Nova Scotia, mostly dead shells but sometimes groups of them coming to shore during the breeding season.
Straight out of the Ordovician period... living fossils.

[BartSimpson]

Camel spiders.

[andyt]

Homo Sapiens: Have the intelligence and temperament to live in harmony and recognize when they are exceeding the carrying capacity of their environment. Have produced exemplars like Jesus and Buddha that show the way. Yet continue to kill and fuck each other over as often as the co-operate, all under the illusion that the need more stuff than the next guy and can take it with them. Truly a prime demonstration that evolution is a Rube Goldberg process.

[andyt]

BartSimpson wrote:

Camel spiders.

Quote:

Solifugae are the subject of many urban legends and exaggerations about their size, speed, behaviour, appetite, and lethality. They are not especially large, the biggest having a leg span of perhaps 12 centimetres (4.7 in).[3] They are fast on land compared to other invertebrates. The fastest can run perhaps 16 km/h (10 mph) for a short distance, nearly half as fast as the fastest human sprinter. Members of this order of Arachnida apparently have no venom, with the possible exception of one species in India (see below) and do not spin webs.
In the Middle East, it is widely rumored among American and coalition military forces stationed there that Solifugae will feed on living human flesh. The story goes that the creature will inject some anaesthetising venom into the exposed skin of its sleeping victim, then feed voraciously, leaving the victim to awaken with a gaping wound. Solifugae, however, do not produce such an anaesthetic, and they do not attack prey larger than themselves unless threatened. Other stories include tales of them leaping into the air, disemboweling camels, screaming, and running alongside moving humvees; all of these tales are false.

[Brenda]

BartSimpson wrote:

Camel spiders.

Thank you for not posting a picture...

[Brenda]

andyt wrote:

Homo Sapiens: Have the intelligence and temperament to live in harmony and recognize when they are exceeding the carrying capacity of their environment. Have produced exemplars like Jesus and Buddha that show the way. Yet continue to kill and fuck each other over as often as the co-operate, all under the illusion that the need more stuff than the next guy and can take it with them. Truly a prime demonstration that evolution is a Rube Goldberg process.

See above

[DrCaleb]

BartSimpson wrote:

Camel spiders.

Not a spider. Same family - 'arachnids' - but closer to a tailless scorpion. But nasty m'ing f'ers.

For spiders, try the Brazilian Wandering Spider. It will actually seek out and attack humans. And it is quite capable of killing us too. Not just children or seniors, but healthy adults. But at least you die with a 'chubby'.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brazilian_wandering_spider

[Brenda]

DrCaleb wrote:

BartSimpson wrote:

Camel spiders.

Not a spider. Same family - 'arachnids' - but closer to a tailless scorpion. But nasty m'ing f'ers.

For spiders, try the Brazilian Wandering Spider. It will actually seek out and attack humans. And it is quite capable of killing us too. Not just children or seniors, but healthy adults. But at least you die with a 'chubby'.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brazilian_wandering_spider

EWWWWWWWWWWW!!!

Nice side-effects btw Wonder if they are only 'wandering' looking for male victims?

[DrCaleb]

How a bout 'Fangtooth'. We only recently found this guy with the big Ocean Survey that just concluded it's 10 year journey. He lives about a mile down in the ocean.

[PostFactum]

Borshch, has comed to Ukraine from Roman Empire after the fall of Rome, wasn't so popular at the others part of Europe, but in Ukraine was modified and now it's calling the emblem of U culture and a perfect food after a long road or cold winter.

[raydan]

Wrong thread, PostFactum.

[PostFactum]

raydan wrote:

Wrong thread, PostFactum.

Please explain?

[raydan]

PostFactum wrote:

raydan wrote:

Wrong thread, PostFactum.

Please explain?

This is a thread for "living" things...