Animals unusual!

There are millions and millions of inhabitants in the Animal Kingdom that never fail to capture our attention because of their diverse appearance, skills and living habits.

Some animals, especially the primates are so closely linked to us while others are so unique and fascinating. So, today we will feature some of these creatures you may not be so familiar with from among mammals, amphibians, reptiles and birds.

Spiny Echidna

One of the only two species in the family of Tachyglossidae of the order Monotremata, the Spiny Echidna or the Anteater is known as the toothless mammal. It is found in Australia and Tasmania in forests, scrubland and desert habitats.

It is a primitive hedgehog-like mammal which is about 35-53cm (14-21 in) in length and 2.5-6 kg (5-13 lb) in weight. It has outsized claws on its feet which it uses to tear open rotten logs and to break into concrete-hard nests of termites. Apart from termites, it also eats ants.

As it feeds on ants and termites, which need no chewing, the Echidna has no teeth. Instead, it has a long, sticky tongue and that's why it's called the toothless mammal.

Like many reptiles, the Echidna hibernates during cold weather, easily surviving without food for as long as a month. It also lays soft-shelled eggs like a reptile, but although the female has two ovaries like all other animals, only the left one actually produces eggs.

The single egg produced by Mama Echidna between June and September is incubated over a period of 10 days.

Once hatched, the baby Echidna which is only 15 mm (0.6 in) long and weighs a minuscule 0.4g grows very rapidly. It achieves a weight of 400 g (14 lb) and by this time Mama Echidna forces it to leave her marsupial pouch in which it grew all this time.

When under threat, the Echidna rolls itself into a ball so that it is protected by the spines along its back.

It also wedges itself into crevices or digs itself down into sandy soil to escape predators.

Matamata

Although a very remarkable looking turtle, it is also the strangest-looking of all the 30 species of snake-necked turtle. This group of turtles has long, flexible necks which they withdraw in a sideway fashion, leaving the neck still exposed.

The aquatic Matamata which grows up to a length of 40 cm (18 in) and weighs around 22 kg (48 lb) is found in Brazil and Guyana. It has three rows of humps and knobs on its shell and shaggy lobes of skin on its neck.

What is bizarre is its grotesque and flat head, ending in a flexible, extended nose or proboscis which seems to be used as a snorkel. It can remain submerged in shallow water because of its very long neck and extended nose.

It stores oxygen in the body tissues and can hold its breath for as long as 40 minutes! Matamata is well camouflaged in shallow water when it stays motionless.

As snake-necked turtles are carnivorous, their diet is mostly fish. They lurk in murky ponds, marshes and streams for their prey.

Bananaquit

Have you heard of a feathered friend called the Bananaquit? Perhaps not. This bird which is rather small, with a length of 11 cm (4.3 in) and a weight of 8.0-10.5 g (0.3-0.4 oz) could be spotted in forest edges, gardens and open country areas with scattered low trees and shrubs in most of southern, Central America, West Indies, (excluding Cuba) and throughout tropical South America.

One of the most intriguing features of this bird is its nesting habit. Unlike most of its feathered relatives, the Bananaquit roosts inside a nest all year. The bird builds a special nest to sleep in and is a very fussy sleeper. No sharing is permitted; male birds and female birds sleep separately.

The 'dormitory' nests built by these birds for sleeping are similar to their breeding nests. Many of these dormitory nests are used for a very long period of time, until they are too tatty to live in.

Then, the bird builds another new one which is a spherical construction of grasses with a downward-facing entrance like a small doorway at the side. Usually, the male and female birds build their own dormitory nests, though sometimes, the females may use the one in which the young were reared. Mama bird lays 2-3 eggs and the incubation period is 12-13 days.

Bananaquits thrive on nectar, juice of fruits and insects. As these birds also take sugar solutions from special feeders put up to attract birds such as hummingbirds, they are also known as 'Sugarbirds'.

There are over 40 races of Bananaquit and in the Caribbean, almost every island has its own race of this bird.

Worm lizards

Have you ever seen reptiles that can move forwards and backwards with ease? Worm lizards, which have the ability to do so, may look like plump worms, but are actually highly specialised burrowing reptiles. They have puzzled scientists for many years.

Worm lizards or king lizards as they are also known belong to the group of reptiles called Amphisbaenids. However, they are not closely related to either snakes or lizards. The name Amphisbaenids, which is Greek, roughly means 'going both ways'.

Apart from one genus, these creatures have no limbs. The soft skin is worm-like because of the ring-shaped folds on it.

They have powerful jaws and large teeth, and the skull is specially strengthened for burrowing in the ground where these reptiles spend most of their time.Many species are about 30 cm (12 in) long, but one species found in Central Africa grows to a length of 65 cm (26 in).

They are found in South America, S. Africa, Spain and Portugal. Even though it is known that these creatures lay eggs, very little is known about their breeding habits.

Ingram's Planigale

Yet another fascinating specimen from the group of mammals is Ingram's Planigale, which is popular as the mammal that rides on grasshoppers. It is the smallest living marsupial mammal with a length of 50-92 mm (2.3-3.5 in), and a tail of 50-78 mm (2-3 in), weighing about 5g (0.2-02).

Found in northern and eastern Australia in rocky areas or sandy country with tussock grass, this diminutive (very small) creature is capable of catching and killing grasshoppers almost as large as itself. Sometimes, while trying to catch grasshoppers it gets carried off by them, while they are trying to escape.

Animals in captivity are known to thrive on six to eight, 50mm (2 in) long grasshoppers a day.

The planigale has a remarkably flat skull which is barely 6 mm (0.25 in) that enables it to stick its head into the tiniest cracks in search of food.