The Tweens News | English

Happy Birthday To:

* 1214 – King Louis IX of France (d. 1270)
* 1228 – Conrad IV of Germany (d. 1254)
* 1284 – King Edward II of England (d. 1327)
* 1502 – Georg Major, German Protestant theologian (d. 1574)
* 1599 – Oliver Cromwell, English statesman (d. 1658)
* 1608 – Gaston, Duke of Orléans, French politician (d. 1660)
* 1621 – Roger Boyle, 1st Earl of Orrery, British statesman and dramatist (d. 1679)
* 1694 – Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington, English architect (d. 1753)
* 1710 – James Ferguson, Scottish astronomer (d. 1776)
* 1770 – Georg Sverdrup, Norwegian philologist (d. 1850)
* 1775 – Charlotte of Spain, Spanish Infanta and queen of Portugal (d. 1830)
* 1776 – Princess Mary, Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh (d. 1857)
* 1843 – Alice of the United Kingdom, Grand Duchess of Hesse (d. 1878)
* 1849 – Felix Klein, German mathematician (d. 1925)
* 1850 – Luise Adolpha Le Beau, German composer (d. 1927)
* 1851 – Leopoldo Alas y Ureña, a.k.a. “Clarín”, Spanish novelist (d. 1901)
* 1862 – Edward Grey, 1st Viscount Grey of Fallodon, British politician (d. 1933)
* 1873 – Walter de la Mare, English poet (d. 1956)
* 1874 – Guglielmo Marconi, Italian inventor, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physics (d. 1937)
* 1897 – Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood (d. 1965)
* 1898 – Fred Haney, baseball player (d. 1977)
* 1900 – Wolfgang Ernst Pauli, Austrian-born physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1958)
* 1902 – Werner Heyde, German psychiatrist (d. 1964)
* 1903 – Andrey Nikolayevich Kolmogorov, Russian mathematician (d. 1987)
* 1905 – George Nepia, New Zealand rugby player (d. 1986)
* 1906 – William J. Brennan, U.S. Supreme Court Justice (d. 1997)
* 1908 – Edward R. Murrow, American journalist (d. 1965)
* 1909 – William Pereira, American architect (d. 1985)
* 1914 – Ross Lockridge, Jr., American writer (d. 1948)
* 1917 – Ella Fitzgerald, American singer (d. 1996)
* 1918 – Gerard Henri de Vaucouleurs, French astronomer (d. 1995)
* 1918 – Astrid Varnay, Swedish-born soprano (d. 2006)
* 1921 – Karel Appel, Dutch painter (d. 2006)
* 1923 – Melissa Hayden, American ballerina (d. 2006)
* 1923 – Albert King, American musician (d. 1992)
* 1924 – Franco Mannino, Italian composer (d. 2005)
* 1925 – Sammy Drechsel, German journalist and film director (d. 1986)
* 1925 – Kay E. Kuter, American actor (d. 2003)
* 1926 – Gertrude Fröhlich-Sandner, Austrian politician (d. 2008)
* 1927 – Albert Uderzo, French cartoonist
* 1927 – Corín Tellado, Spanish romance novelist (d. 2009)
* 1929 – Yvette Williams First woman New Zealander to go to Olympics
* 1930 – Paul Mazursky, American film director and writer
* 1931 – Felix Berezin, Russian mathematician (d. 1980)
* 1932 – William Roache, British television actor (Coronation Street)
* 1932 – Meadowlark Lemon, American basketball player
* 1933 – Jerry Leiber, American composer
* 1934 – Peter McParland, Northern Irish footballer
* 1935 – April Ashley, English model
* 1938 – Ton Schulten, Dutch artist
* 1939 – Ted Kooser, American poet and US Poet Laureate
* 1940 – Al Pacino, American actor
* 1941 – Bertrand Tavernier, French director, screenwriter and actor
* 1941 – Princess Muna al-Hussein, of Jordan
* 1942 – Jon Kyl, American politician, junior senator of Arizona
* 1942 – Katsuji Adachi, Japanese professional wrestler
* 1945 – Björn Ulvaeus, Swedish singer and songwriter (ABBA)
* 1945 – Stu Cook, American rock bassist
* 1946 – Talia Shire, American actress
* 1946 – Vladimir Zhirinovsky, Russian politician
* 1947 – Johan Cruijff, Dutch footballer
* 1947 – Jeffrey DeMunn, American actor
* 1948 – Yu Shyi-kun, former Premier of Taiwan
* 1949 – Dominique Strauss-Kahn, French economist, lawyer, and politician
* 1949 – Vicente Pernía, Argentine footballer
* 1949 – James Fenton, British poet
* 1950 – Steve Ferrone, British drummer
* 1950 – Peter Jurasik, American actor
* 1951 – Ian McCartney, British Member of Parliament
* 1952 – Ketil Bjørnstad, Norwegian pianist
* 1952 – Vladislav Tretiak, Soviet ice hockey player
* 1953 – Ron Clements, American animation director
* 1955 – Parviz Parastui, Iranian actor
* 1955 – Américo Gallego, Argentine footballer
* 1955 – Christopher Tyng, American composer
* 1956 – Jaroslava Schallerová, Hungarian actress
* 1958 – Fish, Scottish singer and lyricist (ex-Marillion)
* 1959 – Dominique Blanc, French actress
* 1960 – Bruce Redman, Australian film producer
* 1961 – Dinesh D’Souza, American author
* 1963 – David Moyes, Everton Football Club, Manager
* 1964 – Hank Azaria, American actor and voice actor
* 1964 – Andy Bell, British singer and songwriter (Erasure)
* 1965 – Eric Avery, American musician
* 1965 – Simon Fowler, English musician (Ocean Colour Scene)
* 1965 – Mark Bryant, American basketball player
* 1966 – Erik Pappas, Greek-American baseball player
* 1966 – James Stacy Barbour, American actor and singer
* 1969 – Joe Buck, American sports broadcaster
* 1969 – Gina Torres, American actress
* 1969 – Darren Woodson, American football player
* 1969 – Renée Zellweger, American actress
* 1970 – Jason Lee, American actor (Alvin And The Chipmunks 1 & 2, The Incredibles, Underdog, Monster House)
* 1970 – Jason Wiles, American actor
* 1971 – Tomoko Kawakami, (Voice Actress), Japanese Seiyuu
* 1972 – Sara Baras, Spanish ballerina
* 1973 – Fredrik Larzon, Swedish drummer (Millencolin)
* 1975 – Emily Bergl, English-American actress
* 1975 – Jacque Jones, American baseball player
* 1975 – Chris Lilley, Australian actor, comedian, and writer
* 1976 – Tim Duncan, American basketball player
* 1976 – Rainer Schüttler, German tennis player
* 1976 – Gilberto, Brazilian footballer
* 1977 – Constantinos Christoforou, Cypriot singer
* 1977 – Marguerite Moreau, American actress
* 1977 – Matthew West, American Christian singer
* 1977 – Ilias Kotsios, Greek footballer
* 1977 – Paavo Siljamäki, Finnish musician
* 1977 – Kim Jong Kook, South Korean singer
* 1978 – Letícia Birkheuer, Brazilian model
* 1978 – Matt Walker, British Paralympic swimmer
* 1980 – Alejandro Valverde, Spanish cyclist
* 1980 – Daniel MacPherson, Australian actor
* 1980 – Bruce Martin, New Zealand cricketer
* 1980 – Kazuhito Tadano, Japanese baseball player
* 1981 – Dwone Hicks, American football player
* 1981 – Felipe Massa, Brazilian Formula One driver
* 1981 – John McFall, British Paralympic sprinter
* 1981 – Anja Pärson, Swedish skier
* 1982 – Monty Panesar, English cricketer
* 1982 – Brian Barton, American baseball player
* 1983 – DeAngelo Williams, American football player
* 1983 – J.P. Howell, American baseball player
* 1983 – Joanne Peh, Singaporean actress
* 1984 – Robert Andino, American baseball player
* 1984 – Melonie Diaz, American actress
* 1984 – Andre’ Woodson, American football player
* 1985 – Giedo van der Garde, Dutch racing driver
* 1985 – Jadyn Maria, Puerto Rican singer & songwriter
* 1987 – Johann Smith, American soccer player
* 1988 – James Sheppard, Canadian ice hockey player
* 1989 – Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, 11th Panchen Lama
* 1996 – Allisyn Ashley Arm, American child actress

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_25

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The Suite Life On Deck – The Kidney Of The Sea

Part 1:

[pro-player] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGVTgrypwnA [/pro-player]

Part 2:

[pro-player] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JtbksPwUKo [/pro-player]

Part 3:

[pro-player] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWcfM09E8aA [/pro-player]

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# 10 - Mata Mata:

The mata mata is a freshwater turtle found predominantly in South America, notably in the Amazon and Orinoco basins. The animal’s peculiar physical aspect distinguishes it from other members of its order. It is an animal highly skilled in hunting techniques. French naturalist, Pierre Barrère described it thus:

“large land turtle with spiky and ridged scales”. The mata mata is quite visually distinctive: its head is triangular, large, and extremely flattened, with many tubercles and flaps of skin, most notably a ‘horn’ on the nose. There are two barbels on the chin and two additional filamentous barbels at the jaw. The snout is long and tubular. The upper jaw is neither hooked nor notched.

# 9 - Horseshoe Bat:

Horseshoe bats (the Rhinolophidae family) are a large family of bats including approximately 130 species grouped in 10 genera. All rhinolophids have leaf-like protuberances on their noses. In rhinolophines species, these take the shape of a horseshoe; in hipposiderine, they are leaf- or spear-like. They emit echolocation calls through these structures, which may serve to focus the sound. Most rhinolophids are dull brown or reddish brown in color. They vary in size from small to moderately large.

# 8 - Star Nosed Mole:

The Star-nosed Mole is a small North American mole found in eastern Canada and the north-eastern United States. It lives in wet lowland areas and eats small invertebrates, aquatic insects, worms and molluscs. It is a good swimmer and can forage along the bottoms of streams and ponds. Like other moles, this animal digs shallow surface tunnels for foraging; often, these tunnels exit underwater. It is active day and night and remains active in winter, when it has been observed tunnelling through the snow and swimming in ice-covered streams.

# 7 – Sloth:

Sloths are medium-sized mammals that live in Central and South America. Sloths are omnivores. They may eat insects, small lizards and carrion, but their diet consists mostly of buds, tender shoots, and leaves. Sloth fur also exhibits specialized functions: the outer hairs grow in a direction opposite from that of other mammals. In most mammals, hairs grow toward the extremities, but because sloths spend so much time with their legs above their bodies, their hairs grow away from the extremities in order to provide protection from the elements while the sloth hangs upside down.

# 6 - Naked Mole Rat:

The Naked Mole Rat, also known as the Sand Puppy, or Desert Mole Rat, is a burrowing rodent native to parts of East Africa. Typical individuals are 8–10 cm long and weigh 30–35 g. Queens are larger and may weigh well over 50 g, the largest reaching 80 g. They are well-adapted for their underground existence. Their eyes are just narrow slits, and consequently their eyesight is poor. However, they are highly adapted to moving underground, and can move backwards as fast as they move forwards. Their large, protruding teeth are used to dig. Their lips are sealed just behind their teeth while digging to avoid filling their mouths with soil. Their legs are thin and short. They have little hair (hence the common name) and wrinkled pink or yellowish skin.

# 5 - Axolotl:

The Axolotl (or ajolote) is the best-known of the Mexican neotenic mole salamanders belonging to the Tiger Salamander complex. Larvae of this species fail to undergo metamorphosis, so the adults remain aquatic and gilled. Their heads are wide, and their eyes are lidless. Their limbs are underdeveloped and possess long, thin digits. Axolotls have barely visible vestigial teeth which would have developed during metamorphosis. The primary method of feeding is by suction, during which their rakers interlock to close the gill slits. Axolotls have 4 different colours, 2 naturally occurring colours and 2 mutants. The 2 naturally occurring colours are wildtype (Varying shades of brown usually with spots) and melanoid (black). The 2 mutants colours are leucistic (pale pink with black eyes) and albino (golden, tan or pale pink with pink eyes).

# 4 - Tarsier:

Tarsiers are prosimian primates of the genus Tarsius. Tarsiers have enormous eyes and long feet. Their feet have extremely elongated tarsus bones, which is how they got their name. They are primarily insectivorous, and catch insects by jumping at them. They are also known to prey on birds and snakes. As they jump from tree to tree, tarsiers can catch even birds in motion.

# 3 - Hagfish:

Despite their name, there is some debate about whether Hagfish are strictly fish, since they belong to a much more primitive lineage than any other group that is commonly defined fish. Hagfish are long, vermiform and can exude copious quantities of a sticky slime or mucus. When captured and held by the tail, they escape by secreting the fibrous slime, which turns into a thick and sticky gel when combined with water, and then cleaning off by tying themselves in an overhand knot which works its way from the head to the tail of the animal, scraping off the slime as it goes. Hagfish have elongated, ‘eel-like’ bodies, and paddle-like tails.

# 2 - Aye-Aye:

The Aye-aye is a native to Madagascar that combines rodent-like teeth with a long, thin middle finger to fill the same ecological niche as a woodpecker. The Aye-aye is the world’s largest nocturnal primate, and dwells predominantly in forest canopies. The adult Aye-aye has black or dark brown fur covered by white guard hairs at the neck. The tail is bushy and shaped like that of a squirrel. The Aye-aye’s face is also rodent-like, the shape of a raccoon’s, and houses bright, beady, luminous eyes. Its incisors are very large, and grow continuously throughout its lifespan.

# 1 - Blobfish:

The Blobfish inhabits the deep waters off the coasts of Australia and Tasmania. Due to the inaccessibility of its habitat, it’s rarely seen by humans. Blobfish are found at depths where the pressure is several dozens of times higher than at sea level. To remain buoyant, the flesh of the Blobfish is primarily a gelatinous mass with a density slightly less than water; which allows the fish to float above the sea floor without expending energy on swimming. The relative lack of muscle is not a disadvantage as it primarily swallows edible matter that floats by in front it.

Source: http://listverse.com/2007/09/13/top-10-ugliest-creatures

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Top 10 Fantastic Fountains!

# 10 - Banpo Bridge (Han River, Seoul, Korea):

The Banpo Bridge fountain at 1140 meters long (approx. 3740 ft.) is the worlds longest fountain. It has 380 nozzles that pump out 190 tons of water a minute. 220 lights in a kaleidoscope of color garnered it the name of Moonlight Rainbow Fountain.

# 9 - The Fountain Of Wealth (Suntec City, Singapore):

Located in the Suntec City Mall the fountain of wealth was created for luck using Feng Shui . The base is 16,831 sq. meters (approx. 55,219 sq. ft.) and stands about 30meters (1181 ft.) high. Made in bronze it weighs approximately 85 tons and is situated on top of an underground restaurant that allows you to look above and view the ring.

# 8 - Fontaine Des Innocents (Paris, France):

Named for the cemetery site it was built on the Fontaine Des innocents was created by renaissance architect Pierre Lescot and sculpted by Jean Goujon. It was located in the cemetery de Innocents until 1788 when it was moved and it made its way to its permanent location in 1858. The fountain is in the style of mannerists which tend to be tall and thin. The fountain is decorated with plump little boys with wings common to the period.

# 7 - King Fahd’s Fountain (Coast Of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia):

Also called Jeddah fountain because of its location this fountain is the tallest water fountain in the world. Shooting water measures taller than the Eiffel tower minus the antennae. Water shoots out at 233 mph and reaches 1024 into the sky. The fountain has a maintenance schedule of daily, weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, half-year and yearly checks because of the salt water and high pressure jets. Jeddah Fountain dominates the sky line in the city and was donated by the late King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz.

# 6 - Big Wild Goose Pagoda Music Fountain (Xian City, China):

The Big Wild Goose Pagoda is the back drop of what claims to be the largest musical fountain in Asia with the longest light bar. The fountain has 22 different sprays that can be used to create a large folding waterscape. Fire can also be seen at times shooting out of the holes.

# 5 - Fontana De Trevi (Rome, Italy):

The Trevi Fountain is the considered the largest baroque style fountain. The fountain resided at the end of the Aqua Virgo aqueduct (which was built in 19 B.C.). The fountain was designed to represent the many fluctuating moods of the sea. Neptune is the center of the fountain and he is flanked by tritons. Completed in 1762 it stands 25.9 meters high (approx. 83 ft.) and is 19.8 meters wide (approx. 65 ft.). The Trevi fountain is the main theme in the movies Three coins in a fountain, Roman Holiday, and Dolce Vita. The water at the bottom of the fountain represents the sea and standing with your back to the fountain and tossing a coin over your shoulder is a legend that means you will return to Rome.

# 4 - Charybdis Fountain (Seaham Hall, Sunderland, UK):

The Charybdis Fountain is a vortex fountain created by water artist William Pye. Charybdis was a siren who stole the oxen of Hercules. Zeus punished her by striking her with a lightening bolt and turning her into a vortex that swallowed up ships. Charybdis Fountain is the largest vortex fountain. Encased in a clear plastic type polymer with an air-core vortex that rises every 15 minutes gives this fountain look of the water standing alone.

# 3 – La Joute Fountain (Montreal, Canada):

Created by artist Jean Paul Riopelle in 1969, La Joute fountain is a kinetic sculpture fountain. Surrounded by a pool that ignites in a timed ring of flames that lasts 7 minutes and circled by a host of bronze statues of human and animal nature. Jets form over the statues and start to create a dense mist that gas is shot through to form the fire. The whole process last about 32 minutes.

# 2 - Castle Square Fountain (Swansea, Wales):

There is nothing too remarkable about this fountain except during St. David’s Day (Welsh St. Patrick’s Day) when the Castle Square Fountain and the waterfall are dyed a deep red. This gives way to their fountain being called the blood fountain. The water stays dyed red from March 1 (St. David’s Day) until March 9.

# 1 - Mercury Fountain (Barcelona, Spain):

Created by Alexander Calder for the Spanish Republican government to memorialize the siege of Almaden. This was first displayed in Paris in 1937 during the World Exhibition. Later it was moved to Barcelona. Not knowing the effects of mercury, it was open to everyone. Now it can be viewed behind glass so no harm comes to people from the fumes or touching the mercury.

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Top 9 Amazing Mosaic Artworks!

# 9 - Post-It-Notes:

The pupils at Eisenhower Junior High School in Taylorsville, Utah, must have been proud of their alma mater, for the school claims to ‘have set more world records than any other school!’ They currently hold nine world records and their record-breaking attempts have appeared in Guiness World Records and Ripley’s Believe It Or Not! One of the records the school broke is the World’s Largest Post-It Mosaic. On November 6, 2009, 151 pupils participated in constructing a 60-feet by 40-feet mosaic using 38,400 colorful Post-It notes. The resulting mosaic illustrated the theme ‘Go Green.’ The Post-It notes were later recycled.

# 8 - Playing Cards:

David Alvarez, an 20-year old art student from Leavenworth, Washington, proved that you didn’t need to be good at drawing to be an artist after unveiling his 25-feet high portrait of Jimi Hendrix made from more than 8,500 Bicycle playing cards (or 168 decks). Using a Photoshop program, he first divided a picture of Jimi Hendrix into parts and map out where the colored playing cards should go. Then, on a single day, Alvarez worked 21 hours painstakingly placing each card on its right position, on a Styrofoam core board, with double-sided tape, only resting for an hour and half before working again.

# 7 - Junk Mail:

Americans get swamped every year by millions of tons of junk mail. Sandy Schimmel, an Arizona artist, decided to put them into good use and creates beautiful, vivid mosaic pictures out of her junk mail in a process known as ‘upcycling.’ Inspired by a mosaic that she saw while in Venice, Schimmel’s artwork are mostly portraits, including a piece featuring Madonna called All American Blonde and a recreation of the famous painting Birth of Venus.

# 6 - Gumballs:

Franz Spohn, illustrator, sculptor and professor of art at Edinboro University in Pennsylvania, specializes in creating large mosaic murals depicting famous people like Barack Obama, Rosa Parks and Robert Ripley from hundreds of gumballs. To achieve this, Spohn fills plastic tubes with several gumballs, stacked according to color, and lines the tubes up to create his masterpieces.

# 5 - Postage Stamps:

Pete Mason from Staffordshire, England, claims to be the ‘Post Pop Art’ man. Combining Pop Art and graphic design, he creates portraits of famous icons like Martin Luther King, Jr. and Princess Diana out of recycled postage stamps. Typically, his larger works uses around 20,000 stamps. To make a portrait, Mason first draws the picture he will work on on a canvas. Then, he divides the picture in stamp-size squares. Then, the stamps, sorted out by color, design and postmark pattern, are applied to the surface.

# 4 - Computer Parts:

In an art exhibition in Beijing, China, in 2006, a group of computer engineers displayed a recreation of da Vinci’s Mona Lisa made out of computer parts. Made of various circuits and chip sockets, the work, entitled Technology Smiling, fascinated the visitors.

# 3 - Fruit And Veggie Sticker Labels:

Barry Snyder of Erie, Colorado, creates amazing mosaic artworks out of those annoying stickers you see in store-brought fruit and vegetables. His 4-sq-ft creations are typically made out of around 4,000 stickers and take him around six months to create. Many of the stickers he uses are sent to him by people from around the globe. His original works are so popular that they can sell for up to $10,000.

# 2 - Bar Codes:

Scott Blake specializes in creating portraits of famous icons out of bar codes. His bar code art was inspired by the Y2K computer bug, where he created his first bar code mosaic of Jesus Christ using Photoshop. Since then, he has created around thirty portraits of famous icons such as Andy Warhol and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Scoot also created several interactive pieces where scanning the bar codes on the mosaic flashes up images of the person pictured in the mosaic on a screen . This was done on Scott’s portrait of Bruce Lee and Elvis Presley.

# 1 - Burnt Toast:

Maurice Bennett of New Zealand, tops the list for his mosaic portraits of famous people made from thousands of toasted bread, burned in varying degrees to create different shades. His works have depicted such greats as Jonah Lomu, John Key (NZ Prime Minister) and Peter Jackson. His works are typically displayed on billboards, where his works are best viewed.

Source:

- http://listverse.com/2010/04/09/top-10-fantastic-fountains

- http://listverse.com/2010/04/10/top-10-amazing-mosaic-artworks

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# 10 - Olm (Proteus Anguinus):

This amphibian, native to the deepest, darkest caves of Europe (most famously in Slovenia) and mistakenly identified in ancient times as a “baby dragon” has to be one of the most bizarre animals in the world. Completely blind, and lacking body pigmentation almost completely, the olm lives in a very alien sensory universe. Despite being blind, it can pick up both chemical and electrical signals via receptors on its entire body, which comes in handy to find the small invertebrates it feeds upon. Completely aquatic, the olm has a soft, pale skin that resembles somewhat that of a very pale human being, hence its local nickname of “human fish”. There’s a second subspecies of olm, the black olm, which is just as interesting but a tad less bizarre, since it has eyes and lacks the pale complexion of its cousin.

# 9 - Blanket Octopus (Tremoctopus Violaceus):

There’s no such thing as a “normal octopus”. These extraordinary animals look like they came from another planet, took a dip in our oceans and liked it enough to stay. Among the many strange traits of octopuses (octopi?) we could mention having three hearts, venomous saliva, a hidden parrot-like beak, being able to change the color and texture of their skin with incredible ease and speed (they are much better at it than say, chameleons) and having “intelligent arms” that don’t seem to need instructions from the brain to perform certain actions.

That said, there are some octopi that are more bizarre than others. The blanket octopus is one of them; for a start, the female is 40.000 times heavier than the male! The male is only 2.4 cms along and leads an almost planktonic lifestyle while the female is big, spectacular and over than 2 meters long. When it feels threatened, the female can also extend a cape-like membrane between its arms that makes her look bigger and badder than she really is. Finally, an interesting fact is that the blanket octopus is immune to the deadly Portuguese Man’O War “jellyfish”; as self defense, the clever octopus often tears off some Man’O War tentacles and uses them as a weapon.

# 8 - Glass Frog (Centrolenidae):

What makes these little Tropical American frogs so surreal is that they have translucent skin, which basically makes them a living anatomy lesson without even having to cut open the frog! Indeed, some of their internal organs such as the heart, intestines and liver are perfectly visible when you look at the frog’s underside. They are closely related and behave similarly to the better known tree frogs.

# 7 - Blobfish (Psychrolutes Marcidus):

This gelatinous deep water fish has a face that only its mother would love (although those who truly admire Nature’s boundless and sometimes macabre creativity will certainly appreciate it too). Found in the oceans surrounding Australia and Tasmania, the blobfish leads a rather passive life, feeding on whatever piece of detritus floats within its reach. It lacks the muscular power of other fish and practically doesn’t spend any energy while swimming thanks to its body being less dense than water. Rarely seen alive, the blobfish is occasionally captured as by-catch by fisherman’s nets. I strongly doubt it’s edible, though.

# 6 - Assassin Spider (Archaeidae):

Don’t worry, arachnophobic readers! The assassin spider is only 2 mm long and despite its name and creepy appearance, it is completely harmless to humans. Its long “neck” has evolved specifically to support the weight of its immense jaws, which are armed with venomous fangs and act as deadly traps for other, smaller spiders that are its main food.

# 5 - Hatchetfish (Sternoptychidae):

Viewed from the front, the hatchetfish looks otherworldly, and in a way, it does live in a different world from ours. This deep water fish is found in all the oceans except for the coldest regions, and, like the olm and blobfish, spends its entire life in almost complete darkness. The only life it sees is produced by living creatures, including itself, via special “photophores” or light-producing organs on its sides, which allow it to lure prey and to escape predators. As scary as it may look, the hatchetfish poses no threat for humans, being only a few centimeters long.

# 4 - Hairy Crab (Kiwa Hirsuta):

Also known as the “Yeti crab”, this crustacean is covered on what, at first glance, appears to be fur, but is actually a dense covering of setae, like those found in the legs of some shrimps. These setae seem to function as a filter, detoxifying the water in which the creature lives. This is very useful when your habitat is a deadly hydrothermal vent that is constantly throwing poisonous minerals into the water. The Yeti crab is blind and colorless and lives its entire life in darkness, just like the olm, blobfish and hatchetfish. It seems that Nature sends many of its most surreal creations to the places where humans are most unlikely to see or reach them. Maybe because they will last longer that way?

# 3 - Leafy Sea Dragon (Phycodurus Eques):

This fish, closely related to the sea horse, survives by pretending to be a floating bunch of sea weed. It swims very slowly, which adds to the effect, and besides, its dorsal and pectoral fins (which do all the swimming), are transparent and practically invisible. I strongly suspect most predators don’t even know the leafy sea dragon exists at all! These amazing little creatures have weird reproductive habits; the female lays the eggs into the male’s body via a long tube, and the male carries the brood until the baby dragons hatch. This fish is found in the southern and western coasts of Australia.

# 2 - Satanic Leaf-Tailed Gecko (Uroplatus Phantasticus):

Evolution made this lizard looks so much like a decaying, dry leaf, that it is seldom seen, let alone eaten, by any predators. It is found only in Madagascar, where it shares the forests with other fantastic reptiles. It is an insect eater and despite its infernal name, scary eyes and defensive threat display (which it uses only when camouflage doesn’t work, which is very rarely), it is completely harmless to humans. Unfortunately, this incredible species is endangered due to over-collecting for the pet trade, and the devastation of its natural habitat (Madagascar’s forests have been reduced in a 90% and most of its iconic species are either gone or in the edge of extinction).

# 1 - Hemeroplanes Caterpillar:

Yes, a humble caterpillar is number one in this list and I think it really deserves it. This is, in my opinion, a living masterpiece of nature and although all animals are amazing, this has to be one of the most awe-inspiring. Incredibly rare to see and found only in the rain forests of Mexico and Central America, this little creature is usually normal-looking and has rather drab colors, but if threatened by a potential predator, it undergoes an incredible transformation; it hangs from a branch with its hind legs, and inflates the front part of its body, until it looks just like a small pitviper ready to inject its deadly venom.

Not only does it mimic the triangular “head”, fierce eyes and shiny scales perfectly, but it also pretends to “strike” at enemies (it’s just a bluff, since it is not venomous or dangerous in any way). Surely, many of its potential enemies (including some humans!) fall for this incredibly accurate imitation and leave the caterpillar alone. As an adult, the Hemeroplanes is a rather non-descript moth that has absolutely nothing viper-ish about it. The Hemeroplanes caterpillar is poorly known, and sadly endangered due to deforestation.

Source: http://listverse.com/2010/04/07/top-10-fantastic-and-surreal-creatures

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