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Though related to nearly brainless slugs, snails and mussels, Cephalopods such as octopuses (the correct plural, wise guys) and squids are some of the most sophisticated animals known to man, possessed of impressive intelligence, a versatile anatomy and adaptations proving we don’t need to leave the Earth to see something alien. The following are just [...]

While many living things live their lives in organized groups, some take socialism to strange extremes; some link their bodies together to essentially build one large body, others may produce young physically adapted to fill specific roles. 10. Corals Related to jellyfish and anemones in the phylum Cnidaria, a coral colony typically consists of several [...]

Spiders are among the most diverse, widespread and successful predators in the animal kingdom, due in part to the versatile powers at their disposal; their feet can scale any surface, their fangs pack corrosive venom and they secrete a highly adhesive substance more powerful than steel. You might think there isn’t much else a spider [...]

Ants are among the most plentiful and formidable creatures on the planet Earth, able to use their vast numbers and collective problem solving skills to defend their nests from even the largest attackers, but nothing in nature is without its enemies, and with their staggering numbers, ants have racked up quite the list of ant-agonists [...]

Mother Nature is filled with formidable killing machines. Voracious flesh-eaters such as the thresher shark, the harpy eagle, the death stalker scorpion…and how about that rosy snail? Or the oyster mushroom? Some animals kill with teeth, claws and muscle…others kill with little more than mucus and patience. 10.  Planarian If you’ve taken college biology, you [...]

Life finds a way to survive virtually everywhere on our planet – including on itself. Almost every bird and mammal on the planet has its own unique species of louse: reptiles are home to scale-chewing mites, tiny crustaceans cling to the fins of fish, and even many bugs can have bugs of their own. Some [...]