Strange Beasts , livre ebook

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ANYTHING BUT ORDINARY
STRANGE BEASTS
by Nel Yomtov
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Edited by Mandy RobbinsDesigned by Kyle GrenzOriginal illustrations © Capstone Global Library Limited 2021Picture research by Kelly GarvinProduction by Kathy McColleyOriginated by Capstone Global Library Ltd
978 1 3982 0436 2 (hardback) 978 1 3982 0437 9 (paperback)978 1 3982 1770 6 (ebook)
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Acknowledgements We would like to thank the following for permission to reproduce photographs: Alamy: Michael Patrick O'Neill, 43, Papilio, 31, Solvin Zankl, 38; Minden Pictures: David Shale, 37, Murray Cooper, 25; Newscom: Alessandra Sarti imageBROKER, 34, Kerryn Parkinson/ NORFANZ, 41, Morten Strange/NHPA/Photoshot, 23; Science Source : Danté Fenolio, 39, Nicholas Smythe, 13; Shutterstock: Ann Kolesnikova, 40, Anna Veselova, 17, argus, (sparks) design element throughout, Artush, 14, Butterfly Hunter, 19, chempina, (fish) Cover, Chris Watson, 32, Dan Olsen, 4, Dennis van de Water, 30, Dr Morley Read, bottom 5, feathercollector, 21, G.J. Verspui, 27, 29, Gaulois_s, bottom 33, Hein Nouwens, 1, Hussein Shaharuddin, left Cover, Kurit afshen, 26, Lisa Stelzel, 45, Manu M Nair, right Cover, Marc Witte, 35, mark higgins, top 33, Martin Mecnarowski, 10, Neil Bromhall, 7, 8, 9, RudiErnst, 11, vadimmmus, top 5, Verpeya, 15
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CONTENTS
A curious collection of bizarre beasts ........................................ 4
Mysterious mammals .................................. 6
Naked mole rat ........................................ 6
Indian giant squirrel .............................. 10
Pink fairy armadillo ............................... 12
Aye-aye ................................................... 14
Funky fliers ................................................. 18
Colugo ...................................................... 18
Rhinoceros hornbill ............................... 20
Long-wattled umbrellabird .................. 24
Creepy creatures ....................................... 26
Glass frog ............................................... 26
Giraffe-necked weevil .......................... 30
Thorny devil ............................................ 32
Dwellers of the seas ................................. 36
Deep-sea anglerfish .............................. 36
Blobfish .................................................. 40
Northern stargazer .............................. 42
But wait . . . there’s more .............. 44
Glossary ............................................ 46
Find out more ................................... 47
Index .................................................. 48
Words in bold are in the glossary.
A curious collectionof bizarre beasts
If you think your pets behave weirdly, you haven’t seen anything yet! Scientists have discovered up to 1.3 million species of animals. Among them are thousands of weird creatures that look and behave like nothing you’ve ever seen before. Some animals have enormous, bulging eyes, such as the aye-aye. The thorny devil has horns on its skin. Most of all animal life on Earth is actually insects. One example is the giraffe-necked weevil,with its long, odd-looking neck. A further look at the animal kingdom reveals purple squirrels,flying mammals and see-through frogs. All of these strange beasts are completely captivating.
giraffe-neckedweevil
Fact!
In 2018, scientists at the Natural History Museum in London discovered 272 more species of animals.

4
Lots of bug!
Of all living things, insects make up more than half of all species. You can see a glass frog’s organs through the clear skin on the underside of its belly.

5
Mysterious mammals
Naked mole rat
Naked mole rats are found in eastern Africa, especially in the countries of Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya. Some people say they look like tiny walruses. These weird and wrinkly rodents have a hairless, tube-like body with pink or greyish-pink skin. Because they have very tiny eyes, mole rats are nearly blind.
Breathing easy
There is very little air to breathe underground. But naked mole rats have adapted to the airless conditions. They have small lungs, and their blood is very good at carrying oxygen throughout their bodies. In one study, mole rats were able to survive 18 minutes without air! In comparison, the human brain can be damaged after only 3 minutes without air.

6