Today I found out that the Jewel Wasp, also known as the “Emerald Cockroach Wasp”, is a parasitic wasp that injects various mind controlling toxins into a cockroach’s brain then leads the roach back to its burrow where its hatched larva ultimately slowly eat the still living cockroach’s body from the inside out. So basically, a lot like my brother’s […]
Read more
Today I found out New Mexico Whiptail lizards are all females. While this isn’t completely unheard of among various life forms on Earth, such as with certain plants, insects, and sea life, among others, what is particularly interesting is how the New Mexico Whiptail lizards go about reproducing. To do this, they will generally perform a type of pseudocopulation where […]
Read more
Today I found out that there is a protozoa that has seven sexes. This organism is known as Tetrahymena thermophila. They are species of ciliate protozoa, common in fresh-water. They are also known for being widely used in genetic and cytological research as model organisms. The seven sexes of Tetrahymena thermophila are somewhat uninventively named I, II, III, IV, V, […]
Read more
Today I found out “Killer Whales”, or Orcas, are actually dolphins. In fact, they are the largest member of the dolphin family, Delphinidae. Now strictly speaking, whales are marine animals of the order of Cetacea and occasionally Cetacea is used to refer to not just whales, but also porpoises and dolphins. However, it generally excludes these latter mariner animals, which […]
Read more
Today I found out what happens if a cat’s whiskers are damaged or clipped. It turns out, cat’s whiskers are an essential sensory mechanism. Damage a cat’s whiskers and it will cause them not only discomfort, but also to become confused and disorientated, among other negative side effects. Whiskers themselves are nothing more than a type of thick/long hair. The […]
Read more
Today I found out where the word “mouse” comes from. “Mouse” comes from the Sanskrit word for mouse, “musuka”, which in turn derives from the Sanskrit “mus” meaning “thief” or “robber”, presumably referring to the fact that mice like to steal food from humans, particularly grains and fruits. The Ancient Romans then used the word “mus” to refer to rodents […]
Read more
Today I found out how flies land on the ceiling. A popular notion of how they accomplished this used to be that the flies would do a half barrel roll sideways just before landing on the ceiling and then let their momentum carry them the rest of the way up. This was shown to be incorrect when, in 1958, Natural […]
Read more
Today I found out South African earthworms can grow as large as 22 feet long, with the average length being about 6 feet long. The largest one ever found so far, being 22 feet long, was found on a road side in 1967. Other varieties of large earthworms include the Giant Gippsland earthworm of Australia, which grows about 3 feet […]
Read more
Today I found out why chocolate is bad for dogs. Chocolate contains an alkaloid called “theobromine”. Theobromine is in the same family as caffeine and is a type of stimulant (they both are mythylxanines). Theobromine stimulates the central nervous system, cardiovascular system, and causes a slightly increases blood pressure. Dogs and certain other animals, such as horses and cats, cannot […]
Read more
Today I found out that a cockroach can live without its head for up to a week. While many have commonly heard cockroaches are the species most likely to survive a nuclear war, which isn’t entirely accurate by the way, and they are well known as being among the most adaptable creatures on the earth, it’s still somewhat of a […]
Read more
Note: This is a guest article contributed by frequent TIFO visitor and owner of DumpADay, Jon. Today I found out that the dragonfly can fly up to 60 miles per hour, which makes it the fastest insect on the planet. Interestingly, dragonflies only have their wings for about 3 to 4 weeks of their lifespan. Dragonflies lay their eggs in […]
Read more
Today I found out domestic cats fall from any height with a remarkable survival rate. This is, of course, assuming they don’t suffocate- say, if you dropped them from 40,000 feet- and that they land on relatively flat ground (nothing pointy or the like). This one seems like it shouldn’t be true. However, it turns out, a typical domestic cat’s […]
Read more
Today I found out why turkeys are called turkeys. In the 16th century, when North American turkeys were first introduced en masse to Europe, there was another bird that was popularly imported throughout Europe and, most relevant to this article, England, called a guinea fowl. This guinea fowl was imported from Madagascar via the Ottoman Empire. The merchants who did […]
Read more
Today I found out why crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, and some other crustaceans turn red/orange when cooked. Typically, the exoskeleton of most crustaceans has a blue-green to grayish color and sometimes they appear a brown or olive green, with just a hint of red; with a few exceptions like the blue and yellow lobsters and crabs. The exoskeletons of such […]
Read more
Today I found out that the tongue on a Red-Bellied woodpecker, along with some other species of woodpecker, is so long that it can extend at least three times the bill length and, when retracted, wraps around its skull. According to a study conducted by the Dalian University of Technology in China, Grey-Faced woodpeckers have a tongue that measures around […]
Read more
Today I found out that a tiny shrimp known as the Snapping Shrimp or Pistol Shrimp, is on one of the loudest creatures in the World. This tiny shrimp species (Alpheus heterochaelis) belonging to the Alpheidae family grows to only 1-2 inches (3-5 cms) long, but don’t let its size fool you. The tiny finger sized critter is capable of […]
Read more
Note: This is a guest article contributed by a frequent TIFO visitor and owner of DumpADay.com, Jon. If you’re interested in contributing to TIFO click here to read our article submission guidelines. Today I found out that a female ferret (A.K.A. Jill) will die if she doesn’t mate. It’s one thing to say, I swear I am going to die […]
Read more
Today I found out the origin of superstitions surrounding black cats including why a black cat crossing your path is considered bad luck. Black Cats weren’t always the butt of superstitions, feared, or even considered bad luck. In fact, in early Egyptian times, dating back as far as 3000 BC, cats (including black ones) were the rock stars of the […]
Read more