Strangest Looking Creatures

Mammals

Naked Mole-Rat

The naked mole-rat is an animal that has no fur and is nearly blind. These animals live underground in colonies similar to insects. Their nearest relatives are porcupines, chinchillas, and guinea pigs. Not completely bald they have about 100 fine hairs on their bodies acting like whiskers to help them get around. The hairs found between their toes help the naked mole rats to move soil between them while they are digging tunnels. They are among the longest living of all rodents and can live for nearly 30 years and have an amazing resistance to cancer.

Capybara

Capybaras are the world's largest rodents and make their home in South America in the savannas and rainforest where they graze on grasses and aquatic plants. These are very social animals and can congregate in groups of up to 100. Capybaras have a reputation of being gentle animals and will cohabitate with other animals while living in captivity, They do not do so well living in the wild and do not live as long as they do when in captivity due to falling prey to jaguars, cougars, and crocodiles.

Proboscis Monkey

For proboscis monkeys the bigger their noses are the better. Their big noses make female proboscis monkeys hearts beat faster. The large noses have an effect on a male monkey's vocalization and that attracts females. These monkeys are great swimmers since they have webbed feet and hands and can swim faster than crocodiles. They leap from trees straight into the water below.

Warthog

Warthogs are wild members of the pig family. They have the characteristic pig noses, tusks protruding from their mouths, wart-like curvatures to their faces and a mane of hair that falls down their backsides. Warthogs bodies are covered with bristles and they have large heads and wart-like pads for protection. They are well adapted to their savanna and grassland habitats and live in burrows.

Star-Nosed Mole

Star-nosed moles have the strangest noses in the animal kingdom. Their noses are defined by 22 fleshy appendages which are ultra-sensitive. The snouts have over 25,000-minute sensory receptors helping them make theri way through their underground lair. The outer tentacles help them find a meal and the inner ones help them decide if the prey is edible.

Aye-Aye

Aye-Ayes are animals with a gremlin-look to them and make their home in Madagascar. Among their unusual traits are long, bony middle fingers used to get insects and grubs out of tree trunks. These animals are nocturnal and come out only at night. Aye-Ayes have incisors that grow continually and very large ears. They have the ability to use their skeletal fingers to tap on a tree branch and then listen with their large ears if there are echos coming from the tree. Once they determine that they are above an insect tunnel they tear off chunks of the tree with their big teeth and once the tunnel is uncovered can feast on the insects.

Elephant Seal

Baby elephant seals and female seals are not bad looking. The male elephant seals develop large noses and that makes them look odd and completely different from elephants with their floppy trunks. Their noses play a part in mating and they can give off loud roars to fend off other males and attract females.

Hyenas

Hyenas make their home in savannah and even though they are not very pretty they do have a great sense of humor. At times they are known as "laughing hyenas" and have calls that sound haunting and witch-like. They are scavengers and look like wild dogs but are more related to civets, mongooses, and meerkats.

Tasmanian Devil

Tasmanian Devils are the largest carnivorous marsupials in the world. These animals look like small dogs. They are nocturnal and carry their young in pouches. They are more closely related to wallabies. Unfortunately, they are dying out due to a naturally occurring cancer known as Devil Facial Tumor Disease. They are being researched and taken care of at the Tasmanian Devil Unzoo, a wildlife sanctuary that is dedicated to rehabilitating the devils.

Echidna

Echidnas share some of their territories with Tasmanian Devils. They are one of only two mammals that lay eggs, Their distant relatives are platypuses. Echidnas search the forest floor for ants and termites making use of their long snouts to capture prey.

Bilby

Twenty million years ago, the bilbies branched off from the bandicoot family and created marsupials who look like a mix of a piglet, a rabbit, and a bandicoot. Today bilbies enjoy iconic status as Australia's version of the Easter Bunny. Each April store shelves are full of chocolate bilbies.

Kinkajou

Kinkajous are the only known tree-dwelling mammals that are unrelated to primates. They are small mammals that live in forests from the Yucatan to the Amazon. Kinkajous use their prehensile tails to get access to fruit high in the forest canopy. They are most active at night.

Markhot

Markhots are exotic wild goats also called "screw horn goats" Their heads are adorned by long, corkscrew-shaped horns. When they strike majestic poses with their long beards they are demonstrating their wisdom. These goats live in the mountains of Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, the Himalayas, and Uzbekistan. They roam at high elevations in remote ranges.

Flying Lemur

These animals are commonly called Sunda Flying Lemurs or Malayan Flying Lemurs and make their home in Southeastern Asia. These are only one of two known flying lemurs, the others live in the Phillippines. The flying lemurs don't actually fly instead they spread their wings and glide. This makes it easy for them to glide from tree to tree without having to touch the ground.

Horseshoe Bat

Horseshoe bats have an odd appearance with faces that look more like ears. They are very receptive to sound waves and that lets them quickly navigate through the air. These bats have been named due to the shape of their "noseleaves."

Vampire Bat

Vampire bats feed on blood and can be found in the Americas. They detect sleeping animals by sound and using their infrared sensors they locate them and then use their oversized incisors and canines to suck their blood.

Birds

Marabou Stork

Maribou storks stand at over five feet tall and have an over 10 feet wingspan. They are scavengers of large carrion. These are African birds that also eat other birds and will feast on flamingos. By defecating all over their legs and feet gives their appendages a white appearance and helps them regulate their body temperatures. These birds are lazy and prefer standing around and pant in very hot weather.

Harpy Eagle

Harpy eagles look like a cross between a cockatoo and a bird of prey. They are one of the most distinctive birds on the planet. They have a wingspan of more than 7 feet in width that helps to carry their 20-pound birds over the rainforest of Central and South America. Their diets include hunting sloths and monkeys.

Jabiru Stork

Jabiru storks stand at five feet tall and have glaring, dark stares. They have 14-inch long bills and they're native to Central and South America feeding on small mammals, fish and amphibians.

Southern Cassowary

Southern cassowaries are the only flightless birds native to Australia. They grow to more than 6 feet in height and weigh nearly 190 pounds, Their native habitat is the Daintree National Park. These birds dine on fruit and have razor-sharp talons to defend themselves if anyone gets too close.

Shoebill Stork

Shoebill storks have noses that resemble shoes, They live in marsh environments in East Africa and are highly effective predators. Their long legs help them to wade through shallow waters where they prey on reptiles, rodents, and fish. With their powerful beaks, they grasp and strangle anything they encounter.

California Condor

California condors are one of the world's rarest birds and the largest flying land bird in North America. They are majestic looking flying over canyons and deserts of the American West Coast. These birds have bald heads. They feed on large carrion.

Insects

Sparklemuffin

Sparklemuffins are a species of Australian peacock spiders that live in the woodland forests of Wondul National Park near Brisbane, They are colorful spiders and display a signature mating dance where the male spiders raise a leg to signal females.

Poodle Moth

Poodle moths are native to Venezuela, They are large moths covered with hair making them look like poodles.

Panda Ant

Panda ants are fuzzy with white bodies and blackspots, They live in Chile and Argentina. The females are wingless wasps and they really pack a wallop with their sting.

Peacock Spider

Peacock spiders are in the jumping spider family and are only referred to as "peacock" because they have vibrant color patterns with the male spiders being the most vibrant, They have red, blue, and black extensions to attract mates. The males' problem is that when they perform the mating dance, the female might attack and kill and then make a meal out of the male spider.

Fish

Blobfish

Blobfishes look more like balls of slime than living creatures, They live deep in the ocean and have a gelatinous appearance.

Monkfish

Monkfishes might look strange but they have become a delicacy for people. They have mottled skin, an unsightly overbite and a bizarre figure. Their huge heads have razor-sharp teeth.

Red-Lipped Batfish

Red-Lipped Batfishes look like they have put on lipstick. For male fishes, the bright red lips are to attract females. They live around the Galapagos Islands and near Peru. These fishes are not the most graceful swimmers and "walk" along the ocean floor. They use their dorsal fins as lures to attract prey.

Axolotl

Axolotl are amazing amphibians that are native to a small series of lakes and canals near Mexico City. There are not many left due to loss of habitat. They have a unique set of external gills and the ability to regrow lost limbs.