wildaspie

In North America, and particularly in the Midwestern States, the Thunderbird is a crypto-zoological curiosity, or cryptid.  From the legends of the indigenous people to more modern reports, these huge, predatory birds have swept the skies in search of the unwary.

In Europe and Asia, these mythic raptors are known as Rocs (a name given to them by Greco-Roman storytellers); in North and Central African nations proof of their rapacious daring can be found in bone piles beneath their huge nests.

With wings reportedly spanning twenty feet and more, the Thunderbird can easily make away with a sheep, calf, or even a human child.  One incident details the experience of a boy in Lawndale, Illinois, that was attacked by a monstrous bird, with witnesses.  Though “experts” insist his description indicated an Andean condor, and that the species does not get as large as described, the attack remains characteristic of Thunderbird strikes.

Behold the platypus:

Without a doubt the strangest animal in the world, the platypus was first considered to be a prank by European “experts” when it was studied by them in 1798.

Today, science has revealed that this amazing creature is even more bizarre on the inside than it is on the outside.

DNA study reveals it to be a mixture of mammal, bird, and reptile. It has fur and the females produce milk for their young – but those offspring are hatched from eggs. And the male produces venom, injectable from spines on its back feet, which is typically the domain of reptiles.

The famous “duckbill” of the platypus is electrosensitive, enabling the animal to find food in murky water.

But the platypus isn’t done yet! The DNA study also discovered that they have 10 sex chromosomes. Human beings have two: XX for a female and XY for a male. A platypus has ten, which in theory makes it possible for them to have 25 genders. So far they seem to only have two, but who knows what further research will uncover?