Echidina’s Passion for Yellow Socks

When I visited Australia, the echidina was high on my list of creatures to see. That and the mega-bats, but they’re a different post.  Of shy temperament, the echidina dines on ants and termites. The snout of the echidina is used to probe for their prey with special sensors.  A burrowing creature, the echidina rolls into a ball when frightened, if no hiding place is nearby.  Related to the platypus, this spiny fellow is one of two types of egg-laying mammals in the world. 

This video shows the echidina well, and also gives the “secret” to finding echidina.  When I went looking for the echidina, it wasn’t so easy.  By the way, those “spurs” on the echidina’s hind legs are the source of its name which comes from the Greek words for “she viper,” although the spur does not contain venom, as the male platypus’ spurs do.

This video comes from the wonderful blog 10,000 Birds and written by James Currie with photos by Mike Freiberg.

Read more about echidinas If you’re interested in visiting Australia (or New Guinea) to see echidinas for yourself, check out Exceptional Kangaroo Island.

Video: Hawaiian Fire Tornado

This amazing video shows a ‘fire tornado’, a rare and often devastating phenomenon which occurs when the high heat from burning vegetation combines with higher eddies of air.  This particular one was part of a 1400 acre blaze and spewed hot embers for thousands of feet.  © 2010 National Geographic; video courtesy Hawaii Dept. of Land and Natural Resources

Waiting in Line for a New Shell

Despite their title, hermit crabs aren’t such loners after all.  New studies show that crabs gather in social groups when on the hunt for new shells, lining up in order of size upon finding one and swapping with each other to find the appropriate fit.  See video of the curious crustacean custom below, and read the full article here.

The Chemistry of Cooking

A biochemist turned cook explains what happens to your food when you cook it- and how to fix some common cooking disasters.  Click here to see the video and read the article.

A New Breeding Program to Protect Seahorses

Wild seahorses are quickly disappearing, but biologists have begun breeding them- in home aquariums.  Click here to learn about the problem, and the possible solution.

Giant Salamanders, Japan’s Living Fossils

The BBC presents an up-close look at the salamanders that have remained essentially the same for 30 million years- and can bite your hand off.  Read the story and see videos here, or check out the National Geographic video below:

 

First Footage of Clouded Leopards

Scientists in Malaysia have captured the rare Sundaland clouded leopard on film for the first time ever.  Watch the footage below and read the full story at BBC News.

‘Vampire Squid from Hell’ Can Turn Itself Inside Out

The fancifully named Vampire Squid (Vampyroteuthis Infernalis, literally “vampire squid from hell”) apparently has the ability to flip its body inside out to avoid predators.  Did we mention it also has bioluminescent arms?  See new video of the bizarre cephalopod and read the full story at National Geographic, and check out the clip from the Planet Earth series below.

Video: Elephant Chatter

Image: Tom Curtis / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Elephant communication has been a mystery to scientists for years.  Now studies at the Oakland Zoo are beginning to analyze just how they do it- watch thisNational Geographic video and you may be surprised.

New Video of Underwater Polar Forests

National Geographic presents new video of Antarctica’s lush algae forests.  Watch the video below and read about the explorations here.