Strange Science

All right. I wanna see a show of digital hands.

Who has ever had a Sea Monkeys kit when they were growing up? Come on, don’t be shy!
Leave a comment and tell me about it!

I had a couple, if I remember well. I LOVED the little guys. I could sit and watch them for hours. I’ve been tempted to pick up another kit lately, but haven’t yet had the time.

Well, for any of you unfamiliar with the strange and fascinating world of Sea Monkeys, here’s a nice little shameless plug - I mean, official advertisement to show you how it’s done:

Aw, yeah - it’s a bit cheesy, but it sure looks easy, right?

Basically, these shrimp-like creatures live happily inside a custom tank with pure, clean water and yummy powder-food to keep them alive and well. They’re pretty cute from a distance, but they’re actually kind of creepy close up…

WHOA!

What I find most interesting is their locomotion - the way they move underwater. See how they move their many little legs? Lots of arthropods like shrimp and baby lobsters move like that, too. It helps direct microscopic food toward their mouths as well, so they basically eat as they go. Pretty cool, right?

Now, if these little chaps didn’t get your going “Ewww”, then this fellow might.

Enter the triops! It looks like something straight out of the days of dinosaurs, doesn’t it?

If you’ve got a hankering to get some of these pets for your own to observe and admire, be sure to go give the official Sea Monkeys website a look, and pick up some triops on your way. It’s well worth the money, especially if you love marine critters like I do. =P 

Now come on. Let’s be honest with ourselves.

There are few things quite as impressive as seeing seemingly ordinary birds getting down with their bad feathery selves on the forest dance floor.

You think I’m joking? I kid you not! Take a look for yourself.

The moonwalking club-winged manakin bird:

The flashy and brilliantly-colored bird of paradise:

The youTuber with a little too much spare time:

Borneo Island has been making serious waves in the scientific community as of recently - in fact, ever since 1996, they’ve been the source of discovery for over 400 newly-found species of animals! Check out MSNBC’s article on the topic - dated 2006, but a wealth of information and statistics for your viewing pleasure. 

In more recent news, a new specie of frogfish has been found this year, the Psychedelic Frogfish, which has forward-facing eyes and a bunch of other wild abilities! Just take a look at it in action in this video.

A quick, fun little blog about horseshoe crabs for you today!

I know a lot of you have probably at least heard of one of these guys, if not having seen one for yourselves…but I’ve always had a place in my heart for these spiky little dudes.

And now, for some video and images!