Freaky frilled dude

This is a frilled shark. Frilled sharks are found throughout deep waters in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. It is sometimes described as a "living fossil" because it resembles extinct Paleozoic sharks.

Frilled sharks are rarely seen alive because they prefer deep water. A dying one was captured near the surface in Japan in 2007; see video of it here:

Ew

Giant African land snails can get pretty huge. They're native to Africa and are routinely confiscated at airports as they are very popular as pets in the Western world. There is an invasive population of these snails spreading in Coral Gables, Florida.

Did you see the movie Madagascar? Well, the FOSSA is a real animal.

Pronounced "FOO-SA".  Here is a picture of it:

Cryptoprocta ferox

And here is a little bit about the Fossa, from It's Nature--Let's Discover!

Fossa is a very rare predatory mammal, found only on the island of Madagascar off the shore of Africa. These carnivores are closely related to Mongeese and in appearance they resemble a cross between a Puma and a dog, and their size of up to 6 feet (1.8 meters) make them the largest predatory mammal in Madagascar.

The Fossa inhabit forests and they’re equipped with sharp claws and a long tail to maneuver along the branches of trees, looking for prey. Typical for predators, their brown-ish fur blends with the surroundings. It’s the top predator on the island of Madagascar, hunting both day and night.

These agile creatures are solitary animals, bent on hunting everything that moves – from a mouse to a lemur. Their diet consists of any animal they can hunt, be it a reptile, a bird or a small monkey. Their agility is praised by many scientists who were keen on observing this animal, as it moves so swiftly through the trees, that it’s hard to follow it or even take a picture.

Read more: http://www.itsnature.org/endangered/critically/fossa-2/#ixzz0ytyOgmGw

Animal Beatbox

This is a fun, artistic rendering of the diversity of the animal kingdom.  Click the picture to watch the video:

Thank you to GT8 for this video!

The Little Brown Bat

My friend in Montana discovered this little bat living under the shingles of his house.  It is a Little Brown Bat.  We have them in CT also.

This seriously gets funnier every time I watch it.