The Strangest Things in the World: A Book About Extraordinary Manifestations of NatureHenry, Thomas R. (Thomas Robert)
History
The Strangest Things in the World: A Book About Extraordinary Manifestations of Nature
Henry, Thomas R. (Thomas Robert)
Animal behavior; Natural history
It has been established that several species of fish in the lagoon make
distinctive sounds. One, a large black fish with a yellow belly and
four whiskers on each side of its face, expresses sounds like a baby’s
fretful crying. A large chocolate-colored fish found among the bottom
rocks makes a sound “like the distant echo of a large firecracker.”
There is a curious little scaleless fish found in schools of 100 or
more; as the school moves through the water it produces a chorus of
tinkling sounds. A phosphorescent light comes from inside the throats
of these animals. Among all his catches Fr. Lange has found nothing
which can be identified with the singing fish, but he is convinced the
music comes from a living organism.
That fish can and do make sounds now is well-known. This was
demonstrated conclusively by U. S. Navy investigators during the late
war. They determined the characteristic sounds made by a large variety
of sea creatures whose chatter was interfering with underwater sonic
devices.
_Brazil’s Vicious Glow Worm_
One of the most unusual of all luminous creatures is an insect larva
found by farmers ploughing damp soil in Brazil and Uruguay. It is a
reddish-brown little worm with rows of green lights on both sides and
a vivid red lamp on the front of its head. The red light is actually
red—not white light shining through a reddish skin. Adult females
of the species retain the same luminous pattern. Male adults have
only feeble, yellow lights. The larva are extremely vicious little
creatures, predators on white grubs which infest the soil.
_Grasshoppers Like Chameleons_
There is a jet-black grasshopper that turns sky-blue at sunrise. The
curious creature is found on the summit of Mount Kosciusco, highest
peak in Australia, where snow lingers into late summer and nights are
bitter cold.
The insect is of peculiar interest because of a temperature control
mechanism otherwise unknown in nature. Several animals, notably
chameleons and some fish, can change color, usually to match their
environment. The changes are brought about by certain hormones,
released by stimulation of the eyes, which activate different color
cells in the skin. But in this grasshopper every one of the outer layer
of cells of the body is a color cell. On the surface are granules
of black pigment, underneath granules of blue. These change places
in response to temperature changes. At approximately 25 degrees C.
the blue granules rise to the top, displacing the black. At 15 C.
the reverse happens. This displacement can be brought about only by
temperature change. Australian entomologists have in vain tried every
other sort of stimulus, including illumination with various wave
lengths of light.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account