The article that I read for this week was "5 Trickster Animals That Play Dead" by Mollie Bloudoff-Indelicato. I found it on nationalgeographic.com and it discusses several animals that "play dead." I chose this article because it continues my trend of fascinating animal anomalies.
The first animal that can "play dead" is the lemon shark. The lemon shark will stop moving if it is placed on its backside, which is a great time for research to be done on the sharks.
The second animal is the Central American cichlid. The cichlid has unique patterns on its body that make it look like it is decaying. The cichlid's prey comes close to the apparent dead animal and then are surprised when they turn into dinner.
The third animal is the common duck. Ducks will often "play dead" to avoid predators, and their act is entitled "tonic immobility." I think this is interesting because ducks are a common species, yet I have never seen them act this way!
The fourth animal is actually a group of animals including pigs, goats, and cows. Scientists are not sure why they "play dead," but they have been known to do this. Next time we pass the cows on the interstate I'll be sure to be on the lookout!
The last animal that has learned to "play dead" is the baby brown snake. The snake will "play dead" if it is threatened by animal or human. This snake would win in a staring contest.
This article interested me because I find animal anomalies to be fascinating. I have done a couple blogs on animals before, but I find each one to be different and equal in importance. This is another example of animals' ability to adapt to surroundings and to protect themselves. These articles explain the natural world and the traits that animals have that are found in humans as well. These animals can tell us a lot about human nature and our natural defense mechanisms.
