AUSTRALIAN FANTASY ADVENTURES

BE AFRAID! BE VERY AFRAID!

Halloween is my daughter’s favorite holiday. When I was young, we had a blast dressing up and collecting candy in pillowcases. Today, it seems to be a bit different. The young people today really like to be frightened out of their wits. Haunted hayrides, haunted houses, and haunted theme parks are all the rage. They’re all in good fun ‘cause they’re not real. Thank goodness!

Real life scary monsters do exist, and in honor of Halloween we’ll take a look at a of few of the scariest looking critters on the planet. Which one do you think is the most frightening? Get back to me with your comments. I’d love to hear from you.

PHILIPPINE TUBE-NOSED FRUIT BAT

(NYCTIMENE RABORI)

Nosferatu (Dracula) has nothing on this little guy. This endangered bat is found, as its name suggests, in the Philippines. It is endangered due to habitat destruction. I think this bat may require a separate post in the near future because it's just so interesting looking, and it's endangered. In the meantime, if you'd like to read more about this very unusual bat, visit: http://www.arkive.org/philippine-tube-nosed-fruit-bat/nyctimene-rabori/image-G61900.html

THE SCOTOPLANES – SEA PIG

Now that's crazy looking! It's got fangs and some strange growth coming out of its body. The Sea Pig, which is a species of sea cucumber, lives in the deepest part of the ocean. It can be found (or not, which is what I would prefer), in water more than 19,000 feet deep. It is a mixture of frightening, ugly and yucky. I’m not sure which word best describes it. They are not endangered. There are plenty of them. Go figure! You can learn more about sea cumbers here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_cucumber

THE AYE AYE

This little critter’s got issues. Is he ugly, or so ugly that he's cute? You be the judge. He just looks horrific, but he is a harmless member of the lemur family. The only place that the ‘threatened’ Aye Aye is found is on the island of Madagascar, which makes sense since there are a lot of unusual animals on that island. I think that the weirdest thing about this animal is it’s elongated finger, which it uses to tap on trees. The taping helps the Aye Aye find insect larvae in crevices under the bark. That’s just not right!

To learn more about the Aye Aye, go here: http://www.arkive.org/aye-aye/daubentonia-madagascariensis/

THE WOLFFISH (Anarhichas lupus)

Now that's a seriously scary fish! Even though they look ferocious, this fish, which is also known as a wolf eel, is not aggressive and does not attack people. Their teeth are the perfect tools for the fish, which hunts and eats hard-bodied sea animals like, crabs, sea urchins, and even large sea snails. Wolffish are not endangered and live in the cold waters of the Atlantic Ocean. To learn more about the wolffish, go here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_wolffish

I hope you've enjoyed reading our Halloween post about nature's scariest looking animals. I've certainly enjoyed compiling this small sampling. There are many weird looking animals. Perhaps we look real scary to them.

Have a happy and safe Halloween. See you all next week.

Enjoy!

Jeanne E. Rogers, Award Winning Author

The Sword of Demelza and The Gift of Sunderland

Middle Grade Fantasy Where Endangered Animal Heroes Roam the Pages!