Qiu Q, Zhang G, Ma T, et al. The yak genome and adaptation to life at high altitude. Nat Genet 2012 448. 2012;44(8):946-949. doi:10.1038/ng.2343

They were worshiped in Ancient Egypt and some historians report that it was illegal to kill a cat. 86. Emperor penguins are the world’s biggest penguins, and they trek 50–120 km (31–75 m) across the Antarctic to reach breeding colonies. These anti-freeze proteins prevent water in the cells of the animals from crystalising and forming ice. Examples of animals with this superpower include the winter flounder and the eelpout. 95. Honeypot ants swell up to a huge size with food. Play is everything. Play provides children with the intrinsic motivation to engage, participate and practice. It an activity is FUN, it will be repeated. When we are playful with children we are on their wavelength. The more playful we can be the greater the connection with the children. We encourage all adults to be a little bit silly, to make funny animal noises and to use imagination and dramatic play to bring the Animal Fun activities alive for the children. For example, the locomotion activity of Horses Prancing can be so much more engaging for children if we imagine that we are very beautiful, elegant horses, parading around the ring. The children are focusing on the imaginary play theme, but the movements have been carefully designed to target specific muscle groups and coordination skills.To be able to pull of this feat, they double or even triple their body weight before hibernation. During hibernation they are able to reduce their metabolic rate and the animal may stop breathing for periods of up to an hour at a time. 18 52. Japanese Macaques play with snowballs for fun. Or the various activities can be used right throughout the day as mini movement breaks, for everyday routines and rituals such as going to the bathroom – instead of walking why not pretend to be a Kangaroo Hopping? There are also lots of ideas for different fine motor tasks which will help children with their handwriting and pencil grip. They use their acute sense of smell to detect blood using an organ called the ‘olfactory bulb’. 44. The Naked Mole-Rat can live in an almost zero oxygen atmosphere. The longest living, verified animal is a Madagascar radiated tortoise, which died at an age of 188 years in May 1965.

Here on Earth, we are surrounded by some of the most beautiful and remarkable creatures to ever exist. But what do we really know about them and what they’re capable of? It can take up to a month for a sloth to digest one leaf. Some sloths have a bowel movement once a week! Great white sharks can detect a drop of blood in 25 gallons (100 litres) of water and can even sense tiny amounts of blood from 3 miles (5 km) away. It weighs between 150 to 220 kilograms (330 to 485 pounds) and is over 100cm (39in) in length. They are found primarily in the area of the Yangtze River in China. 68. Pea Crabs are miniature crabs that spend their whole lives inside oysters, clams, and mussels. At its peak, the howler monkey can produce sounds that reach 140 decibels. That’s as noisy as a jet engine, on take off! 32. There is an average of 50,000 spiders per acre in green areas.The loudest animal in the world is a mere 2cm long, prawn. The Pistol Shrimp is capable of snapping its claw shut so rapidly, that it creates a bubble which collapses to produce a sonic blast, louder than a Concorde’s sonic boom.

Their microscoptic teeth are called radula, and some species actually have over 20,000 teeth. 20. A Blue Whales tongue can weigh as much as a car, or a small adult elephant.

Rawrrrrr! Unknown Man Finds Game Camera.

The incredible round-the-world journey covers 14,000 miles over the 46 day period at a steady 13mph. The grey-headed albatross perform this feat by making various pit-stops along the way. 16 36. Giraffes are the tallest land animal in the world, reaching heights of 19ft (5.8 m). The ostrich is the world’s tallest bird. It can grow up to 9 feet (2.7m) tall. Here’s our big list of the 101 greatest animal facts. This includes some of the most asked, fun, surprising and crazy animal facts from across the animal kingdom. The loudest, deadliest, fastest, largest, most bizarre and random, are all here in our big animal fact list. They are small at just 30–45cm and are known as spiny anteaters. One of the few egg-laying mammals, echidna lay a tiny egg which is then transferred into a kangaroo-like pouch where it then hatches. Bird CD, Emery NJ. Rooks perceive support relations similar to six-month-old babies. Proc R Soc B Biol Sci. 2010;277(1678):147-151. doi:10.1098/rspb.2009.1456 DJ L, L M, H V, et al. Wood frog adaptations to overwintering in Alaska: new limits to freezing tolerance. J Exp Biol. 2014;217(Pt 12):2193-2200. doi:10.1242/JEB.101931

These huge birds are over a meter tall (up to 5 feet) and have a wingspan of more than 2 m (almost 8 feet!). Its name comes from its huge beak which is over 20cm long and almost that wide. Along with lungfish, it also eats baby turtles and baby crocodiles whole.

Bottlenose dolphins were used in both the Vietnam and the Gulf to detect enemy swimmers trying to plant explosives on ships. 32 Having appropriate motor skills are essential for all children. Children who have poorly developed motor skills often do less physical activity than other children and this has been linked to health problems such as childhood obesity and risk factors for other diseases such as Type 2 Diabetes and Cardio-vascular problems. Having good motor skills helps children to feel confident about themselves and their ability to engage in social play with their peers. Having poor motor skills has also been linked to children having poor self-esteem, lower academic achievement, difficulty concentrating, being victims of bullying, feeling isolated on the playground and increased levels of anxiety and depression.