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Hercules beetle: The titan insect with giant horns for love and warHercules beetles can grow to almost 7 inches long and are among the largest flying insects on Earth.
insects -
Arabian sand boa: The derpy snake that looks like it's got googly eyes glued to the top of its headArabian sand boas live in deserts on the Arabian Peninsula, where they lie buried in the sand with only their derpy eyes peeking out as they wait for prey.
middle-east -
Gum leaf skeletonizer: The venomous 'Mad Hatterpillar' that wears its old heads like a crownRather than throw its old head cases away, the gum leaf skeletonizer wears them like a hat to protect itself from predators.
insects -
Earless monitor lizards: The 'Holy Grail' of reptiles that looks like a mini dragonResearchers are only beginning to understand the cryptic lives of the earless monitor lizards of Borneo.
lizards -
Wallace's sphinx moth: The long-tongued insect predicted by Darwin decades before it was discoveredDarwin and fellow naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace predicted the existence of Wallace's sphinx moth from an orchid with an extremely long nectar tube.
animals -
Takins: Strange, mountain-dwelling mammals with mythical golden fleecesThese weird-looking stocky mammals roam Alpine zones and forested valleys in Asia, using their specially adapted split hooves help them traverse the steep, rocky terrain.
land-mammals -
Mangrove leaf slug: The solar-powered mollusk that gobbles up sunlight then goes months without eatingThis frilly slug lives in the mangroves of southeastern Asia and Australia, lounging in shallow pools of water and scraping up algae from which it gains the ability to photosynthesize.
mollusks -
Green-banded broodsac: The brain-hijacking parasite that creates disco zombie snailsThis parasitic worm crawls into the eyestalks of snails, takes over its brain then pulsates to make the mollusk look like a dancing caterpillar.
mollusks -
Pacific lamprey: The jawless fish that survived 4 mass extinctions and sucks prey dry of blood and body fluidsLampreys belong to an ancient group of fish called Agnatha that evolved 450 million years ago, predating both dinosaurs and trees.
fish
