Modern-day ‘Mythical’ Creatures

The creation of mythical creatures in history is often the result of a primitive perception of an event or behavior observed in relation to an existing bird, mammal, or reptile.   Today, we can explain these events or behaviors through research and study.

Even in the modern day, pictures or mounted versions of unusual animals crop up in our culture and generally a person could question, for a period of time, whether that creature was real or not.  The term used to describe many of these modern-day mythical creatures is a ‘hoax’.  These hoax animals are often the result of a practical joke and presented in such a convincing manner that many individuals may believe it was real initially.

A classic example would be the Jackalope.

 A mounted Jackalope (photo: wikipedia)

As the story goes…Jackalopes have the body of a rabbit and the antlers of an antelope.  They are a species thought to be extinct, but rare sights of pocket populations have been found in Western America.  A contributing factor theorized for their small numbers is that they only mate when flashes of lightning occur.  They are credited with the ability to mimic human sounds and often utilize this ability to avoid capture.  Jackalopes are also highly aggressive and will use their antlers to fight.

The Jackalope was first introduced in the 1930s by two brothers, Douglas and Ralph Herrick, when they combined the body of a recently killed rabbit with a pair of deer antlers in their taxidermy shop.  The stuffed ‘Jackalope’ became a very popular souvenir of visitors in their hometown of Douglas, Wyoming.

Among the birding community, we have the ‘almost seen’ or ‘almost captured’ Bare-fronted Hoodwink bird species.  The existence of this species has only been inferred by ornithologist, M. F. Meiklejohn, who studied these very shy and ‘only partially seen’ birds.  He stated that this species can be identified by its blurred appearance and extremely rapid flight away from the observer.  He had an interesting statistic in that amateur bird watchers were more skilled in pinpointing this elusive species than more experienced bird watchers.

Another convincing animal hoax was the Hot-headed Naked Ice Borer presented in a 1995 April DISCOVER magazine article.

A doctored photo of a Naked Mole Rat claimed to be the Hot-headed Naked Ice Borer (photo: wikipedia)

 A wildlife biologist, named Aprile Pazzo, was studying a penguin population along the coast of the Ross Sea when the penguins panicked and one rapidly sank into the ice.  When she pulled the trapped penguin out, several hairless and mole like creatures were attached to the penguin’s lower body by their sharp incisors. She would collect several of these strange creatures for study.  Adults were half a foot long and weighed only ounces.  With their high metabolic rate (body temperature at 110 degrees), they could radiate their incredible heat through a bony plate located on their forehead.  Using the concentration of heat, they would bore their way through the ice and melt the ice underneath their favorite prey: penguins.

The article was printed as an April Fool’s joke in the DISCOVER magazine with the researcher ‘Aprile Passo’ meaning ‘April Fool’ in Italian.  The article received many response letters from institutes joking and asking where they could obtain a few specimens for display for researchers expanding the biology, habit, and physiology of hot-headed naked ice borers.  A recent printing of the 1995 article and humorous response letters can be found here. 

When you attend one of the World Bird Sanctuary educational shows you can be certain that the information you receive, although always entertaining, will not be a myth, legend or April Fool's joke.  The facts surrounding the animals featured  at WBS shows are so amazing that no fabricated myths or legends are needed.

Submitted by Jessica Bunke, Naturalist/Trainer

Myths, Tales & Facts About Birds

Learning about birds has made me realize the vastness of the information surrounding these diverse creatures.

 Cock Pheasant--What is a gathering of this bird called?—Read on…)

It wasn’t until I started working at the World Bird Sanctuary that I learned that the people who watch and observe birds are called birders and that birding is the field activity of observing birds. So for this blog, I thought I might put together a collection of what I believe to be some interesting myths, tales and facts about birds.

Common bird myths.

You might believe birds only sing when they’re happy. However, most male birds use singing as a form of aggression to warn off competing males or to indicate their unique qualities to attract females. Also, males with more complex songs or who sing more often tend to be preferred by females.

Secondly, there are birds considered to mate for life or be monogamous, but “divorce” is something common for almost all birds. Most birds will live with their partner for just a few months or years with divorce ranging from high in the greater flamingo to never in the wandering albatross. Most songbirds in North America often “cheat” on their mates with DNA paternity testing showing that cheating results in 40% of the young in several species.

You may believe two bird parents are required to raise their young, but in birds such as the hummingbird or woodcock, only the female will raise the young. Also, other birds such as crows and blue jays recruit nannies--often former offspring--to help support and protect their young.

 Turkey Vulture--One of the few birds with a well developed sense of smell

The last myth I will mention is that birds have no sense of smell. Certainly, most birds cannot smell as well as a dog, but there are seabirds that recognize their mate using smell alone and a turkey vulture will find its meals by sniffing the odors coming from dead animals or carrion.

Here are some Interesting “old wives’ tales” about birds.

One superstition states that a wild bird trying to fly into a home or hitting a house widow represented death in that household. The ill luck associated with this superstition could be extended to include having a pet bird or even the image of a bird in your home.

 Another interesting bird tale is why an artist's last work is commonly called a swan song.  European Mute Swans are relatives to the North American Trumpeter Swan and a legend from ancient Greece tells that right before these swans die they will burst into a beautiful song. Greeks believed this represented a celebration of the bird's joyful departure to join the god of music, Apollo.

Interesting Facts

I found interesting terminology used for birds, and what struck me were the many names given to the gatherings of certain birds, which happens to be a long list including:

*            congress of crows

*            parliament of owls

*            sord of mallard

*            paddling of ducks

*            gaggle of geese

*            muster of peacocks

*            stand of flamingos

*            watch of nightingales

*            murmuration of starlings

*            exaltation of larks

*            nye of pheasants

*            covey of quail

If you ever wondered if there were names for a birds diet, here are the terms related to what a species of bird consumes;

*            granivorous (birds that eat grains or seeds)

*            frugivorous (birds feeding mainly on fruit)

*            insectivorous (Birds that eat mainly insects)

*            nectivorous (birds feeding mainly on flower nectar or juices of fruits)

*            piscivorous (Fish-eating birds)

 Baby Robin--Can you guess which of the above diet terms would apply to this little guy?

Above is a picture of a baby robin which I was lucky enough to catch a close picture of in my own birdingJ.

Of course, there is a multitude of even more interesting and curious information out there about these amazing animals. I hope you enjoyed these tidbits enough to do some exploring on your own.

Submitted by Whitney Cowan, World Bird Sanctuary Grant’s Farm Seasonal Supervisor

“Blind As A Bat” – Truth or Old Wives’ Tale?

As Part 2 of a series celebrating the “Year of the Bat”, following are some misconceptions about bats that I want to clarify about these seriously misunderstood, amazing creatures. 

I often hear people claim that bats are flying mice.  While many bats are as small as a mouse when their wings are tucked in, bats are not related to rodents.  Bats are in their own group called ‘Chiroptera’, which means hand-wing.  Bats are actually more closely related to monkeys, lemurs and people than to rodents.

Scar, one of our Straw Colored Fruit Bats, just "hanging out"

Another popular misconception is that bats are blind.  This is far from the truth.  Most bats can see as well as a human, if not better.  Fruit bats, like World Bird Sanctuary’s Straw-colored Fruit bats, have excellent eyesight and use it to find their food.  Fruit bats can also see in color, which helps them locate their food.

The Little Brown Bat is one of the fourteen species of bats indigenous to Missouri.  Little Browns have excellent eyesight and also have excellent hearing that they use to locate their food.  I’ll talk about how many bats find their insect food in upcoming blogs.

Often when outside at a picnic during the summer I frequently hear someone panic when they realize bats are flying overhead.  People often believe the bats are going to get tangled in their hair or are going to attack them.  This is not true.  What is happening is that the bats are swooping close to you to get the mosquitoes and other little insects that are hovering just above your head.  Insect-eating bats are equipped with a built in sonar system.  This system allows them to navigate at break-neck speed through total darkness, so the chance of a bat colliding with a human head is virtually non-existent.

Bats actually have very cute faces

When many people hear the word “bat” their first comment is that bats are ugly or dirty.  In a bat lover’s opinion (and yes, that would include me), most bats have very cute faces, much like a puppy. Contrary to popular opinion, bats are actually very clean animals.  Like a cat, they spend an enormous amount of time grooming their fur, keeping it soft and silky.

The biggest misconception people have about bats is rabies.  Like most mammals, bats are capable of catching rabies.  However, less than one-half of one percent of bats actually contract the disease.  In reality, more people die annually from contact with rabid household pets than have died from contact with bats in all recorded history.  Always be careful, though.  Children should be cautioned that if they find a bat on the ground they should not pick it up.  A grounded bat is most likely ill.  If an adult must pick it up use heavy gloves and place the bat under or in a thick bush.

For more information regarding exactly how to remove a bat or bats go to www.batcon.org or www.batworld.org.  Information about rabies can also be found on these websites.  Both groups have excellent information to assist you.

Submitted by Cathy Spahn, Field Studies Coordinator