Animals

In 1996, a 3-year-old boy climbed a barrier at Brookfield Zoo and fell 24 feet into the gorilla enclosure. He was unconscious. An 8-year-old gorilla named Binti Jua picked him up, cradled him against her body, and carried him to the enclosure door where keepers could reach him. Her own 17-month-old baby, Koola, clung to her back the entire time. The boy spent four days in hospital and made a full recovery. Binti Jua is still alive at Brookfield Zoo — now a grandmother.

In 2005, a 12-year-old Ethiopian girl was kidnapped by seven men who intended to force her into marriage. When police and relatives found her a week later, three lions were standing guard around her. The kidnappers were gone. A wildlife expert said the girl's crying may have sounded like a mewing lion cub, which could explain why they protected her instead of attacking. The lions turned and walked back into the forest as the humans approached.

A dolphin named Kelly at a research center was trained to trade litter for fish. She started hiding paper under a rock, tearing off small pieces, and trading each scrap separately for maximum fish. Then she saved a whole fish, used it to lure a seagull into the pool, caught the gull, and traded that for even more fish. She taught her calf the system. Her calf taught other calves. The researchers realized they were the ones being trained.

A dog named Eclipse was at a Seattle bus stop with her owner. He stopped to finish a cigarette. The bus came. She got on without him. She rode 3 stops, got off at the dog park, and waited for him to catch up. Then she did it again. Every day. For 7 years. She had her own transit card on her collar.

In 2004, four lifeguards were swimming off Ocean Beach, New Zealand when a pod of seven dolphins suddenly herded them into a tight group and started circling. For 40 minutes, the dolphins swam inches from their bodies, slapping the water with their tails. When one swimmer tried to break away, two dolphins pushed him back. Only then did he spot the 9-foot great white shark circling two metres below them.

Old Billy was a barge horse in 18th-century England who hauled canal boats for a living. He was born in 1760 and died in 1822 — at 62 years old. The average horse lives 25 to 30. His taxidermied head is still on display at the Manchester Museum.

The rarest shark in the Gulf of Mexico is 5 inches long, glows in the dark, and shoots clouds of luminous fluid from tiny pockets near its fins — basically a living flashbang grenade.

Quokkas are known as the world's happiest animal because they always look like they're smiling. But when a predator shows up, mothers eject their baby from the pouch and let it flop around on the ground as a distraction while they run away.

Lemurs chew toxic millipedes and rub the secretions on their fur to repel mosquitoes, but the side effects accidentally send them to another dimension.

Researchers used machine learning to decode 15,000 Egyptian fruit bat calls. Over 60% were arguments — about food, sleeping positions, personal space, and unwanted mating advances. They even change their calls depending on who they're talking to. Basically, bats have names.

A single weaver ant can pull 60 times its own body weight. But in a group of 15, each ant pulls 103 times its weight. Humans get lazier in groups. Ants get stronger.

A male cat named Xiaopi had to be put on a glucose drip after mating with five female cats in a single night at a pet hotel in China. The hotel staff had let the unneutered Russian Blue roam freely overnight, and CCTV footage captured the marathon session.

Green vine snakes aren't dangerous. They just stare at you like you've disappointed them.

During the Gobi Desert ultramarathon, a stray dog ran over 77 miles alongside British runner Dion Leonard. After the race, she went missing, but with 20 volunteers and a two-week search, Dion found her and now happily lives with him in Edinburgh.

A group of flamingos is called a 'flamboyance.' These pink birds form groups of up to a million individuals and perform elaborate synchronized dances to attract mates.

In scientific experiments, rats consistently chose to free their trapped companions from cages, even when chocolate was offered as an alternative. They would then share the chocolate with their freed friend.

The mantis shrimp has 16 types of color receptors compared to humans' 3, but despite this they're actually terrible at distinguishing between similar shades. Scientists believe they use colors more like a barcode scanner than a camera.

All clownfish are born male. When the dominant female in a group dies, the dominant male will transform into a female to take her place—making Finding Nemo's plot biologically impossible.

There’s a rare breed of chicken called Ayam Cemani that’s completely black. They have black plumage, legs, nails, beak, and even black meat, bones, and a black tongue!

The penis of a barnacle may reach up to eight to nine times its body size.