Strange but True

Your guide to all the unusual, unique, and unbelievable stuff that goes on in nature.

When two ruby-throated hummingbirds visit the same feeder, one usually goes into a feather-ruffling rage. Full-on fights sometimes erupt in which hummers swing and jab their beaks at each other like swords.

Not only do red foxes have whiskers on their snouts, they also have them on their legs. Called carpal whiskers, these stiff, sensitive hairs help foxes navigate their surroundings and feel for prey in the dark.

North American bullfrogs croak out calls that sound like deep, rumbling burps. To humans, all frog burps sound alike. But bullfrogs can recognize the voices of their neighbors, which helps them hear when a strange frog creeps too close.

Bats are the only mammals in Missouri that can truly fly. Despite their name, flying squirrels can only glide from one tree to another. They can’t flap their paws and take flight.

A mama roadrunner does nearly all the work of building a nest. Her mate’s main job is to bring a steady supply of twigs. If he doesn’t work fast enough for her taste, she lets him know with an angry, whining call.

Like six-legged cowboys, certain kinds of ants herd aphids, moving the tiny, sap-sucking insects around from leaf to leaf. In return, aphids give the ants honeydew, a sweet liquid that comes out of the not-so-sweet end of an aphid.

No matter when the so-called “zombie fungus” infects a housefly, the fly always dies at dusk. Biologists believe cool, damp conditions, which are more likely after sunset, help spread the fungus’s spores to other flies.