Animals, creatures full of diversity that inhabit all parts of our planet. It is no surprise that with so many different habitats, all sorts of different adaptations would be made for better chances of survival. The result of that can be some quite unique animal species, and that is what I will be discussing. (The list is according to my opinion, and has no particular order)

1. Frilled lizard

Such as many rare and interesting animals, these lizards inhabit Australia. Despite their relatively large size which can reach almost a meter, these lizards spend most of their time in trees. What is really interesting about these animals is their defensive behaviour. When they feel threatened, they rise on their hind legs, open the skin flap that encircles their head, and hiss. If an attacker is not intimidated by this, they simply run without stopping or looking back until they reach the safety of a tree.

2. Magnificent frigatebird

The Magnificent frigatebird’s habitat are tropical and subtropical waters between the Americas. What this bird is most known for, is its large red gular sac, which can be found only on males. When attracting mates, the males will even proceed to inflate the sac. Another interesting thing about this bird is its way of feeding, which can consist of kleptoparasitism. That is a strategy where the bird will proceed to harass other birds to steal their food.

3. Blue glaucus

Sometimes referred to as the blue dragon, this is surprisingly a species of sea slugs. It can be found in temperate and tropical waters of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian ocean. This snail feeds on poisonous animals (such as the Portuguese man o’ war) and then proceeds to store their toxic chemicals inside its own cells. This animal also floats in water using an air bubble in its stomach. While it floats on its backside its brightly colored belly serves as camouflage against predators above. In contrast the animal’s grayish backside conceals it from predators below.

4. Turritopsis dohrnii

Also known as the immortal jellyfish, its habitat consists of tropical and temperate waters wordwide. The lifecycle of this jellyfish proceeds the same as that of any other, starting of as larvae until developing into a medusae. What is unique about this jellyfish is that when exposed to environmental stress, it can revert back to its polyp stage. It does this through a process where it alters and transforms its cells into new types of cells. While this theoretically makes it immortal, most of them succumb to disease or to predators before reverting to the polyp form.

5. Dumbo octopus

This octopus got its name from the two large fins, that resemble the ears of the Disney character Dumbo. It was discovered quite recently and the reason for that being that it lives in extreme depths of the ocean which are difficult to explore. They are the deepest living octopuses known to date and can live up to four kilometres below the surface. Unlike most octapuses which move by expelling water from their siphons, this octopus moves by flapping its large fins.

To conclude, these are just few of the many interesting animals that nature has to offer. And as science and new methods of exploration are being developed, who knows what other interesting animal species the future will bring us.