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The narwhal was scientifically described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 publication Systema Naturae. [5] The word "narwhal" comes from the Old Norse nárhval, meaning 'corpse-whale', which possibly refers to the animal's grey, mottled skin and its habit of remaining motionless when at the water's surface, a behaviour known as "logging" that usually happens in the summer.
Animal coloration, readily observable, soon provided strong and independent lines of evidence, from camouflage, mimicry and aposematism, that natural selection was indeed at work. [ 6 ] [ 7 ] [ 8 ] The historian of science Peter J. Bowler wrote that Darwin's theory "was also extended to the broader topics of protective resemblances and mimicry ...
Surviving in the wild is no easy feat, but thanks to evolution, many animals evade their predators with a clever deception of the eyes. Since the beginning of time animals have either adapted or ...
There is a strong evolutionary pressure for prey animals to avoid predators through camouflage, and for predators to be able to detect camouflaged prey. There can be a self-perpetuating coevolution, in the shape of an evolutionary arms race, between the perceptive abilities of animals attempting to detect the cryptic animal and the cryptic characteristics of the hiding species.
A social relationship was observed between a narwhal and a group of beluga whales in the St. Lawrence River. The narwhal had been accepted into the group of beluga whales and continued to travel with them. [25] A relationship between canines and a silkie chicken, coyote and a pygmy owl have all been documented. [26]
In fact, capybaras are so good at making friends that entire Tumblrs exist solely to document their strong social game. Here they are, chillin' with an anteater Image: Tumblr
A well-researched form of deception is feigning death, familiarly known as "playing dead" or "playing possum", although specialists use the terms "tonic immobility" or "thanatosis". A wide range of animals, e.g. lizards, birds, rodents, and sharks, behave as if dead as an anti-predator adaptation, as predators usually take only live prey. [14]
Since 1973, the gray wolf has been on and off the federal government's endangered species list. When the wolves are on the list, advocates say the protections help wolves' place in the natural ...