Brainy Snacks

 I learned today that elephants have a superpower few people know about!  I know that I have read articles that the ground vibrates when elephants run or move together. I did not know that they use these seismic vibrations to actually talk to each other through the ground!! They have special sensors in their feet to understand the vibrations. They can detect predators and storms coming, then communicate to others. They also use these vibrations to coordinate their herd movements. To learn more about elephants watch the YouTube video or click the image below!  

 I think most of us know that bats have "radar" that allows them to avoid flying in to things and to help them detect food. This "radar" is actually ultrasonic detection. I did not know that they can use their ultrasonic abilities to identify poisonous frogs by analyzing the differences in their calls. They can tell by the sound. Bats are also able to eat scorpions with no reactions to their venom! To learn more about bats, watch the YouTube video or click the image below!  

I learned today that there is a waterfall in northern Minnesota called the Devil's Kettle. This waterfall is unique in that half of the river disappears into a giant rock "pothole" and never reappears anywhere!  There have been dye test done where the dye was sent down the waterfall. It was never seen coming out anywhere! The river runs around a rock formation. Half continues to flow the other half goes over the Devil's Kettle waterfall and disappears. Some scientists have even tried to send logs, ping pong balls, and even GPS devices over the waterfall. They disappear and have never been recovered or detected!  How creepy is that! To learn more, watch the YouTube video or click the image below!    

 I decided to learn more about hummingbirds today as I have been following the updates on their migration north in the United States. I love watching hummingbirds in the summer months! I learned that the sound they make does not come from their beak/mouth!  It is a sound that comes from their tail feathers!  When they dive or move at a high speed, the wind through their tail feathers makes the chirping sound you hear! The whirring sound of a hummingbird comes from their tail feather as well, rather than the wings moving so fast! To learn more weird hummingbird facts, watch the YouTube video or click the image below.   

 I learned that on April 12, 1934, a 231-mph wind gust was recorded at the Mt. Washington Observatory in New Hampshire!  This was the fastest wind gust recorded by humans at that time! Winds at that speed will rip roofs off of houses and throw debris around like a tornado!  What is fascinating about this is that it was recorded with analog instruments long before today's technologies existed! To learn more about weird April 12 phenomena, watch the YouTube video or click the image below!  

 I learned today that flamingos produce milk! I would never have imagined this piece of trivia! It is not like the milk of mammals. Flamingos produce a bright red fluid that is rich in nutrients for their young. It forms in the digestive tract. They are able to basically regurgitate it to feed to their chicks!  The other interesting fact of this phenomenon is that both male and female flamingos produce this milk to feed their young. To learn more, watch the YouTube video or click the image below.