25 Animals With Insane Survival Adaptations

When the Texas Horned Lizard feels threatened it literally shoots blood out of its eyeballs.

The mouth of a wild Komodo dragon is so filthy that many times it will bite its prey and then follow it around until it dies from the resulting infection. In fact, scientists aren’t entirely sure how wild dragons survive with so much bacteria on their tongues.

The pistol shrimp can snap its claw so quickly that it creates a pressure wave in the surrounding water. The resulting bang is louder than a jet engine and hotter than the surface of the sun.

The hairy frog, a Central American species, cracks its own toe bones and shoves them through its feet to create sharp claws whenever it feels threatened.

The hairy frog isn’t the only creature that uses its own bones as weapons. The Spanish ribbed newt shoves its ribs through its chest to ward off predators. Fortunately for them, newts are known for quick healing skin.

A certain species of French Guinea termite accumulates toxins in a gland on its back over the course of its life. Eventually, should the colony come under attack, the older termites that are stuffed with toxins will blow themselves up near the attackers.

Hagfish are eel shaped marine animals that release a gooey slimy substance whenever they come under attack. Many times the substance gets into the gills of the predator and chokes them to death.

Sea cucumbers don’t do much besides sit on the ocean floor, but should you try to eat one you might get a mouth full…of its organs. Apparently their insides are toxic and foul tasting so whenever they are attacked they simply expel them onto the predator.

Everyone knows opposums play dead but did you know that the act is completely involuntary and only brought on by intense fear? While unconscious they also release a foul smelling odor that adds to the effect.

Sure, there are bugs that walk on water, but those things are small. The basilisk lizard, however, is as big as a small dog and it can run along the surface of the water for up to 20m before sinking.

Ok, so its not really blood, but that’s what its called (blood sweat). The bright red substance protects hippos from the sun and infections.

So far we’ve seen spitting blood, sweating blood, and now urinating blood. Ladybugs do this when they’re scared and supposedly it keeps predators away.

Found in warm Mediterranean waters there is jellyfish that can indefinitely revert itself back to polyp form. As cool as turning back time sounds, most of them often die from predation or disease.

In order to attract a mate the hooded seal will close one nostril and inflate a pink nasal membrane out of the other.

It sounds like something out of a zombie movie but its true, if certain animals like cows don’t get enough minerals from the grass…they’ll get them from somewhere else, many times from small prey like birds.

Rather than having a mouth, the zombie worm lays up against its meal and secretes acid to turn it into mush. It then absorbs the food through its skin.

Clown loaches are a popular addition to any aquarium but they should not be underestimated. Below their eyes they have retractable spines that they can shoot out to stab predators.

The karakul, a type of domestic sheep in central Asia, store extra fat in their tail so that they can survive harsh conditions.

The diving bell spider is the only spider that can effectively live under water. It creates a bubble-like web that traps oxygen and researchers say they only need to come up once a day.

There is perhaps no better copy cat on Earth than the mimic octopus. Discovered off the coast of Indonesia, this cool animal can take on characteristics of up to 15 different forms of marine life.

The lungless frog of Borneo does just that…it breathes through the surface of its skin.

There is actually one more case of mimicry in nature that is quite interesting. The caterpillar of the giant swallowtail butterfly matures to look like bird poop.

The bowerbird is something of a kleptomaniac interior designer with OCD. It will build a meticulous nest using flowers, feathers, and even bits of discarded plastic to attract a mate. Moreover, it will be more than happy to steal from its neighbors nest.

Many species of geckos have tails that grow to resemble their heads. When the predator goes for the tail it will just fall off and twitch on the ground while the gecko makes his escape.

If you ever scare a northern fulmar you know what to expect…