25 Animals That Prove Mother Nature Has An Awesome Sense Of Humor

What would you get if you crossed a fox and an antelope? Probably something similar to the maned wolf. The largest canid of South America, the maned wolf has extremely long and thin legs that seem to be an adaptation to the tall grasslands of its native habitat.

Scientifically known as Promachoteuthis Sulcus, this deep-sea squid is an extremely rare squid species known from just a single specimen found in southern Atlantic Ocean at a depth of about 2,000 m (6,500 ft). Equipped with eight legs, two tentacles and perfectly lined up human-like teeth, it is not a creature you want to encounter when snorkeling.   

But the deep-sea squid is not the only animal that was given teeth similar to ours. A South American relative to piranha, the Pacu fish also boasts impressive squared teeth. Despite the similar body shape, the Pacu is much larger than piranha, reaching up to 1 m (3 ft) and 25 kg (55 pounds).

Talking about bizarre teeth, nothing compares to the goblin shark, a rare species of deep-sea shark, sometimes referred to as the living fossil.  Characterized by distinctive profile with an elongated snout and exposed jaws containing nail-like teeth, this surreal creature has been around for about 125 million years.

If there was a cross of an elephant and a badger, it would have to look like an anteater. More closely related to sloths than they are to any other animals, anteaters are up to 1.8 m (6 ft) long mammals easily recognizable by their long snout and even longer tongue.

But if we kept crossing the anteater, say with an armadillo, we would get the pangolin – an armored anteater. Literally translated as “something that rolls up”, the pangolin is a nocturnal mammal living in tropical areas of Africa and Asia.

Officially known as Grimpoteuthis, the dumbo octopus is a genus of deep-sea pelagic umbrella octopus. Occupying extreme depths of up to 7,000 m (23,000 ft), the octopus has large eyes and prominent, ear-like fins resembling the ears of Walt Disney’s flying elephant Dumbo, hence the nickname.

Once abundant but now critically endangered (with about 50,000 remaining specimens) the Saiga antelope is a small antelope recognizable by its extremely unusual, over-sized, flexible nose structure known as the proboscis.

Yes, even monkeys can have proboscis. Endemic to the island of Borneo, the proboscis monkey is a reddish-brown arboreal monkey species that co-exists with the Bornean orangutan. The nose is particularly remarkable in the male.

Living in the Tangkoko reserve in Indonesia, the Celebes crested macaque has one of the most bizarre ways of signaling it’s ready to make. Receptivity of the females is indicated by an extreme swelling and redness of their buttocks, which, in contrast to their black skin color, appears ridiculously inappropriate.

A bizarre combination of a giraffe and a zebra, the okapi is an herbivorous mammal native to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Although in appearance it looks more like a zebra thanks to its black and white stripes and short neck, it’s actually more closely related to the giraffe.

What looks like a giant bundle of cotton candy is actually the angora rabbit, a variety of domestic rabbit originating in Ankara (historically known as Angora), modern Turkey.  Bred mainly for their wool or as pets, the Angora rabbits are usually calm and docile, but should be handled carefully.

The idea of crossing an insect and a 160 kg (350 lb) bear seems ridiculous enough as it is but the fact of the matter is, there really is a creature called the panda ant. What makes this animal even more confusing is the fact that the panda ant is actually a species of wasp. Also known as velvet ants, they are known for their extremely strong and painful stings.

Found on the islands of Southeast Asia, tarsiers look like permanently shocked monkeys. These small primates have enormous eyes that are as large as their brains. Compared to the size of their body, tarsiers have one of the largest eyes in the animal kingdom.

Also known as Galapagos batfish, the red-lipped batfish is a small fish that is mainly known for its bright red lips. Since the fish is not a good swimmer, it uses its pectoral fins to literally walk on the sea floor, which makes this little funny creature look even more bizarre.

Another crazy cross, the piglet squid really looks like a combination of a piglet and a squid. Living at depths of up to 1,000 m (3,300 ft), these little deep-sea squids only reach about 10 cm (3.9 inch) in length. Its body consists of a large funnel with small paddle-like fins and small tentacles above their eyes.

Also known as the “penis snake” (for obvious reasons), the floppy snake – scientifically Atretochoana Eiselti – is the largest tetrapod to lack lungs. Known only from two preserved specimens discovered in a Brazilian rainforest, the floppy snake ranks among the most unusual freaks of nature.

Also known as saber-toothed deer, the musk deer looks like a cross between a deer and a big cat. Native to the mountains and forests of southern Asia, these mammals are easily recognizable by their exposed enlarged upper canines used in mating disputes.

If you think a bat cannot be cute and fluffy, you have probably never seen the Honduran white bat. With its snow white fur and yellow nose and ears, this tiny mammal looks like a cross between a mouse and a marshmallow.

After the proboscis monkey and the Celebes crested macaque, here comes the most ridiculously looking monkey ever. A bearded monkey is funny enough as it is but the bearded saki, a small primate native to South America, has – apart from the heavy beard – a very unusually shaped head, strikingly resembling a human butt.

Known for its enormously powerful claws, the mantis shrimp is an otherworldly-looking marine crustacean. Its weird body shape, striking coloration and giant, insect-like eyes make the mantis shrimp one of the weirdest animals living on the sea floor.

For many animal species, the ability of camouflage is vital. Some animal can mimic grass, others can look like tree barks, etc. And what does the bird dropping spider mimic? Yes, you are right. This little Australian spider pretends to be a bird´s excrement because predators don’t eat feces.

Found only in North Atlantic, the hooded seal is a large, typically silver-grey seal known for its uniquely elastic red nasal cavity also referred to as the hood. Males use the hood to create bizarre acoustic signals which they produce by shaking their heads.

If you thought the only thing missing here was an animal that looks like a Christmas tree, well here it is. Scientifically known as Spirobranchus Giganteus, the Christmas tree worm, is a colorful tube-building polychaete worm distributed throughout the world’s tropical oceans.

When it comes to crossing different animal species, nothing beats the platypus. This egg-laying, duck-billed, beaver-tailed, otter-footed mammal once baffled naturalists so much that some of them even thought this animal was a hoax.