Lab Grown Gemstones Are Not Fake

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This is a great point, it is really stupid that people say that lab grown gemstones are “fake”. They are really the exact same thing, made of the exact same material as naturally formed gemstones. We really should start to embrace lab grown gemstones. They are just as beautiful (if not more so), more affordable, and most importantly more ethical to produce.   Source (via: Vellum and Vinyl)

10 Cats That Have Been Stung by Bees and Wasps

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Cats are funny creatures and try some weird things whenever get the chance. They are always trying to chase anything that is moving.  Most of the animals try not to get into trouble but cats are feisty and try to fight everything even bees and wasps.  We all know what happens if a bee feels threatened, they sting. Most of the time when cats try to fight or eat bees they get stung.  It is important to know what to do when anything like this happens to your cat so that you can help them in case something severe occurs.  If a cat is stung by a bee or a wasp the first thing is to remove the sting same as it is done with a person, by scraping the stinger instead of squeezing. In case your cat tried to eat it and got stung in the mouth and throat taking them to a vet is the best option. This can be a life-threatening situation, as the swelling can suffocate your cat. Here we have a compilation of cats who tried fighting a bee.

#1 The Egyptian mummies must have seen something like this.

#2 This one thought bees will be playful, turns out they are not… poor kitty!

#3 POV when you try to fight a bee and lose your cheek.

#4 Who knew a bee can turn cats back into its ancestors.

#5 The one with zero differences.

#6 Here is the cat version of the Bigfoot.

#7 This is what happens when you do not listen to your mom and try to eat a b bee.

#8 Why does it look like it is becoming a lion? Simba is that you?

#9 This one looks like it is wearing a fuzzy sock or is it Big foot 2.0?

#10 Why does it look animated? and the eyes are so innocent like he did not try to fight a bee.

Leopard Teaches Cubs How to Cross the Road

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Have you ever wished to see cute big cat cubs in their natural habitat? Well if you want to, you should visit Africa.  In 2020 a video went viral in which a mother is seen helping her cute Leopard cubs cross the road. This unbelievably cute video was taken in the Kruger National Park. The heart-warming cuteness of these little ones is almost unbearable.  A 64-year-old, man named Thinus Delport left the camp looking for leopards with his family. He got to witness this beautiful moment and captured it. While talking about his encounter with the leopard Thinus said. “Early morning, my daughters and I left the camp looking for leopards. They were convinced that there are no leopards in the Kruger, as neither of them had ever seen one. As we drove, I jokingly convinced them to start singing in the car, to draw the leopards out, and so they did – and to my surprise – it actually worked!” Further describing the incident he told that they were stuck in a traffic jam. While other visitors were looking at the pride of lions Thinus’s daughter noticed a behind other leopard trying to move her cubs. 

It was his daughter’s first visit to the Kruger.

“She was the first to whip out her video camera. I’m glad she did because I would have been shaking so much from excitement, that the footage might have just been ruined. We stayed and watched as the mother crossed the road first to make sure that all was safe. Before returning to encourage her cubs to cross to safety.” Said Thinus.   This was an extremely rare sighting, people often do not get to see a leopard mother relocating her cubs when they are still so young. Thinus shared that he and his family have been visiting Kruger for over 50 years and not once they have sighted something as beautiful as this. He also said that this just came to show that patience really does pay off.

This Incredible Frog is so Huge That People are Having Issues Believing it’s Existing

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Have you ever seen a frog that looks like this? Well if you haven’t now you have. This is a frog called the Blunt-headed Burrowing Frog or Glyphoglossus molossus.  Any member of the Anura order can be considered a frog. They also consist of various carnivorous groups of short-bodied, tailless amphibians.  The first “proto-frog” fossils were discovered in Madagascar in the early Triassic era while molecular clock dating indicates they may have existed as far back as the Permian, 265 million years ago. Frogs are found in different parts of the world from the tropics to the subarctic.  There is one amazing frog, in particular, that is left many people wondering if this animal is really real.  In early January 2021, a Twitter user shared some images of a unique creature and the internet went crazy over it. It was a picture of an unusually round, blob-like body and a suitably expressive face. People were saying a lot of things about this unique animal and it went viral with many retweets and hundreds of times.  Many Speculations had been going on online, with some people guessing that it is some sort of shell-less turtle or perhaps the result of a child’s ceramics project gone wrong.

But, it turns out all of them were wrong. 

One Twitter user named Jodi Rowley put all of the speculations to rest and explained what exactly it is. Jodi a conservation biologist and amphibian specialist explained that this unique-looking creature is a frog. It is called the Blunt-headed Burrowing Frog or Glyphoglossus molossus. She also explained the reason behind it its weird looks. It is a self-defense mechanism, where the frog inflates itself to look enormous and frightening. But we can all agree it does not look frighting or scary at all, it is quite opposite. With an estimated 8.7 million plant and animal species on the planet—and just a small proportion of those discovered and classified thus far—almost anything is imaginable.

“Henry” The world’s oldest known Nile crocodile, turning 121-years-old

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Henry is the oldest known Nile Crocodile in captivity. The records state he was brought to Crocworld Conservation Centre in 1985 as an adult.  He arrived there when he was 85 years old.  This old crocodile is currently going to be celebrating his 121st birthday this December 16 on Thursday. He currently weighs 500kgs and is 5-meter long.   This oldest resident of Crocworld Conservation Centre lives in his enclosure with six females. Henry has fathered more than 10 000 offspring in the last 32 years.  The Crocworld Conservation Centre celebrated Henry’s 118th birthday with a proper celebration. The celebration had it all, from special birthday feeding, and talking to cake for the guests. This was on Sunday, December 16, 2018. “His birthday is always such a wonderful occasion and a great excuse for everyone to get down to Crocworld to meet the animals…” said Crocworld Conservation Centre Manager, James Wittstock.  Apart from the notable birthday celebrations happening at Crocworld, there’s a wonderful program of holiday activities taking place.  The activities include many amazing activities during the day. They have planned all the activities and allotted time for them for people to navigate easily. At 10 am there is going to be Snake demonstrations or interaction. At 11 am Nile crocodile feeding. 11.30 am Juvenile Nile crocodile handling.  2 pm on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday: Vulture feeding. At 2 pm on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday: Marabou stork feeding.  3 pm: Nile crocodile feeding. At 3.30 pm: Juvenile Nile crocodile handling.

“Gulper Eel” One of the most bizarre looking creatures in the deep sea

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Eurypharynx pelecanoides more commonly known as the gulper eel is one of the most bizarre-looking creatures in the deep sea. The most noticeable feature of this creature is its gigantic mouth which is even larger than its own body. The eel’s large mouth helps it swallow much larger animals than itself. This eel is sometimes referred to as the pelican eel. Even its stomach can stretch and can contain a large amount of food. Its umbrella-like mouth gives it the name the gulper eel. They tend to be much different in appearance from other eels.  This sea creature has tiny fins which are almost nonexistent and small eyes, unlike many other sea creatures. The reason behind small eyes is to believe to trace the small amount of light in the deep sea.   They also have a very long and whip-like tail. This long tail helps them with movement and navigation.  The end tip of their tail is tipped with a light-producing organ called a photophore. The photophore glows pink and gives vocational red flashes. This process is known as bioluminescence.  Their body is not buildup for chasing the prey and catching it. Hence it is believed that they use light from their tail to lure their prey close to them. As soon as the prey comes into the range of the gulper’s gigantic mouth it catches it very easily. The gulper eels can grow from three to six feet. They are usually black or dark green and sometimes have a white line or groove on either side of the dorsal fin. 

Despite having, such a large mouth and stretchy stomach their diet consist mainly of small crustaceans. 

They usually do not go for the bigger fishes as gulper eels have tiny teeth to bite on them. Their wide mouth helps them eat a group of crustaceans very easily. They can swim through a group of shrimps and just scoop a bunch of them in their mouth easily. They also feed on cephalopods (squid) and other small invertebrates.

When the eel is scooping out its prey from a large group, a large amount of water also goes into its mouth which it ejects out of its gills slits.

Gulper eels themselves are preyed upon by lancetfish and other deep-sea predators. There is not much information about gulper eels’ reproductive habits because they live in the deep sea. The only information gathered about them is when they are caught in the fishnets.  The gulper eel is found in all of the world’s tropical and temperate oceans at depths ranging from 500 to 6,000 feet (about 150 to 1,800 meters).

This Is The Largest Known Insect of All Time, With a Wingspan of 2.5 ft (75 cm)

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Griffin flies are the largest known insect species to have ever lived on earth. They are the representative of the extinct dragonfly.

A life-size model of the Permian griffin flies Meganeura. Image credit: Gene McCarthy

The largest living insect species we know today are the atlas moth (which sport the largest wings by surface area at 160 cm2 or 25 in2), the white witch moth (which has the largest wingspan at almost 30 cm or 12 in), and the goliath beetle, the heaviest insect at 115 g (4.1 oz). The ancestors of any animal tend to be bigger than the species we have today. The same goes for insects. Giant griffin flies such as Meganeura monyi and Meganeuropsis permiana are the largest known insect species to have ever existed. These can have about three times a wingspan than an atlas moth, i.e- 75 cm (28 in). However, their body masses can be uncertain, varying between 34 g and 240 g, up to more than twice the size of the goliath beetle.

Atlas moths have the largest wings, by surface area, of any living insect. Image credit: Cocos.Bounty/Shutterstock

The crunchy sound whenever someone steps on a cockroach is called the exoskeleton.  It is also present in other insects, however, it is not so hard, and different parts of the body vary its strength. The most flexible part of griffin flies is their wings, hence those are most likely to be fossilized. 

A beautifully preserved fossil of a Meganeuropsis permiana, the largest insect known to have ever lived on Earth. 

Griffinflies existed on earth some 20+ million years during the Late Carboniferous and Late Permian periods around 317-247 million years ago. Meganeura monyi was the first griffin fly to be described, based on a single fossil wing about 12 inches long. It had an estimated wingspan of about 27 inches (about 68,5 cm). They were the largest insect till 1939 when  Frank Carpenter described Meganeuropsis permiana. It was based on large wings discovered in two parts. He calculated the wingspan to be 9 inches (almost 75 cm). After some years Carpenter described another new species of griffin fly, Meganeuropsis Americana, with a wingspan similar to that of M. permiana. Recently scientists believe two species of Meganeuopsis to be the same. This species still holds the record of being the largest known insect to have lived on earth.

Size comparison of the largest Carboniferous arthropods. Image credit: Emily Stepp

Some people still ask the question that why there are no gigantic dragonflies around today.

The answer to that is the Late Paleozoic period of Earth’s past was unique. The Late Carboniferous and Early Permian existed vast coal swamp forests. It created massive amounts of oxygen by photosynthesis which created a hyperoxic atmosphere, with oxygen levels far in the quantity than today’s levels.

This Is The Largest Known Insect of All Time, With a Wingspan of 2.5 ft

As lungs are absent in insects they breathe through the trachea. A series of tubes connected to the outside. Because there is more oxygen in the air they absorb more and become giant body sizes.  However, in the Permian period, the oxygen levels started to decrease the air started to get drier. This led to the extinction of these giant insects. Today’s oxygen level is so low to allow these giant insects to grow naturally. 

“Giant Otter” The most brutal river otters are able to catch crocodiles for food

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The giant otter is a South American carnivorous mammal and the longest member of the weasel family. The giant otter is a social species, with family groups typically supporting three to eight members. They live in groups which is extremely cooperative and coordinated. They are generally a peaceful species but they are territorial and can use aggression if they have to. The giant otters are usually active in the daytime and are the noisiest of their species. They vocalize their aggression, comfort, or warnings. The species was listed as endangered in 1999 as their number rapidly fall to 5000. The main reason for that was poaching during the 1950s and 1960s. In the Peruvian Amazonian basin, The Guianas are protected and are the last ones that are left in significant numbers. It is one of the most endangered mammal species in the Neotropics.  The giant otter lives on both lands and water. Their exceptionally dense fur, wing-like tail, and webbed feet help them live that lifestyle easily. They usually like to live in freshwater rivers and streams. Their diet consists of fish, particularly characins and catfish, but may also eat crabs, turtles, snakes, and small caimans.  Otters are greedy predators, close to being the top predators in most places where they live. They sometimes may overlap with gators as they are also living in the same areas as the giant otters. It is a pretty common occurrence. That’s not a small alligator, probably three or four years old and five feet [1.5 meters] long. If that’s a male otter it might be 30 pounds. That’s a very bold animal! Otter goes straight to the gator’s neck from behind so that the gator cannot hurt him by biting. It is a learned behavior, that may be picked from attacking the smaller ones.

How does the otter kill the gator?

The otter cannot directly kill the gator. That is a pretty hard animal to bite through. But the otter still wins.  Because Otters have sustainable energy they fight for long and the gator’s energy is like a grande. It explodes but cannot last long enough for otters’ energy to wear out. By this tactic, the otter wins after a few minutes of struggle. their muscles fill with lactic acid and are no longer functioning making him almost intoxicated.  The gator dies of lactic acid buildup and the otter drags it up to the shore. While the gator is still alive the otters can rip off the pieces with their very sharp teeth.  The otters’ kill looks a lot like a lion’s with the parts spread around. If there is a couple of otters and kids this is a good learning opportunity and a good feast for them. The giant otters can eat animals they can get their hands on. They are smart, agile, and strong predators with skills.

Innocent Baby Impala Walks Up To Lion – Wrong Move

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The incident was sighted by Sylvie Failletaz while he went for an early morning drive game drive near Nyamepi campground, Mana Pools, Zimbabwe. Recalling the morning Sylvie shared that it was a pretty hot day about 25 °C for an early morning. They came across two lions that had eaten an impala the night before. Now they were just chilling and being lazy like lions do. He further said after taking a few shots and watching them for a while they hoped the lions would move to some shade. Because it was really hot outside and the lions were not doing much out in the some. They hoped to see something else other than just sleeping lions.

Then to their disbelief, a lost innocent baby impala came into the sight and started to run straight toward the sleeping lion. 

“ I was thinking no, no, no, go away, the wrong move! We could not believe that the innocent baby impala walks up to a male lion. I thought the baby impala would turn around as soon as it realized there was danger, but it didn’t. ”  said Sylvie. The baby impala was so lost and innocent, that it did not know what the lion was and it kept moving. The baby Impala came so close to the sleeping lion that it nearly even touched it. Sylvie shared “I was hoping it would run away when it realized it wasn’t mummy. We were hoping the lion wouldn’t be interested in such a little snack considering he had eaten the day before.” But this could not be the case. The lion slowly lifted his head and look at the baby impala and swiftly sat up. “There was an extremely funny look on its face, like hang on, what did I see? Am I dreaming? Food has come to me? I love the face, the ‘cartoon eyes’”. Then the lion started to move, although it was slow at first but with a little more effort he went and grabbed the baby impala. The baby did not have much hope to run away it was already there too deep.  Sylvie felt disappointed as he could not get the shot of the chase, as he could not get the right angle and the car was facing the wrong way.  It all happened so fast he did not get the chance to get the right lenses as well but he still captured the story of what happened.  He also shared that he felt very lucky to have sighted such an interesting event and could capture it. “However, I felt sorry for the super cute baby impala. I would have loved a happy ending for it, but unfortunately, it wasn’t his day.”  

One Mom’s 30 Hilariously Honest Comics About The Life Of Motherhood

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Any person who is a parent can testify how both challenging and rewarding it is to have a child in your life.  Parenthood is one of the hardest jobs in the world but lots of love and laughter along the way.  Thankfully there are brilliant and rare artists out there like Inna Sacali, who not only use their gifts to illustrate what it’s like to be a parent but also pair this with humor that is so true to life that these comics are downright hilarious! Sacali is an architect and artist from Moldova. She has a son who keeps her on her toes all the time. She illustrates her everyday struggles in relationships, pregnancy, and frustrating shenanigans her son does. The artist creates relatable comics even for someone who does not have kids or has been pregnant.  Sacali always loved drawing and started doing it full-time as a comic artist after putting a hold on her job as an architect. She started drawing comics about what it means to be on maternity leave.  According to the artist Being a mom isn’t an easy job, but it’s worth it. Scroll down and enjoy our best picks from inna_s_art’s collection.

#1 Cute Little Dragon

#2 No one jokes about it

#3 My precious

#4 System updated

#5 It is never the right fit.

#6 Yup it’s the baby

#7 Mom to a boy

#8 Nothing to see  here

#9 Things change rapidly.

#10 Keep everything out of reach

#11 evolution of a mother

#12 When just eating becomes boring

#13 What exactly is going on?

#14 Just shut up.

#15 Jello boy

#16 Here comes the baby fever.

#17 No difference

#18 Tell me what to do, please

#19 Mom is the best Teeth Ring

#20 Reality is always different from the reality

#21 He has super powers

#22 Are those the same ?

#23 Always misses the show

#24 Heavy legs.

#25 Best expectation versus reality

#26 Just inhaled it.

#27 Still the same

#28 How does this keep on happening?

#29 Baby – 1 dad – 0

#30 Wish I had detachable hands.