The poison dart frog is the common name given to the most poisonous animals on Earth.

Native to Central and South America, these species of frogs (family: Dendrobatidae) produce several lethal toxins that are capable of killing a human or other large animal with just 2 micrograms (μg). In other words, one drop of their venom could be powerful enough to kill 8000 people.

The most toxic of poison dart frog species is Phyllobates terribilis. Unlike snakes, dart frogs do not synthesize their poisons, but sequester the chemicals they consume from arthropod prey, such as ants, centipedes and mites. This is why in captivity, they produce far less poison than wild frogs due to their change in diet. What makes these frogs immune to their own poison i ...

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The KodKod (Leopardus guigna) is the smallest wildcat - it's even smaller than domestic cats. It lives primarily in central and southern Chile and marginally in adjoining areas of Argentina. Check out the video below for more information on this cute creature:

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When you turn on your TV, it is the definition of ironic to watch the news channels for information about planet mass destruction. Whilst when you step outside your door, it is quite alarming and obvious that our earth is suffering. When every person around you, from toddlers to elderly, own some for of technology, with no means of recycling old items. When students, each with their own copies of pages. When potable water has not yet reached the most needy of nations. When human greed is apparent with every innovative idea claiming to "revolutionize "a domain brought up to make  a quick buck. Drilling, mining, industrialization, politics, scavenging for resources, suffocating our environment... This may all seem negative, but coming from a ...

The deceptive photograph of these nine European bee-eaters huddled wing to wing on a rainy day.

This spider is the size of a PUPPY, and its legs are a foot (0.3 metres) long.

The Brazilian Jaboticaba tree well and truly takes advantage of all the surface area on its trunk by growing its sweet, grape-like fruits all over it. It's said to have evolved its trunk-fruit so animals could reach them and distribute the seeds.

Foxfire, also called "fairy fire" is a crazy glow in the dark fungus. The bluish-green glow is attributed to luciferase, an oxidative enzyme, which emits light as it reacts with luciferin. It is widely believed that the light attracts insects to spread spores, or acts as a warning to hungry animals, like the bright colors exhibited by some poisonous or unpalatable animal species. Although generally very dim, in some cases foxfire is bright enough to read by. ...

This is the first photograph taken of an orangutan using a tool to fish in Borneo. The photo captures a moment when this male was using the pole to catch fish trapped in the locals’ fishing lines.

Researchers have discovered a novel method to harness photosynthesis to create electricity. By attaching nanotubes to plant cells, the researchers were able to direct the electrons that plants free during photosynthesis down a wire and generate electrical current – and it was twice as powerful as electricity gathered from solar cells.

This is the Caqueta titi monkey, and its babies purr just like cats when they're happy. It is one of more than 400 new species of animals and plants that have been discovered in the past four years in the Amazon rainforest, along with a vegetarian piranha and a flame-patterned lizard.

The arapaima (Arapaima gigas) is one of the biggest freshwater fish on the planet and has evolved a multi-layer defence against the piranha. Its scales have an ultra-tough outer shell, which promotes tooth fracture at the point of penetration. The scales are also a corrugated shape, which deflect pressure to overlapping layers of collagen underneath.

See anything peculiar?

If you look closely, you'll see an Eastern screech owl hiding in plain sight. These owls are nocturnal and their amazing camouflage allows them to go largely unnoticed in the daytime. These owls only grow to about 22 cm (8.5 in) tall and weigh about 244 grams (8.6 oz), but they have been observed hunting squirrels and rats who rival them in length and weight. Eastern screech owls are found in North America from Canada all the way down to Mexico.
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Meet olinguito, or Bassaricyon neblina, the first species of carnivore discovered in the Western Hemisphere in 35 years. This cute teddy bear-like nocturnal mammal is native to Central and South America, and spends most of its time in the treetops, coming down to the forest floor occasionally to eat fruits such as guava.

Check out this beautiful flower. At first glance, it looks like a set of lips, but in actually, these are the flowers that are produced by Psychotria elata, a plant that grows in Central and South American tropical forests.

The bleeding tooth fungus grows in Europe and North America. While young, the fungus looks like it is oozing blood. The red liquid is actually an anticoagulant. It lives on the roots of conifer trees and exchanges nutrients in a mutually beneficial relationship.

And, if you're wondering, they are inedible.

How this bicycle got up in the tree has been the subject of plenty of local legend around Washington’s Vashon Island. The real story involves a boy in the 1950s who left his bike in the woods while playing with friends, because he didn’t like it. The bike was placed about two meters high in the tree, which eventually grew around it.

This miniature ecosystem has been thriving in an almost completely isolated state for more than forty years. It has been watered just once in that time.

The original single spiderwort plant has grown and multiplied, putting out seedlings. As it has access to light, it continues to photosynthesize. The water builds up on the inside of the bottle and then rains back down on the plants in a miniature version of the water cycle.

As leaves die, they fall off and rot at the bottom producing the carbon dioxide and nutrients required for more plants to grow. ...