Louis Armstrong was right when he thought to himself “what a wonderful world” we live in. It’s also a weird world. As with humans, it would be a dull planet if every animal looked and behaved exactly the same. A bit of
‘strange’ or ‘different’ is a good thing. Take giraffes, for example. They’re such a common sight on many safaris that we take for granted just what a bizarre animal they are, with a towering neck and a tongue that can strip leaves from thorny branches. These animals grow to such a great height that they need to splay their legs to bend low enough to drink water, a system of valves kicking in to stop too much blood rushing to their head.
But giraffes are just one example of the wonderful species that travellers can discover on their journeys. From
Australia to Scotland to Venezuela, it’s possible to find frogs, fish, birds, primates and other creatures large and small that stand out for their incredible colourings, patterns and physical characteristics, and remarkable behaviours and abilities.
Here, we celebrate some of the most striking and unusual animals that live on Earth, and share advice on where and how to find them.
1 Manatee
Too much time at sea (or on the rum) must do something to the mind, as sailors across history apparently mistook manatees – large, slow-moving, aquatic mammals – for ‘women of the sea,’ or mermaids. Also known as sea cows, these herbivorous hulking creatures feed mainly on sea grass, scoffing more than a tenth of their bodyweight each day. They have a flat, paddle-shaped tail and come up for air every few minutes.
Florida’s Crystal River is a known hotspot, with manatee-spotting tours and the chance to snorkel with them. Belize is also known to have good opportunities to spend
