You'll never look at a sea cucumber the same way again after seeing how it eats
Super cool and slightly nightmarish.

Watching sea cucumbers eat is wild.
Nature is full of wonders, from the breathtakingly beautiful to the truly terrifying. (Ever seen an anglerfish? Yikes.) But some wonders come from the most unexpected places.
For instance, the unassuming sea cucumber.
If you've ever seen a sea cucumber, you know they're not terribly exciting. I'd bet $1,000 that if you were to ask 1,000 people what animal they wish they could be, none of them would say "sea cucumber." They don't fly, they don't really swim, they don't make funny noises and they're not particularly cute. The name "cucumber" should be a clue that they basically just sit there like vegetables, a background feature adding a little shape and color to the underwater landscape. They don't even have a brain. They're just kind of there.
Or at least that's what I thought before I saw one eat.
Because pretty much all these creatures do is eat and poop, something about one of those things had to be interesting, right? As it turns out, the way sea cucumbers eat is flippin' fascinating, if not slightly nightmarish.
When it's dinner time, the cucumber opens up its mouth and extends a network of tendrils attached to "feet" out into the surrounding water. These tendrils act as hands, grabbing the plankton, algae and other tiny things in the water, and then the feet shove that organic matter into the sea cucumber's pie hole.
That sounds all well and good on paper, but it's a whole other thing to actually see it in action. I had no idea what I was in for when this video started, and now I'll never be the same.
\u201cThis is how sea cucumbers eat \nhttps://t.co/KC7IWqdFuH\u201d— Science girl (@Science girl) 1657807579
Gaaaahhhhh. Whyyyyy? Why is it so cool and so disturbing at the same time? Why do sea cucumbers suddenly turn into strangely beautiful horror movie creatures when they get the munchies?
As it turns out, sea cucumbers really aren't as boring as they seem. They also breathe through their bums and let little fish live inside their anuses, so that's neat. Also, when they feel threatened, they literally shoot their own guts out of their butts.
Three cheers for the surprisingly bizarre sea cucumber for reminding us that there's always much more to nature than meets the eye.
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There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."