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Joy

Chatty animals get 'interviewed' with a teeny tiny microphone, and boy is it entertaining

Here to answer all your burning questions, such as "may I touch your snoot?"

YouTube

Freya from Maya Higa's YouTube video.

Ever wonder what an ideal date for a lemur would be? Or a lizard’s favorite Disney princess?

Thanks to one YouTube poster with a passion for animals and an endearing sense of humor, all questions shall be answered. Well, maybe not all questions. But at the very least, you’ll have eight minutes of insanely cute footage.

In a series titled “Tiny Mic Interviews,” Maya Higa approaches little beasties with a microphone so small she has to hold it with just her thumb and forefinger. And yes, 99% of the animals try to eat it.

There’s Ginger, the pig with a lot of stored up resentment toward the big bad wolf. She ain’t afraid to talk about it, either. Or so her passionate snorts would indicate.

Then there’s Brazilian porcupine Boris (at least, I think that’s what Boris is after Googling, I’m no zoologist), who is asked to name his favorite food. For the record, it’s corn. And no, you may not touch his snoot.

Godzilla, the itsy bitsy turtle that fits into one hand, gets asked, ironically, “what’s it like being land’s fastest animal?” Though Godzilla remains stoically silent, an image of super cool speedster sunglasses gets superimposed onto his face, along with the words “I am speed.”

The best part to me is a bird, aptly named Giggles, gloriously laughing at a cheesy joke. In fact, here’s a nod to all the birds with impeccable names in this video.

Mordecai, Costello, Bartholomew (these include stars from Higa's first interview) … I’m looking at you.

Though these critters provide some top notch entertainment, there’s plenty of valuable information being thrown into the mix as well.

All the exotic “interviewees” are part of Zoo To You Conservation Ambassadors, a permitted facility in California, Higa informs her viewers. Rescued or surrendered from the illegal pet trade, or permanently injured, these animals receive permanent care and become a part of Zoo To You’s education program. Pretty sweet gig, right?

Higa herself is a wildlife rehabilitator, falconer and streamer who focuses a lot of her content on conservation. Though her online persona veers toward the upbeat and positive, she isn’t afraid to shed light on some darker facts around certain threats many species face.

"The natural world that these animals come from is being absolutely decimated,” Higa states in another video. “The UN estimates that over one million plant and animal species face extinction today. Pollution, habitat loss, climate change, the wildlife trade, exploitation, general human intervention…is causing us to lose species at rates unprecedented in human history. We’re experiencing a mass extinction.”

Wanting to be part of the solution, Higa has founded her own nonprofit organization called Alveus, which, like Zoo To You, acts as an exotic animal sanctuary and virtual education center.

If you’d like to support Higa’s sanctuary, you can do so by donating to donate@alveussanctuary.org via PayPal.

And if you’re already jonesing for more adorable “Tiny Mic Interviews,” you’re in luck! You can find even more on Maya’s YouTube channel here.


This article originally appeared on 09.02.22

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animals
Science

Time to add 'horrifying giant beach worms' to Australia's list of WTF wildlife

They can grow up to 9 feet long and live all along Australia's populated eastern coasts.

UNILAD/Facebook

Australia's giant beach worms are often collected for bait.

In many ways, Australia is an ideal place to live. Its comfortable climate with plentiful sunshine, beautiful natural attractions, high standard of living and people-centered policies give the land down under a leg up on many other countries.

As long as you're willing to put up with its long list of "WTF is that thing?!" wildlife, that is.

Australia's wildlife is the "Florida man" of the animal kingdom, with countless examples of exceptionally terrifying creatures showing up where you least expect them to. Sure, there are cuddly koalas and cute kangaroos as well, but those don't outweigh the spiders the size of your face, the massive saltwater crocodiles, 100 species of venomous snakes, the nonvenomous but equally as scary pythons that can eat said crocodiles, the tiny but potentially deadly irukandji jellyfish, etc., etc., etc.

And thanks to people sharing on the internet, we now have one more reason we can never go live in Australia: Giant Beach Worms.

Some of us already knew about Australia's giant earthworms, but comforted ourselves by the fact that we were unlikely to ever encounter them even if we did visit Oz. What some of us did not know was that there are also giant worms in the sand—at the beach, for the love—and they look like something straight out of a horror movie.

Please prepare yourself, then watch:

Nope. Nope. Nope. All the nopes. WTF is that, Australia?!? They can grow up to 300 cm long? That's like 9 frickin' feet. No. No, thank you.

The fact that these things are just hanging out under the sand along the populated east coast of Australia is too much to process. People apparently collect these worms for bait—ironically, using fish for bait to lure them out. I don't think that's how the circle of life is supposed to work, but we're talking about Australia here, where apparently anything is possible.

People in the comments, of course, had a heyday:

"Literally no space is safe in Australia. Just one big island of Tim Burton creatures and Vegemite."

"This is longer than my patience!"

"Australia is that you? Lol of course it is."

"I could have happily lived the rest of my natural life not having seen that..."

One person offered this bit of comfort:

"Lol this isn't the thing you need to worry about. It won't touch you it is only after fish. What you have to worry about are bristle worms, stone fish, blue ring octopus, happy moments, lion fish, irrakanji, box jelly fish, toad fish, sting rays and sea snakes."

Hahahaha. Thanks, mate.

Of course, the reality is that people go to the beach all the time in Australia and don't encounter any giant worms. Many Aussies in the comments said they've been enjoying Australian beaches their whole lives and haven't ever seen one. The worms aren't attracted to human flesh, so they're not going to just pop up and start nibbling on your toes. Theoretically, anyway.

By the way, there are actually three different kinds of giant beach worms one can find on Australia's beaches if they try. One is the "up to 9 feet" variety, one "only" grows up to around 3 feet and the third has nicknames like "hairy Mary," "greasyback" and "blackhead," which just sounds charming. That last one isn't favored as a bait worm, by the way, because, according to the Australian Museum, "If placed in the same container with others, it makes them all wriggle and break to pieces." Lovely.

It's not like the U.S. doesn't have its own scary or icky wildlife. We've got grizzly bears, mountain lions, rattlesnakes, brown recluse spiders and others. Some states might give Oz a run for its money in the WTF wildlife department (looking at you, Arizona), but in a real creepy creatures contest, Australia always wins, hands down.

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wildlife
Joy

​Man goes all out for his squirrel neighbors, 'Richard' and 'Maxine,' and it's too sweet

His videos are like therapy.

@derrickdowneyjr/TikTok

Derrick Downey Jr. has been dubbed the 'squirrel whisperer.'

Most of us who live in the U.S. are used to looking out a window or walking out our front door and seeing squirrels. The cute, fluffy-tailed rodents often appear perfectly pettable, but they generally scamper away when humans get too close.

That is not the case for TikTok creator Derrick Downey Jr., however, as he has not only befriended his neighborhood squirrels but goes all out to help them live their best squirrel lives.

Downey shared a video in May of 2022 in which he chats with a couple of squirrels on his porch while feeding them and offering them water. That video received over 26 million views and kicked off a whole series of videos showcasing the adorable antics of Richard, Maxine, Hector, Consuela, Norma (may she rest in peace), and Hood Rat Raymond. He's built Richard a house, rescued Maxine's babies, mourned Norma's transition (to wherever squirrels go when they die) and more.

People can't get enough, and who can blame them? Squirrels are the best (when they're not tearing up your patio furniture and stealing cotton for their nest, as Downey has experienced.)

Here's how it all started:

It's fun to see how he has built up trust with his squirrel friends. He even shared a video showing some of the steps it took to get them to eat from his hand.

@derrickdowneyjr

Building trust takes patience 🐿❤️ Maxine and I working on a building a stronger bond, she’s more at ease when Richard is around but I would day today was a success. #foryoupage #squirrelsoftiktok #squirreltok #trustissues #derrickdowneyjr

Part of what people love about Downey's videos is the way he talks to the squirrels—it almost feels like therapy. As one commenter wrote, "I think I just healed my inner child." Others compare Downey to a real-life Disney princess.

All of his patience and trust-building have paid off. Watch how Maxine will now jump right onto him for a snack.

@derrickdowneyjr

Jump #pets #squirrel #foryoupage

Downey built an elaborate home on his balcony for Richard and Maxine, which was even showcased in Architectural Digest. He decorates it seasonally, which is hilarious. They even have furniture, a fireplace and a television. Check this out:

@derrickdowneyjr

Maxine never invite me to watch TV with her #cocomelon #fyp

But it's not all fun and games for Downey's squirrel friends. When some trees were cut down in front of his apartment, a nest of squirrel babies was displaced. The tree trimmers put the babies in another tree, but Downey was afraid dogs could get to them where they put them. He took their nest inside, made sure they were warm and comfortable and tried to feed them.

Then he found out that they were actually Maxine's babies! Watch Mama Maxine collect her young 'uns and take them to a new nest she made.

@derrickdowneyjr

Rescuing these baby squirrels and reuniting them with mama Maxine, was the greatest feeling ever! 🐿️ #babysquirrel #squirrels #squirrelsoftiktok #wildlife #wildliferescue #animallover #nature #foryou

It's delightful and strangely addicting to follow the goings-on of Downey's squirrel friends and watch him interact with them. Follow @derrickdowneyjr on TikTok for more.

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animal friends
Science

Hawk drops snake on Texas woman, then tries to take it back in real-life horror story

File this under "things you didn't want to know were possible."

NPS/Kurt Moses (Public Domain)

Snakes are prey for hawks, but humans aren't usually involved in the hunt.

You know how sometimes you read a story that seems like it couldn't possibly be true, and when you find out it is, you think, "Yeah, I didn't actually need to know that could happen"?

This is one of those stories. And I'm only a little bit sorry for sharing it because it's also one of those stories where every detail gets more and more incredible (or in this case, worse and so much worse). I mean, it's a real-life story that starts with a snake falling out of the sky, for crying out loud. Cue the horror soundtrack.

Peggy Jones, 64, told Fox 26 Houston that she was driving her riding lawnmower in the yard of her home in Silsbee, Texas, when out of nowhere, a snake landed on her from above. Before she could even wrap her mind around what was happening, the snake coiled itself around her arm and began to strike at her face, repeatedly hitting her glasses.

That would be more than enough all by itself, but that's not where this horror story ends. The hawk that had presumably dropped the snake really wanted it back.

As Jones tried to fling the snake off her arm, the hawk swooped down to retrieve it. Unfortunately, that entailed clawing at the woman's forearm, trying to pull the snake off as it clung to her arm for dear life.

“The snake was squeezing so hard, and I was waving my arms in the air. And then, this hawk was swooping down clawing at my arm over and over,” Jones told NBC affiliate KPRC-TV. “I just kept saying, ‘Help me, Jesus, Help me, Jesus.’’

Totally makes sense. When you're living out not one but two highly bizarre nature nightmares, all you can do is pray.

We humans, even with all of our technological and scientific advancements, are fairly helpless in the face of Mother Nature doing her thing. Jones said the hawk attacked four times before finally getting hold of the snake and successfully pulling it from her arm.

Thankfully, the snake only managed to chip her glasses a bit, but the damage done by the hawk's talons was significant, and Jones has her arm wrapped in gauze to heal. But the physical recovery is a whole different beast than the emotional one.

"The nightmares. The nightmares are horrific. They're terrible," she told Fox 26 Houston. Jones has a fake snake that she wraps around her arm as a form of therapy to remind herself that the likelihood of anything like that ever happening again is slim to none.

Thank goodness that's true, because this is a scenario no one would ever want to find themselves in.

Watch Jones share her story with Fox 26 Houston:

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