2. Angler fish
Some guys just can’t catch a break.
The male angler fish is 1/20th the size
of the female angler fish. The huge,
traumatizingly ugly spiny fish with the
glowing “fishing rod” lure you saw in
Finding Nemo? That’s the female. The
male is that tiny little blob attached to
his horrific goddess that you never
noticed. He burrows in with his teeth
and she “feeds” him ex-utero style
until he eventually loses his eyeballs,
then internal organs and finally his life.
By then, she’s got his sperm so it
doesn’t matter. Anglers are deep-sea
fish, but that doesn’t mean they’re safe
from threat.
3. Monito Del
Monte
The “little mountain monkey” of
South America is not a monkey, but
rather a marsupial, thought to have
arrived from Australia long ago. It’s
tiny – only about 5″ full grown. They
are nocturnal and carnivorous, and
famous (well, among scientists) for
their unusual tail, which can store
enough fat to make this little
pipsqueak double in size. This
allows them to go for long periods
without food. Sadly, the always-
prepared monito del monte is in
danger of extinction.