weird and wonderful amazonian wildlife

Weird and Wonderful Amazonian Wildlife

there are many weird and wonderful creatures to discover.
1. The Strangest Creatures found in the Amazon
The Amazon is one of the most biodiverse places on the planet, with one out of ten species known to science being found there. Looking beyond well-known creatures like jaguars, anacondas and, internet favourite, the sloth (pictured), there are many weird and wonderful creatures to discover. Here are 25 of the most fascinating.
2. Glass frog
Glass frogs are generally lime green in colour and some members of the family, like the one above, have translucent abdominal skin through which their internal organs can be seen.
3. Bald Headed Uakari
The bald headed uakari owes its distinctive red face?to a?lack of skin pigments and the plentiful capillaries that run under its facial tissue. It is currently ranked as a species vulnerable to extinction.
4. Surinam Toads
In one of the worlds most unusual?reproductive processes, female Surinam toads carry their fertilised eggs embedded on their back. The larvae develop through to the tadpole stage inside these pockets, eventually emerging?from the mothers back as?tiny, fully developed toads.?So now you?know where they got the idea for theGremlins?movie.
5. Bridal Veil Stinkhorn
These fungi may look as pretty and demure as a bride blushing behind her wedding veil, but their odour is appalling. The stink is used to attract carrion eating flies which can then distribute the fungis spores.
6. Capybara
The capybara (pictured here carrying another Amazonian native, a squirrel monkey, on its back) is the world's largest rodent, its closest relatives being guinea pigs and rock cavies.
7. Mata Mata
What were looking at here is a close up view of a mata mata, a large freshwater?turtle with a peculiar flattened head, which makes it resemble a piece of bark a useful form of camouflage.
8. Ring Tailed Coatis
Ring tailed coatis are widespread in tropical and subtropical South America. They live both on the ground and in the trees, searching for fruit among the leafy branches, and using their snouts to root out animal prey on the ground.
9. Marvellous Spatuletail
The marvellously named marvellous spatuletail is a species of hummingbird, unique among birds for having just four feathers in its tail. What it lacks in quantity it makes up for in quality, as you ll see from the males two long racquet-shaped outer tail feathers pictured above. They are currently an endangered species.
10. Amazonian Manatees
Amazonian manatees have been protected under Brazilian law since 1967, and are listed as a?vulnerable species. However, threats still exist?the pup pictured above was rescued by a fisherman in 2012, after its mother fell victim to poachers.