🦌 Unique footage of spotted deer feeding on freshwater plants by diving underwater has been captured by scientists in a national park. This behavior has never been described by modern science for this species of hoofed mammals.

📹 The video was obtained using a camera trap installed near a lake. The footage shows the deer almost completely submerging themselves underwater for a long time and then resurfacing with their catch.

🌿 The animals retrieve hydrophytes - aquatic plants rich in nutrients and minerals - from the bottom of the lake. One deer set a record by staying underwater for 18 seconds! 🌟

🐦 Osprey: The Fish Hunter 🐟

The Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) is one of 6 bird species with a global distribution. Its unique feature is a diet that consists almost exclusively of fish. 🐟

Reaching 55-58 cm in length, the Osprey has an impressive wingspan of up to 170 cm, similar to a human's height! 🤯 Its primary flight feathers resemble outstretched fingers during gliding flights.

This bird of prey has a distinctive hooked beak and a short crest on the back of its head, which it can raise. Its incredibly long legs are equipped with curved claws, spines on the inside, and a backward-facing outer toe. Special valves protect its nostrils from water entry. 💦

🦌 The Great Kudu Tragelaphus strepsiceros inhabits Eastern and Southern Africa, mainly in savannas, a transitional form between forests and grasslands.

🦌 They have 6-10 vertical stripes on their coat, large rounded ears, and a long tail. Males have large spiral horns, up to 1 meter long, which determine their social status.

👥 Males form bachelor groups or live alone, joining females only during mating seasons. Females give birth to a single calf, weighing around 16 kg, during the rainy season.

🌃 Kudus are active during day or night, depending on their habitat. They eat mainly leaves and young branches, and are not picky. They even eat plants that other animals avoid due to toxicity.

👀 Interesting fact: Kudus can jump very high and run fast to escape predators, reaching speeds of up to 90 km/h!

🦋 Meet the Achrioptera fallax, a colorful stick insect from Madagascar! 🌴 These insects are harmless to humans and don't bite. They mainly feed on leaves, especially blackberry, raspberry, eucalyptus, and oak. 🌿

👩 Female Achrioptera fallax can grow up to 20-26 cm long, while males reach 14-17 cm. The female's light brown color helps her blend in with dry branches (like the one in this video)! 🌿 Her body is covered in spines, including her chest, legs, and even head. Her short, red wings are quite striking, but unfortunately, both males and females are flightless. 🚫

🔊 When threatened, Achrioptera fallax will use their spiny legs to defend themselves, spread their colorful wings, and make a loud, screeching sound. Males will even drop to the ground to confuse predators! 😲 These insects live for about 9 months. 🕰️

🦌 Meet the Klipspringer (Oreotragus oreotragus), a small and adorable creature that's about 50 cm tall and weighs only 9-18 kg! 🌟

Males have distinctive wedge-shaped horns that are about 10 cm long. These antelopes can be found in Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea, and along the western coast of Namibia and southwestern Angola.

🌱 Klipspringers are picky eaters and feed on evergreen shrubs, grasses, fruits, seeds, flowers, and lichens. They can migrate to areas with better vegetation. 💦 Amazingly, they can go without water for a long time, getting most of it from their food!

💕 Klipspringer pairs are lifelong partners. While the female nurses their young, the male stands guard, protecting her. During dry seasons, they form groups of 6-8 individuals, which disperse when the rainy season begins. 🌟

Here you see an unsuccessful hunt of Arctic wolves Canis lupus tundrarum on muskoxen 🐺

Only every 10th hunt of the pack is successful - especially since only two wolves participated in this one. Sometimes Arctic wolves go without food for many days, but then eat up to 10 kg of meat at once 🍖️

The Arctic wolf inhabits vast areas of polar regions, even in polar night conditions during winter. To survive, the wolf has adapted to eat any food it can find 🍔

It's well adapted to life in the Arctic: can live for years in subzero temperatures, months without sunlight, and weeks without food ❄️

The Arctic wolf still inhabits its entire historical territory due to low competition with humans 🌎

This large predator measures 130-150 cm in length (without tail), 80-90 cm in height, and weighs up to 85 kg, with females being smaller 📏 Its lifespan is around 7 years 🕰️

🕷️ Meet the Peacock Spider (Maratus volans) 🦚

This tiny Australian jumping spider is only 5mm long, but its males have a big impact with their vibrant colors (orange, blue, and red) and unique courtship dance. Females are dull gray-brown, but the males' bright abdomens and quirky moves are sure to impress! 💃

To attract a mate, males vibrate their abdomens, unfurl their colorful fans, and lift their legs and bellies up and down, "dancing" from side to side. But beware: if the female isn't interested, she might just catch and eat her suitor! 😳

Did you know that the Peacock Spider's third pair of legs is longer and more colorful than the others, with a fluffy white tuft on the end? When not in use, the males fold up their bright fans and keep them hidden. 🤫

🐸 Meet the Desert Rain Frog (Breviceps macrops) 🌟

Found in Namibia and South Africa, this unique frog inhabits a narrow strip of sandy shores between the sea and sand dunes. It's plump, with bulging eyes, a short snout, short limbs, and webbed fingers. Its transparent belly skin reveals its internal organs! 🔍

Unlike most frogs, it develops directly from egg to adult, skipping the tadpole stage. Its sturdy body and small legs make jumping impossible, so it walks on sand instead. 🌀

What's unusual for a frog? It doesn't need water to survive! 🌟 It's nocturnal, spending the day in a 10-20 cm deep burrow where the sand is moist. In the morning, it burrows into the sand, leaving behind a small pile of loose sand. 🌀

🦎 Meet the stunning Blue Tree Monitor (Varanus macraei) 🌳, one of the most beautiful and vibrant monitor lizards found only on the island of Batanta in the Indonesian archipelago.

🙏 Named after Duncan MacRae, founder of the Rimba Reptile Park on the island of Bali, these magnificent reptiles thrive in tropical and subtropical forests with temperatures ranging from 25 to 40 °C and humidity levels of 80-100%.

🌟 Did you know? These monitors use their tails like an extra limb, grasping branches and tree trunks to maintain balance. Unlike chameleons, they can quickly wrap and unwrap their tails to adapt to any situation, even using it as a defense mechanism! 🌟

🦉 Meet the Great Grey Owl (Strix nebulosa), one of the largest owl species! 🌟 They can grow up to 80 cm in length, with a wingspan of 1.5m, but weigh only 700-800g (males) to 1kg (females).

📸 This wild, yet friendly owl is "hunting" in the open air near Oulu, Finland, and happily posing for cameras. In this video, it flies to catch a mouse, eats it right in front of the camera, and returns to its tree top perch.

🍔 Their diet consists mainly of small rodents (80-90%), as well as squirrels, small birds, frogs, and large insects. According to Finnish ornithologists, one owl can catch around 700 mice and voles in just 6 summer months! 🐭

☀️ Did you know that Great Grey Owls are sensitive to heat? During hot summer hours, they hide in the shade, spread their wings, lift their legs, and fluff their feathers to "ventilate" themselves. 🌟

🐱 Meet the Sand Cat (Felis margarita), the smallest wild cat species! 🌟 Their body length is 65-90 cm (with 40% being their tail), and they stand 24-30 cm tall at the shoulder. Adult males weigh 2.1-3.4 kg, while females are smaller.

👀 They have a distinctive appearance, with a large, flat head, big ears, and a bushy beard. Their paws are short and strong, with stiff hair on their paws to protect them from hot sand. Their coat is thick and soft, keeping them warm in cold desert nights.

🏠 To escape the scorching desert sun, they take shelter in old fox, mongoose, or porcupine burrows, or even dig their own shallow holes. Their diet consists mainly of small rodents, lizards, and insects. 🐜 Did you know that Sand Cats can survive without water for long periods, getting moisture from their prey? 💦

🌟 Meet the Green Vine Snake! 🐍

Found in Central and South America, this stunning snake can grow up to 150-200 cm in length, with a slender body of just 2 cm in diameter. 🌿 Its unique feature? Two large teeth in the back of its mouth that release venom, but only after "chewing" its prey. 💦

Don't worry, its venom isn't deadly to humans! A bite might cause mild numbness or tingling, but can sometimes trigger a serious allergic reaction. 🤕

This tree-dwelling beauty feeds on frogs, lizards, and small birds. Some Green Vine Snakes even specialize in catching hummingbirds, using the element of surprise while they sip nectar from flowers! 🐦💐

🦦 Meet the Brazilian Giant Otter! 🌟

This isn't your typical cute, European otter. The Brazilian Giant Otter is fearless and terrorizes its surroundings! 😱

Reaching lengths of 130-150 cm (plus a 70 cm tail), this freshwater animal is a force to be reckoned with. 🌟 It has a distinctive white or light-brown spot on its neck.

Unlike its European cousin, the Giant Otter is active during the day and isn't very shy. You can spot them in groups of 5-8 (sometimes up to 20!) along South American riverbanks. They live in large burrows, up to 10 meters long, and each family controls its own territory. 🏠

These otters hunt fish, snakes (including anacondas!), and water birds in the water, and rodents and bird eggs on land. They're truly apex predators! 🦊

🌟 Meet the Wandering Violin Mantis (Gongylus gongylodes) 🌟

Found in India and Sri Lanka, this unique mantis has extremely thin legs and extensive leaf-like protrusions. 🌱

It's not considered an aggressive species and occasionally sways its body back and forth, mimicking a twig in the wind. 💨

The Violin Mantis specializes in catching flying insects, snatching flies right out of the air! 🐜

They prefer flying prey and tend to leave each other alone, making them one of the few mantis species that can be safely kept in groups. 👫

Interesting fact: This mantis is a master of stealth, using its leaf-like protrusions to blend in with its surroundings, making it a formidable hunter. 🌿

🐦 The Loon (Gavia) - an ancient and beautiful northern waterbird. In northern cultures, there's a legend that flocks of loons, calling to each other in flight, escort the souls of lost sailors.

💦 Their skeleton bones are solid and heavy, unlike other birds, making them perfectly adapted to life in water. They don't even leave the water to sleep!

🌟 Loons, like penguins, hold the record for deepest dives. They've been caught by fishermen at depths of around 230 feet (70 meters).

❄️ Loons prefer cold waters of northern seas and lakes, found in Europe, Asia, and North America. They inhabit tundras, mountains, and forests, as long as there's water nearby. Some only come ashore to mate and lay eggs.

🦊 Meet the Tasmanian Devil! 🦊

The largest of all carnivorous marsupials, this stout and compact animal is about the size of a small dog, resembling a miniature bear. 🐻 Its body is 50-80 cm long, with a short and thick tail (23-30 cm) that stores fat reserves. When sick or starving, the tail becomes thin.

🍴 Extremely voracious, the Tasmanian Devil eats 15% of its body weight daily! 🤯 Its diet includes small to medium-sized mammals, birds, insects, snakes, amphibians, edible roots, and plant tubers. Often found near water bodies, it feeds on frogs and crayfish, and on the coast, it eats small sea creatures washed ashore. 🌟

🦅 At 4-6 years old, Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus Leucocephalus) reach maturity. They form lifelong pairs. Their courtship involves carefree flights together. 🌟

Flying in tandem allows the future pair to assess each other's condition. A healthy eagle can reach 65 km/h in horizontal flight and 160 km/h in a vertical dive. They soar through the clouds for minutes, and that's the end of the courtship. 💨

Footage from the movie "The Big Year". 🎥

🌴 Magnificent Frigatebird 🌟

Meet the Magnificent Frigatebird (Fregata magnificens), a large, agile seabird with brownish-black feathers, long narrow wings, and a deeply forked tail. Males have a striking red throat pouch that they inflate to attract females. Females are slightly larger, with white bellies and breasts.

🐟 These birds feed on fish, snatching them from the ocean's surface in mid-air (often flying fish). They also engage in "piracy" (kleptoparasitism), attacking other birds to make them regurgitate swallowed fish, which they then catch in flight.

📏 Reaching 90-115 cm in length and 2.15-2.45 m in wingspan, this is the largest frigatebird species. They inhabit tropical and subtropical waters along the coasts of the Americas, from northern Mexico to Peru in the Pacific and from Florida to southern Brazil in the Atlantic. 🌟