Hydra (Microscopic)

Hydra

Hydra are truly fascinating small aquatic animals. Most hydra are tiny, reaching a maximum of only about 30 mm long when fully extended. They are barely visible to the naked eye and a hand lens or microscope are needed to be able to see them properly. When the body is extended with the tentacles waving in the water, they resemble a small piece of string which has become frayed at one end. If disturbed, a hydra will contract its body and tentacles, so that it now resembles a small 'blob'.

Straw Itch Mite (Microscopic)

Straw Itch Mite

Itch mites develop from an egg to a larva, nymph and adult. The life cycle usually takes two to four weeks but this depends on the mite species and the weather. Female mites can lay up to 200 to 300 eggs.Itch mites are extremely small, normally only 0.2mm long, but a female engorged with eggs can reach 2mm.Straw itch mites live on the larvae of several stored product pests such as the Angoumois grain moth, the saw-toothed grain beetle, the pea weevil and the cowpea weevil.

E.coli Insulin Factory (GMOs)

E.coli Insulin Factory

Bacteria have not only their normal DNA, they also have pieces of circular DNA called plasmids. Plasmids are a wonderfully ally for biologists who desire to get bacteria to produce very specific proteins. The plasmids conveniently can be cut, fused with other DNA and then reabsorbed by bacteria. The bacteria easily incorporate the new DNA information into their metabolism. This “recombining” of DNA is called RECOMBINANT DNA.

What is GMOs

Amazon Rainforest Creature Album (Red-Bellied Piranhas)

Red-Bellied Piranhas

The quintessential terror of the Amazon River, so widely feared that they have inspired a number of questionable Hollywood movies, red-bellied piranhas are actually primarily scavengers. That’s not to say they won’t attack healthy creatures; after all, given that they can grow to be over 30 centimeters (12 in) long and swim around in large groups, they tend to be more than a match for most animals. Like all piranhas, red-bellies have incredibly sharp teeth, one row on each of their powerful upper and lower jaws. These teeth are interlocking, which makes them perfect for tearing and rending the flesh of their prey. Their fearsome reputation mainly comes from sights of their “feeding frenzies,” where groups of piranhas will congregate on their unlucky prey and strip it to the bone within minutes. These attacks are rare and are usually the result of starvation or provocation.

Amazon Rainforest Creature Album (Spider-shaped decoys)

Spider-shaped decoys

As if spiders weren't frightening enough (to many, anyway), here's a spider that makes designs in its webs that look like spiders, but are much larger than the web-builders themselves. The animal is almost certainly a new species, said Torres, in a release from Rainforest Expeditions. It's thought that the spider-shaped design is a defense mechanism that is meant to distract or confuse predators, wrote Torres, who originally spotted the spiders.
"Because of the spider's behavior and appearance, I thought that it might be a new species," Torres said in the statement. "After contacting spider experts, we think it is likely in the genusCyclosa, which is known for piling debris in its web for defense against predators but has never been recorded to do it in such a defined pattern as this particular discovery."

Amazon Rainforest Creature Album (Brazilian Wandering Spider)

Brazilian Wandering Spider

This creature has the distinction of being the world’s most venomous spider (in the Guinness Book of Records) but the edge is taken off its scariness slightly but the fact that there’s an effective antivenom available to counteract the very, very toxic venom. So as long as it bites you near the antivenom, you’re fine! In fact, one study suggested that in a third of all bites, it doesn’t even deposit the venom and in another third, it only deposits a small amount. Practically a teddy bear, then!
Although it’d be hard to explain that to the British grocery clerk who found one in a box of bananas in Gravesend in 2008. The store was closed until animal officers arrived to take the spider away and humanely put it down. It was deemed “too dangerous” to go near photographers. Poor thing clearly wandered that bit too far!

Amazon Rainforest Creature Album (Vampire Fish)

Payara (Vampire Fish)

Anything with the name “vampire fish” should automatically be recognized as scary (even after Twilight), and payara are no exception. They are absolutely ferocious predators, capable of devouring fish up to half their own body size. Given that they can grow up to 1.2 meters (four feet) long, this is no mean feat. A large part of their diet is made up of piranhas, which should give you some idea of how tough these fanged fiends can be. They get their name from the two tusks that sprout from their lower jaw, which can grow up to 15 centimeters (six inches) long and which they use to literally impale their prey after viciously lunging at them. Their fangs are so big, in fact, that they have special holes in their upper jaw to avoid impaling themselves.

Amazon Rainforest Creature Album (Anaconda)

Anaconda

If you don’t like snakes, look away now because this is a really, really big snake. The anaconda never stops growing, and can reach 40 stone in mass and 21 feet in length. The good news is that it isn’t venomous – the bad news is that it has other ways of killing its prey. Its preferred method is to suffocate the prey by squeezing it until it can’t breathe and then swallowing it whole, without chewing. It takes a week to digest its food so doesn’t eat very often but when it’s hungry, no-one is safe…including humans!