The Most Impressive Animal You've Seen in Real-Life (not in a zoo)
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I've seen crocodiles in Australia, but it's hard to see how impressive they are when they're mostly underwater. Monkeys are awesome though
Sentient
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I've had some pretty crazy encounters from my kayak. Many of them with sharks of all sizes, including Makos, Tigers, Hammerheads, Bullies and Whites (the latter of which being the most precarious because the largest of them thought my kayak was a small whale and nearly chomped my rudder off).
But far more incredible is having a fully grown humpback whale surface just feet away from the kayak, especially when it's heading for you at the time.
Watch from the 3.20 minute mark to see what I mean. Keep watching to see the still shots at the end to see just how big it really was and just how close it came.
[YT]BJWbcA-wabw[/YT]
In this shot the black blurry object in the foreground is my fishing rod holder.
I've also had some pretty interesting encounters with snakes in India (had a cobra hung around my neck) as well as monkeys, etc. But nothing compares to the gargantuan aliens in the ocean.
This was the precise nano second that I near shat myself
But far more incredible is having a fully grown humpback whale surface just feet away from the kayak, especially when it's heading for you at the time.
Watch from the 3.20 minute mark to see what I mean. Keep watching to see the still shots at the end to see just how big it really was and just how close it came.
[YT]BJWbcA-wabw[/YT]
In this shot the black blurry object in the foreground is my fishing rod holder.
I've also had some pretty interesting encounters with snakes in India (had a cobra hung around my neck) as well as monkeys, etc. But nothing compares to the gargantuan aliens in the ocean.
This was the precise nano second that I near shat myself
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Lion or elephant in Kenya! An elephant herd walked right past our jeep, I could have touched them but I felt that it would have the same effect on me as pinching a drunk Tank's butt at the local bar.
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Saw a Gila Monster when me and my friends used to go out collecting reptiles in AZ, was pretty awesome as it is extremely rare to see them roaming around in the wild as they spend something like 98% of their life underground.
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I'm the loser on the right. I cought this young thresher shark by the tail with my hands in the zodiac boat in the background (not kidding). It was injured because it had blood coming out of its mouth.
I've had many great times in this little boat. I even tried jumping on the back of a sea lion when it was next to the boat. That might be the stupidest thing I have done?
Also, I have posted this before but I got within 20 feet of two blue whales. You can only see one in the photo. the other was under water at the time of the pic.
I've had many great times in this little boat. I even tried jumping on the back of a sea lion when it was next to the boat. That might be the stupidest thing I have done?
Also, I have posted this before but I got within 20 feet of two blue whales. You can only see one in the photo. the other was under water at the time of the pic.
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Bumble Bee.
They are fucking awesome.
http://www.how-come.net/2009/08/17/is-it-true-that-bumblebees-shouldnt-be-able-to-fly/
They are fucking awesome.
http://www.how-come.net/2009/08/17/is-it-true-that-bumblebees-shouldnt-be-able-to-fly/
TrueGrit
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Was fishing with my old man one time and we saw this deer crossing the water in the shallows. My dad thought that was odd, and then we saw this huge wolf stalking it along the shoreline. It was memorizing to watch because as you grow up, at least in my area, there's this almost mythological feeling that surrounds wolves. I've always loved when the wolves started howling at night, just sit back and listen.
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i dont know about most impressive but i got to swim with wild seals in AUS, and they would mimic what you would do which was pretty neat... you spun they spun you flip theyd flip it was cool to interact with them.
American Bison. Was on a service trip in South Dakota in high school and they were on the side of the road. Fucking enormous.
Honorable Mention: Was visiting some family friends in Tucson, AZ with my dad and brother. They had an elevated jacuzzi and an infinity pool. A couple of us were sitting in the jacuzzi when a bobcat jumped up from the other side of the pool and started drinking out it. I'm from and live in the Washington DC area so seeing that was pretty cool and unexpected.
Honorable Mention: Was visiting some family friends in Tucson, AZ with my dad and brother. They had an elevated jacuzzi and an infinity pool. A couple of us were sitting in the jacuzzi when a bobcat jumped up from the other side of the pool and started drinking out it. I'm from and live in the Washington DC area so seeing that was pretty cool and unexpected.
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It wasn't a wild bobcat, it was owned by my boy. Also, I'm going by what he told me the weight of it was and he did tell me it was really overweight as well. I don't know for sure if the fucker was 100 lbs, cus I never put it on a scale, but he sure looks like it (or at least close to it)
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I'm from New England and have never been on any type of animal sight seeing, so my list is relatively mundane. I've had deer and moose in my back yard. I live on a river, so I've also had ducks, geese, herons, and snapping turtles out back at various times. Have had bats get in the house and had to shoo them back outside.
Closest encounter that I've had that was actually notable: One time at college I was walking back to my dorm at night and came around a corner to a skunk waddling along the footpath about 10 feet away. It ignored me and went about its business.
Also, had one of these dudes cross the road in front of me when driving:
They run with a sort of undulating movement that's strange to see for the first time.
Closest encounter that I've had that was actually notable: One time at college I was walking back to my dorm at night and came around a corner to a skunk waddling along the footpath about 10 feet away. It ignored me and went about its business.
Also, had one of these dudes cross the road in front of me when driving:
They run with a sort of undulating movement that's strange to see for the first time.
Phreaxer
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Few things. Was boogie boarding at the beach and had a dolphin playing in the surf probably no more than 40 feet away... pretty close when you consider they can kill sharks much larger than themselves...
Got withen 50 yards of a moose while in a national park (dumb idea in hindsight...)
Had a gila monster in my driveway (nasty little bastard)
Was jogging and came around a corner to come face to face, literately less than 10 feet from what I thought was a german sheperd at first, until I realized there was no leash attached, it was lighter in color and had a different shaped head and tail... It was a LARGE coyote. I think we were equally scared of one another because after staring at eachother for a few seconds, it turned and ran away.
Just the other day I walked down the block to get the mail, turned around to head back to the house and at the corner between me and my house was another coyote. Not as big as the first one, but still... pretty nervewracking considering my son will often open the front door and step out to talk to me when I'm getting the mail... Thankfully he didn't that night. I'm not sure how my dog would have reacted to the coyote. As I walked back toward the house, the coyote ran back up the street and into the 'nature preserve/hillside' between the two house at the end of the street.
Got withen 50 yards of a moose while in a national park (dumb idea in hindsight...)
Had a gila monster in my driveway (nasty little bastard)
Was jogging and came around a corner to come face to face, literately less than 10 feet from what I thought was a german sheperd at first, until I realized there was no leash attached, it was lighter in color and had a different shaped head and tail... It was a LARGE coyote. I think we were equally scared of one another because after staring at eachother for a few seconds, it turned and ran away.
Just the other day I walked down the block to get the mail, turned around to head back to the house and at the corner between me and my house was another coyote. Not as big as the first one, but still... pretty nervewracking considering my son will often open the front door and step out to talk to me when I'm getting the mail... Thankfully he didn't that night. I'm not sure how my dog would have reacted to the coyote. As I walked back toward the house, the coyote ran back up the street and into the 'nature preserve/hillside' between the two house at the end of the street.
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Well I can tell you the least impressive animal i ever encountered was that fuckin copper head that bit me when i was minding my own business at a national park...:icon_evil
But as far as most impressive...
I saw a whole school of sting rays while snorkeling once. Probably pretty normal for scuba divers and snorkelers, but I'm your typical tourist snorkeler that goes out with a guided tour once every 3 years when I find myself in a tropic locale...well this one time me and my wife went out on our own - no guides to tell us what's safe or exactly where to go, just some gear and an ocean. Sure as shit, within 10 minutes there's a school of sting rays swimming below us.
I've also been in the water with otters. We were swimming and they would pop their heads up, go back under, then pop up somewhere on the other side of us - like they were playing with us.
Every time I've been to Florida I see an alligator somewhere..once was in a ditch along the side of the road, once next to a pond on a golf course and once crossing a sidewalk in a residential subdivision.
But as far as most impressive...
I saw a whole school of sting rays while snorkeling once. Probably pretty normal for scuba divers and snorkelers, but I'm your typical tourist snorkeler that goes out with a guided tour once every 3 years when I find myself in a tropic locale...well this one time me and my wife went out on our own - no guides to tell us what's safe or exactly where to go, just some gear and an ocean. Sure as shit, within 10 minutes there's a school of sting rays swimming below us.
I've also been in the water with otters. We were swimming and they would pop their heads up, go back under, then pop up somewhere on the other side of us - like they were playing with us.
Every time I've been to Florida I see an alligator somewhere..once was in a ditch along the side of the road, once next to a pond on a golf course and once crossing a sidewalk in a residential subdivision.
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years ago during the 90s we all used to skate at this one park here in Queens. we used to ALWAYS see this one black squirrel chase all the other squirrels. shit was hilarious, like it would literally torment & fuck with every other squirrel. years later I saw it again at the very same park. this time it had a ton of battle damage/scars. but it was still chasing away other squirrels.
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"likes to fight" squirrel seems like an a-hole.
Mark Andeya
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Where I live now, I would say this one enormous hawk that lives near my. I've seen it a few times, once getting to within about 3 meters of it, as it was perched on a low tree branch. Really awesome animal.
But, back in Brazil when I was a kid, I remember seeing amazing crap when I would go visit my aunt and uncle in the countryside. Spiders the size of my head and snakes the size of me. So terrifying, but so impressive. Never seen a jaguar or anything lol, but that would have been awesome huh?
But, back in Brazil when I was a kid, I remember seeing amazing crap when I would go visit my aunt and uncle in the countryside. Spiders the size of my head and snakes the size of me. So terrifying, but so impressive. Never seen a jaguar or anything lol, but that would have been awesome huh?
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Squirrels are such stupid little animals. I saw one of them get run over before...by a bicycle. It was sitting on a hand rail on a foot bridge. A couple bicyclists come by and it freaks out and jumps right in front of them. It manages to miss the front wheel only to get run over by the rear tire. I mean seriously: how does such a small animal manage to get run over by a one inch wide tire?
Black Bear (my friend & I were fishing and the bear came out of the woods, scared us shitless) or whale. Not sure what type of whale it was, but sure as fuck wasn't expecting to see one when my then-girlfriend and I went fishing about 5-6 miles off the coast of North Carolina.
