7 Phenomenal Animals

Mike, the Headless Chicken: Lived for 18 months with its head cut off

Mike the Headless Chicken (April 1945 – March 1947) was a Wyandotte rooster (cockerel) that lived for 18 months after its head had been cut off. Thought by many to be a hoax, the bird was taken by its owner to the University of Utah in Salt Lake City to establish its authenticity.

On Monday September 10, 1945, farmer Lloyd Olsen of Fruita, Colorado, had his mother-in-law around for supper and was sent out to the yard by his wife to bring back a chicken. Olsen failed to completely decapitate the five-and-a-half month old bird named Mike. The axe missed the jugular vein, leaving one ear and most of the brain stem intact. Once his fame had been established, Mike began a career of touring sideshows in the company of such other creatures as a two-headed calf. He was also photographed for dozens of magazines and papers, featuring in Time and Life magazines. Olsen drew criticism from some for keeping the headless chicken alive. In March 1947, at a motel in Phoenix on a stopover while traveling back home from tour, Mike started choking in the middle of the night. As the Olsens had inadvertently left their feeding and cleaning syringes at the sideshow the day before, they were unable to save Mike.

Oscar, the cat: predicted the impending death of terminally ill patients

Oscar was adopted as a kitten from an animal shelter and grew up in the third-floor dementia unit at Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Providence, Rhode Island. The unit treats people with Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease and other illnesses, most of whom are in the end stage of their illnesses (where death is imminent) and are generally unaware of their surroundings.

After about six months, the staff noticed that Oscar, just like the doctors and nurses, would make his own rounds. Oscar would sniff and observe patients, then curl up to sleep with certain ones. What surprised the staff was that the patients with whom Oscar would sleep would generally die within two to four hours after Oscar's arrival. One of the first cases involved a patient who had a blood clot in her leg that was ice cold at the time. Oscar wrapped his body around her leg and stayed until the woman died. In another instance, the doctor had made a determination of impending death based on the patient's condition, while Oscar simply walked away, causing the doctor to believe that Oscar's streak (12 at the time) had ended. However, it would be later discovered that the doctor's prognosis was simply 10 hours too early – Oscar later visited the patient, who died two hours later.

Oscar's accuracy (currently standing at more than 25 reported instances) led the staff to institute a new and unusual protocol – once he is discovered sleeping with a patient, staff will call family members to notify them of the patient's (expected) impending death.

Most of the time the patient's family has no issue with Oscar being present at the time of death; on those occasions when he is removed from the room at the family's request, he is known to pace back and forth in front of the door and meow in protest. When present, Oscar will stay by the patient until he or she takes their last earthly breath – after which Oscar will sit up, look around, then depart the room so quietly that one barely notices.

Abilities aside, what makes his "last hour" companionship more puzzling is that Oscar is described by Dr. David Dosa as "not a cat that's friendly to [living] people." One example of this was described in his NEJM article. When an elderly woman with a walker passed him by during his rounds, Oscar "[let] out a gentle hiss, a rattlesnake-like warning that [said] 'leave me alone.'"

Tillamook Cheddarm, the dog: world's most successful animal painter

Tillamook Cheddar is a Jack Russell Terrier from Brooklyn, New York. Widely regarded as the world's preeminent canine artist, she has already had seventeen solo exhibitions in the U.S. and Europe. Tillie is eight years old.

In July 2005 the artist gave birth to six healthy puppies. One of her sons, Doc Chinook Strongheart Cheddar, continues to live with her. Thus far, Doc has not followed his mother in her artistic forays. Her first official biography, Portrait of the Dog as a Young Artist by F. Bowman Hastie III, is published by Sasquatch Books (2006).

The artist's primary process is a dynamic color transfer technique. In preparation for each of Tillie's works, her assistants assemble a touch-sensitive recording device by affixing pigment-coated vellum to a sheet of lithograph paper backed by mat board. The artist takes the prepared "canvas" in her mouth and brings it to her workspace. Working on the outside surface, she applies pressure with teeth and claws in a methodic ritual marked by dramatic shifts in tempo and intensity. The resultant sharp and sweeping intersecting lines complement the artist's delicate paw prints and subtle tongue impressions, composing an expressionistic image that is revealed on the paper beneath when she is finished. She works with shocking intensity, sometimes to the point of destroying her creations.

Alex, the parrot: could count to six, identify colors and even express frustration

Alex (1976 - September 6, 2007) was an African Grey Parrot and the subject of a thirty-year (1977-2007) experiment by animal psychologist Irene Pepperberg, initially at the University of Arizona and later at Harvard and Brandeis University. Pepperberg bought Alex in a regular pet shop when he was about one year old. The name Alex is actually an acronym for Avian Learning EXperiment.

Before Pepperberg's work with Alex, it was widely believed in the scientific community that birds were not intelligent and could only use words by mimicking, but Alex's accomplishments indicated that birds may be able to reason on a basic level and use words creatively. Pepperberg wrote that Alex's intelligence was on a par with that of dolphins and great apes. She also reported that Alex had the intelligence of a five-year-old human and had not reached his full potential by the time he died. She said that the bird had the emotional level of a human two-year-old at the time of his death.

Alex's death came as a complete surprise; the average life span for African grey parrots is fifty years. He had appeared healthy the day before, and was found dead in the morning. According to a press release issued by the Alex Foundation, "Alex was found to be in good health at his most recent annual physical about two weeks [before his death]. According to the vet who conducted the necropsy, there was no obvious cause of death." According to Pepperberg, Alex's loss will not halt the research but will be a large setback. The lab has two other birds, but their skills do not approach Alex's.

On October 4, 2007 The Alex Foundation posted the Pathology results: "Alex died quickly. He had a sudden, unexpected catastrophic event associated with arterosclerosis ("hardening of the arteries"). It was either a fatal arrhythmia, heart attack or stroke, which caused him to die suddenly with no suffering. There was no way to predict his demise. All of his tests, including his cholesterol level and asper levels, came back normal earlier that week. His death could not be connected to his current diet or his age; our veterinarian said that she has seen similar events in young (<10 year old) birds on healthy diets. Most likely, genetics or the same kind of low-level (impossible to detect in birds as yet) inflammatory disease that is related to heart disease in humans was responsible."

Washoe, the chimpanzee: knew sign language

Washoe (around September of 1965 - October 30, 2007) was a chimpanzee who was the first non-human to learn American Sign Language. She also passed on her knowledge to three other chimpanzees, Loulis, Tatu and Dar. As part of a research experiment on animal language acquisition, Washoe developed a modest ability to communicate with humans using ASL. She was named for Washoe County, Nevada, where she was raised and taught to use ASL. Washoe had lived at Central Washington University since 1980; on October 31, 2007, officials from the Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute on the CWU campus announced that she had died the previous day.

Oliver, the "Humanzee": a human-chimp hybrid

Oliver was acquired as a young animal (around 2 years old) in the early 1970s by trainers Frank and Janet Berger. Supposedly, the chimpanzee had been caught in the Democratic Republic of Congo (then Zaire). Some physical and behavioral evidence led the Bergers to believe Oliver was a creature other than a chimpanzee, perhaps a human-chimp hybrid: Oliver possesses a flatter face than his fellow chimpanzees (as his front teeth were removed young, he did not develop an exaggerated prognathus jaw); Oliver was habitually bipedal (before being struck with arthritis), never walking on his knuckles like his chimpanzee peers; and Oliver may have preferred human females over chimpanzee females. During a recent Discovery Channel special, Janet Berger herself claimed that Oliver was becoming attracted to her when he reached the age of 16. He mounted her and tried to mate with her. After he tried it several times it became apparent that Oliver was a threat to Janet, and had to be sold. Still, Oliver was not the clownish performer his chimp peers were, and other chimps avoided him. Some people claim he did not possess a typical odor common to chimpanzees.

Cacareco, the Rhino: won Sao Paulo's council elections with 100,000 votes

Cacareco, a rhinoceros at the São Paulo zoo, was a candidate for the 1958 city council elections with the intention of protesting against political corruption. Electoral officials, of course, did not accept Cacareco's candidacy, but he eventually won 100,000 votes, more than any other party in that same election (which was also marked by rampant absenteeism).

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10 Alien-Looking Places on Earth

Dry Valleys (Antartica)

Antarctica's Dry Valleys, with their barren gravel-strewn floors, are said to be the most similar place on Earth to Mars. Its fascinating landscape, located within Victoria Land west of McMurdo Sound, get almost no snowfall, and except for a few steep rocks they are the only continental part of Antarctica devoid of ice. The terrain looks like something not of this Earth; the valley’s floor occasionally contains a perennially frozen lake with ice several meters thick. Under the ice, in the extremely salty water, live mysterious simple organisms, a subject of on-going research.

Socotra Island (Indian Ocean)

This island simply blows away any notion about what is considered “normal” for a landscape on Earth, you’d be inclined to think you were transported to another planet - or traveled to another era of Earth’s history. Socotra Island, which is part of a group of four islands, has been geographically isolated from mainland Africa for the last 6 or 7 million years. Like the Galapagos Islands, the island is teeming with 700 extremely rare species of flora and fauna, a full 1/3 of which are endemic.

The climate is harsh, hot and dry, and yet - the most amazing plant life thrives there. Situated in the Indian Ocean 250 km from Somalia and 340 km from Yemen, the wide sandy beaches rise to limestone plateaus full of caves (some 7 kilometers in length) and mountains up to 1525 meters high. The trees and plants of this island were preserved thru the long geological isolation, some varieties being 20 million years old.

Rio Tinto (Spain)

The giant opencast mines of Rio Tinto create a surreal, almost lunar landscape. Its growth has consumed not only mountains and valleys but even entire villages, whose populations had to be resettled in specially built towns nearby. Named after the river which flows through the region-itself named for the reddish streaks that colour its water-Rio Tinto has become a landscape within a landscape. The river red water is highly acidic (pH 1.7—2.5) and rich in heavy metals.

Kliluk, the Spotted Lake (Canada)

In the hot sun of summer, the water of Spotted Lake, located in British Columbia and Washington, evaporates and crystallizes the minerals, forming many white-rimmed circles: shallow pools that reflect the mineral content of the water in shades of blues and greens. It contains one of the worlds highest concentrations of minerals: magnesium sulphate (Epsom salts), calcium and sodium sulphates, plus eight other minerals and traces of four more, including silver and titanium.

The Indians soaked away aches and ailments in the healing mud and waters. One story cites a truce in a battle to allow both warring tribes to tend to their wounded in the Spotted Lake, "Kliluk".

Salar de Uyuni (Bolivia)

Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni is perhaps one of the most spectacular landscapes in the world. A magnificent area with an impressive salt desert (the world's largest), active volcanoes, tall cacti islands and geyser flats, it exists like an alien mirage, something completely out-of-this-world. Oddee's crew went there in July 2008, be sure to check it out.

Vale da Lua (Brazil)

Vale da Lua (Moon Valley) is a water eroded rock formation with natural swimming pools, placed on a river in the brazilian cerrado forest. Located at Chapada, 38 km from Alto Paraíso de Goiás, it’s rock formations are one of the oldest on the planet, made of quartz with outcrops of crystals. (Photo by: Alex)

Blood Pond Hot Spring (Japan)

Blood Pond Hot Spring is one of the "hells" (jigoku) of Beppu, Japan, nine spectacular natural hot springs that are more for viewing rather than bathing. The “blood pond hell” features a pond of hot, red water, colored as such by iron in the waters. It’s allegedly the most photogenic of the nine hells. (Photos: L Plater and phototravel).

The Stone Forest (China)

The Shilin (Chinese for stone forest) is an impressive example of karst topography. Its rocks are made of limestone and are formed by water percolating the ground’s surface and eroding away everything but the pillars. It’s known since the Ming Dynasty as the 'First Wonder of the World.'

The Richat Structure (Mauritania)

This spectacular landform in Mauritania in the southwestern part of the Sahara desert, called the Richat Structure, is so huge with a diameter of 30 miles that it is visible from space. The formation was originally thought to be caused by a meteorite impact but now geologists believe it is a product of uplift and erosion. The cause of its circular shape is still a mystery.

Eisriesenwelt Ice Caves (Austria)

Ice caves are very different from normal caves. They have a strange feeling about them, as though they are not from this planet, and one has just temporarily stepped into their world when spelunking their depths.

There are many ice caves throughout the world, but the Eisriesenwelt Ice Caves in Austria are some of the largest known to man. They are located within the Tennengebirge Mountains near Salzburg and stretch for a remarkable 40 kilometers. Only a portion of the labyrinth is open to tourists but it's enough to get a taste of what the remaining network is like: a truly mesmerizing palate of Mother Nature's handicraft.

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10 Amazing Staircases Around the Globe

Spiral Stair (Australia)

Fascinating spiral stairs at Garvan Institute in Sydney, Australia. 6.5 revs and five stories from top to bottom.

(Link | Photo)

Spiral Staircase at the Vatican Museum (Italy)

The Vatican Museums spiral staircase is one of the most photographed in the world, and certainly one of the most beautiful. Designed by Giuseppe Momo in 1932, the broad steps are somewhere between a ramp and a staircase. The stairs are actually two separate helixes, one leading up and the other leading down, that twist together in a double helix formation. Little did the Vatican Museum know in 1932 that this formation would come to represent life itself, with the discovery of the double helical DNA strand. (Link)

Loretto Chapel Staircase (USA)

The Loretto Chapel is a chapel in Santa Fe, New Mexico, known for its unusual spiral staircase that is an exceptional work of carpentry. The construction and builder of the staircase are considered a miracle by the Sisters of Loretto and many who visit it, because it had no central support (a support was added later). The resulting staircase is an impressive work of carpentry. It ascends twenty feet, making two complete revolutions up to the choir loft without the use of nails or apparent center support. It has been surmised that the central spiral of the staircase is narrow enough to serve as a central beam. Nonetheless there was no attachment unto any wall or pole in the original stairway. Instead of metal nails, the staircase was constructed using dowels or wooden pegs. The wood for the staircase cannot be found anywhere in the region. The stairs had 33 steps, the age of Jesus when he died. The mystery had never been satisfactorily solved as to who the carpenter was or where he got his lumber, since there were no reports of anyone seeing lumber delivered or even seeing the man come and go while the construction was being done. Since he left before the Mother Superior could pay him, the Sisters of Loretto offered a reward for the identity of the man, but it was never claimed.

Note: some historians claime that most of this story is a myth. (Thanks, drxwes) (Link 1 | Link 2 | Photo)

Tulip Staircase at the Queen's House (England)

The elegant Tulip Stairs in the Queen's House are the first geometric self-supporting spiral stairs in Britain. Although called the 'Tulip Stairs,' it is thought that the stylized flowers in the wrought-iron balustrade are actually fleurs-de-lis, as this was the emblem of the Bourbon family of which Queen Henrietta Maria (wife of Charles I) was a member. The Tulip Stairs are also the location of the Rev R. W. Hardy's famous 'ghost' photograph taken on 19 June 1966, which when developed revealed what appear to be two or three shrouded figures on the staircase. (Link | Photo)

Staircase at Lello Bookshop (Portugal)

This interesting grand staircase in Lello Bookshop in Portugal stands ominous and heavy. The steps are like two channels pouring and swirling to a single point. The side view gives you a closer idea of the immense curves and giddy sinking feeling to each step. (Link)

San Francisco's Tiled Steps - World's Longest Mosaic Stair (USA)

The 16th Avenue Tiled Steps, perhaps the world's longest mosaic staircase (163 steps, 82' high), was conceived and fabricated by Irish ceramicist Aileen Barr and San Francisco mosaic artist Colette Crutcher. Over a two and a half year period, a tireless group of neighbors raised funds and lobbied city government to make the project, unveiled in August 2005, a reality. Over 2000 handmade tiles and 75,000 fragments of tile, mirror and stained glass went into the finished piece, located at 16th Ave. and Moraga, in San Francisco. (Link)

"Umschreibung" at KPMG Building Munich (Germany)

This artistic staircase designed by Olafur Eliasson is called Umschreibung (Rewriting), and was completed in 2004. It's in the courtyard of the global accounting firm KPMG in Munich. (Link)

Stairs at the Longchamp Store (New York)

Constructed in 1¼” hot-rolled steel and taking six months to be built, the stair landscape weighs 55 tons and is an installation of ribbon-like forms that divide and converge to form a topography of walkways, landings and steps. (Link)

Vertigo Staircase at the QVB Building (Australia)

This image shows “The Grand Staircase" of Sydney's Grand Queen Victoria Building. This building, now affectionately known as the QVB, was designed by George McRae and completed in 1898, replacing the original Sydney markets on the site. Built as a monument to the long reigning monarch, construction took place in dire times, as Sydney was in a severe recession. The elaborate Romanesque architecture was specially planned for the grand building so the Government could employ many out-of-work craftsmen – stonemasons, plasterers, and stained window artists – in a worthwhile project. (Link)

Bridge-stair at the Traversinertobel (Switzerland)

The bridge over the Traversinertobel, a side valley of the Via Mala, is the latest structure of this kind designed by engineer Jürg Conzett and his associate Rolf Bachofner . They solved the problem of connecting two different elevations over the gorge by creating a staircase. The staircase replaces a rope bridge for hikers that was wiped out by a rock slide. This suspended footbridge spans a distance of 56 metres, with a difference in height of 22 metres between the two ends. (Link 1 | Link 2)

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