Listener Questions: Coot Feet???

love answering your animal questions. Also, doing these special Q and A episodes are really fun and relaxing, especially around the winter season when I'm full of eggnog and trying to hibernate. Don't worry, I'm gonna have regular episodes of this winter, including a couple of holiday specials and an episode I'm really buzzed about. But I think I'll do one more of these Q and A s in a

couple of weeks. Also, if you have any evolutionary biology or behavioral psycho pology questions that you would like to hear answered on the show, please send me an email at Creature Feature Pod at gmail dot com. So let's dive right into your amazing listener questions. I reached out to Twitter and through the show to get some of

your questions, and I am so impressed, you guys. These are amazing questions and they give me so much to work with because they have incredibly fascinating stories behind them. So first question is from Undaunted Zephyr on Twitter, and their question is why do baby American coots look like they are a little bit on fire? Which is really funny. Baby American coot so coots are a type of waterfowl, a bird that lives on the water, and their babies

do look a little bit on fire. There, these cute little chicks, but their heads are sort of orangy red and their beak are reddish, and it looks like, yeah, like their heads are on fire. So first let's give some information on coots. So American coots again a type of water fowl. They swim and live partly on the water. Like ducks. They actually look a bit like ducks, but despite its duck like appearance, they are not at all that closely related to ducks. In fact, they're not even

in the same order as ducks. They are actually rails. So the American coot are all black with a white bill, although females are a little bit more of an ashy color and they have bright red eyes. So, like I said, there in the rail family, which are birds that are found all over the world that often inhabit wetlands. So when you get a look at a coot's feet, you'll actually realize how much unlike a duck they actually are.

So instead of those cute little duck paddle feet, coots have these long segmented toes where each area of the toe between the joints has a leaflike shape, and it looks really remarkable. It actually, to me looks a bit like a succulent plant, if that makes sense, because they're also a yellowish green color, and it it looks, I don't know, it looks like part like Giarmo del Toro

creature monster, part plant, part alien. It's really cool. It's hard to describe them, so I'll definitely include an image in the show notes. But you can also just like look for American coot feet and I promise it won't be weird. So these weirdly shaped feet allow them to be as mobile on land as they are in the water, So you know how hard it is to walk on land with swim fins or scuba fins, and you've seen

ducks walk on land, they're not like super agile. So being able to bend their toes and actually each you know, part of their toe is between the joints, having their own little paddle on it allows them to swim really efficiently and walk on land really well, because American quotes actually spend a good amount of time on land, and the feet allow them to navigate with ease. They also serve a couple of other interesting purposes, so the feet helps them in fights, which is cool, I guess uh.

And they also actually will take off from water, so they'll do a water take off where they actually run kind of skimming along the surface of the water while beating their wings. And those segmented feet with the with the big surface area on each part of their toes actually gives their feet a lot of surface area that will push against the water tension of the surface of the body of water and allows them to get a little bit of left as they're trying to do take off.

So it's really interesting, like if you look at other animals that can kind of do this sort of run all on the water, like Jesus lizards as they're called or or water water walking lizards. They actually have sort of similar situation going on with their feet where they have like this, you know, kind of like webbing and then the broad surface area that allows them to uh skim across the water like uh like dash and the incredibles. So onto the listener question about these amazing birds, which

is why do the babies look like they're on fire? So, like I mentioned earlier, coot chicks have red scalps, red feathers on their neck, and red beaks, which are actually traits they lose as they become adults. And it's actually really really interesting why they're redheads. I'm not biased here, I'm not just saying this because I'm a red head

and I think redheads are cool. Anyways, So the bright coloration of these chicks heads helps signal the parents to feed the chicks, and interestingly, it helps the parents play favorites. So this is really fascinating type of signaling. So often in nature, when you have a bright color in an animal, it is signaling something. It's either sexual signaling where you're like, hey, I'm attractive, i'm healthy, come mate with me. It could be a pisimtism, where you're like, hey, I'm actually poisonous,

stay away from me, like poison dart frogs. Um. It can be you know, I'm venomous, like with with snakes. It can also be dishonest signaling, like you could be mimicking something poisonous. So it's really really interesting. This is a special case of signaling that these chicks are doing, which is the brighter the coloration on the chick's head of this red, fiery color, the more the parents will

feed the chicks. So the less colorful chicks actually get kind of bullied by the parents, who pick them up by the scruff of their necks and shake them if they get too close to the other chicks. So this seems really sad, like, oh, why would they play favorites with their own chicks, Like what's the deal? Well, actually, so the more brightly colored chicks are younger and weaker than the less brightly colored chicks, So the younger the chicks,

the brighter they are. And also it means like when they're younger, they're more vulnerable, so the older chicks are more likely to be able to get food for themselves, so the parents when they are trying to make this

strategic decision of who they give their attention to. They're actually giving their attention to the younger, more vulnerable chicks who are more brightly colored, because they are less likely to be able to survive without that extra attention, whereas the older chicks, you know, they actually are getting to the age where they can probably get some food for themselves.

So by even though it seems kind of cruel, by coddling the younger chicks and chasing off the older chicks, they're ensuring that the most chicks possible will be able to reach adulthead, which I feel, as a younger blaying myself, I feel like this is a real good argument for me to get coddled, you know what I'm saying. Anyways, in evolutionary biology terms, this means that that red coloration on the chicks is an honest indicator of being weaker,

which is really interesting. It's a it's a pretty rare type of signal, like we don't usually animals don't like say like, hey look at me, I'm a weakly, But in this case, by letting their parents know that they are younger and weaker, the parents are able to devote more attention to them more likely to help them reach adulthood. So that is a really interesting question. I think that was. It's it's always fascinating to me how a very simple question about like, hey, why is this thing this color

can lead to such an extraordinary answer. All right, So onto the next question. So this is from David Krauss on Twitter, who asks how do spiders, much to my personal chagrin, day moving in temperatures that freeze out most insects. So I'm gonna admit that I actually don't know where spiders rank in their winter hardiness to other arthur pods

or two insects. But spiders don't really like the cold, and the only way they survive in the winter is by finding warmer areas like leaf litter, which is, you know, like on the forest floor you have a bunch of leaf and decaying things that actually can be a little bit warmer than staying out in the in the snow or decaying would or hey, your home. That's why you find a lot of spiders in the winter. Probably, So the reason they don't become spider sickles, you know, just

totally frozen, is they actually have anti freeze compounds. In their blood. So if you're a listener of the podcast, you may know that this is not too uncommon, like there are other animals out there who have these. Basically, they are anti freeze protein that prevent uh ice crystals from forming in the blood and that prevents the cells, the blood cells and other cells in your tissue from basically exploding from from being frozen. And one thing to

note is that spider blood is called hemo lymph. There you go. If you squash a spider and you get a bunch of goo on you, you can be like, oh no, I got hemo lymph on me. That's what I do anyways. Uh So, spiders, despite having that anti freeze compound in their blood, uh they actually still need shelter in the winter. So that's why they like to come inside your homes for some holiday cheer. They're not

trying to spook you. In my opinion, as long as they're not venomous species, I'd say give them little tiny mugs of hot bug juice and ate little team ins and like a little like a little winter hat or like a little tuk or something. I think that'd be cute alright. A sort of related ish question from m V. Bramley on Twitter is what is the deadliest bug in America? And what are the chances of a swarm of them descending on Washington, d C? Anytime soon? Asking for an electorate?

So the deadliest bug in North America is actually a little bit surprising. It is bees and wasps. So you might think of like the most venomous bug or Arthur Potter insect as being the most dangerous or deadliest, but it turns out it's really a combination of factors that makes bees and to slightly lesser extent, wasps the most deadly insects in America. In North America, So the reason they're so dangerous is the frequency of their stings, like

the likelihood that you're going to be stung. There as a bunch of bees out, Obviously we want more um bees around. There have been some struggles with their population recently, but still you're much more likely to encounter a b You're also much more likely to frighten a bee in a way that's going to make them want to sting you. Whereas spiders, even the more venomous ones are pretty reclusive.

I mean, brown recluses are called brown recluses. Uh, and while there they will use their venom to bite if they need to. They try to, like most of their strategy is just trying to stay away from you. Whereas bees, while they don't want to sting you, they're they're hesitant to do that because it is very costly for the bee,

it will result in the worker bees death. But you know, she doesn't really necessarily want to sting unless she really feels like you're threatening, and especially if she feels like you're threatening the hive. So the reason though, while their venom is not that potent, I mean, anyone who's gotten stung by bee knows that it's not pleasant, but it's

not super potent. However, despite not being the most venomous insect in North America, beastings can often cause allergic reactions, which is actually the more dangerous aspect of the beastings. So an allergic reaction can lead to anaphylactic shock, which is a life threatening condition that is extremely dangerous. You know, it makes the throat swell up, it you can struggle to breathe. That it's uh, it's something where you need

to go to the hospital to treat. So actually about a hundred people die a year in the US due to beastings and to a lesser extent, to wasps sting. These are actually more dangerous when it comes to having

that allergic reaction than wasps, which is interesting. It Maybe I'm thinking it's probably partially due to the fact that bees are more numerous than wasps, but it's also someone who's allergic to beastings isn't automatically also allergic to wasp stings, So there may be something to the actual beavin um that um. More people are allergic to and can also be uh. If you are, you can actually develop an

increasing allergy to beastings. So if you're stung multiple times, you you can actually start to develop an allergy to beastings. The bee vinum itself is not super dangerous, so a non allergic, healthy adult can take up to you around a thousand beastings. I don't recommend it, definitely do not recommend that, but it will not kill you if you have a thousand beastings. Again, don't don't go get a thousand beastings. Guys. It's not not good. It's not a

good time. I'm not speaking from experience, but I feel like It's one of those things where it's like, hey, if I had a bet chunk of money on whether getting a thousand beastings was gonna be a good time, I'd say it wouldn't be. Yeah. So someone who is allergic, however, can go into deadly anaphylactic shock after only one beasting. So the bee is deadliness really is due to that allergic reaction that some people have to their stings, rather

than some insidious level of venom. Um. So, you know, I think in terms of like, uh, how you then view bees is like, I still love bees. I think these are really cool animals. Obviously they're incredibly important pollination. Who doesn't love honey? But also just as part of our environment. Um, However, you know, it's like it's good to know about. How Like, rather than vilifying bees for being dangerous, it's just like, hey, take that knowledge and

then protect yourself. So, um, you know, just be careful around bees, especially if you're allergic, or if you haven't been stung before and you don't really know your allergy status. Uh, if you have any signs of an allergic reaction after being stung, or if you know you're allergic but you haven't had any signs yet and you've been stung, you should go to the er immediately. And if you have an EpiPen, you should use that. That's actually a really useful thing for people or you know, you um, that

will help stave off the allergic reaction. But then you still need to go, uh go get medical help after that. So if you're stung by a beam, the best way to remove the stinger is actually by scraping it off pointy end first with the back of a fingernail. Basically, you don't want to put any pressure on the venom sack, which you can actually sometimes see, uh it's like this a little like fleshy twitching thing that's attached to the

stinger at the base. And if you squeeze that sack, like if you try to basically like pinch it out or like tweeze it out and you you accidentally put pressure on that sack, you'll actually squeeze more venom into

your ding sites. So basically, you carefully flick off the stinger as quickly as and as carefully as you can, either with you know, fingernail or if your fingernails aren't long enough, you can use like a credit card or or a hard leaf anything that basically you know it's not you don't want to like use your bare fingers because then you could get it, you know, sting yourself again. But once you've gotten that that out of there, then you want to wash your finger as soon as you

can with gentle soap and water. Uh. And then you know you can apply a cool compress and take some over the counter pain relievers. Obviously if you're having anything more than just like some local swelling and pain, uh, go go see a doctor, as you know, immediately. All right, So I think we're gonna take a quick break, but then we will be right back. Get it, be right back, guys, All right, well I'll be our back, all right. So

here is our next question. This is from Megan LeMay, who asks how much would would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? Alternatively, our platypus is really luminous and under uv. So first with the platypus is I think we just talked about that on the show in our Barking News episode a couple of weeks ago. Um, I think Megan, you sent this question and actually before we recorded that that episode, so good looking out for that animal news. Yeah, but yes, that is absolutely true.

It's an incredible recent discovery. Platypus for does glow a sort of eerie blue under UV light, and researchers aren't exactly sure why this happens yet, but I'm hoping we learn soon, so I'll keep an eye out for that. For any glowing platypus news, I will keep my ears and eyes open. So the wood chuck question actually has a really long answer, and it's very interesting and it's i think very important. So, as you may know, wood checks don't chuck wood. That's a misnomer, so why are

they called that? So wood chucks are also just groundhogs by another name. Here's an interesting thing. Groundhogs can also be called whistle pigs because of the whistling alarm call that they make. So ground hogs or wood chucks are in the marmot family, which are large, furry, bold rodents who like to steal my backpacking gear when I encounter them. If you're ever hiking in especially in the Sequoias, there are a lot of marmots and they love the taste

of your sweat. So if you leave any camping gear out that has any sort of salty sweat on it, you can bet a marmot is going to try to take it, so just be careful. So ground hogs or wood chucks eat mostly vegetation, berries, grasses. They will occasionally eat insects and very occasionally baby birds that they happen upon cool. So the reason we call groundhogs woodchucks sometimes is actually a really important history lesson, and it is

due to the stubborn ignorance of American colonizers. So the likely story is that the Algonquian speaking Narragansett Indian nation of Rhode Island has a word for the groundhog that two colonists ears sounded like woo chuck, which later became woodchuck. It was likely a misunderstanding either of their actual word for groundhogs one or possibly from the word for a fisher,

a non rodent carnivorous mammal in the weasel family. Either way, the colonists made no effort to properly learn the language of the people whose land they stole and who they massacred. So I think it's so interesting by learning about the etymology of words about animals and learning about the animals themselves elves. I mean, as you know, woodchucks don't chuck wood, so it leads to the question why are they called woodchucks.

So with these starting questions, you can also learn about the less told history and bloodstains of America and realize that there's this whole other natural and human history of America, much of which is lost due to the genocide of all the people who are living here before colonists arrived. Learning about animals and the environment often comes hand in hand with learning about the history of people, and they

really can't and shouldn't be separated, in my opinion. With that, I think we'll take a quick break and I'll be back to answer more listener questions. All right, and we are back, and I think I'll answer one more question today. So this is from for goodness Sakes. Sorry, this is from were Goodness Snakes? A Twitter user who asked me, is your favorite snake the chrysopola since they fly like birds, or is that your least favorite since they use that

flight to eat many birds? Or just what's your favorite snake? So this is a great question. So the crossopola, which are also known as flying snakes, are really interesting. I can't hate them. I mean, it's hard to pick a favorite snake, but they are super fascinating. So they are a genus of snakes that live in Southeast Asia and are typically a sort of reticulated green and black with yellow bellies or mild variations on that color scheme. Sometimes

they're more brownish, sometimes they're more reddish. Uh. They feed on prey such as smaller reptiles, amphibians, rodents, bats, and yes, unfortunately birds as well. They have a mild venom which poses virtually no threat to humans, but it does pose a big threat to their prey. So the of course most signat sure aspect of these snakes is that they can fly. They fly by ascending trees, using ridges on

their bellies to grip onto the rough tree bark. So once they are high enough, they will slither out to a branch until they hang over the edge and they kind of dangle like a fish hook and prepare themselves to jump. So once they are ready and they've triangulated their course, they will spring out and start gliding. They flatten their abdominal muscles and double the width of their bodies in a split second, turning themselves into like a long flat wing which undulates in the air to get

further lift. So using this technique, they can fly over one hundred meters, which is about three hundred and thirty feet. In terms of my favorite snakes, uh, here's a few snakes that I like. So the hog nos nachs have this really cute habit of playing dead when they're scared. They also have these adorable little upturned snouts and they are generally harmless to humans, So adorable little cuties who just get scared and play dead when you happen upon them.

Another really cool snake is the California red sided garter snakes, which are like the neon tetras of the snake world. They have this bright neon blue band on their backs and red bands on their sides with a dark blue square pattern, and they also have more neon blue on their bellies. They can bite, and they have a mild venom, but it's typically only kind of a local itching and burning and slight swelling in humans, so you know, not

too bad. I wouldn't get bit by them, I mean, okay, so going forward, any time I say an animal probably won't kill you if it bites. You still don't get bitten by that animal, all right, it's not an invitation to stick your arm in a garter snake pit. All right, Cool, We're cool, all right. So I think, though, my favorite snake is the Arabian sand boa because it is an absolute dorcas total goof is complete silly muppet of a snake.

They are found in the Arabian Peninsula and Iran, so they live in desert regions and spend most of their time buried under the sand. They have a sandy light brown pattern coloration to camouflage with their desert environment, and they grow up to be about fifteen inches long, which is about thirty eight centimeters, and they are relatively chunky. They're like, instead of being a slender snake like the flying snakes, they are kind of they're kind of thick,

thicker than a bowl of oatmeal. These snakes, So these goofballs look like someone filled the stocking with stuffing and put a couple of google is up on top of their head. And it is so silly looking, so unlike other snakes. Their little beady eyes are right on the tops of their head, peering in either direction, totally looks made up like a muppet. And the reason they look this silly is that the location of their eyes allow them to pop up from under the sand and just

kind of like lit. The tops of their heads come up from the sand like a little periscope, so they can peep out for little prey and then if the prey comes by, they will ambush them. And it also lets them keep an eye out for predators, so these little snakes will eat geckos and warm lizards, which are small legless lizards that aren't actually snakes. So the goofiness just goes all the way down. In fact, I really

love this topic. I think I'm going to have a whole episode on the goofiest, most fun, most cool snakes ever, So look forward to that Twitter user for good of snakes uh And I think that'll do it for questions today. You guys, this was really absolutely great. All of your questions were amazing, really led me down some rabbit holes of both research and being able to tell you some really cool evolutionary biology stories. So thank you so much again.

You know, if you have some questions for me, send them on over to Creature feature Pod at gmail dot com and if you have pet pictures, send those to me as well. If you've got crab memes, I love crab memes, you know, the all those crab memes about crabs. Love those, send those in. You can also find me on Twitter. I am at Creature Feature Pod on Instagram at Creature Feet Pod. That's f e A T not Feta is something very different on Twitter h And I'm Katie Golden on Twitter. That's k A T I E

g O L D I in. Don't always tweet about animals. I also tweet about all the things I'm passionate about in life. So you know, there you go. It'saw my Katie thoughts and so yeah, definitely appreciate you guys reaching out to me. It really means so much to me. And hey, if you're enjoying the show, if you could leave a review and a rating, that would be so excellent, Like, let me know if you like these q and as and you want me to keep doing them past past

the holidays, or if you don't like them. Please don't give me a bad rating though, just because you don't like the Q and a s, because like you know, I can change, maybe I can change. So yeah, thank you so much. Those reviews really do help me a lot with the old with the old Apple podcast algorithm, and uh, they mean so much to me. I read everyone and I cherished them all, so thank you so much. And guys, I really hope you have wonderful winter season,

wonderful holidays. But you know, stay safe. I know you're all really smart, so I probably don't have to worry about you, guys, but you know I love you all, so I do, so you know, stay safe, keep keep keep up those quarantines, and we'll get through this time. And I think we will still have a wonderful, wonderful winter despite it being a little different. So you know, just hanging there, you guys. I am here with you, going through the same thing. So all right. Thank you

to this Space Colassics for their super awesome song. Ex Alumina Creature Feature is a production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts like the one you just heard, visit the I Heart Radio app Apple Podcasts, or Hey guess what where have you listen to your favorite shows? See you next Wednesday.