Few people believe that there are animals too familiar to us like cranes, weasels … were on Earth millions of years ago.
When referring to “living fossils” many people will immediately think of reptiles. Unexpectedly, this list of species that have been around for millions of years on Earth includes mammals, trees, and birds.
There are even a number of animals living at the same time as dinosaurs still roam the natural world today. The list of ancient creatures that still exist on Earth below will surely surprise many of you.
1. White-tailed deer – existed 3.5 million years ago
The white-tailed deer are the oldest living deer to date, with their agile and agile characteristics still preserved 3.5 million years ago.
According to the biologist, this species is still alive today simply because it is perfectly adapted to exist in the natural world.
White-tailed deer eat almost anything to survive – they even eat meat and fish. However, they don’t eat weed. This deer has absolutely no teeth and stomach structure like most other deer to be able to absorb nutrients from the grass.
White-tailed deer can grow in climates ranging from the Arctic to Brazil – it is considered the greatest habitat of any ungulate species to ever exist.
While researching this species, the experts discovered that they knew how to prevent risks such as removing traces on the ground by walking on the spot. When hunted, they will follow familiar paths where they are familiar with obstacles, which deters predators and slows down.
Sometimes this intelligent deer leads the predator to another deer in order to distract and “trade” the target. They even cut off a hunter’s tail while running on a body of water, hiding underwater, or even swimming in the ocean where no one can hunt them.
Under favorable conditions, an individual female cane can give birth to a couple or three. From birth, the white-tailed deer learns to survive. Deer are masters of the hiding place, they will not leave any body odor, hiding in the spotty skin grass if threats are detected.
2. Zebras – existed 4 million years ago
Few would expect African plains zebras to have existed on Earth for a long time – up to 4 million years.
Striking zebras have very characteristic stripes on the body
Although the territory sometimes overlaps, different species of zebra do not mate. Each species carries a different number of chromosomes. For this reason, when humans try to mate between the oldest Grevy’s zebras and mountain zebras, most cases fail.
Quagga Zebra Tip
There’s also the extinct quagga, the most popular prairie zebra subspecies today, say biologists.
The results of DNA tests on the zebra show that there are similarities between this species and the delta zebra. The two species split up and evolved along two different paths during the Ice Age 120,000-290,000 years ago, during which zebras developed more zebra stripes as well as body shape.
3. Sandhill crane – 10 million years ago
Of the 15 extant crane species, the sandhill crane is the largest and has the widest range of habitats.
The oldest fossils of this species were found in Florida and date to around 2.5 million years ago, but it may not be the oldest fossil record.
Another fossil has been unearthed in Nebraska and this is convincing evidence that the sandhill crane existed long before.
The Nebraska fossil is about 10 million years old and looks like today’s sandhill crane. It shows that they are the oldest birds in the world.
Each year, from March to April, approximately 500,000 individuals of this gray-green red-headed crane make a spectacular migration to Canada and Alaska, at speeds of up to 650 km / day.
Sandhill crane dancing
These graceful cranes dance to attract and find a mate, then build a nest in a flooded area and raise 1-2 baby cranes. Baby cranes open their eyes soon after birth and can move in as little as eight hours, and they can even swim. Sandhill cranes breed and protect their offspring for about 10 months – by hissing or chasing predators.
Although not yet listed in the Red Book, sandhill cranes in some areas such as Mississippi, the United States, and Cuba have been considered extinct.
4. Weasel Opossum in Virginia – existed 70 million years ago
This only marsupial in North America has the mix of a cute teddy bear and … rat. Their oldest fossils are around 70 million years old, making them one of the oldest mammals on the planet. A combination of stuffed animals and rats
The Opossum weasel retains its basic shape over time. Like kangaroo kangaroos, these weasels protect their young in the upper body sac.
The bag is so secure that there have been cases where a baby animal has survived after the mink was hit by a car. The bag is also waterproof, keeping the mink completely dry when the mother swims.
Plus, Opossum’s weasels have a pretty special survival trick: pretending to die. When cornered, they lower their heart rate and breathing rate for up to 6 hours, narrowing their legs and pretending to die. This discourages scavengers and leaves. However, the Opossum weasel does not do this very often, it is a means commonly used only by young cubs.
