1 00:00:03,320 --> 00:00:06,359 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff to Blow Your Mind, a production of iHeartRadio. 2 00:00:08,680 --> 00:00:11,600 Speaker 2: Hi, my name is Robert Lamb and this is The 3 00:00:11,720 --> 00:00:15,000 Speaker 2: Monster Fact, a short form series from Stuff to Blow 4 00:00:15,040 --> 00:00:19,840 Speaker 2: Your Mind, focusing in non mythical creatures, ideas and monsters. 5 00:00:19,840 --> 00:00:28,080 Speaker 2: In time, we have a special omnibus episode of The 6 00:00:28,080 --> 00:00:31,240 Speaker 2: Monster Fact here for you this week, collecting four past 7 00:00:31,400 --> 00:00:37,080 Speaker 2: episodes about miscellaneous creatures from the Dungeons and Dragons universe 8 00:00:37,520 --> 00:00:41,599 Speaker 2: and the possible science behind them. This was actually a 9 00:00:41,640 --> 00:00:46,360 Speaker 2: listener submitted idea, so we hope you enjoy the experiment 10 00:00:47,760 --> 00:00:53,960 Speaker 2: up verst the Nosferatu. Countless variations of the vampire have 11 00:00:54,040 --> 00:00:58,000 Speaker 2: emerged from our popular culture, fed by the blood of 12 00:00:58,080 --> 00:01:02,640 Speaker 2: global myths, folk tales, and legends. Some are sparkly and sexy, 13 00:01:02,760 --> 00:01:08,440 Speaker 2: others sinister and dangerous, others altogether monstrous. The Nosfaratu vampire 14 00:01:08,680 --> 00:01:12,120 Speaker 2: has come into its own, a pale, emaciated body with 15 00:01:12,200 --> 00:01:16,840 Speaker 2: ghoulish features, bat like ears, and a pair of elongated 16 00:01:16,880 --> 00:01:20,680 Speaker 2: incisors for piercing the skin of their victims rather than 17 00:01:20,720 --> 00:01:25,560 Speaker 2: the elongated canine teeth found in so many other vampire depictions. 18 00:01:26,000 --> 00:01:29,600 Speaker 2: While not always completely devoid of humanity, they tend toward 19 00:01:29,720 --> 00:01:33,319 Speaker 2: the purely monstrous end of the vampiric spectrum. They have 20 00:01:33,360 --> 00:01:36,960 Speaker 2: been consumed by their unnatural thirst, and this may leave 21 00:01:37,000 --> 00:01:39,759 Speaker 2: them in a primal state, or one in which their 22 00:01:39,840 --> 00:01:44,600 Speaker 2: human memories have faded gossamer thin Naturally. This monster dates 23 00:01:44,680 --> 00:01:49,280 Speaker 2: back to the nineteen twenty two silent German expressionist film Nosferatu, 24 00:01:49,680 --> 00:01:53,440 Speaker 2: a symphony of harm, which in turn has been reimagined 25 00:01:53,520 --> 00:01:58,720 Speaker 2: many times, including in the Werner Herzog nineteen seventy nine 26 00:01:58,800 --> 00:02:04,000 Speaker 2: film Nosphora to the Vampire. I find the nosferatu particularly 27 00:02:04,040 --> 00:02:07,920 Speaker 2: engaging in light of what we know of obligate sanguevares 28 00:02:08,440 --> 00:02:12,480 Speaker 2: in the natural world, particularly vampire bats. It is a 29 00:02:12,560 --> 00:02:17,080 Speaker 2: highly specialized diet blood and not at all an easy 30 00:02:17,160 --> 00:02:22,200 Speaker 2: survival path. Unlike their insect and fruit eating relatives, vampire 31 00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:25,920 Speaker 2: bats cannot hibernate or migrate. They lack the fat store, 32 00:02:25,960 --> 00:02:30,120 Speaker 2: so instead they must feed every night, lapping up fifty 33 00:02:30,120 --> 00:02:34,160 Speaker 2: percent of their body weight in order to survive. So, too, 34 00:02:34,480 --> 00:02:38,840 Speaker 2: the Nosferatu seems shackled to its thirst. In the fifth 35 00:02:38,919 --> 00:02:42,680 Speaker 2: edition of Dungeons and Dragons, the Nosfatu merits its own 36 00:02:42,960 --> 00:02:47,160 Speaker 2: monster manual entry, separate from all the other blood drinkers 37 00:02:47,680 --> 00:02:50,680 Speaker 2: with a level eight challenge rating. It's no pushover, but 38 00:02:50,720 --> 00:02:54,960 Speaker 2: it's both powerful and in some ways fragile. Hyper sensitive 39 00:02:55,000 --> 00:02:58,079 Speaker 2: to sunlight. It has a few different attack actions at 40 00:02:58,080 --> 00:03:04,160 Speaker 2: its disposal, including blood disgorge, in which quote the nosferatu 41 00:03:04,400 --> 00:03:08,360 Speaker 2: vomits blood in a fifteen foot cone. In doing this, 42 00:03:08,639 --> 00:03:13,079 Speaker 2: it inflicts necrotic damage on any hapless hero in its way. 43 00:03:13,720 --> 00:03:17,120 Speaker 2: In the natural world, scavenging vultures are known to disgorge 44 00:03:17,160 --> 00:03:20,840 Speaker 2: their meals when threatened, perhaps to bribe the attacker or 45 00:03:20,919 --> 00:03:24,040 Speaker 2: to lighten their load for an escape flight. This would 46 00:03:24,040 --> 00:03:27,320 Speaker 2: be a fit in comparison for the Nosferatu, but the 47 00:03:27,360 --> 00:03:31,400 Speaker 2: Texas horned lizard boasts an impressive defense as well. While 48 00:03:31,400 --> 00:03:35,080 Speaker 2: its camouflage is generally quite effective, it can also shoot 49 00:03:35,160 --> 00:03:38,280 Speaker 2: a stream of blood out of its eyelids with a 50 00:03:38,400 --> 00:03:42,080 Speaker 2: range of up to five feet. According to the Oklahoma 51 00:03:42,120 --> 00:03:46,280 Speaker 2: Department of Wildlife Conservation. The blood also contains a bitter chemical, 52 00:03:46,600 --> 00:03:50,600 Speaker 2: possibly derived from ants and the lizard's diet, which predators 53 00:03:50,640 --> 00:03:54,640 Speaker 2: such as coyotes find particularly distasteful. The lizard can use 54 00:03:54,720 --> 00:03:57,160 Speaker 2: up to a third of its total blood supply in 55 00:03:57,240 --> 00:04:03,720 Speaker 2: this counter attack, but it gets the Messa across, and 56 00:04:03,800 --> 00:04:09,880 Speaker 2: now let's discuss the owl bear. The owl bear has 57 00:04:09,880 --> 00:04:13,080 Speaker 2: a long history in the world of Dungeons and Dragons, 58 00:04:13,560 --> 00:04:16,080 Speaker 2: dating all the way back to the gaming table of 59 00:04:16,240 --> 00:04:20,800 Speaker 2: dn D pioneer Gary Gygax, who was allegedly inspired by 60 00:04:20,800 --> 00:04:24,080 Speaker 2: the design of a Japanese Kaiju toy which he used 61 00:04:24,120 --> 00:04:26,800 Speaker 2: as a mini on his gaming table. You can look 62 00:04:26,880 --> 00:04:30,760 Speaker 2: up images of the toy, a slightly dirty beaked monster 63 00:04:31,000 --> 00:04:34,839 Speaker 2: in yellow plastic, standing in the traditional stance of an 64 00:04:34,920 --> 00:04:39,279 Speaker 2: old school t rex toy. Now you'll find various choices 65 00:04:39,320 --> 00:04:43,040 Speaker 2: of dedicated owl bear miniature today, as the creature has 66 00:04:43,080 --> 00:04:47,040 Speaker 2: become a standard of fantasy role playing adventures. A hulking, 67 00:04:47,320 --> 00:04:51,960 Speaker 2: flightless owl beast that stalks the forests, hunting anything that 68 00:04:52,160 --> 00:04:56,279 Speaker 2: moves and littering its layer with their bones. It is 69 00:04:56,320 --> 00:05:00,320 Speaker 2: not an evil monster, but rather a neutral denizen of 70 00:05:00,360 --> 00:05:04,840 Speaker 2: the fantastic forest. The fifth edition Monster Manual tells us 71 00:05:04,839 --> 00:05:07,960 Speaker 2: that while the exact origins of the owl bear are unknown, 72 00:05:08,400 --> 00:05:12,800 Speaker 2: there are two prevailing theories. Either a mad wizard spliced 73 00:05:12,839 --> 00:05:16,000 Speaker 2: an owl and a bear together into a single beast, 74 00:05:16,400 --> 00:05:18,800 Speaker 2: or it has simply always been a part of the 75 00:05:18,800 --> 00:05:23,160 Speaker 2: fay wild, which I guess is basically like saying it's 76 00:05:23,200 --> 00:05:27,280 Speaker 2: a naturally occurring organism. Fair enough, in the world of 77 00:05:27,360 --> 00:05:31,120 Speaker 2: dungeons and dragons, magic has an objective reality, as do 78 00:05:31,279 --> 00:05:34,279 Speaker 2: just about every god and devil you could possibly imagine. 79 00:05:34,800 --> 00:05:37,920 Speaker 2: But what fascinates me about the owl bear is that 80 00:05:38,000 --> 00:05:41,920 Speaker 2: none of that seems quite required. It feels highly probable. 81 00:05:43,080 --> 00:05:45,440 Speaker 2: It's a whole different kettle of fish compared to something 82 00:05:45,520 --> 00:05:49,080 Speaker 2: like a beholder or even a fire breathing dragon. It is, 83 00:05:49,680 --> 00:05:53,680 Speaker 2: in essence, a large, flightless owl that has come to 84 00:05:53,720 --> 00:05:57,960 Speaker 2: fill the ecological niche formally occupied by a bear. In 85 00:05:58,000 --> 00:06:02,400 Speaker 2: the natural world, most bear species are omnivores, with pandas 86 00:06:02,440 --> 00:06:07,200 Speaker 2: and polar bears representing the dietary extremes on either side 87 00:06:07,720 --> 00:06:12,720 Speaker 2: herbivore and carnivore, respectively. It's implied that owlbears are carnivores, 88 00:06:12,720 --> 00:06:16,039 Speaker 2: but I think we can easily imagine them obtaining nourishment. However, 89 00:06:16,080 --> 00:06:21,160 Speaker 2: they can from freshly mauled adventures and scavenged corpses to 90 00:06:21,400 --> 00:06:25,560 Speaker 2: elvin compost bins and maybe a few fresh berries. You 91 00:06:25,640 --> 00:06:29,240 Speaker 2: might counter that owls, on the other hand, are certainly carnivorous, 92 00:06:29,279 --> 00:06:33,080 Speaker 2: but the burrowing owl, which will chase its prey across 93 00:06:33,120 --> 00:06:37,400 Speaker 2: the ground, consumes fruit and seeds in addition to various 94 00:06:37,400 --> 00:06:41,920 Speaker 2: invertebrates and small vertebrates. The burrowing owl is still capable 95 00:06:41,960 --> 00:06:44,919 Speaker 2: of flight and will swoop down on its prey, but 96 00:06:45,040 --> 00:06:48,760 Speaker 2: its scampering tactics make it perhaps the closest thing to 97 00:06:48,839 --> 00:06:53,480 Speaker 2: an actual owl bear in our world, despite its small size. 98 00:06:53,960 --> 00:06:57,920 Speaker 2: A more fitting match from prehistoric times, however, it can 99 00:06:57,960 --> 00:07:02,360 Speaker 2: be found in the giant Cuban owl or ornie megalonics, 100 00:07:02,640 --> 00:07:05,400 Speaker 2: which thrived on the island of what is now Cuba 101 00:07:05,520 --> 00:07:09,960 Speaker 2: during the late Plusticcene period. These owls measured three feet 102 00:07:10,040 --> 00:07:13,200 Speaker 2: seven inches or one point one meters in height and 103 00:07:13,240 --> 00:07:17,160 Speaker 2: were either flightless or nearly flightless. They are the largest 104 00:07:17,240 --> 00:07:20,200 Speaker 2: owls known to have ever existed in the natural world. 105 00:07:20,880 --> 00:07:24,400 Speaker 2: The giant Cuban owl and other large prehistoric birds, including 106 00:07:24,400 --> 00:07:28,080 Speaker 2: the moa, thrived on islands and continents that land mammals 107 00:07:28,080 --> 00:07:31,440 Speaker 2: hadn't reached yet. In these places, they filled niches typically 108 00:07:31,520 --> 00:07:34,880 Speaker 2: filled by carnivorous mammals and megafauna. So, as far as 109 00:07:34,960 --> 00:07:38,000 Speaker 2: my thinking goes, we don't need mad wizards to arrive 110 00:07:38,080 --> 00:07:41,640 Speaker 2: at the owl bear. We just need an ecosystem isolated 111 00:07:41,640 --> 00:07:45,600 Speaker 2: from mammals, in which some manner of ground hunting owl 112 00:07:45,720 --> 00:07:50,880 Speaker 2: can steadily adapt toward filling the role traditionally occupied by bears. 113 00:07:51,360 --> 00:07:55,200 Speaker 2: This would also work if some previously dominant organism had 114 00:07:55,200 --> 00:07:58,120 Speaker 2: been wiped out and owls were able to move into 115 00:07:58,240 --> 00:08:01,280 Speaker 2: that vacant niche. But of course, in the world of 116 00:08:01,320 --> 00:08:06,080 Speaker 2: dungeons and dragons, dinosaurs and dragons coexists, so it's hard 117 00:08:06,120 --> 00:08:10,200 Speaker 2: to imagine there being too many opportunities for evolving organisms 118 00:08:10,320 --> 00:08:15,120 Speaker 2: like this, So maybe a mad wizard is required after all. Well, 119 00:08:15,240 --> 00:08:18,119 Speaker 2: my son Sebastian, who actually just gave me an owl 120 00:08:18,120 --> 00:08:21,160 Speaker 2: bear mini for Father's Day, suggests that it could have 121 00:08:21,240 --> 00:08:24,320 Speaker 2: been the work of druids seeking not to release a 122 00:08:24,360 --> 00:08:28,680 Speaker 2: ferocious monster on the world and challenge adventurers, but rather 123 00:08:28,880 --> 00:08:34,360 Speaker 2: to bolster a challenged environment where perhaps adventurers had wiped 124 00:08:34,400 --> 00:08:37,960 Speaker 2: out the bears and there was this lovely niche that 125 00:08:38,080 --> 00:08:41,960 Speaker 2: needed filling. Well, why not the owl? Why not the 126 00:08:41,960 --> 00:08:45,320 Speaker 2: owl bear? Thanks to my son Sebastian for chiming in 127 00:08:45,360 --> 00:08:53,079 Speaker 2: on this one. Our third selection is the salt dragon. 128 00:08:55,720 --> 00:08:59,679 Speaker 2: From green dragons to golden dragons, from solar dragons to 129 00:08:59,800 --> 00:09:04,840 Speaker 2: lou dragons, the world of dungeons and dragons, as well 130 00:09:04,960 --> 00:09:08,800 Speaker 2: a lot of dragons. One variety that hasn't officially seen 131 00:09:08,840 --> 00:09:12,240 Speaker 2: the light of days since second edition is the salt 132 00:09:12,320 --> 00:09:17,480 Speaker 2: dragon of the Forgotten Realms the setting. These pale, yellow 133 00:09:17,480 --> 00:09:22,000 Speaker 2: and white dragons were said to inhabit salt encrusted lands, 134 00:09:22,440 --> 00:09:26,240 Speaker 2: and their breath weapon was fittingly salt themed as well. 135 00:09:26,960 --> 00:09:31,000 Speaker 2: They expelled a cone of salt crystals that could blind 136 00:09:31,160 --> 00:09:36,000 Speaker 2: and wound enemies both above and beneath the water. While 137 00:09:36,000 --> 00:09:39,199 Speaker 2: there are no true salt dragons in the natural world, 138 00:09:39,360 --> 00:09:43,800 Speaker 2: we do have the Galapagos marine iguana, an endemic algae 139 00:09:43,880 --> 00:09:47,240 Speaker 2: eating iguana species that adapted to thrive on the isolated 140 00:09:47,240 --> 00:09:51,760 Speaker 2: islands of the Galactos. These are marvelous creatures to watch, 141 00:09:52,080 --> 00:09:55,920 Speaker 2: sometimes comical and amusing as they bass on shore side 142 00:09:56,040 --> 00:10:00,360 Speaker 2: rocks and landings, but utterly graceful in the water. Sure 143 00:10:00,880 --> 00:10:05,120 Speaker 2: they frequently appear to sneeze, this is actually a means 144 00:10:05,160 --> 00:10:09,199 Speaker 2: of clearing excess salt from their bodies via special glands 145 00:10:09,200 --> 00:10:13,480 Speaker 2: at the nostrils. The resulting salt crystals sometimes encrust the 146 00:10:13,600 --> 00:10:16,480 Speaker 2: thorny heads of the lounging creatures, giving them an even 147 00:10:16,600 --> 00:10:20,640 Speaker 2: saltier appearance. Those horny protrusions on the head, by the way, 148 00:10:20,880 --> 00:10:24,640 Speaker 2: help scrape algae away from the rocks during feeding. So 149 00:10:24,720 --> 00:10:27,600 Speaker 2: for the marine iguana, salt sneezes are a means of 150 00:10:27,640 --> 00:10:31,200 Speaker 2: removing excess levels of salt from the body, not a 151 00:10:31,280 --> 00:10:34,880 Speaker 2: means of defense. Though even Charles Darwin in his book 152 00:10:34,920 --> 00:10:38,720 Speaker 2: The Voyage of the Beagle described the act as follows quote. 153 00:10:39,000 --> 00:10:41,400 Speaker 2: They do not seem to have any notion of biting, 154 00:10:41,840 --> 00:10:44,720 Speaker 2: but when much frightened, they squirret a drop of fluid 155 00:10:44,760 --> 00:10:49,040 Speaker 2: from each nostrul. First impressions surely, as the basting iguanas 156 00:10:49,160 --> 00:10:53,920 Speaker 2: seem to regularly emit salt regardless of perceived fright Still, 157 00:10:53,960 --> 00:10:57,080 Speaker 2: this curious feature allows us an avenue by which to 158 00:10:57,160 --> 00:11:02,200 Speaker 2: imagine the physiology of a fantastic salt dragon. Instead of 159 00:11:02,240 --> 00:11:06,760 Speaker 2: expelling all of its excess salt, perhaps the giant fantastic 160 00:11:06,800 --> 00:11:11,400 Speaker 2: creature is able to safely store the crystals or concentrated 161 00:11:11,480 --> 00:11:15,880 Speaker 2: saline solution inside its body for later use as a 162 00:11:15,920 --> 00:11:22,640 Speaker 2: defensive or offensive breath weapon. And for a final selection, 163 00:11:23,200 --> 00:11:29,120 Speaker 2: let's head into the cave. Nothing beats a good Dungeons 164 00:11:29,120 --> 00:11:33,400 Speaker 2: and Dragons cave environment. Whether you're talking about an isolated 165 00:11:33,480 --> 00:11:37,720 Speaker 2: cavern layer for a surface rampaging monster, or the dark 166 00:11:37,880 --> 00:11:42,599 Speaker 2: subterranean kingdoms of the underdark. Either way, there's no shortage 167 00:11:42,640 --> 00:11:46,680 Speaker 2: of exotic monsters to populate these environments, and at least 168 00:11:46,720 --> 00:11:50,800 Speaker 2: two of them stand out for their mimicry of stalactites 169 00:11:51,040 --> 00:11:55,800 Speaker 2: and stalagmites. First, let's refresh on the nature of stalactites 170 00:11:55,800 --> 00:12:00,640 Speaker 2: and stalagmites. Stalactites derived from the Greek to drill is 171 00:12:00,679 --> 00:12:04,840 Speaker 2: a mineral formation caused by dripping that forms on the ceiling. 172 00:12:05,520 --> 00:12:08,760 Speaker 2: The corresponding formation on the floor of the cavern is 173 00:12:08,800 --> 00:12:12,160 Speaker 2: a stalagmite. Some folks might keep the straight in their 174 00:12:12,160 --> 00:12:17,079 Speaker 2: own heads by reminding themselves that stalactite has a C 175 00:12:17,280 --> 00:12:20,520 Speaker 2: in it for ceiling and stalagmite has a G in 176 00:12:20,559 --> 00:12:24,280 Speaker 2: it for ground. At any rate, let's start on the floor. 177 00:12:25,240 --> 00:12:28,080 Speaker 2: Amid the stalagmites of D and D you'll find the 178 00:12:28,120 --> 00:12:32,160 Speaker 2: occasional roper, a large, one eyed monster that mimics a 179 00:12:32,240 --> 00:12:36,400 Speaker 2: silent cone of stone until an adventurer strays too close. 180 00:12:36,440 --> 00:12:39,920 Speaker 2: Then its tentacles lash out and pull the victim in 181 00:12:40,040 --> 00:12:44,439 Speaker 2: towards its deadly maw. Amid the stalactites, you'll find an 182 00:12:44,480 --> 00:12:50,400 Speaker 2: even more fascinating creature, the piercer. This predatory mollusk has 183 00:12:50,440 --> 00:12:55,520 Speaker 2: a sharp stalactite shaped shell, enabling it to blend in 184 00:12:55,600 --> 00:12:59,760 Speaker 2: on a cavern ceiling until guess what, along comes another 185 00:12:59,800 --> 00:13:03,240 Speaker 2: hand apless adventure and the piercer drops like the sword 186 00:13:03,280 --> 00:13:07,000 Speaker 2: of Damocles and hopefully skewers the poor sap to the floor. 187 00:13:07,520 --> 00:13:11,000 Speaker 2: If this is a success, the piercer or piercers, because 188 00:13:11,040 --> 00:13:15,520 Speaker 2: sometimes they apparently live in groups, begin the feast. A fail, however, 189 00:13:15,840 --> 00:13:19,000 Speaker 2: means the creature has to slowly crawl back up the 190 00:13:19,040 --> 00:13:22,839 Speaker 2: wall to the ceiling in order to try its gravity 191 00:13:23,080 --> 00:13:28,199 Speaker 2: assisted attack once more. The piercer is a fantastic monster concept, 192 00:13:28,440 --> 00:13:30,839 Speaker 2: and both of these cave dwellers have been lashing out 193 00:13:30,840 --> 00:13:35,360 Speaker 2: against adventurers since the first edition of Dungeons and Dragons. However, 194 00:13:35,600 --> 00:13:38,200 Speaker 2: when we turn to the cave environments of the natural world, 195 00:13:38,400 --> 00:13:41,640 Speaker 2: we don't find creatures that employ such tactics. While there 196 00:13:41,640 --> 00:13:45,559 Speaker 2: are many amazing subterranean organisms with unique adaptations, you might 197 00:13:45,600 --> 00:13:51,080 Speaker 2: well ponder over the seeming absence of stalactite and stalagmite mimics, 198 00:13:51,440 --> 00:13:55,680 Speaker 2: as evolutionary developmental biologist William R. Jeffrey points out in 199 00:13:55,760 --> 00:13:59,760 Speaker 2: his two thousand and nine paper Regressive evolution in a 200 00:14:00,120 --> 00:14:04,360 Speaker 2: Dionacs cavefish quote. In surface dwelling animals, pigmentation is used 201 00:14:04,360 --> 00:14:09,280 Speaker 2: for protection from sunlight, camouflage, mimicry, and species and sex recognition, 202 00:14:09,679 --> 00:14:13,479 Speaker 2: all of which are irrevolent in the dark cave environment. 203 00:14:14,640 --> 00:14:17,760 Speaker 2: Jeffrey is dealing chiefly with cavefish here in this paper, 204 00:14:17,920 --> 00:14:20,880 Speaker 2: but I think we can safely apply this concept to 205 00:14:20,960 --> 00:14:24,480 Speaker 2: other cave dwellers as well. Again, we have to remember 206 00:14:24,640 --> 00:14:28,400 Speaker 2: that these are lightless worlds, where sight in the organs 207 00:14:28,440 --> 00:14:32,320 Speaker 2: of sight lose their importance. Other senses become the coin 208 00:14:32,400 --> 00:14:34,880 Speaker 2: of the realm in dungeons and dragons. However, we have 209 00:14:34,960 --> 00:14:39,680 Speaker 2: to remember that these wholly fictional cave environments revolve entirely 210 00:14:39,760 --> 00:14:44,120 Speaker 2: around the inevitable arrival of generally cited characters, and that 211 00:14:44,120 --> 00:14:48,400 Speaker 2: they're often aided by magical vision lamps and or a 212 00:14:48,440 --> 00:14:52,560 Speaker 2: plethora of bioluminescent fungi. And we have to remind ourselves 213 00:14:52,680 --> 00:14:55,760 Speaker 2: that mimicry in the real world doesn't have to be visual. 214 00:14:56,120 --> 00:14:59,800 Speaker 2: It can certainly be auditory. For instance, the greater mouse 215 00:15:00,240 --> 00:15:03,000 Speaker 2: bat has been observed to mimic the sounds of buzzing 216 00:15:03,080 --> 00:15:08,600 Speaker 2: hornets to scare away predatory owl species. Meanwhile, Chinese cicadas 217 00:15:08,640 --> 00:15:12,840 Speaker 2: are also known to use intraspecific sexual mimicry that means 218 00:15:13,160 --> 00:15:16,440 Speaker 2: males using female sounds in this case, which amounts to 219 00:15:16,480 --> 00:15:20,520 Speaker 2: a similar sort of auditory deception. And hey, D and 220 00:15:20,600 --> 00:15:23,720 Speaker 2: D has us covered there as well, with the Lucratum 221 00:15:24,120 --> 00:15:27,440 Speaker 2: monstrous be said to lure in their victims by mimicking 222 00:15:27,480 --> 00:15:31,440 Speaker 2: the voices of humans and other intelligent species, inspired by 223 00:15:31,480 --> 00:15:35,440 Speaker 2: the half hyena half lion creatures described by Plenty of 224 00:15:35,440 --> 00:15:39,600 Speaker 2: the Elder said to reside in Ethiopia, yet quote mimics 225 00:15:39,640 --> 00:15:44,760 Speaker 2: the voices of men and cattle. Tune in for additional 226 00:15:44,800 --> 00:15:48,000 Speaker 2: episodes of the Monster Fact each week. As always, you 227 00:15:48,040 --> 00:15:50,920 Speaker 2: can email us at contact at stuff to Blow your 228 00:15:50,960 --> 00:16:00,560 Speaker 2: Mind dot com. 229 00:16:00,800 --> 00:16:04,000 Speaker 1: Stuffed Blow your Mind is production of iHeartRadio. For more 230 00:16:04,040 --> 00:16:07,800 Speaker 1: podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or 231 00:16:07,840 --> 00:16:09,560 Speaker 1: wherever you listen to your favorite shows.