Video: Creepy Madagascan Beasts Rub Their Back Hairs Together To Make Squeaks
Streaked Tenrec via BBCWeird tenrecs caught on camera for the first time The only mammals in the world that chirp like crickets - by rubbing body parts together - are these strange shrew-like creatures called streaked tenrecs. A BBC film crew has captured their stridulations on camera for the first time. The animals have special quills on their backs, which look like pale teeth and are noticeably different from the rest of its coarse fur and porcupine-like spines. When a young tenrec gets lost, as in the video below, its family members rub these quills together to produce high-pitched squeaks. The sound penetrates the rainforest undergrowth to help guide the tenrec back to its kin. About 30 species of tenrecs are found throughout Madagascar, with a few living on the African mainland. The animals share a common ancestor with elephants, aardvarks and manatees. But the only one to communicate in...