Happy Wednesday!
What’s more surprising? That beaver-made wetlands trap the carbon equivalent of burning 1,000 barrels of oil every year, making beavers climate superheroes? 🦫 Or that Dalmatians are born completely white? 🐶
Here’s what we’ve got this week:
TRIVIA
Highest jumper? 🐸
Which animal jumps the highest relative to its size?
(Explanation at the end!)
ANIMAL FOCUS
Owls: true ninjas 🦉
Some awesome owl facts:
Owls don’t have round eyeballs! Their eyes are long tubes that work like tiny telescopes, amplifying light. This helps them see in the dark, but it also means they can’t rotate their eyes. Instead, they have to move their whole head. 👁️
Their ears aren’t even! One ear sits higher than the other. This helps them tell exactly where a sound is coming from, almost like having a built-in 3D map! 👂
Great gray owls can “turn into” tree bark! They flatten their bodies and squint so they blend in perfectly with a tree trunk! 🫣
Can you spot the hidden great gray owls?
Owls have a third eyelid that slides sideways like a windshield wiper! It’s see-through and cleans their eyes while still letting them see. 👀
Owls swallow prey whole! Later, their stomach spits out the leftover bones, fur, and teeth in a pellet. 💩
Want more? See all 10 facts on our website!
EVER WONDER?
Why do we have earwax? 👂🕯️
Where does earwax come from?
Earwax forms when special glands in our ears mix oil with dead skin cells, tiny hairs, and dust.
As new skin grows, earwax is gradually pushed out of our ears as old skin moves outward, like a conveyor belt. This is how our ears clean themselves!
Fun fact: your DNA determines whether your earwax is wet and sticky or dry and flaky!
What does earwax do?
Keeps your ears moist so they don’t get irritated
Traps dust and bugs to protect your eardrums
Fights infections: earwax contains special proteins that kill bacteria and fungi
Keeps water out to avoid infections
Should we remove our earwax?
PICKS OF THE WEEK
🚀 Welcome home! Official NASA Artemis 2 recap
🏈 With the upcoming NFL draft, see how a football is made
🏛️ The hidden mechanics of the Colosseum
BRAIN TRIVIA
Logic Puzzle: A farmer needs to take a wolf, a rabbit, and a carrot across a river. His boat can only carry him plus one item. If the wolf is left with the rabbit, the wolf eats the rabbit. If the rabbit is left with the carrot, the rabbit eats the carrot. How can he get all three across safely?
John Harris | Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2025
Thanks for reading, see you next week!
- Steve
P.S. Fleas can jump 200 times their body length!
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