Lazy Animals
There are so many animals that think moving around sounds rather exhausting. Let’s spend some time relaxing with five lazy creatures that live right here in Canada.
Ever have one of those days where you just want to bundle up under a cosy blanket and watch movies or play video games ALL day? There are so many animals that can relate. These critters think moving around sounds rather exhausting. Let’s spend some time relaxing with five lazy creatures that live right here in Canada.
Common Snapping Turtle
When these reptiles get hungry, they don’t chase down critters. They don’t hustle for their dinner. Instead, they stay still and wait for a tasty animal to swim by. It helps their tummies that they’re not all that fussy about what they eat. They happily chow down on fish, insects, frogs, snails and snakes. When an animal swims by, the Common Snapping Turtle will suddenly lunge straight for it, and with a giant snap, it’ll devour its prey!
Praying Mantis
These insects don’t spend their days lounging around, but they certainly won’t put too much of an effort into their day-to-day lives. Praying Mantises hunker down on plants and wait patiently until a tasty looking insect scurries by. Then they make their way, very slowly, stalking their prey until the time is right. Then they reach out with their front legs and quickly grab the insect. Insects like crickets, flies, grasshoppers and moths often find themselves the next meal of a hungry Praying Mantis.
Opossum
Did you know that Opossums are newcomers to Canada? They used to live only in the United States, but they’ve been sighted more and more in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia. It’s pretty impressive that they’ve moved north, considering they spend an awful lot of time sleeping. These critters can sleep up to 20 hours a day. Opossums will scout out a burrow, and once they’ve found the perfect spot, they’ll spend a little time making it cosy with dried leaves. Sounds like a lovely place to rest! Their awake time — which can be as little as four hours a day — gives them just enough time to stretch their legs, grab a snack and hunker down again for another lovely and long snooze.
Polar Bear
Running was not a New Year’s resolution for the mighty Polar Bear. It couldn’t be bothered, really. Although these giant mammals are able to run faster than the fastest human on Earth for short distances, they generally move a lot slower — walking at about five to six kilometres per hour. So how do they hunt down their food? With their wits (and noses)! Polar Bears can smell seal breathing holes in the ice from about a kilometre away! When they find one, they lie down on the ice by it and wait for hours and hours on end for a seal to come to the surface for a breath. When it does, these bears are ready. Once a seal reaches the surface to catch a quick breath, a Polar Bear will drag the seal onto the ice. Lunch is served!
Great Horned Owl
Ahhhh, the good life. Great Horned Owls know they’ve got a good thing going. For that reason, they don’t move far away from where they were born. Researchers have found that many of them won’t move farther than 80 kilometres from the areas where they hatched! When they’re ready to make a family of their own, they put in minimal effort to make a nest. Sometimes they even use existing nests — talk about lazy! They take a similar approach to hunting. Great Horned Owls get comfortable, perched on a branch, and wait around for their next meal. They love to eat quite a few different animals, from mice to voles, shrews to rabbits. Once they’ve spotted an animal they’ve got a hankering for, they silently fly towards it and snatch it up with their talons!