Ten WILDLIFE MYTHS you might still believe in!
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- čas přidán 13. 12. 2022
- From Swans breaking bones and Bats deliberately getting caught in your hair, to Ducks quacks not echoing, there are lots of wildlife related myths that some people still believe in. In this video I go through ten of these and show why they are myths and not facts.
Some of the footage used in this video was obtained using creative commons licences, the originals and their licence details can be found at:
• European hedgehog (Eri...
• Hedgehog
• Hedgehog forages under...
• Hedgehog: Scratching a...
• Natura 2000 - Focus on...
• Common Pipistrelle col...
• Bat flying in daylight
• Female Mallard
• wild duck (female) cle...
• Female Mallard Ducks Q...
• Young Brown Rat feedin...
• Brown rats eat food fo...
• Серая крыса, или паcю́к
• Brown rats at RSPB Rai...
• Happy hopping Barnacle...
• Bernache nonnette (Bra...
• Forficula auricularia ...
• Waldohrwurm
• Around The Earwig
• Forticula auricularia ...
• Big Toad Gives Small T...
• Common toad: close up
• Common toad and brown ...
• Video
• Psyllobora vigintiduop...
• Ladybug eating aphids ...
• Eyed ladybird
• A multicolored Asian l...
• Pie bavarde (Pica p. p...
• 喜鵲/Eurasian Magpie
• Magpie's foraging tech...
• Peregrine Falcon nestl...
• Gwen The House Spider ...
Thumbnail image:
www.flickr.com/photos/rogersg...
#wildlife #britishwildlife #naturefacts
• Garden spider spec for...
• Jungspinnen (Tegenaria...
• Araneus quadratus /Kre...
• Orb Weaver Spider feed...
• Garden Spider Araneus ...
Yes it's so skillful how bats can fly together in close formation in the dark making rapid manoeuvres. If one stands still they may fly close to check you out and the gentle yet powerful swishing of their wings sounds thrilling
Thanks. Lovely wildlife footage. I didn't know about the ladybirds fact. The idea of hedgehogs with apples on their backs is quite funny.
If you find the idea funny, you should look up the original drawings from Plinys book.
@@AShotOfWildlife Pliny's natural philosophy "facts" are wild, but at least he was trying!
Having curated a University Archaeology Department's bone reference collection, which did contain an example of a Swan's humerus, I can attest to the fact that it was a hefty bone which, if used as a weapon, could do some serious damage. Sadly I wasn't able to try out the bone-breaking capabilities due to lack of volunteers...strangely enough.
great vid!
Interestingly enough, there's a book of anglo saxon riddles -- The Exeter Book Riddles -- with one particular riddle perplexing people for years and years as to what the answer was. It described something at the bottom of the ocean bursting out and flying into the sky, after much scholarly debate it turned out to be a barnacle goose!
My mother used to be terrified that a bat would get tangled in her hair. I sais to her: "Why on earth would it want to do that?". My father burst out laughing!
Thank you for this. When I was a child my father told me that swans can break your arm. I have had a fear of swans ever since - until today and your video, that is. I should add that I am 85 years old which is a heck of a time to be carrying that myth around!!
Swans, like all flying birds, have hollow cavities in their bones to reduce weight; They are more likely to break their own wing than your arm.
Thank you. The only one I have heard about was the swans wing being able to break a person’s arm. Love your channel thank you ❤
Ohhhh WoW fantastic and beatifull thank 👍🤗
Bat in the hair happened to me twice. I was working a study of a copper mine looking for white nose syndrome in a known brown bat colony. Had one get caught in my hair after one before it knocked off my hat. 2nd time was in my house when dang red just planted himself on the back of my head. Still hasn't paid me rent.
Thanks Liam!! Outstanding again to learn of myths and their debunking.
Thank you!
love your videos liam, thanks
I remember being told about the bats getting tangled in your hair. I know it's more of a superstition but our family have always 'saluted' the first magpie we see of the day, and say 'good morning', bonkers I know, but habit now. Great video, Liam.
Thanks for the facts Liam. I really enjoy your content.
Thanks for sharing. Merry Christmas!
Just found yer recently great channel
Thank you
I am in my sixties and only ever heard three of those, but the only one I thought might be true is the 'swans can break a mans arm with its wing', which I thought was maybe possible if it gave a quick enough flap of a wing - even if it meant the swan might also break its own wing. Thanks for setting us straight on those myths (although I will always give swans a bit of a wide enough berth simply because I am sure they can peck hard).
It is physiologically impossible. swans bones are thin, light and hollow. human bones are dense and heavy.
Swans are posers and bluffers. If a swan comes at you ... just go at the swan aswell. he will droop off quickly. and if he does come close, just grab him by the neck gently and lead him back to the water. grabbing by the neck does seem weird... however this is the only proper way to handle swans.
@@Herr_Flick_of_ze_Gestapo Thank you. I shall pass on your good advice too, to our sons and others. Not that we live near any swans now but just in case, on a day out any of us might see some.
Best wishes.
@@angr3819 Merry Christmas.
@@Herr_Flick_of_ze_Gestapo And a Merry Christmas to you and yours also.
@@Herr_Flick_of_ze_Gestapo well swan wing bones are strong, don't forget it is a very heavy bird. I seen an attack on an elderly woman. Her arm got broken, don't know if it was the impact of the bird or the subsequent flutter.
Wow i didnt know some of these things.
I always thought bats had bad eye sights and relied almost entirely on sonar to see. Now i know they actually have good eyesight. Thanks for that fact.
Hi Liam brilliant video I definitely agree with you on the myth’s love the brilliant footage of the wild life looking forward to your next video keep up the amazing work and videos Bernard
Nice one Liam. As interesting and entertaining as ever. Have a great Christmas 🎄 & New Year buddy! 👍🙂👍
Thanks Graham. I hope you have a great Christmas!
Nice and interesting upload, thank you.
Lovely video really enjoyed it.
Thank you!
Another great video your enthusiasm and love for wildlife is obvious. I find a little knowledge when walking in the countryside makes everything much more enjoyably
A great video. Nice that you were able to dispel the myths. I'd heard of most of them.
David Attenborough told a story about filming a piece about how it was impossible for a bat to get tangled in your hair which concluded with a bat flying into the side of his head.
That's brilliant. I haven't seen it but I'll look it up :)
@@AShotOfWildlife can’t claim to have actually seen the bat strike but Sir David told the story in such a way as you totally think you did. I think it might have been on ‘Life On Air’. Fantastic documentary about his long long career on TV.
Just found him telling Graham Norton the same story
czcams.com/video/Ec4fSsNLuuA/video.html
Presentation was always good but I love the effort in this video even more. Thank you.
Most enjoyable and informative as ever. 👏
Thank you!
Hello Liam, really love your videos, also the accompanying music, so relaxing. Usually watch in the evening but today it’s morning - feeling the cold so sitting in recliner, layered up plus blanket & maine coon on lap, purring away, keeping each other warm.
When the kids were small, took them to Wensum Park for a picnic - a swan spotted my sons black & white trainers and made a beeline for them, chasing him, flapping its wings & protesting loudly, it was so funny but also quite scary as it wouldn’t leave him alone, he had to keep running to prevent being attacked and in the end we all had to leave. Do you think there was something about black & white it saw as a threat?
Thank you for another super video, they’re the best!
This made me laugh so much! Especially the part about not licking toads, fantastic life advice😂
I actually know of a lady who lived across the River Lea from us in Wheathampstead . The swans often nested on her land . She went close to the nest and one of the swans hit her with it's wings and broke her arm . The lady was quite old though . The swans often attacked my canoe with their wings and it felt like an iron bar , quite frightening .
Thanks for the spider warning! Much appreciated. I still listened to what the myth was, and I feel much safer now knowing the facts 😊
The swan myth has been around for generations....when I was little i thought that swans did nothing else other than swim around looking for humans whose arms they could break
awesome video
Thanks again for sharing
Thanks Jim!
Great video Liam, I have heard of them all but have not been a believer! I have been hit in the face by a swans wing whilst on a rescue mission for a local wildlife rescue, nothing broken
but certainly painful!!
Thanks!
Since the nhs stopped doing ear syringing, those earwigs would need a jack hammer to reach anything worthwhile in my ears (lol)
I remember hearing the swan one even more exaggerated. Breaking your arm was not enough, it could take your head off!
So even though I have heard before it is not true, the arm thing seemed more reasonable :)
Can you imagine if it was possible, swans taking people's heads off!
What funny myths exist. The only one I’ve ever thought could be real was the closeness of rats to humans. Glad you’ve cleared that one up. Great video. Thank you.
Thanks Lian, maybe one day do a vid about how many duck species quack
About swallowing spiders... People drawing maps used to add fake but unimportant details, so that they could spot if a concurrent copied their maps. I read that the myth about swallowing spiders is similar: a guy who wrote a book about "fun" facts added this fake one, in order to know if another writer copied him without permission. Well.. that's what I read, it might be wrong.
I am not sure how true that is, I have heard a very similar thing being said about other non-facts that are commonly believed to be true. Its still a good story though!
I wonder if the first time that spider swallowing in your sleep was written down is available anywhere online. It would be interesting to see if it is quoted word for word elsewhere.
I dont know if facts can or should be copyrighted though lol
love the barnacles one at the end
Thankfully, I don't think anyone actually believes that anymore lol.
Thanks very impressive. Also this should be mandatory viewing for all school teachers who perpetuate and even introduce this rubbish myths! I know that's where I first heard some of them when I was a kid (Swans).
Here in the US we have myths about our own wildlife. So to set the record straight: Porcupines do NOT shoot their quills like arrows - you have to come into physical contact to get stuck. Harvestmen (aka daddy-longlegs) are NOT venomous. Bats are NOT blind. Owls and whippoorwills (another nocturnal bird) are NOT harbingers of death; and owls occasionally do call by day.
Here in the northeast there's a handsome reptile called the milk snake. It got its name from its tendency to take up residence in livestock barns, including dairy. At one time it was believed that the snakes were there to suckle the cows, and were stealing the milk - so they were killed on sight. The pity is that their presence was actually beneficial to the farmers, as they were instead preying on the mice that infested the barns.
"I've got earwigs in my brain".
Nigel Lewis.
Anither great vid,seeing the barnacle Goose triggers off great memories as a boy Stumbling across a nest at Washington wildlife Park,wetland centre.
Happy memories
Male and female ducks quack. I hear them every day
What species of duck are you referring to, please?
@SkylarkFields Mallard duck, I heard both male and female quack. To be honest the females are more vocal than the drake
There's a whole wealth of content potential here with myths and folklore, eg Swans do a final swansong and fly to sea to die (Aristotle I think started this), or goldcrests used to hitchhike on the back of golden plovers during migration. Lots of fun!
I liked the joke in a Terry Pratchett book where Death is trying to get a swan to sing because its the bird's time to die. He finally tricks it, the swan's reaction was "Oh bugger".
Thank you for being considerate of arachnophobes and even welcoming them back!
I really like your videos, the footage is lovely to look at and it's very interesting to hear about all the animal facts~!
True. I once found a (fortunately) dead earwig in my left ear. Yuk!
That must have been a bit traumatic!
I heard the bat story while growing up. We were also told that dragonflies, which we called sewing needles, would sew up your lips.
I am ABOUT to start swan farming, thank you. Will tell these to anyone who sees my swans.
Great video as always. Someone told me once that ladybirds don't bite. I can assure everyone that this is false, as one definitely bit me once!!
You debunked another myth without knowing it? Bats have good eyesight even in the dark you stated. So where does 'Blind as a bat' come from. Good work, I learn a lot from your videos. Keep up the great work
Thank you it's good to have some humour in our lives.
Great video. A few suggestions (ancient and modern) for the next one. Swallows hibernate at the bottom of ponds, daddy-long-legs have deadly venom but their jaws are too feeble to pierce human skin (!), badgers' legs are shorter on one side than the other (inspired by the way they run around hills), and hedgehogs drink milk from cows' udders (may be some truth in this last one). All the best.
I've heard that about hedgehogs and cows too. I guess it is possible that if a milking cow was lying in a field, a hedgehog might be tempted to lick up any 'overflow' from her udder?
That's not badgers, that haggis!
@@barneylaurance1865 Yes, I've heard it said of haggis since, but when I first heard it, in 1970s Devon, it was about badgers. Of course there weren't any wild haggis in Devon at the time. A few in the local wildlife park, I think, but the wild population has of course grown dramatically since then. 🤣
I have seen a bat tangled in someone's scarf.
Ladybird really enjoying those delicious aphids
There's only three myths I have ever heard of and were learned as a small child:Swans breaking arms, Never no more than 6ft from a rat and earwigs in the ear.
On further reading.....Did you know? It was once thought that barnacle geese hatched out of goose barnacles attached to ships at sea - their shells washing up on the west coast of Scotland in the autumn. This belief grew because goose barnacles have black-and-white stripes (like the geese) and the nests of barnacle geese were never seen.
The one that seems to have gained traction in recent years, although probably quite old, is that chestnuts will stop spiders coming in your house
I have lived and traveled throughout Canada for over 50 years and I’ve never even SEEN a rat, in person. I’ve barely even seen a mouse, to be honest.
I really do love you
Thanks Liam. I used to see dozens of hedgehogs when I was young. I've not seen one for years now.
Thanks Tony. Did you ever see one carrying apples on its back?
Earwigs cut away the dead petals from flowers. 🥀
Excellent gardeners earwigs.
I do enjoy your videos and that was very entertaining, nice to know we're a bit further away from the rats (sorry rats, no offence meant) ATB MMMD
I thought the Swan bit was true until I started handling larger bird's.
I live on an estuary in Cornwall and everytime I'm around swan's, literally every person that passes says, 'they'll break yer bloody arm mate'
The worst one is folk asking me how to split a Crow's tongue so it talks more. F.S
I just take a photo of their face these day's or push them in the mud, then explain.
The Cornish aren't the brightest of people.
@@Herr_Flick_of_ze_Gestapo obviously you haven't read much on mining or engineering, or the industrial revolution.
I can definitely confirm the "small birds are babies of large birds" myth. or rather, confirm that people believe this. worked in an aquarium once, and we had tons of small things like star fish for kids to "touch" (we got to decide who touches what and when and how often, as to not stress the animals too much).
and 9/10 people would comment on how these starfish must be bay starfish because they are so small. when in fact, baby starfish are microscopic...
Ah imagine being lucky enough to see a toad these days :( I've seen some once in the wild and it was at an rspb reserve. Was a very special experience.
My mother used to tell me the myth about bats. Never believed it did not make sense. Swans can be very friendly as long as there are no cygnets they are good parents. On the channel "Seducktive" male pet duck "Wrinkle" quacks all the time. They thought he was female but turned out to be male. Still gets addressed as 'she'.
I'm glad, I had never heard the bat myth before but several people have said its true.
When researching for this video, everything online says that only female ducks quack but a couple of people have commented overwise. I thought it was strange but couldn't remember seeing a male duck quacking before.
@@AShotOfWildlife I wish to apologise. I have spent some time investigating the noise the drake makes. This sound is a dull rasping sound that has a number of descriptors but it is not a quack. but the noise they make is loud and raspy. Drakes lack the anatomy to quack.
@@robertfletcher3421wrinkle’s owner knows she is a biological male, but says wrinkle prefers to be called a she
@@AShotOfWildlifemale ducks do not quack they “squack”
i have 2 male regular ducks, one mallard one pekin and another male duck which is a muscovy. As for female i own 5 female ducks.
@@AShotOfWildlifemy ex-wife’s sister once had a bat land in her hair. She is a very straightforward chemistry teacher not prone to inventing stories.
Hey, it was very kind of you to put the warning for aracnophobes, thanks!
Thanks!
Yep, I definitely think that geese come from barnacles 100%
A bat flew into my hair when I was a kid, but we were trying to get it out of the house (Queensland, Australia)
I've been awakened a few times by bats that have gotten into mine. By trial & error (mostly the latter), I've worked out a catch & release protocol. Once they return to the bedroom, I shut the door, so now it's just him & me in a 10x12 foot box. I was told they'd get tangled up in a towel thrown at them - not true, but it will often scare them into making a forced landing, at which point you can just drop the towel on top of them. Carefully bundle them up - gently, because their wings are usually splayed out. Escort them to the door, give the towel a flap, & they're on their way. (New Hampshire, USA)
How could the myth of hedgehogs carrying apples on its back last, they're the gardeners favourite because of their diet. Their spikes are for protection not for gathering fruit 😅 oh dear
I can attest from personal experience that an earwig DID once come out my ear, but it had no side effects whatsoever.
For some reason, when I saw swan in this this video, I thought that surely the fact that swans only choose one partner in their lifes isn't true, so I was convinced author would mention it, yet it wasn't the case, now I am actually interested if this fact is true or not
A Swan had a fight with an octopuss in 2010 and broke 7 of its limbs 😢
I have Embden geese, which are pretty much like swans.
While playing/fighting with them one hit the back of my hand with its wing, broke a small bone.
Wouldn't break a large arm bone, but my hand is still part of my arm.
My geese bite to hold on to something then use their wings to pummel the crap out of whatever has pissed them off.
As a child my father witnessed a swan beating a collie to death with its wings.
Not a bat, but a dragonfly once got tangled in my sister's hair.
ive seen barnacle gooselings come out of barnacles before. dont let this person lie to you!
I think an earwig must've chewed through your brain... lol
I can believe a swam could break your nose if it hit it. I've never could believe the arm breakage.
I did believe the swan myth. And I learned that touching a toad might harm them. I helped toads migrating through my old house twice a year, I hope they were not hurt.
there is a myth that got me wondering: do mute swans (some of them only) sing as they are dying?
I loved it, you have a natural talent. Wish my channel was a fraction as good as yours. Merry Christmas Liam.
Hi! Have you anything on seagulls please! I find them fascinating! And I do feed them!
Not really related but i had a wart on my hand,i rubbed it with red meat steak and buried it,honest to god the meat rotted and my wart disappeared. No joke Liam.
Hello, Liam, thank you for this nice and informative video.
I have a question for you or your viewers, if you don't mind: I have a compost heap in my garden and some animal is living in it. It made tunnels, it rearanges the stuff I put on it (grass, leaves, vegetable peels...). What do you think it could be?
I've had rats in my garden in the past and I don't really mind to tell the truth but I don't think it is rats.
I live with a hunter-killer cat and I'm sure she would have caught one at least. Could it be hedgehogs?
Thank you for taking the time to answer my question.
Those myths are so ridiculous that it is surprising that anyone over five believes them.
i think the eating spiders thing comes from spiders decending from ceilings on thread, happened to me last year, i was lying in bed reading a book and a spider came down from the ceiling on a thread and landed on my face, scared the crap out of me.
2:59 thank you for the content warning
Bats have brushed against my head a couple of times times when I'm on the bike on the railway cycle path at night. I've had a few close shaves with near collisions generally and I've had their leathery wings brush the leg of my specs as it was forced to do a 120 degree turn in front of me. I just assumed that they didn't realise I was moving and maybe something about the noise the bike made played havoc with their sonar.
A bat once flew into my forehead whilst I was cycling down the lane to my house.
thats what happens if an apple fell directly on the back of a hedgehog
Lol, I think a fully grown apple might do a hedgehog real damage if there was a direct hit!
When I was a wee lad my hearing started to degrade. My mar took me to the nurse who saringed my ear and a mummified ear wig dropped onto the steel dish. Gross, and this episode fed a lot of nightmares as a child. I didn't know that it was classed as a myth until I looked it up on gooogle following this vid. Chomping on brains soundls like a playground exageration, and off brand as it was a mummy not a zombie.
Wher on earth did the barnacle geese myth come from?
Honestly, I have no idea!
Bats...
as a kid out with dad with a diana air rifle I fired up in the bats direction,it detected the pellet fired at xxx? Hundred fps...
That's crazy!
@@AShotOfWildlife 44 yrs ago,still remember it clearly.
I've only heard of one of these myths at all. And in the USA, we do not call them ladybirds, we call them ladybugs. And what are earwigs? I guess we don't have them here. The one of these myths I have heard of is the one about toads and warts.
Earwigs are in the USA, I don't know how common they are though amd I think they might be a non native species there.
We definitely have them here in the US, at least up in the northeast where I reside. Often found in rotting wood. They'd come boiling out of the woodshed door whenever we opened it.
I'd go for the rat thing around here, if it included shrews and mice...
then no problem with the spacing.
I always did wonder about that rat myth ,thanks for the really interesting video, have a great Christmas
Thanks Raymond. Have a great Christmas too!
lmao what the hell is that bat myth? XD i thought it was just gonna be about how people think they are blind