Nature's Most Surprising Projectiles

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Patreon: / realscience
Instagram: / stephaniesammann
Credits:
Narrator/Writer: Stephanie Sammann
Writer: Lorraine Boissoneault
Editor: Dylan Hennessy (www.behance.net/dylanhennessy1)
Editor: Leany Muñoz
Illustrator: Elfy Chiang (www.elfylandstudios.com/)
Illustrator/Animator: Kirtan Patel (kpatart.com/illustrations)
Animator: Mike Ridolfi (www.moboxgraphics.com/)
Sound: Graham Haerther (haerther.net)
Thumbnail: Simon Buckmaster ( / forgottentowel )
Producer: Brian McManus ( / realengineering )
Imagery courtesy of Getty Images
References:
[1] www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/bombar...
[2] www.biorxiv.org/content/10.11...
[3] news.mit.edu/2015/how-bombard...
[4] royalsocietypublishing.org/do...
[5] link.springer.com/article/10....
[6] www.cell.com/current-biology/...
[7]
web.archive.org/web/202003181...
[8] tierphysiologie-bayreuth.de/wp...
[9] elifesciences.org/articles/74...
[10] www.nature.com/articles/srep2...
[11] www.sciencedirect.com/science...
[12] bit.ly/3Cr7ntc
[13] www.micropia.nl/en/discover/m...
[14] journals.plos.org/plosone/art...

[@GeoffryGifari]

the image of charles darwin biting a beetle with his hands full and getting shot by it just seems utterly hilarious

[@barrymccociner4105]

Seems like he should have had a container close by if he was hunting beetles.

[@death13a]

No plastics were invented yet during his time

[@hanselguzman7089]

He said “container” did not mention plastic

[@dianemartinis2801]

Darwin was definitely dedicated to learning and he definitely got his lesson that day.

[@markdrill2707]

With curiosity clearly well above that of the average cat, I'm surprised he wasn't killed by it

[@winkleberrygang]

That butterfly flying upside down after evading death by the archer fish was incredible.

[@rogerstone3068]

Well, yes, but it can't have been true because according to this video the archer fish has 100% accuracy, which is to say it never misses.

[@ackkid5430]

Well, it didn't miss. It just wasn't a kill.

[@ooooneeee]

@@rogerstone3068 that was in lab conditions, not irl.

[@lenarianmelon4634]

​@@rogerstone3068it didn't miss, the butterfly just shook off the hit.

[@lilywong9672]

@@rogerstone3068 Do you know what "missing" means?

[@emmetthowell899]

2:07 the knowledge that Darwin referred to a beetle he was holding between his teeth (which I mean can you blame the dude he had no more hands) as “the little inconsiderate beast” just made my life a little bit happier today, as I too have called wild animals I’m holding little inconsiderate beasts

[@GeoffryGifari]

Imagine the amount of computation in an archerfish's brain trying to aim in ebbing, murky water and taking account of light refraction from water to air, not to mention gravitational pull on the water stream

[@DirtRider999]

I mean i doubt they're 100% accurate but it's still amazing.

[@GiRR007]

its impresssive for the size of the fishes brain but not too impressive. Most of it is basic pattern recognition, something brains are very good at anyway.

[@alterego3734]

It really doesn't require much computation at all. However, finding the right computation to do is not easy. Evolution is well suited to find efficient good-enough solutions to such problems.

[@chatteralt8905]

It’s not that complicated

[@idiotidiot5821]

Breaking surface tension too

[@UnicornOfDepression]

"Whatcha watching?" "Something about bugs with acid sharts, fish that shoot water, and mushroom cannons." "Bro, are you high?" "That's not the point. This is awesome. Check it out." "Whoa."

[@terramater]

It's fascinating to take a closer look at this topic! Our crew managed to shoot some sort of ant war, in which, in order to protect their territory, they used chemical formic acid. They sport acid from the tips of their abdomens, targetting their enemy. And after that, it's crazy and fascinating to see how the whole conflict gets even more intense.

[@iateabugtoday5587]

Vivaldi playing in the background makes this so much more intense. Absolutely brilliant and terrifying

[@archlectoryarvi2873]

What's the name of the music that starts at 2:31?

[@ooooneeee]

IKR. That gave me portrait of a lady on fire flashbacks.

[@ooooneeee]

@@archlectoryarvi2873 Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 8, RV 315, "L'estate" (Summer) - movement 3: presto from The Four Seasons Here is a good concert recording of it (Presto starts at 8:11): kzbin.info/www/bejne/nWeYoIp8griigZI

[@davegoud]

"The zone of repugnance" that's funny...and appropriate. God I love this channel. Again, the clarity and articulation of her voice is oh so impressive....not to mention the content.

[@fishdude666ify]

I used to work at a pet store in the fish room and had a pair of archers at home. When I'd walk past the tank I'd feel water hitting my ear, and one time I was on the phone and was standing next to the tank looking down at them through the open top. They were side by side looking up at me, and I swear i watched the water coming straight up at my right eye. It hit, and i sputtered and wiped my face and as soon as i took my hand away the one on the left fired (watered?) and hit my other eye.

[@DinnerForkTongue]

Damn, bro, what did you do to those fish? lmao

[@kytrensol9777]

@@DinnerForkTongue maybe they were playing? I heard they do that.

[@strangesocks]

I dont how to say this in a non-insulting way but I fall asleep within a minute of putting your videos on... i have no idea why but as a person who struggles sleeping (its 3am ive been awake 20hrs) its a real lifeline. I watch them in the day sometimes too for entertainment but primary consumption is bedtime. I'm going to put this on now and go to sleep. Thank you for this weird gift! Your content is so wonderful and interesting and just peak relaxation for me. Thanks again xx

[@strangesocks]

Worked like a treat 😌

[@toxinlich]

Your video has truly made my weekend, it's the highlight of it! Keep up the amazing content.

[@RyzawaVT]

I wonder what the smartest fish is if it isn't an archerfish. Also I like this kind of video focusing on multiple creatures instead of just one!

[@theflyingdutchguy9870]

i dont think its an intelligents thing. its more like a instinctual thing like beavers building a dam.

[@BadassRandomness]

Snakeheads are quite intelligent

[@bellumxyz1421]

No it's definitely intelligence. It was even mentioned in the video how the archer fish could learn abilities from other fish. Instinct isn't taught. It's an inherent impulse to do something. It requires intelligence to observe and learn from others.

[@Beanpolr]

@@theflyingdutchguy9870 Beavers building dams isn't t 100% instinct either.

[@2424Lars]

Manta Rays have the biggest brains of all fish as far as I know, and have shown signs of self-recognition in mirrors. Although there are studies of other fish species having supposedly passed the mirror test, so who knows?

[@gobeaugo]

This wsa very well done. Better intro than most, great examples, good narrative, and a more engaging delivery style than most KZbinrs.

[@wheelchair_charlie]

Great video "exploding" full of interesting amazing animal facts! Extremely well written and narrated as all your videos are! Thanks you!

[@behlockaetheking7062]

Extremely disappointed pistol/Mantis shrimp weren't mentioned, as they use implosions that reach thousands of degrees, through cavitation bubbles, either knocking out their crustacean prey, or shattering their shell. Scientists are theorizing it's a quantum event, and creates an entangled pair of particles. Absolute dissatisfaction that they weren't included

[@snowkracker]

I could watch stuff like this all day. And I do.

[@ramuk1933]

Oecophylla Smaragdina Weaver ants - formic acid spraying - are also impressive. It's a beautiful creature, too. And Colobopsis Saurdausi "kamikaze" ant has worker castes with a gland of acid that runs the length of its body, which it can rupture in battle, spewing a sticky acid everywhere, dying in the process.

[@SuperVlerik]

So, this isn't "oh wow, other creatures can do this too" so much as "hey look, we're just one of many"

[@scheimong]

I like how the mantis got shot, rocked, and a bit dazed, but didn't fall off. Then it looks like it just stared back at the fish as if to say "hey that wasn't nice".

[@DefektoPrime]

The squirting cucumber (Ecballium elaterium) is another interesting projectile flinger in nature. The fruit uses fluid pressure to squirt its seeds out

[@eliteteamkiller319]

[@GgTTV828]

One of my favorite armed and dangerous creatures is the pistol, whom, using its specially designed claw can fire bubbles at its prey. The bubble is useful at stunning, and sometimes frying the prey, that it hunts. It is capable of being shot at over 82 feet a second, generating over 216 decibels of sound, and generating over 4,000°c in heat from the exploding bubbles. It is an absolutely insane creature!

[@Joshua_Hale]

Normally I don't worry about these sort of nitpicks too much, but the word 'shrimp' (I'm guessing that's what's being discussed here) is really important for this comment.

[@xandrewvondiue522]

6:07 "The mechanics of their water darts are relatively *straightforward* " I saw what you did there

[@avgvstvs5587]

was just watching another one of your videos, happy to have another one to watch now :)

[@adrianqx]

Have always been fascinated by bombardier beetles, was pleasantly surprised to find the are quite common in my parents backyard was great fun showing their tricks to my kids !

[@julianusapostata6677]

I love your Formats. They are very unique Going in a very big topic But very close and deep in the examples

[@feltedsneed]

7:18 Mantis: "is that all you got?" 😆

[@KaentukiTheFuki]

I feel like a "a combustible caboose" was a missed joke opportunity this video

[@JoeyP946]

I like how nature is even crazier than I could imagine. a tool using fish takes the cake today

[@benmcreynolds8581]

Animal Avatars! I love Nature. Science and Space is the most facinating stuff ever. I'm so glad it exists at all. It's amazing.

[@barcelonadhaneliamcuevas4743]

Your voice is so soothing I play it with headphones on at night to fall asleep ❤️

[@twilightgardenspresentatio6384]

9:39 one in four prey items being standard is huge for the archer fish

[@mellissadalby1402]

This is a really good one. Well done!

[@christianheichel]

It'd be interesting to hear your take on how you think the bombardier beetle evolved without blowing itself up...,???

[@burntbreadbits]

I'd assume the ones who couldn't got "selected out of the breeding pool" across whatever log they were climbing on.

[@DendrocnideMoroides]

@@burntbreadbits that is obvious but it is more interesting to know how exactly they do that biologically

[@omarb7164]

I suggest you look it up, it’s easier than getting it explained to you. There’s a complicated evolutionary path but basically it’s chemicals that weren’t volatile or dangerous inside the beetle, but the chemicals had some benefits, and the benefits improved progressively

[@markferguson5924]

It doesn't just happen with those chemicals alone: like many reactions, you need a catalyst to get a practically useful rate at an acceptable temperature. And the enzyme shape/concentration can be varied gradually, providing the necessary evolutionary ramp - so creationists using the beetles as an example of 'irreducible complexity' that would explode while half-formed are sunk again, though they never admit it.

[@MichaelEilers]

Every science textbook I encountered have just said “bombardier beetle” as if there is only one species, never knew there were 400+ versions. The question I’d like to see answered: how do they manufacture the hydrogen peroxide and store it without damaging themselves?

[@apveening]

Pretty similar to the way your body produces hydrochloric acid.

[@jodo7814]

Narrator trying not to laugh at 8:50 while explaining fish shooting water at certain people’s faces.

[@Dornul]

I fully expected the Horned Lizard to be in this video, as it shoots blood from it's eyes as a defensive weapon. What's wilder than that?

[@thetobyntr9540]

I wonder how long it'll be until some of the bombardier beetles develop this into a propulsion mechanism, or maybe theres something like that undiscovered. They have all the basic parts of a hypergolic rocket motor anyway.

[@MrDuane-lr8dm]

Can you please link curiosity stream recommendations in the descriptions?

[@mujahidmahmood2444]

Saw this masterpiece here first. Now I have to see it on Nebula too. Fantastic work on your Nebula only series!

[@jacobmgmt9737]

This video is so good thankyou

[@Mark_GL]

That transition was smooth.

[@qbicc6381]

The transition to the sponsor advertisement was incredibly smooth!

[@AldrianCG]

Kudos to whoever thought “winter” was a good fit in the video. 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@JackSparrow-re4ql]

Where did you learn archery? The school of archer fish taught me all I know...!

[@Brendafdz505]

thank you so much for ur videos!!!

[@sapelesteve]

As usual, very interesting and well documented video RS! Another little known fact about Darwin was that he hated barnacles. 🤔🤔

[@TundeEszlari]

Sensational content.

[@yepster3]

love this channel

[@gingerfoxx1476]

Wow, I never knew beetles and archer fish were so cool!

[@user-ov9do5io8r]

Can you do the eveloution of rats I think there ability to adapt to poisonous 1 substances so unique thanks

[@immagical7036]

2:00 inconsiderate beast?? Mr. Darwin, did you not realise that beetle was terrified, it thought you were going to eat it, of course it did all it could to get you to stop XD

[@MrYoshigu]

If Darwin had seen the Panda 🐼 🐼…I wonder what he will think 😂😂😂 “What in gods name did evolution make the panda for???”

[@berzerkplayzz7907]

I still can’t believe we as the weakest physically speaking, we are the most capable and dominating species due to our intelligence

[@Volti-Vagra]

strong do good on own smart do good in group bald monki millions stronk- weak n dumb no problem

[@DendrocnideMoroides]

we aren't the weakest or slowest biologically, It is just that we have a very sedentary lifestyle.

[@CountCocofang]

TierZoo has a great video about this. It's not just intelligence that makes humans so dominant. It's also our long-distance stamina thanks to sweating, reach thanks to projectiles, vision thanks to standing upright and very versatile stomachs thanks to symbiotic micro-organisms. Without high intelligence, which allows complex tool use and teaching, we wouldn't completely take over the planet of course but humans could still dominate regionally.

[@shanetuma3845]

If you're weak, maybe you should consider going to the gym.

[@Diet_Fluid]

Love this video 😊

[@13thravenpurple94]

Great work Thank you

[@User-nt9tr]

When the beetle feels threatened, it becomes a professor

[@bobstewart4989]

Saw a cedar tree eject it's pollen once. It's like it sneezed

[@PershijsmachnijKherson]

Hello, thanks for the interesting and beautiful video, great channel! Good luck!!👌

[@daltonv5206]

Bombardier beetles spend too much time at taco bell

[@devandholakia5704]

Lol putting a beetle in your mouth... that's some real survival of the fittest shit right there

[@jschouten1985]

When i hear this voice-over it's an instant 👍🏻

[@danellboy5757]

If i slap myself on the forehead I've got "100% accuracy"

[@myboysd5772]

Very cool video but how do we turn them into weapons of war?

[@robertarguello1115]

Hello, ... By the way, there's a creature that lurks at the bottom of our oceans. A creature that possesses a punch so deadly, and so lightening fast, that divers don't dare to get a really close look at it, for fear that this creature will smash open their scuba eyewear. Having them to scurry to the surface for air! ... It's called the MANTIS SHRIMP!

[@Santnik369]

Great narrator

[@allanshpeley4284]

😆

[@aashsyed1277]

3:04 how do they produce this acid ? It can finish in there bodies and how does it heat the mixture ? Can we make this mixture in the lab ? I would love to see how this mixture behaves

[@rozinaakter7147]

Amazing ❤❤

[@valentyn.kostiuk]

They have schools of archer fish! What a strange place. Why?

[@joeshmoe8345]

Thanks big dog, that was great.

[@clivematthews95]

Animal kingdom is always so interesting

[@othmansonkeir46]

جزاكم الله خير

[@Icemanfreezer7]

The squirting beetle aka squirtle

[@leolldankology]

Bionic sphincter

[@ujang3288]

Is this the beetle that inspired the beetle in starship trooper?

[@WAMTAT]

Probably

[@CLCasual]

I still dont understand why it requires soooo much deadly venom, considering the number and size of predators. Seems excessive for the current meta

[@GeoffryGifari]

makes one wonder how projectile weapons evolved in these animals... modification on other chemical glands?

[@boispad]

Good acting guys

[@7th_Heaven]

This video is like straight outta Tremors

[@profpuffofficial2]

0:25 *elephants have entered the chat*

[@stax6092]

Nice.

[@sebastianfiel1715]

I'm haunted by the possibility of tiny bullets of fungi shooting from excrement directly to my mouth 😥

[@joshuazamora6307]

Subscribed 😍

[@kyliecunnington7711]

2:07 I litterly laughed for a good while

[@QuestionsStuff]

This was really cool .... ;)

[@anthonyrampolla3884]

You should do the praying mantis

[@1TakoyakiStore]

Stargazers are incredibly OP. Like why would you need to envenomate AND taze!

[@stevenbaker436]

Jack in box has the same effect on me.

[@Giltcrab]

I bet Steve Irwin would have something to say about animal projectiles... too soon?

[@iceboorg9737]

I wanna hear the popping funghi so bad

[@MrQwint22]

Spray nozzle? That's a butt cannon!

[@Emelineeeeeee]

Oo I want a video about the fish that shoots prey out of the air! Edit: I spoke too soon.

[@jayjalalon-pc3tw]

😎 accuracy.

[@dbernadickas]

You can't just say "they do make a popping sound" and not showing it. I'm missing some satisfaction 😂

[@reginaldsimms199]

Beatles shootin' loads

[@mkhawialjen123]

﴿ وَمِنۡ ءَايَٰتِهِۦ خَلۡقُ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَمَا بَثَّ فِيهِمَا مِن دَآبَّةٖۚ وَهُوَ عَلَىٰ جَمۡعِهِمۡ إِذَا يَشَآءُ قَدِيرٞ ﴾ [ الشورى: 29] And of His signs is the creation of the heavens and earth and what He has dispersed throughout them of creatures. And He, for gathering them when He wills, is competent

[@Cursivealpha]

Yeah, but can a bombardier beetle survive an archer fish???

[@clavididk1236]

Mantus shrimp??

[@ASPINLOVE]

❤️

[@irtur52]

0:57 Who does this? Some spider?

[@DendrocnideMoroides]

It is an insect called the Ant Lion, it is neither an ant nor a lion but it mainly eats ants so that is why it has the name it has

[@NothingVain]

2:40 This is my kingdom c-