Animal Defense Mechanisms

By Terri Schlichenmeyer
Published on December 8, 2015
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A moth’s camouflage is its first line of defense.
A moth’s camouflage is its first line of defense.
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Heed all warnings from any horned animal, wild or domestic.
Heed all warnings from any horned animal, wild or domestic.
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Your friendly barn cats still need their claws intact for easier hunting and to fend off predators.
Your friendly barn cats still need their claws intact for easier hunting and to fend off predators.
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A horse’s chompers are more accustomed to grass, but they can come in handy when defending themselves.
A horse’s chompers are more accustomed to grass, but they can come in handy when defending themselves.

Inside your barns and sheds, danger lurks. Rusty nails can catch a sleeve and scratch an arm. You can trip on loose boards, heavy things can fall on your head, a slick spot can send you to your rear, and those are just a few of the perilous things in the place your animals call home. But what about the animals themselves?

Let’s just say nobody goes to the barn without some sort of protection.

This is especially so in the wild. Spanish ribbed newts have the nifty ability to turn their bones into side-rows of poisonous spikes when they come across danger. When threatened, hagfish ooze a substance that mixes with water and becomes slime to disable an enemy. Northern fulmar chicks will vomit on an attacker. Bombardier beetles can shoot burning fluid from their behind when they feel threatened, and a species of Malaysian ants will explode themselves to protect their nest.

The good news is that you’ll likely never find hagfish, fulmar chicks, or Malaysian ants in your barn, and Spanish ribbed newts probably don’t reside in your shed. But the defense mechanisms of the animals you live with are just as interesting.

Let’s start at the top.

Horns

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