Popular Misnomers In Animal Kingdom

There are many terms in animal kingdom which are commonly used but are not the appropriate words for that particular animal.  There are many such animals in the world that bear the name of some other animal but totally different from them. This article discusses some of the misnomers that are seen commonly in the animal kingdom.

1.      Bear cat (Binturong): Except name and the fact that they all belong to the order carnivora of class mammalia, there is no similarity between these three animals. Bear cat is totally different from either a cat or a bear. Cat belongs to the family felidae, bear belongs to the family ursidae and bear cat belongs to the family vivveridae. The thick black fur on its body gives it’s the resemblance of a bear and in behavior it mostly resembles the cat. So it is given the name ‘bear cat’.

2.      Sea horse: sea horse is not at all a horse. There is no relationship between a horse and a sea horse. Horses belong to the class mammalia but sea horses belong to the class actinopterygii. Their body shape resembles the head of a horse. So it is called seahorse.

3.      Silver fish: Silver fish is not a fish. It is not at all a vertebrate. It is a wingless insect found in between old books and other old items. Their silvery appearance and fish like body shape has given them this common name. We can see many old books in the attic which are damaged by them. Their main source of food is carbohydrates. Since paper is rich in carbohydrates, they eat paper.

4.      Star fish: Star fish is not a fish. It is not at all a vertebrate. A starfish derives its name from its star-like appearance and the word fish comes from the fact that it lives in water like a fish. There is no other similarity between fish and starfish. Starfish belong to the phylum echinodermata or the animals having spiny skin.

5.      Flying fox: There is no fox on the earth which is capable of flying. This is the name given to a large bat whose snout resembles that of a fox. It belongs to the order chiroptera and the sub-order megachiroptera or large fruit eating bats. They are so large that their wing span often reaches 4-5 feet.

6.      Hunting leopard (cheetah): Cheetah is totally different from a leopard. They both belong to the same family felidae, but their genus is different. The leopard belongs to the genus panthera of big cats which have the ability to roar, whereas the cheetah belongs to the genus acinonyx. The cheetah can’t roar like a leopard. Cheetah runs at a speed of more than 110 km per hour for a short period, which also makes it the fastest runner on the planet. They can be differentiated from leopards by the single individual spots on their skin unlike the group of spots on the skin of leopards which are called rosettes. 

7.      Sea cucumber: It is an animal belonging to the phylum echinodermata, the same phylum as that of starfish. These animals resemble the shape of cucumber. So they are called sea cucumbers. They don’t have any relationship with the cucumber, the vegetable that we use in our home to eat raw and prepare vegetable salads etc.

8.      Jelly fish: Jelly fish is also not a fish. It belongs to the phylum cnidaria. They got their name from the jelly-like appearance of their body. Their body is so transparent that the inner parts of their body are often visible. Some of them are totally transparent like glass that one can easily see through them. They have flagella which bear innumerable stinging organs which inject deadly venom into the body of any animal that touches them and kills the animal within a few seconds.

9.      Ladybird: There is no relationship between a ladybird, a lady or a bird. Ladybird is a beautiful insect belonging to the order coleoptera. This order consists of all those insects which have a hard shell like structure outside their wings. All beetles, fireflies etc belong to this order. Their color varies from orange to yellow, red etc and they have beautiful black spots on the outer sheath of their wings.

10.  Marbled polecat: Marbled polecat is a mammal belonging to the family mustelidae. There is no resemblance between this animal and the cat. When threatened, they emit a strong, foul smelling secretion from the anal sac beneath their tail. This is the common characteristic of all the members of this family.

11.  Sea cows (Manatees): The name sea cow comes from the fact that manatees are sea dwelling animals and are pure herbivorous animals like cows. They can grow up to a length of about 13 feet and to a weight of 590 kg. Except the fact that they both belong to the class of mammals, there is no resemblance between cows and sea cows.

12.  Tasmanian wolf (also called Tasmanian tiger): Tasmanian wolf is an Australian marsupial which has no relationship with either tiger or a wolf, except the fact that all these three animals belong to the class of mammals. The tiger and wolf belong to the order carnivora whereas Tasmanian wolf belongs to the order marsupialia. They are the marsupial animals, which give birth to immature young ones and these young ones develop in their abdominal pouch, also called marsupium.