American Museum of Natural History

Need a little fluff to brighten your day? Meet the striped hyena! When disturbed, this critter can double its size by raising the hairs on its back to intimidate foes. Though it's a scavenger that feeds primarily on carrion, it supplements its diet with fruits, seeds, and leaves.

You don’t want to dip your cookies in the Amazon milk frog’s “milk.” This amphibian’s common name refers to the poisonous, milky substance it secretes when under threat! This nocturnal frog inhabits the rainforests of South America.

Happy Trilobite Tuesday! Pictured is a 3-in- (7.6-cm-) long Nevadia weeksi from the Lower Cambrian of the Western US. With the help of UV lighting, two prominent antennae can be seen on this specimen. Such soft-part preservation is rare in trilobites from this locality.

For your daily dose of cuteness, meet the masked palm civet. Weighing ~11 lbs (5 kg), this house cat-sized critter is an omnivore with a taste for fruit. It also feeds on small vertebrates, insects, & birds. When threatened, it can discharge a potent scent from its anal glands.

What a croc! This #FossilFriday, meet Deinosuchus—a giant predator that was as long as a school bus & as heavy as an elephant. Partially healed bite marks found on the bones of a tyrannosaur match this croc's teeth, suggesting it could rival even the most formidable dinosaurs.

You are what you eat: just ask the hooded grasshopper. It feeds primarily on leaves—and it’s perfectly camouflaged to look like one, too. This species inhabits parts of India and Sri Lanka. Females can grow up to 2 in (5.2 cm) long, while males are only about half their size.

Have you ever seen a Monk Parakeet? This Argentine bird can be found as far afield as NYC, Boston, & Chicago. How can it survive in colder climates? It lives in colonies & builds well-insulated nests to keep members warm during harsh winters.

Gone but not forgotten.🦤 Less than 80 years after Dutch soldiers 1st spotted the Dodo on Mauritius, it went extinct. Deforestation, hunting, & the introduction of invasive species drove this species to extinction. See a Dodo skeleton in the Museum's Hall of Biodiversity.

This Fossil Friday, meet Pachycephalosaurus! It was once theorized that, like modern bighorn sheep, it used its skull as a battering ram. More recent studies have challenged this idea, suggesting Pachycephalosaurus may have knocked its opponents’ sides like modern day bison.

Believe it or not, this critter is a legless amphibian! Meet Beddome’s caecilian (Ichthyophis beddomei).This species, which grows up to 10.8 in (27.5 cm) long, can secrete smelly fluids from its skin before burrowing into the soil to make its escape.

Meet the sand cat. This feline is built for desert life. Thick soles on its paws allow it to withstand the temperature extremes of desert sand. In parts of its range, days can reach 124° Fahrenheit (51° C) and then plummet to 31° Fahrenheit (-0.5° C) by night!

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s… a dinosaur? Nope to all of the above. This Fossil Friday, let’s celebrate pterosaurs, flying reptiles that ruled the skies for 150+ million years. Some were as small as paper airplanes while others had wingspans bigger than an F-16 fighter jet!

The Florida softshell turtle doesn’t fit the slow-&-steady stereotype. It's relatively quick on land & is a rapid swimmer thanks to its hydrodynamic, flattened shell, & webbed feet. It has a long neck & snout that it pokes above the surface, like a snorkel, to breathe.🤿🐢

Despite its resemblance to the raccoon & the giant panda, the red panda is in its own distinct family: Ailuridae. Spending most of its life in the treetops, it uses its long tail as a counterbalance & can rotate its feet 180 degrees to aid it in gripping tree bark & branches.

Boo! Behold the ghost glass frog. This arboreal amphibian is able to “vanish” like a ghost, altering the hue of its green skin to match surrounding vegetation. It can be found in parts of Central & South America.

☃️Due to the winter storm, the Museum will be closed tomorrow, Monday, February 23. 🐻Take a cue from the bears—it’s a hibernation day. Stay safe, stay warm, and we’ll see you soon. Photo: Alvaro Keding/©AMNH

Whatever you do, don’t greet the Senegal bush baby with a handshake. To mark its territory and improve its grip, this mammal urinates on its own hands! This nocturnal omnivore uses its large eyes and ears to find food, including seeds, eggs, and insects.

Welcome to Trilobite Tuesday! Pictured is Asaphus kowalewski. This 450-million-year-old species stands apart from other trilobites with its eyes perched atop 2-in- (5-cm-) long stalks. To some, Asaphus kowalewski may look like an animal from a distant galaxy!

Meet the Guianan Cock-of-the-rock—named for its proclivity to build mud-and-stick nests on rocky outcrops. Males have brilliant orange plumage and half-moon crests, which distinguish them from the less distinctive, gray females.

Think Valentine's Day stinks? Then the stinking corpse lily is perfect for you! It may look beautiful, but its rotten-flesh scent will make you think twice before gifting it to your sweetheart. Its pungent smell is a come-hither to carrion flies, which spread pollen.