I'm interested in folklore, nature and science - and where they overlap! I also have a blog on those themes if you're interested: https://reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.com/
Accused 16th century witch Joan Upney was said to keep a collection of toads. These amphibians were not just pets, they were familiars that she'd send to "pinch" and drain the life from inconvenient humans! #FolkloreSunday More familiars at reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.com/2026/01/a-wi...
In the Hindu epic Mahābhārata, the fire god Agni devours (burns) Khandava Forest. His motive wasn't malign - he was attempting to cure himself of a case of divine indigestion, brought on by excessive sacrifices! More wildfire folklore at...
Firehawks and a God With Indigestion: The Folklore of WildfiresRead about gods who caused wildfires, a hummingbird that tried to battle a forest blaze and the pyromaniac firehawks of Australia!reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.comThe British hoaxers Mary Bateman and Helen Duncan led "magical" lives - Duncan's séances got her locked up for national security, while Bateman had the "Prophet Hen of Leeds" (as well as being a fraudster and murderess!) #FolkloreThursday Read on at reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.com/2026/06/mary...
Researchers relied on lidar to scan the remains of cities beneath the vegetation of Ecuador’s Upano Valley. Heinrich Schliemann had another approach to excavating Troy - while Homer's Greeks used a wooden horse, Schliemann used TNT!
Ancient Troy and the Valley of the Lost Cities: 5 Times Forgotten Settlements Were FoundRead about the rediscovery of ancient cities along the Silk Road, the truly ancient Göbekli Tepe and how TNT helped reveal the city of Troy!reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.comZlatorog (Goldenhorn) was a chamois buck with golden horns, which were the keys to the treasure of Mount Triglav. A hunter once shot Zlatorog, but the buck was healed by the flowers that sprung from his shed blood! #WyrdWednesday
Alpine Nymphs and a Gold-Horned Goat: Explore 6 Folklore Creatures of Europe's MountainsRead about a golden-horned fairy-goat and the anguane water nymphs of the Alps, or the mysterious mountain men Rübezahl and Basajaun...reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.comFungi and bacteria may offer an excellent solution to plastic pollution. Researchers found plastic-eaters in the coastal marshes of China, while a lab in Sidney was able to degrade polypropylene with fungi! More world-changing organisms at reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.com/2026/04/carb...
The 16th century cat Sathan was a familiar of Elizabeth Francis and Agnes Waterhouse. Sathan fetched, advised and killed for Francis... who repaid his service by trading him to Waterhouse for a cake! #FairyTaleTuesday More familiars at reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.com/2026/01/a-wi...
The cockatoos of Sydney seem to have learned bin lid opening tricks from each other, with the rubbish-raiding behavior spreading between suburbs at an incredible rate! More examples of animal culture at reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.com/2026/04/grud...
The Bĭnáye Aháni ("Eye Killers") of Navajo folklore were born without limbs or a defined head... but they did have eye-like depressions, from which they could project deadly lightning! #MythologyMonday More at reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.com/2026/06/skof...
Rat kings are a rare (with only 58 reliable sightings prior to 2005) but real occurrence. These bundles of rodents are linked by their tails, which are tied in folklore... or stuck together by natural glues! #FolkyFriday Read more about rat kings at...
Horrifying, Ill-Omened and Real: The Tangled Tale of the Rat KingFolklore speaks of rat kings, groups of rodents tied together by their tails - but rat kings are real and have even been caught on modern day video!reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.comDon't be deceived by the ramshackle looks - sociable weaver birds make sophisticated communal nests that can last over a century. The entryways of these apartment-like structures even have spikes to deter predators! More animal architects at...
Beavers, Ants and Weavers: Delve Into the Dwellings of 7 Animal ArchitectsRead about the colony homes of the sociable weaver, the sinister devil's garden, the murderous lairs of purseweb spiders and a bird that uses rivets!reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.comResearchers have found evidence that honey bees will medicate their hives in response to fungal parasites, collecting and mixing antimicrobial plant resins into their wax! More examples of zoopharmacognosy (animals self-medicating) at...
Bear Medicine and Orangutan Ointments: Examples of Zoopharmacognosy (Animals Self-Medicating)Read about fruit fly larvae getting drunk to kill parasites, bees mixing antimicrobial resin into wax and apes making pills and heat rubs!reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.comThe Slavic kikimora was a domestic spirit that (like a brownie) could take on a share of the chores... unless a household had a penchant for idleness. In these cases she'd retaliate with nightmares, sickness or death! #WyrdWednesday
Brownie, Bwbach and Kikimora: Explore 10 Groups of European House FairiesEver wished you had a magical housework helper? Check out the bwbach, domovoy, duende, nisse, kobold, kaukas and other European domestic fairies!reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.comHawaiian mythology warns of "limu-make-o-Hana" - a deadly "seaweed" growing in a pool tainted by the ashes of a man-eating shark god. The pool turned out to be real, but the "seaweed" was a soft (and toxic) hexacoral!
Poisonous Pigeons and Killer Coral: Strange Users and Uses of ToxinsRead about some of the stranger users of toxins in the animal kingdoms - including a coral used to poison spears and a snake with with a toxic neck!reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.comThe Isles of Scilly have links to Arthurian legend. Not only did Tristan defeat the Irish champion Morholt on Samson, folklore and science agree that Lyonesse may have been between them and Cornwall! #FairyTaleTuesday More lost lands at reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.com/2026/07/stor...
Like the sirens of The Odyssey, Northern Shrikes seem able to lure small birds close with their song - a mistake that can end in impalement on a thornbush larder! More animals that murder by mimicry at...
Spider-Tailed Snakes and Femme-Fatale Fireflies: 7 Animals That Murder by MimicryRead about animals that use mimicry to secure meals - from spiders pretending to be ants to a parasite that gives snails a pulsing "alien" growth!reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.comMāori folklore has Te Wheke-o-Muturangi (the octopus of Muturangi.) Muturangi was an exile who tamed a giant wheke and sent it to steal food. The hero Kupe battled the beast... and cooked it at Te Umu Wheke (the octopus oven) bay! #MythologyMonday
Ship-Killing, Island-Making and Fish-Stealing: Octopus Gods and FolkloreDiscover Kanaloa, Akkorokamui, Na Kika and Te Wheke-o-Muturangi, along with Roman tales of adventurous octopuses and (of course) the deadly kraken!reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.comThe Jewish demon Ketev Meriri was said to roam the noons of summer, with death coming to those who looked on it. There's a custom that warns against wandering alone during those times (also helpful against heatstroke!) #FolkloreSunday More at reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.com/2026/06/skof...
Did you know that some corals work together to capture and eat jellyfish? A jelly that brushes against an Astroides calycularis colony will find the coral polyps snatching at it like a wall of living (and hungry) Velcro!
Building Reefs and Eating Jellyfish: Discover the Strange Life of CoralRead about how these weird animals can team up to tear apart jellyfish, have a tase for (literal) junk food and why they bleach themselves to survive!reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.comFungal "fairy rings" are a part of British folklore. Tales tell of people crossing into a ring and stepping out of time, dancing for years with the fairies... and sometimes crumbling to dust when rescued! #FungiFriday #Folklore
Mushrooms, Music and Crumbling to Dust: Fairy Ring Folklore From the British IslesRead stories of fairy rings from the British Isles, what can happen to foolish mortals that step into them and what happens when someone gets rescued!reallyweirdrealworld.blogspot.com