15 Prehistoric Creatures That Might Be Alive Today!

prehistoric creatures are supposed to be dead but newsflash buddy there are people out there who think that might be a great big pile of Bullwinkle's excrement could it be that there are still some dinos hiding noise somewhere on earth like the Savage Land and the Marvel Comics let's take a look at the possible evidence these are prehistoric creatures that might be alive today like this video smash the subscribe button and click the notification bell right now or this centipede will crawl on your face when you're sleeping number 15 turtle 250 million years old turtles might not be the quickest off the mark but they're one of a few prehistoric creatures that have managed to hold their own when many others succumb to evolutionary hardships Turtles have been on this earth for 250 million years and while they've evolved in their looks and behavior they're still as Hardy and as slow as they have always been Turtles of several million years ago used to be about ten feet long and weigh around two tons they didn't always have a shell either researchers believe that turtles have survived a mass extinction because of their aquatic lifestyle and slow metabolism being in the water protected them from whatever killed the dinosaurs and they could survive on few resources they also picked up survival skills along the way they grew shells to protect them from predators which is sure to have helped them last the distance turtles used to have teeth and eat meat and were even known to eat crocodiles Turtles today are a bit more health-conscious and live on plants and fruits Turtles might be smaller and a bit dainty er than they used to be but there's no denying they're more robust than dinosaurs after all who's here today not the dinosaur now it's time for the odd topic we couldn't exactly discuss prehistoric creatures without touching upon the Megalodon now could we this legendary shark captures the imaginations of YouTube users the world over with many being obsessed with trying to prove they're still alive this new photo here might just offer us new evidence that conspiracy theorists are right first surfacing on the Deep Web the photo seems to show the beefs corpse of a deceased shark and given the size of it it simply has to be a Megalodon right what do you think given that skin and muscle tissue is still on the shark it's clearly not been dead long which would suggest Megalodon are still out there remember to comment down below with the hashtag odd topic and let us know your opinion in relation to what we just showed on screen and now to the next topic number 14 pygmy right whale 23 million years old the pygmy right whale thought to be around 23 million years old might be alive today or it might not it's that elusive hidden and rare that it could entirely die out and no one would be any the wiser who's to say it hasn't already thought to be one of the rarest whale species in existence the pygmy right whale has only been spotted a few dozen times there are a few fossils few live specimens and therefore not a lot of information about them scientists aren't overly sure what they eat how they reproduce or how they act with the little information they do have they've been able to ascertain that this whale is one of the smallest at around 21 feet long and approximately seven thousand seven hundred pounds and they live in the cold waters of the southern hemisphere they also have an arched snout which is unlike most other whale breeds the last fossils to be found of the pygmy right whale were in Italy and Japan from those fossils scientists ascertained that this whale might originate from the baleen family up to 25 million years ago not a great deal of information is available on their diets but the size of their lungs and heart suggests they don't dive deep for food scientists assume their diet consists of you Fosse ads and copepods and the odd snack of krill from time to time number 13 purple frog 130 million years old if you mistook the purple frog for a blob then you'd be forgiven for it looks more blob than for could that be why it's one of the few prehistoric creatures to have survived mass extinction the purple frog has been around for 130 million years and you can only find it in southern Indian mountain ranges it's of an earthly purple hue and as darker and lighter brown bits on its feet and stomach and it lives underground at least most of the time the purple frog also looks more like a mole than a frog almost like it's going through an identity crisis it has a pointed nose and rounded body that seems a little disproportionate it's also fatter than other frogs and weighs about as much as a baseball the purple frog couldn't get any more unfrocked I kept it tried it lives on termites and ants and sucks them up as if it were a mole or ant eater it also doesn't croak like a frog but rather clucks like a chicken we think the purple frog's a little uncertain about its identity number 12 gharial 200 million years old the gharial looks like a cross between a crocodile and a hair comb and has been around for the last 200 million years it outlasted the dinosaur and many other prehistoric creatures and it's not hard to see why it has razor-sharp teeth that interlock to stop its prey from escaping and it can weigh as much as 1,500 pounds McGary a likely scared extinction away this prehistoric creature looks very similar to a crocodile but with a few differences it can be any number of colors from black tile of green and it has big bulging eyes within a small head the gharial also has weak legs compared to a croc and has to drag them under its belly when it's on land sadly the gharial is critically endangered so while it's been here for 200 million years its future looks uncertain there are only thought to be around 200 of them left in the wild in Pakistan Bangladesh and India number 11 giant Chinese salamander 170 million years old the giant shiny salamander is one of only two giant salamander species still in existence and this fell has been around for 170 million years while it's critically endangered status means it may not be around for much longer it's still exciting to know that such a large amphibian is still battling on the giant Chinese salamander can reach lengths of up to 5.9 feet and weighs up to 110 pounds they live on fish crabs worms insects smaller versions of themselves and shrimp it's fair to say they'd rack up quite a bill at any seafood restaurant unlike fish giant Chinese salamanders don't have gills even though they live underwater they somehow absorb oxygen through their skin during breeding season the female can lay up to 500 eggs and the male looks after them while they hatch it's unknown how much longer this amphibian can hold out without intervention but we're all rooting for its survival number 10 lamprey 360 million years old lamprey is a type of parasitic fish that has survived for evolutionary extinctions it mainly exists in the Atlantic Ocean and most people will be quite pleased about that they really are quite horrifying to look at they have no jaws but instead have a mouth that looks like a suction cup their tongues are razor sharp and their mouths are full of horn shaped teeth but it's not the teeth you should be worried about it's the tongue it can latch on to any other fish scrape away its scales then devour its flesh blood and whatever other nutrients it can get they essentially use their mouths like vacuums to get their dinner to the general population the lamprey is just another fish among several thousand species but scientists believe it's quite unique it's one of few animals that can regenerate parts of its body including its spinal cord even if it's spinal cord is completely severed it can regenerate it from paralysis to full mobility in about three months this ability could hold the key to nerve damage injuries and how to heal them in Hulme alongside finding out how their body works scientists were equally as intrigued to discover that it hasn't evolved all that much records show had got slightly longer but it's still in the same form today as it was 360 million years ago number 9 cockroaches 200 million years old there won't be any doubt in your mind why cockroaches survived a mass extinction these creepy crawly critters are impossible to kill they can live a week without a head by breathing through holes in their body and only die because they aren't able to drink they can even survive without food for a whole month if you thought that was the end of their mad skill sets then you'd be wrong they can hold their breath for 40 minutes we'll survive being submerged in water for 30 minutes and can run 3 miles per hour they also love alcohol what kind of crazy critter is this there are 4000 cockroach species in existence in the cockroach as a whole is even older than the dinosaur given that it can tolerate high levels of radiation we're not surprised it's last in the distance number 8 elephants shark 420 million years old the elephant shark is a vertebrate related to sharks and rays that have been around for 420 million years according to nature a scientific journal it's the slowest evolving vertebrate in the world and can be found off the coast of Australia and New Zealand elephant sharks have snouts that help them to hunt for shellfish in the sand their snouts are also covered with sensors that enable them to pick up electrical currents and sounds most fish glide effortlessly through the water but not the elephant's shark it has large appendages that look like wings to launch itself through the water not all that dissimilar from a manta ray the elephant shark may be prehistoric which means it's had plenty of opportunities to evolve but it hasn't it looks very much the same as what it did 420 million years ago number 7 Nautilus 500 million years old at half a billion years old Nautilus a type of shellfish is older than dinosaurs by 265 million years it's found in the Great Barrier Reef Andaman Fiji and tropical waters at depths of 2200 feet and is considered as a living fossil Nautilus have chambered shells 100 tentacles and a muscular hood which helps it fight predators even in half a billion years of its existence the Nautilus has changed very little it grows to around 10 inches in diameter and as a white to ahran shell with brown stripes how this unique and ancient shellfish moves is incredible each of its chambers is filled with water and gas by changing the gas content it can change its buoyancy it then injects the water out through a siphon which offers jet propulsion movement it can move up down forward and back this incredible critter has a parrot-like beak that it uses to slice its food and its radula another organ grinds its food up before it swallows it it dines on crab fish and shrimp be it dead or alive for the most part Nautilus will hang around on the sea floor but will typically launch upwards as the Sun sets in search of food while not everyone will get the opportunity to see this shellfish in person it's exciting to know that it's been around for hundreds of millions of years number six Imperial scorpion 400 million years old while not quite as prehistoric as the Nautilus the Imperial scorpion is still quite an impressive creature that's still alive today it goes by the name of emperor scorpion and is the largest and oldest in the world oddly enough it hasn't evolved or changed much since it came into existence the Imperial scorpion is native to West Africa but is prevalent in many different places around the world you'll mostly spot them in tropical forests and open savannas close to termite mounds in litter and debris in burrows and under rocks they weigh around one ounce grow to up to seven point nine inches long and glow florescent under UV light their natural blue and green coloring make them easy to spot and avoid by humans the way they detect prey is pretty neat they have sensory hairs on their tail and pincers and use these to detect vibrations on the ground and in the air while the Imperial scorpion might be quite terrifying to look at they are a scientific marvel and we're quite pleased that they are a prehistoric creature that's still alive today but their venom may have properties that can protect humans from bacteria and malaria in saying that their sting is still pretty painful and they use it for hunting at night along with their pincers number five goblin shark 125 million years old you've got to admit not all animals in the wild are as cute and cuddly as kitties and puppies prehistoric creatures like dinosaurs were not a ten on the attractiveness scale and goblin sharks certainly weren't either goblin sharks are a prehistoric creature that's been around for 125 million years and still is they grow to about 13 feet long and live in the dark depths of the ocean as deep as 4,300 feet it's probably a good thing they do too for they're quite a scary-looking form of marine life their blood vessels show through their skin to give them any pink or red pallor and they have an odd shaped jaw that allows them to sweep their prey up in the most unusual fashion they can also blend into their surroundings so you never see them coming for you the goblin shark snout is relatively unique as well it's what's known as a rostrum which looks like a blade and functions as a prey detector it's tiny receptors pick up electrical fields which enable it to sweep over the seabed and scoop up a snack or two so far it hasn't been possible to keep the goblin shark in captivity and it's preferred living quarters are quite far down so sightings of this prehistoric shark are rare number four frilled shark 80 million years old let's take a vote all those in favor of the frilled shark being a prehistoric creature that isn't alive today say aye there are no two ways about it this 80 million year old cousin of the great white and hammerhead shark is a monster it has six gills 300 sharp teeth and a hiss ja it's more like an eel than a shark and hasn't evolved all that much in 80 million years they're small sharp teeth make it challenging for prey to escape once they're in its grasp and they can bend their entire body while lunging forward like a snake let's be thankful the frilled shark prefers to hang out at depths of between thirty nine hundred and five thousand 150 feet any closer to the surface and we'd be a little worried we swallow their prey whole have twenty five rows of teeth and even have spines known as dermal denticles in their mouths they also grow to average lengths of 4.9 feet but females are often shorter the female also has one of the longest gestation periods of forty two months which is sure to make most human females feel a bit better about their nine month pregnancy fortunately for those who are a little squeamish the frilled shark is rarely found alive by those who spot them number three modern-day Kraken colossal squid sailors often spoke about a monster at sea that was capable of devouring man and a lot of other big stuff too while the monster became a legend known as Kraken modern-day researchers believe it's likely what those sailors had seen was the colossal squid the colossal squid can grow to as long as a minibus up to 46 feet and has eyes measuring around 15 inches in diameter it's definitely not a sea creature you'll want to see in a dark watery alley they weigh around 1,650 pounds and while they look similar to a giant squid in many ways their tentacles and arms differ significantly instead of suckers and small teeth they have swiveling and three pointed hooks which are sharp the colossal squid is thought to be as big as it is due to abyssal gigantism this phenomenon affects creatures who live deep in the ocean which makes the same species who don't live as deep in the sea far smaller it currently exists within thousands of miles of southern South Africa the southern tip of New Zealand southern South America and north of Antarctica pencil those locations in your diary as where not to visit for creepy prehistoric creature encounter number two giant ground sloth Megatherium the giant ground sloth also known as Megatherium is a distant relative of the modern-day sloth that may or may not exist today experts believe it became extinct around 4,000 years ago but native people in South America swear it still exists the Megatherium was the size of an elephant and fully grown wait around for tons and lived across the South American continent in up to Colombia and was one of the largest land mammals of its time while it would have walked on four legs for most of its life it stood up to 13 feet tall whenever it reached for food these giant sloths lived during the Ice Age and evolved into those you see today they lived along rivers and lakes and also preferred forests many people believe that by the end of the Ice Age around 11,000 700 years ago they became extinct that's not to say that they don't still exist rainforest natives believe they have seen them deep in the jungle and others say a giant creature with matted fur fitting the description of a giant sloth has been seen in South America we may never know for sure but we think this prehistoric creature is pretty cool all the same number 1 Megalodon shark over half of Americans say they're scared of sharks great white sharks can grow around 16 feet long so yeah they're a bit scary however the great white has nothing on the Megalodon shark which is undoubtedly gonna give your phobia some real merit the Megalodon shark was the biggest shark in the world it went extinct around 1.5 million years ago but not everyone is convinced that's entirely true after all how much of the ocean have we really seen most people are probably just hoping it's true this shark used to grow up to 60 feet long and was the apex predator of its day nothing could stand in this shark's way which makes it quite surprising that it succumbed to extinction global climate conditions and fierce competition for food may have been to blame the Megalodon regardless of how it died out was impressive it had enormous teeth that are still being found fossilized today and could open its jaw wide enough to - humans side by side in that jaw were 276 gnarly teeth that could chomp down on anything and pleased some deep-sea fishermen claim they have seen sharks far larger than a great white which has made some people question whether the Megalodon is still around but we're not gonna go and find out for no one needs to see another jaws remake are you shook to your core some of these prehistoric creatures are insane which one surprised you the most also check out our other cool stuff showing up on screen right now see you next time [Music]

Channel: Factsopedia

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Keywords: extinct animals, animals, prehistoric animals, prehistoric creatures, creatures, prehistoric, extinct, exist, ancient, extinction, strange, real, biggest prehistoric animals, alive, extinct creatures, ancient creatures, scary animals, creature, origins explained, ancient animals, strange animals, that are still alive, prehistoric monster, prehistoric creature, scary extinct animals, monsters, largest, discovery, explained, rarest animals, biggest, prehistoric beasts, still alive, alive today

Id: Y_wg4Uzb8PY

Length: 19min 26sec (1166 seconds)

Published: Sun Apr 12 2020