Alternative names for animals: Read about the hilarious labels and interesting facts

There are so many times we name people or objects as per our convenience. We either do it because we are unable to remember their real names, or because we are amused by any of their physical or personality traits.

However, when scientists named the animals they discovered, they probably had some concrete reasons, such as the zoological categories or behavioral characteristics of these animals. The problem is that these labels are sometimes difficult to remember for a layman.

Here are some alternative names for animals that you would not only find funny, but also easy to remember.

Seagull Beach Chicken

An alternative name for Seagull could have been Beach Chicken.

One of the reasons for calling them by this name is that they are almost the same size as that of a chicken. They are usually found near the beach. Reason being that they are water birds with webbed feet who like swimming.

They eat almost everything ranging from discarded food to dead animals.

Fun Fact: They are always on a hunt for something to eat. They may steal your snacks during a beach picnic so beware! Don’t say later that we didn’t warn you.

Llamas Giraffe Sheep

Some alternative names for animals just inadvertently develop because most people start calling them with names, based on how they look.

Both Llamas and Alpacas look like a cross of Giraffes and Sheep.

If you observe the picture of Llamas above, you would see that they have wool-imbedded bodies like that of sheep but long necks like Giraffes. Therefore, most people and children who were unaware of what these unique creatures actually were exclaimed “Giraffe-Sheep” upon catching a glimpse of them in zoos, safaris or even pictures.

Fun Fact: Giraffe-Sheep has now become a commonly recognized word to refer to both Llamas and Alpacas, even though it is not the real name of these species.

Octopus Floppy Floppy Sea Spider

Can you guess the name of an organism with eight arms that lives under water?

Yes, that’s right we are referring to the Octopus.

Its eight arms make it stand out from other marine animals. That’s something we all learned about in primary classes, and have found it amusing ever since. However, one thing that we hardly gave thought to was octopus’s similarity to a spider.

Whoever came up with the name Floppy Floppy Sea Spider for this creature must have been a very observant and detail-oriented person.

Fun Fact: Unlike other animals whose intelligence is accumulated in their brain, 3/5^th of an Octopus’ nerves are located in its arms and so is its intelligence.

If you want to learn more interesting facts about Floppy Floppy Spider of the Sea, watch the video below:

Manatees Floaty Potatoes

Let’s admit that we have all nick-named one of our overweight friends “potato” back in high school. Obviously, we now know better and understand that body shaming in any form is unacceptable.

Basically, Manatees are overweight aquatic animals that literally float on water. Since they weigh more than half a ton they move very slowly.

Another label given to a Manatee is “Sea Cow”.

Fun Fact: Manatees are lazy animals that sleep underwater for most part of the day. Even when awake, they are seen munching on to some underwater plants.

Porcupine Arrow Pig

How many of you have ever actually seen a Porcupine? Amongst multiple alternative names for animals, the one given to a Porcupine accurately describes its physical features.

It is basically a type of rodent but one that has sharp quills on the upper part of its body. These can prick and injure anyone trying to touch the animal. Thus, it is a natural protection against predators and attacks them like arrows released from a bow.

Fun Fact: The word “Porcupine” emerged from a French word that meant “pig with thorns”. Even though Porcupines do not belong to the family of pigs, and have no relation with the species, the name continued as the French terms were adopted by the English language.

Hence, the nickname Arrow Pig – arrow referring to the quills and pig to the literal meaning of its name.

There are so many more alternative names for animals belonging to different species. We have shared our absolute favorites with you and hope you enjoyed reading about them.