We are all different: some are shorter, some are taller, some are thinner, some are fuller. And this is not surprising. In principle, this is how it should be.

In the animal world, everything happens exactly the same. Although... Here's what you think, which of the predators has the most little heart? As a rule, in search of an answer to this question, we begin to sort through the memory of small representatives of the fauna, ranging from weasels to the familiar domestic cat. But are we right? Let's try to figure it out together

Section 1. What does “small heart” mean?

In general, according to scientists, it is extremely erroneous to judge the volume of the most important organ by the size of the entire body. Of course, if the animal is small, then its heart is unlikely to occupy the entire internal cavity, which means a priori it will be tiny.

It would be more correct to study the proportional ratio of the volume of the mentioned organ to the entire organism. For example, average weight an adult is 77 kg, while the mass of the heart is only 380 g, i.e. approximately 0.5%. Agree, a little.

Section 2. And here he distinguished himself

It’s hard to even imagine that the answer to the question of which predator has the smallest heart is a lion. Nevertheless this fact not only discovered by scientists, but also scientifically confirmed. His heart accounts for 1% of his total mass.

We can talk endlessly about this majestic beauty, because, in addition to the tinyness of the main organ of the cardiovascular system, he has a lot of other unique physiological features.

We list only the most basic ones.

1. You will never meet lions with the same muzzles, because they are truly unique.
2. You won't even encounter a chewing predator. He's simply not capable of doing it. Food is bitten off in pieces and swallowed whole.
3. By the way, a lion has fewer teeth than a human. You and I have 36, he only has 30.
4. But the length of the claws is amazing: they can reach 7 cm.
5. The little lion cubs are completely helpless. Their eyes open only on the eleventh day, but they begin to walk only on the fifteenth.
6. Have you seen a roaring lion at the zoo or in the movies? Please know that this predator is no less than 2 years old. Only at this age does the animal acquire this ability.
7. very often compared to a gypsy camp. Why? The thing is that not only his mother, but also all females who also have cubs at this time can feed lion cubs with milk.
8. At night, a lion can see 6 times better than a human.
9. Like any representatives of felines, sleep plays almost the most important role in the life of this animal. Sleep for twenty hours straight? No problem!

Section 3. Storm of the Nile

And which of the predators has the smallest heart? At the crocodile. According to experts, he should be awarded an honorable second place: the weight of his vital organ occupies 1.5% of the total body weight.

What else is known about this bloodthirsty creature? Firstly, like a lion, a crocodile cannot chew, but powerful jaws he needs them for biting food and protection.

By the way, not everyone realizes that in most cases the predator does not attack the food immediately. He drowns her and leaves her in the water for a while to soak her. The muscles responsible for opening and closing the crocodile's mouth are weak. This physiological feature is often used when demonstrating tricks: it doesn’t take much effort to prevent the animal from opening its mouth.

But his teeth are really terrible. Actually, there are 24 of them, but that's not the main thing. The scary thing is that they are renewed throughout life.

Of course, everyone has heard this catchphrase, How " crocodile tears", and compassionate people immediately endowed the predator with a certain sentimentality. No, the crocodile does not cry over its prey. Everything is much simpler. When absorbing food, it swallows a lot of air, which is then removed from the body with the help of

Small size hearts does not prevent a predator from having the reputation of an excellent swimmer and excellent diver. By the way, while swimming, crocodiles' nose and ears are protected by movable valves.

In general, the answers to the question of which predator has the smallest heart turned out to be quite unexpected. Agree, few people realized that a merciless lion and a cold-blooded, both literally and figuratively, crocodile could be called such champions.

News and society

Do you know which of the predators has the smallest heart?

May 3, 2014

We are all different: some are shorter, some are taller, some are thinner, some are fuller. And this is not surprising. In principle, this is how it should be.

In the animal world, everything happens exactly the same. Although... So, which of the predators do you think has the smallest heart? As a rule, in search of an answer to this question, we begin to sort through the memory of small representatives of the fauna, ranging from weasels to the familiar domestic cat. But are we right? Let's try to figure it out together

Section 1. What does “small heart” mean?

In general, according to scientists, it is extremely erroneous to judge the volume of the most important organ by the size of the entire body. Of course, if the animal is small, then its heart is unlikely to occupy the entire internal cavity, which means a priori it will be tiny.

It would be more correct to study the proportional ratio of the volume of the mentioned organ to the entire organism. For example, the average weight of an adult is 77 kg, while the weight of the heart is only 380 g, i.e. approximately 0.5%. Agree, a little.

Section 2. The king of beasts distinguished himself here too

It’s hard to even imagine that the answer to the question of which predator has the smallest heart is a lion. Nevertheless, this fact was not only discovered by scientists, but also scientifically confirmed. His heart accounts for 1% of his total mass.

We can talk endlessly about this majestic beauty, because, in addition to the tinyness of the main organ of the cardiovascular system, he has a lot of other unique physiological features.

We list only the most basic ones.

1. You will never meet lions with the same muzzles, because they are truly unique.
2. You won't even encounter a chewing predator. He's simply not capable of doing it. Food is bitten off in pieces and swallowed whole.
3. By the way, a lion has fewer teeth than a human. You and I have 36, he only has 30.
4. But the length of the claws is amazing: they can reach 7 cm.
5. The little lion cubs are completely helpless. Their eyes open only on the eleventh day, but they begin to walk only on the fifteenth.
6. Have you seen a roaring lion at the zoo or in the movies? Please know that this predator is no less than 2 years old. Only at this age does the animal acquire this ability.
7. A pride of lions is often compared to a gypsy camp. Why? The thing is that not only his mother, but also all females who also have cubs at this time can feed lion cubs with milk.
8. At night, a lion can see 6 times better than a human.
9. Like any feline, sleep plays almost the most important role in the life of this animal. Sleep for twenty hours straight? No problem!

Video on the topic

Section 3. Storm of the Nile

And which of the predators has the smallest heart? At the crocodile. According to experts, he should be awarded an honorable second place: the weight of his vital organ occupies 1.5% of the total body weight.

What else is known about this bloodthirsty creature? Firstly, like a lion, a crocodile cannot chew, but it needs powerful jaws for biting off food and for protection.

By the way, not everyone realizes that in most cases the predator does not attack the food immediately. He drowns her and leaves her in the water for a while to soak her. The muscles responsible for opening and closing the crocodile's mouth are weak. This physiological feature is often used when demonstrating tricks: it doesn’t take much effort to prevent the animal from opening its mouth.

But his teeth are really terrible. Actually, there are 24 of them, but that's not the main thing. The scary thing is that they are renewed throughout life.

Of course, everyone has heard such a catchphrase as “crocodile tears,” and compassionate people immediately endowed the predator with a certain sentimentality. No, the crocodile does not cry over its prey. Everything is much simpler. When absorbing food, it swallows a lot of air, which is then removed from the body with the help of the lacrimal glands.

The small size of the heart does not prevent the predator from being famous as an excellent swimmer and excellent diver. By the way, while swimming, crocodiles' nose and ears are protected by movable valves.

In general, the answers to the question of which predator has the smallest heart turned out to be quite unexpected. Agree, few people realized that a merciless lion and a cold-blooded, both literally and figuratively, crocodile could be called such champions.

The internal organs of a glass frog, including its heart

Of course, the human heart is amazing miracle, thanks to which we live, this is the vessel of the soul, and so on. However, is it capable of self-healing? Does it pump exclusively pure blood? Is it possible to freeze him and then bring him back to life?

The hearts of some animal species are capable of this and more. We explored animal world, from the depths of the ocean to the summit of the Himalayas, for the wonders of the heart, and here's what we found.

Insects

The insides of an earthworm, including its five pseudo-hearts

Earthworm

Depending on your point of view, earthworms either have five "hearts" or no heart at all. Although they do not have the usual multi-chambered muscular organ, they do have five special blood vessels called “aortic arches.” By contracting, the aortic arches pump blood throughout the body of the worm. So if you accidentally hurt your heart earthworm, don't worry - he has four more pieces just like them.

Cockroach

The human heart consists of four chambers, each of which performs a specific function - if something happens to one of them, something irreparable will happen. In turn, the cockroach's heart has twelve to thirteen chambers, which are arranged in a row and driven by a separate group of muscles. This means that if one chamber stops functioning, nothing will happen to the cockroach.

Hoverfly

Hoverfly

Hover flies love to hover in the air above flowers, collecting precious pollen. Helping them do this is what is essentially the heart, which pumps blood to the head and chest, where they are located. oral apparatus and the muscles responsible for flapping the wings.

Pisces and their neighbors

Danio rerio

In this little beautiful fish the heart of a real superhero beats. In 2002, scientists found that if up to 20% of the lower ventricle is removed from a zebrafish, the fish can restore the lost tissue within two months. This happens thanks to specialized muscle cells, which are capable not only of regeneration, but also of stimulating the growth of new blood vessels. Having studied the self-healing hearts of zebrafish, scientists hope to apply their knowledge to human organs.

Spiny-nosed Whiteblood

Spiny-nosed Whiteblood

The spiny-nosed whiteblood lives in the Southern Ocean at a depth of one kilometer. How does she cope with the cold? Thanks in part to its heart, which is much larger and about five times stronger than a normal heart. aquarium fish. The blood of the spiny-nosed whiteblood also lacks hemoglobin, a red protein responsible for binding oxygen. Instead, thanks low temperatures, oxygen dissolves directly in the plasma of the spiny-nosed whiteblood, which causes the transparency of its blood.

Anatomy of cuttlefish

Cuttlefish

Like all cephalopods, the cuttlefish has three hearts - one heart for a pair of gills and one heart for the rest of the body. Research results show that cuttlefish living in cold waters have larger size hearts than those that live in warm waters; this is associated with increased aerobic capacity. In addition, their blood contains hemocyanin (instead of hemoglobin), which gives it a blue color. Cuttlefish are true aristocrats.

Birds

Hummingbird captured in flight

You've probably heard that hummingbirds beat their wings 15 times in one second - all thanks to their unique heart, which beats up to 21 times per second and provides fast delivery oxygen into muscle mitochondria.

mountain goose

Migration is not an easy process for all birds, but bar-headed geese are the least fortunate in this regard: their route runs directly over the Himalayas. These birds regularly fly over mountain passes at an altitude of 6,000 meters above sea level - and all thanks to the fact that they have an unusually strong heart, connected to the muscles that are used in flight, a set of additional capillaries.

Emperor penguins

Emperor penguins are famous for their soft hearts. Most couples of their time emperor penguins spend caring for each other and their offspring. Less known, but very important, is the fact that the hearts of emperor penguins work extremely slowly, especially when immersed in water: they beat about 15 times per minute, cutting off blood supply to all (except vital) organs and providing the body with just that much oxygen , which is necessary for deep-sea hunting.

Reptiles and amphibians

wood frog

The hearts of many animals, from bears to marmots, slow down when they hibernate, but as far as we know, wood frogs they may stop beating altogether during this period. In winter, these frogs essentially turn into “icicles”: thanks to a special solution in their cells, they can suspend metabolic activity and allow most of the water in their body to solidify without any consequences. Their hearts take it for granted; they stop beating when the world freezes and resume activity when it warms up.

Glass frog

All frogs have a three-chambered heart with two atria that receive blood from other parts of the body and one ventricle that shunts it back. Glass frogs are unique in that you can observe this entire process with your own eyes - their translucent skin on the belly allows a person to see the work of the heart and blood vessels inside these amphibians.

Python lies in wait for its prey

Python

After a python has had a good meal, its heart increases in size by 40 percent due to fatty acids supplied with food. (This speeds up digestion, a process that can take up to several days for pythons.)

Mammals

The heart of a blue whale, which is kept at the Royal Ontario Museum

Blue whale

Popular legend has it that the blue whale's heart is the size of a car, and a person can easily fit through its aorta. This is not entirely true. According to Jacqueline Miller, the blue whale's heart is the size of "a small golf cart or an electric circus bumper car," and its aorta can only fit one human head.

Giraffe

The giraffe's heart must fight against the pressure of gravity every day to deliver blood to the long-necked animal's head. It manages to do this thanks to very thick and durable walls and blood vessels that expand and contract at a rapid pace. When the giraffe's neck lengthens, blood vessels also undergo changes, becoming thicker.

Cheetah

A cheetah's resting heart beats about 120 times per minute - about the same as the heart of a human jogging. While a human's maximum heart rate is approximately 220 beats per minute—and takes some time to reach—the cheetah's "heart rocket" can reach 250 beats per minute in just a few seconds. This change is so intense that it allows the cheetah to run at top speed for only about 20 seconds before the predator's organs begin to overheat and become damaged.

• The world's largest predator- This is a Kodiak bear. Its length is more than three meters, and its weight is over 700 kilograms.
• The most amazing animal- this is a yak. He has the head of a cow, the tail of a horse, the skeleton of a bison, the hair of a goat, the horns of a bull, and on top of that he grunts like a pig.
• The deepest sleep- from the gopher. During hibernation You can take him out of the hole, roll him around like a ball, shake him as you like - he won’t wake up. The yellow gopher sleeps nine months of the year.
• The thickest skinned- not an elephant, but a Nile hippopotamus. Its skin thickness reaches 2.5 centimeters (for an elephant - 1.8 centimeters, for a rhinoceros - 2 centimeters).
• The smallest heart Of all the predators... the lion has.
• The most "unsinkable" among land animals - porcupine. It cannot drown at all: the cavities of its numerous needles are filled with air.
• The most bouncy- cat flea. A flea can cover a distance of 33 centimeters in one jump. Compared to its size, this is a gigantic distance!
• The fastest on our planet there is a cheetah, he is an unsurpassed runner, reaches speeds of up to 120 kilometers per hour, covering distances of up to half a kilometer in short bursts, and picks up speed from a standstill to 100 kilometers per hour in three seconds. Not every racing car is capable of this!
• Fastest fish- a sailfish (the same one that the hero of Ernest Hemingway’s story “The Old Man and the Sea” hunted for so long). Sailfish can outrun even a cheetah at short distances. It reaches speeds of up to 109 kilometers per hour.
• The tiniest bird- hummingbird-bee, has a size of no more than 6 centimeters. Birds simply cannot be smaller than this.
• The largest and at the same time the heaviest on our planet - blue whale. The length of an adult whale can exceed 30 meters, and its weight reaches 125 tons or even more.
• The heaviest from terrestrial animals - African elephant. Their body length reaches 6-7.5 meters, height at the shoulders ( highest point body) - 2.4-3.5 meters. Average weight the bodies of females are 2.8 tons, males - 5 tons. They are slightly larger than their Asian relatives and have different big ears, which slightly resemble Africa in their outlines.
• The most large bird — ostrich. He is very tall - up to two and a half meters, and his weight is more than 130 kilograms.
• The smartest animal- chimpanzee. Their leisure time includes communication with representatives of their species, control of their environment, facial expressions, gestures, and the ability to use tools. At the same time, there are individuals who have developed certain language skills.
• The best flyer- hummingbird. This bird belongs to the Trochilidae family. All hummingbirds are very small birds, and the hummingbird has the ability to hover motionless in the air, making up to 90 wing beats per second. They are the only bird that can fly backwards. Their flight speed reaches 55 kilometers per hour.
• The most voracious animal in the world - the shrew, per day this hamster-like creature with a pointed muzzle can digest up to 15 grams of various insects, with its weight being 2-3 grams. Moreover, the shrew hunts 12-16 hours a day so as not to feel hungry.
• The smallest ruminant in the world - the royal antelope. This creature lives in western Africa. The royal antelope weighs about 3 kg and its height is 27 centimeters.
• The most toothy on the ground - garden snail. After all, she has 25 thousand teeth! True, as we understand, these teeth are absolutely safe and serve only for grinding leaves. But the fact remains, and the garden snail rightfully takes its place in the Book of Records as the most toothy creature on the planet.
• The most tall mammal in the world - giraffe. A unique specimen with a height of 5.86 meters was registered in Kenya in 1930. Scientists say that in all of Africa it is impossible to find two giraffes whose neck patterns match. It is as unique as human fingerprints !!