1. Emperor Tamarin Monkey: It is rumored that the emperor tamarin was named for how it resembled the German emperor Wilhelm II, due to the characteristics of its mustache.

2. Mountain Lion Cubs: Besides being a fierce predator, mountain lions are fantastic for sporting fur mustaches.

3.  Northern Flicker: This male yellow-shafted flicker is distinguishable from his western relative because he has a black malar instead of a red one.

4. Mustached Bats: Bats from the family Mormoopidae are nicknamed mustached bats, but as you can see, they aren’t kidding. This Antillean Ghost-faced Bat’s face depicts quite the ‘stache! The other bats sporting mustaches aren’t quite as lucky. Unfortunately a sign of a bat that suffered from white nose syndrome is a white fungus around the nose. Learn how you can help bats with bad mustaches here. 

5.  Moustached Treeswift: While much is unknown about the size of this bird’s population, we can definitely say they show off one awesome mustache.

6. Catfish: This diverse group of fish are named for their barbels that resemble cat whiskers. But they aren’t the only fish to sport mustache look-a-likes: the male molly fish in Mexico actually attracts females with his mustache.

7.  Inca Tern: This bird eats anchovies and breeds on the coast of Peru and Chile—clearly an example of elegance and class!

8. Robber Fly: While we don’t take the time to look this closely at many of the insects near us, we wanted to show that up close, insects like this robber fly, dragon flies and even butterflies will demonstrate mustaches.

9. Walrus: The grizzly whiskers on this walrus impressed us. These animals are only aggressive during mating season– but still it may be best to not look this animal in the eye…

10. Tentacled Snake: These snakes are new to the Smithsonian National Zoo and have a fascinating “mustache”. Their facial feature serves as sensory mechanisms that allow them to pick up vibrations from prey.

This Photo courtesy of Brittany Steff, Smithsonian’s National Zoo.

Will you never tire of animals with mustaches? Visit this hilarious Tumblr for some fun (and less realistic) animal mustaches.

Happy mustaches everyone!

Whether they hibernate, have thick fur coats or take shelter, animals are masters of surviving the cold weather. Here are a number of interesting animals and the fascinating things they do to survive harsh conditions.

1. Japan’s macaques monkeys keep warm by taking hot baths in volcanic springs.
2. Polar bears (or “solar bears“) soak up the sun with their black skin, which is covered by a coat of  clear hair that conducts the sun’s heat. Not to mention they also have a handy 4 inches of fat to
   insulate them.
3. Animals will also flock to warmth created by humans, such as pigeons in Chicago that huddle around the Eternal Flame and manatees that seek out warm water discharge from power plants.
4. Aside from having blubber, penguins avoid losing energy and heat when they exhale by using special nasal passages to reclaim the warm air.
5. Some honey bees huddle together to make a winter cluster in order to keep warm.
6. Bees aren’t the only ones that huddle together, even bats and ladybugs will huddle for warmth in a safe place.
7. Various plants depend on snow to trap heat and insulate them from cold winds.
8. Seals have a special set of blood vessels that function to conserve heat.
9. Occasionally some fish will use a natural anti-freeze to keep from freezing in low temperatures.
10. When water is scarce, wild bactrian camels will eat snow.

Despite all these adaptations you can still do your part to help wildlife survive the winter in your own backyard. Here’s a few bird feeding tips.