If you were asked to name a truly wonderful British film, chances are it was filmed at Pinewood Studios. Its great reputation has resonated worldwide, the scene for a thousand iconic images. Pinewood Studios recently had an inspiring exhibition, Water on Lens. It featured underwater photographs from movies such as The Da Vinci Code, Casino Royale, and Elizabeth: The Golden Age, as well as television features and music videos. Here are 23 images taken from those underwater shoots as well as a few extra underwater stage filming photos.

Pinewood Studios

(image credits:Mirror,livejournal,Mirror,Pinewood Group)

Filming in water can be a complex and costly exercise, but Pinewood Studios does not excessively waste precious water. Instead they keep their underwater stage permanently filled. The water tank is sized 20m x 10m x 6m deep, holding 1.2 million litres of water. This a globally unique water-filming facility captured images for Water on Lens  to share with us like The Golden Age at top left. Beneath that photo is actor Alan Davies in a scene shot underwater for the TV series Jonathan Creek. Both the top right and the bottom pictures were captured as actors and actresses performed underwater with a complete filming crew.

From Motorcycle Stunts to Commercials

(image credits:BBC)

James Blunt plunged into the water to promote his performance on the British Awards show in 2005, the same year Pinewood Studios started…after after 5 years of being in concept and design. He is in the top two photos. Many advertisements have been filmed at the worldwide prestigious studios, including a commercial for The Quays Shopping Centre in Northern Ireland, shown on the bottom left. In the bottom right image, EastEnders filmed a dramatic car accident involving Peter Beale.

The Studio

(image credits:Mirror)

For a deeper insight into the craft that goes on to film underwater, here are more images to impress you with the work done at Pinewood. The top left photo is from Houdini while the top right picture was taken during filming of Mr. Nobody. Also included above are filming shots from an Oil of Olay commercial, Jaws, and Atonement.

From Sports to Fashion

(image credits: image credit:BBC)

Rugby is a beloved sport to many fans worldwide. The top image was taken in an advertisement for rugby. Underwater action sequences give the impression of weightlessness when bubbles are removed in post production. In the bottom photo, Hollywood actress Kiera Knightley submerged in water while dressed in haute couture dresses and jewelery as part of a charity shoot for Fresh 2o.

Baby to Blue Screen

(image credits:shortlist,Pinewood Group)

Water facilities available at Pinewood Studios include numerous stages with tanks incorporated into the floors, an exterior tank with a blue screen backing measuring 240 x 60 feet, and an underwater filming facility. Amazing results can be achieved for films, TV and commercials from underwater blue screens that are permanently on site to “wet for dry” appearance. The photo with the baby, upside down and submerged underwater, is a stunner. Also pictured above is the famous blue screen which can make any image at all seem to be the background. It takes a large group of people to successfully shoot and film a car falling into the water and sinking.

Imagine

(image credit:short list)

The capsule collection from Water on Lens provided a rare and behind-the-scenes view into one of the world’s most prestigious film and television studios and its underwater stage. Commercial diver and underwater photographer Phoebe Rudomino captured all the iconic moments on camera for Water on Lens, including the graceful and intriguing shot above. She stated, “U Stage provides such a secure and comfortable water filming environment that we’re able to produce almost any type of underwater production shoot. From working with horses and fire to the world’s top actors and models, the scenes are truly fascinating to capture.”

Boxing

(image credit:shortlist)

In this underwater boxing match, synchronised swimmers Emily Kuhl and Asha Randall of Aquabatix showed off their competitive streaks. What you don’t see in the shot is the massive crew for lighting and filming and even for holding the oxygen tanks.

Bond & Golden Age

(image credit:short list)

The photo on the left was a famous filming moment when the elevator plunged into the water during Jame Bond: Casino Royale. The frantic horse trying to swim in the choppy water was captured in this photograph during the filming of Elizabeth: The Golden Age.

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The largest web-spinning spider in the world has been identified, and she’s a terror. The Nephila komaci was discovered in South Africa and displays some rather fascinating characteristics. Its webs, which can reach up to one meter wide, are impressive. But the most striking feature of the spider is its extreme sexual size dismorphism; in plain English, that means the female of the species is dramatically larger than the male.

The average female Nephila komaci is approximately 40 mm long. The male of the species is about one-fifth the size of the female, and is often devoured after inseminating the female. In this pictures, the males are so tiny that it’s hard to believe they are the same species at all. The extreme size difference between the genders isn’t due to small males; rather, it’s due to female gigantism. The females have evolved into their larger size because being big helps them survive longer. Males, on the other hand, get to pass on their genes more effectively if they can climb onto the female to inseminate her, making their smaller size much more desirable from an evolutionary standpoint.

(images via: io9)

Although the species was just formally announced in October 2009, the first known specimen was collected in 1978. It was found in a museum collection some 22 years later, but since no other specimen could be found it was assumed that the spider was either a hybrid, or that the species it belonged to was now extinct. When two females and a male were collected from Tembe Elephant Park in 2009, it became clear that the spider was indeed a new, existing species.

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Out Of The Blue, Into The Ground

(images via: Ross Sea and Highly Allochthonous)

The word fulgurite is derived from “fulgur”, which means “thunderbolt” in Latin. That’s just part of the story, though, as the real action begins once the bolt hits the ground. The average lightning bolt packs up to a gigajoule of energy – enough to power an all-electric home for about a week, or around 300 kilowatt-hours. When a strike enters the ground it makes its presence known by vaporizing soil & sand along a downward, branching path that may be up to 20 feet long. Temperatures of up to 50,000 degrees blast sand (silicon dioxide) into a hollow tube lined with what is essentially glass: a fulgurite.

(image via: Heavenly Scent)

It’s estimated that around 16 million lightning storms occur on our planet each year, with most of these storms shedding multiple lightning bolts. Though conditions have to be just right for a fulgurite to form, the sheer number of bolts hitting sandy soil over countless centuries has resulted in innumerable fulgurites (or pieces thereof) scattered in and on the ground.

Fossilized Lightning

(image via: Arran Museum)

Archaeologists working near Corrie Village on the cost of Scotland’s Isle of Arrran in 1966 made an astonishing discovery: a fossilized fulgurite! Judging from the age and nature of the surrounding sandstone, the lightning strike which created the fossil fulgurite occurred some 250 million years ago at the end of the Permian Period. Though our planet has changed much since that ancient era before the dinosaurs even appeared, the fundamental physical processes that drive the hydrological cycle, including lightning, obviously have not.

(image via: Duneguide)

The Corrie Village fulgurite fossil was likely formed when lightning struck the crest of a sand dune and radiated into the dune, vitrifying and hollowing out a glass tube of unknown length and depth. Deserts in Scotland? A quarter of a billion years ago, what is now the British Isles existed as part of Pangaea, a huge super-continent with vast, desert-like interior regions.

Mother Nature’s Litter Box

(image via: Discovery Channel)

The easiest fulgurites to fond and recover are those that have formed recently in loosely structured sand. The shifting sand makes the fulgurites both easy to see and relatively uncomplicated to remove. One might compare the occurrence of fulgurites in dune fields to a cat’s litter box, except on a much larger scale.

(images via: Smithsonian NMNH, About.com: Geology and Stoneridge Engineering)

Expanded human activity in previously isolated desert regions such as the Sahara and Gobi deserts, and the Australian Outback, has helped make fulgurites less rare for collectors to acquire and at the same time, lowered their cost.

Lechatelierite, or “Lightning Glass”

(images via: NATURE Geoscience, Grey Moon Glassworks and Beading Gem)

The glossy, glassy interior lining of many fulgurites is actually a form of natural glass called Lechatelierite. In some cases the tube may be completely plugged with glass. People have worked Lechatelierite into jewelry since prehistoric times and it can be quite beautiful as the examples above right clearly show.

(image via: Cristales Curativos)

It’s possible that ancient societies noted the connection between lightning, sand, and the glass inside fulgurites; then set about artificially melting sand to make the first glass.

Man-Made Fulgurites, Part 1

(image via: Celestial Monochord)

In early May of 2006, something odd caught the eye of a pedestrian making his way along the concrete sidewalk past the corner of Colfax and 24th in Minneapolis, Minnesota. According to the discoverer, “The scar was something like 3 meters long and in about 5 segments, each about 2 cm deep and up to about 5 cm wide… On closer examination, I found the edges of the scar almost completely encrusted with black glass, some of which was easy to pick loose.”

(image via: Communication Overtones)

Though the characteristics of the scar have much in common with those of classic fulgurites, the horizontal structure of the scar and its location directly beneath power lines hint at a more prosaic yet still electrical origin.

Man-Made Fulgurites, Part 2

(images via: Cabinet Magazine and Explore Magazine)

Downed power lines are one thing; artificially triggering lightning to make DIY fulgurites is another thing entirely. That’s exactly what artist Allan McCollum has done, however, not one but some hundreds of times in the summer of 1997. The results range from slim glass tubes no larger than soda straws to the Mother Of All Fulgurites, a fork-tailed monster over 17 feet deep that the Guinness World Book of Records has recognized as the world’s longest.

(image via: Allan McCollum: The Event)

McCollum conducted his fulgurite experiments in cooperation with the University of Florida’s International Center for Lightning Research and Testing and their base of operations was at the Camp Blanding national guard base near Starke, Florida. During what was referred to as The Event, lightning was attracted by way of small rockets launched two to three thousand feet into overhead storm clouds – with each rocket spooling out an ultra-thin copper wire that kept it grounded and directed any provoked lightning. Ben Franklin would be proud!

Other Glass Acts

(images via: Paleoastronautica and Tektite Source)

Besides lightning strikes, there are a couple of other ways to create glass from sand. Both methods involved the application of extreme force resulting in exceptionally high temperatures. The first is a meteorite impact, such as the one that created the Kebira Crater on the Libya-Egypt border nearly 30 million years ago. A huge area was showered with melted sand, which when cooled took on an ethereal yellow-green hue. So-called Libyan desert glass was prized by the ancient Egyptians, and a worked piece is prominently displayed in the center of an ornate breastplate designed for King Tut.

(image via: Paleoastronautica)

Glass can also be created by ground or near-ground level atomic explosions. The first such atomic bomb explosion took place on July 16, 1945 at the White Sands Proving Ground near Alamogordo, New Mexico. Known as “Trinity”, the test measured 20 kilotons and left a large area at Ground Zero covered with greenish glass. Dubbed “Trinitite”, the glass was (and still is) mildly radioactive yet is much coveted by collectors and souvenir hunters.

One Strike, You’re Out

(images via: Majorly Cool and Viatouch)

(image via: ETF)

Meteorites, atomic blasts… suddenly lightning bolts are looking a lot better, though you still don’t want to be too close when one arcs down from the sky. The somewhat sphincter-ish impact spot above shows where lightning struck the ground – beneath the center there’s likely a fulgurite. Taking the anatomical analogy slightly further and to take this article to its logical “end”, here’s a video of some Fulgurite Endoscopy:

Fulgurite Endoscopy, via Cleanmonk

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All of your instincts may be screaming for you to avoid looking down at all costs, but when you’re this high in the air, the view is just irresistible. Whether you’re clinging for dear life to a rickety wooden rainforest observation tower or staring straight down through a glass floor at city streets thousands of feet below, frighteningly tall spires and lookouts give us humans a look at our environment that our ancestors would never have imagined possible.

CN Tower, Toronto, Canada

(image via: shidairyproduct, ilkerender)

Do you trust a piece of glass about the thickness of two fingers to keep you from crashing thousands of feet to the ground below? Toronto’s CN Tower, which stands over 1,815 tall, offers stunning 360-degree views of the city – and a stomach-turning view straight down to the street through a glass floor.

Forest Tower, Schovenhorst Estate, Netherlands

(images via: Arplus.com)

The thoroughly modern Forest Tower is just as visually stunning as the views it provides of the conservation area at the Schovenhorst Estate in the Netherlands. The design includes spaces and features for various activities including peepholes, a climbing net and even a small performance space.

Willis Tower Skydeck, Chicago, Illinois

(images via: Charlotte Speaks)

If you’ve ever wondered what it feels like to float 110 stories over Chicago, the Skydeck at the Willis (formerly Sears) Tower is the closest you’re likely to get. With a glass floor and glass walls on three sides, these “glass balconies” provide unparalleled views that will give the acrophobic nightmares.

Bird Watching Towers, Ecuadorian Amazon

(images via: JackMaryEtc)

There’s no way to enjoy the birds of the Amazon quite like observing them from one of Ecuador’s many extremely tall bird watching towers – if you’re brave enough to climb them. But finally getting to the top and finding it twisted from the wind and held together with a string, like one traveling couple did, might be enough to sway your confidence in the structure’s sturdiness.

Eureka Skydeck, Melbourne, Australia

(images via: EurekaSkydeck.com)

Like the Willis Tower Skydeck, Eureka Skydeck 88 in Melbourne, Australia offers views you just can’t get anywhere else in the city. But, it’s not for the faint of heart. 940 feet above the ground, “The Edge” is a glass cube that juts out nine feet from the building. It’s the highest public vantage point in a building in the Southern Hemisphere.

Korkeasaari Lookout Tower, Helsinki, Finland

(images via: arcspace)

The shell-like wooden Korkeasaari Lookout Tower at Helsinki’s Korkeasaari Zoo mimics the large natural enclosures that the animals are held in, and is made of 72 long curved wood battens fastened with over 600 bolted joints. Ville Hara’s concept for the tower was the winning entry in a competition to design an innovative, artistic tower for the zoo.

Blackpool Tower ‘Walk of Faith’, Lancashire, England

(images via: Wikipedia)

With a design inspired by the Eiffel Tower, the 518ft Blackpool Tower in Lancashire, England was constructed in 1894 after Blackpool Mayor John Bickerstaffe visited the Great Paris Exhibition. Among its most popular features is the “Walk of Faith”, a glass floor panel added in 1998.

Burj Dubai Observation Deck, Dubai, UAE

(images via: Dubai Chronicle, WeeklyDrop)

Set to become the world’s tallest free-standig structure, Burj Dubai will feature a 124th-floor observation deck called ‘At the Top’. Floor-to-ceiling glass walls will provide unobstructed views of the city, but anyone who’s not paranoid about being swept away by a gust of wind can venture out onto the open-air deck. This mixed-use tower is set to open in late 2009.

Killesberg Tower, Stuttgart, Germany

(image via: structurae)

This double-helix shaped tower in Stuttgart, Germany features what are essentially two gigantic intertwined spiral staircases suspended by cables around a central support. Getting to the top is no easy feat, but the reward is great.

Shanghai Expo Tower, China

(image via: Expo 2010)

A 495-foot tall chimney at the oldest power plant in China is getting a dramatic makeover for the World Expo 2010. It is set to be transformed into an observation tower called the “Expo Harmony Tower”, its exterior wrapped with tracks and cars similar to a rollercoaster to transport passengers to the top. The entire former high-pollution plant is being revamped into an eco-friendly attraction that uses electricity generated by tide, wind and solar energy.

Glasgow Tower, Scotland

(images via: Wikipedia)

The tallest tower in Scotland is also the only tower in the world that can rotate 360 degrees from its base to its top. It’s shaped like an aerofoil, or an airplane wing seen in cross-section, and has computer-controlled monitors that turn it in the wind to reduce wind resistance.

Green Observation Towers Concept

(images via: HumanShelter.org)

Could we replace smokestacks with eco-friendly, green power-generating towers that also serve as public spaces with observation decks? Designer Michael Jantzen thinks so, and has created several designs that would do just that. The Wind Turbine Observation Tower has five wind-activated segments that rotate in different directions to produce energy, while the Eco-Tower is a public gathering space equipped with seven platforms and a custom wind turbine.

Cheongna City Tower, South Korea

(images via: Bustler.net)

South Korea is getting a new landmark tower that will serve as the cultural hub and centerpiece of a large new town development. The 1,476-foot observation tower appears to jut sharply into the sky like an inverted icicle, with the second-highest observation deck in the world. It’ll also be pretty high-tech, becoming the world’s first “invisible tower” with a skin system that uses optical cameras to capture the views from the opposite wall and project those images on each part of the skin. This effect will make the tower itself seems to disappear when you’re inside, leaving nothing but sweeping views.

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(Image via: Planetary Gear)

Now that Winter is drawing in, we start to appreciate the things taken for granted in the balmier months – such as well-sheltered bus stops. The good news is that the latest designs are more luxurious and more eco-friendly than the soulless gappy cubicles we known so well, as these three designs show.

(Image via: Planetary Gear)

Firstly, the solar-powered Eye-Stop currently being testing in Italy. It is comprised of a dazzling array of interactive screens that let you plan your route, check your e-mail and monitor local air quality. If you want to get updates on the move, you can synchronize your cell-phone with it to receive timetables and updates. As well as the walled & ceilinged version, the Eye-Stop will also come in pole form – which will glow brighter and brighter as the next bus approaches.

(Images via: Keetsa)

For areas with less than ambient environmental conditions, the new bus shelter by Trueform offers air-con (maintained at 20 degrees Celsius whatever the weather), electronic displays and even a washroom. It can be fitted without the need for costly earthworking – and all that techno-wizardry comes courtesy of solar power.

(Images via: Christopher Fennell via EcoFriend)

But if municipalities want to go for a lower-tech green option – what could be more appropriate than recyling buses and turning them into bus stops? Sculptor Christopher Fennell has taken three decommissioned vehicles and turned them into the above shelter in Athens, Georgia, with deliciously retro results. Buses become bus stops – so we have to wonder, is there anything that bus stops can become? Upcyclers, we await your suggestions (in an orderly queue, of course).

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(Images via: Animal Pictures Archive, It’s Nature, Photo Bucket, It’s Nature, PBS)

With the endless run of horror movies, spook houses, candy, pumpkin seeds and other perks, Halloween is about as good as it gets in terms of a holiday that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Now just don’t think that Halloween is for little kids and “adults” like me who may still be considered children. The deep sea has its fair share of scary creatures who were made for this day and are sure to send a chill down the spine. In celebration of the 31 days of October, here are 31 deep sea monsters — some quite large and intimidating, others much smaller but equally or even more dangerous — that could have starred in the B-rate horror flicks getting major play today. For all you ghosts and goblins and trick or treaters out there, enjoy learning about these freaky creatures while having a safe Halloween.

Don’t  Swim in the Deep Sea

(Images via: Deep Sea Anglerfish, China Sea, Star Bulletin, Nette Key If)

Let’s begin our journey of the sea monsters that inhabit the mysterious, cold waters of the oceans, beginning with the deep sea anglerfish in the upper left-hand corner and eventually swimming our way to the fangtooth in the lower left-hand corner. Looking as if it was just shot out of the fiery gates of hell, the small but vicious deep sea anglerfish is also known as the common black devil, which makes sense considering that it deceptively uses the appendage at the top of its head to emit a blue/green light for luring prey into its big mouth. Another ferocious predator despite its diminutive size, the deep sea dragonfish is known for its large, hinged teeth while the longer and slender, female black dragonfish also produces its own light in addition to possessing fang-like teeth that would make Dracula jealous. Speaking of dangerous teeth, the appropriately-named fangtooth features the largest teeth of any fish in the ocean in proportion to its size, and is also known as the “ogrefish” or common sabrefish. No word if this fangtooth wants to suck your blood, but for other fish in the ocean, look out when crossing this bully.

Danger, Danger: Beware of the Bright Shining Lights

(Images via: Wolaver, Sreeh, It’s Nature)

Just as heeding the call of the Sirens was a bad idea in Greek mythology, the same goes for being drawn to the bright lights in the deep sea. Many other scary fish are capable of producing their own light (a process known as bioluminescence) to either distract predators or tempt prey. With the pale apparition of a ghost, the one-to-six inch hatchetfish not only produces light to hide from predators but resembles the blade of…you guessed it…a hatchet, the preferred weapon of Lizzy Borden. As for the Lanternfish, they emit light to attract smaller fish to feed on, and judging by their bright, blue eyes, they may also have telekinetic powers. Last but not least, the small predator fish known as lizardfish may not be the brightest bulb in this bunch, but they certainly make up for it with mouths and even tongues that are comprised of sharp needles rather than teeth. Like a zombie reaching its hand through the ground, the lizardfish sit on the bottom of ocean floor and wait for prey to swim by before ambushing them with their powerful jaws.

The Deadly Bite of the Viperfish

(Images via: Ibiblio, Sumedh, Neat-O-Rama)

What do you get when you combine the fang-like teeth of a vampire with the breakneck speed of a werewolf? The viperfish, of course. Viperfish fangs are so large that they don’t fit in the fish’s mouth but rather curve back to the eyes. Lucky for the viperfish, it avoids poking its eyes out; however, for smaller prey, they are not so lucky. Swimming at its victims at high speeds, the viperfish is believed to impale its competition before feeding on them. So not only does the viperfish act like 80s slasher star Jason Voorhees but it looks like the Camp Crystal Lake favorite without the hockey mask, as evident by the picture in the upper right-hand corner.

Some Deep Sea Monsters Are Just So Disgusting

(Images via: Lazy Lizard Tales, Kusawake, Island Environment Blog, Cute and Weird)

Remember the cute but oh so messy Slimer from Ghostbusters? The Atlantic hagfish is the “Slimer” of deep sea monsters. Looking like an eel but not an eel, the hagfish sneezes slime that contains strong fibers and is thus difficult to remove. Furthermore, the hagfish can emit enough slime to fill a milk jug. At least the hagfish isn’t the bizarre and depressed blobfish, with its large nose, two eyes and sad expression that can make residing in the saltwater coasts of Tasmania and Australia a real downer. Once thought to be extinct, the prehistoric coelacanth is actually still alive, although it is worthless to eat since its tissues spew oil and a nasty odor following death. Speaking of foul smells, the giant grenadier fish is not only known for its giant mouth but a smelly chemical compound that would make Peanuts’ Pigpen embarrassed. And to cap it off, these slow-as-molasses grenadiers love to feed on smelly carcasses. Makes sense, you think?

Night of the Living Dead Fish

(Images via: Vanaqua, Dave Harasti, Flickr, Mex Fish)

Appropriately-named given the theme of this Halloween-related post, the bottom dwelling coffin fish features fins that act like legs and allow it to crawl and walk on the bottom of the sea floor. In a similar light, the rare Australian fish known as the spotted handfish features pectoral fins that act like hands for deep sea walking. As long as these day and night walkers don’t start talking and clamoring for “Brains” like zombies, things should be all good. Speaking of brains, the eyes of stargazers are located near their brains, on top of their heads to be more precise. This may be hard to tell with the above stargazing monster buried in the sand, but is more apparent with the land-based example of this fish. In addition to the weirdly-positioned eyes, stargazers are venomous, with two large poison spines behind the opercle (the upper bone that helps form the gill) and above their pectoral fins. Even more shocking, stargazers can cause electrical shocks, making it very irresponsible for other fish to have their attention diverted to the heavens when a stargazer is around.

Certainly Not James Woods’ Short-Lived TV Series “Shark”

(Images via: Fun Is 2 Cool, UFL, Bog Leech, Supiri)

A list of deep sea monsters would be lacking without the “Jaws” of the sea. While we all know about great white and hammerhead sharks, don’t sleep on the megamouth shark and sixgill shark. Not discovered until 1976, the rare megamouth shark is a mystery, with its large mouth and small teeth, rounded snout that makes it look like an orca whale, and luminous photophores around the mouth. Like the megamouth shark, the sixgill shark can reach up to 18 feet in length, but is distinctive in that it has six rather than five gills and only one dorsal fin (located closer to its tail). A close relative to sharks, chimaeras are kind of what you think sharks would look like in hell. Judging by the bottom images of the fiery red chimaera and the long-nosed chimaera, it’s not wonder these deep sea creatures are also referred to as ratfishes and ghost sharks.

Getting Overwhelmed by Other Sea Giants

(Images via: Fish Govt., Shnock, Pixdaus, One Inch Punch)

When you can reach up to 60 feet in size like the colossal or giant squid, you don’t need any extra advantages. Yet the world’s largest invertebrates grip prey with sucker rings on the ends of their limbs, which also feature sharp hooks for good measure. The only known enemy of the giant squid is the mammoth sperm whale, with males reaching 60 feet and weighing 40-50 tons. It is believed that sperm whales are able to feed on colossal squid because of a dark, waxy substance similar to cholesterol (called ambergis) that is produced in their lower intestines and protects them from squid stings. Now just how tough and intimidating are sperm whales? They’ve been documented attacking and feeding off the mammoth and elusive megamouth shark.

Scaring (and Gripping) the Life Out of Me

(Images via: MLML, What’s the Crack,Flickr, Aqua Views)

If there’s one thing that holds true with deep sea monsters, it’s that size does not always the matter. Only three inches long, the firefly squid is able to flash blue lights on and off, attracting smaller fish and then attacking them with their strong tentacles. Similarly, Dana octopus squid feature glowing arms that lure, stun and blind prey. Once mistaken by researchers to be an octopus, the six-inch vampire squid is equipped with eight arms that can be used like a webbed cape and thrown over its body for protection. Within this webbing are two jaws that are strong enough to crack the shells of crustaceans. Only the size of a golf ball, the blue-ringed octopus is extremely poisonous and capable of killing a human in minutes. Unfortunately, this octopus does not make its blue rings apparent until its ready to attack, putting unknowing humans and prey in danger, especially when considering that there is no known antidote to this poison.

A Creepy Feel for These Eels

(Images via: Flickr, Alloom, Flickr Weird Sea Monsters)

Talk about a deep sea monster that looks like a scientific experiment gone madly wrong, the gulper eel will make you gulp with its abnormally large mouth that is much larger than its body. With 750 vertebrae in its spine, the snipe eel has more vertebrae than any other animal on Earth in its five-foot long body, which is 75 times more long than wide. Adding to the creepiness of the snipe eel, its anus is located on its throat. Rarely seen, the oarfish looks like a mythological sea serpent even though it isn’t one (despite what its 36 foot length may tell you otherwise).

Rounding Out Our Deep Sea Monsters

(Images via: It’s Nature, Flickr, Flickr, Reef Suckers)

How the tables have turned. Small sunfish are often caught in our lakes, but in the ocean, specific types of sunfish called molas can reach up to 600 pounds. As rare as catching these fish are, equally weird is the fact that molas look like they’ve been chopped in half. Despite dwelling at the bottom of the sea, wing-like sea robins look like birds in flight as they swim, specifically because of large pectoral fins that open and close akin to a flying motion. While in the same family of shrimps and crabs, the relatively large giant isopod ranges from 12 to 16 inches in length and is a bit unsettling to look at even for a scavenger, particularly due to its deep sea gigantism and resemblance to an “Alien vs. Predator” creature. Also inhabiting the ocean floor, sea cucumbers are in the same classification of starfish and sea urchins. Now if  you get a sea cucumber when trick or treating, give it back as they are equivalent to eating a very bad fruit. For more information on deep sea monsters, visit the highly informational and interactive Web site, SeaSky.

Nature's Halloween Screams: 20 Scary Animals

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Around Halloween, pumpkin wizards create extreme pumpkin carvings in every category you could imagine. Patterns can even be downloaded or carved on the fly. Give a carving knife to a geek, gamer, or gory movie lover and watch out! They create what they most enjoy. Gamer fans of the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, Nintendo Wii and even the hardcore old school retro games go for video game themes. Some pumpkins are carved into characters from scary, sci-fi, or gory movies. And geeks off the computer and focused on a pumpkin can create what reflects their favorite objects. This is a Halloween tribute to geeks, gamers, and gory flicks watchers. Trick or treat? Here are 114 treats, or cool pumpkin art as jack-o-lanterns with intricate carvings from freaky to geeky.

Geeky Pumpkin Carvings

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Geeks, we are both logically left-brained as well as creatively right-brained. Give a geek a carving tool and look at the cool pumpkin art that can be created. We love our RSS feeds so much that now we subscribe our pumpkins to them. Linux lovers carve cute Penguins. To many, only Firefox will do. But then you have big Microsoft fans like the ones who carved Bill Gates and IE pumpkins. A little Google android will light the way for some lucky trick-or-treaters.  Then there are Mac fanboys like the ones who created a likeness of Steve Jobs and the Apple icon. Last but certainly not least, one crafty soul created little tux and no doubt loves Linux.

Horror & Gore Pumpkins

(image credits:walyou)

The Predator pumpkin is amazingly detailed and must have taken great skill and patience. Next in tribute to horror movies and sometimes gore are The Mummy, the Werewolf character Wolfman, and the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Pennywise from It destroyed the idea of happy clowns from many minds. Then comes Leatherface from the Texas Chainsaw massacre which can attribute the revving sound of a chainsaw with the desire to run in the other direction. “Here’s Johnny!” also known as Jack Nicholson from The Shining. And if you ever dream of Freddy Krueger from Nightmare on Elm Street, you had better wake up pronto. Knifes carve more than pumpkins like in the horror film Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers.

Classic Horror Movies: Pumpkins

(image credits:walyou)

Some horror flicks are classics like Psycho, so the first three pumpkins show tribute to Norman Bates, to the Bates Motel, and to the shower scene. Pinhead from Hellraiser was both creepy and freaky, but people have differing opinions on if it was a classic movie. The next pumpkin’s character was first written about in 1818 and is of course the Frankenstein monster. The last three carvings depict a German vampire film, Symphony of Horror and another classic horror character, Nosferatu.

Evil Stars: Pumpkins

(image credits:walyou)

The pumpkins once again were carved by talented fans as tributes to horror flicks. From left to right the movie and characters are: Frankenstein and his Bride, The Exorcist, Joker, Dracula, Dracula David from Lost Boys, Chucky times two, and the infamous hockey mask from Friday the 13th.

Video Games Pumpkin Carvings

(image credits:jjgames,walyou,gaygamer)

Jack-o-lanterns do not have to be scary. In fact, give a gamer a carving knife instead of a controller and look at what they come up with as cool, creative pumpkin art. These video game themed pumpkins are a tribute to WOW, World of Warcraft Alliance, Stormrage, Transformers Optimus Prime, and Pyramid Head.

Gaming Systems: Pumpkins

(image credits:jjgames,walyou)

Gamers love their gaming system as well as their games. Here are what a few hardcore gamers carved: Xbox logo, Xbox 360 power button, the always dreaded Xbox 360 Red Ring of Death, a pumpkin Playstation, several pumpkins to depict Playstation controller buttons, Wii, Will controller, and a Wii console.

Pacman Pumpkins

(image credits:walyou,jjgames)

Like in games, carving pumpkins comes in many skill levels. For these, the many pumpkins and creative carvings show that Pacman will always be a favorite for many gamers.

Gamers Tribute To Their Favorite Games

(image credits:jjgames,walyou)

Some games have extremely devoted players who don’t grow tired of their favorite game. These carved creations on the pumpkins represent a few of those favorite games. There are five Halo 3 pumpkins, Portal,  BioShock,  Gears of War and Shadow of the Colossus.

Old School Games: Pumpkins

(image credits: jjgames,walyou)

Old school gamers and even new gamers still love Tetris. This retro video game is among the most popular games ever and are the top two carvings. Space Invaders is another old favorite. The rest of the carved pumpkin art includes tributes to Sonic, Metroid, Link from Zelda, and Okami.

Pumpkins Rated E for Everyone Games

(image credits: walyou,jjgames)

And then there are the “happy games” that appeal to gamers young and old. These carved pumpkins are welcoming to trick-or-treaters. Many kids would recognize Belmont Castle, or the two of Little Big Planet’s Sackboy, Pikachu, Mario and Bowser, and who wouldn’t smile back at Mario? The houses with Mario pumpkins will no doubt serve up more treats and experience fewer tricks.

Movie Heroes or Villains

(image credits:,Screen Junkies)

Movie heroes and villains always seem to live forever. These characters have inspired more than pumpkin art. They’ve been made into movies, cartoons, comic books, lunch boxes and about anything that can be commercially marketed. From left to right, they include: Hellboy, two Spiderman pumpkins, The Hulk, Wolverine, Iron Man, Optimus Prime and Megatron, The Punisher, and Transformer Autobot Decepticons pumpkin-faces.

Even More Movies: Pumpkins

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We love to be entertained. We are great fanboys of movies and comic books.  Some of those include: The Birds, Wizard of Oz, Ghost Rider, Batman, Green Lantern, Gollum from Lord of the Rings, Spock and Star Trek.

If you can imagine it…

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If you can imagine it, then it has probably been carved into or fashioned with a pumpkin around Halloween. Some people are patriots above all else and create a pumpkin Statue of Liberty. The math equation was carved and meant to  truly scare those who see it. Some people love food above all else and can change a pumpkin into a hotdog or hamburger. The big-toothed creature is scary yet creative. Then there are cat lovers with an artistic flair as well as castles carved into pumpkins.

Star Wars: Pumpkins

(image credits:walyou)

Say no more than Star Wars and the fans start flocking out from every corner to pay tribute. These pumpkins are more than art, they were created with love. From left to right: Death Star, Princess Leia, R2D2, Chewbacca, Darth Vader, Master Yoda, Dark Lord of The Sith, and Boba Fett.

Happy Halloween!

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Plastic drinking straws are one of the hallmarks of our disposable society. The little tubes are manufactured to be used just once, then they are discarded to sit in landfills for hundreds of years. And with our love of fast food and iced coffee, there are untold numbers of plastic straws being sent to the landfill every year. The artists and designers featured here all use these ubiquitous disposable items to create objects of unexpected beauty. While these artists use new straws, as opposed to recycled straws, to make their creations, there’s no reason their designs couldn’t provide inspiration for someone who chooses to use recycled materials.

Padlab’s Popoté Lamps

Padlab, a partnership between Dan Gottleib and Penny Herscovitch, concentrates on researching and developing new materials that straddle the border between art and architecture. Their Popoté Lamps are made of a honeycomb material they developed. They were interested in working with a honeycomb-like materials, but the conventional choices were all too expensive at the time. So the partners used the cheapest plastic tubing they could find: drinking straws. Padlab is currently producing lighting fixtures, like the above Column and Hanging Teardrop, from the material.

1000 & 1 Straw Light by Inna Alesina

Inna Alesina’s 100 & 1 Straw Light consists of – you guessed it – 1000 plastic drinking straws. They are arranged around one inverted empty soda bottle, creating a beautiful fanned appearance. Alesina Design produces them in different colors, both as a floor lamp and a hanging lamp. The grace of the finished products is surprising; it’s hard to believe that these discarded plastic items could be arranged in a way that makes them look like high art.

Clutch Chair and Clutch Light by Scott Jarvie

When Scott Jarvie looked at the structural composition of the capillary tubes in trees, inspiration struck. That inspiration eventually turned into the Clutch Chair, made of 10,000 drinking straws. The exploratory piece is a comment on the effects of our disposable society. Later came the development of the Clutch Light, which again groups thousands of plastic drinking straws into a new configuration. The resulting light has a faceted, jewel-like appearance that belies the very humble origins of its building materials.

Plastic Drinking Straw Sculptures by Annie Varnot

Brooklyn artist Annie Boyden Varnot creates breathtaking sculptures with cut plastic straws and other common plastic items. Her aim is to study how these inorganic items affect our daily lives, and how we in turn affect them. Her sculptures portray invented biomorphic forms and landscapes which explore the relationship between humans and our environment. The artist’s life has been affected by breast cancer, and she has used this painful experience to further inspire her sculptures.

Sturdy Straws Chair and Stool by Promise Design

Promise Design doesn’t offer a lot of information about this delightful chair and ottoman other than the fact that they are made of plastic drinking straws. The series also includes a lamp shade and room partition, and the items were inspired by the making of brooms with natural straws. The straws are put together and partially compacted, so it looks like they would be not only stable pieces of furniture, but comfortable, too.

Nestea Drinking Straw Sculpture by Publicis

This very cool piece of commercial art was created by Publicis Argentina for Nestea. The campaign’s slogan was “Eres lo que tomas,” or “You are what you drink.” It’s reminiscent of those metal pin 3D sculpture boxes that used to be on every office worker’s desk.

Drinking Straw Pendant Light by Addicted 2 Decorating

Finally, a drinking straw project that you can do at home. Addicted 2 Decorating has posted instructions for their DIY project to guide any crafter through creating this eye-catching light. It takes 1500 drinking straws, and you can use different colors, clear straws, or a mixture – bonus points if you make the light with used (but thoroughly cleaned) straws.

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Kebira Crater Field, Egypt and Libya

(images via: RST, Meta-Religion and Robert Kenneth Johnson)

Archaeologists over the centuries have wondered where the ancient Egyptians came by the beautiful yellow-green glass found in their most exquisite royal jewelry. The answer, it seems, is outer space… by way of a huge meteorite that blasted the Sahara sands into glass many thousands of years before the pyramids were a glimmer in Pharaoh’s eye. Out in the trackless wastes where the borders of Egypt and Libya meet lies an eroded crater and around it; pebbles, nuggets and boulders of translucent glass created when the interplanetary visitor slammed into the sands, instantly vitrifying them.

(images via: JAXA)

It’s estimated the Kebira Crater Field – more than one crater has been discovered – is about 28.5 million years old, with the largest intruder measuring about 3/4 mile (1.2 km) across. The energy released must have been in the order of 100,000 megatons.

Fraser Island, Australia

(images via: Travelblog and Rieckborn)

“If you were marooned on a desert island…” now what’s up with that? All those Crusoe types didn’t have much of a “desert” to contend with (beyond the beach, anyway), just the opposite in fact: lush tropical vegetation, forests of palm trees and so on. Where are the real desert islands? One candidate is Fraser Island, just off the eastern coast of Australia near the city of Brisbane. At 76.5 miles (123 km) long, Fraser Island is the world’s largest “sand island”. It does boast rainforests but they grow in sand, not soil. The surrounding seas are said to be rife with hungry sharks and deadly jellyfish, so you’d might as well stay on shore… listening to your selection of Desert Island Discs.

(image via: Elvis Payne)

What an actual Desert Island might look like – taken in or around Dubai by Elvis Payne, this timeless scene of a lone palm on a blindingly white sand beach gives one pause… and gives one minimal shelter from the searing Persian Gulf sun.

Monument Valley, Utah, USA

(images via: Wikipedia, Vegas-Dreaming, Norman Koren and Azgenweb)

Any Hollywood Western worth its oats was filmed at least partially in Monument Valley. Situated on Utah’s southern border with Arizona near the Four Corners, the area is resplendent in contrasting shades rust red and blue-gray derived from different layers of rocks eroded over millions of years. Even in black & white, the valley is magnificent – some of the more spectacular buttes have been named, The Mittens, the Totem Pole, the Eye of the Sun and the Ear of the Wind arch.

(image via: Flickr: Nature’s Best)

Monument Valley is located on the Navajo Nation Reservation and the Navajo name for the valley is Tsé Bii’ Ndzisgaii (Valley of the Rocks). Though extensively eroded by wind and water, the iconic buttes and mesas in the valley look much the same today as they did when the ancestors of the Navajo first set eyes on them many millennia ago.

Atacama Desert, Chile

(images via: Go Chile, Travel By GPS and Grassroots Adventures)

Sheltered from the rains by the Andes and influenced by coastal inversions created through interaction with the chill Humboldt Current, Chile’s Atacama Desert is widely recognized as being the driest desert in the world – 50 times drier than California’s Death Valley! The regions extreme aridity has allowed mummies left by the ancient Incas (including “Miss Chile” above) to exhibit a remarkable degree of preservation.

(image via: A Byte of News)

The Atacama may be both isolated and hostile to humanity, but that doesn’t mean it remains untouched by the hand of Man… literally. This monumental sculpture of a human hand rising out of the desert sands was created by Chilean sculptor Mario Irarrazabal and stands 11 feet tall. “Mano de Desierto”, or Desert’s Hand, is located about 46.5 miles (75 km) south of the city of Antofagasta, Chile.

Namib Desert, Angola and Namibia

(images via: Wikipedia and Trees Never Meet)

Hundreds of miles south of the Sahara lies one of Africa’s oldest and most beautiful deserts, the Namib. Like the Atacama, the Namib Desert’s exceptional dryness results from an offshore cold current that induces the constant descent of dry air. Currently the Namib receives a mere 1/2 inch of rain annually and it’s been this way for the better part of the last 55 million years. The Namib is in many ways a “living desert”, constantly changing its appearance due to huge roving dune fields driven by howling desert winds.

(images via: Namibia Safari and Grandpoohbah)

Where it meets the South Atlantic ocean, the Namib is often obscured by thick, impenetrable fogs that bring some moisture to the hardy plants and animals that live there. The fogs have also been the bane of seafarers for centuries, leading to innumerable shipwrecks and the forbidding name, Skeleton Coast.

Tabernas Desert, Spain

(images via: Rezoom and Getty Images)

A desert, in Europe? It’s not only more likely than you think, it’s actually there, in Spain. The Tabernas Desert in the Spanish province of Almeria is cut off from humid winds off the Mediterranean Sea by several long mountain ranges and receives a searing 3000 hours of sunlight annually. The area receives about an inch of rain every year, most of which arrives in the form of sudden downpours that have caused picturesque erosion and rugged badlands.

(image via: Cuellar)

The Tabernas Desert has often been used for location shooting of so-called Spaghetti Westerns including The Magnificent Seven and Sergio Leone’s 1966 masterpiece, The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

(image via: Trekearth)

Far north of Almeria in the province of Navarre, Las Bardenas Reales is another Spanish desert so distinctive that it’s been selected to be a UNESCO World heritage site.

Empty Quarter, Saudi Arabia

(images via: Virtual Tourist, Duneguide and Stylefrizz)

The Rub’ al Khali, or Empty Quarter, is one of the most forbidding deserts on earth. Daytime temperatures approaching 131°F (55°C ) and sand dunes towering 1,100 feet (330 meters) high make the Empty Quarter no fit place for man or beast.

(image via: Platform Zero)

The Rub’ al Khali was not always such an extreme environment and in ancient times a series of desert oasis’ allowed trading caravans to traverse its wide open plains. Rumors of “lost cities” have echoed through time and several have been found using high-tech imaging equipment aboardthe Space Shuttle and NASA’s Landsat satellites. One such city is Ubar, the “City of a Thousand Pillars”, estimated to have thrived from 3,000 BC until the first century AD.

Khongoryn Els (”Singing Sands”), Mongolia

(images via: Duneguide and Boston.com)

The Singing Sands of Khongoryn Els are located in Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park in southern Mongolia. The dunes really do “sing” – the movement of trillions of tiny sand grains against one another under pressure of the wind results in sounds variously described as roaring, booming, barking and even squeaking. The sound is only audible under certain conditions with the size & roundness of the grains, the humidity of the sand, and the sand’s silica content being the most relevant.

(image via: 123People)

Khongoryn Els isn’t easy to get to – which is part of their attraction – and the area is home to rare wildlife such as the Gobi Camel and the snow leopard.

Death Valley, California, USA

(images via: UND, Destination360 and Marc Adamus)

No post on amazing deserts would be compete without mentioning Death Valley. Aptly named for its lack of water and sweltering heat – the temperature at Furnace creek reached 134°F (56.7°C) in 1913 – Death Valley is the lowest point in North America and the second-lowest in the world.

(image via: George Bell)

The depth of the valley produces a convection oven effect on hot days with superheated air becoming trapped within the valley and circulating into any shaded areas.

(images via: Mystic Bren and Gconnect)

By all accounts the most mysterious part of Death Valley is The Racetrack, a flat dry lakebed that features dozens of “sailing stones” of various sizes at the ends of tracks sometimes hundreds of feet long. The tracks are sometimes straight, occasionally sinuous and in some cases reverse themselves. These aren’t mere pebbles either: one sailing stone, dubbed “Karen” by researchers, weighs over 700 pounds!

Antarctica’s Dry Valleys

(images via: Ross Sea and GDargaud)

Deserts, technically, don’t have to be hot; just dry. A series of valleys near Antarctica’s Ross Sea have been virtually ice-free for 2, 3, perhaps 12 million years! On “warm” summer days, glacial rivers flow into ice-covered lakes, freeze solid at night, then flow again the next day. Mostly though, ice and snow sublimates directly into the exceedingly dry air blowing out of central Antarctica; to the point where glaciers dry out before reaching the sea. These so-called “katabatic” winds have sculpted rocks in the Dry Valleys into bizarre shapes somewhat resembling the arches and hoodoos of much hotter deserts. The Dry Valleys are so unlike more typical earthly environments that researchers consider them suitable analogs for studies of Mars.

(image via: Virginia Butler)

The extreme dryness of the air and the lack of rain or snowfall in the Dry Valleys acts to preserve any organic matter for startlingly long periods of time. Freeze-dried by the katabatic winds and then slowly sandblasted away, the corpse of the seal above will someday be worn completely away though that could take thousands of years!

Our planet is blessed (or cursed, depending on one’s point of view) with an abundance of deserts, each offering unique environments and scenic vistas that are in many cases, out of this world. The 10 amazing deserts described above are, to mix metaphors, just the tip of the iceberg and you can expect a future showcase to disclose more of the hot, the dry and the sandy!

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Doll’s Eyes, Fairy Bells, Miracle Leaf – how can plants with names like these be dangerous? Eat them, and you’ll be sorry you fell for their deceptive names and unassuming appearances. From a tree that can make you go blind to flowers that even kill unsuspecting honeybees, these 13 (more) poisonous plants are anything but innocent.

Manchineel Tree

(image via: Hobo Traveler)

The Manchineel tree (Hippomane Mancinella) is so dangerous, it’s often marked with warning signs. Its leaves and small green fruit resemble those of an apple tree, hence the name – which is derived from “manzanilla”, meaning “little apple” in Spanish. But in Spain, this tree is more often known as “little apple of death”. All parts of this tree are so toxic that if you burn it and stand near the smoke, you can go blind.

Stand under this tree during a rainstorm, and you’ll get a nasty surprise in the form of blisters all over exposed parts of your body caused by contact with a white milky substance that the tree secretes when it rains. The Caribs used Manzanilla sap to poison their arrows and even tied captives to its trunk to ensure a slow and painful death.

Heart of Jesus

(image via: Wikipedia)

Eat the Heart of Jesus (Caladium x hortulanum), and you’ll end up praying for mercy. It actually wouldn’t be too difficult to accidentally set your mouth and throat on fire with this plant, since it shares its common name – Elephant Ear – with another genus of plants called Colocasia esculenta (taro) which have edible roots. While taro tastes akin to potatoes, Caladium tastes like the burning depths of hell thanks to its toxic compound, Calcium oxalate.

Doll’s eyes

(images via: Illinois Wildflowers)

With its broad green leaves and dainty white flowers, Doll’s Eyes (Actaea pachypoda) certainly doesn’t look dangerous. But, the striking white berries – once sewn into rag dolls as eyes, hence the name – are highly poisonous. They contain cardiogenic toxins that have an immediate sedative effect on human cardiac muscle tissue and can be fatal if eaten in large quantities. Even in small quantities, they can cause severe mouth pain.

Larkspur

(image via: Farmer Julie)

Like its cousin monkshood, larkspur (delphinium) is a highly popular ornamental plant, often planted in gardens for their dramatic spikes of showy blue blossoms. Larkspur is so pretty that children often just can’t resist touching them, but even brief contact with the flowers or leaves can irritate the skin. And, if you ignore the warning sign of this plant’s strong, acrid taste, you could die – it’s packed full of potent alkaloids. Before keeling over from respiratory paralysis, you’ll experience excitability, disoreintation, muscle tremors, stiffness, weakness and seizures.

Privet

(image via: Wikimedia Commons)

Neat, orderly rows of privet hedges (Ligustrum) look anything but frightening, but eat the berries and you’ll never want to go near this plant again. Some species, such as Ligustrum ovalifolium,  contain toxic Glycosides which cause abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, weakness, cold and clammy skin. Equestrians should be especially careful not to let their horses munch on this unassuming plant, as it is often fatal to them.

Yellow Jessamine

(image via: KillerPlants.com)

Yellow Jessamine: it’s a pretty name for a pretty plant, but don’t be lulled into complacency by its Southern charm. This perennial evergreen vine, which is the state flower of South Carolina, can be deadly. Though Gelsemium sempervirens is sometimes used in herbal medicine to treat problems like sciatica, when used incorrectly, it can – and does – kill. All parts of this plant contain the toxic strychnine-related alkaloids gelsemine and gelseminine, which is even fatal to honeybees when they make the mistake of gathering its nectar.

Fairy Bells

(image via: Wikimedia Commons)

This plant’s attractive appearance earned it names like Fairy Bells, Virgin’s Glove and Fairy Thimbles – but it’s also known as Dead Men’s Bells and Bloody Fingers, with good reason. Digitalis purpurea, Common Foxglove which is often found growing wild in the woods, is an undeniably beautiful plant containing cardiac glycoside digitoxin. Eat it and you’ll experience nausea, vomiting, convulsions, cardiac arrest and finally, death.

Tree Tobacco

(image via: UBC Botanical Garden)

Considering how much tobacco is consumed around the world on a daily basis, you might imagine a plant called Tree Tobacco is okay to smoke or eat. Not so much. Nicotiana Glauca causes vomiting, diarrhea, slow pulse, dizziness, collapse, and respiratory failure and is known to frequently kill horses and cattle, especially in Texas where it grows wild.

Golden Chain

(image via: Gertie_DU)

Golden Chain (Laburnum Anagyroides) is a majestic tree, with cascades of sunny yellow flowers. It has a long-held reputation as poison in English lore, particularly since its seeds look very similar to peas. They contain both Lupinine and dangerous enzyme inhibitors, and as few as 20 laburnum beans can kill a child.

Mother of Millions

(image via: North West Weeds)

In 1997, 125 cows died in New South Wales after eating an ornamental succulent plant that’s common all over the drier parts of Australia. Mother of Millions (Kalanchoe tubiflora) is so named for its astounding ability to reproduce – each plant produces thousands of offspring. But this drought-resistant plant causes diarrhea, heart failure and death in stock animals that mistake it for food.

Miracle Leaf

(image via: Staff.it.uts.edu.au)

It’s called Miracle Leaf thanks to its medicinal properties, but use Kalanchoe pinnata improperly and you’ll need a miracle to emerge unscathed. It contains bufadienolide cardiac glycosides, which can cause cardiac poisoning, particularly in grazing animals.

Windflower

(image via: Wikipedia)

The delicate, starry white blossoms of the Windflower plant look like something that would adorn a bridal veil, but touch it, and you’ll get a nasty rash. The entire plant contains poisonous chemicals that are toxic to humans and animals, including protoanemonin, a skin and gastrointestinal irritant.

White Bryony

(image via: Roberto Verzo)

White Bryony sounds pleasant enough, but get a load of its other name: Devil’s Turnip. This vine-like relative of cucumber produces pale pink berries filled with a foul-smelling juice as well as a large, tuberous rootstock. When used properly by knowledgable herbalists, this plant treats a number of health disorders, but ingestion can cause vomiting, kidney damage, convulsions and miscarriage.

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