Interesting and odd, every year scientists discover new species of animals. Sometimes they’re small insects and lizards, sometimes they discover new monkeys or fish.  I’ve come across a number of strange animals on my travels and tend to be drawn to biodiversity hot spots like Madagascar and Papua New Guinea.

From the Arctic to New Zealand, here are six of the most mysterious and interesting animals I’ve heard about or seen around the world.

Aye Ayes

The island of Madagascar is home to an astonishing number of endemic species, many of which look or act in unique ways. Lemurs are the island’s most famous inhabitants, but the Aye-Aye is probably the ugliest and most mysterious. The Aye Aye is a nocturnal lemur-like creature that has developed an extremely extended baby finger that it uses like a stick to root around in tree holes. Using this unique and sensitive digging finger it taps on the wood of trees to locate hiding spots for grubs and bugs, then it digs them out! They’re believed to be evil demons by some Malagasy, who claim that if an Aye Aye points it’s finger at you, you’ve been marked for death.

Whale Sharks

These are the largest fish in our Oceans, growing to sizes in excess of 40m long! They are sharks, but are friendly, docile plankton eaters, something you typically associate more with whales. It is said that 90% or more of the large fish in our Oceans are now gone, so there is an attraction to seeing these beasts before it is too late. It used to be a rare and lucky experience to be diving or snorkelling and come across a Whale Shark, but today it is big business in places like Isla Mujeres and Holbox in Mexico, the Bay Islands in Honduras, Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia and Donsol in the Philippines.

Tuatara

How about a three-eyed ‘living fossil’, the last of it’s kind? Indeed 200 million years ago the Tuatara may have made more cousins and relatives roaming the Earth, but today they’re on their own. A vulnerable species found only in New Zealand and it’s surrounding islands, the Tuatara has a ‘third-eye’ that gets covered over by skin in adult Tuataras. This eye is sensitive to light and is believed to be a way to trigger sleep and hibernation in these odd animals. They look like lizards (but aren’t) and can hear, but have no visible ears. Your best chance to spot one will be finding one in captivity at a zoo or wildlife park.

Reindeer

They are not stuff of fantasy or only owned by Santa Claus, Reindeer really do exist and they roam free in the high Arctic. Living off the frozen tundra, Reindeer go by different names around the world, but can be found in northern Scandinavia, Russia, Canada and Alaska. We call them Caribou in North America and they’ve been domesticated enough in some extreme northern climates to be used for sledding. They are, apparently, extremely tasty to eat too. Northern Finland and Sweden are the best places for visiting Reindeer farms.

Angora Rabbits

I have never seen an Angora Rabbit, but I have been to the city that they are said to originate from – Ankara, Turkey. If you’re familiar with the internet obsession with LOLcats and furry, funny animals then you need to do a Google image search for Angora Rabbits. These furballs are enough to make you burst out in smiles or laughs! Among the first domesticated rabbits in the world, they are raised for their amazingly soft, luxurious and silky fur.

Sloths

Would you prefer two or three toes with your Sloth? These cute guys are a big draw for wildlife fans who visit Central and South America. It isn’t their odd looks so much that makes them mysterious and interesting, but their extremely slow metabolism. Sloths do nothing fast, including digest their food. It can take them a month to totally digest a meal! They spend their time in trees, but head towards the ground to relieve themselves when that digestion is finally done. They move so slow that their fur is sometimes coloured green because moss begins to grow on them! Aviarios del Caribe is a popular sloth rescue centre in Costa Rica if you’re yearning for some close encounters.