All Creatures Blue and Beautiful...

"Great shades of blue, you find them in nature. They're all magic"

- Bryan Batt

The colour blue occurs more often in the animal kingdom than you might think! Here's my countdown of the top 5 blue animals. Enjoy!

5. The blue morpho butterfly

There are actually 29 species and 147 subspecies of morpho butterfly. They're usually found in South America and their wingspan ranges from 3 inches to 8 inches. They are not blue due to any pigmentation in their wings but some sort of trick of the light, the thin layers of their wings scattering light particles, much like the sky which appears blue due to Rayleigh light scattering. True blue or not, this butterfly is too pretty not to be on the list!

4. The blue whale

You've indubitably heard of the blue whale and know that it's the largest animal on the planet. You would be correct. Their heart is the size of a car and their tongue is the size of an elephant. Despite their massive size, they feed mainly off plankton and krill. There must be a lot of love in their car sized hearts because they form close emotional bonds and travel in small groups,  usually with family members. They might seem quiet but they communicate with other whales at a frequency of 10 - 39 hertz. Blue whales aren't really a vivid blue but I like them and "blue" is right there in the name!

3. The blue footed booby

The blue footed booby is a bird that, as its name suggests, has striking blue feet. Aside from the blue footed booby's fancy footwear, what makes it stand out is the unique mating dance the males perform. They lift their feet one at a time to show them off. The bluer their feet are, the more liable they are to find a special lady booby (finally, some animals with sense!). Blue footed boobies are mainly found in South America and Central America and can have a wingspan up to 5ft across. They eat small fish and, like most birds, nest on land when not hunting for food. The word "booby" comes from the Spanish 'bobo', meaning 'stupid'. This may seem cruel but boobies probably call us worse behind our backs!

2. The blue ringed octopus

This may seem an odd entry on a list celebrating blue animals due to how feared the blue ringed octopus (or BRO. If there's a better acronym than that, I don't want to hear it!) is in its native Australia. However, it's not the BRO making the toxin - it's the bacteria that lives on it. And if a massive foot suddenly crashed into your house right now and your bite was venomous, would you not bite the intruder? They're just scared! But rational or not, the actions of a BRO can be life threatening. The bite is reported to be painless and many may not even notice they've been bitten which makes them slow to seek medical attention. There is no treatment except CPR which makes the death toll for those bitten by a BRO very high. The BRO actually has two toxins - the other one is harmless to humans but kills prey for the BRO to eat. When threatened, the rings that give this cephalopod its name flash bright blue.

1. The Russian Blue cat

You knew it had to be a cat! Admittedly, the Russian Blue is not a vivid blue but more of a muted greyish-blue. It has two coats, a soft undercoat and a topcoat (these are called guard hairs). The guard hairs are blue with silver tips, giving the cat a sugarcoated appearance. Russian Blue cats are calm, intelligent cats and are very close to their owners but shy around strangers. They're known to be very playful so they're good for households with other small animals or children. They're also less likely to affect those allergic to cats. Oh, and their kittens are cute to the point of being ridiculous!

So those are the top 5 blue animals, in my humble opinion at least. What's your favourite blue animal?

Cats!

"If you are allergic to a thing, it is best not to put that thing in your mouth, particularly if the thing is cats"

- Lemony Snicket

Cats. They're so loveable and squidgy and fluffy (with the exception of the Sphynx cat that looks like Yoda). I like cats. Many people like cats. In North America, there's 10 million more cats than there are dogs (73 million cats to 63 million dogs). In Ancient Egypt, cats were treated with the highest regards but you doubtless know this. However, did you know that the Egyptian Mau is the oldest cat breed around? It is. Mau is also the Egyptian word for cat. Imaginative!

That's my old cat, Mau, there. He was not an Egyptian Mau, he was a white and tabby male which is rare because white and tabby cats are usually females. He could say his own name.

Anyway, I'm here to tell you all about cats. I'm going to share all my cat knowledge with you and hopefully, you will be wiser for the experience.

- Cats have the largest eyeballs of all mammals, in relation to their skull.
- Cats have 24 more bones in their bodies than humans do.
- Cats can make 100 different sounds. Dogs can only make 10.
- Cat brains resemble human brains more closely than they do dog brains.
- Each cat has a unique nose print, just like our fingerprints.
- When a cat is rubbing the side of its mouth on something, it doesn't have an itchy face (like I once thought), it is actually leaving its scent on the object so other cats know it belongs to them.
- Cats spend up to 16 hours a day asleep.

- A litter of kittens will all share the same mother (obviously) but can have different fathers.
- Ragdoll cats go limp when picked up by humans, hence their name.
- Outdoor cats have an average lifespan of 3 to 5 years. House cats have an average lifespan of 16 years. I imagine cars factor in these statistics.
- Cats can dream.
- Cats cannot taste anything sweet.
- If a cat has their tail held upright and curled slightly at the end, it means they are friendly. If you see a cat in the street with their tail like that, it's probably safe to approach and pet them.
- Cats close their eyes when they are pleased or contented.

- The purring noise a cat makes when it is hungry has the frequency of a baby's cry embedded in it so you feel compelled to feed the cat.
- Cats spend a third of their day grooming themselves.
- A cat's heartbeat is twice as fast as a human's heartbeat.
- The Maine Coon cat is the state animal of Maine (unsurprisingly).
- Black cats are a sign of good luck in the UK and bad luck in America. Unfortunately, they are the least likely to be adopted from rescue centres.
- Cats are the best. It's undisputable.

So there you have it. 20 cat facts you never needed to know. Don't you feel so much more knowledgeable now? Now go and find a cat to cuddle. You know you want to!

The Bitter Bluecolic - An Introduction.

"If you expect nothing from somebody you are never disappointed"

- Sylvia Plath

Hi there. I'm Blue (da ba dee da ba die, I've heard it all before) and this is my blog, The Bitter Bluecolic. I bet you're thinking there's an interesting story behind that name, huh? Well, there isn't. This is the first of many disappointments I have to offer. I just took some Slipknot lyrics and changed the word "bucolic" to "Bluecolic". For those who don't know, bucolic means 'people or things relating to the countryside'. Logically, Bluecolic means 'people or things relating to Blue'. And that's what this blog is going to contain. Maybe you don't know me. Maybe you have no idea what this blog will be about because you have no idea who I am. Let's change that. Here's a short factfile about me.

Name: Blue.

Age: 19.

Gender: Female.

Location: Scotland, unfortunately. 

Likes: Cats, beer, hot chocolate, marzipan, most types of music, drawing, reading, writing, piercings and procrastinating.

Dislikes: Unexpected loud or high pitched noises, dogs, bigots, the PC brigade, peas, onions, crowded spaces, exercise or anything that sounds vaguely like exercise, creeps and the cold. 

Notable facts: I'm moderately deaf in both ears and wear hearing aids.

I have two cats and I am the leader of the pack. 

I am a raging lesbian. 

I lied about being a raging lesbian. I'm more of a quiet, conservative lesbian. 

I love grammar and spelling. My dream is to be a proofreader. 

My favourite book is The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath. 

I have a slight obsession with the cartoon cat Pusheen - I have a tattoo of her on my left arm.

I have social anxiety and undiagnosed depression (my family may think I'm being ridiculous but trust me, I know my own brain) and have struggled with self harm and suicidal thoughts. 

That last point was a bit dark but honesty is the best policy and I want you to know what you're letting yourself in for. 

I am VERY verbose. 

You're not seriously going to ask my favourite colour?!

So that's me. Hopefully, you can gauge what this blog will be about. I don't know whether I'll post once a week, once a fortnight or at irregular intervals whenever I feel like it (probably the latter) but it's sure going to be a crazy ride! Stick around, won't you? And feel free to introduce yourself in the comment section!