Birds we’re not so sure of, but the kinkajou— very real.
Deep in the jungles of Central and South America lives a furry little creature called the kinkajou. Though often mistaken for primates, kinkajous are not at all like those boring apes. Otherwise known as honey bears, these little creatures are nocturnal and a bit shy as well, but give them a bit of time and they’ll warm right up to you 😉!
Kinkajous like to play, groom, and sleep together. If you ever find yourself wandering around the jungle late at night you might hear their high pitched squeals, hisses and barks of pleasure echoing around the forest canopy– you can only hope to get an invite to join them 🙊. Few people know exactly what they get up to in the jungle canopy, but they certainly can’t be up to any good...
These animals are largely frugivores and use their long, slim tongues to slurp up the insides of ripe and gooey fruit. The kinkajou is an expert with its tongue and many plants rely completely on them to be satisfyingly pollinated. Few other animals are dexterous and eager enough to do the job, but without even a moment's hesitation the cunning kinkajou will go down and slurp out the nectar from even the most finicky flowers 😩.
Above all, however, a kinkajous favorite treat is honey 🍯— they will not hesitate to get sticky. Catch a kinkajou gobbling up the golden goodness from the inside of its favorite hive and you’ll understand just why they’re called the honey bear.
Kinkajous are one of only two mammals with a strong prehensile tail. They use it to balance themselves while foraging, snuggle when they sleep, and are often seen hanging upside down from it—we’re not exactly sure why they do this but they sure seem to enjoy it 😯. These little creatures are very, very flexible-- when hanging inverted by their tail they can twist completely around to climb back up their own tail, impressive! Did we mention they have a thing for feet? Yes, not only are their feet as dexterous as their hands 😅 but they can also rotate their feet 180 degrees to run backward as easily as they run forward. What dem feet do???
If a kinkajou happens to flash you, don’t take it the wrong way! When they get too hot and bothered 🥵, they will expose their belly and bare-skinned palms to let off some steam. We can only guess at what other sorts of things they get up to with their specially endowed gifts…
It’s rumored that Darwin, deep in his expeditions into the jungles of Central America, once stumbled upon a clearing where a bunch of kinkajous were “just hanging out” 😳. Needless to say, his observations did not get written down for fear of reprimand from the church.
