The teenage mutant ninja turtles may be modern day anthropomorphic superheroes, but there are real life masked crusaders that put the A in aposematic coloration.  The black-footed ferret, red pandas, civits, raccoons and polcats, all have ninja-like masks, but why ? Scientists have come up with several theories, but the most compelling explanation is that these masks are used to scare away predators (C.Newman and colleagues) – just like the rattlesnake shakes its rattle to announce: hey don’t mess with me !  Animals with ninja like masks may seem sneaky, but they are really cool creatures.

I’m IzzyKat and remember to bikepenguin !