The World's Ugliest Animals

By Savannah Cox | Edited By John Kuroski

Published January 5, 2014

Updated November 9, 2023

Ugliest Animals: The Star-Nosed Mole

Though weird and downright unattractive, the star-nosed mole is an intelligent little creature that uses air bubbles to smell. These moles are found in the eastern edge of the United States and Canada in marshes and wetlands. They have a peculiar appearance due to their noses, which are made up of 11 pairs of tentacles that form a circular star.

Ugliest Animals Star Nosed Mole Tentacle

Source: WordPress

The star-nosed mole can detect seismic wave vibrations via its nose tentacles, each used as a touch organ containing more than 25,000 tiny sensory receptors known as Eimer’s organs. These nasal tentacles also help the star-nosed mole identify food like worms and crustaceans by touch. These moles enjoy water and often dig their shallow surface tunnels underwater.

Source: Muxnert

author

Savannah Cox holds a Master's in International Affairs from The New School as well as a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, and now serves as an Assistant Professor at the University of Sheffield. Her work as a writer has also appeared on DNAinfo.

editor

John Kuroski is the editorial director of All That's Interesting. He graduated from New York University with a degree in history, earning a place in the Phi Alpha Theta honor society for history students. An editor at All That's Interesting since 2015, his areas of interest include modern history and true crime.

Cox, Savannah. "The World’s 7 Ugliest Animals." AllThatsInteresting.com, January 5, 2014, https://allthatsinteresting.com/ugliest-animals. Accessed April 19, 2024.