Zoological inaccuracies & mistakes

Elephas Maximus

Elephas Maximus

Well-Known Member
Couldn't find a similar thread. There is a 'General zoo misconceptions' thread but there are no pictures. Please post here pictures of mistakes in books, art, etc. with source indicated.

King penguins with Emperor chicks
Lievin
K8pPwaVzlME.jpg


Hutschenreuther
cCWWq5H3-BM.jpg


Ravensden
9hrQ3ouaeDw.jpg


Wild Republic
frNEUD_1biI.jpg


Tadas Ivanauskas Zoological Museum
5LYNOdZ7hFE.jpg
 
I was probably in second grade when I checked out a nonfiction picture book called "Emperor Penguins" from the library. This book explained how to tell the difference between the King and Emperor Penguins. Then I looked back at the cover and realized that it has a photo of a King Penguin. :p

That day I had also checked out "Downy Woodpeckers" by the same publisher and discovered it had a similar issue. :eek:
 
birdsandbats said:
I was probably in second grade when I checked out a nonfiction picture book called "Emperor Penguins" from the library. This book explained how to tell the difference between the King and Emperor Penguins. Then I looked back at the cover and realized that it has a photo of a King Penguin. :p

That day I had also checked out "Downy Woodpeckers" by the same publisher and discovered it had a similar issue. :eek:
Click to expand...
Could you please find a photo of the book cover?
I thought finding the book about Downy Woodpeckers would help.
First one is by Stackpole books, and there is no Emperor penguin book by this publisher.
11669.jpg


Second one is by Scholastic
yIRjuK3uLbM.jpg

There is a book in same series with King penguins on the cover, but it's named just 'Penguins' and it seems to be a newer edition than 'Downy woodpecker'.
iHDfQVS46Cg.jpg

I also found this book but it can't be one you're talking about. Also I watched every image of Emperor penguin books in Google and found nothing else.
lB1in8JTUYg.jpg
 
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Elephas Maximus said:
Could you please find a photo of the book cover?
I thought finding the book about Downy Woodpeckers would help.
First one is by Stackpole books, and there is no Emperor penguin book by this publisher.
11669.jpg


Second one is by Scholastic
yIRjuK3uLbM.jpg

There is a book in same series with King penguins on the cover, but it's named just 'Penguins' and it seems to be a newer edition than 'Downy woodpecker'.
iHDfQVS46Cg.jpg

I also found this book but it can't be one you're talking about. Also I watched every image of Emperor penguin books in Google and found nothing else.
lB1in8JTUYg.jpg
Click to expand...
It's possible those are the books and I'm just misremembering them being from the same publisher. The penguin one looks familiar, not sure about the woodpecker one, those that book does appear to have the same error.
 
I have seen and heard David Attenborough and Chris Packham saying that tuataras are lizards.
I've also heard David Attenborough imply that spiders are insects.
 
David Attenborough mentioned tuataras in a talk in Watford and mentioned spiders on a TV programme about the Himalayas. The latter could have been edited by taking the word 'other' from the statement 'It eats other insects'.
Chris Packham mentioned tuataras on the BBC programme 'Curious Creatures'. I have been to several radio recordings, where mistakes are edited from a programme at the end of a recording. I suspect the same is true with TV recordings. I note that Kate Humble didn't correct Chris Packham's mistake.
 
By Dreamland Publications, India
"Canada lynx" is Bobcat, "Jaguarundi" is Mountain lion, "Marble cat" is a domestic cat, and "Leopard cat" is a Snow leopard.
3obG6iquJ8E.jpg


Spiders, scorpions, myriapods, ticks and daddy long legs (named spider) as insects
"Eyed hawk moth" is some species of Saturniidae moth
"American cockroach" is Blaberus
"Hornet" is other wasp, presumably Polistes sp.
"Tiger beetle" is Ground beetle
"Bug" is Eurasian Bee Beetle
Not a Giant dragonfly
Simply "insect" is Pterochroza ocellata
oUBrFwfZn1E.jpg


By Smile Publishing, India
Fruit bat is not a bird, ''eagle" and "falcon" are other birds of prey, and a toy kiwi
297206a.jpg
 
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Elephas Maximus said:
By Dreamland Publications, India
"Canada lynx" is Bobcat, "Jaguarundi" is Mountain lion, "Marble cat" is a domestic cat, and "Leopard cat" is a Snow leopard.
3obG6iquJ8E.jpg


Spiders, scorpions, myriapods, ticks and daddy long legs (named spider) as insects
"Eyed hawk moth" is some species of Saturniidae moth
"American cockroach" is Blaberus
"Hornet" is other wasp, presumably Polistes sp.
"Tiger beetle" is Ground beetle
"Bug" is Eurasian Bee Beetle
Not a Giant dragonfly
Simply "insect" is Pterochroza ocellata
oUBrFwfZn1E.jpg


By Smile Publishing, India
Fruit bat is not a bird, ''eagle" and "falcon" are other birds of prey, and a toy kiwi
297206a.jpg
Click to expand...
Actually, that "Marble Cat" is a Leopard Cat x Domestic Cat hybrid.
 
Other common inaccuracies are that mammals evolved from reptiles and that marsupials are mammals with pouches (about 20% of species have pouchless females) and only live in Australasia and the Americas (a few live in Asia, including the bear cuscus, which occurs in a few European zoos).
 
Dassie rat said:
David Attenborough mentioned tuataras in a talk in Watford and mentioned spiders on a TV programme about the Himalayas. The latter could have been edited by taking the word 'other' from the statement 'It eats other insects'.
Chris Packham mentioned tuataras on the BBC programme 'Curious Creatures'. I have been to several radio recordings, where mistakes are edited from a programme at the end of a recording. I suspect the same is true with TV recordings. I note that Kate Humble didn't correct Chris Packham's mistake.
Click to expand...

Well to be honest it is quite disappointing to know this.

You would think that how ancient and singular the tuatara is as a living fossil / sole surviving species of its order would be enough of a talking point / highlight to the public for raising awareness.
 
I mean I never think you should fully trust TV. They usually just cut out the 'boring' bits would could clarify the actual answer, so...yeah. Not saying it's never true, I just believe it less nowadays than everything else.
 
I remember 4 mistakes in the original first programme in the 'Life of Mammals' series.

I suspect that other programmes have several mistakes, but I don't notice them due to my lack of knowledge.
 
No. The mistakes were in the first episode. I did an Open University course using the DVDs and the mistakes had been rectified by then.

From memory, the mistakes were:

Mammals evolved from reptiles
? All female marsupials have pouches
Marsupials only live in Australasia and the Americas
Thylacoleo was one of the earliest marsupials (implied in a short montage of pictures)
 
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