Nature is metal, this is known. Stepping foot into the woods can sometimes be a peaceful and serene experience, one which brings you closer to nature and the world all around us. Other times, times when you might encounter a creature like the Velvet Worm, spending time in the Great Outdoors can be a cold reminder that nature doesn’t give one flying fuck about you or anyone else, that the food chain is brutal, and most creatures were put on this planet to kill or be killed.
The California Academy of Sciences’ bioGraphic YouTube channel runs a series titled ‘Lens of Time’, and in the latest episode they focus in on the Velvet Worm’s ‘Slime Cannon’, one of the most terrifying and spectacular defense mechanisms in the Animal Kingdom.
So what’s this ‘Slime Cannon’ all about? Well, it’s exactly what it sounds like. Without even watching this clip and seeing for yourself I can tell you that it’s similar to that scene in Ghostbusters II when they grabbed that pink Psychomagnotheric Slime from the NYC sewer system to bring Lady Liberty to life…Well, it’s a cross between that and the worst bukkake scene imaginable. Only this Slime Cannon is a lot worse than Bukkake because it can capture and kill prey up to several feet away:
As for how/why the Velvet Worm has adapted the ‘Slime Cannon’ as its defense mechanism and means of capturing prey, I’ll let the scientists in this video do the explaining.