How could Beethoven write music if he was deaf? Beethoven was not alone in being able to compose music without using the piano or any other instrument. Many composers can hear the music in their heads and write it down immediately without playing it. It is quite easy to recognise pairs of notes by comparing them to a well-known sound or tune. For example, the cuckoo always sings two notes that...

Who was Attila the Hun?   The Huns were tribes of warlike people who originated in central Russia. They were very fine horsemen and, in about Ad 400, set about conquering neighbouring peoples and building up their power. In AD 434, they gained a great leader, Attila. Attila the Hun had great plans for his marauding tribesmen. At that time, the Roman Empire was crumbling and had divided into two parts,...

How do bats catch their food?   Bats like a the Microchiropterans find their food, and their way about, by echo- location. By making high-pitched squeaks, the sound waves which bounce back from objects tell them what is in their path. If an object is close, then the sound comes back quickly, if it is further away it takes longer. To trap these returning echos, the bats have large ears and...

How do bats’ wings differ from birds’ wings?   Only birds, insects and bats can truly fly, although quite a few other animals can glide through the air. Birds’ bodies are covered in feathers, and on their wings are feathers called flight feathers which are specially shaped to allow the bird to fly gracefully; these feathers are often coloured to help conceal the bird from its enemies or help it attract...

Why are bats thought to be sinister? Many stories and legends have been built around bats and they are often associated with witches and dark, evil places. Perhaps this is not so surprising in many ways, for they often roost in church towers and old, abandoned buildings, swarming out at dusk to feed. But on the whole, bats are harmless creatures and only those like the blood-sucking vampire bat of Central...

How intelligent are whales? Whales are highly intelligent creatures. Next to man, they have the largest brain for their body size of any animal. We may not yet realise just how clever these creatures are, but ) we know that the smaller whales, such as dolphins, can quickly learn to perform tricks and are eager to learn more difficult tasks once ; they have mastered the more simple ones. Perhaps one...

Should we hunt for whales? Many years ago, whales were very plentiful in some oceans of the world. Large sailing vessels used to put to sea for many months, searching for whales to catch. Once sighted, the whales were chased in open rowing boats which were put over the side from the larger sailing vessel. The men in the open boats had to row very quickly to catch the whales, and...

Is a whale’s skeleton like other mammals’ skeletons?   A whale’s skeleton is in many ways like any other mammal’s skeleton, but it has been changed, or modified, during evolution to suit the special needs of an animal designed to spend all its life in water. If you see a whale skeleton at a museum, study it closely. Firstly, you will see that it is very long and straight, with a...