Jun 14, 2024

Wildlife wonder: 10 animals whose blood isn’t red

Aakanksha Sharma

Non-red blood animals

There are so many people who assume that all living beings have red blood. But, this is far from true! So many animals, in the land and sea, lack the component that makes the blood red and hence have different colours. Here we list 10 animals who don't have red blood.

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​Horseshoe crabs

Horseshoe crabs are deep ocean living creatures who have blue blood instead of red. Their bodies lack haemoglobin and instead have hemocyanin, which makes the blood blue.

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​Octopuses

Another animal who does not have red blood is the Octopus. They are also deep-sea creatures and live in cold environments. The blue blood is because of the presence of hemocyanin.

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​Squid

The blood of a squid is anywhere between dark blue to reddish blue colour. The squid is also a sea creature who lacks haemoglobin.

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Spiders

A normal, land insect, the spider, also has blood that isn't red. Spiders also rely on hemocyanin to carry oxygen which makes their blood blue-ish in colour.

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​Lobsters

Lobsters, one of the most scary marines, are said to have ‘colourless; blood. It is said that while their blood is colourless, it changes to blue when it comes in contact with oxygen.

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​Brachiopods

Another twist in the red or blue blood colours comes through Brachiopods. These are shell-like animals who have Hemerythrin which makes their blood a light yellow.

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Sea cucumbers

One of the weirdest marine animals, Sea cucumbers have a pigment called vanabin in their blood, which makes their blood yellow.

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Icefish

Another twist in the tale comes when talking about Icefish. The Antarctic icefish have no haemoglobin in their blood, making it clear and colourless.

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​Flatworms

Flatworms are another wildlife wonder who really surprises people when it comes to blood and colour. Surprisingly, depending on the species, flatworms can have different pigments in their body fluids which means that they have different colours of blood.

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Peanut worms

Peanut worms are another unique species when it comes to the colour of their blood. They have hemerythrin in their blood, which turns purple when oxygenated.

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Thanks For Reading!

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