A ruthless parasite sprouting from the exoskeleton of an unfortunate fly. An egg-laying mammal—not a platypus—that uses “jazz hands” as a defensive tactic. Iguanas that have evolved to ride the waves—meriguanas, if you will. These are just a few of the fascinating organisms we shared with readers this year. Sometimes, an entire species intrigued us, such as the venomous but (relatively) docile golden lancehead viper, a critically endangered snake that lives only on one tiny Brazilian island—for now. Sometimes, an individual organism caught our attention by going above and beyond…
