African Crested Rat Uses Plant Poison for Defense

The African crested rat is a unique rodent that uses poison from a special tree to protect itself.

It chews the bark of the Acokanthera tree and mixes the poison with its saliva.

Then, it puts this mixture on special hairs on its sides.

These hairs are like sponges that hold the poison.

When a predator tries to attack, the rat stands up its black-and-white mane to show the poisoned stripe.

This warns the predator to stay away.

The poison is so strong that it can even kill an elephant.

The rat itself doesn't get poisoned because it has strong bones and thick skin.

It lives in rocky forests and savannahs in East Africa and is not currently endangered.