9 of the Oddest Noses in the Animal Kingdom

These noses do much more than just smell.

Some are long, some are short. Some thick, some are thin. We’re talking about noses, of course.

And if you thought human noses come in all shapes and sizes, you’ve seen nothing yet. In the animal world, you can find all kinds of schnozzes for wild reasons.

Here’s a collection of 10 of the oddest noses animals use to sniff around (or do something entirely different).

1. Elephant

The elephant’s trunk is probably the most famous nose of them all. But have you ever noticed that it’s not just a nose?

The trunk is, in fact, the elephant’s upper lip and nose fused together. It’s also one of the most multipurpose noses out there.

With 40,000 tiny muscles, the elephant can flex its trunk around and use it to smell, pick things up, swat bugs, and even breathe while diving.

2. Mandrill

A mandrill’s nose isn’t that strangely shaped (for a monkey). However, it has one of the most colorful noses out there.

Mandrills’ noses are bright red, surrounded by intense fields of blue. Both males and females have these colors, but they’re stronger in the males.

That’s because male mandrills’ noses get brighter in coloration during mating season to woo the ladies. Their butts do the same thing, too—but we’re talking about the noses here.

3. Proboscis Monkey

Mandrills aren’t the only monkeys who try to charm the fairer sex with their noses. Proboscis monkeys do the same thing, but with sheer size instead of color.

Male proboscis monkeys’ noses are huge and bulbous, reaching up to four inches in length. They’re so big they hang down over their mouths.

The prevailing theory is that the big schnozzes allow the male monkeys to make louder mating calls. And if there’s anything to get the smaller-nosed females in the mood, it’s the most obnoxious noise possible.

4. Snub-nosed Monkey

And then we have the snub-nosed monkey that has taken the exact opposite route from the proboscis monkey. These monkeys practically have no noses at all.

They’ve largely lost their noses due to living in high elevations where the weather gets extremely cold. Having a nose would risk getting frostbite on it, so evolution has simply taken it away.

With no nose, snub-nosed monkeys’ skeletal faces look a little creepy. To lighten the mood, let me point out that rain can fill their upturned nostrils and make the monkeys sneeze.

Actually, now I just feel bad for them.

5. Pig-nosed Turtle

Photo: Junkyardsparkle, CC0, Wikimedia Commons.

I’m not sure which pig this turtle stole its nose from, but it needs to return it. It doesn’t fit the turtle’s face at all.

Yet, the turtle’s flashy pig snout comes in incredibly useful for it. Thanks to the protruding nostrils, the turtle can stick them above the water to breathe without exposing the rest of its body.

Anything to survive in the wild, even if it makes you look ridiculous.

6. Elephantnose Fish

Guess what animal the elephantnose fish’s nose resembles? Well, it’s only elephantine in the sense that it’s long, and it’s not really a nose.

This fish’s proboscis is actually an elongation of its mouth. It’s packed full of electroreceptors, allowing the fish to find food by tracking their tiny electrical discharges.

I suppose you could say that it’s still used to smell things, in a very loose sense.

7. Saiga Antelope

Saiga antelopes, male and female alike, are famous for their cavernous, bloated snouts with prominent gaping nostrils. The thing looks so bizarre that, in the ages past, people thought the antelopes drank through their noses.

In reality, their noses are an adaptation to a cold desert climate. The inside of their nasal cavity is lined with long hair to filter dust and sand out of the air they breathe.

Additionally, the large space inside their noses stays warm, allowing them to breathe in warmer air than what’s around them. What a marvel of natural engineering.

8. Pinocchio Frog

The Pinocchio frog is a relatively newly discovered species, having been first observed in 2008. I’m not sure how they missed that drooping nose, but it’s what it is.

That nose, however, is a vital communication tool. When communicating with other frogs of its kind, the Pinocchio frog inflates its nose, making it blow up and stick upwards.

When no one’s around, the nose deflates and droops down. There are jokes I could crack here, but I think you can think of them on your own.

9. Star-nosed Mole

Finally, we have the star-nosed mole, with possibly the weirdest-looking nose out there. This little oddball looks disturbing and adorable in equal measure.

The star-nosed mole’s star nose consists of 22 protruding, fleshy tentacles. Packed with touch-sensitive nerves, they’re invaluable for the subterranean creature to find its way.

They also help the mole to find food. When any of the nose tentacles touch a worm or other bug, the mole can snatch it into its mouth seven times faster than you can blink.

All done? Find more fun and odd body parts in our article series on bizarre animal anatomy!