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25 things that are not what they seem

  1. A firefly is not a fly - it is a beetle
  2. A prairie dog is not a dog - it is a rodent
  3. India ink is not from India - it is from China and Egypt
  4. A horned toad is not a toad - it is a lizard
  5. A lead pencil does not contain lead - it contains graphite
  6. A douglas fir is not a fir - it is a pine
  7. A silkworm is not a worm - it is a caterpillar
  8. A peanut is not a nut - it is a legume
  9. A panda bear is not a bear - it is a relative of the raccoon
  10. An English horn is not English and it isn’t a horn - it is a French alto oboe
  11. A guinea pig is not from guinea and it is not a pig - it is a rodent from South America
  12. Shortbread is not a bread - it is a thick cookie
  13. Dresden China is not from Dresden - it is from Meissen
  14. A shooting star is not a star - it is a metorite
  15. A funny bone is not a bone - it is the spot where the ulnar nerve touches the humerus
  16. Chop suey is not a native Chinese dish - it was invented by Chinese immigrants in California
  17. A bald eagle is not bald - it has flat white feathers on its head and neck when mature, and dark feathers when young
  18. A banana tree is not a tree - it is a herb
  19. A cucumber is not a vegetable - it is a fruit
  20. A jackrabbit is not a rabbit - it is a hare
  21. A piece of catgut is not from a cat - it is usually made from sheep intestines
  22. A Mexican jumping bean is not a bean - it is a seed with a larva inside
  23. A Turkish bath is not Turkish - it is Roman
  24. A koala bear is not a bear - it is a marsupial
  25. A sweetbread is not a bread - it is the pancreas or thymus gland from a calf or lamb

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