The origins of 7 wildlife idioms

No surprise here: this one came about through the observation that a single beaver buckles down and builds its dam, in some cases, in under 24 hours. That’s some work ethic! Are beavers eager to do the job? Hard to tell. But “industrious beaver” doesn’t have much of a ring to it.

This one makes more sense when you know the full, original expression: “Happy as a clam at high water”. Clams are only harvested at low tide, so when the tide is high, they’re probably happy to, you know, not get eaten.

To make a beeline means to travel in a straight line, with focus, no stops—as in, the direct route a worker bee uses to return to the hive. That said, some research shows that honeybees will fly erratically in high winds; this appears to be how they can maintain the same speed and velocity despite turbulent conditions. Bees should consider careers as Uber drivers. Five star ratings all around!

Allegedly, this term—it means a false clue—comes from foxhunting. Smoked herring turns bright red and smells especially fishy. Apparently, dragging the fish across a fox’s trail would confuse the hounds and prolong the hunt. Actually, back in 1686, the preferred method was to use a dead cat to mask the scent of the fox. But, heck, sometimes British gentlemen don’t have a dead cat on hand.

Hawks, like other birds of prey (“eagle-eyed”, hello), have excellent eyesight. They can see eight times better than humans at long distances—incredibly useful when flying high in the sky, hunting for prey. Are hawks especially vigilant observers? Do they expect their prey to do something sneaky, like cheat on a math test, or steal a chocolate bar? Hey, maybe.

This has nothing to do with cats, and everything to do with catfish. These fish don’t have scales, they have a tough, leathery skin. And the internet says that yes, there is more than one way to skin a catfish. (We didn’t look up how to skin a cat. We’re not psychopaths.)

Rats don’t race each other. This expression—meaning, of course, the idea that people get caught up in the “fiercely competitive struggle for wealth or power”—compares humans to rats pursuing a piece of cheese, even when it’s pointless. Wait, what? There’s always a point to pursuing cheese. Cheese is delicious.