Patricia Gwyn., age 11, of Sioux City Iowa, for her questions

Is there any purple animal?

There is no such thing as a purple cow ‑ except in toyshops# china stores and poems. But there are a number of real live animals who wear purples patches of purple and tinges of purple. Many birds have purple patches of feathers here and there and in certain lights the peacock's tail has a purple glint. A number of butterflies have purple markings and certain beetles have a purplish sheen on their shiny black wings.

Perhaps there is more purple in the sea than on the land. Tropical fish often have purple tones and there is purple tinge on the glossy side of the mackerel, Down on the floor of the ocean nestles the sea urchin, often dressed entirely in purple. These are but a few of many purple or partly purple animals in the world. If you decide to make a longer list, you will find that they are all lower animals, No fur coated mammal is dressed in purple, which is why there is no real purple cow.