Tapirs
27 Jan, 2025
ADOPT A TAPIRTapirs are large mammals with a pig-like appearance, an elephant-like snout and a tail like a rhinoceros. They are the most primitive large mammals on the planet, having been around for 20 million years – changing very little. They are most closely related to rhinos and horses. The tapir inhabits swamps, grasslands, forests and mountains in temperate regions of the Southern Hemisphere.
There are four recognized species of tapirs: Baird's tapir, Mountain tapir, Malayan tapir and Brazilian tapir. The Malayan tapir is the largest tapir, and the Mountain tapir is the smallest species. All recognized tapirs are endangered.
Baird's tapirs inhabit northern parts of South America and Central America. Baird's tapirs have unique, cream colored markings on their faces.
The Mountain tapir is the smallest tapir species and lives in mountainous regions. Mountain tapirs inhabit the high forests of the Andes mountains in Peru, Colombia and Ecuador.
The Malayan tapir, or Asian tapir, features a distinctive white band across their bodies. Malayan tapirs once inhabited tropical forests across South East Asia, but now have a much smaller range as a result of habitat loss.
The Brazilian tapir, or South American tapir, is an exceptional swimmer inhabiting the Amazon Rainforest.
In 2013 it was announced that a new species of tapir had been discovered in Columbia and Brazil. Named the Kabomani tapir, it was declared the largest mammal to be discovered in 100 years. The discovery proved to be controversial, with some experts stating the Kabomani tapir was actually a young Brazilian tapir.
Tapirs have long, flexible snouts like small elephant trunks. Tapirs use their prehensile noses to grab branches and leaves from trees and bushes. Tapirs have stocky bodies, small eyes and ears, and stubby tails. They are about the size of a donkey. They have 4 toes on their front feet and 3 toes on their back feet. They are able to swim and tend to stay close to water to cool down and remove parasites. Tapirs dive into shallow waters to feed on aquatic plants. They use their snouts as snorkels if they need to hide under water from predators.
Tapirs are herbivores, feeding on twigs, leaves, branches, shoots, buds, fruits and aquatic plants. To locate watering holes and vegetation, they follow paths made by many tapirs that have traveled the same trails. Tapirs are very ecologically important as they disperse seeds through their feces as they move about.
Tapirs are either solitary or social. They graze together in groups called candles, and come together during mating season. Tapirs communicate verbally with high pitched sounds. They also communicate non-verbally with urine droppings. Urine marks communicate if there are other tapirs in the area.
Tapir mating season takes place in April and May. Following a gestation period of over a year, mother tapirs give birth to only one tapir baby. When first born, baby tapirs have yellow and white stripes and spots on reddish-brown fur which provides camouflage. After a few months, they lose the marks. Baby tapirs stay with their mothers until they are 2 to 3 years old.
Being large animals, tapirs have few natural predators. They are preyed upon by jaguars, tigers, cougars, crocodiles and large snakes.
Tapirs live up to 30 years in the wild.
THREATS TO TAPIRS
All four recognized tapir species are endangered due to habitat loss, deforestation, animal agriculture and hunting. Tapirs are hunted for their meat and skin. They increasingly must compete with livestock.
The IUCN's Tapir Specialist Group has not declared the proposed Kabomani tapir species a "unit of conservation importance," and it has not received a categorization on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Bison
26 Jan, 2025
A symbol of the wild west, the American bison is the heaviest land mammal in North America. Also called the American buffalo, the bison has a large head with relatively small, curving horns. It has a shaggy coat of brown hair on its shoulders and legs, while its body has shorter, finer hair. Bison are 5 to 6½ feet long and weigh 900 to 2,200 pounds. Males are larger than females on average.
Historically, bison numbered an estimated 20 million to 30 million. Today, approximately 250,000 remain in the United States. Of those, only 16,000 roam in the wild. Yellowstone National Park has the only population of free-roaming bison.
Bison typically live between 12 to 15 years and inhabit the Great Plains, prairies and forests. Bison eat grasses and sedges, moving continuously as they eat so that they rarely overgraze an area.
Bison live in herds of 20 to 50 animals. The females, or cows, lead family groups. Bulls (males) remain either solitary or in small groups for most of the year. Bison travel as a group and roam great distances in the wild. They can reach speeds of up to 30 mph.
Females produce one calf after a gestation period of nine and a half months. Calves are born in late April to mid-May. The cow protects the young. The offspring may remain with the mother for as long as three years after birth.
THREATS TO BISON
Shooting bison for their hides was a favorite frontier sport in the 19th century. Hunters practically eliminated the bison by 1890. In 1893, the first efforts were made to protect the animals. Today, the bison of Yellowstone National Park face the threat of slaughter when they exit the park and enter the state of Montana.
Along with the bald eagle, the bison perhaps best symbolizes the spirit of American wilderness. While many people are aware that both animals teetered on the brink of extinction in the past due to human encroachment, few realize that wild bison continue to be the victims of a calculated, annual slaughter in the Greater Yellowstone Area.
During the mid to late 1800s, government agents orchestrated one of the most aggressive and wanton animal massacres in history, killing bison indiscriminately in an attempt to subjugate Native Americans. With the addition of market hunters and settlers killing bison for profit and for fun, America's wild bison herds were reduced from an estimated 60 million to perhaps as few as 100. With the establishment of Yellowstone National Park in 1872 and the National Park Service in 1916, the 25 bison remaining in the Park finally were afforded some protection. Initially, management policies allowed for the active manipulation of populations by culling what was perceived as "surplus" animals. But eventually, the management strategy evolved to an approach which permitted natural regulation to occur, for the most part letting nature take its course rather than relying on human intervention.
This was good news for the bison, but sadly their fortune was short lived. Since the mid 1980s, more than 3,000 bison have been massacred under the supervision of government officials bowing to the pressures of the livestock industry and its cohorts. The livestock industry and federal and state livestock agencies contend that bison can transmit the Brucella abortus bacteria to cattle under natural conditions. In reality, there has never been a documented case of this occurring. Despite this fact, they continue to wage a war against Yellowstone bison.
In 1917, officials discovered that some Yellowstone bison were infected with Brucella abortus, the bacteria which causes the disease brucellosis in domestic cattle. In cattle, the disease produces spontaneous abortions, but bison do not appear to be similarly affected. In fact, over the past 80 years in the entire Greater Yellowstone Area, there have been only four documented bison abortions, which may or may not have been caused by the bacteria.
Over the past decade, bison have been emigrating from the Park over its northern and western boundaries into the state of Montana during winter months. Because of several mild winters, and the National Park Service's continued grooming of snowmobile trails which makes it easier for bison to exit the Park, more and more bison have been stepping hoof over Park boundaries.
The U.S. Forest Service issues grazing permits on lands adjoining Yellowstone National Park, generally for the months of June through October. Cattle grazing is even allowed in Grand Teton National Park. The interests of wildlife, and not cattle, should take precedence on public lands. The grazing allotments should be either closed or modified to minimize any contact between bison and cattle. Also, mandatory vaccination of domestic calves against brucellosis within the counties surrounding the Park could further reduce the risk, if any risk exits at all, of infection. Currently, vaccinations are not mandatory in Montana or Wyoming.
In addition to bison, elk can also be infected with the bacteria and can carry the disease. With more than 90,000 elk in the Greater Yellowstone Area, the likelihood of eliminating the bacteria using available technologies is virtually nonexistent. Moreover, if all infected bison were destroyed, exposure to elk would result in reinfection in the remainder.
This is particularly a problem in Wyoming where over 23,000 elk congregate on artificial feedgrounds, creating prime conditions for bacteria transmission. In fact, bison from Grand Teton National Park, just south of Yellowstone, have discovered the "free meals" being provided on the National Elk Refuge each winter in the Jackson Hole area. It is speculated that this herd of bison contracted the bacteria from elk on the feedground.
State officials rarely admit that elk may also carry the disease. Elk, of course, are a prime money maker for Montana and Wyoming state officials, who encourage propagation of elk herds so they can profit from the sale of sport hunting licenses.
Ironically, bison are being targeted allegedly to protect the livestock industry, but the general consensus among scientists is that cattle probably introduced the bacteria into the Yellowstone bison herd shortly before 1917.
Lynx
25 Jan, 2025
Lynx is a member of the cat family. There are four species of lynx within the Lynx genus: Spanish, Canadian, Eurasian lynx and the bobcat.
These medium-sized wild cats have short tails, tufts of black hair on the tips of their ears, large whiskers and a ruff under their necks with black bars resembling a bow tie. Their padded paws are large, allowing them to easily walk on snow.
The bobcat and the Canada lynx are the smallest species; the Eurasian lynx is the largest species; while each species may vary considerably.
Lynx coloring varies according their climate; from gold to beige-white to medium brown. Some have dark brown spots, especially on their legs. All lynx have white chests and bellies. The white fur extends to the insides of their legs. Lynx in the Southwestern United States are dark in color. In colder climates they are lighter in color.
The length of their fur and paw sizes also vary due to their climate. They are short-haired with smaller, less padded paws in the Southwestern United States. In colder northern climates, lynx have thicker, lighter colored fur and larger paws.
The Eurasian lynx lives in central and northern Europe across Asia up to Northern Pakistan and India. In Iran, they live in the Mount Damavand area. In North America, the Canada lynx and bobcat live in the temperate zone. Bobcats are common in the continental United States, southern Canada and northern Mexico. Canada lynx live in boreal forests of Alaska and Canada.
Lynx are usually solitary animals, though they sometimes travel and hunt together. Mating occurs once a year in late winter. A female gives birth to one to four kittens following a gestation period of around 70 days. Young lynx will live with their mother for another winter, or about nine months.
As young adults they live on their own, creating dens under ledges or in crevices. They prefer to occupy high altitude forests with dense grass, shrubs or reeds. They can climb trees and are proficient swimmers.
Their large paws help them to balance and hunt and to travel and hunt in snowy, high altitude habitats. Their acute hearing allows them to hear oncoming prey and predators over long distances. Sharp vision is another important sense used for hunting. Strong jaws and sharp teeth help the lynx to bite down on prey.
Lynx hunt from an ambush, using the element of surprise. These agile climbers spend most of their time in tree branches, waiting for prey to pass beneath them. Lynx eat a wide range of animals including snowshoe hares, fish, foxes, white-tailed deer, small red deer, chamois, squirrels, mice, birds, goats, sheep, voles, grouse, reindeer, roe deer and ptarmigans.
Lynx do not usually take their kill back to their den, except when a mother is providing food for her lynx kittens. They have very large ranges; the largest range of all felids. Male territories are larger and often overlap several female territories.
Lynx are very vocal cats. They meow, purr, hiss, chatter and yowl.
Lynx are nocturnal (active during the night). They are very cautious around people and predators. The main predators of lynx are cougars, coyotes, wolves, and humans.
Lynx can live over 14 years in the wild.
THREATS TO LYNX
In many countries, the hunting of lynx is illegal. Bobcat hunting and trade is common the United States, though they are classified as a state endangered species in Ohio, New Jersey, Indiana, and Iowa - and as a State threatened species in Illinois. Regulated hunting is permitted in Mexico and in Canada.
Lynx populations have been greatly reduced due to hunting and poaching by the fur industry.
The Iberian lynx is almost extinct. They are currently being captive bred to be reintroduced to the wild. Reintroduction projects have also taken place in Europe, and resettlement attempts have been attempted in the United States.
The Spanish lynx is one of the most endangered cats in the world.
The Canadian lynx is becoming very rare in the northern United States due to hunting, habitat destruction and competition with bobcats.
Squid
24 Jan, 2025
Many-tentacled creatures that belong to the order Teuthida, squid are fascinating ocean dwellers, even achieving mythical status in our minds when we think of certain species like the giant squid. This order of molluscs, which is made up of approximately 300 recorded species so far, is similar to octopi and cuttlefish in that they have a distinct head, a symmetrical body structure, a mantle, eight arms, and phenomenal swimming abilities.
Squid are different from their ancestors and many other molluscs, however. In squid, the typical mollusc ‘foot’ structure has evolved. Squid usually have 8 paired smaller arms and two longer tentacles, and highly developed sensory organs. They also have a soft mantle enclosing their organ structure instead of a shell, although they do have a vestigial horny plate (called a gladius) still present that supports the mantle and acts as a site for muscle attachment.
Squid live across an enormous variety of aquatic habitats; an important food source for many other aquatic creatures. They can be found in both freshwater and saltwater environments, deep water and shallow water, and in many different temperature ranges. Most squid species tend to be no larger than about 24 inches long, but the giant squid may be as long as 43 feet in length. That’s almost the size of a school bus.
The squid’s appearance itself is certainly unique. Their skin is covered in chromatophores, which are special cells that allow the squid to change color in order to blend in with its surroundings, much like an octopus does. The mantle cavity contains the squid’s gills, organ systems, and siphon apparatus.
Although squid do have swimming fins, most squid species actually propel themselves mainly by jet propulsion by sucking water into the mantle cavity and pushing it forcefully out through the siphon.
Because they’re the ideal food for a number of predators ranging from sharks, fish, birds and whales, squid have evolved to be quick escape artists. If a squid is threatened, they can quickly expel ink from a small sac near their rectum, temporarily confusing their potential predator and providing cover for a quick escape. Some squid species will even propel themselves right out of the water to escape predators like schools of tuna, gliding through the air for short periods of time.
When they’re not being chased as a potential food source, squid are fairly effective hunters themselves, with fairly complex digestive systems. More intelligent than many of us would expect, some squid even hunt together cooperatively. A squid can propel itself with speedy precision towards its prey, first using a sharp, horny beak to kill prey and tear it into pieces, then pushing food from its muscular stomach into an organ called the caecum for digestion. Food then passes to the liver for nutrients to be absorbed before the squid expels the remaining waste.
Another anatomical feature characteristic to squid is the fact that they have three hearts; two to feed the gills, and a larger, systemic heart to pump blood around the squid’s body. Squid also have the largest eyes in the animal kingdom, relatively speaking. Positioned on either side of their head, a squid’s eyes focus by changing the position of the hard lens inside the eye, much how the lens of a camera moves back and forth.
Reproduction in squid takes place though the fertilization of the female’s eggs by the male. A male squid will often display unique color patterns to attract a female’s attention. Then he mates with her by inserting a copulatory pad (found on the modified end of one of his tentacles) into the female’s mantle and depositing spermatophores (sperm cells) that fertilize the eggs. The female will then place hundreds of eggs into a capsule, anchoring the capsule to sandy ocean bottoms. The time between laying and hatching of the eggs can be vary, since eggs laid in warmer water temperatures tend to hatch more quickly. Some squid egg beds can even cover acres of sand bed.
After the squid larvae hatch, they begin to feed on copepods and other plankton until they’re mature enough to hunt, though many are eaten by predators. Neither squid parent tends to the eggs or young, and it’s been noted that many adult squid species die shortly after reproducing, as an adult squid’s digestive organs diminish as they mature, making more room for reproductive organs. Most species haven’t been found to live longer than one or two years.
THREATS TO SQUID
The fact that squid reproduce rapidly and in large numbers is to their advantage. Squid can quickly replenish their population numbers, which is important to other species that rely on them as a food source.
Although there are no significantly endangered squid species at this point, the largest threat to squid populations worldwide is commercial overfishing by humans. Not only are they often used as bait to catch larger fish, but calamari (fried squid) is a popular dish in many places.
Water pollution, overharvesting and interference with egg capsules can also pose a potential threat to these animals as well.
Clams
23 Jan, 2025
Clams are invertebrates. Invertebrates are animals that do not have a backbone. Clams belong to a group of invertebrates called mollusks. There are over 100,000 kinds of animals or species in the Mollusca phylum or category. Clams are also known as shellfish. The term shellfish includes members of the mollusk phylum and the crustacean subphylum. Crustaceans include lobsters, crabs and shrimp. Crustaceans are really more related to insects than to clams.
Some shellfish or mollusks only have one shell, such as snails. Clams have two shells so they are known as bivalve mollusks. The shells are held together with a hinge. Other bivalves are oysters, cockles, mussels, scallops.
Most bivalves bury themselves in sediment, where they are relatively safe from predation. A sandy sea beach may appear to be devoid of life, but there is often a very large number of bivalves and other invertebrates living beneath the surface of the sand. Others lie on the sea floor or attach themselves to rocks or other hard surfaces. A few bore into wood, clay or stone and live inside these substances. Some bivalves, such as the scallops, can swim.
Clams live in both freshwater and marine habitats, and range in adult size from nearly microscopic to the giant clam, which can weigh 440 lb. Some clams live only one year, while others live to be over 500 years old. Clams lack heads, but most can react to changes in light and some have eyes. All clams have two shells joined near a hinge structure with a flexible ligament, and all are filter feeders. Clams also have kidneys, a heart, a mouth, a stomach, a nervous system and an anus. Many have a siphon.
There are over 12,000 clam species found throughout the world in many different habitats. Most bivalves adopt a sedentary lifestyle, often spending their whole lives in the area in which they first settled as juveniles. The majority of bivalves are infaunal, living under the seabed, buried in sand, silt, mud, gravel or coral fragments. When buried in the sediment, they are protected from the pounding of waves, desiccation and overheating during low tide, and variations in salinity caused by rainwater. They are also out of the reach of many predators. Their general strategy is to extend their siphons to the surface for feeding and respiration during high tide, but to descend to greater depths or keep their shell tightly shut when the tide goes out. They use their muscular foot to dig into the substrate.
Some bivalves, such as mussels, attach themselves to hard surfaces. They are more exposed to attack by predators than the burrowing bivalves. Others, including the true oysters, the jewel boxes, the jingle shells, the thorny oysters and the kitten's paws, cement themselves to stones, rock or larger dead shells.
Bivalves filter large amounts of water to feed and breathe but they are not permanently open. They regularly shut their valves to enter a resting state, even when they are permanently submerged.
The thick shell and rounded shape of bivalves make them awkward for potential predators to tackle. Razor shells can dig themselves into the sand with great speed to escape predation. Scallops and file clams can swim by opening and closing their valves rapidly; water is ejected on either side of the hinge area and they move with the flapping valves in front. Scallops have simple eyes around the margin of the mantle and can clap their valves shut to move sharply, hinge first, to escape from danger. Cockles can use their foot to move across the seabed or leap away from threats. The foot is first extended before being contracted suddenly when it acts like a spring, projecting the animal forwards. In many bivalves that have siphons, they can be retracted back into the safety of the shell. If the siphons inadvertently get attacked by a predator, they snap off. The animal can regenerate them later. File shells can produce a noxious secretion when stressed.
The giant clam is the largest immobile mollusc in the world, reaching up to 6 feet in length. It is not uncommon for these giant molluscs to live for more than 100 years.
Mother-of-pearl, or nacre, is a blend of minerals that are secreted by oysters and other mollusks and deposited inside their shells, coating and protecting them from parasites and foreign objects. Nacre is the same substance that is deposited around an object that becomes lodged in the mollusk to become a pearl. Most bivalves can create pearls. Pearls are formed inside the shell of certain mollusks as a defense mechanism against a potentially threatening irritant such as a parasite inside the shell, or an attack from outside that injures the mantle tissue. The mollusk creates a pearl sac to seal off the irritation. Pearls are commonly viewed by scientists as a by-product of an adaptive immune system-like function.
Clams are important biologically; they work as marine filters as they take in harmful waste nutrients like ammonia and nitrate and expel clean water to the environment. The symbiotic zoothanthellae found within its mantel tissue produces oxygen during photosynthesis.
THREATS TO CLAMS
Clams are threatened by unsustainable collection for seafood restaurants and the ornamental fish trade. Shells are sold as decorative souvenirs. Ocean acidification may also be threatening clams.
Despite all eight species of giant clams in the world being listed under Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) which prohibits unrestricted trade between countries, giant clams are constantly found in seafood stores and prized in the ornamental fish trade. Giant clams are also listed as ‘Vulnerable’ in the IUCN Red List of Endangered Animals. These listings reflect the global concern regarding the possible extinction of giant clams as a whole.
Armadillos
22 Jan, 2025
Armadillos are barrel-shaped animals covered with natural armor. They are the only mammals with shells. Armadillos are native to the Americas, with over 20 species of armadillo inhabiting the American continent. One species of armadillo inhabits the United States, while nine-banded armadillos are the only armadillo species outside of the South American tropics.
Most armadillos prefer wetlands with thick shade and sandy soil that is easy to dig. Some armadillos live in grasslands, woodlands or thorn scrubs. Armadillos burrow underground, in grass, and into hollow logs. Armadillos have a low metabolic rate, meaning they have naturally low body temperatures.
Armadillos vary greatly in size. The smallest armadillo is the tiny, pink fairy armadillo. The giant armadillo is the largest species. Armadillos can be gray, pink, red, yellow or black.
Armadillos have strong legs and long claws for hunting underground insects and digging. They have small eyes and poor vision so rely heavily on their highly developed sense of smell. They also use the wiry hairs along their sides and bellies to feel their way around. Armadillos have pointy snouts and long, sticky tongues, much like anteaters – their close cousins.
The armadillo's protective shell is constructed of plates of bone covered with small, overlapping scales called scutes. One species can curl into a ball when threatened by predators. Their undersides, soft skin and fur are protected when they curl up. Other species of armadillo run, dig, or press their bodies down in the ground to keep from getting flipped over by a predator. Armadillos can outrun most predators. They run amazingly fast. Some armadillos can also jump quite high into the air when startled. The screaming hairy armadillo emits an extremely loud, alarm-like vocalization when frightened.
Armadillos are insectivores, feeding mostly on insects. They use their long, sticky tongues to extract ants and termites from their tunnels. Armadillos may also eat worms, spiders, snakes and frogs. An armadillo's diet varies based on their habitat.
Armadillos are good swimmers. They can fill their stomachs and intestines with air to float. Armadillos can hold their breath for 6 minutes, and even walk along the bottoms of ponds, lakes and rivers.
Most armadillos are solitary animals, coming together only to mate or to keep warm during colder temperatures. They cuddle up with leaves and grass. Armadillos spend much of their time sleeping, up to 16 hours a day. Armadillos usually forage for food in the mornings and evenings. In hotter months, armadillos may be nocturnal, active at night. One species of armadillo hibernates in the winter.
Breeding season for armadillos varies by species. An armadillo can have up to 56 babies during their lifetime – from one to 12 babies at a time. Mother armadillos give birth following an up to five month gestation period. Baby armadillos have soft shells when first born, which harden quickly. They live with their mother for a few months, feeding only on her milk. Father armadillos do not assist with raising the young. Their mother teaches her baby armadillos how to forage. Baby armadillos are independent in six months to one year.
Armadillos are preyed upon by several predators, including bears, wolves, wildcats, birds of prey, dogs and cougars.
Armadillos can live up to 30 years in the wild.
THREATS TO ARMADILLOS
Armadillos are threatened by habitat loss, hunting for their meat and shells, pollution, pesticides, vehicle collisions and animal agriculture. They are often viewed as pests and exterminated. Most armadillo species are quickly decreasing in population. Armadillos are also inhumanely captured to sell in the illegal exotic pet trade. Most captive armadillos die quickly after being caged and transported.
Crabs
21 Jan, 2025
Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" (abdomen), usually entirely hidden under the thorax. They live in all the world's oceans, in fresh water, and on land. They are generally covered with a thick exoskeleton and have a single pair of claws. Many other animals with similar names – such as hermit crabs, king crabs, porcelain crabs, horseshoe crabs and crab lice – are not true crabs.
Crabs vary in size from the pea crab, a few millimeters wide, to the Japanese spider crab, with a leg span of up to 13 feet. Males often have larger claws. In most male crabs, the abdomen is narrow and triangular in form, while females have a broader, rounded abdomen. This is due to the fact that female crabs brood fertilized eggs on their legs.
Crabs attract a mate through chemical (pheromones), visual, acoustic or vibratory means. Pheromones are used by most fully aquatic crabs, while terrestrial and semi-terrestrial crabs often use visual signals, such as fiddler crab males waving their large claw to attract females. Many crabs have internal fertilization and mate belly-to-belly. For aquatic species, mating usually takes place just after the female has moulted and is still soft. Females can store the sperm for a long time before using it to fertilize their eggs. When fertilization has taken place, the eggs are released onto the female's abdomen, below the tail flap, secured with a sticky material. In this location they are protected during embryonic development. Females carrying eggs are called "berried" since the eggs resemble round berries.
When development is complete, the female releases the newly hatched larvae into the water, where they are part of the plankton. The release is often timed with the tides. The free-swimming tiny zoea larvae can float and take advantage of water currents.
Each species has a particular number of stages, separated by moults, before they change into a megalopa stage, which resembles an adult crab, except for having the abdomen (tail) sticking out behind. After one more moult, the crab is a juvenile, living on the bottom rather than floating in the water. This last moult must take place in a habitat that is suitable for the juvenile to survive.
Most species of terrestrial crabs must migrate down to the ocean to release their larvae; in some cases this entails very extensive migrations. After living for a short time as larvae in the ocean, the juveniles must do this migration in reverse.
Once crabs have become juveniles they still have to keep moulting many more times to become adults. They are covered with a hard shell, which would otherwise prevent growth. The moult cycle is coordinated by hormones. When preparing for moult, the old shell is softened and partly eroded away, while the beginnings of a new shell form under it. At the time of moulting, the crab takes in a lot of water to expand and crack open the old shell. The crab must then extract itself from the old shell. This is a difficult process that takes many hours, and if a crab gets stuck it will die. After freeing itself from the old shell the crab is extremely soft and hides until its new shell has hardened. While the new shell is still soft, the crab can expand it to make room for future growth.
Crabs typically walk sideways. However, some crabs walk forwards or backwards. Some crabs are also capable of swimming.
Crabs are active, complex animals. They can communicate by drumming or waving their pincers. Crabs tend to be aggressive towards one another and males often fight to gain access to females. On rocky seashores, where nearly all caves and crevices are occupied, crabs may also fight over hiding holes. Fiddler crabs dig burrows in sand or mud, which they use for resting, hiding, mating and to defend against intruders.
Crabs are omnivores, feeding primarily on algae, and taking any other food, including molluscs, worms, other crustaceans, fungi, bacteria and detritus, depending on their availability and the crab species. For many crabs, a mixed diet of plant and animal matter results in the fastest growth and greatest fitness. However, some species are more specialized in their diets. Some eat plankton, some eat primarily shellfish like clams, and some even catch fish.
Crabs are known to work together to provide food and protection for their family, and during mating season to find a comfortable spot for the female to release her eggs. They will help other crabs fight off intruders. Neighboring crabs never fight with each other.
Many mother crabs provide loving care for their babies. Mothers continue to feed and tend to their babies for several months after they are born. They work hard to keep their homes clean and comfortable for their young.
Crabs are intelligent animals, capable of learning from their mistakes and retaining that information so they don’t make the same mistakes again. They adapt to changing cues in their environment.
THREATS TO CRABS
Crabs are threatened with declining habitats, pollution, overfishing and the declining abundance of coral reefs. Crabs make up 20% of all marine crustaceans caught, farmed, and consumed worldwide, amounting to 1½ million tons annually. In some species, crab meat is harvested by manually twisting and pulling off one or both claws and returning the live crab to the water in the belief the crab will survive and regenerate the claws thereby making it a sustainable industry. Crabs are often inhumanely boiled alive. Crustaceans are able to feel and remember pain. They fight so hard against a clearly painful death that their claws often break off in their struggle to escape. Some crabs used for food are electrocuted, some are chopped up, and others are microwaved—all while they are still conscious.
Hyenas
20 Jan, 2025
Hyena are dog-like mammals native to parts of Asia and Africa. Once ranging across Africa, Asia and Europe, hyenas are mostly limited to the African Savannah today, with the exception of the striped hyena inhabiting the jungles of India and western Asia. Hyenas live in savannas, grasslands, forests and sub-deserts. They are one of the most abundant large carnivores in Africa.
There are four known species of hyena: the striped hyena, the spotted hyena, the brown hyena and the aardwolf. All four hyena species have a bear-like stance. Their front legs are longer than their back legs. The brown hyena, the striped hyena and the aardwolf have striped manes on top of their neck that stand erect when the hyena is frightened. The spotted hyena's mane is much shorter than the other hyena species and stands erect most of the time.
Male and female hyenas appear very similar and have similar genitals, but they are not hermaphrodites (animals that are both male and female). Only female hyenas give birth.
The largest hyena is the spotted hyena. The smallest hyena is the aardwolf.
Most hyenas are carnivorous, often eating another animal's kill rather than catching their own prey. Hyenas also hunt in packs. Hyenas will fight with each other over food sources. Hyenas will hide extra food in watering holes. They eat every part of the animal, including hooves and bones. Aardwolves are insectivores, feeding only on termites.
Hyenas are incredibly intelligent animals. They are nocturnal, active at night.
Hyenas communicate with various postures, sounds and signals. They are well known for their cackling laugh-like screams. It is believed hyenas use this laughter to alert other hyenas of food sources. Hyenas can hear this call up to three miles away. The pitch and tone of a hyena’s laugh can indicate its social status and age.
The hyena has exceptionally strong jaws in relation to its body size. The female spotted hyena is more dominant and larger than the male hyena. Female spotted hyenas always rank higher than males in the clan. Brown hyenas, striped hyenas and aardwolves have male-dominated clans.
Most hyenas form packs, communities of up to 80 members. The hyena den is the center of their pack territory. Hyena packs hunt for food as a group. Aardwolves, however, are solitary hyenas and usually only gather during the mating season.
Mothers in a clan share the responsibility of nursing each others' babies. Clan members bring food to the den for the cubs. Gestation lasts for 90 to 110 days, with 2 to 4 cubs being born. The mother raises her babies in a natal den, a special place reserved only for mothers and babies. Cubs battle to establish dominance and to win over the best feeding positions because female hyenas have only two nipples. Fights between cubs can sometimes be fatal. Weaker and smaller cubs can die of starvation. Mother hyenas milk their cubs for 12 to 18 months. Cubs begin to also eat meat in about 5 months.
Hyenas have no natural predators. They live up to 21 years in the wild.
THREATS TO HYENAS
Hyenas are threatened by habit loss caused by animal agriculture. They are often killed by ranchers. Populations of hyenas are declining due to poaching, loss of habitat and food sources and persecution by humans. Hyenas have also been hunted for traditional medicine ingredients. The brown hyena is in danger of extinction. The striped hyena is threatened.
Birds
24 Dec, 2024
ADOPT A BIRDBirds are warm-blooded, covered in feathers and lay eggs. All birds have wings, a beak and stand on two legs. Most birds fly, but some cannot. Some species, particularly penguins and members of the Anatidae family, are adapted to swim. Some birds eat only seeds and berries. Some also eat insects. Birds of prey eat small animals. Male birds are usually more brightly colored than females, while females have better camouflage which helps to protect their nests.
Birds are incredibly intelligent animals. They make and use tools and culturally transmit knowledge across generations. They are social, communicating with visual signals, calls and songs, and participate in such social behaviors such as cooperative breeding and hunting, flocking and mobbing of predators. The vast majority of bird species are monogamous, for one breeding season or for years. Eggs are usually laid in a nest and incubated by the parents. Most birds have an extended period of parental care after hatching. In some species, both parents care for the babies, or close relatives will help with the raising of the young.
Bird Extinction Crisis
Birds are present in almost all habitats on earth and are usually the most familiar and visible wildlife to people all over the world. Because of this, they may act as a significant indicator for monitoring how the biosphere changes. Diminishing bird populations in the majority of habitats are the sad confirmation that major changes are taking place on Earth because of our activities. More than 12% of currently known species of birds are at the threshold of extinction. The biggest impact on bird population has been caused by degradation and loss of habitat, with collectors’ activities and invasive species following closely.
FASCINATING BIRD FACTS
THE BIGGEST
The tallest bird is the ostrich at around 9 feet tall. The ostrich is also the heaviest bird, at about 345 pounds. The heaviest flying bird is the mute swan at about 40 pounds. The largest wingspan of all birds belongs to the wandering albatross at 11 feet 10 inches.
THE SMALLEST
The smallest bird is the bee hummingbird measuring in at only 2.2 inches from beak to tail.
THE FASTEST
The fastest bird is the spine-tailed swift, traveling at speeds of over 106 mph.
THE LONGEST LIVED
The longest living bird is thought to be the sulfur-crested cockatoo, able to live well into their 80's.
SMARTER THAN KIDS
Crows’ intelligence rivals human children. They use tools to get food, have exceptional memories and anticipate future events to help them solve problems. They have learned to use bread crumbs as fish bait. They can count, distinguish complex shapes and perform observational learning tasks. Crows are extremely social creatures. They have been observed creating knives from leaves and stalks of grass and using advanced plucking, smoothing and bending to fashion twigs and grass into a variety of substances. Caledonian crows remember specific people, cars and urban situations. They also develop grudges against specific people and cars that last for years.
WINGED WONDERS
Ravens push rocks on people to keep them from their nests, steal fish by pulling a fishermen’s line out of water and play dead beside an animal carcass to scare other ravens away from the food. Ravens are known to steal food from other birds and mammals. They can act in pairs: one individual captures an animal's attention, while the other steals its food. They pretend to hide food in one place while really hiding it somewhere else to fool other animals. Ravens can learn to talk better than many parrots and mimic other noises. They imitate wolves or foxes to attract them to carcasses that the raven cannot break open. They roll around in anthills so the ants swarm on them, or they chew the ants up to rub their guts on their feathers as an insecticide and fungicide or to soothe molting skin. Ravens point with their beaks to indicate an object to another bird and hold up objects to get the attention of other birds. They will console other birds and remember friends and family for years. They live complex social lives and express happiness, tenderness, surprise, emotion and rage through their own language. Ravens are very playful and play with other ravens, other animal species and humans. They mate for life and live in pairs. When children reach adolescence, they join gangs until they mate and pair off.
BIRDS PLAY
Many birds have been known to play. Ravens and crows love to play and have been observed sliding down snow banks on their backs, cavorting in updrafts and sliding repeatedly down sloping church windows.
BIRDS GRIEVE
Jay birds have been observed grieving, including an entire group of birds sitting for 48 hours near a dead brethren.
HOLDING GRUDGES
Swans are highly intelligent and social animals. They remember who have been kind to them, and who have not. They usually only show aggression to those who have upset them, and will remember them. They have sharp vision and hearing and use a remarkable assortment of sounds to convey a broad range of emotions. Swans usually mate for life, with occasional “divorces” occurring. Male swans will occasionally baby sit an egg so the expecting mother can take a break.
AMAZING MEMORIES
Pigeons are actually domesticated rock doves who were set free. They are marvelous parents: the father builds the nest, and both parents take turns incubating the eggs and even making milk in their crops for the young. Pigeons remember dozen of routes to find their way to familiar places, and can recognize their faces in mirrors. They can remember hundreds of photographs and images, are able to differentiate between photographs, and even differentiate between different human beings in a photograph. They have been known to be able to distinguish between Van Gogh and Chagall paintings. They can count, order items in ascending order and understand math rules. They have an amazing ability to remember people and places throughout the course of their life. Pigeon can recognize all 26 letters of the English language, be taught complex actions and response sequences, and can make responses in different sequences.
BIRDS HAVE NAMES
It has been discovered that birds name their offspring. They use smell memories to travel thousands of miles. They show advanced planning and art. They have been proven to perform arithmetic, invent words and express love through language.
MASTERS OF LANGUAGE
Parrots not only mimic the words of humans, they also understand the meanings of the words. Studies show that they remember 90% of what they are told, including full sentences and even parts of songs. They are capable of performing math, identifying colors and communicating to humans what they want. Parrots cannot bear to be alone. While most mate for life, all live in large social groups, sometimes with multiple species of birds.
GOOD MOMS
Ostrich mothers lay their eggs in a communal nest, allowing the eggs and young to all be cared for by one bonded pair; up to 380 chicks have been seen being escorted by loving parents.
BIRD BRAINS
Finches learn by listening to others and follow rules of syntax. Bengal finches use strict rules of syntax. If a zebra finch is sick, it will fake being healthy in front of other zebra finches, especially if there’s a chance to mate.
BACKYARD BIRDING
Watching the many species of birds that inhabit your ecosystem is a fun and fascinating pastime the whole family can enjoy together. Winter is the best time to feed birds as they need the food more than at any other time of year and you will typically see a greater number and variety of birds at bird feeders. Many interesting birds from the north fly south in winter, and in spring many species return home from lands in the south, providing a great variety of species to see.
You don’t need to spend money on food or feeders to attract birds to your yard. If you can leave a small area of your yard un-mowed, you can attract a lot of birds. They eat the seeds from the grasses and weeds and use the area for cover as well.
Employing a feeder grants the ability for close study of birds. While all feeders draw birds, those that keep the bird feed dry and free of mold are best. Moldy seeds are bad for bird health. Place feeders either near a window or fairly far away to help prevent birds from colliding with windows when startled. The most common feeder is a hopper or house feeder, usually made of windows of clear plastic that feed seed to a perching surface. These feeders attract cardinals, nuthatches, chickadees, grosbeaks, buntings and titmice. One without a lot of perching surface minimizes use by house sparrows or starlings. The most important thing is to keep feeders clean by washing with bleach water every few weeks. Washing with bleach water prevents the spread of disease.
Although slightly more expensive, bird food with black oil sunflower seeds attract a wide variety of desirable birds. A suet feeder attracts woodpeckers, nuthatches, chickadees and bluejays. Some birders push suet or peanut butter into crevices in bark or in the cracks of old stumps to attract birds. Witnessing a northern flicker or red-bellied woodpecker feeding at close range sears a delightful memory into the mind of a youngster. Woodpeckers love dead branches on trees. Leave a dead branch on a tree to attract woodpeckers if it is safe to do so.
It is important to provide water for birds in winter too. Place the water in a spot in the yard that receives sun as its rays will melt some water for birds on even the coldest days.
A good guide book is essential for identifying birds. Looking up unfamiliar birds and learning about their distinguishing characteristics is part of the fun of birding. Modestly priced binoculars now have coated lenses and other features that make them acceptable choices for bird watching. Don’t get zoom binoculars for birding. You tend to lose clarity at high magnification. A wide angle pair lets in more light and makes it easier to find birds.
Bird watching is a good way to introduce kids into the outdoors and spark awareness of our natural world. Backyard birding is a family-friendly way to enjoy wildlife viewing. Plus, it is just plain fun.
Orcas
23 Dec, 2024
Majestic sea dwellers, superb hunters and socially complex beings, orcas (also known as killer whales or blackfish) are the largest members of the oceanic family Delphinidae, which includes dolphins, pilot whales, melon-headed whales and false killer whales. They’re found in every ocean in the world and most seas as well, including the Arctic and Antarctic regions and the warmer seas of the Mediterranean and Arabian, but have been counted in highest densities in the North Atlantic and Pacific oceans, in the Gulf of Alaska and Southern Ocean. Although they can have an enormous range, they typically tend to prefer to stay closer to coastal areas versus swimming in deeper ocean waters.
Their striking coloration is what makes the orca most recognizable; they have a black back with a white chest and sides, and a distinctive white area above and behind their eye. Large, paddle-like pectoral fins assist in fine manoeuvring , while sharp teeth and strong jaws allow them to firmly hang on to thrashing prey. With a robust skeletal frame, an orca’s body is much heavier and larger than a dolphin’s, and they have an erect dorsal fin that can stand as tall as 2 meters in height for some males, over 6 feet. Males are generally larger, and can range from 7 to 9 meters long (20 to 30 feet) and may weigh as much as 6 tons. Female orcas are smaller in size, around 6 to 8 meters (20 to 26 feet) in length and weighing between 3 and 4 tons, with a shorter, more triangular dorsal fin. Their size and strength make them capable of swimming at some of the fastest speeds among all marine mammals; some whales can actually reach swimming speeds of over 55 km/hour.
Unlike some other oceanic residents, orcas have excellent eyesight both above and below water, as well as well developed senses of hearing and touch. In addition, they use echolocation (a series of audible clicks) to locate their prey and navigate around obstacles in the water. Orcas are also adaptable to a variety of water temperatures. Although they have an average body temperature between 36 to 38 °C (97 to 100 °F), they also have a thick layer of blubber that acts as insulation between them and the elements. Orcas swimming close to the surface have a faster average heartbeat than when submerged – 60 beats per minute versus 20 beats per minute. Their lifespan in the wild depends on a number of factors, but females tend to live an average of 50 years, and males around 29 years.
Interestingly, there are three to five different subgroups (perhaps even subspecies) of orcas themselves, with variances in appearance, prey preference and hunting behavior that make each subgroup unique. Resident orca populations tend to have rounded dorsal fin tips ending in a sharp corner, eat mainly fish and squid, live in strongly bonded family groups (pods), and visit the same areas on a consistent basis. Transient orcas, on the other hand, are far more migratory and travel in smaller groups. They tend to have less complex dialects of vocalizations, too. In appearance, they have a distinctive solid grey area around their dorsal fins, which are more triangular and pointed than resident orcas’. Finally, offshore orca populations travel further from shore, feeding mainly on schooling fish, but also hunting other mammals and sharks. They tend to gather in much larger groups ranging from 20 to 75 in number, and they tend to be smaller in size than both resident and transient orca populations. The lifestyle of these different populations seems to be closely linked with their diet preference – for example, fish-eating whales in northern waters have close social structures, while orcas in Argentina that prefer to eat mammals behave more like transient whales.
While orcas may appear to look similar, their prey preference can be tremendously varied, though often specific to a certain population. Fish, squid, mammals, sea birds, sea turtles, rays, and even larger whales and sharks may be on the orca prey menu. Unfortunately for their chosen food, they’re also skilled and cooperative hunters that travel in packs to capture their prey. Different types of orcas also use different and specialized hunting techniques; Norwegian killer whales use a method called carousel feeding, for example, where they herd herring into a ball with nets of bubbles, then slap the fish with their tails to stun or kill them. Whale and shark hunting orcas will stalk their prey as a group, separating them and forcing them into immobility (in the case of sharks) or not allowing them to surface, causing them to drown. Finally, mammal-feeding orcas (who feed on seals, penguins, sea lions and sea otters) disable their prey by throwing it, slapping it with their tails, ramming it or breaching and landing on it.
More than their unique hunting techniques, however, the rich and complex social structure of orcas is what fascinates most scientists and enthusiasts. In resident orca populations, pods typically consist of one to four related matriarchs and their descendants. Offspring live with their mothers for their entire lives, and as many as four generations may migrate and hunt together, using the same dialect to communicate with each other. Several pods may come together to form clans, which are groups that share similar dialects (languages) of vocalizations. Transient orca societies tend to be smaller, however; usually made up of a single female and one or two of her offspring, though males tend to stay with their mothers for a longer period of time.
Orcas usually only leave their societal groups for short periods of time, either to hunt, or to mate. Female orcas reach sexual maturity at around age 10, and gestation of orca calves lasts anywhere from 15 to 18 months long, with a single offspring birthed around once every five years for a fertile female. The first seven or eight months are critical for calves; 37% to 50% of all orca calves die before they reach their first birthday. Females begin weaning their calves at around 12 months, and most calves are completely weaned by age two. All the members in a pod (both male and female) help to care for the young orcas, playing with them, teaching them hunting skills, and using particular family calls to help familiarize new calves with the pod dialect. The females tend to reach the end of their breeding years around age 40, but many go through menopause and continue to thrive for decades after they’re no longer fertile.
THREATS TO ORCAS
Recent studies have found that orcas are among the most contaminated marine mammals in the world. Pollution and chemical contamination make orcas more susceptible to disease and likely cause reproductive difficulties.
Human activity is the largest threat to populations of orcas, although the IUCN has lately recognized that they need more data on individual orca types, as they may actually be separate (and potentially endangered) species. Human fishing practices have resulted in the reduction of available prey for many orca populations, while pollution, oil spills, and noisy habitat disturbances (like military sonar use, shipping and drilling) are significant concerns for orcas all over the world. The southern resident community, made up of three pods that live in the Georgia and Haro Straits and Puget Sound, has been listed as an endangered population under the EDA in the last decade, while The Alaska and Prince William Sound resident orca pods were so devastated by the Exxon Valdez spill that the entire population in that region is expected to eventually die out.
Hundreds of orcas, dolphins and other members of the dolphin family are held in captivity in the United States. While the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), passed in 1972, makes it more difficult to capture marine mammals from the wild, aquariums can still apply for permits or import animals caught in other countries. Whether wild caught or captive born, orcas and dolphins in captivity are sentenced to a life of confinement deprived of normal social and environmental interaction. Captured orcas and dolphins are confined to tanks as small as 24 feet by 24 feet wide and 6 feet deep. In tanks, the reverberations from their own sonar bouncing off walls drives some orcas and dolphins insane. Tanks are kept clean with chlorine, copper sulfate, and other harsh chemicals that irritate animals' eyes, causing many to swim with their eyes closed. Captured dolphins and orcas are often forced to learn tricks through food deprivation. Marine parks may withhold up to 60 percent of food before shows so that the animals will be "sharp" for performances. The stress of captivity is so great that some commit suicide.
Ladybugs
22 Dec, 2024,
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The Coccinellidae are a family of small beetles, commonly known as ladybugs in North America and ladybirds in Britain, Ireland, the Commonwealth and some parts of the southern United States. Entomologists in the United States prefer the names ladybird beetles or lady beetles, as these insects are not true bugs.
Coccinellids are found worldwide, with over 5,000 known species. They are often yellow, orange, or scarlet with small black spots on their wing covers, with black legs, heads and antennae. Color patterns vary greatly, however. Depending on the species, they can have spots, stripes, or no markings at all. Many species are mostly, or entirely, black, dark gray, gray, or brown. Seven-spotted coccinellids are red or orange with three spots on each side and one in the middle; they have a black head with white patches on each side. Most coccinellids have oval, dome-shaped bodies with six short legs.
The four most common types of ladybugs are:
The round-shaped ladybugs, Seven-spotted ladybug, originally from Europe. They are round and have a dome-shape, and are bright red with seven spots of black on the back of their bright red wings.
The oval-shaped ladybug, Convergent ladybug, which is orange with different spot patterns of black. They are common in the pacific coastal states.
The Multicolored Asian ladybeetle, a larger ladybug with five black spots and curved lines in the shape of the letter M. These ladybugs are originally from Asia and are now plentiful in the United States.
The C-Mac ladybug, an oblong pink and black spotted ladybug.
Ladybugs are generally considered useful insects, because many species feed on aphids or scale insects which are pests in gardens, agricultural fields, orchards and similar places. Within the colonies of such plant-eating pests, they will lay hundreds of eggs. When these hatch the larvae will commence feeding immediately. However, some species do have unwelcome effects; among these the most prominent are the subfamily Epilachninae, which are plant eaters. Usually, Epilachninae are only mild agricultural pests, eating the leaves of grain, potatoes, beans, and various other crops. But their numbers can increase explosively in years when their natural enemies, such as parasitoid wasps that attack their eggs, are few. In such situations, they can do major crop damage. They occur in practically all the major crop-producing regions of temperate and tropical countries.
Coccinellids are best known as predators of aphids and scale insects, but the range of prey species that various ladybugs attack is much wider. Some specialize in mites, some attack caterpillars and other beetle larvae. Others feed on various insects or their eggs. Larvae and eggs of ladybirds, either their own or of other species, can also be important food resources when alternative prey are scarce. Certain species of coccinellids are thought to lay extra infertile eggs with the fertile eggs, apparently to provide a backup food source for the larvae when they hatch. The ratio of infertile to fertile eggs increases with scarcity of food at the time of egg laying. Ladybugs are also now known to be far more omnivorous than previously thought. Their diets often include honeydew, pollen, plant sap, nectar, and various fungi. Some species are strictly herbivores.
The main predators of ladybugs are usually birds, but they are also the prey of frogs, wasps, spiders, and dragonflies. The bright colors of many ladybugs discourage some potential predators from making a meal of them. Their coloring is a reminder to any animals that have tried to eat their kind before that they taste awful. The blood of a ladybug is yellow and has a very strong smell that also acts as a repellent to predators. Ladybugs also play dead until predators pass.
Ladybugs in temperate regions enter diapause (a period of suspended development) during the winter, so they often are among the first insects to appear in the spring. Some species gather into groups and move to higher elevations, such as a mountain, to enter diapause. Most coccinellids overwinter as adults, aggregating on the south sides of large objects such as trees or houses during the winter months, dispersing in response to increasing day length in the spring.
Ladybugs go through a complete metamorphosis with egg, larval, pupal, and adult stages. Ladybug eggs look like small clusters of orange footballs. Female ladybugs can lay more than 2,000 eggs in one year. The eggs hatch in only a few days. Eggs are usually laid on leaves near an area where the larvae have easy access to food sources.
Baby ladybugs, larvae, look nothing like adults. They are long in shape and are generally one color, resembling small alligators. They are fast moving and they have big appetites. The larvae will eat aphids and other bugs for about 2 to 3 weeks. After they have grown to full size, they attach themselves to a plant leaf or a stem by their tail and begin a metamorphosis. Their skin splits down its back and exposes the pupa, which is about the same size and color as adults but with a protective layer until they develop wings. They pupate and turn into an adult ladybug within 7 to 10 days.
Ladybugs usually do most of their flying in the warmest part of the afternoon. They beat their wings 85 times per second. Their wings are made from chitlin, the same material human fingernails are made from.
As ladybugs grow older, their spots fade. Most ladybugs live for about a year, but some species can live up to three years. In a year they eat over 5,000 bugs, playing a vital role in the management of pests.
THREATS TO LADYBUGS
Due to habitat loss and changes in climate, ladybugs are threatened with extinction. Ladybugs are particularly sensitive to temperature changes, and will die from dehydration if they become overheated. Like most animals, the primary threat to ladybugs is the destruction of their habitat. Human development has taken an alarming toll on the environment. Impact from land use practices such as agricultural conversion, deforestation, and urban sprawl continue to degrade and fragment remaining pockets of habitat and accelerate biodiversity loss. Pesticides and other forms of pollution are also of serious concern, as well as genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
Barracudas
21 Dec, 2024
ADOPT A BARRACUDABarracudas are a large species of fish that live in the warmer, coastal regions of the planet's oceans. They are known for their aggressive and dominant predator behavior. There are over 20 species of barracuda in the world.
While barracudas are widely spread across the seas, they are more commonly found in tropical areas where there is an abundance of food sources. Although barracudas also live in the deep ocean, they prefer the coastal areas along continental shelves and near coral reefs. Barracudas are nocturnal animals, active during the night.
All species of barracuda have an elongated shape and a pointed head with powerful jaws housing sharp, fang-like teeth. Different species of barracudas vary in sizes and colors. Barracudas can grow to be very large. The upper part of a barracuda body is covered with scales that can be black, gray, brown or blue. A barracuda's belly is always white. Irregular dark spots are located on both sides of the barracuda's body.
Barracudas are carnivores. The barracuda feeds mainly on smaller species of fish, crustaceans, invertebrates and squid. They are opportunistic predators, feeding on other animals in the surrounding area. They use a surprise tactic to capture their prey, ambushing with tremendous power. They can swim very quickly in short bursts to overtake their prey.
Barracudas prefer a solitary life, but sometimes gather in groups called schools. Schools provide safety and cooperative hunting opportunities.
Barracudas have few natural predators. Sharks and killer whales prey on barracudas.
Mother barracudas spawn during the spring. The female barracuda releases her eggs into the ocean which are then fertilized externally by the male barracuda. Baby barracudas have little interaction with their parents.
Barracudas can live over 15 years in the wild.
THREATS TO BARRACUDAS
The biggest threats to barracudas are recreational fishing and the barracuda meat trade.
All ocean animals are threatened by pollution, the fishing industry and changes in climate. Global fish populations are collapsing, affecting all marine life. Plastics and toxic waste are destroying aquatic ecosystems. Almost half of all ocean pollution is from irresponsible human activities that take place on land, including animal agriculture, sewage, chemical spills, industrial runoff and garbage dumping.
Marine habitats are being destroyed by coastal pollution. The clearing of mangrove forests and scraping of underwater mountain ranges through deep-sea trawling are also having detrimental affects on marine ecosystems.
Moose
20 Dec, 2024
ADOPT A MOOSEMoose, the largest member of the deer family, are found in the northern parts of Eurasia and North America. The Eurasian species, A. alces, is known in Europe as the elk, a name which in North America is applied to another large deer, the wapiti. The Eurasian and the American moose are quite similar, but the American moose is somewhat larger and is considered by some to be a separate species, A. americana. It inhabits the coniferous forests of Canada and the northern United States. The Eurasian moose is found from Scandinavia to E Siberia.
Moose have a heavy brown body with humped shoulders, and long, lighter-colored legs; the front pair longer than the hind legs. They have a thick, overhanging, almost trunk like muzzle and a short neck. A flap of skin covered with long hair, the bell, hangs from their throats. Males have broad, extremely flattened antlers, with a spread of up to 6 feet. The largest variety is the Alaska moose; the adult male weighs from 1,000 to 1,800 pounds and stands as much as 71⁄2 feet high at the shoulder.
Browsers rather than grazers, moose eat leaves, twigs, buds, and the bark of some woody plants, as well as lichens, aquatic plants, and some of the taller herbaceous land plants. Moose live in small groups during the summer, sometimes forming large herds in the winter. They are polygamous, the males becoming aggressive during the mating season. They are strong swimmers, reportedly crossing lakes many miles wide.
Although moose are generally timid, the males become very bold during the autumn breeding season; it is not uncommon for them to charge at moving trains. The females utter a loud call, similar to the lowing of cattle. During breeding (the rut), males will compete for females by fighting with their antlers and hoofs and by fierce clashing of antlers. As well as bellowing, the female moose emits a strong, odoriferous pheromone in order to attract a mate.
Females may begin to breed at 2, but more usually, 3 years of age. The mother gives birth to one, or occasionally two, calves in spring. The gestation period for a moose is about 216 to 240 days. Moose calves grow very quickly, nourished by their mother's milk, which is very high in fat and other nutrients. Females can be extremely protective of their young.
In North America, during the winter, moose may form loose aggregations in fairly dense conifer forests, which they keep open by trampling the snow. In the spring, moose can often be seen in drainage ditches at the side of roads, taking advantage of road salt which has run off the road. These minerals replace electrolytes missing from their winter diet.
The lifespan of a moose in the wild is roughly 15 to 25 years.
THREATS TO MOOSE
In North America, changes in land use patterns, mainly the clearing of northern forests for settlement and agriculture, have led to the range of the white tailed deer expanding northward. Where their ranges overlap, moose may become infected by parasites carried by the deer such as brain worm, Parelaphostrongylus tenuis and winter ticks, Dermacentor albipictus, which, though fairly harmless to deer, can be fatal to moose.
Ticks are threatening moose populations. Thousands of ticks can infest a single moose, causing anemia and death. In an attempt to rid themselves of ticks, moose rub off patches of their fur, leaving them more vulnerable to cold winter temperatures. Changes in climate may also threaten moose.
Protection in national parks and reserves in Canada and the United States has saved the moose from extermination. However, hunting and habitat degradation remain major threats to moose. Moose once lived throughout most of the United States and Canada, but the species population dwindled from hunting and land development. Moose are known to visit residential areas in search of food, and motorists occasionally collide with them. Hundreds of moose calves are orphaned every year due to the death of their mothers.
Government mismanagement is another threat to moose. Wildlife management agencies, rather than working to preserve ecosystems, often manage wildlife purely for human recreation. Moose are viewed as a "resource" to be conserved simply for recreational purposes. Left unaltered, the delicate balance of ecosystems is maintained by nature with predators reducing the sickest and weakest individuals.
Hammerhead Sharks
19 Dec, 2024
Hammerhead sharks, which belong to the family Sphyrnidae, are some of the most unique looking creatures in the ocean. There are ten distinct species of these sharks, which most people recognize by their distinctive head shape; a flattened, extended structure that’s called a cephalofoil. (A related and slightly different hammerhead species, the winghead shark, is classified under the family name Eusphyra instead.)
Hammerhead sharks tend to prefer warm water living, so they’re usually found in ocean habitats that are close to coastlines and continental shelves – they’ve been found in the Gulf of Mexico and off the Californian coast, as well as in Colombian, Costa Rican, Hawaiian, Australian, and southern and eastern African coastal waters. Depending on the year and weather phenomena such as El Niño conditions, some hammerheads may migrate seasonally, swimming towards warmer waters closer to the equator in the winter and northward towards the poles in the summer.
These large sharks can grow to quite a significant size, depending on their age and sex. The largest species, the great hammerhead, can range from 3 feet to over 19 feet in length, and may weigh from 6.6 to as much as 1,278 pounds. Other species of hammerheads are usually much smaller, however, and all species of hammerheads have an average lifespan of 25 to 35 years.
They’re light in color with a tall, straight dorsal fin, and their slight green skin tint and white underbelly allows them to blend well into the ocean and sneak up on prey below.
A hammerhead’s head shape, of course, is the most interesting part of their anatomy; their heads have flat projections that extend out on either side, with their eyes actually placed on either side of the hammer shape at the outer edges allowing them a 360 degree view of what’s above and below them at all times.
All sharks have special sensory pores that detect the tiny electrical fields made by other animals (called ampullae of Lorenzini), but on a hammerhead shark, these pores are spread out over a wider area giving them a larger advantage when sweeping for their next meal to eat.
Typically, hammerheads have a smaller mouth than other sharks, hunting mainly close to the bottom of the ocean. Some species (like the scalloped and smooth hammerhead) travel in schools with other hammerheads during the day, though they separate themselves to hunt alone at night.
Hammerheads are efficient and carnivorous ocean hunters that eat a range of different prey, including fish, squid, octopus, crustaceans, and sometimes other sharks. Their favorite food, however, is stingrays, which they stalk and pin down with their mallet-shaped head. Great hammerhead sharks are more likely to occasionally eat other hammerheads, including their own young on occasion.
Reproduction can also be a rather dangerous business for hammerhead females. Usually happening only once a year, a female shark is persuaded to mate with a male hammerhead by violent episodes of biting until she agrees to the coupling. After sperm is transferred to the female, eggs are fertilized inside her and embryos begin to develop, at first being nourished only by a yolk sac. After the yolk is gone, however, the sac then transforms into a structure that resembles a mammal’s placenta, allowing the young sharks to be sustained by the mother’s body until they’re developed enough to be born. At this point, the mother can give birth to a litter of 12 to 15 live shark pups (great hammerheads can birth up to 40 pups), which tend to be born in the spring or summer months, and stay together for protection and safety as they swim for warmer, shallower waters. Neither of the shark parents provides any further care to the pups after birth.
As for their threat to people, most hammerheads are harmless, and only three hammerhead species have been noted as being dangerous at all. Scalloped, great, and smooth hammerheads have been known to attack humans, but there are no listed deaths on record for a hammerhead attack against a person.
THREATS TO HAMMERHEADS
Unfortunately for these fascinating fish, we humans are their largest threat. Overfishing and the shark fin trade (where a shark’s fins are harvested as a delicacy, but the remainder of the shark is thrown back into the ocean) have put some hammerhead species at risk of extinction.
Two species, the great and scalloped hammerhead, are listed by the World Conservation Union as endangered, and the smalleye hammerhead has a ‘vulnerable’ status.
Interestingly, Hawaii may be one of the safest places for hammerhead sharks to exist at the moment. Native Hawaiian culture reveres sharks, believing some species to be reincarnated family members or the chosen ‘birth animals’ for some children, and the hammerhead shark in particular is seen as a highly respected animal and a good omen.
Belugas
18 Dec, 2024
Although ‘melonhead’ and ‘sea canary’ may be some common nicknames for this unique ocean dweller, the beluga is most commonly referred to as the white whale. Belonging to the family Monodontidae, the beluga’s only other family member is the narwhal, and their appearance and physiology is a result of being adapted to life in the cold waters of the Arctic. Beluga populations are also found in the seas and coastal areas around Russia, Greenland and North America, though many do migrate from the Arctic ice cap to warmer estuaries and coastal waters during the summer.
Belugas are some of the most easily recognized ocean mammals; they’re entirely white and have a distinctive bulge at the front of their heads called a melon. Unlike dolphins, belugas don’t possess a dorsal fin. Reaching maturity at around 10 years of age, male belugas can reach 18 feet long and weigh up to 3,500 lb, while females are generally smaller, growing up to 13.5 feet in length and weighing as much as 2,600 lbs. Between 40% and 50% of their body weight is actually blubber (fat), providing excellent insulation from frigid Arctic water; in fact, they have the highest blubber percentage of any whale. Their body shape is stocky and rounded, with broad, short flippers and a curved tailfin.
The beluga’s coloration is actually a camouflage technique, allowing them to blend in with the ice to escape detection by their predators, which are mainly polar bears and orcas. Calves are born dark grey, and progressively lighten over the next 7 years as they mature.
Belugas are also the only marine mammal that shed their skin; during the winter, their outer epidermal (skin) layer becomes thicker and more yellowish, but during the summer, they rub themselves on riverbed gravel to remove the extra layer.
The anatomy of a beluga’s head is distinctive among other ocean dwelling mammals. The neck vertebrae are not fused, allowing them to move their head from side to side without needing to rotate their entire body; this helps when hunting prey and gives them better maneuverability in deeper water. Their beak (called a rostrum) has around 40 small, blunt teeth that are used to catch prey, and they have a single blowhole on the top of their head.
A beluga’s melon is extremely essential to its ability to accurately move through its ocean home and hunt. Their melon is a prominent bulge at the front of their head that contains an organ used for echolocation and communication. A beluga can actually focus the sounds they emit by changing the shape of its head. Belugas also use their head, along with their dorsal ridge, to help open up small holes in the ice through which they can breathe.
Belugas are the lazy divers of the whale world, typically not diving any deeper than about 20 m (66 feet), and they usually prefer to swim only at a depth that covers their bodies. They can stay underwater for 10-15 minutes, though a usual dive is usually much shorter than that, lasting around 3-5 minutes, and their heartbeat slows to between 12 and 20 beats per minute during a dive. They don’t jump out of the water like dolphins or killer whale relatives, and are slower swimmers too, being rather less aerodynamic marine mammals.
These beautiful whales have a very developed sense of hearing, which is also necessary for echolocation. They receive sound waves through their lower jaw, which are then transmitted towards their middle ear, and they can hear sounds within the range of 1.2 kHz to 120 kHz; to compare, we humans only have an average hearing range between 0.02 to 20 kHz. Their vision isn’t quite as spectacular, though they are able to see in and outside of water, and it’s likely that they can see some colors, since their retinas (surface covering the back of their eyes) contains cones. These ocean dwellers have no sense of smell, however.
Like other whales, belugas are very sociable and form small family groups called pods that can number anywhere from 2 to 25 members. They communicate with each other using whistles, trills and squawks, and their sounds are sometimes of such high frequency that they sound like birdsong. A pod is usually led by one male, but it’s not unusual for individual members to move from pod to pod.
Belugas seek out frequent physical contact with each other, they hunt in coordinated groups together, and they play chase and stage mock fights. They tend to be curious and investigative as well, often approaching humans in wild settings, swimming along boats, and playing with objects that they find in the water.
The type of diet that a beluga eats depends on the region in which they live and the season of the year. A typical diet is made up mainly of fish like cod, halibut, and Pacific salmon, as well as invertebrates like shrimp, squid, octopus, clams and sea snails. They search for food on the ocean floor or join with a group of other belugas to herd fish onto more shallow shoals.
Belugas reach breeding maturity by about four years of age, and females tend to birth one calf every three years or so. It’s not known if belugas can delay implantation of a fertilized egg, but gestation times can vary so greatly (anywhere from 12 to 15. 8 months after mating). Calves are born in warmer waters around bays or estuaries, and can swim by their mother’s side from birth, nursing every hour and staying dependent on her for the first year.
THREATS TO BELUGAS
Although polar bears and killer whales are the beluga’s only natural threats, these whales are also affected by water pollution and hunt-to-capture expeditions which provide whales for marine exhibits worldwide.
Whaling by European and American whalers in the 18th and 19th centuries severely affected beluga populations, as they were hunted for meat, blubber, and oil from their melons. Belugas make easy prey because of a predictable migration pattern. Indigenous populations in the Canadian, Alaskan and Russian Arctic regions still hunt belugas for food and skin.
Belugas are listed as ‘near threatened’ by the IUCN, and are protected under the Marine Mammal Act in the USA.
Jackals
6 Dec, 2024
ADOPT A JACKALJackals are medium sized members of the canine family. There are four main species of jackal: the side-striped jackal, the golden jackal, the black-backed jackal and the Ethiopian wolf jackal.
Jackals vary in color and size. They have golden, rust or silver-colored black fur and bushy tails. Jackals inhabit deserts, grasslands, savannas, marshes, mountains, bush-lands and woodlands. The golden jackal inhabits open deserts, savannas and arid grasslands. The side-striped jackal lives in moist savannas, marshes, mountains and bushlands. The black-backed jackal, or sliver-backed jackal, is found primarily in woodlands and savannas.
Jackals are opportunistic omnivores. They eat mostly a carnivorous diet and have adapted to hunting small mammals, reptiles and birds. Being opportunistic feeders, they eat whatever is available. Some species of jackal eat poisonous snakes. Jackals also scavenge the remains of carcasses killed by other larger predators. Many jackals, especially those in the tropics of Southeast Asia, also eat plants.
Jackals are usually nocturnal mammals, active at night. Some jackals in remote areas are more diurnal, active during the cooler times of the day. Jackals sleep in crevices in rocks and dens made by other animals. Jackals are fast running predators and can run for long periods.
Jackals live singly or in pairs, or in tribes called packs. 10 to 30 jackals can reside in a pack. Jackal community members work together to protect each other. Jackals who live in packs often hunt alone or with only one other jackal. Fewer jackals hunting together increases the chance of ambushing prey as they can be more stealthy and silent.
Jackals are territorial and defend their marked territories. Using a wide range of vocal sounds specific to each jackal family, they successfully keep other jackals away from their community. It is uncommon for jackals of other tribes to enter the territory. Verbal communication among jackals includes yips, howls, growls and owl-like hoots. Yipping calls are made when the family gathers. A siren-like howl is used to announce a food source has been found. Only family members respond to their own family's calls – ignoring the calls of other jackals.
Jackal mating season varies based on their location. African jackal mating season occurs in October. Southeast Europe jackal mating season takes place in December. Jackals in India mate throughout the year. Jackals are monogamous, mating for life. The gestation period lasts about 2 months. Typically 2 to 4 babies are born, but litters can be up to 9 cubs. Jackal babies are kept in underground dens, caves or rock crevices. Jackal mothers move the location of the den about every two weeks to prevent predators from finding the babies. Jackal babies are blind the first 10 days. They feed on their mother's milk and regurgitated meat provided by family members for the first couple of months. By the age of 6 months, young jackals are taught to hunt. Older pups help to take care of younger jackal babies.
Jackals are preyed upon by leopards, hyenas and eagles. Jackal babies are an easy target of eagles.
Jackals live up to 9 years in the wild.
THREATS TO JACKALS
Some jackals are endangered due to habitat loss, animal agriculture and hunting. As jackal habitats are lost, jackals increasingly infringe on human settlements where they can be viewed as a threat to livestock and poultry and are killed as pests.
Reptiles
5 Dec, 2024
ADOPT A REPTILEReptiles are cold blooded animals, covered with scales, and mostly lay eggs. Some reptiles eat plants, some eat animals and some eat both.
Reptiles are tetrapod vertebrates, meaning they have four limbs or, like snakes, they descended from four limbed ancestors. They usually have limited means of maintaining a constant body temperature and rely on external sources of heat. Being cold blooded requires far less fuel to function. A crocodile needs a fraction of the food a lion of the same weight needs, and can live half a year without eating. Due to their slow metabolism, reptiles can do well in areas where food sources are too low for most mammals and birds to live.
Four major groups of reptiles include crocodilians, snakes, turtles, lizards and ttuatara – a lizard-like reptile that is the only surviving member of an order which flourished around 200 million years ago. The study of reptiles, historically combined with that of amphibians, is called herpetology.
Reptiles lay eggs on land, and the eggs musts stay dry. Many reptiles bury the eggs. Mother pythons, mud snakes and some skinks wrap their bodies around their eggs to protect them. Alligator mothers carry newly hatched babies in their mouths. Some reptiles abandon their eggs and do not care for the babies. About a fifth of snake species give birth to live young. Warmer egg temperatures produce females for some turtles, cooler temperatures result in males, and temperatures in the middle will produce a combination of genders. With crocodiles, the results are reversed – with males usually born at higher temperatures. The sex of snakes is determined by chromosomes, as it is with mammals and birds. Once hatched, most reptiles are independent and able to care for themselves. Babies look like miniature adults, though their colors may be different.
Reptile Extinction Crisis
More than one fifth of all known reptile species are considered endangered or close to becoming extinct. This has been particularly pronounced for island reptile species, counting at least 28 island reptiles having disappeared so far. This pattern of extinction, commonly seen in the islands, is finding its way toward the mainland as well. This crisis is mainly due to human intervention causing fragmentation in the continental habitats, which results in island-like territories, isolating species among each other. Reptiles are especially threatened by non-native species that compete for resources or feed on them, and habitat loss.
FASCINATING REPTILE FACTS
THE BIGGEST
The longest reptile is the reticulated python, measuring over 32 feet. The heaviest is the leatherback sea turtle, weighing over 1,900 pounds.
THE SMALLEST
Leaf chameleons of Madagascar measure only an inch from nose to tail.
THE FASTEST
Green sea turtles are the fastest reptiles, reaching speeds of 22 mph.
THE LONGEST LIVED
The Aldabra tortoise lives the longest, to over 150 years.
SMARTER THAN YOU THINK
Reptiles are capable of solving complex problems and remembering what they have learned. They share the same level of intelligence as birds and mammals. They change techniques when presented with new challenges and learn from other reptiles. They possess advanced social skills and flexible behavior – behavior that can be adapted to meet a particular situation. In captivity, they learn how to open hinged doors, open jar lids, have the ability to interpret and anticipate common activities such as feeding time and cage-cleaning time, and can even navigate mazes. In the wild they exhibit advanced social behavior including recognition of their family, pair bonding and loving care of their children. They exhibit social learning, play behavior and cooperation. Studies show they are capable of counting, advanced learning and problem solving. They are able to reverse course in addressing problems, unlearning incorrect approaches almost instantly. They have individual personalities.
LOVING RELATIONSHIPS
Shingleback skinks are often monogamous. They court for months with the male strutting, licking and nudging the female affectionately before mating. The reptilian couple will mate every breeding season for as long as 20 years. When one dies, its surviving partner will stay beside the body for days, tenderly touching it.
PLANNING AHEAD
Australian monitors plan ahead and arrange ambushes when pursuing fast-moving prey. Monitor lizards have been shown to count snails at feeding time and learn to use their forearms to help extract insects from logs.
SINGING & DANCING
Alligators gather together in large groups during the spring, usually one to three hours after sunrise, to sing and engage in “alligator dances” for courtship. Mothers defend their nests from predators. Shortly before hatching, baby alligators call their mother to the nest and begin vocalizing to synchronize the hatching of their siblings. Mother alligators gently assist with opening the eggs and carry the babies to a special pool called a nursery. Young alligators will stay close to their mother and form social groups. They follow her wherever she goes, hop on her head to bask and follow her around on land like little ducklings. When in distress they call out for her, bringing her to their aid. They stay with their protective mother for up to 2 years after being born.
COMMUNAL LIVING
Crocodiles are behaviorally complex creatures that live and work as members of a group. They can be incredibly tender and affectionate. They play together, exhibit complex social interactions and gaze recognition, use tools, pair-bond, practice monogamy, hunt together and have good memories. Expecting mothers guard their nests and protect their young until they are old enough to survive on their own, up to 3 years old. Babies are carried around in their mouths to protect them. Crocodiles have community nurseries where one mother watches over the hatchlings of many. Crocodiles have excellent communication skills, using body language and sounds, and even vibrate to make water ‘dance’, producing sounds that humans cannot hear.
SENSE OF DIRECTION
Wild turtles who are caught and later released will head in the direction of the nearest water source. Captive turtles recognize the sight of their food container and sound of food rattling in it.
UNDERGROUND CITIES
Green iguanas share nesting areas with as many as hundreds of other iguanas and construct complex burrow systems that are continuously improved upon. Babies hatching from eggs look around and duck back into the egg while observing other babies to determine if it is safe to emerge. They get excited and jump up and down when they see other babies emerging. Siblings will stay together for months, rubbing against each other frequently and wagging their tails like dogs. They sleep together and groom each other and walk in a line with a chosen leader. They rub each others' heads before returning to their family's territory, watching for predators together and protecting each other.
Sharks
4 Dec, 2024
Sharks are members of a group of almost exclusively marine and predaceous fishes. There are about 250 species of sharks, ranging from the 2 feet pygmy shark to 50 feet giants. They are found in all seas, but are most abundant in warm waters. Some may enter large rivers, and one ferocious freshwater species lives in Lake Nicaragua. Most are predatory, but the largest species, the whale shark and the basking shark, are harmless plankton eaters. Dogfish is the name for members of several families of small sharks; these should not be confused with the bony dogfishes of the mud minnow and bowfin families.
Sharks are heavy fishes, possessing neither lungs nor swim bladders. Their skeletons are made of cartilage rather than bone, and this, along with large deposits of fat, partially solves their weight problem. Nevertheless, most sharks must keep moving in order to breathe and to stay afloat. They are good swimmers; the wide spread of the pectoral fins and the upward curve of the tail fin provide lift, and the sweeping movements of the tail provide drive. Their tough hides are studded with minute, toothlike structures called denticles. Sharks have pointed snouts. Their crescent-shaped mouths are set on the underside of the body and contain several rows of sharp, triangular teeth. They have respiratory organs called gills, usually five on each side, with individual gill slits opening on the body surface. These slits form a conspicuous row and lack the covering found over the gills of bony fishes.
Like most fishes, sharks breathe by taking water in through the mouth and passing it out over the gills. Usually there are two additional respiratory openings on the head, called spiracles. A shark's intestine has a unique spiral valve, which increases the area of absorption. Fertilization is internal in sharks; the male has paired organs called claspers for introducing sperm into the cloaca of the female. Members of most species bear live young, but a few of the smaller sharks lay eggs containing much yolk and enclosed in horny shells. Compared to bony fishes, sharks tend to mature later and reproduce slowly.
Only a small number of the predatory species are definitely known to occasionally engage in unprovoked attacks on humans. The largest and most feared of these is the great white shark, which may reach 20 feet in length and is probably responsible for more such attacks than any other species. Other sharks reputed to be slightly dangerous are the tiger and blue sharks and the mako. Sharks are extremely sensitive to motion and to the scent of blood. Swimmers in areas where dangerous varieties occur should leave the water quietly if they are cut. In some places bathing areas are guarded by nets. A number of substances have been used as shark repellents, but their effectiveness is variable. Sharks usually circle their prey before attacking. Since they seldom swim near the surface, an exposed dorsal fin is more likely to be that of a swordfish or ray than that of a shark.
Sharks can range from being just inches in length (like the tiny cookie cutter shark) to being larger than a school bus (like the giant plankton-eating whale shark). Though sharks perform the same role in the ocean ecosystem that is performed by well-known predators such as lions, tigers, and cheetahs on land, the fact that they live in such an alien world makes it hard for us to know about their lives. What we do know is pretty fascinating.
Sharks shed their teeth. A single shark may lose thousands of teeth over its life and this accounts for the many shark teeth found by beach combers throughout the world. Their teeth are connected to a membrane in their mouth that is constantly being pushed forward as new teeth form. New teeth are generally slightly larger than the ones before. This allows the size of the shark's teeth to keep pace with the growth of the rest of the body.
Sharks are picky eaters. Some sharks eat only plankton, others eat small fish or squid, and still others eat large fish and marine mammals. The type of teeth a shark has will show you what it eats. Great white sharks have teeth with serrated edges for slicing off pieces from larger prey, the teeth of mako sharks are thin and pointed for grabbing onto slippery fish. Nurse sharks and other bottom dwellers tend to have thicker teeth for crushing shellfish. No matter the tooth shape, sharks never chew their food.
You're more likely to die as a result of being electrocuted by holiday lighting than being attacked by a shark. More deadly than shark attacks each year are crocodile attacks, hippo attacks, and even attacks by pigs.
Many sharks are warm blooded. Unlike the rest of the fishy world, many large sharks can maintain their body temperature higher than the ocean temperature around them. We don't know whether sharks sleep. Sometimes they seem to rest, but their eyes don't close and if they sleep, they certainly don't sleep the way that mammals can.
THREATS TO SHARKS
Don't be afraid OF sharks; be afraid FOR them. There are more misunderstandings and untruths about sharks than almost any other group of animals on the planet. While many people fear sharks, it is the sharks who should be fearing us.
According to the shark attack file, maintained by the Florida Museum of Natural History, on average 5 people die worldwide from shark attacks. Up to 70 million sharks are killed by humans each year, mostly for their fins. This is a devastating death toll for a long-living species that is as slow to reproduce as sharks.
Sharks have roamed the oceans far longer than most land animals have been here. They were here before many of the dinosaurs and have outlasted them. But an international assessment of sharks undertaken by the World Conservation Union reveals that their future is in doubt. Of 546 shark species assessed, 111 species were at significant risk of global extinction. Twenty species are listed as critically endangered and 25 as endangered. Some shark species have lost 80% of their populations just in the past 40 years including hammerhead sharks, thresher sharks, and porbeagle sharks. While hammerhead shark is a name familiar to most, most people have never heard of porbeagle sharks; some of the lesser known sharks are in even greater danger.
There is a lot we don't know about sharks, but we DO know that if we don't act soon to stop overfishing, some of the most ancient and magnificent animals on the planet may soon disappear.
Skinks
4 Dec, 2024
Members of one of the most diverse groups of lizards, skinks are reptiles with cylindrical, streamlined bodies, functioning eyelids and tight, smooth, scaly skin. They belong to the family Scincidae, and their name comes from the Greek word skinkos, which was a name that was used to refer to lizards in a specific region of the country. Over 1500 distinct species of skinks have been described, living in a wide range of habitats worldwide, from dry deserts, to mountains, grasslands and forests.
Although skinks are close in appearance to ‘true lizards’ (such as wall lizards, for example), they don’t have a distinct neck, and their legs tend to be smaller. Interestingly, some species of skink actually have reduced limbs or even no limbs at all, making their movement appear far more like a snake than a lizard - which is what many people may mistake them for. A few certain skink species, like the blue-tongued skink, also tend to be more broad-headed and wider-bodied than their relatives.
The particular living environment of a skink can often be determined merely by its toe length – generally, the longer a skink’s digits (toes), the more likely it is to spend most of its time climbing in trees.
These unusual reptiles tend to be small to medium sized, on average, depending on the species. They can range from specimens as tiny as the little brown skink at 3 inches, to as large as the Solomon Islands skink at 14 inches, though their tails usually make up more than half of that length.
Many skink species are escape artists. They can shed their tails when necessary if predators grab them, and can re-grow the lost part. The shed tail will actually wiggle for a short period of time after being lost, which serves to distract any potential predators while the skink makes its escape. Skinks may also return to the lost tail and ingest it in order to regain lost nutrient value.
Active, quick, and agile little lizards, skinks can dart rapidly from place to place when they’re not found basking on warm rocks or logs. Offspring-bearing females or mating pairs tend to be slower, however. Some species of these lizards are tree-climbing, but for the most part, most tend to live in ground habitats (so they’re terrestrial, in other words), or prefer to burrow through sand. They’re most active in the daytime.
Skinks like to stay safe and out of the reach of predators or bad weather, and make their nests in secure, hidden areas. For some, this can mean a nest in the dirt or under heavy brush cover. For other skinks (especially those in and around urban areas) rotting boards, garages or spaces under structures like sheds can be suitable nesting areas. Some nests can contain anywhere from 10 to 30 skinks at a time, and it’s not unusual for skinks to actually ‘guard’ their territory. A small number of skink species are also water-dwelling, but these tend to be the exception.
Skinks are fairly predictable eaters. Being carnivorous lizards, their menu choices tend to run to insects like flies, beetles and caterpillars, but some may even eat snails or small rodents. They sniff out prey using their tongue, and then chase it down, corner it, and usually swallow it whole.
The method of producing young can be different from species to species of skink. Male skinks will sometimes fight each other for the privilege of mating with a certain female by biting each other on the head, neck or tail. Male-female pairs in some species will form monogamous relationships from year to year. Just under half of all skink species birth live young, nourishing their offspring though a placenta-like organ. Other species hatch their eggs internally instead, and then give birth to young after that. Still others lay eggs which hatch outside their body.
Females tend to be protective of their eggs, coiling around them and guarding against predators, and will often stay to protect their new offspring for the first few days until they leave the nest. Skinks can have significant gestation times, typically several months and as long as one year in some species. They have been noted to have as few as 1 or as many as 67 young born at one time.
THREATS TO SKINKS
Although many skinks are highly adaptable when it comes to their nesting situation, they also have a large number of natural predators. Raccoons, snakes, crows, herons, hawks and other lizards may see skinks as a tasty meal.
Because the skink’s long gestation period means that they can’t replenish their population numbers as quickly as other animals, overhunting by larger invasive predators like the mongoose has caused skink species in some areas to approach extinction. The Anguilla Bank skink in the Caribbean is one example.
Beetles
3 Dec, 2024
Beetles are a group of insects which are biologically classified in the order Coleoptera. The word "coleoptera" is from the Greek, koleos, meaning "sheath"; and pteron, meaning "wing", thus "sheathed wing". Most beetles have two pairs of wings, the front pair being hardened and thickened into a shell-like protection for the rear pair and the beetle's abdomen.
There are more beetles on the planet than other other animal. Almost 25% of all known types of animal life-forms are beetles. About 40% of all insect species are beetles (about 400,000 species), and new species are discovered frequently. Some estimates put the total number of beetle species at as high as 100 million. Weevils, or snout beetles, and rove beetles are the most common.
The diversity of beetles is very wide. They are found in all major habitats, except the polar regions. Beetles live in freshwater and marine habitats and everywhere vegetative foliage is found - from trees and their bark to flowers, leaves, and underground near roots. They even live inside plants, in every plant tissue, including dead or decaying ones.
Particular species of beetles are adapted to practically every kind of diet. Some break down animal and plant debris; some feed on particular kinds of carrion such as flesh or hide; some feed on wastes such as dung; some feed on fungi; some on particular species of plants and others on a wide range of plants. Some beetles are pollen, flower and fruit eaters and help to pollinate flowers. Others are predatory, usually on other invertebrates; some are parasites or parasitoids. Many of the predatory species are important controls of agricultural pests that damage crops. Conversely, beetles are prey of various invertebrates and vertebrates, including other insects, fish, reptiles, birds, and mammals.
Beetles have a hard exoskeleton, particularly on their forewings, distinguishing them from most other insect species. Like all armored insects, beetles' exoskeletons comprise numerous plates, some fused and some separated by thin sutures. This combines armored defenses with flexibility. All insects' bodies are divided into three sections: the head, the thorax, and the abdomen.
Beetles are endopterygotes; they undergo complete metamorphosis, a biological process by which an animal physically develops after a birth or hatching, undergoing a series of changes in its body structure. The typical form of metamorphosis in beetles passes through four main stages: the egg, the larva, the pupa, and the imago or adult.
Beetles may display extremely intricate behavior when mating. Pheromone communication is likely to be important in the location of a mate. Another way species of Coleoptera find mates is the use of biosynthesized light, or bioluminescence. This special form of a mating call is used by fireflies by the use of abdominal light-producing organs. The males and females engage in complex dialogue before mating, identifying different species by differences in duration, flight patterns, composition, and intensity.
Before mating, males and females may stridulate, or vibrate the objects they are on. In some species, the male climbs onto the female and strokes her with his antennae. Conflict can play a part in the mating rituals of some beetles. Many male beetles are territorial and will fiercely defend their small patches of territory from intruding males. In such species, the males may have horns, making their overall body lengths greater than those of the females, unlike most insects. Pairing is generally quick, but in some cases will last for several hours. During pairing, sperm cells are transferred to the female to fertilize the egg. A single female may lay from several dozen to several thousand eggs during her lifetime. Parental preparation varies between species, ranging from the simple laying of eggs under a leaf to constructing underground structures complete with a supply of dung to house and feed their young. Other beetles are leaf rollers, biting sections of leaves to cause them to curl inwards, then laying their eggs, thus protected, inside. Some beetles will patrol the eggs and larvae and apply a burrowing behavior to keep them from flooding and from asphyxiating. The mother will protect the eggs and larvae from predators.
The larva is usually the principal feeding stage of the beetle lifecycle. Larvae tend to feed voraciously once they emerge from their eggs. Some feed externally on plants, while others feed within their food sources. The larvae of many beetle families are predatory like the adults. The larval period varies between species, but can be as long as several years. Like adult beetles, the larvae are varied in appearance, particularly between beetle families.
All beetle larvae go through several instars, which are the developmental stages between each moult. In many species, the larvae simply increase in size with each instar as more food is consumed. In some cases, however, more dramatic changes occur. Among certain beetle families, particularly parasitic beetles, the first instar is highly mobile and searches for a host, while the following instars are more sedentary and remain on or within their host. Beetle larvae pupate, and from these pupae emerge fully formed, sexually mature adult beetles. Adults have extremely variable lifespans, from weeks to years, depending on the species.
Beetles have a variety of ways to communicate, some of which include a sophisticated chemical language through the use of pheromones. Some beetles stridulate to communicate, rubbing body parts together to create sound. They have a "scraper" on their abdomens that they rub against a grooved surface on the underside of their left wing cover to create a sound that is not audible to humans. Female beetles will stridulate and produce pheromones to attract other unmated males and females. New females arrive and do the same. As the males arrive, they enter the galleries that the females have tunneled, and begin to stridulate to let the females know they have arrived, and to also warn others that the female in that gallery is taken. At this point, the female produces a different pheromone to deter more beetles from coming.
Since species of beetles use environmental stimuli to communicate, they are affected by the climate. Microclimates, such as wind or temperature, can disturb the use of pheromones; wind would blow the pheromones while they travel through the air. Stridulating can be interrupted when the stimulus is vibrated by something else.
THREATS TO BEETLES
Like most animals, the primary threat to beetles is the destruction of their habitat. Human development has taken an alarming toll on the environment. Impact from land use practices such as agricultural conversion, deforestation, and urban sprawl continue to degrade and fragment remaining pockets of habitat and accelerate biodiversity loss. Pesticides and other forms of pollution are also of serious concern, as well as genetically modified organisms (GMOs).