Related to the cat family, this unique spotted creature has qualities similar to the civets, with a strong musky odor. The musk is used to warn away predators, defend themselves and for sexual and social purposes such as marking their territory. The agility of genets allows them to climb quickly and move fast. They are unique because they can stand on both hind legs.  In addition to large ears, small heads and long banded tails, they can move through any hole that their head can fit into. The tails make up at least one and a half times the length of their bodies and are used for counterweight when climbing and jumping from one tree limb to another.

Genets are usually solitary and nocturnal by nature, with the males more active than females. The amount of range for females is slightly over one hundred seventy acres, with the range for the males double. The gestation period is usually around eleven weeks, with peaks in the population occurring twice a year, in the spring during April and May and the autumn, from August to October.  Adult genets weigh an average of 4 pounds. The young are primarily raised by the mother and the genets can reproduce at two years of age.

Except for the common genet, all others live in Africa. The range of habitat will vary as the geographic location, with the woodlands, savannas and forests being favored for living in. The genet is a predator, feeding on both plants and animals, with animals being preferred.  There are other animals that prefer to feed on the genets, among them being owls, pythons, foxes and goshawks. It is thought that the first genet was brought to the Mediterranean areas over one thousand years ago.
The common species of genet is not endangered and are kept as pets. Like cats, they can be trained to use a litter-box. Playful and curious, they will get along with other animals except birds, hamsters or gerbils which are considered prey.

Genets – Related To Cats – Genets Move Quickly

This monkey is primarily from the Central and South American jungles. It is also called the owl monkey due to the largeness of the eyes which allows for a greater amount of light to enter. They are nocturnal and have no color vision, but have excellent low level and night vision which enables them to catch insects and move in darkened conditions with greater ease then other types of primates. The more scientific name for the owl monkey is the douroucoulis. The female and male monkeys weigh very close to the same, with males weighing just a bit more, at 2.76 pounds.

The family unit is composed of pairs, with the offspring that is not mature yet. They use scent marking with vocal calls to defend territorial boundaries.  The unusual aspect of the pairing is that the night monkey offspring are raised by the male and usually one offspring is born per year.  This is different from most other types of primates where the female is the primary caregiver.

The variety of calls, whistles, hoots and other verbal communication is limited to about eight main types. The reason these are important is for use in defining territory, bounds and as warning about predators. The range of elevation these monkeys can be found at is large, and as a result, the amount of fur is greater among those living in higher forested elevations.

One of the reasons why the night monkeys are valued by humans is for medical research purposes. These are some of the species that are susceptible to the malaria virus that humans have, so they are used as test animals for vaccines. There are a variety of opinions as to the correct classification of the population of the owl monkey, with the most preferred classification being in one or two main groups. There are differences in chromosome varieties that lead more modern thinking naturalists to break up the species into a variety of classifications.  There are fossil species that are considered to be of a different species but the extant species are part of this classification. It is certain, however with a large range of forested areas in remote areas the night or owl monkey will remain alive and well for a number of years.

Night Monkey – South American Owl Monkey

Originating in the waters under Mexico City, the axolotl or ajolote is a fascinating creature to study and research. They are primarily known for the ability to regenerate severed limbs, which is the primary reason scientists choose to study this species.  The adults do not go through the metamorphosis and remain in an aquatic state, unlike other salamanders which change from aquatic to land by the time they are adult. The young larvae of the axolotl salamander are often confused with the tiger salamander and the waterdog, but are different from both.

As a result of shrinking habitat and introduction of non native species of fish, the axolotl is currently on the red list, which indicates the endangered status. The axolotl has been a source of food for the native human population for hundreds of years and the growth of Mexico City has increased the pressure on them to adapt and survive.

The full grown axolotl ranges from six to eighteen inches, with external gills and wide heads. The limbs are not developed as much as other species of salamander. The natural colors are brown or black with mutations occurring as albino golden or pink with black eyes.  The females have wider bodies then the males do. Feeding for both genders is via suction and they primarily feed on worms, insects and small fish that are sucked into the stomach by the axolotl.

The axolotl are easier to breed in captivity then other types of salamanders. Some of the current research being done with iodine stimulants to overcome the problem of the axolotl being adult and not changing as other species do. The viability of the embryo is one of the ways that scientists study the axolotl because it is very easy to see defects that occur as the development happens. Regeneration of whole limbs and transplant of limbs are also important studies being done by researchers. The ability to grow limbs after the loss of the original is one feature that makes the axolotl popular as exotic pets.

Axolotl Salamander – Exotic Pets – Exotic Salamander

Badgers are omnivores in the weasel family and there are nine different species, including those that live in Europe, Asia, and America. They are nocturnal animals and go out at night to hunt their food.

Physical Characteristics

Badgers are short and fat and have short legs, small ears, long heads and a short tail. Their faces are black and white and their bodies are grey with white stripes. They get to around 35 inches long and weight an average of around 20 to 24 pounds. The ones in Eurasia, however, can get twice that size. Read the rest of this entry »

Macaques are the second-most widespread primate, overshadowed only by the human population. There are more than 20 confirmed species of macaques, each with a unique and elaborate social hierarchy.

Physical Characteristics

Macaques range from light grey to dark brown in color, with the animals featuring nearly every shade between. Some have tails, such as the long-tailed macaque, while other species are tailless. Adult male macaques reach nearly two feet in height while females are shorter in stature at 18 inches. There is a significant weight variance between the genders as well, with full-grown males weighing as much as 38 pounds in comparison to 24 pounds for females.

Habitat and Location

Most species live in undisturbed forests, swamps and similar territory in the Asian region. The endangered Barbary macaque is the only species not found in Asia, instead residing Morocco. Macaques gravitate to areas bordering a reliable water source such as islands, riverbanks and high-density growth. Ideally, the monkeys select a region that is near a human settlement that provides easy access to gardens and crops for produce and sustainability. There is a large colony of macaques on Gibraltar.

Diet

The traditional diet of a macaque in the wild consists heavily of fruits, berries, leaves and twigs. Macaques that live near settlements will raid farms for fresh fruits and other crops. In the winter months and dry seasons when fruits are not as plentiful, the animals eat mushrooms, flowers, bird eggs and seeds.

Breeding Facts

Female macaques reach sexual maturity a full year before males. Mating season in the wild falls in the late fall and early winter months, typically occurring between October and January. In direct response to the winter mating season, new animals are born in the late spring and early summer, from the end of March through June. Groups of macaques vary in gender distribution with a common distribution of just under or just over one female per male.

Barbary Macaque Apes – Gibraltar Vacations – Macaques

Physical Characteristics

Trilliums are beautiful wild flowers with three large specialized leaves or bracts on a stem above ground. The actual leaves are thin and are found underground around the rootstalks. The conventional species are the large-flowered (Trillium grandiflorum) and the Western trillium (Trillium ovatum) which is often called the ‘Wake Robin’. Both of these species have white flowers and as they age, the blooms turn pink. Some trilliums have a flower that faces down rather than turning up as with most flowers. There are a number of other species of trillium such as the purple trillium, painted trillium, prairie trillium and nodding trillium.

Habitat and Location

These wildflowers, specifically the large white trillium, are found all throughout the state of Ohio. They are also found in the eastern United States and the Midwest in areas along roadways where there is shade and moist soil as well as in the woods in rocky areas, on steep cliffs and in narrow valleys and canyons. The most common requirements for growing Trilliums are rich soil that drains well and areas that receive sun in the morning and shade in the afternoon.

Special Points

When growing trilliums it is best to try and simulate the growing conditions these wild flowers are accustomed to in the wild. The leaves that die and fall off should be left as organic matter for the plants. They do not tolerate fertilizers well. A couple of years after transplanting the flower apply a weak ‘tea’ containing manure to the soil around the plant in the fall of the year.

Propagation

The cultivation of trilliums is a slow process. Beetles, flies and ants pollinate the flowers and often the seeds are scattered by ants. Chipmunks can help to scatter the seeds as well as they take the fruit from the wild flowers. After the seeds germinate, the first year is when the roots grow and it is not until the third year that an actual leaf appears. The seeds must have consistently moist soil in order to germinate. Since insects help to pollinate and scatter the seeds, this is another reason that insecticides should not be used when growing trilliums.

The Poison Dart Frog, from the family Dendrobatidae, is one of the most beautiful species to look at in the wild, however, as their name suggests, these frogs are poisonous to both other animals and humans. One type, the gold Poison Dart, contains enough venom to kill up to 10 full-sized humans.

Physical Characteristics

Poison Dart Frogs wear vibrant colors in bright shades of blue, orange, green, gold, yellow, copper, red and black, according to the “National Geographic” website. This type of frog ranges from one inch to two and a half inches in length. Over 100 types of Poison Dart Frogs exist in the world today including a black and green specie, a red bodied amphibian with blue legs that look like the frog is wearing jeans and a yellow and black frog. The colors shown on a Poison Dart indicate what area the specie lives in.

Habitat and Location

Poison Dart Frogs reside in central and south America in the rainforests of these countries and in some areas on the Hawaiian Islands. This type of frog can live up to 15 years in the humid conditions that surround a South American rainforest.

Diet

The vibrant amphibian prefers a diet of small insects including spiders, termites and other small creatures that scurry across the forest floor. The frog uses its excellent vision to spot the tiny prey it feeds on. The Poison Dart captures its prey by snaring them with its sticky tongue.

Breeding Facts

The male amphibian uses a high pitch sound to attract females for the purpose of completing a courtship ritual. The female finds leaves to lay her eggs on once the courtship is completed. Male Poison Dart Frogs return every so often to check on the eggs for a two-week period until they hatch. Once born, these tiny tadpoles swim up onto the male frog’s back, attaching themselves to a mucus secretion. The male carries the tadpoles to a safe location such as in a small tree hole where he drops them off and they stay until they grow into frogs which takes up to three months.

Poison Dart Frog – Dendrobatidae – Gold Poison Dart

Peregrine Falcon – Duck Hawk

The Peregrine Falcon is also known as a duck hawk in North America.

Physical Characteristics

The Peregrine Falcon gets between 13 and 23 inches long with a wingspan of between 31 to 47 inches. The female and male are colored the same, but the female is larger by up to 30 percent. Males will weigh between .97 and 1.7 pounds and females will weigh between 2 to 3.3 pounds.

They both have blue-black, long and pointy wings and white or rust colored underparts with thin black or brown bands. Their tail is also long and is rounded at the end and has a black tip with a white band.

Their cere on the beak is yellow in color, as well as their feet. However, the claws and beak are black in color and the beak has a special notch on it that helps them to kill their prey when it is used to cut the spinal cord of their prey.

Young birds are browner and are streaked instead of having bands and their cere is blue and they have an orbital ring.

Habitat and Location

They live in North, South, and Central America.

Diet

The peregrine falcon eats such as pigeons and ducks, but will also eat bats, and rodents. Young birds may learn to hunt by chasing and eating large bugs and flying insects. They pursue their prey by flying at it and swooping down onto the prey to grab it in their claws.

Breeding Facts

They can breed at a year old and mate for life. They build their nests on cliff edges or sometimes on buildings. When a male and female go through their courtship, they fly a special mixture of dives, spirals and other fancy acrobatics. The male then gives the female food in mid air and she turns upside down to take it.

They are territorial and make their nests at least a kilometer away from the closest other pair of falcons. That way there is enough food for all.  The female lays her three to four white or buff colored eggs in a hollow she digs in the dirt in February or March in the North and the falcons in the south lay theirs in July and August. They take about a month to hatch and both parents sit on the eggs.

They don’t add anything to the bare nest hollow. Both parents guard the nest from predators that would eat the chicks like other birds of prey, herons or gulls or mammals like foxes, bears, wolves or wolverines. The baby birds are called eyases and they get their feathers in about six weeks. They need to be fed by the parents for about 8 weeks.

Peregrine Falcon – Duck Hawk – World Of Nature

Gannet – Largest North Atlantic Seabird

The gannet is the largest sea bird in the North Atlantic. They can dive from 30 meters and go speeds of 100 km/h as they hit the water, thus diving quite deep to catch their prey.

Physical Characteristics

Gannets have a black and white body and a yellow head. They also have two meter long pointed wings and long bills.  They are quite unusual as they have no external nostrils, air sacs in the face and under the skin to soften their body hitting the water when they dive for food, plus they have eyes that are set far forward on their face so they can judge distance with binocular vision.

Habitat and Location

Northern gannets live in the North Atlantic, and two other kinds of gannets live in Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Gannets are also found in Iceland, Canada, Scotland, UK, Ireland, France, Faroe Islands, Shetland Isles, Norway, and nearly 20 percent of them live in St Kilda in Scotland.

Diet

Gannets eat fish and squid that they dive deep into the ocean to catch.

Breeding Facts

Gannets breed in colonies on the coast of islands in the thousands together. They lay one chalky colored blue egg. Gannets are unusual because it takes the young bird a full five years to mature.  The immature birds are fed by their parents regurgitating their meals for them to eat.

Gannet – Largest North Atlantic Seabird

Red Kite – Bird Of Prey

The Red Kite is a fairly large sized bird of prey that comes from the Accipitridae family of birds.

Physical Characteristics

The Red Kite gets between 24 and 27 inches long and has a wingspan of  between 175 and 195 cm. It weighs between 800 and 1300 grams and the female is slightly larger than the male. It has a long forked shaped tail, and a red and white body.

Habitat and Location

Red Kites are known to live in Europe, Africa, Turkey, and even have appeared in Finland, Israel and Libya.

Diet

The Red Kite eats little mammals like mice, shrews, voles, rabbits and hares. It also will eat carrion, sometimes finding dead sheep or game birds. They also have been known to eat birds, reptiles, amphibians and earthworms.

Breeding Facts

The adult red kites prefer to live alone except during breeding season.  They are migratory and breed in the UK, or Spain to name a couple of places. They may maintain as many as five alternate nest sites. Male and female both help to build the nest, which is made of sticks and grass and lined with sheep’s wool or vegetation. The nest is built high up in a tree on a limb or in a fork.
Red Kites mate when they are two or three years old and they mate for life.

The nest is built in March or April. The female lays two to four eggs at intervals of one every three days. The female sits on the eggs and the male brings her food. They hatch in about a month.

Since the eggs are laid so far apart, it is common for some chicks to be bigger and stronger, which can result in the smaller one dying for lack of food or being killed by the stronger one.

Puffins – Species of Auk

Puffins are any of three small species of auk: Atlantic, Tuffed, and Horned.

Physical Characteristics

Puffins are stocky, have short wings and tails, and are black and white or some have brown on them. The head is black capped with a white face and the feed are an orangish red color. When it is breeding season, the beak turns bright colors to attract the females. Then, that falls off afterwards. They get between a foot and 15 inches long, have a wingspan of between 21 and 25 inches long, and weigh between 13 ounces and about two pounds.

Habitat and Location

The Atlantic variety lives in northern Europe as far south as France, including the UK, Faroe Islands, Iceland, Greenland, Norway and Canada to Maine. The Horned variety lives in the North Pacific in Sibera. Alaska, British Colombia and it spends its winters in California. The Tuffed variety lives in the North Pacific in British Columbia, Alaska, the Aleutian Islands, the Kuril Islands and in the Sea of Okhotsk. It winters in Honshu and California.

The majority of the Atlantic variety of puffins lives in Iceland where there are estimated to be more than 10 million pairs. The Icelanders hunt the puffins for their meat and eggs and it is considered a delicacy on Icelandic menus. It is said to have a somewhat fishy taste.

Diet

Puffins seabirds that feed primarily by diving in the water to catch fish like herring, sandeel, and capelin. Plus, they also feed on zooplankton. They are capable of holding more than a dozen fish in their beaks at once as they carry the food back to their chicks. This is due to a special hinge in their beak.

Breeding Facts

Puffins breed together in colonies on the coasts of islands. The male builds the nest of the Atlantic Puffin, while both sexes of the other two build their nests. The Tuffed Puffin actually digs a burrow to lay its eggs and it may reach lengths of up to 9 feet!

The nests of the other two are usually soft dirt and tunnels lined with grass or leaves or it may be left bare. Puffins mate in long term pair bonds and lay one egg, which both parents sit on. Both also fed the check when it is born, and a baby puffin is called a puffling. After the puffling grows its feathers, it spends a few years at sea and then can breed at around 5 years old.

Puffin In Flight – West Wales – World Of Nature

Polar Bears – Arctic Circle

Polar bears are related to brown bears, but are specialized to live in the freezing cold waters and lands of the Arctic. It is an endangered species.

Physical Characteristics

The polar bear is the world’s biggest meat eater on land and is the world’s biggest bear, although it may share that honor with the Kodiak Bear, which is about the same size. Adult polar bears weight up to about 1,500 pounds and the females are half as big as the males. Its body has been adapted to living in frigid areas and its paws are made to walk on ice and snow, as well as survive in open, freezing waters and with sharp claws to hunt with.

It has 42 teeth, and its paw pads have dermal bumps to give them traction when they walk over the ice. Their claws are shorter and stockier than other bears since they must handle heavy prey on the ice, plus they work well to dig in the ice. Its fur has both an under layer and an outer layer and they molt May through August.  An interesting fact is that the fur may turn green in captivity due to algae growing in the fur.

Polar bears can smell prey a mile away and can swim very fast.

Habitat and Location

The polar bear lives mainly in the Arctic Circle region around the Arctic Ocean. It stays mostly in the water and the land masses in and around it. The polar bear is many times called a marine mammal due to the fact it stays at sea for several months without going on permanent land masses. It prefers to live on the sea ice that covers the Arctic waters over the continental shelf areas.

Diet

Polar bears eat seals and live off their own fat reserves when hunting is lean. Grown polar bears normally only eat the seal’s skin and blubber, but younger bears eat the meat as well.

Breeding Facts

Polar bears have their mating and courtship rituals in April and May while on the sea ice. Males follow the females sometimes for more than 60 miles and may fight other males for the right to breed. The male and female remain together for about a week.  After mating, the egg is fertilized, but doesn’t start developing until August or September. The female tries to eat as much as possible until then and may double her weight.

The baby cubs are born sometime in-between November and February and are blind and their weight is less than two pounds. There are usually two of them.

The cubs and mother stay den bound until around Feb to April and the cubs nurse during that time. Cubs stay with the mother for about two years.

Polar Bear – The World’s Biggest Bear – Kodiak Bear

Tiger Fish is what several species are called due to the fact that they have tiger like coloring, as well as sharp and jagged looking teeth like a tiger that can rip through someone’s skin. These fish are considered great game fish.

Some of these involve fish in the family “Alestiidae,” which includes the Goliath Tigerfish, and the Tigerfish. The Goliath Tigerfish has actually been known to attack humans and several real attacks are on record.
Some varieties of African cichlids are also called Tigerfish, as well as some types of Datniodides from Southeast Asia. Another tigerfish is the big South American Characins from the family of Erythrinidae.

Physical Characteristics

The Goliath Tigerfish is silver with big teeth and can reach 50kg in weight. The next largest in this family is the Tigerfish, which weighs in at 15kg. The African cichlid tigerfish are huge, silver colored fish with a black strip down their body. They have been known to get up to more than six and a half feet long and weigh up to 105 pounds. Even so, they are not known to eat or attack people.

The Datnioides tigerfish are big, deep body fish with long black vertical stripes and grey, white or brown bodies.
Tigerfish are very ferocious fish and not unlike the piranha of South America. Besides their sharp teeth, they are vicious hunters and very speedy. The younger ones hunt in packs and if there isn’t enough food, they sometimes attack and eat each other.

They will attack just about any animal, and sometimes people.  A tigerfish is equipped with a unique organ that is a gas filled sack it uses to receive sound waves to help it find its prey.

Habitat and Location

Alesttidae are found in African rivers and lakes such as the Congo, the Okavango and Zambezi rivers and Lake Tanganyika, Lake Kariba and Cabora Bassa. The African cichlid tigerfish is in Lake Malawi. The Datnioides tigerfish are in Southeast Asia and live in both fresh and brackish water.

Diet

Tiger fish are all hunters and they stalk, circle and attack their prey and kill and eat other fish or even animals that get close to shore or swim out onto the water. They mainly eat snakes, fish, birds, frogs, mice and even small baby crocodiles.

Breeding Facts

Tiger fish spawn in the spring and may spawn twice if the water is hot enough in the early spring. They then make, and head up the river to lay their eggs in the shallow water.

Tiger Fish – World Of Nature – Alestiidae

There are two species of this bird, the red-billed and the white-winged and its closest relative is the crow. They are not endangered. They are able to do amazing aerobatics and are considered excellent fliers.

Physical Characteristics

Choughs have black feathers, bright colored feet and legs, long wide wings. They are medium sized birds and are around 16 inches long with a 25-39 inch wingspan. Some species have a yellow bill and some have a red bill and both kinds have red legs. The young bird is a duller color than the adults and not as glossy. Read the rest of this entry »

The Tortiseshell Butterfly is a small, fast flying and very colorful butterfly. It has been appearing in lower numbers in Europe, but is not yet considered endangered.

Physical Characteristics

The Toritiseshell has a dark body and red and yellow wings, with a row of blue dots around the rear edge. The underwings are dull in color in order to help it hide when hibernating. Both sexes are the same color. Read the rest of this entry »