Blue Whale

                          


A Blue whale is classified as an ocean mammal and not as a fish. The reason is that it is warm blooded, inhales air, has some amount of hair or fur and feeds their progeny with milk. As per a long-held belief, it is the largest animal to have existed on the earth's surface. (The discovery of Amphicoelias fragillimus dinosaur may update this belief.) The biological name of this ocean mammal is Balaenoptera musculus.

Physical Description
The Blue whale has a long, tapered and streamlined body. The head's length is 25 % of the body length. The upper part of the head is U shaped, flat and broad. The smooth body is almost free of parasites, though there are some barnacles on the tips of the flippers, dorsal fin and the edge of the fluke. From the submaxilla to the navel, there are 55-68 ventral grooves or pleats. The dorsal fin is curved and small. Its maximum length is 12 inches. The flippers are short and tapered. The flukes are shaped like a triangle and are broad.

Length and Weight
The length of a full grown is maximum 33 meters or 110 feet and the weight is 181 MT or 200 ton. Blue whales found in the Northern hemisphere are 75 to 80 feet long. Those in the Southern hemisphere can be 90 to 100 feet long. At any particular age, the female is larger than the male. The male usually weighs more 100 tons and the female approximately 150 tons.

Social Behavior
The Blue whale may be located alone or in small groups, but most frequently as a pair. Rarely, a large group of 50 to 60 such whales can be noticed. This mammal is a fast and strong swimmer. Generally, it moves at a speed of 12 mph. When it gets alarmed, it can accelerate up to 30 mph. The species can prosper all told oceans on the globe. During winter, they change their habitat from tropical waters to temperate ones. Here, they can reproduce and give birth to new Blue whale. Feeding is possible in temperate, tropical and polar waters.

Reproduction
When the male and female whale reaches the age bracket of six to ten years, they are generally are of 74 - 79 feet in length respectively. They then attain sexual maturity. The pregnancy period is of one year. Offspring can be born every 2 to 3 years. Just after birth, they weigh 3 tons and are 23-27 feet in length. They are breastfed for 7 to 8 months. In this span of time, the offspring drinks 379 liters of mother's milk per day. It's weight increases by 200 pounds and length 1.5 inches per day. When the length becomes 52 feet and weight about 23 tons, the nursing process is ceased.

Food
The primary food of the Blue whale is small and shrimp-like creatures. These are called Euphausiids or Krill. In summer, the whale satiates its hunger by eating just more 4 tons per day. The import is that 40 million krill are killed by one such whale per day. Initially, an enormous quantity of water and food is held in the mouth. Instead of teeth, Blue whale have baleen plates to process food, which is majorly krill, plankton, squid and small fish. While the mouth is being closed, water is thrown out of the baleen plates. There are approximately 320 pairs of black baleen plates that are 1 meter long, 53 centimeters wide and weighing 90 kg. The food gets locked near the tongue and is swallowed.

Special Facts
The size of the main arteries of a Blue whale can permit a small person to crawl through it. Although it feeds at a depth of less than 330 feet, it can dive up to 1640 feet. One dive lasts for 10 to 20 minutes. This whale can live a life of 110 years. While this mammal is as huge as a Boeing Jet, its heart is just like a small car in size. It's tongue can support fifty people. When this creature comes to the surface for air, the spout can reach up to 30 feet. The sound of a Blue whale may reach 188 decibels, making it louder than a jet, which is 140 decibels.

Blue whale are not harmed by any living species differently humans. 99 % of them were annihilated in course of the whaling efforts and the species became endangered in the 1950s. One must arrest the desire to hunt a Blue whale and enable this colossal mammal to prosper and regain its pristine glory.

Previous Post: Scarlet Macaw

Scarlet Macaw

The Scarlet Macaw is found in the treetops from Mexico to southern Brazil. It is about 90 centimetres in length and is bright red with blue and yellow wings, blue and red tail which is a unique feature in the family and a white face with big, sickle shaped beaks. Its feet are able to grasp the limbs of a tree very firmly. When a Macaw is fully developed, the tail is more two feet long. Both the male and females look alike. It is the among the most well known among the species.

It feeds on the abundant fruits and nuts found in the tropical forests which is its habitat. It cracks open the nuts by using its extremely powerful beak and uses its blunt tongue to extract the nut meat. It also uses its beak to cut out pieces of fruit. Occasionally it eats insects and worms.

Macaw do not have feathers on its face and sometimes blushes when excited or angry. It usually travels in a large flock. It is easily tamed and its life span is about 50 to 60 years. It builds its nest in holes in trees or in crevices between rocks. The young hatch in about 3 weeks and are cared for by both the parents for 2 to 3 months.

Scarlet Macaws are famous for its ability in mimicking and imitating sounds made by the human voice as well as perform tricks.

This bird has become endangered due to the overwhelming demand for its colourful feathers in fashion in earlier centuries. Demand has not diminished yet as the young are taken from their nests for pets by poachers. This has led to a great decline to the Scarlet Macaw's population.

Law enforcement has been made in most of the countries where the Scarlet Macaw is found, but heavier penalties are yet to be enforced.

Previous Post : Komodo Dragon

Komodo Dragon

The Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard. The largest verified specimen reached a length of 10.3 feet (3.13 m) and weighed 366 pounds (166 kg). This may have included a substantial amount of undigested food. More typical weights for the largest wild dragons are about 154 pounds (70 kg). Although the Komodo can run briefly at speeds up to 13 mph (20 kph), its hunting strategy is based on stealth and power. They can spend hours in one spot, waiting for a deer, boar, goat, or anything sizable and nutritious.

Monitors can see objects as far away as 985 feet (300 m), so vision does play a role in hunting, especially as their eyes are better at picking up movement than at discerning stationary objects. Their retinas possess only cones, so they may be able to distinguish color but have poor vision in dim light. They have a much smaller hearing range than humans. The result is an animal that can not hear such sounds as a low pitched voice or a high pitched scream.

Vision and hearing are useful, but the Komodo's olfaction is its primary food detector. The Komodo detects odors much like a snake does. It uses its long, yellow forked tongue to sample the air, after which the two tongue tips retreat to the palate, where they make contact with the Jacobson's organs. The chemical analyzers "smell" a deer by recognizing airborne molecules. If the concentration present on the left tongue tip is higher than that sampled from the right, it tells the Komodo that the deer is approaching from the left. This system, along with an undulatory walk in which the head swings from side to side, helps the dragon sense the existence and direction of odoriferous carrion from as far away as 2.5 miles (four km), when the wind is right.

When the Komodo is hunting and catches its prey, a deer for instance, it attacks the feet first, knocking the deer off balance. When dealing with smaller prey, it may lunge straight for the neck. The dragons basic strategy is simple : try to smash the quarry to the ground and tear it to pieces. Strong muscles driving powerful claws accomplish some of this, but the Komodo's teeth are its most dangerous weapon. They are large, curved, and serrated, and tear flesh efficiently. If the deer fails to escape immediately, the Komodo will continue to rip it apart. Once convinced that its prey is incapacitated, the dragon may break off its offensive for a brief rest. The deer is now badly injured and in shock. The dragon then launches the final blow, a belly attack. The deer quickly bleeds to death, and the Komodo begins to feed.

Previous Post : Jaguar

Jaguar

The jaguar is the largest cat in the Americas. The jaguar has a compact body, a broad head and powerful jaws. Its coat is normally yellow and tan, but the color can vary from reddish brown to black. The spots on the coat are more solid and black on the head and neck and become larger rosette-shaped patterns along the side and back of the body.

Jaguars are known to eat deer, peccary, crocodiles, snakes, monkeys, deer, sloths, tapirs, turtles, eggs, frogs, fish and anything else it can catch.

The total number of jaguars throughout their range is unknown.

The jaguar can be found in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas and from Mexico all the way down to Patagonia. It is rare in the United States and is a federal endangered species.

The jaguar makes its home in a wide-variety of habitats including deciduous forests, rainforests, swamps, pampas grasslands and mountain scrub areas. They are solitary animals and live and hunt alone, except during mating season. The male's home range is between 19-53 square miles. The female's home range is between 10-37 square miles. A male jaguar may share his home range with several females. He will aggressively protect his home range from other males to ensure that any females in his territory mate only with him.

The jaguar hunts mostly on the ground, but it sometimes climbs a tree and pounces on its prey from above. It has very powerful jaws and sharp teeth and usually kills its prey with one crushing bite to the skull. Unlike most big cats, the jaguar loves the water. It often swims, bathes and plays in streams and pools. It will also hunt for fish in the water.

Previous Post : Killer Whale - Orca

Killer Whale - Orca

Orcas have long, rounded bodies with large dorsal fins at the middle of their backs. Their full radiator are marked with white patches on the underside and near the eyes.

Orcas feed on fish, squid, birds, and marine mammals. Like dolphins, orcas use echolocation - bouncing sound off of objects to determine their location - to hunt and use a series of high pitched clicks to stun prey.

Orca pods often work together to catch a meal. Pods sometimes will force many fish into one area and take turns feeding or will beach (slide out of the water onto the shore) themselves to scare seals or penguins into the water where other whales are waiting to feed.

Orcas are highly social animals that travel in groups called pods. Pods usually consist of 5 to 30 whales, although some pods may combine to form a group of 100 or more. Orcas establish social hierarchies, and pods are lead by females. The animals are thought to have a complex form of communication with different dialects (slightly different language) from one pod to another.

Orca gestation is 13 to 16 months. A calf is born in autumn weighing almost 400 pounds and measuring up to 7 feet in length. A calf will remain with its mother for at least two years.

Previous Post : Snowy Owl

Snowy Owl

Scientifically known as the Bubo scandiacus, the snowy owl is often referred to as the Arctic Owl or the Great White Owl. These are the fleshy of owls in North America and multiply on the Arctic tundra. These divine snowy owls can be found in Greenland, Iceland, Canada and the Northern parts of USA. This large bird has a rounded head with yellow eyes and a black bill. The overall plumage is speckled with thin and high bar or spots. The male snowy owls plumage is practically purely white where as the adult female have approx four to six tail circles. These owls are about 53-65 cms in length and have a wingspread of around 125-150 cms. The young snowy owls are smoothly brown. They also have dispersed tips of white.

The snowy owl does perch in trees but is known to live in hollowed out holes. This bird very seldom journeys into the forest regions. They principally are spotted in open grasslands, along lakesides, marshlands and marine coastlines. Many snowy owls migrate to the Great Plains of Canada around November and leave this area around March.

The voice of the snowy owls diverges. During the non-breeding season, they are comparatively silent. The male snowy owl has a typical call, which is very rough and sounds like a bark. The female snowy owl has a eminent pitched call. When it time for the pairing season, the male snowy owls have a loud and roaring sound. These are also known to clap their beaks when irritated. Young ones are known to chirp for at least the first 2 weeks.

The diet of the snowy owl comprises of lemmings and rodents. These owls are known to sit and hold back for their prey. They can catch the prey on ground, in the air or they are known to grab them even on top of the water bodies. Snowy owls use their beaks or their talons to sabotage the prey.

Previous Post : Asiatic Lion

Asiatic Lion

Common Name - Asiatic lion

Scientific Name - Panthera leo persica

Geographic habitat - Gir Forest National Park, Gujarat

Height - Approx 90cm

Length - 200-280cm

Weight - 200-275kg

Population - Around 300 (359)

The Asiatic Lion is only slightly smaller than the tiger and averages two metres in length (excluding its long tail) and about one metre at shoulder height. Males can vary between reddish-yellow and dark brown, while females are designed to blend in with savannah grasses and are, therefore, a sandy, light brown or beige colour. Their tales have a black tuft on the end. They differ from African Lions in several ways – they have a shorter mane, are generally fluffier and have much longer strands of hair on their elbows and the tips of their tails.

Asiatic Lions live in prides of up to approximately 15 animals. This is unique behaviour amongst the big cats of the wild, as the rest tend to be very territorial, preferring to inhabit their area alone. These lion prides comprise approximately three males, a number of females and their offspring. The males are seen as dominant, despite the females’ doing all the work. She will hunt for food, bring her catch back to the pride and then wait with her young while the males enjoy the takings. Once they are replete, the females and cubs are able to enjoy the leftovers. Still, each lion and lioness within the pride is closely bonded to the others, enjoying cooperation and unity within the wild. The females are particularly loyal to their pride, while the males are evicted at three years of age. Because hunting and stalking prey is generally done as a group, a single lion does not fare well on his own in the wild. Therefore, he does well to find another pride to join as soon as possible.

Indian Lions are carnivorous and depend upon hunting for food. Their prey mainly comprises of Deer, Antelope, Wild Boar and Wild Buffalo. At times, lions have also been observed attacking young hippopotamus and elephants.

These males then reach sexual maturity at about five years old (while females reach this stage at around four). After mating, she will incubate her cubs for between 100 and 120 days and she will give live birth to about three to five cubs.

Previous Post : Asian Elephants

Asian Elephants

Common Name: Asian elephant

Scientific Name: Elephas maximus

Location: Asia

Weight: 11,000 pounds (5,000kg)

Height: 3, 5 m (11 feet)

Asiatic elephants have accommodated to their surroundings as it changed over vast periods of time. Today they still interact with and form their surroundings. Their foraging natural actions assist to maintain the areas in which they live. by pulling down trees to eat leaves , branches, and roots they make clearings in which new immature trees and other flora grow to provide future nourishment for elephants and other organisms. Elephant tracks through the brush are routes that other creatures can use. White ants eat elephant fecal matters and often start out structure of termite heaps under piles of fecal matters! .

The Asian elephants' forest habitations are being devastated today because of commercial demand for forest educed productions such as coffee , tea, rubber , and hardwoods. Crop cultivation, excavation for iron ore, and flooding by hydroelectric undertakings have as well acted to diminish the large pieces of land of land commanded by elephants for adequate food provisions. Only about 35,000-40 ,000 Asian elephants make it today throughout a discontinuous range in southeast Asia.

The elephant's ivory tusks are incisors used for excavation, rooting out trees and displaying. The dominant elephant in the herd is a female , the matriarch. She is frequently the oldest, largest or most experienced elephant in the herd of related females and their young . Elephants can utilize low frequency sound waves for communication between fellow members of the herd and individuals outside the herd. These sounds may transport for distances of up to 10 miles.

Asian elephants are one of the largest herbivores (plant eaters) preferring grasses, leaves, trees, and even shrubs. Their diet varies from acacia trees to wild mangos.

Sometimes called the Indian elephant, this beast is likewise found in the dense forests and grassy plains of Sri Lanka, Burma , Thailand , Malaya, and Sumatra.

Previous Post : Amur Leopard -- A Solitary Hunter

Amur Leopard -- A Solitary Hunter

Scientific Name: Panthera pardus orientalis

Habitat: temperate forests

Location: Russian Far East and Northern China

Population: Fewer than 40 individuals

The Amur or Far Eastern leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis) is a subspecies of leopard and rates one of the world's most endangered big cats, with merely 2540 individuals making it in the eastmost regions of Russia. In the 19th century, the reach of the Amur leopard covered from southeast Russia, through Northeast China, and into the Korean peninsula. But after decades of home ground demolition, poaching, and hunting of its prey , the Amur leopard has been restricted to a small sherd of its previous range .

The Amur Panthera pardus is an rarity among leopard species . Unlike its relatives who populate the warm savannahs of Africa, the Amur leopard is well accommodated to the cold mountain home grounds of Russia's Far East. The Amur leopard has long limbs that enable it to walk through deep snow. When the seasons turn cold, the Amur leopard casts off its shorter, gold coloured coating in favor of a longer, lighter coloured coating which provides it with supplied insulant and camouflage .

The Amur leopard lives in the forests of the Sihote Alin Mountain Range where practically of the year it takes on deep snow and coarse moods. It relies on roe deer, sika deer, wild boar, musk deer, and little mammals such as rabbits and badgers for its solid food provision.

Female Amur leopards maintain home ranges that range in size from 15 to 38 square miles, while males can have territories as large as 155 square miles. They hunt mainly roe and sika deer, hares, badgers, mice, and other small animals.

Previous Post : Penguins -- Birds that can't fly

Penguins -- Birds that can't fly

Population: 2.5 million pairs

Location: Antarctic region

Size: About 30 inches tall

Weight: 11 pounds

Diet: Fish, krill, & other small crustaceans

Nests: Circle mounds of small stones

When one thinks of Antarctic wildlife, penguins are often the first animals that come to mind. Indeed these graceful, yet amusing ; hardy yet elegant animals are considered by many to be the signature species of the polar south. That is why we adjudicated to create a separate subdivision dedicated to the many penguin species and their enchanting characteristics .

Early Antarctic explorers really called up penguins were fish and sorted them accordingly. In fact, as birds, they are marvellously designed for their job , fleeing underwater with great skill . Their compact bodies have a breastbone that causes an excellent keel and they have massive paddle muscles to propel them at speeds up to 25 miles per hour. Their heads retract to create a complete hydrodynamic form. When locomoting speedily, penguins will jump clear of the water every few feet -- an activity called 'porpoising.' This enables them to take a breath, and lessens their chances of being taken by a predator . South polar penguins have besides developed the ability to leap out of the water to a significant height on land, enabling them to promptly reach the base hit of lifted ice edges or stone shelfs. Penguin legs are positioned far down on their bodies , so they walk with a really erect posture . Ashore they are often awkward, toddling and skipping over stones ; on snow they sometimes push themselves along on their stomaches.

Penguins are straight flightless birds. Some species drop equally much as 75 % of their lives at sea, however they all breed on land or sea-ice attached to land. To hold out the harsh conditions of the Antarctic, their bodies are insulated by a thick layer of fatness and a dense network of waterproofed plumage . Penguins' bones are solid and heavy, which help them to stay underwater and cut down the energy required for pursuance diving .

Previous Post : Orangutans