This Week's Featured Animal! - 10/18 - 10/21

I apologize for the very, very long delay everyone. Life has been hetic and busy, and access to computers limited. But I should be posting more often now, so cheers!

Anyways, I thought I would post an animal for this week. What animal? Well, it is small, in the antelope family, and utterly adorable in my opinion. Meet the Thomson's Gazelle!

These tiny ungulates come from Africa, and are often hunted by cheetahs. Their average live span is usually between 10-12 years, and are social animals. They live in herds between 10-100+ individuals. They frequent the grassy plains of Africa, feeding on the various grasses found throughout. 

These tiny gazelles are very fleet of foot, reaching speeds up to 40 mph! But for anyone who knows anything about cheetahs, they would know that is not nearly fast enough to outrun the swift cat. But they make up for this by making sharp turns and doing a behavior known as 'pronking', which involves jumping into the air. It is quite comical to watch, really. They do this in hopes that the predator chasing them won't be able to make the sharp turns or hurt themselves trying. 

When it comes to breeding, Thomson's gazelles are like most on the savanna. They have a pregnancy of about 6 months, and give birth to 1-2 tiny calves. The babies will lay and hide in the grass while mom grazes nearby, hoping that no predators find them. They are very good at the hiding, and can avoid being seen for days or even weeks at a time! They are nursed periodically until they are able to join the herd. For females, it would be joining the mother's herd. But for young males, that means joining a bachelor herd.

The horns on males can grow to be about 17 inches long (43.18 cm), and there is an estimated total population of 550K individuals. That is a lot of gazelles, and this species is suspected to be the most common in East Africa. As for their name, they were named for researcher Joseph Thomson. 

Sources: 

• http://www.awf.org/wildlife-conservation/thomsons-gazelle
• http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/gazelle/

This Week's Featured Animal! 8/3 - 8/8

 Hello everyone! Before I begin, I would just like to state my most sincere apologies that I haven't been posting as much. My access to computers has been rather limited as of late. But I have been seeing a lot about a certain animal on the news. It played a part in a recent movie, and zookeepers around the world have been reenacting the scene in which this animal was with their own. This week's animal, though extinct, is very interesting. I am giving you, the velociraptor!

If velociraptors were housepets they'd be just like cats, total jerks!
Posted by Watch This on Saturday, June 20, 2015

Even though velociraptors are shown as pretty big dinos, they are actually quite small. Think domestic house-cat to medium dog small. Yeah. A lot smaller than the movies make them look, right?

Their scientific name, Velociraptor mongoliensis, translates literally into "Swift Thief". Fossils of these small reptiles have mainly been found in Mongolia, and likely lived in a more desert-like terrain than most dinosaurs. From nose to tail, they could reach about 6 feet long. 

Recent fossil finds have been suggesting that these tiny raptors had feathers. What's more, scientists are beginning to think that most, if not all, dinosaurs had feathers. While no one is really sure what these feathers would be used for, it would likely be camouflage, attracting a mate, or temperature regulation. That is all I can do for today though. Bye!

This Week's Featured Animal! 6/21 - 6/27

This week's featured animal is a little smaller than the ones that I had been doing before. They are itty bitty, small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. They are often kept as pets, and a little on the pokey side. They also tend to look very grumpy half of the time. What are they? African Pygmy Hedgehogs!

As their name suggests, these small mammals are native to Africa. But thanks to the pet trade, they are now found worldwide. They usually weigh between 1 and 1.5 pounds, so they are extremely light. The spines on their back don't have barbs, which is very lucky. Another cool fact about those spines is that they are actually the hedgehog's hair! 

This species is unique in that it has four toes on its hind legs, and five on the front. While these guys do have a decent ability to see things, they tend to rely more on smell and sound to get around. They live around 2-3 years in the wild, but can live up to 10 years in captivity. Needless to say, their lifespan doubles or more in captivity. 

These hedgehogs can begin breeding at about 2 months of age, and gestation will last about 35 days. Around 6-8 young are born with each pregnancy. They are nocturnal creatures, and actually pretty solitary normally. Much like other hedgehogs, these guys can roll up into a ball if they feel threatened. 

These guys are insectivores, which means that they like to eat bugs. They have even been known to eat poisonous spiders and scorpions with no ill effects! Now if only humans had that ability... While they are fairly quiet for the most part, they can make a wide variety of sounds. Hisses, chirps, growl, and even scream! 

Hardly anyone has an allergic reaction to hedgehogs, and they are virtually odorless. They are fairly clean animals, and can be trained to use a litter box. 

Sources:

• http://www.factzoo.com/mammals/african-pygmy-hedgehog.html
• http://animal-world.com/encyclo/critters/hedgehog/hedgehog.php

This Week's Featured Animal! 6/14 - 6/20

This week's animal isn't endangered, nor is it exotic to those that live in the Pacific Northwest. If anything, it is a fairly common animal, often found in rural areas munching on people's gardens and otherwise being a pest. Hunted for sport, the head and ornaments that are attached becoming trophies to hang on the wall. What is it? The black tailed deer!

As their name suggests, these deer have black tails... Or at least, mostly black tails. They are actually one of 9 species of mule deer, in all truth though. They were first found and recorded as a species when Lewis and Clark went on their famous expedition into the Northwest.

Unlike most mule deer species, these guys don't really migrate. They usually just stay in one general area. The only thing that can displace them is usually a forest fire or the like. Does of this species usually weigh about 130 lbs, while as bucks can weigh up to 200 lbs. I guess that there are some humans can outweigh them. But do not underestimate their strength.

Only the males have antlers, and will begin growing them for the first time around 6-8 months old. After that, the antlers will get bigger year after year. In 4-5 years, they will be at full size. That means that they won't really get any bigger in terms of how wide the antlers are, but will continue to add branches and forks as they get older.

This species prefers to live in wooded areas, and as previously stated will more or less stay in the same place. They like to eat acorns, berries, fungi, grasses, lichen, nuts, shrubs and woody growth. Being ungulates, they have about 4 stomachs. That means that like cows, they can regurgitate cud and chew their food all over again. Personally, I find it gross. But it works for them.

The mating season usually lasts through November and some of December. Does prefer males with large antlers, and the males will fight to establish dominance and mating rights. Fawns will arrive in late May or early June, weighing in at about 6-8 pounds. Twins are pretty common, but young females will usually only have one. The males take no part in child-rearing, leaving the moms up to it. 

There is one huge problem with fawns though. Usually a mom seeks seclusion before giving birth, to help avoid predators for her newborns. For the first few weeks of life, the fawn is mostly left all alone except for feeding time. People come across these fawns and think that they are abandoned, and need help. MORE LIKELY THAN NOT, YOU ARE WRONG. DO NOT TAKE YOUNG FAWNS THAT YOU FIND. LEAVE THEM ALONE. There are rare cases where you need to take it in, but do not keep it as a pet. If you find a fawn that is cold, weak, thin, or injured, keep an eye on it. If mom does not return to it within eight hours, it might be orphaned and need your help. If this is the case, call a rehabilitation center that is in your area. DO NOT TRY TO RAISE IT YOURSELF. DO NOT KEEP IT AS A PET. Little known, but it is actually illegal unless you have a permit.Wildlife Safari actually has the result of one of those illegal pet deer. 

Meet Snowball. Yes, she is indeed a black tailed deer. A genetic mutation caused her unique coloration, along with short legs and severe arthritis. But she is on pain meds. Someone, while walking, had found her as a fawn. Assuming that she was abandoned or orphaned, they took her home.

They raised Snowball as a pet, collar and everything. But one day, a neighbor complained about Snowball for one reason or another. The moment the police/animal control found out, she was taken away. She couldn't be released into the wild, she was too tame for that by this point, and would not survive.

The owners fought in court to get her back. But they did not have the permit, and they couldn't get one. So they lost the case, and Snowball had to find a new home.

Wildlife Safari offered to take her in, and we now have her in the Petting Zoo area of Village. Snowball loves attention, especially chin scratches. But even so, she is just one of hundreds, if not thousands of fawns taken from the wild because of confused or ignorant humans. Think about how their mothers must feel! For those who are moms, how would you like it if your perfectly healthy baby was taken away? Especially if you later found out that it was because of ignorance, and someone thought that they were abandoned or orphaned?

So remember, leave fawns alone unless they show obvious signs of distress (See above, before Snowball's Story).

Sources:

• http://wdfw.wa.gov/conservation/health/rehabilitation/deer_fawns.html
• http://animals.mom.me/blacktailed-deer-6477.html
• http://www.nhm.org/site/explore-exhibits/permanent-exhibits/north-american-mammals/black-tailed-deer

This Week's Featured Animal! 6/7 - 613

This week's featured animal is a bird. A bird of prey. This week's tiny animal is the flammulated owl!

These guys are the only owl in the Scops owl family that can be found in North America. They are called the flammulated owl because they have a flame colored and shaped marking on their wings. They are even smaller than Kotori (see Meet the Animals), at 5.9 - 6.7 inches tall!

These guys generally prefer insects for food, simply because they aren't big enough to eat much else. Very rarely do they eat shrews or other small rodents. When they call, they sound like a much larger owl that is calling in the distance.

These guys prefer to nest in tree cavities, but will also use a nesting box on occasion. Individuals will often use the same nesting site year after year, laying between 2-4 creamy white eggs. These eggs are incubated for 21-24 days before hatching into tiny fuzzballs.

They are considered to be of Least Concern to the ICUN Red List, which is very nice. They used to be considered rare, but a recent census showed that they are actually one of the most common owls in forests. These guys can be hard to locate from their calling, though. The way that they hoot makes it difficult to figure out where it is coming from, and they hoot even softer when they see a human. That makes them sound even farther away!

Sources: 

• http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Flammulated_Owl/sounds
• http://www.owlinstitute.org/flammulated-owl.html

Animal of the Week 5/31-6/6

I'm sorry that this is a little late guys. But here is the next animal of the week!

The Red Lored Amazon

To start things off, let's take a look at where these guys come from. Red lored amazons are native to Central and South America. They are actually one of the most common pet parrots in the US, but are considered endangered in some of their range. The biggest threat to them is being captured for the pet trade.

These guys like to nest in tree cavities, and lay 3-4 eggs in a clutch. These eggs are white, and are incubated for about 26 days. When hatchlings are taken from the nest for the pet trade, they are usually between a few hours to a few days old. If they are left in the nest, then they leave the nest to live on their own about 60 days after hatching.

They eat a variety of fruits and nuts, with seeds thrown in as well. In captivity, they also get fresh veggies and sometimes cooked beans as well.

These parrots can be quite noisy, and live for up to 75 years. Like most other parrots, they chew a lot as well. That means that if you get one of these birds as a pet, do not expect to have pristine wood furniture anymore. Or any pristine furniture, for that matter. You can also expect your clothing to get more holes, and some remodeling of your house via beak to be done as well.

They are also known as Yellow-Cheek amazons, but are only one among about 50 species of amazons. Christopher Columbus was the first one to call these guys amazons, which was the name of the bird he brought back from the New World.

Sources

• http://rosamondgiffordzoo.org/assets/uploads/animals/pdf/Red-loredAmazonParrot.pdf
• http://www.beautyofbirds.com/redloredamazon.html
• http://www.parrots.org/index.php/encyclopedia/wildstatus/red_lored_amazon/

This Week's Featured Animal! 5/24-5/30

This week's featured animal is a crocodilian species found in Asia, especially India. However, they are endangered. What is it? The gharial!

In the wild, these guys can live between 40 and 60 years. That is fairly long lived, no? They can be anywhere from 12.25 feet to 15.5 feet long! Not to mention they can weigh up to 2,200 pounds. 

The only crocodillian with such a narrow snout is the false gharial. How slender their snout is will depend on the individual, and their age. As they get older, their snouts will get thicker and shorter. Mature males have a bulbous growth on the tip of their snouts. Scientists think that it may have something to do with sound resonation or  a visual signal to females. Or it could be both! 

The reason why they have such narrow and long snouts is to make it easier to catch their favorite food. These guys prefer to eat fish, rather than the diets of other crocodile and alligator species. The only bigger animal in their family is the salt water crocodile, so these guys are pretty big. 

These guys can't walk on land very well either. When they are on land, they don't even move like other alligators or crocodiles. Instead, they move more like sea turtles in that they slide forward on their bellies, using their legs to push. But they make up for this by being especially agile in the water.

On average, they have between 106-110 teeth in that elongated snout of theirs. So they are well equipped to capture delicious fish.

Sources:

• http://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/reptilesamphibians/facts/factsheets/gharial.cfm
• http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/reptiles/gavial.html