The Free Spirited Animal: The Horse

This photo is not my property, it is taken from http://www.horsewallpapers.in/wallpaper/hd-horse-wallpaper/

Whenever I think or talk about horses, I would picture them either in a farm working for a farmer or in a wide grassland running strong and free. Speaking of farms, did you know that horses have domesticated by humans for approximately 6,000 years ago? And they are related to other horse family such as zebras, donkeys and mules.

Horses are quite social, they can get along with other animals, such as cats, sheep, cows and even dogs (that is if dogs are well behaved, because horses can easily get frightened by them.) other than their own. Although, there are about 20~25 mares (that is the female horse.) and a stallion (a male horse.) in a herd. It is also important to always have companions for horses, or else they can get depressed and quite lonely easily.

Do you know how long does a horse live? Well, there are some cases that a horse is SO long lived that they can reach to a ripe old age of 48 years old!! But their life span is around 30 years of age. And the only way so far to tell a horse's age is by and how they wore their teeth, meaning their teeth tend to get blunt with age, so it is actually kind of difficult to tell the age by the age of 12.

Here's a final little horse tip, horses can run fast, right? Did you know that they are running with their middle finger? All other toes, or fingers are degenerated over the years of evolution. They also have a very strong tendon wrapped around their hooves so they don't get tired easily while sleeping on their feet.

The colorful birds in the Tropics: The Parrots!

This picture was taken a few days ago when I went volunteering at the aquarium inside the Amazon gallery, and, boy! Those employees sure do make sure the gallery is humid and hot! Just like in the Amazonian forest. I was already sweating like crazy for only after 5 minutes in there. But the great picture was worth the sweat.

Now how many fun facts do you know about them?

• Definition: Parrots are usually brightly colored tropical birds with short hooked beaks and the ability to mimic sounds. There are about 250 different species

• Parrots are described as zygodactylous. A zygodactyl bird has the first and fourth toes directed backward the second and third pointing forward

• Many species of parrots, as cage birds, learn to imitate sounds, and to repeat words and phrases

• Parrots are omnivorous, which means they eat both vegetation and meat, such as seeds, nuts, fruit, buds, other plant material and of course, meat itself.
  

• They are highly intelligent birds, some can even reach up to the intelligence of a 6 year old.
  

• Parrots are found on all tropical and subtropical continents The Budgerigar is a small parrot and is the most popular of all pet bird species. Other parrot species that are kept as pets include macaws, Amazons, cockatoos, African Greys, lovebirds, cockatiels and parakeets

• Lifespan: 80 years

• Weight: 2.25 oz (65 g) to 3.5 lbs (1.6 kg)

• Height: 3.5 in (8.7cm) to 40 in (100 cm)

• They use their bills and toes for climbing

• Parrots are monogamous - they mate for life

• African gray parrots are the best mimics. Wild parrots do not imitate

• Parrots are the only birds that can bring food to its mouth with its foot

• The biggest parrot is the Hyacinth Macaw (Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus) which grows up to 39 inches (100cm) long and can weigh almost 5 pounds

• The smallest parrot is the buff-faced pygmy parrot (Micropsitta pusio) which is only 3.5 inches (9 cm) tall and weighs as little as 0.4oz (11,5g)

• Parrot eggs are always white

• Endangered Species: 130 species are listed as near threatened or worse by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)

Bats: The Flying Mammal

The picture is not my property, I do not claim it as my own. It was taken from http://www.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://animal.discovery.com/mammals/bat/pictures/bat-picture.jpg&imgrefurl=http://animal.discovery.com/mammals/bat/&usg=__7hRrXsVuvzJNmXIJTRx84tu0gX8=&h=450&w=625&sz=35&hl=en&start=61&sig2=rPLk4bwWLA_kq0FqOS392w&zoom=1&tbnid=qIuDH4iSFsq0zM:&tbnh=135&tbnw=180&ei=X_7ETbSuPJGasAP-hNzrAQ&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dbat%2Bpictures%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26hs%3DlTd%26sa%3DX%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26biw%3D1366%26bih%3D601%26tbm%3Disch0%2C1482&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=921&vpy=312&dur=300&hovh=189&hovw=264&tx=197&ty=172&page=4&ndsp=21&ved=1t:429,r:19,s:61&biw=1366&bih=601


Many of us tend to go "Eeek!" or "Ahhh!!" when we think of or talk about bats, which is quite normal! Because they are quite scary looking, and some of those bats (Of course NOT every one of them, some are actually quite gentle and they rather eat fruits or insects.) are vampire bats, who actually do drink blood for their main course. But just think, just because of those vampire bats and some really sick people back in the old days, who just needed some blood transfusion, there came some of those great stories about Batman, the vampires stories like Dracula and the now very popular movie franchise, Twilight.

As I mentioned before that there are different bats around the world, except for really cold places, as the matter of fact, there are over 1,000 species of them flying around! And did you know that bats are the ONLY mammal who can fly? Their wings are made of a layer of skin, stretched between those long slender fingers, (yes, they do have hands and fingers and they do fly with them.)

In the traditional scary vampire movies, we are being taught that vampires sleep during the day and awake at night, right? Well, it's quite true, because it's the same thing goes with the real bats. Which means, they are nocturnal and they prefer to come out at night.

You might wonder if they got good eye sight if moving around at night without bumping each other. To tell you the truth, for those bats who eat fruit, yes, they do see very well because they have very large eyes, which help them to collect the dimmest light around them to see the environment. But for those who eat insects, they don't see quite as well, but they make up for a build-in sonar system, called the echolocation, to help them see and hunt.

So, the next time when you see or hear a bat, just think they are the inspiration of many great stories that we love today.

Question and answers on Squirrels.

Hey, Tammy!

Wow, squirrels finally come up! They are really active no matter which situation! Do they like to take a break? How many hours a day does average squirrels spend sleeping?

Tina Liu




Hi, Tina!

Fist of all, thanks for reading my blog and also asking questions. It's great that people are asking them! I welcome it anytime of the day. When people are getting so quiet, I really start to wonder if they are reading and learning something new.

So, anyway, to answer your question (which is a very good one, too!), it is unknown exactly exactly how long squirrels sleep, but they hibernate beginning in June to September and stay asleep until February, and squirrels will sleep in their nest at night and during parts of the day when they are not out foraging (foraging means looking.) for food.

Hope I answered your question! And remember to take care of the animals around you and the 3 Rs: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.

Cheers,
Tammy

Squirrels

When we talk about squirrels, we immediately considered them as the cute category (which is quite true.), but did you know that there are more than 300 species of squirrels in 7 families and also part of the rodent family? (Rodent is a species for animals who are small in size and their teeth keep on growing, like rats and mice. By the way, rabbits ARE NOT rodents, they are different kind of species, although their teeth do grow non stop.)

This picture was taken in the national park in Lake Louis, Alberta, Canada. My husband and I went there quite often when we lived in the province. This little squirrel was just standing there and I just couldn't refuse but to take a picture.

Squirrels have different types, such as ground squirrels, tree squirrels, flying squirrels and fox squirrels. Squirrels are seen in different colors such as gray, white, red and black. They have a life span of 5 to 7 years.

Interesting Facts About Squirrels

• A squirrel's brain is almost the size of a walnut.
• Squirrels start mating when they are a year old. Male is the cleaner sex in squirrels. A male squirrel makes a sneezing sound when ready to mate. The mating season for them mostly begins in the late winters where they are most active.
• Majority of the squirrels mate twice a year. The female squirrel gives birth to 4 or 8 offsprings.
• The new born squirrels are naked (without fur) and are called kittens. They remain blind for almost 2 months or more.
• Squirrels are so fast that they can run at the speed of 20 miles per hour.
• A squirrel stands motionless on two feet when it senses danger.
• The tail helps the squirrel to balance its body while jumping.
• A squirrel can survive even if it jumps from a height of 100 ft. as it has padded feet.
• Squirrels hardly move out of their nests in the night. They get back to their nests before it gets dark.
• Squirrels are not sexually dimorphic, that is, both males and females are of the same size.
• They communicate with their distinctive chirps.
• Another interesting fact about squirrels is that they have sweat glands on their feet.
• Squirrels have such sharp teeth that they can break the hard shells of nuts, and also chew the electric wires.
• Squirrels are mostly vegetarian but sometimes they do eat small insects, small birds or bird eggs. They also love seeds, tree buds, berries, etc..

The Speeding Feline: The Cheetahs

The photo is taken from http://exiledonline.com/usain-bolt-vs-a-cheetah/

Once again, thank you all for reading my animal posts, but this time, I give an extra big THANK YOU to Brandon, who's a good friend of mine that encouraged me and gave me the idea on writing a topic on today's subject: The Cheetah. So, here's to you, Brandon!

Swahili Name:	Duma
Scientific Name:	Acinonyx jubatus
Size:	30 inches at the shoulder
Weight:	110 to 140 pounds
Lifespan:	10 to 20 years
Habitat:	Open plains
Diet:	Smaller antelopes
Gestation:	90 to 95 days
Predators:	Eagles, humans, hyenas, lions

The lion is said to be majestic, the leopard ferocious and shrewd. But elegant and graceful best describes the cheetah. The cheetah is smaller than the other two cats, but by far the fastest at speeds of 70 miles per hour it can run faster than all other animals.
Now restricted to sub-Saharan Africa, wild cheetahs once were found in most of Africa, the plains of southern Asia, the Middle East and India.

Physical Characteristics
The cheetah is built for speed. It has long, slim, muscular legs, a small, rounded head set on a long neck, a flexible spine, a deep chest, nonretractable claws, special pads on its feet for traction and a long, tail for balance. Although fast, the cheetah cannot run at full speed for long distances (100 yards is about the limit) because it may overheat.
Cheetahs have distinctive black "tear stripes" that connect from the inside corner of each eye to the mouth that may serve as an antiglare device for daytime hunting.

Habitat
Cheetahs are found in open and partially open savannas.

Behavior
Cheetah mothers spend a long time teaching their young how to hunt small live antelopes are brought back to the cubs and released so they can chase and catch them. Unlike most other cats, the cheetah usually hunts during daylight, preferring early morning or early evening to avoid competition, but is also and can be active on moonlit nights.
Cheetahs do not roar like lions, but they purr, hiss, whine and growl. They also make a variety of contact calls, the most common is a birdlike chirping sound.

Diet
Once a cheetah has made a kill, it eats quickly and keeps an eye out for scavengers lions, leopards, hyenas, vultures and jackals will occasionally take away their kills. Although cheetahs usually prey on the smaller antelopes such as Thomson's gazelles and impalas, they can catch wildebeests and zebras if hunting together. They also hunt hares and other small mammals and birds.
Although known as an animal of the open plains that relies on speed to catch its prey, research has shown that the cheetah depends on cover to stalk prey. The cheetah gets as close to the prey as possible, then in a burst of speed tries to outrun its quarry. Once the cheetah closes in, it knocks the prey to the ground with its paw and suffocates the animal with a bite to the neck.

Caring for the Young
With a life span of 10 to 12 years, and like all other felines, except for the lion, the cheetah is basically a solitary animal. At times a male will accompany a female for a short while after mating, but most often the female is alone or with her cubs. Two to four cubs are born in a secluded place. Their eyes do not open for a week or two, and they are helpless at first. When the mother is hunting, she leaves them hidden, but by 6 weeks of age they are able to follow her. They are suckled for 2 to 3 months but begin to eat meat as early as 3 weeks.
By 4 months the cheetah cub is a tawny yellow and almost completely spotted; the tail has bands of black and by adulthood a white tip. The grayish mantle disappears more slowly; the last traces are still visible when the cubs are adult-sized at 15 months.

Predators
A shy creature that roams widely, the cheetah is not seen as easily as some other cats. Never numerous, cheetahs have become extinct in many areas, principally due to shrinking habitat, loss of species to prey upon, disease and a high rate of cub mortality. In some areas 50 to 75 percent of all cheetah cubs die before 3 months.

Did you know?

• The name cheetah comes from an Indian word meaning "spotted one."
• The young cub has a long gray-blue coat and a black underbelly that rapidly lightens and becomes spotted.
• Early peoples trained cheetahs for hunting, and many civilizations depicted them in their art and in written records.
• Cheetahs were so popular that Akbar the Great of India was said to have kept a stable of about 1,000

Friendly but Energetic Sled Dogs

This picture was taken on the street, this dog is a coyote and a husky mix. A really beautiful dog!


Many of us know what a sled dog is, there are the famous wolf like Siberian Husky and the sturdy Alaskan Malamute to the smiling creamy white not wolf like Samoyed. They happened to be one of my favorite breeds, not just because I had one before, but because of their beauty and stamina.

Those dogs are originally bred for sledding and pulling carts back in the days when cars weren't as popular as today, hence the great amount of energy and the tendency to pull, but now they are becoming great house pets with energetic owners with the knowledge of those dogs.

They are really smart, but have their will of them own, so that leads to being stubborn and hard to train from time to time, so being patient is especially essential for these dogs. Like wolves, they howl when they are lonely or just being very "communicative". They have two layers of coat, one is the undercoat, which is really fine, soft and dense for fighting the winter cold, the other one is the outer coat, which is long and coarse for repelling dirt and stuff off.