Wild Facts

Photo by: Donar Reiskoffer

It is the end of the week and the beginning of another long weekend (in North America) so I think this is cause to celebrate.  We are going to celebrate by learning about the Keel Billed Toucan.  What? You have never celebrated with a Toucan before? This is going to be a lot of fun.  Before we “party down” let’s find out a little more about this colourful bird.

The Keel Billed Toucan is also known as the Rainbow Billed Toucan.  Can anyone out there guess as to how they got this name? I have a hunch it has to do with having one of the most colourful beaks in all of the bird world.  Their bills are shades of green, red, yellow and orange.  This amazingly colourful bill can get up to 20 cm (8″) long and is actually about one third of the entire birds length.  Surprisingly this disproportionate bill does not cause the bird to simply fall over all the time.  It would be kind of funny if it did but let’s face it, evolution would have taken care of such a poor design.  Instead, their bill is made of keratin (yes the same stuff our finger nails are made of) which makes it very light.  This is handy since they don’t have to worry about being top heavy all the time.

Photo by: Adalberto Hernandez Vega

In order to check out these colourful birds we will need to venture into the jungles of South America.  Oh, don’t be scared, what could possibly harm you in the deep, dark jungles of the rainforest? The good news is, once you find one Keel Billed Toucan you will probably see others.  This particular bird is very sociable and very seldom seen by themselves.  In fact, they are known to live in the holes of the trees with several other Keel Billed Toucans.  You would think that it would be uncomfortable but I guess that is the price you pay to have a fraternity/sorority house.

Keel Billed Toucan Fast Fact - Fitting in with their social “extrovert” lifestyle the Keel Billed Toucan is known to be a playful bird.  They have often been spotted throwing berries at other birds or using their bills to jostle with their Toucan Friends.  Right now, I have this image of birds throwing berries at each other like a snowball fight.

That does it for Friday’s Fun-Filled Fact.  Make sure you tune in on Monday for a holiday special. Have a great weekend everyone!

For some additional Friday fun, check out the video of Pogo the Pet Keel Billed Toucan.  I dare you not to smile when Pogo turns his head to look at the camera.

Photo by Victor Patel

I just realized I missed a very important date in history.  On August 22, 2010, Wild Facts celebrated its 1 year anniversary. I can’t believe it has been over a year already.  We have covered off quite a few animal species so far and I am just as excited as I was back then to continue on with the amazing feats of nature.  With that said, we are going to look at the Golden Orb Weaver today which is truly an incredible spider. I want to thank Kanjiruminamoto for the excellent suggestion. This particular spider is also known as a Giant Wood Spider or Banana Spider.

Their name, Golden Orb Weaver, does not come from the colour of the spider but instead the colour of their web.  That’s right spider fans, the Golden Orb Weaver will actually spin a gold web.  Now before you run out and try to collect these gold webs to send into “Dollars 4 Gold” you need to know that they aren’t real gold.  Actually, I think I would like to try this experiment to see if they will send you a cheque for your gold web. For the record, does anyone else see the flaw in packing up your gold into an envelope, sending it to a company that “promises” to send you back a cheque worth top dollar?

Golden Orb Weaver eating a bird

Although the gold colour of these webs are impressive I find the size far more interesting.  Believe it or not the Golden Orb Weaver is capable of making a spider web with the circular center section being more than 1 m (3′) across and can have supporting threads ranging much further. Some reports identified the webs being 6 m (18′) high by 2 m (6′) wide.  Basically, they make really big and really strong spider webs.  In fact these silk webs are so incredibly strong that they have been known to catch small birds.  Usually the spider won’t eat the birds but as you can see in the picture to the left, that isn’t always the case.  By the way is anyone else creeped out by that picture? Again, the strength of these webs allows the spider to keep them for several years.

You have to figure that if the webs are that big than the spider must be pretty big as well.  Typically the female version of the Golden Orb Weaver will be about 5 cm (2″) from toe to toe while the males are considerably smaller.  Again, there have been reports from Australia that some of these spiders grow as large as your hand and in some cases may get even larger. That would be one big spider, my friends.

Golden Orb Weaver Fast Fact - The silk created from the Golden Orb Weaver is almost as strong as Kevlar.  You know that stuff found in bullet-proof vests. Yeah, that strong! The poor bird didn’t stand a chance, heck even a gun would have been useless for the surprised bird.

Well that just about does it for me today.  I apologize to all of the people out there afraid of spiders. I  am sure the image of a spider eating a bird didn’t help with that phobia. Once you are finished your panic attack, I suggest watching the 2 minute video clip below. In the clip the Golden Orb Weaver is wrapping up a wasp in order to store it for later.  As one of the comments on YouTube pointed out, “Think of it as Tupperware for spiders”.

Photo by: Muhammad Mahdi Karim

Today we are all in for a very special treat.  I am sending everyone on a trip to the exotic islands of Aldabra in the Indian Ocean.  I know!  I am pretty excited too.  We are taking a quick trip there to learn about the Aldabra Giant Tortoise which just happens to be one of the largest tortoise species in the world. They are also one of the oldest. I will tell you how big and how old in a second as I want to keep the suspense up for a bit.

These wickedly, cool reptiles can be found in herds (or individually) hanging out in the grasslands or swampy areas of the aforementioned islands.  All right, I can’t handle the suspense any longer.  The Aldabra Giant Tortoise is approximately 1 m (3′) long and can weigh up to an astonishing 250 kg (550 lbs).  Believe it or not there is an Aldabra Giant Tortoise at the Fort Worth Zoological Park that weighs about 790 lbs.  I want to put this into perspective for everyone, a Grizzly Bear will usually weigh about 500 lbs with the larger bears being about 700 lbs.  Who would have thought that a Tortoise could weigh as much as a Grizzly Bear?  The Aldabra Giant Tortoise has a very large, domed shape carapace (shell) which is supported by strong, stocky legs. I am sure this large shell contributes to a good chunk of their weight.  This particular turtle also has a very long neck which allows them to feed on leaves approximately 1 m (3′) off the ground. Personally I am starting to think they are more closely related to a Giraffe than any other animal species.  Obviously I am kidding since the Giraffe is much heavier and much taller.

Giddy Up!!

So we now know that these Giant Tortoise species could probably use a few months on the Atkins diet.  Actually their diet of leaves and grass is probably pretty close to the Atkins diet.  Let’s find out just how long these giant beasts hang around for.  It is thought that many of these Tortoise species are over 200 years old.  The oldest living Aldabra Giant Tortoise was 255 years old and lived from 1750-2005.  I would like to put this amazing stat into perspective as well.  This particular tortoise named Adwaita lived to see the Industrial Revolution, Napoleonic Wars, American Revolution, War of 1812, two World Wars, the invention of the steam engine, the first flight and of course experienced some of the greats such as Darwin, Mozart, Beethoven and one of my favourites, Thomas Edison. Not to mention that the human population when Adwaita was born was probably under 1 billion people worldwide, which of course is about 7 times lower than it is now. I would have loved to have had a conversation with that Tortoise.

Aldabra Giant Tortoise – This particular species of Tortoise had some very powerful friends, such as Charles Darwin who managed to create a wildlife preserve by the end of the 19th Century so these timeless creatures would be protected.  I wonder if our good friend Adwaita helped with that movement?

That is all for today folks.  I hope you enjoyed the unusual history lesson. Enjoy the remainder of your beautiful day.

Photo from Wikimedia

Photo by: Jörg Hempel

My nieces birthday is coming up later this week and her parents just finished giving her an early birthday present.  Believe it or not they got her a cute, little Hedgehog, although I think the parents wanted one just as much! As you may have guessed (or by reading the title) today’s post is of course about the Hedgehog. Now if you are like me than the first thing you think of is Sonic the Hedgehog which of course was a popular game for Sega. Is Sega still around? Anyway a real Hedgehog is not blue but it does have quills and it can curl up into a ball just like on the game.

There are actually 15 species of Hedgehog that can be found in Europe, Asia and Africa. Similarly they have also been introduced to places such as New Zealand. For the record the one my little niece received as an early birthday present is most likely the African Pygmy Hedgehog since they are most commonly used for pets.  As with most animals there is usually a reason for the animals name.  The Hedgehog is no different and received this name by their unique foraging behaviour. When this particular animal looks for food they stuff their heads down below the hedges and undergrowth while rooting around for insects, worms, mice, snails and of course frogs. While scurrying around underneath the hedges they would often make pig-like noises so they became known as “Hedgehogs”.  It all makes sense now, doesn’t it?

Photo by: Lars Karlsson

One of the first things you notice about the Hedgehog is their coat of spines which they use to protect themselves from predators.  When threatened they will often curl up in a ball leaving very few body parts unprotected.  As well, during the day they will usually sleep while curled up before venturing out to play at night.  Personally I prefer to sleep on my stomach cuddling my pillow but that is just me.

The Hedgehog will usually give birth to a litter from one to eleven baby Hedgehogs.  Keeping this litter alive is a difficult job for the mother even though the babies only stick around for 4 to 7 weeks before heading out on their own.  During this time the mother must be on guard for all types of predators including male hedgehogs which will often try to eat her young.  I guess these guys never truly got their paternal instinct.  Even crazier is the fact that mother has also been known to eat her cute little babies if the nest has been disturbed.  Normally, she would just move them to a new nest but strange things do happen.  I don’t see how anything could ever harm such a cute animal.

Hedgehog Fast Facts – If the Hedgehog is living in an area with cold climates than they will typically hibernate for the winter.  On the other hand if they live in the harsh deserts than they will also sleep through extreme heat and drought but this process isn’t quite the same as hibernation.  Finally the Hedgehogs hanging out in the temperate climate will remain active all year.

Well that is it for today’s pet.  I hope you all enjoyed learning about Sonic and I will see you all here tomorrow for another fun and exciting Wild Fact.

Wooohooo!! Another week of Wild Facts.  I know all of you wish that the weekend would just hurry up and get out of the way so you can start reading these interesting animal facts again.  Pesky weekends! Today we are going to look at the Cotton-Top Tamarin and they personally remind of a Gremlin. Does anyone else see this resemblance? You may remember we discussed a similar animal called the Emperor Tamarin, the one with the big mustache. Like their cousin the Cotton-Top Tamarin is also a small monkey found in the beautiful forests of South America.

The Cotton-Top is only about 18-30 cm (7-12″) long and is different than most monkey’s since they don’t have an opposable thumb or a prehensile tail. Don’t worry since this doesn’t make them any less of a monkey although I am sure they get teased by all of the other monkey’s during recess. This particular tamarin species has claws on all of their fingers and toes except for the big toe, which has the customary flat nail.  I would guess that the claws help this little monkey hang out in the trees with the rest of their friends.

If you want to get a glimpse of these little guys then you are in luck since they are diurnal animals which simply means they are most active during the day.  It is in the bright daylight hours that they will be on the hunt for both plants and animals to consume.  Among their favourites are fruit, insects and lush green plants.  They will also throw in the odd rodent or the eggs of an unsuspecting reptile, and to conquer that sweet tooth they will feast on tree sap.  Once the sun sets the Cotton-Top Tamarin will retreat to the tree tops for some much needed rest.

Photo by: Raimond Spekking

These little “Gremlins” can be a noisy bunch and have about 38 distinct sounds which express joy, curiosity, fear, warnings, playfulness and other important behavioural sounds. I guess we shouldn’t be too surprised to hear that this monkey is a complex animal. After all, we do have common ancestors, right? Judging by the hair I am pretty certain that the famous boxing promoter, Don King is directly related to the Cotton-Top Tamarin. I bet the scientist from Back to the Future is also closely related.

Cotton-Top Tamarin Fast Fact – This beautiful little creature is considered to be critically endangered with a population somewhere around 6000 individuals.  This is no surprise since they have lost about 75% of their habitat due to deforestation.  I am still holding out that someday we will realize that everything on this earth is connected and we are only hurting ourselves by decimating animal populations.

I hope you enjoy the rest of your day.  I have this crazy urge to go and watch Gremlins now.  I wonder what happens if you feed a Cotton-Top Tamarin after midnight?

A Gremlin

Photo by: Bernard E. Picton

Here we are at the end of another week of Wild Facts.  I was thinking of doing a little bit of fishing this weekend.  I figure I better try to get out before the snow starts flying.  In honour of my potential fishing plans I figured I would write about an interesting little fish today.  I really don’t think I will be catching any Butterfly Fish this weekend since they are found in Tropical and Sub-Tropical waters.  Don’t get me wrong I would love to be fishing the Tropical waters this weekend but I think I will just stick to the northern rivers of the Yukon for now.

If you have ever gone snorkeling around the Tropical coral reefs then you most likely have seen these spectacular fish.  They are brightly coloured with unique patterns and just happen to be the most common fish species on the reefs.  Out of all of the different patterns of Butterfly Fish I think I like the ones with the large eye-spot.  To me this is a very clever defense mechanism since it confuses the poor predator. They usually have no idea what end to attack, which gives the Butterfly Fish a better chance to escape.

Photo by: Leonardo Stabile

There are about 114 species of Butterfly Fish and their thin, round-shaped bodies often resemble that of their cousin, the Angelfish. In order to tell these two types of fish apart, you will need to look for the black spots or the dark bands around the eyes of the Butterfly Fish.  All day these little fish will continuously peck at the coral reefs looking for polyps, worms or other invertebrates.

Not only does the coral provide an excellent spot to find food but the Butterfly Fish will also spend their nights resting inside the coral.  In fact the coral also provides a safe refuge when larger predators such as snappers and sharks come looking for a quick meal.  It goes to show just how important this coral is to this particular fish species.  Naturally the destruction of coral reefs, which we are seeing worldwide, is impacting the population of Butterfly Fish.

Butterfly Fish Fast Fact – Unlike most fish species the Butterfly Fish will form life-long mating pairs.  Awww, isn’t that cute!  Little husband and wife Butterfly Fish.

That does it for this week of Wild Facts.  Have a great weekend and get out to enjoy the sunshine.

Photo by Patrick Coin

I know that I wrote about the Puss Moth yesterday but that was the European Puss Moth.  Today we are going to look at the North American Puss Moth (Megalopyge opercularis).  In my opinion this particular moth is even more interesting than the European variety and would probably strip the “Most Dangerous Caterpillar in Britain” title away from their British competitor, if this species could be found across the pond. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending how you look it) the North American Puss Moth can only be found throughout the southern United States, Mexico and parts of Central America.

Once again we will discuss the adult and caterpillar stages of this particular moth. The adult has a very odd appearance, as does the caterpillar but we will get to him in a minute. The adult version is covered in long orange to yellow fur and has hairy legs and of course furry little feet to top it all off.  Just like the European Puss Moth the larvae of the North American variety is a lot more interesting so let’s look at the caterpillar stage.

A Furry Puss Caterpillar

The caterpillar also has long, luxurious hair which resembles that of a Persian cat.  Apparently this is how the name “Puss” Moth came about but who knows how some of these names were created.  The problem with this caterpillar is their soft, furry bodies makes you want to pick them up and pet them.  I highly recommend that you do not and I repeat do not pick up these furry little buggers. The “fur” or hair-like setae if you want to get technical contains venomous spines which will cause extremely painful reactions to human skin. Obviously some cases are worse than others but I have read one persons story that was stung by this caterpillar.  Within 15 minutes she went from having an excruciating pain in her finger (where she was stung) to having the pain shoot up her arm and into her chest before she became unconscious. This is most likely a severe case, however, it just goes to illustrate the potential reaction that this cute, furry caterpillar can inflict upon humans. I am just thinking about the number of furry caterpillars I played with when I was a kid.  It sure is a good thing I didn’t grow up in the Southern United States.

By now I am sure you are afraid to even look at a caterpillar but if you do get stung and are looking for some remedies than I highly suggest checking out the Bug in the News website.  By the way this is a very informative insect website for all bugs.

I hope you enjoyed the Second Wild Fact on the Puss Moth.  Have a great day.

Photo by Pekka Raukko

I think I have done enough cute and cuddly animals since “Parasite Week” that it is safe to do a Wild Fact on a cool insect. What?!? There hasn’t been enough cute and fuzzy animals.  What about the Raccoon Dog, Senegal Galago, Little Penguin and who could forget the cutest salamander ever, the Axolotl. I think I have proved just how cute Wild Facts has been lately so let’s take a look at the Puss Moth (Centura venula).  I added the scientific name for today’s animal because I want everyone to know that we are just looking at the European Puss Moth and not the North American variety. I am sure most of you are up to date on your moth scientific names so you caught which moth we were talking about the minute you read the scientific name, right?

As mentioned this particular Puss Moth can be found across much of Europe and into North Africa.  We are going to look at the two stages of this interesting moth species.  First we will find out about the adult form and then venture in the more interesting caterpillar form.  The adult Puss Moth can become quite large with their wingspan being as large as 10 cm across.  They are pretty easy to spot since their dark black markings stick out like a sore thumb against the white background of their wings. I say these black spots stick out, however, they may not be that easy to see considering the Puss Moth is nocturnal. All right, enough about the “boring” adult.  Let’s move onto the more exciting caterpillar stage.

Photo by Mark Fosh

The Puss Moth caterpillar is fun to talk about since they have an unique defense mechanism that makes them dangerous.  You intrigued yet?  Both adults and caterpillars have many predators including bats, birds, frogs and rodents. When a predator approaches, the caterpillar will strike a defensive attack by spraying formic acid into the face of the oncoming killer.  Just to help you brush up on your chemistry, formic acid is often used as a preservative and is also found in bee and ant stings. This little defense mechanism has brought the title of “Most Dangerous Caterpillar in Britain” to the Puss Moth.  I bet they feel tough and unstoppable in Britain, until they are eaten by a bat.  Now you know why the caterpillar is much more fun than the adult and let’s face it the caterpillar looks way cooler too.

Thanks for reading today’s Wild Fact even though it was about a pesky insect.  Have a great day!

Photo by Michael Melford

I probably should have saved today’s Wild Fact for Independence Day since the Bald Eagle is the symbol for the United States of America but I couldn’t wait another year to talk about this majestic bird.  I am almost positive that all of you have at least seen a picture of the Bald Eagle whether you are American or not.  If you want to see one in person than your best bet is to hang out near large bodies of open water in Canada, USA and Northern Mexico.  That really narrows down your search range doesn’t it!

The Bald Eagle doesn’t like to live near large bodies of water just to brag about having a waterfront home.  No sir, they depend on the plentiful fish species that can be found swimming around these waterbodies.  This magnificent bird is very proficient at using their large talons to capture fish out of the water.  Of course you can’t survive solely on a diet of fish, well I guess you could but why would you want to when there is plenty of roadkill to feast on as well.  That’s right, the Bald Eagle is also a scavenger of carrion and has been known to steal kills from other animals.  Actually it was this thieving behaviour that caused Ben Franklin to protest against naming the Eagle as USA’s National Symbol.

Bald Eagle Fishing - Photo by Joby Joseph

Well I have held off long enough so let’s move onto my biggest pet-peeve about the Bald Eagle. By now I am sure you have all heard the famous Bald Eagle call.  I am here to tell you that the Eagle sound you normally hear on TV is completely and utterly wrong.  Hollywood has used the sound of the Red-Tailed Hawk to make the Bald Eagle sound more powerful than it actually is.  I know you may not believe me so please listen to both recordings I have included below.  The first one is the Red-Tailed Hawk while the second is the Bald Eagle.  Which one sounds more impressive and powerful to you?

So now do you believe me? I still can’t believe that Hollywood would try to deceive so many people into thinking…..wait…. what am I talking about, of course I believe Hollywood would be corrupt like that. At least now you will look incredibly intelligent to your friends when you tell them that it is actually a Red-Tailed Hawk you are hearing during the opening credits of the Colbert Report.

Now that I got that pet-peeve off of my chest I guess I can get back to my evening activities.  Thanks for reading and have a great night!

Photo by David Blank

Welcome back to another exciting and fun-filled week of Wild Facts.  Before we get started I wanted to personally thank everyone for the nice heart-felt Birthday Wishes.  I had a great birthday weekend and I hope all of you enjoyed your weekend as much as I did.  We are going to start this wonderful week off with a cute, furry mammal called the Masked Palm Civet.  This little creature can be found throughout the forests of south-east Asia and across the Indian sub-continent.

The Masked Palm Civet are solitary, nocturnal and arboreal animals which basically means they are loners that hang out in the trees during the night. During the day this particular Civet will create “day beds” which are often found in the top 10% of the tree and close to a water body.  They like these particular day beds so much that they spend about 80% of their time in them.  What a tough life they lead!

Photo by David Blank

I am not sure how they are able to get a good “days” rest when they have so many predators out there looking for a quick meal.  Some of their worst enemies include tigers, leopards, hawks, jaguars and of course humans. Luckily this nuts, berry and insect eating animal has a couple of tricks up their sleeve for would-be predators. Technically I suppose this trick is found in another part of their body instead of their sleeve.  The Masked Palm Civet is able to produce a noxious smelling chemical with their powerful anal glands.  This horrible scent is definitely a deterrent to predators and it is believed that their facial mask is a warning sign to everyone in the area.  And here I thought that mask was used for robbing banks and other nefarious activities.  If a predator doesn’t get sick from the horrible stench than the Civet needs to rely on its excellent climbing abilities to escape the clutches of death.

Masked Palm Civet – Humans may not be afraid of their horrible scent but the Masked Palm Civet has come up with another method to deter humans.  It is believed that this particular animal is at least partly responsible for the transfer of SARS to humans.  Anyone living in Toronto will remember the whole SARS disease incidents.  Perhaps the Civet didn’t willingly pass this disease on but you just never know.  How can you trust an animal wearing a mask, right?

Enjoy the rest of your Monday folks and I will see all of you back here tomorrow for another thrilling Wild Fact!

Sources:

Lundrigan, B. and S. Baker. 2003. “Paguma larvata” (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed August 22, 2010 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Paguma_larvata.html.