education

SUPER SURPRISE THURSDAY # 13

Posted on November 10, 2011 by Ellie and Edmond ©

SUPER SURPRISE THURSDAY# 13

Is it hot in here on this Super Surprise Thursday? We have a hot little amphibian for today’s animal! Ok, they’re not really hot to the touch, but they are toxic! Are you ready to meet this little guy? Come on…

MEET THE FIRE SALAMANDER!

Range/Habitat: Europe/forests, woodlands, mountains

Diet:  Carnivore: slugs, insects, worms

Length: 7-11”

Conservation Status: Common

 

Fun Facts:

  • Fire Salamanders have warning coloration. Their bright yellow or orange spots warn predators that they are poisonous.
  • They have poisonous glands behind the eyes and on other parts of their body. They secret toxins when threatened.
  • They are amphibians. They live part of their lives in water and part of it on land.
  • Fire salamanders often hide under moss, leaves, limbs and stones.
  • They are nocturnal (active at night).
  • Fire salamanders spend the winter underground.
  • They are known to have long life spans, up to 55 years old! Hello, grandpa salamander!

 

Fire salamanders are a great little amphibian! They sure are pretty with their shiny black bodies and bright yellow spots! Those beautiful colors are great at warning off predators too! Aren’t animals great?

 

 

 

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WATERY WEDNESDAY # 13

Posted on November 9, 2011 by Ellie and Edmond ©

WATERY WEDNESDAY# 13

We’ve dived deep to the bottom of the ocean floor to find today’s Watery Wednesday animal! We had to look hard to find this fish too because they are masters of camouflage! Are you ready to find this crazy looking fish? Come meet…

MEET THE ANGLERFISH!

Range/Habitat: North Atlantic-Mediterranean-Black Sea

Diet: Carnivore: small fishes

Length/Weight: up to 6 ½ ft/up to 88lbs

Conservation Status: Common

 

Fun Facts:

  • Anglers are also known as the monkfish.
  • They have large flat bodies with frills all over.
  • Anglers are brownish-green. Their coloration helps them camouflage with the ocean floor.
  • Anglers wait in the sand and use a fleshy lure attached to their dorsal (top) fin to attract prey.
  • They are ambush predators.
  • They have specialized pectoral fins that have “elbows”. They use these to walk along the sea floor.

 

These strange looking fish have some pretty neat adaptations for surviving in the ocean. How neat is it that they a fishing lure attached to their bodies? They are related to other anglerfish, who live deep in the ocean and can be even stranger looking! Think we need to go diving again!

 

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REPTILIAN TUESDAY # 13

Posted on November 8, 2011 by Ellie and Edmond ©

REPTILIAN TUESDAY # 13

Who loves reptiles? We do and we hope you do too! Today’s reptile isn’t what we could call cuddly though, but they are magnificent and beautiful! Are you ready to meet our reptile? Let’s do it!

MEET THE GABOON VIPER!

Range/Habitat: West-Central Africa/rainforests

Diet: Carnivore: birds, rodents and small mammals

Length/Weight: 4 ft- 6 ½ ft/ up to 18ft

Conservation Status: Common

Fun Facts:

  • Gaboon vipers have thick bodies and are the heaviest snake in the viper family.
  • They also have the longest fangs of all venomous snakes, up to 2” long!
  • Gaboon vipers are known to be very docile and will only strike as a last resort. They are still best left alone.
  • They have beautiful geometric patterns in brown, tan and gold. Their coloration and pattern are excellent at helping them camouflage.
  • Gaboon vipers have large triangular heads and two tiny horns in-between their nostrils.
  • They are nocturnal (active at night).

Gaboon vipers are spectacular with their beautiful patterns.  We’re happy to observe them from a distance since they have such big fangs with venom!

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MAMMAL MONDAY # 13

Posted on November 7, 2011 by Ellie and Edmond ©

MAMMAL MONDAY# 13

Happy Mammal Monday! We’re extra excited for today’s animal, because it is BIG! And when we say big we mean bigger than elephant big! So are you ready to meet this extreme mammal? Let’s do this…

MEET THE BLUE WHALE!

Range/Habitat: Oceans worldwide except the Mediterranean-Arabic Gulf

Diet: Carnivore: eats only krill

Length/Weight: 66-98 ft/110-176 tons

Conservation Status: endangered

 

Fun Facts:

  • Blue Whales are the largest animal on the planet!
  • Blue whales have baleen. Baleen is a hair like structure in their mouths that filter out tiny krill from the water. Baleen is made of keratin (the same stuff that makes up your nails and hair).
  • They can eat up to 40 million krill a day! Whew, that is a bunch of tiny little animals.
  • Blue whales throats can swell to 4 times their normal size when taking in water and krill. They expel the water and swallow the krill.
  • They feed mostly in the summer in cold waters and migrate to warmer waters in the winter.
  • Blue whales have slender bodies with one small dorsal fin.
  • Blue whales can dive to depths of 655 ft.
  • The calves (babies) are up to 23ft long and 2 ½ tons when born! That’s about the weight of a car!
  • Blue whales also produce the loudest sound of any animal on earth at 180 decibels. That is louder than the jet engine of an airplane. WOW! It’s so loud that it could cause damage to your eardrums!
  • Blue whales produce many different sounds, calls and songs!

We could go on all day about the largest animal on our planet Earth! These special giants are endangered, but are protected now! Our oceans wouldn’t be the same without these amazing singing creatures! You can find a few really neat models in museums around the world! The one at the American Natural History Museum even tweets (@NatHistoryWhale).

Here’s a video of researchers catching the songs of blue whales from National Geographic! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8MTsgdWuU0

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FEATHERY FRIDAY # 12

Posted on November 4, 2011 by Ellie and Edmond ©

FEATHERY FRIDAY# 12

It’s another fabulous Feathery Friday and we have a resident of the Amazon rainforest for today’s animal. Are you ready this little bird with two different names? Well, let’s do this…

MEET THE RED FANNED PARROT!

Range/Habitat: Northern South America/Amazon Rainforest

Diet: Herbivore: fruit, seeds, flowers, nuts

Length/Weight: 14”/ 8 oz

Conservation Status: Common

 

Fun Facts:

  • Red Fanned Parrots are also known as the Hawk-headed parrot.
  • They have red feathers on the back of their necks. They raise the feathers up when threatened or alarmed. It gives them an appearance of being larger than they are.
  • They have long tail feathers also that resemble some birds of prey.
  • Red fanned parrots are found in pairs or small groups.
  • They often nest in tree hollows.

 

Red Fanned Parrots are really neat little birds! We think they look like lions with their feathers up! We wonder if they know how to roar? We doubt it J!

 

 

 

 

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SUPER SURPRISE THURSDAY #12

Posted on November 3, 2011 by Ellie and Edmond ©

SUPER SURPRISE THURSDAY# 12

Happy Super Surprise Thursday! We’ve gone back to the ocean today to find an amazing animal friend for you to meet! This large, slow moving fish is pretty special, because you won’t see any fish like them! Let’s meet…

MEET THE OCEAN SUNFISH!

Range/Habitat: Tropical-Temperate Waters Worldwide

Diet:  Carnivore: jellies, squid, crustaceans

Length/Weight: 6 ft-13 ft/ 1-2 tons

Conservation Status: Common

 

Fun Facts:

  • Ocean Sunfish are the heaviest bony fish in the world.
  • They have disk shaped bodies and elongated dorsal (top) and anal (bottom) fins.
  • Ocean sunfish have beak like mouths for snipping at jellies.
  • Their skeletons are made up of lots of cartilage (the tissue in your ears and nose) as well as bone.
  • Ocean sunfish are fairly slow moving and clumsy looking when swimming.
  • Ocean sunfish can be seen basking in the sun near the surface of the ocean.
  • Ocean sunfish scientific name is Mola Mola. It comes from the Latin that means millstone, because they look like giant round stones!

 

Mola mola or Ocean Sunfish sure are some crazy looking fish! And isn’t mola mola fun to say? We continue to be fascinated by the different creatures who inhabit our oceans!

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WATERY WEDNESDAY # 12

Posted on November 2, 2011 by Ellie and Edmond ©

 WATERY WEDNESDAY# 12

Today’s Watery Wednesday animal doesn’t come from the ocean, this fish lives in freshwater! That’s right you can find them in the waters of the Amazon River. Come meet this special fish…

MEET THE FRESHWATER STINGRAY!

Range/Habitat: South America/Amazon River

Diet: Carnivore: small fishes, invertebrates

Length/Weight: up to 3 ¼ ft/ 6 ½ lbs

Conservation Status: Common

 

Fun Facts:

  • Freshwater stingrays are small rounded shaped stingrays.
  • They only live in freshwater environments and not in the salty oceans.
  • Freshwater stingrays have short tails with no fin on the top.
  • They have few predators.
  • Their brown coloration with dark spots that help them camouflage.

 

Who knew that there were stingrays that live in rivers? We didn’t know that! The planet has so many neat animals in all different kinds of habitats!

 

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REPTILIAN TUESDAY #12

Posted on November 1, 2011 by Ellie and Edmond ©

REPTILIAN TUESDAY # 12

We hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween and enjoyed the pictures we posted on Facebook and all the tweets we posted about bats and owls! We’re excited to finish the week off with all kinds of wonderful animals and today we have a very flat one! Flat you say? Flat! Come meet….

MEET THE PANCAKE TORTOISE!

Range/Habitat: E Africa (Tanzania/Kenya)/rocky outcrops and savannas

Diet: Herbivore: grasses, leaves, fruit

Length/Weight: 5 ½”-7”/ 1 lb

Conservation Status: Vulnerable

 

Fun Facts:

  • Pancake Tortoises have flat carapaces (top shell) that are flexible. This is a very unusual adaptation.
  • Pancake tortoises can squeeze into narrow crevices. This helps protect them from predators.
  • They don’t move to far from their shelter.
  • Pancake tortoises are actually quick and agile climbers.
  • They live in small colonies and share their shelters.
  • They can live up to 25 years old.
  • Pancake tortoises are crepuscular (most active at dusk and dawn).

Pancake tortoises are really neat little tortoises with their flat shells and ability to climb. And they have pancake in their name and who doesn’t love pancakes!

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FRIGHTENING FEATHERY FRIDAY # 11

Posted on October 28, 2011 by Ellie and Edmond ©

FRIGHTENING

FEATHERY FRIDAY # 11

Phew! We’ve made it through our week of SCARY animals! Now we have Frightening Feathery Friday and a dark and beautiful bird! Don’t worry this bird is not really scary, but they are often associated with Halloween. So let’s meet this bird…

MEET THE COMMON RAVEN!

Range/Habitat: North & Central America-Europe-Asia and North Africa/woodlands, open fields and urban areas

Diet: Omnivores: small mammals, insects, fruit

Length/Weight: 26”/ 2 ½ lbs

Conservation Status: Common

 

Fun Facts:

  • Common Ravens are the largest member of the crow family in North Hemisphere.
  • They are highly intelligent and very social.
  • Common ravens have very large brains and are known to be great at problem solving.
  • Common ravens mate for life. They can live up to 15 years old in the wild and have been known to live longer in captivity.
  • They have large bills to eat many different types of prey.
  • Common ravens are admired in many cultures. They are even kept by royalty at The Tower of London!

 

These beautiful birds are really smart and have adapted well to live near and around people! It’s easy to see why people love them so much with their haunting calls and shiny black feathers! Did you know that there is a very famous poem about them by Edgar Allan Poe called “The Raven”? We hope you have enjoyed our week of spooky, creepy and awesome animals! We sure had fun learning about them!

Here are some of the many sounds that ravens make!

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_raven/sounds

Learn about the Tower of London Ravens:

http://www.castles.me.uk/ravens-in-the-tower-of-london.htm

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CREEPY CRAWLY THURSDAY # 11

Posted on October 27, 2011 by Ellie and Edmond ©

CREEPY CRAWLY

THURSDAY # 11

Super Surprise Thursday has turned into Creepy Crawly Thursday and we have a spider for you! This is our first! So are you ready to meet this creepy crawly creature?

MEET THE RED KNEED TARANTULA!

Range/Habitat: West coast of Mexico/tropical forests

Diet: Carnivore: insects, frogs, mice

Length/Weight: 4 ½”/15 grams

Conservation Status: Near threatened

 

Fun Facts:

  • Red Kneed Tarantulas are nocturnal (active at night).
  • Like other spiders they have 8 legs and an exoskeleton.
  • Red kneed tarantulas have hair all over their bodies. They rub their back legs together if threaten. The hairs can cause a rash or even blindness if release in the eyes.
  • Red kneed tarantulas are venomous. They bite their prey with fangs and then inject the venom.
  • They burrow in the ground.
  • They don’t have a backbone like you instead they have a hard exoskeleton on the outside of their bodies. Because they have an exoskeleton they must molt 2-3 times a year as they grow.
  • Red kneed tarantulas can live up 20-30 years old.

 

Ellie is afraid of spiders, but learning about them helps her not to be afraid! Red kneed tarantulas are not harmful to humans or elephants J! We definitely think they’re kind of pretty with their bright colors!

 

 

 

 

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