One of the biggest lizards in the world, the Komodo Dragon is an interesting animal. It reminds me of a dinosaur and I wanted to highlight it this week.
One of my favorite creatures of the sea is the Jellyfish! They are so magical and beautiful! I love the way the move in the water and how they are all so different and original.
Fact #4 Jellyfishes have no brain, no blood and no nervous system. Their senses are primitive and consist of a neural net, eye spots that can sense light from dark, and chemosensory pits that help them identify potential prey.
I always love to hold and see Star Fish! One day last winter, my sister and I saw hundreds of them at one of our local beaches! It was such an amazing sight. I love how they all are different colors, sizes and even shapes.
Striped hyenas live in Africa, Arabia, Asia Minor and India in savanna, thorn bush, and stony desert regions. They weigh from 55 to 121 pounds. Striped and brown hyenas are predominantly scavengers, though they do supplement their diets with small prey from insects to foxes.
The aardwolf, also, lives in Africa. It’s main food source is the harvester termite. They also eat insect larvae, and eggs of ground nesting birds. Aardwolf are smaller than other hyena relatives, weighing only 50 and 60 pounds and standing only 15 to 20 inches tall at the shoulder. Except when raising cubs, aardwolf are solitary animals.
Hi Horse Pals ~
I thought the kangaroo would be a fun animal to highlight, so here are some fun facts about the Kangaroo.
Fact #1 The Red Kangaroo (Macropus rufus) is the largest surviving marsupial anywhere in the world. Fewer in numbers, the Red Kangaroo occupies the arid and semi-arid centre of the country. A large male can be 6 ft 7 in tall and weigh 200 lbs.
Fact #2 Kangaroos are the only large animals to use hopping as a means of locomotion. The comfortable hopping speed for the Red Kangaroo is about 13–16 mph, but speeds of up to 44 mph can be attained, over short distances, while it can sustain a speed of 25 mph for nearly 1 1/4 miles. This fast and energy-efficient method of travel has evolved because of the need to regularly cover large distances in search of food and water, rather than the need to escape predators. To move at slow speeds, it uses its tail to form a tripod with its two forelimbs it then raises its hind feet forward.
Fact #3 Eastern Greys can jump as well as the big Reds: up to 29 feet in one bound, and can reach speeds of nearly 30 mph.
Fact #4 Kangaroos are the only large animals that move by hopping.
Fact #5 The large and strong tail is used for balance when hopping, and as a fifth limb when moving about on all four legs.
Fact #6 All kangaroos are herbivores. The grazers or browsers eat only plant matter.
Fact #7 Kangaroos can survive on very little water; sometimes going for many weeks without it - most of the moisture they need is gained from their food - grass, young shoots and leaves from certain trees.
Fact #8 The Red Kangaroo has long distinctive ears, powerful back legs with long feet and a long thick muscular tail. Its front legs are smaller. The female has a pocket of skin called a pouch on the lower part of her stomach to carry her young.
Fact #9 Kangaroos are sociable and move in groups of 10-12 up to 100. There is usually one dominant male in the group. He will fight outsiders and younger males trying to take over the group.
Fact #10 When a kangaroo is born it is blind and has no fur. The 3/4 of an inch long Joey takes three minute to climb, without help, through the fur on its mother's belly into the her pouch. Once inside, the Joey clamps onto one of her four teats and sucks her milk. For the first four months it doesn't let go of the teat. Once it has a covering of fur the young Joey leaves the pouch for short exploring trips. The Joey stays out for longer periods returning only for milk, until it becomes independent.
I hope you learned as much as I did!
Hi Horse Pals ~
I love giraffes and had a lot of fun writing about them. Hope you enjoy these fun facts!
Your Horse Pal, @raya
One of the most beautiful wild animals in the world is the Giraffe! It is the Logo for Toys R Us ... Geoffrey the Giraffe! Here are some fun facts about the Giraffe:
Fact #1 A giraffe eats about 140 pounds of food a day.
Fact #2 At one time it was believed that giraffes were mute but they do make sounds. A form of communication used by giraffes is called infrasound and cannot be heard by humans. Giraffes do grunt, snort and bellow.
Fact #3 The color of a giraffe's coat tends to become darker with age.
Fact #4 A giraffe's neck can measure up to 5 feet in length.
Fact #5 Just like humans, giraffes have seven vertebrae in their necks. Unlike humans, however, each vertebrae is about 5 inches (11 centimeters) long. The neck of an adult giraffe is about six feet long (1.8 meters), and is extremely muscular.
Fact #6 Adult males weigh 2420 to 4250 pounds, females 1540 to 2600 pounds. Males are 9 to 11 feet at the shoulder and 18 to 19 feet at the top of their horns. Females are about 2 feet shorter.
Fact #7 Besides being prehensile, a giraffe's tongue can be 18 inches long.
Fact #8 The Giraffe is the tallest living animal and can reach vegetation that other herbivores cannot. Giraffes eat foliage (broad leafed deciduous and evergreen), grass, shrubs and fruit, and don’t require a lot of water. Their favorite food is the acacia tree. A giraffe browses most of the day and at night they lie down to rest and ruminate.
Fact #9 When giraffes walk they move both right legs forward and then both left. When running they use the back legs first and they move on the outside of the front legs.
Fact #10! Baby giraffes are 6 feet tall and weigh an average of 150 pounds when they are born.
Hi Horse Pals,
I wanted to tell you all about this really great site! It is called ZooBorns! It shows you all the baby animals born at zoos from around the world!
It is very cool. You can see many different types of animal babies that you may have never seen before!
Here is a great post from ZooBorns:
The seven Lion cubs born at the National Zoo are now sporting seven names. Just before the cubs made their debut in the Lion yard yesterday morning, the Zoo announced their names: John, Fahari, Zuri, Lelie, Baruti, Aslan and Lusaka. “We were touched to receive so many thoughtful name suggestions for the cubs from so many different sources,” said Dennis Kelly, director of the Zoo. “Each of the seven final names has a special meaning or connection that the cubs will carry with them during their time here at the National Zoo.”
Photo credits: Mehgan Murphy, Smithsonian’s National Zoo
More [PHOTOS] below the fold...
The names of Shera’s cubs, which were born Aug. 31, are:
John: The sole male in the litter is named after John Berry, who was the Zoo’s director from 2006 to early 2009 and is currently director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Berry helped to bring the cub’s mother Shera, aunt Nababiep and father Luke to the Zoo in 2006.
Fahari (fah-HAH-ree): The National Zoo advisory board chose Fahari, which means “magnificent” in Swahili, for this cub. Keepers say that early in life she was the big eater among both litters and for a long time was larger than all of the other cubs, including her brother. Although that has changed recently, keepers are confident that she will continue to be bigger than life.
Zuri (ZUH-ree): The Friends of the National Zoo board chose the name Zuri for this female cub. Zuri means “beautiful” in Swahili. The lion keepers say it is a fitting name for a cub whose coat is thicker, plusher and redder than the others in the pride.
Lelie (la-LEE-ay): Lelie is the winning female name submitted by a first-grade classroom at Marshall Elementary School in Manassas, Va., in the Name a Cub: Cam Contest, which the Zoo hosted with the Washington Post. Lelie is Afrikaans for “lily,” and the students selected it because lilies are common at Kruger Park, which is the largest national park in South Africa and provides refuge to about 2,000 African lions.
The names of Nababieps cubs, which were born Sept. 22, are:
Baruti (ba-ROO-tee): Baruti is the winning male name submitted by a daycare class at Bright Horizons Child Care & Education at Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, Va., in the Name a Cub: Cam Contest. Baruti is an African name meaning “teacher,” which the class thought was appropriate for a lion that keepers describe as “quiet” and “calm.”
Aslan: This cub received his name Dec. 10, when Georgie Henley and Skandar Keynes, actors in The Chronicles of Narnia movies, visited the Zoo to reveal that the cub would be named Aslan after the lion in the films.
Lusaka (lu-SAH-ka): The name Lusaka holds a special place at the Zoo—it is the name of the beloved 18-year-old lioness that died at the Zoo last January. The lion keepers decided it would be a nice tribute to the lion who they considered the matriarch of the lion/tiger house and describe as having an “overload of personality.” Keepers picked this cub in particular because she was Nababieps’s sole female cub, and sometimes they see the older Lusaka reflected in Nababiep’s disposition.
Both litters were sired by Luke, who was the Zoo’s sole male lion until the birth of the cubs. The two litters are the result of years of careful research and observation and the first for the Zoo in more than 20 years. Starting Dec. 20, lion keepers will decide on a day-to-day basis whether the cubs will spend any time in the yard, how long they will be out and when. This decision will be based on weather and how the cubs adjust to being outdoors.
Lions are considered vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as the result of climate change, hunting and habitat loss.
I love love looovvvveee Lions! :)
Every so often I will put a post from Zooborns and put it on my blog for Horse Pals to see.
Your Horse Pal, Araya
Hi Horse Pals ~
Here's my latest story for the newspaper ... thought you might enjoy it! Had a great jumping week with Dandy ... hope you did, too!!
Your Horse Pal, @raya
I have always loved wild animals! They are all so different and have a special way of life! But my favorite of all is the lion! They are all so royal and magical! I espcially love the males with their manes! I wanted to learn more about lions and here are some interesting facts I found:
Fact #1 --- The Lion (Panthera leo) is the only big cat that lives in social groups. These groups are called prides and consist of 3 to 30 lions. The females are often related and share care of the cubs, including suckling. The lionesses do the majority of hunting with some driving prey towards an ambush of other waiting lionesses.
Fact #2 --- Lion cubs weight about three pounds at birth. By age 2, they are good hunters. They are full grown at 5 to 6 years of age. A litter usually is 2 to 3 cubs. Adult male lions weigh 330 to 500 pounds, females 265 to 400 pounds. Height is 3.5 feet (females) to 4 feet (males). Length 4 ½ to 8 ¼ feet, with the males at the higher end of the range. Lions are the second largest feline. The tiger is actually the biggest wild cat.
Fact #3 ---- Male lions begin to grow their manes at about 18 months old. It continues to grow until they are 5.
Fact #3 ---- The Swahili word for lion is simba. It also means king, strong, and aggressive.
Fact #4 ----- Lionesses are more agile and faster than male lions. Both male and female lions roar.
Fact #5 ---- Lions lie around for 21 hours a day.
Fact #6 ---- Lions can go 5 to 6 days without drinking water.
Fact #7 ---- Lion cubs have spots at birth that disappear with age.
Fact #8 ---- Lion is known as the king of beasts for his bravery and fighting skills!
Fact #9 ---- The average lifespan of lions in the wild is 15 years but they may life up to 25 years or beyond in captivity.
Fact #10 --- White lions were found to exist in the late 20th century. The pale color of their coats is due to a recessive gene.
There is also a big cat called a liger. It is the world's largest big cat. An average male liger weighs over 900 pounds and stands almost 12 feet tall. Ligers have a mane like a lion and stripes like a tiger. The reason that they are called a liger is because the father was a lion and the mother was a tiger. If the situation was reversed and the mother was a lion and the father was a tiger, he would be called a tigon, and would be a dwarf instead of a giant. A fully grown tigon is usually less that 350 lbs. Ligers are not sterile, and they can reproduce. If the mother was a lion and the father was a tiger it would be called a tigon.
Hi Horse Pals ~
Here's a story I recently wrote for my friend's newspaper. Hope you enjoy it!
@raya
One day when I was dog walking, I saw a cat in the road and I tried to get her off the road and she ran! She was an all grey cat and was very scared! I had never seen her before and I wondered where she came from!? She was very wild!
And then one day when we went out to feed our cat, Keyoh, we saw her again! She was looking at us as if to say "Can I have some?" So we put another food bowl out in our yard for her so that she did not have to be so close to the house so she could feel safe. We tried to pet her many times but every time she would run! Every day we would just put the food bowl closer to our house and then one day she came up to it and laid on the porch. We slowly opened the door and she stayed! We sat near our door for a few minutes and then we tried to get closer and she still stayed! We sat there for a few more minutes and then she came to us! She let us pet her and then she went back to the food! And from then on, she has let us pet her! We tried to come up with a name for her and then we came up with Misty! We thought it was the greatest name for her! She is a small cat and has long gray hair. She has green, yellow eyes and is very beautiful! And now she runs up to us and meows for food.
We love helping animals and I think that we helped Misty find someone who will always make sure that she is OK, and that is what animal rescues do! I have always wanted to help animals and love to donate money and other things that the animal rescues need! You can go to any animal rescue in your neighborhood and donate things that your pets don't use - food, money and some animal shelters have a list of things they need! With the holidays around the corner, remember to add animal rescues to your holiday giving!
Hi Horse Pals ~
Here is another article I wrote for the newspaper that I thought you might all enjoy!
As you know, I am a HUGE dog lover, along with the rest of the world! Did you know that it is the most popular animal in the world? And our U.S. Presidents agree! Throughout history, Presidents have owned and loved dogs making them famous during their White House years and beyond.
Here are some fun facts about Presidents and their canine companions!
The first U.S. President George Washington owned 10 Hounds called Mopsey, Taster, Cloe, Tipler, Forester, Captain, Lady Rover, Vulcan, Sweetlips and Searcher.
Abraham Lincoln owned at least 2 dogs and their names were Fido and Jip.
Theodore Roosevelt owned a Pit bull Terrier named Pete, a Chesapeake Retriever named Sailor Boy, a Terrier named Jack, a mongrel named Skip and a Spaniel named Manchu.
Calvin Coolidge owned at least 12 dogs:
A Terrier (Peter Pan), an Airedale (Laddie Buck/Paul Pry), 2 White Collies (Oshkosh/Rob Roy and Prudence Primm), a Shetland Sheepdog (Calamity Jane), 2 Chows (Tiny Tim and Blackberry), a Brown Collie (Ruby Rough), a Yellow Collie (Bessie), a Bulldog (Boston Beans), a Police Dog (King Kole) and a Bird Dog (Palo Alto). That is a lot of dogs!
President John F. Kennedy owned the following dogs:
Welsh Terriers - Charlie and Pushinka,
German Shepherd – Clipper,
Irish Cocker Spaniel – Shannon,
Irish Wolfhound – Wolf,
Terriers - White Tips, Blackie and Streaker.
John F. Kennedy was the first President to request that his dogs meet the presidential helicopter when the President arrived at the White House.
Soviet Premier Kruschev gave him a dog named Pushinka who was the offspring of the Russian space dog Strelka. Pushinka had 4 puppies of her own puppies who JFK called “pupniks”! Pushinka often made the President laugh by climbing up the ladder to Caroline's tree house. The Prime Minister of Ireland gave JFK the Irish Cocker Spaniel, Shannon.
Richard Nixon owned 4 dogs:
Spaniel (Checkers), an
Irish Setter (King Timahoe), a
Terrier (Pasha) and a
Poodle (Vicky)
When he entered the White House a member of his staff gave him the Irish Setter, King Timahoe, which he named for the little village in Ireland where his mother’s ancestors came from.
Gerald Ford owned a Golden Retriever named Liberty who gave birth to nine puppies at the White House.
George H W Bush owned a Springer Spaniel called Millie and her puppy named Ranger. "Millie", the Springer Spaniel, is the subject of a book that has sold more copies than the autobiography of George Bush himself.
President George W Bush's dogs include a Scottish Terrier named Barney and an English Springer spaniel named Spot. Spot was named after Scott Fletcher, a former Texas Rangers baseball player. President Bush's dog Spot is the only dog to live in the White House during two administrations. Spot was born to Millie, George H.W. Bush's dog, when George H.W. Bush was President. Spot was given to his son George W. Bush who returned the Terrier to the White House for his term of office.
And President Obama and his family have a Portuguese Water Dog named Bo who now calls the White House home. Bo was a gift from Sen. Ted Kennedy, who owns three dogs of the same breed, known for high spirits and said to be a good fit for kids with allergies.
It doesn’t matter what breed or age or name a dog goes by; it is clearly man’s best friend!
Araya and Avery are young equestrians and entrepreneurs with a passion for life!
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