Daily animals pictures

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Tuesday, September 12 2006

Armadillo

Armadillo

Armadillos are Tropical American mammals known for their bony armour shell which is their way to defend themselves by rolling themselves into a protective ball. Outside reproduction, Armadillos are quite solitary feeding from insects or worms that they find by digging the floor.

It is interesting to notice that some species like the 9-banded armadillo have a peculiar reproduction system: females give birth only to absolutely identical quadruplets (polyembryony, several embryos from  one egg).


source : flickr (Nina Dalmolin) and wikipedia

Monday, September 11 2006

Scarlet Ibis

Scarlet Ibis

This type of ibis lives in South America and in Trinidad and Tobago. They get this name from their alimentation based on crustaceans. Scarlet Ibis colonies can be as big as several thousand of birds.


source : flickr (Tut99 (Roger)) and wikipedia

Friday, September 8 2006

Praying Mantis

mante religieuse

This insect (whose nick name comes from its praying like stance) is a quite an aggressive predator living in tropical and sub-tropical areas (Some smaller kind can be found in more temperate areas). They belong to those rare insects that can actually turn their head. They feed from prey sometimes as long as themselves (up to 17cm) thanks to their mandibles. Males are most of the time smaller than female and it happens that they might be eaten by their female partner after reproduction (See photo).


source : flickr (Dermal Denticles) and wikipedia

Thursday, September 7 2006

Porcelain Crab

Crabe Porcelaine

This crustacean is not related to the Crab family but looks a lot like one. They measure 1 to 2 cm and can be found in almost every ocean of the planet except arctic and Antarctic.


source : flickr (FUJIBOB) and wikipedia

Wednesday, September 6 2006

Goat

Goat

These herbivorous and ruminant bovid live in mountains. They can be found in a lot of world’s areas. Goats were domesticated for the first time 10 000 years ago: first for its meat, then for its skin, hairs, and milk.


source : flickr (BoazImages) and wikipedia

Tuesday, September 5 2006

Great Egret

Grande aigrette

This egret is the tallest wading bird in Europe. They look like heron but have black legs instead of the yellow legs of heron. They nest near lakes and ponds, but also near wet fields and paddy fields. They can be found in Europe as much as in Middle East, Asia, and Africa. The ones that live in the northern areas migrate in winter.
The liking for their long white feathers endangered the species, nearly extinct it.


source : flickr (0 W8ing) and wikipedia

Monday, September 4 2006

Flying squirrel

Ecureuil volant

This rodent, strictly nocturnal (except on the photo) is called flying squirrel, he lives in North American and forests. They are called that way be cause they have some kind of membrane between their arms and legs that gives them the ability to “fly”, gliding in the air, using their tail to stabilize themselves. There are several other species of flying squirrels in the world.

source : flickr (sidleyvalleyranch) and wikipedia

Friday, September 1 2006

Swans

Swans


Swans are aquatic birds well-known for their white feathers (although some have black ones) and their quite bendy neck (from 23 to 25 bones). They can be found almost everywhere in the world: In Europe, in South America, and even in Australia. Swans are mostly monogamous: unless they separate, they stay with the same partner their whole life.


source : flickr (Vanda's Pictures) and wikipedia

Thursday, August 31 2006

Golden pheasant

Golden pheasant

Golden pheasants are Chinese born gallinaceous birds belonging to the Grey partridge and peafowl family. Their feathers are golden and red for males and brown for females. They live in pinophyta forests where they feed from grains, leaves, and insects. They can fly but prefer running.


source : flickr (Antonio Costa) and wikipedia

Wednesday, August 30 2006

Macaws

Macaws

Macaws are bright coloured parrots (red, green, yellow) living in tropical forests of Mexico and South America. They can live as long as 50 years and are monogamous. Most of macaws’ species are endangered and already five of them don’t exist anymore outside zoos. Deforestation and illegal captures threaten them: These birds are wanted because of their ability to “talk” and are expensive.


source : flickr (fluffballs) and wikipedia

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