Monday 28 July 2008 Philippine flying lemur

The Philippine Flying Lemur (Cynocephalus volans) lives in (you guessed it) the Philippines, however it is restricted to just a few islands. The Philippine Flying Lemur is a small mammal, measuring around 14-17 inches in length (35-43 centimeters) and weighing only 2.2 to 3.7 pounds (1.1-1.7 kilograms). Although it is called a flying lemur, it cannot actually fly and it is not even a lemur – actual lemurs are found in Madagascar and close islands called the Comoro Islands. The Philippine Flying Lemur has a wide face and head, proportionally small ears, and large eyes, and it also possesses clawed feet, which are webbed for climbing and gliding (not flying). Their tail also provides flight navigation and is of a medium length – their limbs are long and a special membrane is connected between them from front to hind limbs in order to enable their gliding ability.

The Philippine Flying Lemur’s species name is Cynocephalus Volans, and it belongs to the genus Cynocephalus. Cynocephalus belongs to the family Cynocephalidae, which has only one other living genus and species, Galeopterus (Sunda Flying Lemur [which is not a real lemur either]), and one known extinct genus and species, Dermotherium. Cynocephalidae belongs to the order Dermoptera. Dermoptera belongs to the super order Euarchontoglires, and that belongs to the Infraclass Eutheria (placental mammals).

The Philippine Flying Lemur is arboreal (tree dwelling) and has excellent vision, with its eye positions allowing for binocular vision and good depth perception. In the trees they are not well adapted to climbing; however do sufficiently well to remain in trees their whole lives. This clumsiness can be attributed to the lack of opposable thumbs, and rather than climb in a slow upward motion they hop, grab, and hop again to ascend the tree. The skin between their limbs extends to the largest shape possible when gliding, allowing for maximum surface area, and can allow one to glide 230 feet (70 meters) from tree to tree without loosing too much height.

Primarily nocturnal, the Philippine Flying Lemur is a very shy creature, and although it has sharp teeth, it feeds on plant matter, and fruits. Their incisor teeth are very unique, they are almost like a tiny comb with twenty tines upon each incisor tooth – and as of yet their function remains wholly unknown. They resemble marsupials in their breeding and gestation (pregnancy) in that the baby is born just after 60 days, and it is very tiny and undeveloped – it will be two years before it is ready to venture out on its own. Once born it clings to the mother’s belly, while the mother protects it from harm with her tail, as folding it under also folds some of the membrane for flying. It is unknown at this time if the Philippine Flying Lemur could be the ancestor of a link between Marsupial and Placental mammals.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources lists the Philippine Flying Lemur as threatened due to habitat loss and human predation. The Philippine Flying Lemur is dependent upon the rain forests of the Philippines and the loss of that habitat is happening at an alarming rate. Due to the long breeding times, and the two year maturation of a baby Philippine Flying Lemur, poaching of even individuals has a dire effect on the population. Their slower repopulation rates hampers recovery, and it could furthermore cause a genetic breakdown should populations continue to decrease, however with that decrease they will be listed as endangered and be given more attention.

Interesting Facts about Philippine Flying Lemurs:

• In addition to being threatened, they are also a primary food source of the critically endangered Philippine Eagle – and should the Philippine Flying Lemur numbers continue to decrease, the Philippine Eagle will be faced with extinction in the wild.


• Although they may be clumsy climbers, the Philippine Flying Lemur is an exceptionally gifted pilot when it glides, and can maneuver in some of the thickest foliage.

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Friday 25 July 2008 Sei whale

The Sei Whale (Balaenoptera borealis) is a large baleen whale that lives in all the oceans of the world. It is a dark steel gray color and has white spots on its underside. The Sei Whale is a very large animal and is generally lengthy and slender in shape. They can measure up to 20 meters long (66 feet) but usually are around 12-15 meters long. They weigh over 50 tons (45 tonnes) in some cases with the average being around 40 tons, and are very powerful swimmers. The have short pectoral fins, and their sickle shaped dorsal fin can be from 25-61 centimeters in height. The mouth of the Sei Whale is enormous, and has over 300 baleen plates (300-380 in most cases) which are a dark ash-black color, while the bristles are white. A baby whale, called a calf, will weigh several tons when born, and will grow quickly. By the age of 6-8 it will be mature enough to mate, and by this time is an independent member of the group.

The longevity of the Sei Whale is not fully known, however individuals have been found that are sixty years old, while the average age found is between that and a calf. However there is circumstantial evidence that they may live well past sixty, provided that they are no longer hunted as they used to be. Currently the Sei Whale is an endangered species on the threatened list. If the numbers do not recover, they could be listed as critical. However, recently there have been more pregnancies spotted, suggesting that due to the mass harvesting and the decline in numbers, more female Sei Whales are giving birth on an increased pace to restore the population. When whaling was occurring between 1910 and 1979 over 150,000 Sei Whales were harpooned, butchered and slaughtered, this is the only reason the Sei Whale is endangered today. It is hoped that there is enough diversity to keep the species alive, and eventually to make a full recovery, with the population today being just 54,000 world wide - whereas previously there had been 250,000.

Sei Whales belong to the genus Balaenoptera, which has seven other species of whale, including the Blue Whale and the Fin Whale, Baleaenoptera belongs to the family Balaenopteridae, which has only one other family living called Megapterinae, with only one species in that (the Humpback Whale). All other species that belonged to this family are though to be extinct today. The family Balaenopteridae belongs to the suborder Mysticeti, which includes all other baleen whales. Finally, Mysticeti belongs to the order Cetacea that includes many extinct species, and many living species such as the Dolphin, the Killer Whale, and the Sperm Whale.

Migration patterns of the Sei Whale fallow an irregular set of going between the cooler areas in summer, and the warmer in winter - as they follow the weather than a set routine. Usually in the Northern Hemisphere this means that during the summer they will go from around the state of Georgia to the country of Greenland, but avoid any partially enclosed areas of water - preferring to stay where it is deep. They do this to follow the food that they eat, which also is of more abundance in cooler areas in summer, and warmer areas in winter. In the southern hemisphere they will migrate south toward Antarctica during the summer and north to Africa and South America in winter - which happens at opposite times from our own weather patterns. Some may cross the equator and travel all the way north, and vice versa.

Interesting Facts about Sei Whales:

• A Sei Whale can swim past 50 kilometers per hour (31 miles per hour)


• Sei Whales make long vocalizations and whale songs, mainly of low rumblings, however are also known to make short higher pitched noises, and even some that seem like growls.

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Sunday 13 July 2008 Silvery marmoset

The Silvery Marmoset (Callithrix argentata) is a new world monkey, and is related to the other marmosets, however has some key behavioral and characteristic oddities that make it fundamentally different from other related species. The Silvery Marmoset grows to 28 centimeters (11 inches) in length in the largest individuals, and has a mass of 300-400 grams (10-14 ounces). They are mostly located in the Amazon basin, and have a white to silver-gray color and a dark tail, and have a contrasting feature of fleshy ears that are differing in color from its normal skin.

Their features also include a skull that has a jaw that tapers to a point, rather than a wider mouth, which is likely an adaptation to their feeding habits, which include eggs, fruits, insects, and also tree sap. Tree sap happens to be the major part of their diet, and is likely for the aforementioned mouth adaptation. They are unlike the other marmosets in that the Silvery Marmoset is habitat restricted and very isolated due to many factors. The Silvery Marmoset is also one of the smallest of the new world monkeys, as they are about the size of a squirrel. Additionally unlike other new world monkeys who have claws/nails on all digits (hands and toes) the Silvery Marmoset has claws on all of their toes except the big toe.

The Silvery marmoset is a day creature, otherwise known as diurnal, and during they day they do their majority of chores, feeding, and grooming. They are very territorial and can be found living in colonies, where most of the time they remain close. When they are scared or an intruder comes into their areas the first reaction is to attempt to scare the intruder away with yelling and making faces, along with lowering their eyebrows and smacking their lips. If this fails, their speed in the trees is more than enough to get away.

They spend most of their lives in the trees, and guard them jealously. Their original habitat was dense rainforest, however because of logging and the creation of plantations the Silvery Marmoset has adapted to a new lifestyle, rather than take the turn to extinction. They will curl up in hollows of a tree at night for shelter and for sleeping, while also taking advantage of structures in old plantations or abandoned areas that are no longer farmed. The gestation period of the Silvery Marmoset is about 4-5 months and the mother will usually give birth to two, but sometimes three, young. When they are small, the entire colony will help in raising the young; however in six months the young are weaned and will mature until they are two years of age.

The Silvery Marmoset belongs to the subgenus Mico, which contains the rest of the Amazonian Marmosets, the genus Callithrix which has three other subgenus of Marmosets, the subfamily Callitrichinae which holds three other genus (which tamaris are a part of), the family Cebidae (of which squirrel monkeys and many others are a part of) and belong to the Parvorder of Platyrrhini - which is all the new world monkeys living in the western hemisphere. Above this is the infraorder Simiiformes, of which we are also a part of, as this contains all the higher apes as well as the new world monkeys.

Here are some interesting facts about Silvery Marmosets:

• Silvery Marmosets use an odd scent gland to mark their territories, and keep others out.


• They are sometimes referred to as ‘bare ear marmosets’ because of their flesh colored ears.


• They are also sometimes called the ‘black tail marmoset’ because of their black or dark tails.


• Some Silvery Marmosets may never leave the trees their entire lives, and if some do it is only because of a rare circumstance or to escape to another tree.

Picture of the silvery marmoset by Nick Woolley, licensed under Attribution ShareAlike 2.5

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