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Monday 29 April 2013
The Fox Squirrel - The Largest Tree Squirrel of North America
The Fox Squirrel (Sciurus niger) is the largest squirrel among all the tree squirrel species found in North America. It is also known as the Raccoon Squirrel, Stump-eared Squirrel, Monkey Faced Squirrel, and Red Squirrel. Although there is a difference in their size and coloration, people mistake this squirrel for the Eastern Grey Squirrel in areas where both the species coexist.
The fox squirrels are found almost everywhere in Eastern America, excluding Colorado, Texas, west of Dakotas, New England, and the southern parts of Canada. They have also been introduced to Southern and Northern California. They have a very versatile choice in terms of their selection for habitat. They are seen in forest patches spreading to 400,000 sq. m. They are also often found near urban developments where there are plenty of trees. They habitat best in areas where oak, walnut, pine, and hickory trees are found in abundance, since they produce food-like nuts which are stored for the winter.
The total length of an Eastern Fox Squirrel measures 17.71 to 27.55 inches (45 - 70 cm) with its tail measuring 7.87 to 13 inches (20-33 cm). Its weight also varies with its size. It can weigh anywhere from 1.1 lbs to 2.2 lbs (500 - 1000 grams). The animals in the eastern parts are bigger. There are three variations in its color according to the geographic conditions in which it is found to exist. In the southern parts, it is found with only black color coat while in eastern regions, it is dark brown or black with stripes on its face and its tail and in rest of the areas, it is found with a brownish yellow or a grayish brown coat. The fox squirrels have very sharp claws, flexors of forearms, and very well-developed extensors which help them in climbing. They have exceptionally good vision and their smelling and hearing senses are also well-developed. For communication with other squirrels, they make markings along with a specific scent.
Tree seeds are the first choice of Eastern fox squirrels when it comes to food. They also feed on fruits, buds, insects, food grains, small snakes, lizards, and birds eggs. Fox squirrels are considered as diurnal and non-territorial animals. Unlike other squirrels, although most of their time is spent on the ground, they are still swift climbers. They construct their house called 'dreys' according to the season.
These fox squirrels have two breeding seasons, in June and in December. The young ones have no fur at birth and are blind and helpless. After three months of their birth, they become independent and in one year, they reach their sexual maturity. In wild, they live only for seven months on an average while in captivity they are known to live up to 18 years.
Predators of eastern fox squirrels include humans, bob cats, hawks, snakes, and owls. Their agility is helpful to them to escape from their predators. They emit specific alarm calls to alert other squirrels when they are threatened. The increasing over-hunting and deforestation practices have put many species of this squirrel in danger.
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Friday 26 April 2013
White-headed Capuchin - The Movie Star and Service Primate
The White-headed Capuchin (Cebus capucinus), also known as the White-faced Capuchin and sometimes as the White-throated Capuchin, is a New World Monkey from South America and Central America, with a range that includes Panama, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Honduras, and parts of Columbia. They are a very versatile and adaptable species, which is considered a least-concern in the IUCN red list. They are able to adapt to their changing environment and have an omnivorous diet. They are usually around 8-9 pounds (3.9-4.2kg) and are usually 12 to 19.6 in (33-50) cm in length, with a prehensile tail that is an additional 15-21 in. (40-55cm) in length. The White-headed Capuchin's diet consists of an omnivorous mix of fruits and insects, and sometimes small birds, seeds, and small mammals. They are arboreal, but it will go to the ground more often than other relative New World Monkeys.
They usually live in groups of 5-30 individuals which have multiple males; however there is a hierarchy which starts with the Alpha Male, followed by the Alpha Female, and so on. As a social species they practice grooming, where the lower ranked members groom the higher ranked members and so on. Females of the species will form coalitions and stay with each other closely, when a new male or group of males attempts to take control and oust the other males they usually stay to themselves and cut off interacting with the males to keep themselves and the infants safe, however sometimes they will join with the males against intruding males. Interactions between troops seem to normally be aggressive and antagonistic in nature, however violence is usually a last resort. They will interact with other species of New World Monkey that are closely related, such as the various subspecies and even Geoffroy's Spider Monkey - and in rare instances going so far as travelling with and grooming them. On the flip side, there are violent fights between the two species as well as this sympatric behavior. They may also interact with howlers, however it is limited and mostly when young of both species play.
There are three subspecies of White-headed Capuchin, which are all closely related and will willingly interact socially (whether this is with aggression or not is dependent on the situation).
Cebus capucinus capucinus lives in Columbia and Ecuador, and is restricted to the western bank of the Rio Cauca River.
Cebus capucinus limitaneus lives in Honduras and possibly in the Mayan Mountains in Belize, although this remains unconfirmed.
Cebus capucinus imitator lives in Panama and covers areas of Costa Rica and also in the islands of Coiba.
Cebus capucinus curtus lives on Gorgona Island.
The White-headed Capuchin and its subspecies are all in the genus Cebus and Subfamily Cebinae, of which all Capuchin monkeys are members and many are endangered. Cebinae belongs to the Family Cebidae, which includes the squirrel monkeys. Cebidae belongs to the Parvorder Platyrrhini, which are all New World Monkeys, and this belongs to the Infraorder Simiiformes, of which we are members. This belongs to the Suborder Haplorrhini, which belongs to the order Primates. Primates belong to the Superorder Euarchontoglires which is comprised of Glires, being rodents and lagomorphs, and Euarchonta, being shrews, flying lemurs, and primates. Euarchontoglires belong to the Infraclass Eutheria, placental mammals, which belong to the Subclass Theria, which is all mammals except the monotremes. Finally this belongs to the Class of Mammals, of which all mammals are of course members.
They are able to use tools to help with food gathering, and are very skilled at adaptation and problem solving. They are, because of this, considered one of the highest in intelligence among other species in the new world and they have been studied for many years, and their intelligence is only ranked below the spider monkey in New World monkeys. If threatened by snakes they will pick up sticks and use them to beat the snake, and drive it away, or even to rescue an infant. In one example of tool use while captive (they usually use tools for food or for or in defense) a White-headed Capuchin actually picked up and threw a Squirrel Monkey at a human. In addition to tools they also rib certain plants on themselves and their fur in order to prevent parasites and deter insects, additionally they also use ants and millipedes, which release an irritating chemical normally, to further enhance this characteristic. It is because of their high intelligence and ability to learn and be trained that they have become service animals for humans that are disabled, such as paraplegics who cannot use their legs and quadriplegics who cannot use their arms or legs. They have a long history of being in the media as well, such Katie who played Marcel in the television series Friends.
Interesting Facts:
In addition to Friends, a White-headed Capuchin was featured in the film Outbreak.
Picture of the white-headed capuchin by Michelle Reback, licensed under GFDL
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The Wild Asiatic Water Buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) is an endangered species. True wild populations still live in Bhutan, India, Nepal and Thailand, while their domesticated counterparts are very widespread. They are large animals, standing 1.5 to 1.9 meters in height at the shoulder. Wild male water buffaloes can become 3 meters in length and weigh up to 1200 kilos, while their domesticated counterparts can weigh 250 to 550 kilograms. They can become 25 years of age in the wild.
The Wild Asiatic Water Buffalo is a social animal, with groups of 10 to 20 individuals, but also groups of 100 individuals have been observed.
Their diet mainly consists of grasses, herbs, aquatic plants, leaves and agricultural crops, The only predator in the wild is the tiger, but their main threats are habitat destruction and genetic pollution (breeding with their domesticated counterparts).
Interesting fact: Wild bulls are known to invade a domesticated herd, kill the domesticated bull (which is a lot smaller), and breed with the receptive females. The resulting offspring are less docile and too large to fit a farmer's equipment. Occasionally, the wild bull not only kills the domesticated bull, but also take over and drive off the owners, keeping the herd for himself.
Wednesday 24 April 2013
The Western Red Colobus Monkey, Acrobats of West Africa
The Western Red Colobus Monkey (Procolobus badius) can be seen leaping from branch to branch high above the forest canopy. Members of the old world monkeys, the long strong tail helps them balance in the tall trees. They are incredibly beautiful animals. Their backs are covered with a dark grey, almost silver, fur and orange colored front with a white chest. The males and females are relatively similar in size weighing 8.2 kilograms, 18 pounds, and body length of 57 centimeters, almost 23 inches. The incredibly long tail nearly doubles their total length.
Their rainforest habitats have been restricted to small local ar>
The Fox Squirrel (Sciurus niger) is the largest squirrel among all the tree squirrel species found in North America. It is also known as the Raccoon Squirrel, Stump-eared Squirrel, Monkey Faced Squirrel, and Red Squirrel. Although there is a difference in their size and coloration, people mistake this squirrel for the Eastern Grey Squirrel in areas where both the species coexist.
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