Stan C. Smith's Blog, page 18
September 18, 2022
Awesome Animal Fact - Wandering Lynxes
Did you know lynxes go on epic journeys, traveling over 2,100 miles? Just a few years ago, no one even imagined that these 20 to 30 pound (9 to 14 kg) cats could travel such immense distances. But during the last five years, scientists have radio-collared 170 of these felines to study their movements in Alaska and Canada.
After a lynx is old enough to live on its own, it will go on a journey, called a dispersal.
One of the studied lynxes, nicknamed Hobo, traveled 2,174 miles (3,500 km). And not just on flat ground. Hobo swam across several large, dangerous rivers and climbed over tall mountains on its journey.
Why do these cats travel such long distances? No one knows for sure yet, but scientists think they are following the population cycles of the snowshoe hare, which is the lynx's favorite prey animal. They continue traveling, even enduring amazingly harsh conditions, until they find a good population of hares, then they stop and establish a new home territory.
Photo Credits:
- Lynx - DepositPhotos
After a lynx is old enough to live on its own, it will go on a journey, called a dispersal.
One of the studied lynxes, nicknamed Hobo, traveled 2,174 miles (3,500 km). And not just on flat ground. Hobo swam across several large, dangerous rivers and climbed over tall mountains on its journey.
Why do these cats travel such long distances? No one knows for sure yet, but scientists think they are following the population cycles of the snowshoe hare, which is the lynx's favorite prey animal. They continue traveling, even enduring amazingly harsh conditions, until they find a good population of hares, then they stop and establish a new home territory.
Photo Credits:
- Lynx - DepositPhotos
September 8, 2022
Awesome Animal Fact - Long Oarfish
Did you know the oarfish is the longest bony fish in the world? Bony fish are those that have real bones, as opposed to cartilage fish such as sharks. Oarfish are shaped like eels on steroids, and they live deep in oceans, at about 3,300 feet (1,000 meters) below the surface. Therefore, they are almost never seen alive by humans because they rarely survive near the surface. Why? Because at 1,000 meters down there are no water currents, therefore oarfish have very weak swimming muscles and cannot endure the turbulent water near the surface.
So, almost everything we know about the oarfish is from dead ones that have washed ashore. Live oarfish have only been caught on video on two or three occasions. We do know that oarfish feed by filtering plankton from the water.
Below is a photo taken in 1996. This oarfish, held by a group of servicemen, was found washed up on the shore near San Diego, California. The fish was 23 feet (7 m) long and weighed 300 pounds (140 kg).
Photo Credits:
- Oarfish - Wm. Leo Smith, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
So, almost everything we know about the oarfish is from dead ones that have washed ashore. Live oarfish have only been caught on video on two or three occasions. We do know that oarfish feed by filtering plankton from the water.
Below is a photo taken in 1996. This oarfish, held by a group of servicemen, was found washed up on the shore near San Diego, California. The fish was 23 feet (7 m) long and weighed 300 pounds (140 kg).
Photo Credits:
- Oarfish - Wm. Leo Smith, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
September 4, 2022
Awesome Animal Fact - Stinky Bird
Continuing with the theme of stinky animals, did you know there is a bird that stinks so bad that it's often called the stinkbird? The hoatzin (pronounced hoh-AT-sin) lives in the tropics of the Amazon Basin. It's smelly, but unlike a skunk, it doesn't use the smell as a defense from predators. It simply stinks because of what it eats and how it processes its food.
The hoatzin is unusual in that it is one of the few birds that almost exclusively eats leaves. Because of its diet, the hoatzin has developed an unusual digestive system. The hoatzin is the only bird that has a huge crop specialized for fermentation of the leaves it eats. This crop is so large that there is hardly enough room for the bird's flight muscles, making it a very weak flyer.
This leaf-fermentation process produces extremely stinky substances, which permeate the bird's entire body. Therefore, the entire bird has a nasty, manure-like smell. Because of this odor, the hoatzin is never hunted for food by native people unless they are literally starving.
Photo Credits:
- Hoatzin - DepositPhotos
The hoatzin is unusual in that it is one of the few birds that almost exclusively eats leaves. Because of its diet, the hoatzin has developed an unusual digestive system. The hoatzin is the only bird that has a huge crop specialized for fermentation of the leaves it eats. This crop is so large that there is hardly enough room for the bird's flight muscles, making it a very weak flyer.
This leaf-fermentation process produces extremely stinky substances, which permeate the bird's entire body. Therefore, the entire bird has a nasty, manure-like smell. Because of this odor, the hoatzin is never hunted for food by native people unless they are literally starving.
Photo Credits:
- Hoatzin - DepositPhotos
August 31, 2022
Awesome Animal Fact: More Smelly Animals
Did you know skunks aren't the only animals that spray stinky stuff? Let's look at a few.
Millipedes. Although centipedes can inject venom through their fangs, millipedes are docile and do not bite. However, many of them compensate for this by squirting out a stinky toxin. They can shoot this stuff up to 32 inches (80 cm), and it can cause irritation of the skin. That, along with the smell, makes this behavior an effective predator defense.
Bombardier beetles. When threatened, these beetles stick their rump in the air and squirt out a noxious fluid that is boiling hot. Through a series of chemical reactions, the nasty stuff is at about 212 degrees F (100º C) when it gets squirted. So, it burns the skin, in addition to being foul smelling. There are more than 500 species of bombardier beetles.
Green woodhoopoes. This one is a bird, native to sub-Saharan Africa. The woodhoopoe builds nests in the hollows of trees. Whenever it is threatened, the bird sticks its rear end out the hole, raises its tail, and squirts a stream of stuff that smells like rotten eggs. This nasty substance contains dimethyl sulphide, which explains the rotten egg smell.
Finally, the African polecat (also called the zorilla), which sometimes gets the dubious honor of being called the smelliest animal on Earth. These animals resemble a skunk, but they are actually a type of wild ferret that lives in Africa. Just like the skunk, the polecat squirts a nasty fluid when threatened, and its black and white colors warn away predators. This could be considered an example of convergent evolution, in which two types of animals that are not closely related have evolved the same features that accomplish the same function.
Below is an African polecat (remember, this is NOT a skunk).
Photo Credits:
- African Polecat - DepositPhotos
Millipedes. Although centipedes can inject venom through their fangs, millipedes are docile and do not bite. However, many of them compensate for this by squirting out a stinky toxin. They can shoot this stuff up to 32 inches (80 cm), and it can cause irritation of the skin. That, along with the smell, makes this behavior an effective predator defense.
Bombardier beetles. When threatened, these beetles stick their rump in the air and squirt out a noxious fluid that is boiling hot. Through a series of chemical reactions, the nasty stuff is at about 212 degrees F (100º C) when it gets squirted. So, it burns the skin, in addition to being foul smelling. There are more than 500 species of bombardier beetles.
Green woodhoopoes. This one is a bird, native to sub-Saharan Africa. The woodhoopoe builds nests in the hollows of trees. Whenever it is threatened, the bird sticks its rear end out the hole, raises its tail, and squirts a stream of stuff that smells like rotten eggs. This nasty substance contains dimethyl sulphide, which explains the rotten egg smell.
Finally, the African polecat (also called the zorilla), which sometimes gets the dubious honor of being called the smelliest animal on Earth. These animals resemble a skunk, but they are actually a type of wild ferret that lives in Africa. Just like the skunk, the polecat squirts a nasty fluid when threatened, and its black and white colors warn away predators. This could be considered an example of convergent evolution, in which two types of animals that are not closely related have evolved the same features that accomplish the same function.
Below is an African polecat (remember, this is NOT a skunk).
Photo Credits:
- African Polecat - DepositPhotos
August 28, 2022
Awesome Animal Fact - Smelly Skunks
Did you know skunks can spray their smelly stuff with pinpoint accuracy up to 20 feet (6.1 m) away? As masterful as they are at squirting this stuff, they only do it as a last resort because replenishing their supply is a slow process. They refuse to spray when they get in a fight with another skunk. They only do it against predators when they feel their life is in danger.
Of course they also spray—involuntarily—when they get run over by a vehicle. Usually, when people smell a skunk, it's from one that was killed on a nearby road. Actually, the road doesn't have to be nearby—a skunk's smell can easily be detected by humans a half mile (0.8 km) away.
Skunks are so stingy with their spray that they usually only squirt out a small amount. This is enough, and it leaves them with a supply in case they need it before they can produce more. It takes 10 days to refill their anal glands (where the stuff is made). If they run out, skunks are vulnerable to predators until they make more.
An interesting point... dogs often get sprayed by skunks, whereas wild predators (coyotes, bobcats, badgers, wolves, and others) do not. Why? Because domesticated dogs have lost many of their natural instincts regarding the natural world, including the innate fear of skunks. Wild predators immediately recognize a skunk's distinct black and white fur, and they steer clear. Domestic dogs don't, not even when the skunk stomps its feet and raises its tail to warn them away.
I've often wondered what it's like to a dog to get sprayed by a skunk. Humans are visual, experiencing the world with our eyes. Dogs, though, are olfactory-inclined. Scientists guess that dogs smell 10,000 to 100,000 times better than we do. So, I imagine when a dog is hit with skunk spray, it is kind of like if I were to stare directly at the sun. Youch!
Below is a spotted skunk.
Photo Credits:
- Spotted Skunk - DepositPhotos
Of course they also spray—involuntarily—when they get run over by a vehicle. Usually, when people smell a skunk, it's from one that was killed on a nearby road. Actually, the road doesn't have to be nearby—a skunk's smell can easily be detected by humans a half mile (0.8 km) away.
Skunks are so stingy with their spray that they usually only squirt out a small amount. This is enough, and it leaves them with a supply in case they need it before they can produce more. It takes 10 days to refill their anal glands (where the stuff is made). If they run out, skunks are vulnerable to predators until they make more.
An interesting point... dogs often get sprayed by skunks, whereas wild predators (coyotes, bobcats, badgers, wolves, and others) do not. Why? Because domesticated dogs have lost many of their natural instincts regarding the natural world, including the innate fear of skunks. Wild predators immediately recognize a skunk's distinct black and white fur, and they steer clear. Domestic dogs don't, not even when the skunk stomps its feet and raises its tail to warn them away.
I've often wondered what it's like to a dog to get sprayed by a skunk. Humans are visual, experiencing the world with our eyes. Dogs, though, are olfactory-inclined. Scientists guess that dogs smell 10,000 to 100,000 times better than we do. So, I imagine when a dog is hit with skunk spray, it is kind of like if I were to stare directly at the sun. Youch!
Below is a spotted skunk.
Photo Credits:
- Spotted Skunk - DepositPhotos
August 27, 2022
Awesome Animal Fact: Impressive Naked Mole Rats
Did you know naked mole rats can live in tunnels with almost no oxygen? How? Why? Well, naked mole rats live their entire lives in colonies in closed underground burrows (in southern Africa). The oxygen in these burrows often drops to dangerously low levels.
But this doesn't bother the naked mole rats. In fact, they can go for six hours with very low oxygen, and they can go eighteen minutes with no oxygen at all. This is even more amazing considering these creatures are warm-blooded mammals, not cold-blooded reptiles or amphibians that typically use less oxygen.
How do they do it? It all has to do with the way they use sugar. As humans (as with other mammals), our cells use oxygen and a type of sugar called glucose to make fuel. If you take away the oxygen, our cells begin to die. But the naked mole rat has a trick. When its brain and muscles start getting deprived of oxygen, its body cells switch to using a different kind of sugar called fructose. Metabolizing fructose causes them to quickly drop into a state of "suspended animation." While they're in this state, they use minimal oxygen, although they take a quick breath now and then to test the air. This way they can determine when the oxygen is increasing again, and they immediately wake up and go about their business, digesting glucose again instead of fructose.
As if that weren't impressive enough, naked mole rats are also quite handsome. Don't you agree?
Photo Credits:
- Naked mole rat - DepostPhotos
But this doesn't bother the naked mole rats. In fact, they can go for six hours with very low oxygen, and they can go eighteen minutes with no oxygen at all. This is even more amazing considering these creatures are warm-blooded mammals, not cold-blooded reptiles or amphibians that typically use less oxygen.
How do they do it? It all has to do with the way they use sugar. As humans (as with other mammals), our cells use oxygen and a type of sugar called glucose to make fuel. If you take away the oxygen, our cells begin to die. But the naked mole rat has a trick. When its brain and muscles start getting deprived of oxygen, its body cells switch to using a different kind of sugar called fructose. Metabolizing fructose causes them to quickly drop into a state of "suspended animation." While they're in this state, they use minimal oxygen, although they take a quick breath now and then to test the air. This way they can determine when the oxygen is increasing again, and they immediately wake up and go about their business, digesting glucose again instead of fructose.
As if that weren't impressive enough, naked mole rats are also quite handsome. Don't you agree?
Photo Credits:
- Naked mole rat - DepostPhotos
August 19, 2022
Awesome Animal Fact - Curious Sharks
Awesome Animal Fact:
Did you know great white sharks are the only sharks that regularly raise their heads out of the water to look around? This behavior is called spy-hopping, and it is common in marine mammals like whales, orcas, and dolphins, but not in sharks, other than the great white.
Spy-hopping is often done while hunting, particularly if the sharks are hunting seals, one of their favorite prey animals. Some scientists have suggested it may also help the sharks smell their prey, as scents travel through the air much faster than through the water.
But great white sharks are also considered curious animals, and they may sometime spy-hop simply to see what's going on around them.
Great white sharks are also unusual in that they display breaching behavior. This is when they attack by charging prey—particularly seals—at such a high speed that it carries the shark completely or partially out of the water. I'm pretty sure the seagull is photoshopped into this image, but it still illustrates the concept.
Photo Credits:
- Great white shark attacking seagull - DepositPhotos
Did you know great white sharks are the only sharks that regularly raise their heads out of the water to look around? This behavior is called spy-hopping, and it is common in marine mammals like whales, orcas, and dolphins, but not in sharks, other than the great white.
Spy-hopping is often done while hunting, particularly if the sharks are hunting seals, one of their favorite prey animals. Some scientists have suggested it may also help the sharks smell their prey, as scents travel through the air much faster than through the water.
But great white sharks are also considered curious animals, and they may sometime spy-hop simply to see what's going on around them.
Great white sharks are also unusual in that they display breaching behavior. This is when they attack by charging prey—particularly seals—at such a high speed that it carries the shark completely or partially out of the water. I'm pretty sure the seagull is photoshopped into this image, but it still illustrates the concept.
Photo Credits:
- Great white shark attacking seagull - DepositPhotos
August 16, 2022
Awesome Animal Fact - Hungry Anteaters
Did you know giant anteaters slurp up 35,000 ants every day? Well, they don't actually count them and stop when they reach exactly 35,000. But they do eat a LOT of ants. In fact, these bizarre mammals pretty much eat only ants (and termites). They don't even have teeth because you don't need teeth for eating ants. What you do need, though, is a really long, sticky tongue. How long? Two feet (61 cm) long. And it helps if you can flick that long tongue out 150 times per minute to gather up as many ants as you can before they escape. Oh, and big strong claws are helpful for tearing into ant mounds.
This basically explains how a mammal weighing up to 110 pounds (50 kg) can exist eating only ants and termites. They're really good at it!
Sure, giant anteaters have physical characteristics making them almost perfect for eating ants, but they also have behaviors that help them out. Anteaters rip into ant mounds with their long claws, but they don't completely destroy the mounds. If they did, they would be destroying their own food source and would die out. They only feed on each ant mound for about one minute before moving on to another mound. In this way, they can continue feeding in the same area indefinitely. They are responsibly managing the resource in a sustainable way.
Giant anteaters live in South and Central America, usually in savannas, dry forests, and grasslands, where there are plenty of ants.
Photo Credits:
- Giant anteater - DepositPhotos
This basically explains how a mammal weighing up to 110 pounds (50 kg) can exist eating only ants and termites. They're really good at it!
Sure, giant anteaters have physical characteristics making them almost perfect for eating ants, but they also have behaviors that help them out. Anteaters rip into ant mounds with their long claws, but they don't completely destroy the mounds. If they did, they would be destroying their own food source and would die out. They only feed on each ant mound for about one minute before moving on to another mound. In this way, they can continue feeding in the same area indefinitely. They are responsibly managing the resource in a sustainable way.
Giant anteaters live in South and Central America, usually in savannas, dry forests, and grasslands, where there are plenty of ants.
Photo Credits:
- Giant anteater - DepositPhotos
August 12, 2022
Awesome Animal Fact - Shrinking Frog
Did you know there is a frog that is much larger as a tadpole than after it turns into a frog? The tadpole of a paradoxical frog (awesome name, right?) can be 11 inches (27 cm) long, making it the longest tadpole in the world. However, the adult frog's body is only about three inches (7.6 cm) long.
So, why do these massive tadpoles shrink as they become frogs? Basically, it's a result of storing lots of food needed for the energy-intensive process of metamorphosis. The herbivorous tadpole stuffs itself with algae, storing nutrients in its huge tail. Then most of this stored food is used up as the tadpole transforms into an adult frog, reducing the animal's size dramatically. As with most frogs and toads, the tadpoles are herbivores, but the adults are fierce predators.
By the way, there happens to also be a critically-acclaimed jazz band by the name of Paradoxical Frog. Just thought I'd include that totally unrelated and inconsequential tidbit.
Photo Credits:
- Paradoxical frog and tadpole - Chipmunkdavis, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
So, why do these massive tadpoles shrink as they become frogs? Basically, it's a result of storing lots of food needed for the energy-intensive process of metamorphosis. The herbivorous tadpole stuffs itself with algae, storing nutrients in its huge tail. Then most of this stored food is used up as the tadpole transforms into an adult frog, reducing the animal's size dramatically. As with most frogs and toads, the tadpoles are herbivores, but the adults are fierce predators.
By the way, there happens to also be a critically-acclaimed jazz band by the name of Paradoxical Frog. Just thought I'd include that totally unrelated and inconsequential tidbit.
Photo Credits:
- Paradoxical frog and tadpole - Chipmunkdavis, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Awesome Animal - Shrinking Frog
Did you know there is a frog that is much larger as a tadpole than after it turns into a frog? The tadpole of a paradoxical frog (awesome name, right?) can be 11 inches (27 cm) long, making it the longest tadpole in the world. However, the adult frog's body is only about three inches (7.6 cm) long.
So, why do these massive tadpoles shrink as they become frogs? Basically, it's a result of storing lots of food needed for the energy-intensive process of metamorphosis. The herbivorous tadpole stuffs itself with algae, storing nutrients in its huge tail. Then most of this stored food is used up as the tadpole transforms into an adult frog, reducing the animal's size dramatically. As with most frogs and toads, the tadpoles are herbivores, but the adults are fierce predators.
By the way, there happens to also be a critically-acclaimed jazz band by the name of Paradoxical Frog. Just thought I'd include that totally unrelated and inconsequential tidbit.
Photo Credits:
- Paradoxical frog and tadpole - Chipmunkdavis, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
So, why do these massive tadpoles shrink as they become frogs? Basically, it's a result of storing lots of food needed for the energy-intensive process of metamorphosis. The herbivorous tadpole stuffs itself with algae, storing nutrients in its huge tail. Then most of this stored food is used up as the tadpole transforms into an adult frog, reducing the animal's size dramatically. As with most frogs and toads, the tadpoles are herbivores, but the adults are fierce predators.
By the way, there happens to also be a critically-acclaimed jazz band by the name of Paradoxical Frog. Just thought I'd include that totally unrelated and inconsequential tidbit.
Photo Credits:
- Paradoxical frog and tadpole - Chipmunkdavis, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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