 |
|
|
|
Facts Archive
Archives in alphabetical order by subject. Subjects include: birds, early naturalists, domestics, fish, fossils, frogs, habitats, hybrids, insects/inverts, mammals, orchids, other plants, reptiles, and salamanders.
**********************************************************
BIRDS:
October 15, 2007: The bird with the most FEATHERS (that have been counted) is the whistling swan with a total of about 25,000 (20,000 on the head and neck alone). The heavy feathering on these areas is thought to protect the vital brain in cold temperatures when the bird flies at high altitudes.
Info from "Extreme Nature" by Mark Carwardine
July 27, 2007: European STARLINGS, a species introduced into the U.S. on purpose in the mid to late 1800's by rich people who had nothing else to do, have a complex vocal repertoire which includes the ability to warn other birds in the flock of the identity of specific predators, including dogs, humans, birds of prey, and cats.
Repertoire info from: "The Animals Among Us" by John C. McLoughlin
EARLY NATURALISTS:
August 11, 2007: CONSTANTINE RAFINESQUE was an early North American Naturalist primarily known for his descriptions of new fish species. He also had a reputation for eccentricity. Other naturalists are said to have amused themselves by sending him freaks of nature, hybrids, and specimens with physical defects in the hope that he would describe them as new species. While visiting John James Audubon in Louisville, Kentucky, Rafinesque lived up to his reputation by accidentally waking Audubon in the middle of the night while he chased a cloud of bats with Audubon's violin. Rafinesque was apparently naked at the time, not having taken the time to get dressed in his excitement. Audubon is said to have calmly knocked down a bat with his splintered violin for Rafinesque's examination.
DOMESTICS:
September 1, 2007: A DOMESTIC animal is one that is bred by man for his own purposes, is distinguishable from the wild form, and is manageable in captivity. Several species of snake meet this definition, especially the red rat or corn snake, captive bred since the 1960's. It is now available in over 20 color and pattern mutations.
Domestic info from Jared P. Diamond, author of "Guns, Germs, and Steel."
FISH:
Sept. 1, 2009: Lake Malawi in Africa contains over 600 known species of fish, many isolated by depth and habitats of the 373 by 50 mile lake. These fish occur in a bewildering variety of color forms, even within sex and species, making the Lake a much larger evolutionary "lab" than the Galapagos Islands.
From "Malawi Cichilds in Their Natural Habitat" 2nd edition by Ad Konings.
February 11, 2008: The gobies have their pelvic fins connected to form a suction cup like device which allows them to hold on to nearby substrate. This group of fishes tends to be very site specific and orient towards substrate rather than swimming in open water.
Info from "Smithsonian Handbook to Aquarium Fish" by Dick Mills.
January 26, 2008: The clownfish are protandrous hermaphrodites, which is a fancy way of saying that all of them start out as males, but have the ability to change their sex to female. Many species of reef fish are able to change sex one way or the other, depending on species. This might be an adaptation to make sure that both sexes are available in their isolated habitats (clownfish are pretty site specific once they settle onto a reef). This also makes it easier for fish breeders to make sure they get a pair. Usually the males are dominant. Get a small one and a large one (or even 2 small ones)and sooner or later you will have a pair.
Information from "The Completely Illustrated Breeder's Guide to Marine Aquarium Fishes" by Matthew Wittenrich.
December 10, 2007: Rivulus marmoratus, a KILLIFISH found in the American subtropics, including Florida, has the ability to live inside insect tunnels in rotten wood above the water level for months. As if this isn't enough, the animal is also a hermaphrodite, making one fish a "breeding pair."
Info from "Aquarium Fish International" magazine, page 35, January 2008.
December 2, 2007: These prehistoric looking FISH (sturgeon)were at one time used for food, oil, or isinglass (the bladder). The eggs are also the source of caviar. In Ohio they were at one time so abundant that they were piled on shore and burned to reduce their numbers and avoid damage to fishing gear.
Info from "The Fishes of Ohio" by Milton B. Trautman.
October 7, 2007: KOI is the name for a colored variety of the common carp (Cyprinus carpio). There are hundreds of color varieties of this pond fish, with at least 5 already established in Japan by 316 A.D. Each color variety has a name, some having as many as five colors in their patterm (blue, black, white, red, and gold). There are also 3 scale types, leather (lusterless surface, few visible scales), mirrored (one row of large scales on each side), and armored (large scales irregularly disributed). Koi get to be about 2 feet long and lay as many as 10,000 eggs. They are "designed" to be viewed from the top. With the upswing in backyard ponds, koi have recently become more popular with "the masses."
July 25, 2007: ANNUAL KILLIFISH(Cyprinodontidae) in Africa and South America lay their eggs in the mud at the bottom of temporary ponds. The ponds dry out, fish die, and the eggs hatch up to 8 months later when seasonal rains fill the ponds. The fry grow quickly, spawn, and the cycle begins again. Many of these fish are only a couple of inches long, but they are some of the most colorful fish in existence. From time to time, their eggs are sold by scientific supply companies as "instant fish."
FOSSILS:
August 4, 2007: The New Zealand Kauri pine tree is one of the few trees that can produce amber forming resin. AMBER is fossilized tree resin, used in jewelry, carvings, and as a source of preserved prehistoric insects (Remember "Jurassic Park?"). A more familiar tree in the Kauri pine family is the Norfolk Island Pine, often used as a houseplant.
From: "The Quest for Life in Amber" by George and Roberta Poiner.
FROGS:
July 10, 2009: The dumpy treefrog is the source for ceruletide, This medication under the names Takus, Ceosunin, Cerulex, and Tymtyran is used in diagnosis of gallbladder, intestinal, and pancreatic illness. It may also have some value in treating schizophrenia and some painful digestive malfunctions.
Info from "Medical Herpetology" by Grenard and "The 25 Best Reptile and Amphibian Pets" by Bartlett
May 28, 2008: The year 2008 has been declared "YEAR OF THE FROG" by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. It is estimated that more than one third of all amphibian species are threatened with extinction and that as many as one hundred species are already extinct. Possible causes include habitat loss and fragmentation, pollution, siltation, water diversion, and disease, the latter possibly related to climate change.
Information from the March 2008 issue of "Connect," the publication of the AZA.
December 18, 2007: The Phyllomedusid FROGS from tropical America lay their adhesive eggs on a leaf overhanging the water. When the eggs hatch, the tadpoles fall into the water below and then develop like a typical tadpole. This may protect the eggs from aquatic predators, although some snakes will feed on the eggs sticking to the leaf.
November 26, 2007: The MOST DIVERSE VERTEBRATE genus is the genus of small inch or so long frogs called "Eleutherodactylus." There are approximately 650 species found within the American tropics. Two species are native to the southern U.S., with a third, the coqui, introduced into S. Florida and Louisiana. Most Eleutherodactylus are small brown frogs without much to distinguish them except for the fact that they spend the tadpole stage within the egg and hatch out as tiny copies of the adult.
Info from "Golden Toads and Serpents' Roads" by Paul Freed
HABITATS:
August 3, 2008: Tropical rainforests are characterized by at least 80 inches of annual rainfall, location near the equator, and warm temperatures year around. They cover 1/12 of the earth's surface, comprise 50% of its forests, and are estimated to hold greater than one half of the world's animal and plant species.
From: "The Life and Mysteries of the Jungle" Ed. by Edward S. Ayensu
HYBRIDS:
August 19, 2007: HYBRIDS are the result of breeding together two different species or genera of plant or animals. A mule (horse X donkey) is an example. Lions and tigers have been crossbred in captivity to produce ligers and tigons (name depends on which species was the father). Intergeneric orchid hybrids and intergeneric snake hybrids are common. The less related two species or genera are, the less likely their offspring are to survive and be fertile.
INSECTS/INVERTS:
June 16, 2010: Nature is often used as an inspiration or model for human invention. Study of the reflective blue color of a morpho butterfly's top wing surfaces by MIT engineers has resulted in a nrew generation of low energy computer display screens. (Info from "Connect," the AZA magazine from April 2010).
Jan. 20, 2009: Silkworms manufacture 3000 feet of silken thread to make just one cocoon. The silk from ten of these cocoons would reach to the top of Mount Everest. 2000 cocoons are required for one kimono. Silkworms have been domesticated for thousands of years and fail to survive on their own.
From "The Book of Animal Ignorance" by John Lloyd and John Mitchinson.
April 16, 2008: The venomous cone shells include over 500 species, making them the largest single genus of saltwater animals living today. Their venom delivering barbs allow these slow moving snails to capture fish, worms, and other mollusks. Science is studying the venoms for possible new painkilling drugs.
Information from "Bitten:Bites and Stings from around the World" by Dr. Pamela Nagami.
January 17, 2008: Worldwide, probably the most numerous domestic animal is the HONEYBEE, with an estimated 3,172,864,740,000 (over 3 trillion) honeybees kept by humans.
Estimate from "Cataloging Life on Earth" by Gleich, Maxeiner, Miersch, and Nicolay.
January 7, 2008: In the American Tropics is found the PERIPATUS, an odd, very soft wormlike creature with legs, possibly a link between worms and arthropods. They defend themselves by squirting a sticky fluid from the mouth.
November 15, 2007: The LOUDEST INSECT CALL (within human hearing range) is the African cicada Brevisana brevis which produces a call level of 106.7 decibels at 50 cm. Cicada calls are used by the males to attract females, but also may determine minimum distance between males, make escape from predators more likely, and also jam the hearing of predators due to its repellency at close range.
Info from "The University of Florida Book of Insect Records," Chapter 24 by John M. Petti
September 26, 2007: There are more than 10,000 species of butterflies worldwide. There are about 700 species in the U.S. and Canada. Butterflies usually have antennae ("feelers") with a knob at the tip and their coccoon is actually a chrysalis--a smooth bare pupal case without any silk. Moths (8000 species in the U.S. and Canada) have feathery antennae, usually rest with their wings held parallel with the ground, and have coccoons covered with silk or buried in the soil.
Butterfly numbers from "Butterflies and Moths" by Mitchell and Zim, and "Butterflies of the World" by H. L. Lewis
July 30, 2007: INSECTS were the first animals to fly, as indicated by 310 million year old fossil evidence. Some scientists think that the wings developed from flaps called "winglets" that may have originally served as solar panels, or perhaps as tools to skip over pond surfaces.
From "The Miracle of Flight" by Stephen Dalton
MAMMALS:
May 6, 2008: As of the late 1990's, There were an estimated total 4600-7200 tigers in the world (all subspecies). The drastic 1960's decline was halted, but at a very low level.
Info from "Life Counts" by Gleich, Maxeiner, Miersch, and Nicolay
April 7, 2008: According to the project "Inventory 2000," there are probably more than 19.6 million whitetail deer in the world, making "Bambi" one of the commonest wild hoofed animals. The white bearded gnu of Africa's Serengeti was estimated at a population of only 920,000. Source: "life Counts" by Gleich, Maxeiner, Miersch, and Nicolay.
August 27, 2007: The short-tailed SHREW, a tiny insectivore related to the mole, has been estimated to catch and consume up to 38,400 mice per year on a 100 acre farm. This assumes a population of 4 shrews per acre. It is aided in this endeavor by being able to produce venom in a portion of its salivary glands. Humans bitten by shrews have reported shooting pains and disability for 3 days and minor discomfort for up to a week after the bite. I was bitten by a shrew years ago with no symptoms.
Shrew info from "Extreme Science-Chasing the Ghost Bat," from the editors of Scientific American, published by St. Martin's Griffin Press
ORCHIDS:
September 15, 2007: Just this year, a NEW ORCHID DISCOVERY was published. The new species, known as the "sweaty feet orchid" was discovered not in a cloud forest or on the floodplain of a tropical river, but in Yosemite National Park. Its scientific name is Platanthera yosemitensis.
From "The Story of an Orchid," in "Orchids" Sept. 2007
September 10, 2007: In 1890, a DENDROBIUM ORCHID was auctioned in Europe as brought back by its collector---growing attached to a human skull!
Fact from "Orchids" (AOS magazine)Sept. 2007, taken from the Fort Lauderdale Orchid Society Newsletter.
August 7, 2007: There are 25,000 species of ORCHIDS described plus 120,000 hybrids registered. In 1981, Phragmipedium besseae was discovered and used to add red to a number of hybrids. More recently, P. kovachii was discovered (2002) in Peru and its 8 inch flowers and pinkish purple color caused quite a stir,eventually resulting in charges of smuggling and a major investigation at a well known botanical garden.
Orchid data from "Complete Guide to Orchids," Ortho Books
For more orchid intrigue see," Orchid Fever" by Eric Hansen
OTHER PLANTS:
November 4, 2007: The fastest growing plant is tortoiseshell BAMBOO at 3 feet per day. Bamboo is a member of the grass family and besides providing much of the fodder for the giant panda, also has 1500 documented uses in human society.
Info from "Extreme Nature" by Mark Carwardine
October 29, 2007: Record for the "slipperiest" plant goes to the PITCHER PLANT, Nepenthes. The inside of the cylindrical leaf is so slippery it causes small invertebrates and sometimes even small vertebrates to slip down the inside surface to the base of the leaf where the animal is met with a pool of digestive juices. The nutrients supplied by the victim help the plant to form flowers and then seeds. Nepenthes is sometimes available in garden stores. There are other species of pitcher plants related to Nepenthes found in the southeastern United States.
Source: "Extreme Nature" by Mark Carwardine
REPTILES:
Nov. 2, 2008: BOAS and PYTHONS are both considered primitive snakes, with equally developed right and left lungs and remnants of a pelvic girdle. In general boas are New World and pythons Old World, although boas are also found in Indonesia, Asia, and Africa. Calabaria reinhardti, one of the snakes using its tail as a head decoy (the tail even has a groove where the mouth would be), has in recent years been reclassified from a python to a boa, although it is Old World and an egg layer, not usual boa characteristics.
Inf
|
|
|
|
