#Lions: Facts & Information Lions are large felines that are depicted traditionally as the king of the jungle.
These big cats once roamed Africa Asia and Europe. However now they are found in only two areas of the world
and are classified into two subspecies. Asiatic lions live in India's Gir Forest; African lions live in central and southern Africa.
Though they look similar these two subspecies are very different in size habitat diet and more.
The African lion is 4. 5 to 6. 5 feet (1. 4 to 2 meters) long from its head to its rump
and its tail measures from 26.25 to 39.5 inches (67 to 100 centimeters) long. African lions typically weigh 265 to 420 lbs.
120 to 191 kilograms. Asiatic lions tend to be much bigger according to the World Wildlife Federation (WWF.
They weigh 300 to 500 lbs. 120 to 226 kg) and are 6. 56 to 9. 18 feet (200 to 280 cm) long.
Male lions are generally larger than females and have a distinctive mane of hair around their heads.
African lions live in Angola Botswana Mozambique Tanzania the Central african republic South Sudan and other parts of Sub-saharan africa.
Asiatic lions are found only in the Gir Forest National park in India. This park is a wildlife sanctuary on 877.37 square miles (1412 square km) of land.
African lions eat large animals that they find in the grasslands including antelopes zebras and wildebeest.
Asiatic lions eat large animals as well such as goats nilgai chital sambhar and buffaloes. They are known also to eat smaller animals.
Lions are very social cats and live in groups called prides. Asiatic and African lion prides are very different though.
African lion prides consist of up to three males around a dozen females and their young according to National geographic. There are prides that have as many as 40 members though.
Asian lions divide themselves into two prides. The females have a pride and the males have a pride.
They only come together during mating season. With both types of lion prides the females stay put.
All of the females in a pride are usually related to each other because females tend to stay with the pride in
All of the females in a group of lions mate at the same time. After the first six weeks the cubs are taken care of by all of the females
The taxonomy of lions recognized by most experts is: Kingdom: Animaliasubkingdom: Bilateria Infrakingdom: Deuterostomia Phylum:
Mammalia Subclass: Theriainfraclass: Eutheriaorder: Carnivorasuborder: Feliformiafamily: Felidaesubfamily: Pantherinae Genus & species: Panthera leosubspecies: Panthera leo leo (African lion) Panthera leo persica (Asiatic lion) The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) only recognizes these two subspecies
while the Integrated Taxonomic Information system (ITIS) maintained by the U s. Fish and Wildlife Service lists six other subspecies.
However there is ongoing debate among researchers about whether those are true subspecies according to the University of Michigan's Museum of Zoology.
Lions face threats from hunting habitat loss and diseases that can be spread from domestic dogs in nearby villages according to the National Zoo.
African lions are listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. This is
(whose livestock the lions eat) as well as from trophy hunting and habitat loss. Asiatic lions are in a much more perilous position as human encroachment has reduced their habitat.
The IUCN lists them as endangered and says only about 350 of them exist. This group includes only about 175 mature individuals.
Lions also go toe-to-toe with animals much larger than themselves. Lions can kill animals that weigh up to 1000 lbs. according to the Smithsonian National Zoo.
To kill their prey lions use their powerful jaws to snap the prey's neck
or to strangle it to death. Male African lions that are trying to take over a pride will kill all of the cubs to avoid competition.
Lions and tigers are related so closely that if you shaved them you wouldn't be able to tell them apart.
Their body structure is so similar only experts can tell them apart according to the Smithsonian. Lions are also related to leopards and jaguars.
Though mountain lions (pumas) are in the same Family felidae) as Asiatic and African lions they are considered not lions.
According to the WWF lions can run up to 50 mph (80 kph) for short distances and leap as far as 36 feet (11 m) e
#5 Huge, Efficient Wins for the Environment in 2013 (Op-Ed) Peter Lehner is executive director of the Natural resources Defense Council (NRDC.
This Op-Ed was adapted from a post that appeared onthe NRDC blog Switchboard. Lehner contributed this article to Livescience's Expert Voices:
and poachers kill an estimated 96 elephants in Africa a day to obtain their tusks the WCS said in their statement.
Elephant numbers have dropped across the continent raising grave conservation concerns about the iconic animals. Follow Andrea Thompson@Andreatoap Pinterest and Google+.
#Why Koalas Hug Trees The mention of a koala bear often conjures up an image of an adorable spoon-nosed creature cocking its head to one side while clinging to a tree.
Now scientists have figured out why the iconic Australian marsupials hug trees: The trunks help the koala bears keep cool according to a new study.
It can be a really useful way of getting rid of heat on a hot day said study co-author Michael Kearney an ecologist at the University of Melbourne in Australia.
Tree huggers Given that koalas spend so much time in trees the marsupials live in Australia's woodlands where they munch on leaves
which measures temperature based on thermal radiation at the tree trunks the koalas were hugging. The trunks were considerably cooler than the ambient air temperature sometimes by as
She also noticed the koalas clinging to acacia trees even though they normally eat eucalyptus leaves.
See Images of the Tree-Hugging Koalas As it got hotter the koalas went farther down the trees
Stay cool Koala bears pant to keep cool letting evaporated moisture from their mouths carry heat away from their bodies.
When the team modeled koala bear heat transfer they found the tree-dwellers save half the water they would have used panting
Koalas get most of their water from their diet but because eucalyptus leaves are laced with a toxin the koalas can eat only a limited amount before the toxin harms the animals Kearney said.
So tree-hugging could be critical to their survival on hot days by allowing them to cool off without wasting precious water through panting Kearney said.
Climate change planning Koalas'food (and hugging) trees will change their range with the hotter and drier weather brought by climate change Bill Ellis a wildlife researcher at the University of Queensland in Australia who was involved not in the study wrote in an email to Live Science.
But the new study suggests that food may be a smaller consideration in preserving koala habitat than previously thought he said.
As long as we plant trees koalas will eat perhaps the other trees we plant just need to provide the right mix of shelter
but nonnative trees might be the future for koalas as long as they also have the right fodder.
Farther north in the koala's range the air is muggy and it feels hotter so scientists should see how tree-hugging plays out in in different locations in the koala's habitat Ellis said.
Humidity means that the power of evaporation for cooling is reduced Kearney said. So tree-hugging may be even more important up north where evaporative cooling doesn't work as well he said.
#Camels: Facts, Types & Pictures Camels are mammals with long legs a big-lipped snout and a humped back.
There are two types of camels: dromedary camels which have one hump and Bactrian camels which have two humps.
Camels'humps consist of stored fat which they can metabolize when food and water is scarce.
In addition to their humps camels have other ways to adapt to their environment. They have a third clear eyelid that protects their eyes from blowing sand.
Two rows of long lashes also protect their eyes. Sand up the nose can be a problem but not for camels.
They can shut their nostrils during sand storms. Humans have used camels as a means of transport for thousands of years.
They can carry about 500 pounds on their backs earning these beasts of burden a nickname ships of the desert.
Domestic camels are often the main source of meat milk and even leather or wool products.
Size Most camels tower above humans. A Bactrian camel according to the San diego Zoo grows to a shoulder height of 6 feet (1. 8 meters)
and a body length of 10 feet (3 m). They normally weigh 1320 to 2200 lbs.
600 to 1000 kilograms) when they are fully grown. Dromedary camels get up to about 6. 5 feet (2 m) tall at the shoulder
and weigh 880 to 1325 lbs. 400 to 600 kg. Diet Camels aren't picky about
what they eat. Their thick lips allow them to eat things that most other animals couldn't such as thorny plants.
Camels are herbivores though so you won't find them eating meat. Filling up on water when it's available is very important for camels.
They can drink 30 gallons (113 liters) of water in just 13 minutes. Their bodies rehydrate faster than any other mammal.
When there is little food and water the camel's hump fat releases water; 9. 3 grams of fat releases 1. 13 grams of water according to research by the University of Singapore.
Camels can survive up to six months without food or water. Offspring After a gestation of 12 to 14 months a mother camel will find a private spot to have her young.
Female camels usually only have one baby but sometimes camels have twins. The newborn is able to walk within 30 minutes though the two won't rejoin the herd until around two weeks later.
Camels become fully mature when they are 7 years old. Habitat The two types of camel are found in different parts of the world.
The dromedary camel also called an Arabian camel can be found in North africa and the Middle east.
The Bactrian camel lives in Central asia. No matter the type camels are usually found in the desert prairie or steppe.
Though many people think that camels only live in hot climates they do well in temperature ranges from 20 degrees F (minus 29 degrees C) to 120 degrees F (49 degrees C
). Habits Camels like to stay together in groups called herds. The herds are led by a dominant male while many of the other males form their own herd called a bachelor herd.
Camels are very social and like to greet each other by blowing in each other's faces. Classification/taxonomy Dromedary camels (Camelus dromedarius) and the domestic Bactrian camel (Camelus bactrianus) were named in 1758 by Swedish zoologist Carl Linnaeus who only knew of the domestic variety.
Wild Bactrian camels (Camelus ferus) were discovered in 1878 by Nikolai Prejevalsky a Russian geographer who explored Mongolia and Tibet.
For many years the wild Bactrian was thought to be a subspecies of the domestic Bactrian.
However in recent years DNA analysis confirmed that C. ferus was a separate species the San diego Zoo says on its website.
The main difference between the two species is that the wild Bactrian has three more chromosome pairs than the domestic Bactrian.
Conservation status The wild Bactrian camel is considered critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural resources.
In fact wild camels are one of the most endangered large mammals. According to the Wild Camel Protection Foundation there are only approximately 600 wild camels in China and 800 in Mongolia.
Other facts Camels have been domesticated for 3000 years according to the San diego Zoo and used for transportation meat fur leather and milk.
Camels can run at 25 mph (40 kph) for long periods. If their owner is in a hurry they can kick their speed up to 40 mph (67 kph.
The camel's hump is like a storage container. When camels use their stored fat their hump will diminish.
When they eat and drink again the hump will refill with fat. Camels have shaped oval red blood cells that help continue blood flow during times
when water is scarce. Camels are known for spitting on people. In fact the animals are throwing up the contents of their stomach along with spit.
This is a defense tactic when the animals feel threatened. The large beasts make a variety of moans groans and deep throaty bellows.
One of the camel's noises was used even to voice the character Chewbacca in the Star wars movies.
Nina Sen contributed to this article. Other resources:
#'Smart'Garden Morphs to Reflect Moods of Visitors A high-tech garden that can change the way it looks
and alter other parts of its environment depending on the reactions of people on Twitter has been created in the United kingdom. This futuristic social media garden could one day inspire the development of smart buildings that adapt to people's emotional states researchers say.
The experimental digital garden is part of the STAN (Science Technology Architecture Networks) research project at the University of Lincoln in the United kingdom. The project is designed to explore
whether architecture can reflect and map human emotions. The garden consists of a raw steel structure that responds to people's Twitter updates.
The grizzly bear turned quickly and I stopped. Her hair shone silver in the sun as she turned back to her cub.
A necklace of beaver ponds graced the valley below supporting a diverse community of plants and animals while storing precious water vital to human communities downstream.
A group of researchers at Swansea University in the United kingdom fitted sheep with backpacks containing GPS devices to develop a model for how a single sheepdog can shepherd a flock of more than 100 sheep BBC News reported.
#Tigers: Facts & Information Tigers are the largest felines in the world. Many cultures consider the tiger to be a symbol of strength and courage.
However because hunting them is also a sign of bravery in some cultures tigers are endangered;
no more than 3200 tigers are left in the wild. Tigers have distinctive stripes which help camouflage them
when hunting prey. Some tigers have orange fur with black stripes; others are black with tan stripes white with tan stripes or all white (albino) according to the San diego Zoo.
No two tigers have the same markings on their coats. They are as individual as fingerprints are for humans.
On average tigers are 4. 8 to 9. 5 feet (1. 5 to 2. 9 m) long
and weigh 165 to 716 lbs. 75 to 325 kilograms. The largest tigers the Siberian also called Amur are 10.75 feet (3. 3 meters) long
and weigh 660 lbs. 300 kg) according to National geographic. The smallest tiger is the Sumatran tiger.
They grow to 5 to 12 feet (1. 5 to 3. 7 m) and weigh 143-670 lbs.
65-305 kg) according to the Woodland Park Zoo. Tigers also have very long tails which can add 2. 3 to 3. 6 feet (0. 7 to 1. 1 m) to their overall length.
Tigers live in Asia. Larger subspecies such as the Siberian tiger tend to live in northern colder areas such as eastern Russia and northeastern China.
Smaller subspecies live in southern warmer countries such as India Bangladesh Nepal Bhutan Myanmar Laos Cambodia Vietnam Malaysia and Indonesia.
They live in arid forests flooded mangrove forests tropical forests and taiga depending on the subspecies according to the San diego Zoo.
All tigers are carnivores. Most of a tiger's diet consists of large prey such as pigs deer rhinos or elephant calves.
To kill their prey tigers will clamp down on the animal's neck with their jaws
and suffocate the animal. Though tigers are fierce hunters they are no strangers to failure.
Ninety percent of the time they don't catch their prey according to the Woodland Park Zoo.
Tigers are solitary creatures; they like to spend most of their time alone roaming their massive territories looking for food.
According to the San diego Zoo the Siberian tiger has the largest range. Its territory can be more than 4000 square miles (10000 square kilometers.
Tigers mark their territory by scratching marks into trees with their claws. Tiger babies or cubs are born helpless.
At birth a cub weighs 2. 2 pounds (1 kg) and a female may have as many as seven cubs at a time according to the San diego Zoo.
Usually only two survive though because the mother must leave the cubs while she hunts
Tiger cubs mature quickly. At 8 weeks old they are ready to learn how to hunt
Tigers typically live 14 to 18 years. Nine subspecies of tiger are recognized; however three of them are extinct according to the Integrated Taxonomic Information system (ITIS.
The taxonomy of tigers according to ITIS is: Kingdom: Animaliasubkingdom: Bilateria Infrakingdom: Deuterostomia Phylum: Chordatainfraphylum: Gnathostomata Superclass:
Tetrapoda Class: Mammalia Subclass: Theriainfraclass: Eutheriaorder: Carnivorasuborder: Feliformiafamily: Felidaesubfamily: Pantherinaegenus & species: Panthera tigrissubspecies: The Javan tiger was last recorded in the 1970s the Caspian tiger was lost in the 1950s
and the Bali tiger became extinct in the 1930s according to Panthera a wild cat conservation organization.
Gallery: Iconic Cats: All 9 Subspecies of Tigers There are more tigers in captivity than there are in the wild.
According to the WWF there are about 5000 captive tigers in the United states alone but there are fewer than 3200 tigers in the wild.
The International Union for the Conservation of Nature's (IUCN's) Red List of Threatened Species categorizes all remaining tiger species as endangered.
Most live on wildlife refuges to protect them from poachers. Tigers are fantastic swimmers. They can forge rivers
and lakes that are 3. 7 to 5 miles (6 to 8 km) wide according to Woodland Park Zoo.
Lions and tigers are related closely. If you shaved them you wouldn't be able to tell them apart
because their body structure is so similar according to the Smithsonian National Zoo. Their teeth can be very long as well.
Some tigers have teeth as long as 3 inches (7 cm) h
#Apple Health App: What It Can and Can't Do Apple's new Health app is now up and running on the latest version of ios 8 but
what exactly can this app do for you? The first thing to know is that the Health app doesn't track information by itself at least not yet.
It's an aggregator meaning it pulls information from your other health apps and displays it all for you in a single dashboard.
So for Apple's Health app to be useful you'll need other health apps.
whether or not they stuck out their tongues a tasty substance elicits a protrusion of the proboscis
In Dewitt County Texas most people are convinced this is the elusive chupacabra said a reporter with KAVU News an ABC affiliate based in Victoria Texas though a wildlife biologist suggested it might be a dog or coyote.
The mouth and jaw structures of raccoons dogs and coyotes prevent them from creating a seal around their victims
and therefore physically prevents them from sucking the blood out of goats or anything else.
The most likely answer is that it's a raccoon. Animals that have lost most or all of their hair can be very difficult to identify correctly for the simple reason that people are used not to seeing the animals without hair.
Healthy raccoons are instantly recognizable by their signature dark bandit mask coloring around their eyes.
These features suggest that the Ratcliffe chupacabra is indeed a raccoon. And though most chupacabras found in Texas have been identified as canids (the zoological family that includes dogs coyotes
and foxes) this is not the first raccoon misidentified as a chupacabra. In an article in the March/April 2014 issue of Skeptical Inquirer another chupacabra found
and photographed in the 1950s in Texas was identified by Darren Naish a vertebrate paleontologist and science writer from the University of Southampton as a mangy raccoon.
Another clue about the animal's origins can be found in where it was discovered: in a tree.
This is a typical place to find a raccoon but unlikely for a dog or coyote.
This behavior is also typical of raccoons. The mysterious critter is currently being fed a diet of corn
#The route remains in use today though now railroads have replaced camels as the preferred means of travel.
#Platypus Facts The platypus is one of the most unusual creatures in the animal kingdom. Platypuses (which is the correct plural form not platypi) have shaped a paddle tail like a beaver;
a sleek furry body like an otter; and a flat bill and webbed feet like a duck.
In fact the first time a platypus was brought from Australia to Britain people couldn't believe that it was a real animal.
They thought that a trickster had sewn two animals together according to the BBC. Platypuses are among the few venomous mammals.
Males have a spur on the back of their hind feet that is connected to a venom-secreting gland.
and venom help males compete for mates according to the Australian Platypus Conservatory. The venom is not life threatening to humans
A typical platypus is 15 inches (38 centimeters from its head to the end of its rump.
1. 4 kg) though platypuses that live in colder climates are bigger than those living in warmer areas according to the Australian Platypus Conservatory.
Scientists have found fossils that suggest that ancient platypuses where twice as large as the modern variety at 3. 3 feet (1 meter) long.
Platypuses have dense thick fur that helps them stay warm underwater. Most of the fur is dark brown except for a patch of lighter fur near each eye and lighter-colored fur on the underside.
When platypuses are on land their webbing retracts making the claws more pronounced. The animals walk awkwardly on their knuckles to protect the webbing.
The bill of a platypus sometimes called a duck-billed platypus has a smooth texture that feels like suede.
The skin of the bill holds thousands of receptors that help the platypus navigate underwater
Platypuses live in only one small area of the world. These creatures make their homes in the freshwater areas that flow throughout the island of Tasmania and the eastern and southeastern coast of Australia.
Platypuses also live under rock ledges roots or debris. Though they exist on only one side of one continent platypuses weather many climate extremes.
They have been found in plateaus lowlands tropical rainforests and the cold mountains of Tasmania and the Australian Alps.
Their waterproof thick fur keeps platypuses warm in chilly temperatures and their big tails store extra fat for energy.
Platypuses usually spend their time hunting for food and a hunt can last 10 to 12 hours.
Platypuses are carnivorous which means they eat meat but not plants. They hunt for their food in the water where they live.
When platypuses find something interesting like shellfish insects larvae or worms they scoop it up in their bills store it in their cheek pouches and swim to the surface.
and no teeth platypuses use any gravel or dirt they scooped up while on the bottom of the waterbed to mash their food into digestible pieces.
Most mammals give birth to live young. Platypuses however lay eggs. They are a species of primitive mammals called monotremes.
Echidnas or spiny anteaters are the only other mammals that lay eggs. When the female platypus is ready to have her young she will burrow down inside the ground on the riverbank and seal herself into one of her tunnel rooms.
Then she will lay one or two eggs and place them between her rump and her tail to keep them warm.
After about 10 days the eggs hatch and the little bean-sized babies will nurse for three to four months.
Around the time of weaning baby platypuses can swim on their own. The taxonomy of the platypus according to the Integrated Taxonomic Information system (ITIS) is:
Platypuses are endangered not. The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists the animals as a Least Concern though the organization admits it has no idea how large
or small the platypus population may be. This is due primarily to lack of worldwide research and data on the species. Platypuses swim with their front feet and steer with their tails and back feet.
They have waterproof fur skin that covers their ears and eyes and noses that seal shut to protect the animals
while they are underwater. Though platypuses are made for the water they can't stay completely submerged.
They can only stay underwater for 30 to 140 seconds. Platypus'skeletons resemble those of reptiles.
They both have splayed pectoral girdles and legs. These short creatures are much better at moving through water than across land.
They use 30 percent more energy walking across land than swimming through the water according to the Australian Museum of History. t
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