Tag Archives: Environmental Conservation

Macaw

Scarlet Macaws are bright, colorful parrots native to the rainforest of Central and South America. These highly intelligent birds live in large groups and are very vocal.  Capable of mimicking a variety of sounds, including human speech, macaws are loud. Their squawks, and screeches can be heard from miles away.  Scarlet macaws are protected underContinueContinue reading “Macaw”

Barking Deer

Meet Jill, a Reeves muntjac. Also known as a barking deer, because their alarm call sounds like a dog’s bark.  Unlike most deer species, muntjacs don’t form herds; they live alone or in pairs.  They have long tongues that they use to strip leaves off of bushes.  Native to China and Taiwan their biggest threatsContinueContinue reading “Barking Deer”

Happy Earth Day!

Thanks to the efforts of Senator Gaylord Nelson and the millions of Americans who participated in protests, demonstrations, and fundraisers Earth Day was born. The 1st Earth Day was April 22nd, 1970. The same year a flood of environmental legislation was passed and the EPA was created. In 1990 Earth Day went global with 141ContinueContinue reading “Happy Earth Day!”

Living in Slow Motion

Sloths are native Central and South America. All sloths have 3 toes on their back feet, but two-toed sloths only have 2 toes on their forelimbs.  This is a two-toed sloth. You can see that the front limbs have two toes while the back have three. They spend most of their time hanging out inContinueContinue reading “Living in Slow Motion”

A Reptile Like No Other

Prehensile-tailed skinks are very unique reptiles. They are the longest species of skinks reaching up to 32 inches in length. As their name suggests they have a prehensile tail, meaning they can grip objects with their tail. This is useful for these skinks since they are arboreal (live in the trees).  They are native toContinueContinue reading “A Reptile Like No Other”

Golden-headed lion tamarin

ENDANGERED! The golden-headed lion tamarin, named for their long golden fur that looks like a lion’s mane. Their small claw like nails help them climb through the trees and grab small insects.  Due to habitat destruction and fragmentation they only live in a small part of Brazil. It is estimated that a mere 2-5% ofContinueContinue reading “Golden-headed lion tamarin”

The worlds largest bird

You guessed it…The Ostrich  These birds are not just big, they are powerful. The ostriches’ main defense is its legs. They can run up to 43 mph (70 kph). When running isn’t an option, ostriches use their foot equipped with a 4-inch long claw. A single kick from an ostrich can kill a lion.   OstrichesContinueContinue reading “The worlds largest bird”

What is the Buzz?

…..Bees… Bees are extremely important pollinators. They are a vital part of our ecosystems, without them the human population would plumate. About ⅓  of the world’s food production depends on bees to pollinate the crops.  Although honeybees are not endangered other bees are. On the IUCN Red list 16 bee species are listed as vulnerable,ContinueContinue reading “What is the Buzz?”

The elephant’s closest living land relative is ….

….The hyrax  Hyraxes may look like rodents but they are actually cousins of the elephant.   Elephants, hyraxes, dugongs, and manatees all share a common ancestor.  There are several unique physical characteristics that hyraxes and elephants share. Both have tusks formed from their incisors, instead of their canines like other tusked animals. Both have flattened, hoof-likeContinueContinue reading “The elephant’s closest living land relative is ….”