Whiteangel33

This lion tamarin is a reddish orange to golden brown in color. Its hair is longer and darker around the face, forming a mane on top of the head and on the cheeks and throat. Its limbs are slender yet capable with sharp claw-like nails. The tail and forepaws of this monkey may have a black coloration. Its body may be up to 335 millimetres (13.2 in) long and its tail up to 400 millimetres (16 in). The male reaches a maximum weight of just 700 grams (25 oz) in the wild though higher weights can be found in captivity. The pregnant female may weigh up to 790 grams (28 oz) but a non-gestating female typically weighs closer to 550 grams (19 oz).

Most of the wild population is confined to the Poço das Antas Biological Reserve, a protected area of swampy forests in the state of Rio de Janeiro. It is an important bastion of the Golden Lion Tamarin, as only 2% of forests in the monkey's original range remains. Furthermore, its existing habitat has been broken up by logging and agriculture; this has led to isolated populations and inbreeding, a combination likely to result in extinction.

The Dhole', also known as the Asiatic Wild Dog, Indian Wild Dog or Red Dog is an endangered species of Asian canid, and the only member of the genus Cuon. It once ranged across East and South Asia from Russia Far East to Sumatra. Their range is severely fragmented and reduced and there are little over 2,000 individuals left in the wild.

It typically weighs 12–20 kilograms (26–44 lb) and measures 90 centimetres (35 in) in body length and 50 centimetres (20 in) shoulder height. The tail measures 40–45 centimetres (16–18 in) in length.

It is primarily a diurnal hunter, though it is not uncommon for it to hunt by night too. Solitary Dholes usually limit themselves to small prey such as Chital fawns and Indian Hares, while a pair or trio of Dholes suffices to kill medium sized ungulates such as deer in 2 minutes. Dholes will on rare occasions attack young gaur and water buffalo.

It is one of the most endangered animals, fewer than 100 are believed to exist in the world. The Seychelles sheath-tailed bat has suffered from habitat deterioration due to the effects of introduced plant species. The largest surviving roost is on Silhouette Island, although small roosts do exist in Mahé and also Praslin and La Digue islands.

The weight of Seychelles sheath-tailed bats averages about 10 – 11 g (0.4 oz). Bats in this genus generally roost in caves and houses, in crevices and cracks. In the 1860s, the Seychelles sheath-tailed bat was reported to fly around clumps of bamboo towards twilight, and in the daytime to be found roosting in the clefts of the mountainside facing the sea and with a more or less northern aspect. These hiding places were generally covered over with the large fronds of endemic palms. The Seychelles sheath-tailed bat is insectivorous. Its colonies are apparently divided into harem groups.




Bongo (antelope)

The western or lowland bongo is a herbivorous, mostly nocturnal forest ungulate and among the largest of the African forest antelope species.
Bongos are characterised by a striking reddish-brown coat, black and white markings, white-yellow stripes and long slightly spiralled horns.

The eastern or mountain bongo has a coat even more vibrant than that of lowland bongo. The mountain bongo is only found in the wild in one remote region of central Kenya. They are larger and heavier than the western bongo.

Bongos are one of the largest of the forest antelopes. In addition to the deep chestnut colour of their coats, they have bright white stripes on their sides to help camouflage them from their enemies.

Social organization and behavior
Like other forest ungulates, bongos are seldom seen in large groups. Males, called bulls, tend to be solitary while groups of females with young live in groups of 6 to 8. Bongos have seldom been seen in herds of more than 20. The preferred habitat of this species is so dense and difficult to operate in that few Europeans or Americans observed this species until the 1960s.

As young males mature and leave their maternal groups they most often remain solitary, although rarely they join-up with an older male. Adult males of similar size/age tend to avoid one another. Occasionally they meet and spar with their horns in a ritualised manner and rarely serious fights will take place. However, such fights are usually discouraged by visual displays, in which the males bulge their necks, roll their eyes and hold their horns in a vertical position while slowly pacing back and forth in front of the other male. They seek out females only during mating time. When they are with a herd of females, males do not coerce them or try to restrict their movements as do some other antelopes.

Although mostly nocturnal, they are occasionally active during the day. However, like deer, it may be that bongos may exhibit crepuscular behaviour. Bongos are both timid and easily frightened; after a scare a bongo moves away at considerable speed, even through dense undergrowth. They seek cover, where they stand still and alert, facing away from the disturbance and turning their heads from time to time to check on the situation. The bongo's hindquarters are less conspicuous than the forequarters, and from this position the animal can quickly flee.

When in distress the bongo emits a bleat. It uses a limited number of vocalisations, mostly grunts and snorts while females have a weak mooing contact-call for their young. Females prefer to use traditional calving grounds restricted to certain areas, while newborn calves lie in hiding for a week or more, receiving short visits by the mother to suckle.

Diet
Like many forest ungulates bongos are herbivorous browsers and feed on tree/bush leaves, bushes, vines, bark and pith of rotting trees, grasses/herbs, roots, cereals, shrubs and fruits.
Bongos require salt in their diet, and are known to regularly visit natural salt licks. Examination of bongo feces revealed that the charcoal from trees burnt by lightning is consumed. They have been known to eat burned wood after lightning storms. This behavior is believed to be a means of getting salts and minerals into their diet.

Suitable habitats for bongos must have permanent water available. A large animal, the bongo requires an ample amount of food, and is restricted to areas with abundant year-round growth of herbs and low shrubs. Such restrictions have been said to account for the animal's limited distribution.




Hybrid Animals

Ligers - the result of crossbreeding lions and tigers - have roamed animal preserves and sanctuaries for years. It wasn't until recently, however, that these intriguing animals gained wide fame - thanks in part to the film Napoleon Dynamite.

In one of his many memorable lines, napoleon declared the liger "pretty much my favorite animal." He didn't mention the zorse, however, which is produced when a zebra and a horse mate.

Ligers and Zorses but not Ponkey

Not all animals can be crossbred. You'll never see a ponkey (pig and monkey). In general, the two animals that are to be crossbred must belong to the same genus and share the same number of chromosomes. Chromosomes are threadlike strands that carry genetic information. The offspring of crossbred animals share traits from both parents. For example, the liger inherits a full mane from the lion and stripes from the tiger. Hybrid animals are usually born sterile; they cannot produce offspring.

Hybrid animals are definitely interesting to look at, but some scientists think cross-breeding species is a bad idea. Not all of these animals survive to adulthood, and they can be born with genetic defects. In addition, crossbreeding typically does not occur in nature, only in captivity.

Here are some examples of crossbred animals:

Beefalo or cattalo: American bison and cow
Cama: camel and liama
Grolar or pizzly: grizzly bear and polar bear
Leopon: leopard and lion
Liger: male lion and female tiger
Mule: male donkey and female horse
Tigon: male tiger and female lion
Wolphin: false killer whale and dolphin
Yakalo: yak and buffalo
Zeedonk: zebra and donkey


The ratel is reported to have the courage of a lion. The small, stocky animal has a fondness for honey that accounts for its second name, honey badger.
The peregrine falcon, an extremely aggressive hunter, preys on small mammals and other birds. It descends on its victims from the air at speeds of up to 200 m.p.h.
The stonefish, which lives at the bottom of the o
cean, is the most poisonous fish in the world. Its 13 dorsal spines release deadly venom, making it dangerous to both humans and marine life.
One bite from the inland taipan contains enough toxin to kill about 100 people.
The anopheles mosquito is the deadliest creature on Earth. It's responsible for more than 300 million cases of malaria each year and causes between one million and three million deaths.

Fennec Hare

Endangered Fennec Hare Born at Korea Zoo The birth of one of the world's rarest creatures was celebrated this week at North Korea's Pyongyang People's Zoo. The Fennec Hare is on the brink of extinction with only a handful remaining in captivity.
Once found throughout the Iperian Steppe, but now critically endangered, the Fennec hare relies on its acute auditory sense to evade predators and detect its favored prey, the D. carota beetle.


The Philippine tarsier, (Tarsius syrichta) is very peculiar small animal. In fact it is one of the smallest known primates, no larger than a adult men's hand. Mostly active at night, it lives on a diet of insects. Folk traditions sometimes has it that tarsiers eat charcoal, but actually they retrieve the insects from (sometimes burned) wood. It can be found in the islands of Samar, Leyte, Bohol, and Mindanao in the Philippines.