Shadow Void

Nature Weekends; Prehistoric Predators

Fast Facts Top Twenty

Prehistoric Predators

1.Cameraceras – A mollusk that is sort of squid like grew to an impressive 36 feet.

2.Brontoscorpio – The biggest scorpion of all scorpions lived 415 million years ago and feed on trilobites among other things.

3.Leedsichthys – Its considered to be the largest fish in the world coming in at 88 feet and was a filter feeder.

4.Allosaurus – It was known to hunt in packs and capable of taking down the dinosaurs as big as Diplodocus.

5.Utahraptor – It's the largest of the raptors, 19.5 feet long

6.Ornithocheirus – A pterosaur whose wingspan measured 40 ft and feed on fish.

7.Sarosuchus – This crocodile dates back some 121 million years ago and was 40 ft long and just for a little comparsion the Saltwater crocodile comes in at 22 ft long.

8.Giganotosaurus – The largest land predator was discovered in 1993.

9.Tarbosaurus – They chase their prey to either exhaustion or to injure it.

10.Velociraptor – The Velociraptor seen in the that famous dinosaur movie is not huge and not as smart as they would have been in real life.

11.Elasmosaurus – One fossil was found to contain around 250 pebbles in it's stomach. They swallowed them for ballast.

12.Tyrannosaurus – It is thought that they could consume 154 lbs of food in one seating.

13.Gastornis = Aka Terror bird, It stands at 7 ft and weighed around a ton?.

14.Ambulocetus – This creature is related to the modern day whales but hunted like a crocodile.

15.Andrewsarchus – This carnivore stands taller than a man and measured 18 feet long, its skull along measured 3 feet long.

16.Basilosaurus – This whale didn't have a blowhole.

17.Dorudon – This whale feeds on sharks.

18.Hyaenodon – It could reach to the size of a Rhino and could crush bones.

19.Carcharodon Megalodon – This shark which can reach 53 ft and it's mouth can open to 6.5 feet wide.

20.Smilodon – These saber-tooth cats feed on soft flesh of the body.

Sandhill Cranes

Each dark speck you see above the trees is a Sandhill crane. They come through my area as the end of February into March depending on the weather. Beautiful birds and love their haunting calls, they sound like geese, but slightly different. Sorry I can't provide a sample of their calls.

Nature Weekend; Griffon Vultures

Eurasian Griffon ( Gyps fulvis )

Today, we move from Africa to Spain. The Eurasian Griffon lives ranges from Spain to countries all around the Mediterranean sea, so Europe, parts of Asia, and northern Africa. They live in mountainous regions. Their nests are built on the cliffs. These birds like the company of their own kind, and live in colonies. Eurasian Griffons breed between winter and early summer. Incubation takes 50 days. The babies are fledges in about six months. They need larger vultures or other predators to expose the flesh of whatever dead animal they want to feed from at the moment. Their long necks allow them to reach into the bodies of dead anaimals. They have a wingspan of 8 feet 6 inches. There are several species of griffon vultures including the Ruppell's Griffon ( Gyps rueppelli )

We may not see vultures as disgusting creatures who feed on the dead. One benefit of them feeding on dead animals keeps the environment safe from the stench of death. They may also keep some diseases at bay. Sadly, vultures like many other animals are facing drops in population. We need to protect our wildlife and take care not to upset the delicate balance found in nature. This is me saying have a great week.

Nature Weekend; California Sea Lion

California Sea Lion ( Zalophus californianus )

On our last trip in Nature Weekends, we travel from Kansas in the United States to southern California; a distance of 1,389 miles. The California Sea Lion lives on the entire west coast of the mainland of the United States. They range for from 6 to 8 feet long. Males weigh in at 440 lbs to 660 lbs while females are smaller ranging from 100 to 220 lbs. Sea lions can swim at 24 mph and can dive down to 450 feet. They can also stay under for 20 minutes. It's important to note that sea lions are seals. One difference between sea lions and seals is that sea lions are not clumsy on land. Sea Lions hunt at night and they spend the day basking on the beach. Outside of the breeding season the sexes live separately and they live in same sex groups during this time. Males stay north of southern California outside of the breeding season until May or June. Females can breed at 4 years old. Females come ashore to give birth and to mate. They mate with the males one month later. Sea lions have few natural predators but large sharks and killer whales will kill and consume sea lions. Sea lions were once killed for the oil and meat was used in dog food.

Nature Weekends; When Is a Nut Not a Nut?

The coconut is said to have come from the South Pacific. Today, it is found in the tropics all around the world. It can even be in some semi-tropical locales such as California and Florida. The coconut is known as far back as Marco Polo. The coconut is used for the liquid it carries within it. It's used for both its meat and as I mentioned already for the milk. The tree is that the coconut grown on is actually a palm, a palm that grows 100 ft tall. Each palm has around 30 leaves. A tree can live for around 70 years. You might be surprised to know that the coconut is not actually a nut but a drupe such as a apricots or cherries. It can even be used to make rope, the leaves may be made to make up roofs and walls of homes, flowers are used for medicines, and a wine is even made from the sap from the flowers.

Well, know you know what's up with the coconut.

 

 

Poisonous Plants; You May Have In Your Yard or House

This list is not a complete list of plants that you might have in or around your house that may be poisonous so for now enjoy this little return to Nature Weekends.

Starting this list off is Lily of The Valley or Convallaria majalis. This plant contains one of the most toxic substances that affect the heart.

This one may or may not surprise you but I didn't want to leave off the list. The potato or Solanum tuberosum has the highest concentrations of toxins when the potato is either sprouted or when it's green. In fact if the potato has any green coloration on the skin, you may not want to use it.

Rhubarb is one of my favorite plants in my garden, but like all the other plants on this list, it's poisonous. You do not want to eat the leaves.

Star of Bethlehem or Ornithogalum umbellatum is one plant in which all parts of the plant are poisonous.

Avocado or Persea americana has poisonous leaves, bark, seeds, and even the unripe fruits are toxic.

Aloe ( Aloe sp. ) The latex in the leaves is a strong purgative. One you don't want to mess with. In case you don't know what a purgative is, it's a drug or substance that causes an evacuation of the bowels. So yeah avoid that latex.

This one is interesting because it's one of my favorite spices around Christmas time. Nutmeg or Myristica fragans is poisonous and consuming anything over 0.4 ounces can actually cause death. If you don't believe me check out this link http://www.idiotsguides.com/static/didyouknow/potpourri/07-22-11-nutmeg.html

Lastly, I want to talk about cherries. This little fact covers all species of cherry. The plant contains cyanide and it's found in the leaves, bark, and the seed kernels. It's best to avoid it. So talk to peeps later.

Nature Weekend; Wild Animals Beware

I want to talk for a few minutes about wild animals. I have talked about this before but I feel the need to take another route on the subject. I want to talk about something that I see as a major problem. Our world; the modern world of humans, for all our advances and wonders is well not so great. We, by our very presence push species to extinction or we help spread ogranisms. There are animals who have benefited immensely from this feature of our society. Scavangers seem to be able to live with humans fairly well. Foxes, raccoons, coyotes, and skunks all have learned to live amongs humans. Of course there are other animals who live just as well with humans, but for the sake of this piece, we'll stick with these wonderful animals. So why do these scavangers do so well around people? Easy food, we throw out a lot of food. Humans are messy creatures. For scavangers, it's really easy to make a life on our streets. This closeness to humans poses a huge risk to humans. These animals have learned that our garbage cans mean food. It puts them in close contact with us. What are the risks to us as humans? It could mean disease, diseases that can spread to our beloved pets, and encounters that we just would rather not have. Animals who are feed or get use to people slowly lose their fear of humans. The problem is female mammals teach their offspring how to get food. The babies learn that we are a source of food. While, a raccoon may not kill us, other animals certainly could. A coyote for example could kill a person or seriously injury a person. Think I'm joking check the internet. It doesn't matter where you live now, coyotes are slowly spreading eastward. What once use to be an animal of the plains and other western lands, now can be found in Chicago and other cities to the east. We even have them in my part of the USA. Coyotes are not German Shepherds. They are a dog to be trusted. Problem with coyotes, they aren't just scavangers. They are predators. Predators who are take advantage of situations in order to get food. They are just as happy stealing some food as they are killing rats, squirrels, or other small animals. Their threat doesn't end with just the fact that they could maul a human. Like all dogs they can catch distemper and spread it amongst our pets. I am not trying to make the coyote out to be a villain. They certainly are not villians. They are simply trying to survive. Their survival certainly has taken a different turn though. Coyotes don't deserve to be eradicated from our environments. Just as the coyote has adapted to our world, we need to adapt to the coyote or learn ways to humanely control it's population. One of my nephews came across a coyote pup well out at one of our local parks. They heeded my warning and left it alone. Sadly, coyotes fit within the genus canis. While they can breed with our dogs, I can't say for certain that their offspring are fertile. But it does present a problem, these offspring are not pets. They are in fact wild animals like the coyote itself. Parents learn what a coyote looks like. Don't feed the coyotes, this behavior on our part only helps reinforce the fact, that humans mean food. Wildlife shouldn't lose their fear of humans. Wildlife that does becomes a threat to themselves as well as to humans. Just some food for thought. Again, this is not a post attacking coyotes or humans. It's merely a reminder that we are both the problem and the solution. Enjoy!

Perils of Working With Animals

For me and many other people who work with animals both wild and pets rather they be domesticated or exotic, there is a love and appreciation that runs in our veins. There is an uncertainty that goes along with it. You might see me in videos or in person do things that might potentially get me bit, and that might someday happen. I've learned that animals can feel threatened just like people can and that is when trouble starts. An animal that feels threatened is dangerous. A mother animal who feels threatened is even more dangerous. A threatened animal will defend itself. Problem is people sometimes ignore those threat postures, warnings, and a lack of common sense. I'll give you just one example of each. When I get too close to my tarantulas, I might get hairs kicked at me and if that doesn't work, then I get the field goal stance, which means back off or get bit. The threat posture is a stance that tarantulas use where they rear up on their back legs and then spread out their fangs. It's a display that might include venom dripping from the fangs. This display is a posture that is also a warning all in one. Okay so the next things to talk about is the warning. A warning might come in the form of a cottonmouth's white mouth lining being shown, the vibrating of a rattlesnake's tail, or the hairs that pop up on the back of a cat. Warnings are something that humans needs to heed or get hurt. Now there is my personal favorite our lack of common sense as a species. Want an example of this one? Hopefully you said yes, I have been to Yellowstone as a tourist so I can totally relate to this one. Any time you encounter a baby in the wild, you are most likely being watched also. This mistake is where people often get hurt. People who get out of their cars to observe a baby bear are putting themselves at risk. Bears pose a serious health risk to us. A mother bear with her cubs is who feels that her cubs are threatened will attack. We need to be careful and heed the warnings placed before us. Just something to think about.

Nature Weekends; The Badger of America

Our last trip took us to Africa. Today, our journey takes us to Kansas. It's a journey of 8,364 miles. Today, we are going to look at the American Badger.

American Badger – Taxidea taxus

American Badgers weigh between 9 to 26 lbs and can reach a length of 2 to 2 ½ feet. Badgers have 34 teeth. The American badger is at home on the plains of North America. It can be found as far east as Indiana. American Badgers nest underground. These nests are where the badger hides during the day in areas where they encounter people. In other areas, they will live a diurnal existence. In areas where badgers encounter their favorite food, burrowing rodents, there might be multiple holes. American Badgers dig for their food. If a badger doesn't finish a meal, they bury it. American Badgers feed on rodents, birds, reptiles, scorpions, and insects. This carnivore lives a solitary life until the mating season which occurs in the summer and early autumn. Births take place the following spring. More precisely, babies are born in a period from February to May. The female gives birth to 1 to 5 offspring. The young leave the nest and mom at about 2 months of age. The females mature in 4 months. Males take 1.3 years. American badgers average lifespan is 14 years. During winter, they do not hibernate instead they may rest for days at a time. There are few predators who will mess with a badger. They rely on teeth and claws to escape, but if that doesn't work badgers have a few tricks up their sleeve. One of their best tricks is to dig. They can out dig a man using a shovel. When it comes to dealing with rattlesnakes, the badger may be immune to their venom or in the very least they have some resistance to it. When upset, these members of the weasel family can create a skunk like musk. Badger's hairs have been used for paintbrushes and shaving brushes. Their abandoned holes pose a serious threat to livestock. At one point these animals were hunted.

Hope you enjoy!

 

 

Spring

Spring is here. Okay…so it's been here for awhile but for me all the signs are finally in place. We still a few winter time travelers lurking about like juncos, but things are looking better and better. I'm seeing quite a few robins around the yard. A pair of mourning doves were at the bird feeders this morning. Last week during a fire drill at school, I saw and heard a flock of Sandhill Cranes going overhead. In the early evening hours, I can hear robins singing. The daffodils are beginning to peek their leaves up. The tulips are also sending out leaves. Yeah…won't be long before the animals start showing up in more numbers. 2013 is going to have an interesting spring and summer.