Species of the week: Amazon river dolphin

Species of the Week:
Amazon River Dolphin ( Inia geoffrensis)

1. As the name implies the Amazon River Dolphin is found in freshwater systems in Brazil, Peru, Bolivia. Venezuela, Ecuador and Colombia. It's found in the river systems of the Orinico in the Amazon and the  Araguaia/Tocantins rivers.
2. They are either colored light grey or pink which makes then unusual for cetaceans 
3. It's the largest freshwater cetacean and can grow from 1.53-2.5 m and they weigh from 80-95kg. Females tend to be larger than males.
4. They feed on fish and crusteceans and small turtles.
5. They are specialised in hunting in murky waters and have really flexible necks and spinal cords in order to hunt and forage in underwater tree trunks.
6. Their neck has an unfused neck vertebrate which allows them to turn their head 90 degrees and hence makes them highly flexible.
7. Calves are born between July and September and usually one calf is born at a time.
8. Gestation period lasts from 9 to 12 months.
9. These dolphins are mostly blind, relying heavily on the sonar abilities to hunt for prey. More than usual dolphins do.
10. Although originally considered Vulnerable by the IUCN Red List, due to the lack of data they are now not classified. However many believe that they are in extreme danger due to habitat loss.

Species of the week:Meerkat

Species of the Week:
Meerkat (Suricata suricatta)

1. They are found in the Kalahari Desert, in the Namib Desert, southwest Angola and in South Africa.
2. A Meerkat social group consists of about 20 members and it is called a clan, gang or mob.
3. Meerkats hunt and forage during the daytime and sleep during the night.
4. They are mostly insectivores but will attack and eat lizards,fungi, small mammals, eggs, scorpions, centipedes and millipedes, spiders and some plants.
5. They are immune to a variety of venoms including the scorpion venom of the Kalahari desert.
6. When Meerkats forage there is always one member of the clan that has sentry duty and looks out for predators. When one is spotted, the meerkat sounds the alarm and all the other clan members go into hiding.
7. Meerkats can reproduce throughout the year but prefer warmer seasons to give birth too. Usually only the matriarch gets to breed however in larger groups for subordinate meerkats may secretly breed. These females are often chased away from the group and form their own clan.
8. One to five pups are born with the most common number being three pups.
9. Meerkats have been found to demonstrate altruistic behaviour and will often look after young that are not their own.
10.  Meerkats are considered "Least Concern " under the IUCN Red List.

Species of the week: Hen Harrier

Species of the week:
Hen Harrier(Circus cyaneus)

1. They can be found in the Northern Hemisphere, in Northern Europe and Northern U.S.A and Canada.
2. Hen harriers have  sexual dimorphism in their appearance. Males are pale grey//white while females are brown.
3. They are about 40-52 cm long and has a wingspan of 97-122cm.
4. They feed on small mammals and small birds and live in open areas.
5. Hen harriers are migratory birds, migrating South for the winter. If they opt to stay at certain countries due to mild climate, they generally just migrate to lower altitudes.
6.  It lays from four to eight eggs and the eggs are incubated from 30-32 days.
7. The chicks become fledgelings at around 35-36 days old but do not fully mature until they are 2 years old if female or 3 years if male.
8. They are the only hawk-like bird to practise polygyny.
9. The males maintain a large territory in which they can be responsible for up to five females.
10. They are considered "Least Concern"by the IUCN red list but in specific areas such in the U.K they are regarded as under threat due to human conflicts as gamekeepers shoot them since they influence Red Grouse populations.

Updates and blog organisation

So it's been about a month since I returned back to Aberdeen. Ever since then I have been struggling to get back to the normal routine since my dissertation and review essay are taking most of my time. This is a little post to just remind you that I am still active. Species of the week will return this Sunday and I will attempt to post something at least once a week apart from the Species of the Week.
Thank you so much for reading

Wolf Science Center final thoughts

It's been a week since I left the Wolf Science Center. Since that week I managed to sort out my university courses, start working on my dissertation and return to regular life. Wolf Science Center however will always be a great and wonderful experience. In this post it will be bit of a letter to all the people I worked with and a bit of an experience blur for those who weren't there.

Firstly. I keep mentioning that the people working there are great. This for me was a huge component to what made the experience work. Wolves in captivity aren't hard to find, however a great group of people to work with sure is. From the students( whom we all bonded together through nights of drinking, playing werewolf and experiencing wolves together) to the trainers (who we joked around with, convinced to do extra pack visit and all sorts of funny stuff), the Wolf Science Center is staffed by great people. Never have I bonded with a group of people so fast ans so strong as the summer spend there. I am sure a lot of people share similar experiences but getting along with coworkers make everything better. Like every workplace there are kinks in the system that need to be worked out of course and some days can become frustrating. This to my experience is natural and is just the day. Even if the day was bad, the animal refused to cooperate there is always someone there with a better mood to cheer you up. If any of you guys are reading this, keep smiling, give Wamblee and Amarok a big kiss for me and stroke Enzi's cute ears.

Secondly. The animals are kept under great conditions. One my main concerns before I visited were in regards to animal welfare. The wolves are kept in great conditions and so are the dogs. There is of course the issue that they are in captivity. They can't escape conflicts and obviously whatever life they would have in the wild would be in theory better than captivity. They are however more than happy to participate in any tests and experiments on going there and now testing that I have seen influences animal behavior in a long term.

Finally it was great working with animals there. I learned so much and I really enjoyed my dissertation work there. Good luck to everyone in the Wolf Science Center and if anyone is in Austria pay them a visit. The place is great.

No. You can't own Nature

This is a topic that has been vexing me for quite a while. Ever since I started working with captive wolves and even before, I've always heard or read about people having the desire to have wild animals as pets. Although some wild animals can be “domesticated”without much effort (see  birds of prey for falconry and wild horses broken for riding) some others don’t. If you think it would be awesome to have a wolf, a lion, a tiger or whatever other animal as a pet well then you should understand that you can’t own or tame nature and here is why.

Our ancestors did a great job at selecting traits they wanted from the wild cousins of our domesticated animals. They breed aggressiveness out of wolves and cats, they domesticated farm animals and made our lives a lot easier. They did all that because at some point someone realized that some animals were easier to handle and selected for them. They did so because some people probably were injured or killed by aggressive animals. So why would you want to go back to the wild animals?

My theory is because people want to own a piece of wilderness. The wolf is and will be a symbol of what is wild. The lion and tiger are both majestic animals that demonstrate the raw ferocity of nature.  Sharks and crocodiles represent predators, effective killing machines. It is then no wonder why most people who want to own wild animals choose to own predators. Predators have always magnetized us. If it’s not predators then it will often be primates or other animals which are deemed as intelligent. Very few people want to own a pet deer or a pet boar. And here lies the problem. Predators are wild animals that are tuned to hunt for prey. They receive cues for hunting and will always take the opportunity to hunt and kill if they are hungry. To think that people can tame these animals is ridiculous.

 One of the theories that seem to be oddly prevalent is that if a predator has not had blood or meat then it will be friendly and will not need to kill. Unfortunately it does not work that way. If you watch at least one documentary on predators, you will notice that most young emulate or attempt to hunt even if they haven’t observed family members doing so. Predators are hardwired by their DNA to response to certain cues which trigger their predatory instinct. Jerky movements, nervous behavior, loud screeching and anything that would emulate a prey animal in distress triggers the instinct. While they are still young, they may not succeed at the hunt. Even if they grow up they may not succeed in killing an animal alone. However they will try and this will of course mean that the animal will become potentially dangerous for the owner.

Another theory is that if animals are obtained when young, then they can be socialized and act as regular pets. In the Wolf Science Center here as well as Wolf Watch UK I had the pleasure of working with socialized animals. These wolves were hand-raised when they were puppies and are relaxed around humans and will obey commands given to trainers. Hence they can be pets right? Wrong.  Let’s assume that someone wants to own a wolf. Apart from the part that wolves don’t do well as lone wolves as they become more neurotic and shy, let’s say they manage to provide all the socialization needed as well as all the space and stimulation needed. What is the issue here is a few things. Firstly wolf play is not like dog play. Wolves play hard. They are used to con-specifics tolerating biting, pulling, scratching and all sorts of rough play. Rough play for these animals can equate to serious damage for humans.  Some of the so called animal attacks are actually captive animals wanting to play or getting riled up and wanting to play.  In addition to that, most of the trainers here, and everywhere else that socialized animals are kept, work hard to maintain a working relationship with the animals. And not only that, the trainers sometimes also understand and give these animals room and time if a strain occurs on the relationship. Owning a wild animal as a pet and forcing them to interact with you when they don't want to is a disaster waiting to happen. Also if you cannot properly read the animal's behavior you may mistake certain situations which may put you in danger.

These wild animals are not suitable as pets. Regardless of how many books or films you watch, having a wild animal as a pet is an accident waiting to happen. There are a lot of domestic animals who need love and care and you won’t be risking your life or their life by having them.

One month in the Wolf Science Center. Project finalized and the Wamblee Tale

So here is an update on my recent adventures.

From left to right Wamblee and Yukon

My first month here has come and passed and boy has it been rather fast.  The first project I was assigned to was inequity aversion. Unfortunately that is still in the works and has been put on hold for a month due to the certain fence issues and also the PhD student leading the project will go on holiday and our supervisors don't feel that I should be testing alone. Which is all fair enough as this is a tricky project and people wanted to make sure the right shots were called.
So roll on my second project. We had a lone wolf here called Wamblee and he was to be introduced into a pack of three. The introduction and the effects the introduction had on the wolves' behaviour, would be my second project. In order to stick to the point I willwrite  his story below. But the introduction didn't go as smoothly as expected so that project had to be scrapped as well. At this point I was a month in and without a shred of data to show. After a discussion with one of the bosses and another PhD student who is now my supervisor I reached my final project which is greeting behaviour in captive wolf packs. I will look at how dominance affects greeting, location affects greeting and whether affiliative relationship scores affect greetings. It's quite interesting and I will be taking cortisol levels to boot which is really cool.
 Wamblee's introduction was a really great event to watch.It started off slowly. First Wamblee was introduced to Nanuk, the pack's dominant male.  After a few shaky days, Una ( the pack's submissive female)was introduced. She led Wamblee around on a chase for a day or two and then was removed and replaced by Yukon who was the pack's dominant female. It was all great for the two weeks they were together. Wamblee at first was at one corner being entirely submissive but through time he managed to overcome his anxiety and nervousness and join the pack. There was the question of Una though. She remained alone for some time and although joined by Nanuk and Yukon at some stages, she began to show a more dominant approach to Yukon when they were together. It should also be noted that Wamblee had taken a great interest in Yukon as he spend time sleeping close to her and playing with her.
The day came that Una was also put in the pack. She immediately attacked Yukon in a dominant stance, asking her to submit. A few fights broke up as Yukon refused to submit entirely. Wamblee wanted to intervene but Nanuk kept him away. It was after a few really bad fights that Wamblee decided to attack Nanuk in an effort to be dominant and possibly help Yukon.  As soon as that broke out, Wamblee and Yukon were separated from Nanuk and Una by the trainers and the pack of 3/4 was made into packs of 2.
At this point it should be noted that the whole procedure was always observed and trainers were on standby to intervene. Animal welfare was and is always the priority of the Wolf Science center and although Una and Yukon were both injured, care was and is given to the wolves and it is nothing they wouldn't sustain in a dominance fight in the wild.  A pack that is artificial is harder to click together. Packs in the wild consist of parents and their pups as well as older siblings and maybe grandparents. Regardless they are always a family unit and this is often not the case in captivity.
Which is what the 2 packs of 2 will be. Next year when the wolves will breed, the plan is to hand raise the pups( to ensure that humans don't phase or fear the wolves) and then introduce them to their parents again hence forming pack family units.
It was definitely something interesting to observe from behavioural aspects and also from the way the introduction was handled

Service dog welfare part 1: Guide Dogs and Military dogs

So while I am in Austria, I've become more and more interested in animal training and in particular Canid training. There are some very interesting aspects of how to train dogs and wolves and the results of such training.  When think that has been bothering me for a while is how a lot of people assume that service dogs actually have poor welfare standards and never have fun because they work all the time. So allow me to dispel a few of those myths.

Guide dogs: One of the most common misconception regarding Guide Dogs is  that they are forced to work all the time. While I am not an experienced service dog trainer or handler I managed to get some information from Erin. Erin has just graduated with a Ba(Hons) Psychology from the University of Aberdeen and has been involved with guide dog raising for a long time now.  She is an experienced guide dog raiser and sitter and here blogs can be found here(old blog)  and here(new blog). Also, I got to visit a Guide Dog center in Forfar and I got to see Erin dogsit two puppies so I managed to form an opinion. Guide Dogs are not forced to do anything they do not want to do. Granted raising guide dog puppies includes some rules regarding behaviour, food and the way they are raised. No sleeping on the bed, no begging on the table, no feeding them human food is some of the rules that Guide Dog charities have in place for their pups and it's some rules that a lot of people have  for their pet dogs.

And in regards to the myth that these dogs are forced to work, if a puppy doesn't want to work it doesn't have to. There are dogs that enjoy working and dogs that don't. Those puppies who make it clear that they do not want to be a Guide Dog are dropped from the program. Often times, if the puppy’s temperament isn't right for Guide work then they will be offered to other service dog organisations. If the puppy simply does not like working, then the guide dog school will find a home for them as a pet. In the U.S.A and U.K puppies that don't make it as guide dogs are not put down but instead given a loving home.

Most Guide Dog schools are really familiar with the issues that arise from inbreeding and  often try to ensure genetic diversity within their breeding dog stocks. Guide Dog schools  have really strict breeder evaluation programs to ensure the health and wellbeing of future generations. There are international breeding exchange programs to ensure that the genetic diversity within the breeding stock remains.

One of the biggest myths about Guide dogs( and all service animals) is that they don't get to play. When the harness is on, it's work time. When the harness is off it's play time or chill time.  The dogs know the difference too and it's reflected on their behaviour.  The puppy I got most exposed to was Marco (pictured above). When he was out of "uniform" he was pretty much a regular dog. He runs, jumps, plays with toys and is in general a basket case. When the jacket or harness was on, he was a different dog.He was focused and alert. Granted, Marco is still a puppy and like all puppies he makes mistakes and gets too excited sometimes. But that's why it takes up to 2 years to fully train a Guide Dog. The fact that these dogs can distinguish working and playing time is remarkable.

Military dogs: I've never had much hands on experience with military dogs but I have read a lot about it and I managed to talk to a few people who owned ex military dogs or even active service marines and their canine companion. Everything said about Guide Dogs applies to Military dogs and in fact all service dogs. The only difference is that military dogs have their life on the line. Despite that, the military dogs are not expandable. Soldiers would never send the dog forward to get shot and would never risk the dog's life to save their own. Although dogs are instrumental is several operations such as clearing houses, tracking bombs, smelling insurgents, guarding locations and so forth, military dogs are highly valued due to their training. It would be stupid to spend money and time training a dog just so it would get shot  instead of a soldier. They are of course in risk of injury or death much like the men that handle them and whether or not that should be the case is tricky. The animal is taken care of, only does a limited service and then is retired. From there on it depends on each individual's ethical perspective. For what is worth I think dogs have their own value in warfare and if they aren't abused or misused then it is definitely an interesting relationship.

Military dogs however have a much stricter training regime. They have longer training times, different kinds of training is used on them and some are obviously trained to be aggressive. Not only that but they are exposed to explosions, loud noises, bullets, injuries etc and much like humans, dogs can suffer from PTSD. Is this a welfare violation? Should dogs not be exposed to such situations? Well pretty much like every other dog, military dogs only work if they want to work and they can leave the program anytime they want. Also dogs are retired if they demonstrate signs of PTSD. Is this something that is right to ask of a dog? Well yes in my opinion. Dogs were domesticated to be used by humans and this is one use for them. Given the love they get from their Marine handlers, the often comfortable retirement situations they get and the usually low risk jobs they perform I would say that military dogs have a good welfare or at least as humans in that situation do. It can be argued that dogs don't make the active choice that humans do to join combat and the military and that to an extent is true. However they are exposed to explosions, noises, gunshots etc before they are sent to service and can always opt out if they don't want to.

In the next article I will be discussing police dogs and search and rescue dogs and their relative welfare.

Wolf Science Center week 3 update

So I am on my third week here in the Wolf Science Center and I decided to update all of you on some of the happenings here.

First of all I got myself a project. I am aiding a PhD student here in inequity aversion in wolves and pack dogs. Inequity aversion essentially boils down to whether wolves or dogs understand that they are being treated unequally and whether or not they do or feel anything about it. It's a very interesting subject and the more I read into it the more I get excited about the results we might yield. The person I am working with (all people remain unanimous unless they say okay) is great. She knows a lot about the subject, lets me do hands on work and she knows exactly what she wants. I am very glad about that.

As a side project I am doing wolf observations on my free time. This is to ensure some data to comfort my advisor back home. There is a lone wolf here that is currently being introduced into a new pack and my aim is to observe any relationship changes/conflicts that happened to the back after the wolf introduction. At the moment the wolf has been introduced to two of the three pack members and things are looking good.

What is very interesting here is training and the methods used. Although we aren't told much, some of the students decided to shadow a few of the trainers and I got taught a few very interesting things about training and in general animal behavior. I think animal behavior is definitely something a lot easier to understand when the subjects you are studying are not just in theory but rather present.

In addition to that I began work on my dissertation. It is probably too soon given that I have no idea of results or data collected yet but I started my research and the basic introduction stuff just to give myself a heads up.

I think the most important thing that made the transition here really easy are the students. Everyone here is great. It's a great company that bonds easily and there have been many interesting conversations between us. We share many things in common but are still diverse enough to have different view points on things and it's interesting to see biology and animal behavior from other schools and other perspective.

Three weeks have past faster than I thought and soon we will begin collecting data and I look forward to it. I will go in depth about certain aspects of what I learned soon.

Wolf Science Center first impressions and dissertation topics

As I a writing this I am sitting in Wolf Science Center student house in Austria. I am here for three months to collect data from my undergraduate honors project.

First things first is that I have no idea what my project will be as of yet. A lot of ideas are floating around as of now and obviously we need to test whether they can be conducting in the center or not. I think so far my project will be about cognition in wolves and dogs or behavior. Everything seems exciting here and the other students all have exciting projects so I am hoping my project will be equally exciting.

The Center is very well organised. Wolves and dogs are all raised in the same conditions and exposed to the same stimuli so their behavior would be comparable. The staff are all very careful about repetitions, stats and are very science oriented which is good for me as it means my data would be quite concrete. Testing enclosures are always sought after so organisation is present to dictate which person tests which wolves or dogs.

Also it is a great place for dog lovers. We spend some time with puppies, we have access to the puppy house where you can sit and be loved for hours on end by young puppies( just dog puppies for now) and dogs are around everywhere as members of staff all have dogs. It is great to be exposed to so much nature as the forest and birds and animals are all around us.

Lets take a minute to talk about sacrifices though. This is a bit more of a personal note but I feel it should be here. Throughout the blog I have talked about following your dream and pursuing a career you always like Working with animals usually means travelling and that means making commitments you may not like. At the time of the writing I still have about 117 days left( a few more or less depending on my data collection). This is the first time for me that I have committed to something big.I left Aberdeen and ventured into an unknown place with unknown people and for me that was terrifying. Not to mention not seeing friends or family or people you love. It is a bittersweet feeling. On the one hand leaving people and your house behind and on the other hand pursuing a dream and a project you spend a lot of time organizing. Endless emails, phone calls,money, networking and writing went into making this project and trip a reality and when it came to the last few days I was feeling very anxious and nervous about it. Pursuing your dreams and making sacrifices isn't as easy as people think it is.

Overall I am extremely pleased with my selection on where to conduct my project whether it may be and I am happy I got to pursue my dreams. On the other hand the sacrifices and the worry just work as a painful reminder that not everything good comes free. This project has to be perfect and get me a good grade. Otherwise it may not be worth it.

Species of the week: Emperor penguin

Species of the week:
Emperor penguin ( Aptenodytes forsteri)

1. It is a species of penguins endemic for Antarctica.
2. It is the tallest and heaviest species of penguins with their height reaching 122cm and  22 and 45 kg in weight.
3. They feed primarily on fish and crustaceans.
4. They can remain submerged for 18 minutes at a time and can go down to 535 meters in depth.
5. They are the only species to breed in winter forming large ice colonies with other members of their species.
6. The female lays an egg and the male incubates it while the mother is out foraging.
7. Once the chick is born the parents then take turns foraging and caring for their chick.
8. They can live for about 20 years in the wild and up to 50 in captivity.
9. They coordinate their foraging with others of their species as they are highly sociable species.
10. They are listed as "Nearly Threatened"by the IUCN due to the habitat loss and loss of food availability. 

Updates and the summer blogging

So this blog post is a bit more personal but it also concerns the blog itself so read on if you are interested.

As of the 20th of June 2014 I will be away for three months in Austria at the Wolf Science Center, conducting research on wolf behavior. This is a massive step towards my goals and personally it is something that I am excited and terrified of.  I am unsure of how much internet access I will have but I will try and blog my experiences as  much as I can.

Which brings me to issue number two. Since I will be blogging my experiences, the blog may be a bit more focused on that over the summer. I will try and have species of the week ready for every Sunday before I depart and I will try and get a few posts up on a queue to be available.  Now if there is complete radio silence on my part just assume I am too busy working on my project or that I do not have enough free Internet time. I intend to keep a diary anyway so I will probably post them once I return if I can't do it on the time of writing.

That's all for now and I hope you all have a great summer.

Species of the week: Przewalski's horse

Species of the week:
Przewalski's horse(Equus ferus przewalski)

1. It is considered the only true wild horse to exist today.
2. They stand about 122-146cm tall and weight about 200-350kg.
3. They generally have a brown colour with variations of those shades.
4. They can be found in Mongolia, although a small herd of them was introduced in the Chernobyl Exclusion zone.
5. Their average lifespan is about 20 years.
6. They form small social groups consisting of a stallion and two to three mares with their foals.
7. Breeding season is towards the end of May till July and pregnancy lasts 11-12 months.
8. The foals stay with their herd until they disperse to mate(in case of males) or an independent and choose to disperse to avoid inbreeding (in case of females)
9. The foals are able to walk and run, an hour after they have been born.
10. They are listed as "Endangered" by the IUCN.

Species of the week: Thorny dragon

Species of the week:
Thorny dragon(Moloch horridus)

1. The thorny dragon can only be found in the continent of Australia.
2. It can be found in  arid scrub-land and desert environments.
3. It can grow to be up to 20 cm in length.
4. Their camouflage is in shades of brown and tan to camouflage in the desert but it also varies from season to season becoming paler as it becomes warmer and darker as it becomes colder.
5. The thorny devils are covered entirely in mostly uncalcified conical spines.
6. The lizards also have a spiny false head designed to trick predators.
7. The way it's body is designed allowed for water to be collected in all parts of it's body which is then conveyed to its mouth.
8. They mostly feed on ants they catch in the desert.
9. It can live up to 20 years.
10. It's mating season is spring summer(September-December for Australians) and the female lays 3-10 eggs in a nesting burrow 30 cm underground.The eggs hatch after about 3-4 months.

Species of the week:Canada Goose

Species of the week:
Canada Goose(Branta canadensis)

1. It is native in arctic and temperate regions of North America abut can be found in other temperate regions as it has been introduced.
2. It is distinguishable by the black head and neck with white patches on the face and brown body.
3. They are about 70-110cm in length and have a 125-185 cm wingspan.
4. They are migratory birds, migrating from Canada to the U.S.A.
5. Their migratory pattern is that of a V shaped.
6. They are primarily herbivores, eating grass and grain. They will however eat small insects and fish.
7. Canada Geese are monogamous and find their pair during the second year of their lives.
8. They lay about 2-9 eggs, with an average of five.
9. Incubation is 24-28 days and the chicks are able to walk and swim and find food as soon as they hatch.
10. Canada Goose are protected in Canada but are considered "Least Concern"by the IUCN.

Species of the week: Giant Panda

Species of the week:
Giant Panda(Ailuropoda melanoleuca)

1. It is a bear that is easily recognized by the black patches over the eyes, around the body and the ears.
2. Although  considered carnivores, the panda's diet consists mostly of bamboo with meat acting as a supplement.
3. They are about 1.2 to 1.8 m long and stand at 60 to 90 cm tall.
4. They can weight about 100-115 kg.
5. They can up live up to 20 years in the wild and 30 in captivity.
6. Pandas will eat about 9 to 14 kg of bamboo a day.
7. Panda mating season is between March and May and the female is in estrus, once a year for two or three days.
8. They give birth to one young every two years give or take and gestation lasts about 95 to 160 days.
9. Pandas do not have permanent dens but instead spend time changing locations throughout their territory.
10. Great Pandas are listed as "Endangered"by the IUCN and are conservation icons,

In response to the animal killing in zoos

So Copenhagen Zoo was in the news these last couple of weeks. First for killing a giraffe and now for killing  four lions.  Although the zoo is under fire, they claim they did nothing wrong. What they did complies with EU regulations and zoo guidelines. In fact the zoo is praised for the high standard of animal welfare and educational values they have.  This raises a particularly interesting conflict among my ideals and I would like to discuss this. I am neither 100% pro-captivity nor 100% against it. My ideals are somewhere in the middle. Some animals can be kept in captivity and show no signs of stress. Some thrive under it. Some other animals don’t. Some zoos do a great job in conservation and educations while some don’t. I suppose my ideals are that it depends on the animal, the zoo and the welfare standards.

What the zoo did, makes absolute sense on their behalf. The male lions were killed to allow for the new male they brought in to be the breeding male. The female was killed because she would have prevented the younger females from mating and she would have had complications during pregnancy. So it makes sense for the zoo to put them down. They lived a happy life and their death was quick. Is it right? Well by me no. Since as a zoo you are breeding animals you should have a responsibility towards their welfare throughout their whole life and not cut their life short. It is a duty of care that should be part of the legislation according to me. 

Although zoos can be part of the conservation effort and part of educating the public, there are some zoos that misunderstand their responsibility. People everywhere are campaigning that there are not enough lions out there in the wild but yet zoos(who are meant to educate the general public) go and shoot four. I can see that the oldest ones couldn’t contribute to breeding, and I know that it’s hard to release the younger ones. However they could either give off the younger lions to another breeding program or send them to a sanctuary or a separate enclosure. By treating the animals as property and by strategically planning pregnancies, animal transfers and new animal acquisitions you are unfortunately sending the wrong message that animals are property and that the reason they are there is for money first and the rest come before that.

By not being able to euthanize healthy animals you send the message that wildlife is respected and hat these animals are more than just an item but an entity that should be respected. In my opinion captive animals can suffer captivity if it means the welfare and prosperity of wild animals(that is of course if captivity doesn’t have extreme detrimental effects on them). By keeping your excess breeding and treat animals in such a way, you teach the general public that they should respect animals. The materialistic and consumerist approach is what’s causing habitat fragmentation, habitat loss, illegal wildlife trade and so many other reasons that certain animal species are endangered. So by removing aspects of this approach and portraying animals as entities that should be respected, the public may gain a new perspective on what keeping animals means and how much influence they have over their life.

In the end of the day unfortunately zoos have to make money to continue surviving and it is logical that in some sense they would approach a matter in a more businesslike approach. When the general public opinion changes then perhaps so will zoo management and perhaps there may be a time where zoos are no longer necessary for conservation efforts. Until that time occurs then zoos are necessary and issues over the management of animals will always be present  but it is important to recognize the particular conservation value that some zoos hold.

Species of the Week: Chinese Water Deer

Species of the Week:
Chinese Water Deer(Hydropotes inermis)

1. The adults weigh about 10-18kg and reach up to 55cm in height.
2. Instead of antlers these deer have small protruding tasks emerging from their mouth, earning them the nickname "vampire deer".
3. They are usually found near water bodies and their preferred habitat is reed beds, river shores, woodlands and fields.
4. They tend to be solitary animals, unless they are found in extreme high intensities in which case they may form pairs.
5. They usually feed on herbs and other nutritious plants.
6. Their tusks can grow up to 8cm with an average of about 5.5-6 cm.
7. They can live up to 10-12 years.
8. Their mating session is during November to December where the annual rut takes place.
9. Their gestation period lasts about 180 to 210 days and they produce from 1-7 young with the norm being two or three.
10. They are listed as "Vulnerable"in the IUCN but are abundant in some areas of the world.

Species of the week:Polar Bear

Species of week:
Polar Bear(Ursus maritimus)

1. They are considered one of the largest bear species present on Earth, with the male weighing from 350-700kg and 2.4-3m in length.
2. They can be found around the Arctic Circle and the adjacent land masses of Norway, Denmanrk, United States of America, Russia and Canada.
3. The males are larger than the females, with the females being about half the size of males.
4. Polar bears have a thick hide and fur to keep warm and their blubber is about 10cm thick.
5. Polar bears are obligate carnivores which means they only sustain themselves with meat. They hunt most animals but their preferred prey is seals.
6. They will also scavange and hunt narwals and beluga whales.
7. They usually stalk holes in the ice, waiting for their prey to appear to take a breath and they attack then.
8. Despite popular belief a polar bear's skin is black and their hair are transparent. The reason we see their hair as white has to do with the way the light reflects on the hair.
9. Mating season takes place between April and May. Fertilized eggs remain suspended until August or September and cubs are usually born from November all the way to December.
10. Polar bears are listed as "Vulnerable"in the IUCN red list. Their main threat is loss of habitat due to global warming.

Species of the Week: The Atlas Moth

Species of the Week:
Atlas Moth(Attacus atlas)

1. It is the largest moth to be ever found.
2. It can be found in  South East Asia in tropical and subtropical habitats.
3. Their wingspan can reach 25cm and they cover a total surface area of up to 400cm2.
4. They are the only insect species to successfully mimic a predator reptile as a means of defense.
5. When they hatch, they form no mouths but instead rely on their fat storage to keep them going until they mate and die.
6. After their adulthood they only live for two weeks due to their lack of mouths.
7. Their eggs are spherical and have a 2.5mm diameter. They are usually found in the underside of leaves.
8. The caterpillars are covered in fleshy spines and waxy substances to prevent predation.
9. They pupate once they reach 115mm and remain in their cocoon for 4 weeks.
10. There are no conservation issues regarding the Atlas Moth.

Species of the Week: Wolverine

Species of the Week:
Wolverine(Gulo gulo)

1. It can only be found in the Northern Hemisphere.
2. Wolverines live in boreal forests, tundras and subarctic areas.
3. They stand 30-45cm tall and weight from 9-27kg.
4. Their fur  dark and oily which makes it incredibly hydrophobic. This repels water and gives the wolverine resistance from frost.
5. They are both a predator and a scavenger. Their main prey is small mammals but have been seen killing adult deer and mouse when weakened.
6. The males will form lifetime relationships with around 2-3 females in their territory or in adjacent territories.
7. Although their mating season is in the summer, the wolverine embryo is not planted until early winter. This is to time the offspring birth to early spring.
8. Gestation period lasts around 30-50  days and two or three young are born every litter.
9. They live from 5 to 13 years of age.
10. Although listed as "Least Concern" by the IUCN there are concerns over how populations will cope with global warming.

Species of the week: Long-legged Buzzard

Species of the week:
Long-legged Buzzard(Buteo rufinus)

1. It can grow from 43-58 cm in length and have a wingspan of 100-155cm.
2. It has three colour types: white, rufous and black. 
3. They can be found in semi-arid areas as well as semi-deserts and steppee.
4. It's a bird of prey and forages food by hovering and soaring and scanning for prey by a vantage point.
5. They prefer to hunt in open spaces where they can use their eyesight to spot prey.
6. It feeds on small mammals, insects and reptiles.
7. They often reconstruct nests used by other birds to give birth to their eggs.
8. They lay three to five eggs, once a year.
9. The eggs are incubated for 30-35 days and the hatchlings remain at the nest for 43-45 days.
10. They are listed as "Least Concern"by the IUCN but some populations have been declining lately.

To the extreme

Today I want to talk about extremes. About the extreme activism that is going on and about how adopting an extreme viewpoint may not benefit wildlife what so ever. Once again this is my opinion so feel free to disagree with me if you wish but keep it civil please.

People tend to dislike extreme reactions. It throws people off, it antagonizes them and sometimes it will probably yield worse results than a casual conversation.  An example of this is P.E.T.A . Ahh the great protectors of animals are always there to save the day. Now as I have touched on before, P.E.T.A often does a good job at making sure that animals are treated right and so forth. Why are they hated though? Well because most of their times their ways are radical and extreme enough to push people off the edge. Not to mention the fact that they often channel their energy on the wrong stuff. Lab animals are one of them. I understand that lab animals do not live in the best of conditions. They are often miserable and mistreated and will live a short life. But those animals are needed. Cosmetics aside, lab animals are needed to test new treatments, create a better understanding of the animal and it’s physiology, used for genetic experiments and onwards. A lot of the benefits people enjoy medically wise are a result of lab animals. Do I think that this warrants a poor treatment of animals? No. Can I tolerate it? Yes. This is up to each individual but in my mind there needs to be a set of priorities in what you would like to fix in the world. Advocating for no wildlife trade, animal welfare and being against captivity is all fine but you need to sort out which one should be your highest priority and focus on that. The world will not just wake up one day, abolish all the practices you deem as cruel and unnatural and continue going as it did.  If all animals are treated fairly then you will have a harder time buying beef as it will be scarcer and a lot more expensive. If lab animals are abolished then a cure for many diseases could be set back years and years. So tolerate what you can and channel your energy towards your priority goals.

 To continue with that you have to understand this: Extremists are not liked. Whether you are an activist for animal rights, animal abuse, conservation or the protection of wildlife, there are very few circumstances that being on the extreme actually helped.  There are like-minded people out there who try and reason with the “enemy” instead of going extreme. People who would rather talk and try and convince the Japanese out of whaling, reduce quotas and use science to determining whaling instead of going out and blocking  the Japanese fleet.  These people are often part of an NGO and will often try and fight the good fight to help conservation or animal rights along. Guess who is giving them a bad name? Extreme/radical organizations. People like to pigeon hole and stereotype and while it is not good practice most groups are usually placed in the same category as the more extreme groups.  It’s sad to see conservation organizations have their work undermined because no one takes them seriously due to the actions of another organization which acts much more extremely. 

And this is unfortunately another point which frustrates me. Extremist organizations are almost never satisfied unless the measures they see fit are implemented.  For examples many conservation organizations are willing to give out some ground in a dispute. They would prefer that a small portion of animals are hunted or harvested but the overall protection and survival of the species remain the same or similar. They would prefer that small areas of forests are cut down if it means that the remain forest is secured.  A compromise for them is often a victory enough. It’s a stepping stone to which greater things can be achieved and let’s face it, humanity as a whole will never have the same viewpoints. So for the conservation organizations, every victory counts.  Now imagine that a treaty has been signed protecting a large area of prime habitat with a lot of endangered species. In return an x amount of animas deemed appropriate by science, can be harvest throughout the year and an y amount of trees can be felled. This has been scientifically proven to have little effect to the habitat and hence the habitat will survive and thrive. Then along come extremists which protest and want the whole area protected and so on. This automatically gives the conservationists a bad name as greedy, puts the logging/hunting party on the defensive and achieves nothing more than create tension where it was just relieved. Hence more damage done that good.

If you want to be part of extremist groups then it is your own right to do so. I am simply underlining the damage that can be done by such groups. If you feel strong about a subject then the best thing to do is study more about it, support people working on the subject and try and educate more people through calm and peaceful means. Understand when someone just wants to kill animals and rest your case. Not all of humanity can be swayed towards your way.

Species of the Week: Plateau pika

Species of the week:
Plateau Pika(Ochotona curzoniae)

1. It weights around 120-150g when fully grown.
2. Their main habitat is about 3200km-5300m above sea level. In this kind of altitude oxygen concentrations are less than we are used to.
3. They are found in the Tibetan Plateau and in high altitude steppes, deserts and meadows in India, Nepal and Pakistan.
4. They are considered a keystone species due their recycling of nutrients in the ecosystem. As their habitat is often in need of nutrients, the presence of pikas means that more and more nutrients are recycled.
5. Pikas have a monogamous and  polygamous groups.
6. These groups usually contain 3 males to 4 females.
7. Females usually breed every three weeks after the last litter is born.
8. They give birth to 2-5 litters each consisting of 2-7 offsprings.
9. Breeding season last from April to August.
10. Groups form reproductive alliances, helping each other raise their young, deter predators and make sure that genetic diversity is maintained.

What being a field scientist is really about.

Canines have always been a passion for me.  I loved dogs ever since I can remember and I got more and more interested in wolves in my late teens. It was since then that I decided I would like to specialize on wolves in the future, study them and help in their conservation.  I am currently on my way towards trying to achieve that by becoming a researcher. When I am done with my undergraduate, I will apply for a Masters and a PhD, get a Dr. slapped in front of my name and begin a life of wolf studying. The main reason why I am writing this article is because people tend to have a skewed notion of what this will entail. Not just wolves but other animals as well. The media have exposed the public to people who love animals(either through documentaries, reality shows or viral videos) and people either expect you to end up that way or expect themselves to end up that way.

Case and point is Steve Irwin. For those who don’t know Steve Irwin was a brilliant naturalist, a man with a passion in conserving the Australian wildlife and he had a strong love for crocodiles. He is often seen jumping around, being really energetic, picking up animals, wrestling crocodiles and the sort.  Now Steve Irwin was a brilliant passionate person and a great conservationist but he was never a scientist. Not in the conventional sense at least.  Any scientist passionate about crocodiles would not do what he did. It’s not to say that what he did was wrong.  By all means Steve educated generation upon generation (including me) about the Australian wildlife and he was a brilliant TV persona. He was not however a scientist. As much as we all would like  to have a life similar to Steve’s, a scientist’s research is either done in the lab or in the field for a while, then data analysis and then writing. If any biologist is intrigued by crocodiles, then they will either monitor them from afar, breed them in lab conditions or take data from somewhere else.  It all depends on what you would like to investigate on a particular animal.

When I tell people I want to study wolves I often get send videos of Shaun Ellis, usually with comments along the lines of “this will be you in a few years”and so forth. I hope it is not.  The closest I can hope to be is any videos you see from field biologists conducting wolf research such as Doug Smith. Although they handle wolves, most of the science done is either through observation or non-invasive behavior. And at times where humans actually get involved with wolves it is under controlled situations. Allow me to explain why. If you were to bond with a pack of wolves, a pride of lions etc you skew animal behavior, you mess with the data. This sort of data would not be accepted by the scientific community due to biased nature in which they were gathered. Hence if I ever were to become a TV persona  then it will probably mean I am not a scientist.

There needs to be a clear distinction. The people you see on TV handling animals are rarely scientists and what they are doing most of the times is not science. While some documentaries feature recordings of the methods that are used in scientific research, they do not show the painstaking statistical analysis or the paper analysis. I am not saying don’t be a scientist. Just be wary of what the media pass on as science and just take everything with a pinch of salt.

Finally, Steve Irwin was a great influence in my life. This article is by no means meant to be a disrespectful to him what so ever. I just thought I could clear the lines for people who don’t get the differences.

Species of the Week: Goosander

Species of the Week:
Goosander(Mergus merganser)

1. It is found in Europe, North America and central and northern Asia.
2. It's wingspan is 78-98cm long and weigh about 0.8-2.1 kg.
3. Males during breeding season have a greenish hue on their head while females and juvenile males have a brownish hue.
4. These ducks have sawbills. Sawbills are bills that have serrated edges to help them hold their prey and grab their prey easily.
5. They are diving birds, which means that they dive into the water to acquire their food. 
6. Goosander lay about 6-17  white to yellowish eggs that usually incubate in tree cavities.
7. When they are disturbed they will disgorge their food before running away.
8. Goosander have been known to stumble and fall frequently when they are on land.
9. They can be found in both salt-water and fresh-water areas
10. Although not threatened, some conservation work has been undertaken to make sure they aren't victims of shooting or poisoning.

Let's meet halfway

Today’s article is because of some recent events that I observed.  As I already said, I have been accepted into a center to study wolf behavior over the summer as part of my dissertation. Naturally worried family and friends are all anxious about my health. What if the wolves turn on me? Won’t they rip me to shreds? Will the insurance policy cover it?

Joking aside I was still shocked by the misinformation and lack of proper scientific knowledge the general public has. I am not expecting a person to know the latin names of each wolf subspecies or all of their behavior. I do however expect at least a common understanding. Wolves won’t attack humans. This isn’t about wolves though. It’s about science and communication.  Science and the general public rarely mix.

It is only recently that scientists acknowledged that the general public should understand the weight that some papers and experiments have on the way the world is shaped. Will the general public ever know though? Highly doubt it. For this scientists are to blame. By publishing papers that are too specialized, by underestimating the general public and not believing them able to grasp the concepts of science, we are alienating the public.

Now I am in no means a proper scientist yet. Even if I was I am more versed in Biology and mostly Zoological matters. This means that although I can read a scientific paper, it doesn’t always mean I can understand it.  This is particularly annoying when the subject is one that I am familiar with. If it was a physics paper then I understand why I failed to grasp it. But I am third year into my Zoology degree and there are papers that are still hard for me to read.

Imagine then a person interesting in animals. Let’s say they are interesting in physiology. Let’s say that they got a textbook and got a general grasp of the subject but they are rather inquisitive and want to know more. Now someone recommends a more advanced textbook or an academic paper. The frustration of not understanding what you are reading may be enough to make this person abandon their curiosity because they can’t understand the subject.  Wouldn’t that be frustrating for the scientist? It’s not a lie that research grants are hard to come by. If however the general public knew exactly what your research was about then maybe scientists would have an easier time trying to sort out grants, approvals etc.  Also if the public were slightly more aware about certain scientific issues then some policies can be removed or prevented. Policies that are not supported by scientific evidence but are instead pushed forward by mass public hysteria.

Now it’s not just the scientists fault though. Dear general public. Sometimes you can be so gullible or so pre-occupied that you refuse to question what you read or hear.  In one of the social media I am part of, a picture of a small pink elephant appeared under the caption “Newborn baby elephant”. The comments were regarding how cute it is, and how they have never seen elephants so tiny before. It didn’t take more than a few second to realize that what people were commenting on was in fact a dead elephant fetus. I mean come on guys. A lot of the general public may have never been around elephants before but most of you must have watched at least one documentary with them. Since when are elephants born that way? It’s not the picture that angers me. It’s the fact that people refuse to so much as double check the facts.  Search engines and encyclopedias are right in our fingertips and yet I still hear that a shark cull is a good thing.

By believing in pretty much everything they read sometimes the general public can bring scientists to a point where decide that they won’t actually bother anymore because no matter what they try and do, they feel the general opinion won’t change.

And this is what I propose. Let’s meet half way huh? What if scientists decided to try and make their publications easier to read but also the general public decided to try and keep up with science news and question everything that they are being told. If that were to happen then perhaps science wouldn’t be under a public media barrage and perhaps scientists wouldn’t be angry when legislations are passed that defy scientific work. It’s a simple solution that is really hard to implement and perhaps that is one of the sad things. But slowly we are getting there. The more educated the public and the less specialists the scientists become then the more science can be embraced as a tool to discovering the world.

Updates

Hello there everyone,
First of all allow me to apologize for missing the last couple of  the "species of the week"series. Ill try not to miss them from now on.
I just wanted to share some news with you and some ideas for the blog.

First things first. Over the summer I will be in Austria at a science center to do my Bachelor's research on wolf behavior. I am not sure how accessible the internet will be but I will try my best to add least queue a few articles for you. If I get internet access then I will provide my experiences for you read while I am there. So expect a lot of wolf talk over the summer.

Secondly I find that if I have set series it keeps me motivated to write so I decided to review documentaries along with species of the week. I will start with a documentary a month and then see from their own.

Thirdly, I will be writing more articles with one coming soon.

Thanks for understanding
Pete

An open letter regarding the University of Aberdeen accused for whaling

This is an article that I have been dying to write for a while now. My university has been accused of using whaling data in a project recently http://www.scotsman.com/news/education/aberdeen-university-under-fire-over-whale-slaughter-1-3200216. This caused quite a stir, especially in the Biological Sciences students who were shocked. After poking about and asking people, a few of us found that the data that were used, were from already harvested whales. Some students were still shocked while others, much like myself relaxed. In the end of the day data are data and so long as they were done ethically or in the past then there is no reason why they shouldn’t be used. Now I don’t know exactly what the data were used for. Talking to some people around university it seems to be for a PhD project that dealt with the effect of whaling as well as whale watching on whale species but then others say it had to do with whale physiology.  I hardly think it is relevant at this stage.

Allow me to elaborate. Science that deals with wild animals in their natural habitat is tricky. Some animals can be elusive, migrate, budget cuts can prevent you from doing exactly what you want, extreme weather conditions or extreme environments are few of the reasons why science is hard to conduct with wild animals. Scientists in general try their best to obtain their own data but will not shy away from using data from other sources. Whether these sources are volunteers conducting surveys on their own time ( as per the case of Shorewatch  done by  WDC which is an excellent use of volunteer time and locations), hunters reporting kills, trappers reporting catches, roadkill sites, sightings and so forth. The internet alone is filled with sites where everyday people can log in and report sightings of animals.  These data are used by scientists, NGOs, of even government organizations and find themselves in academic journals as well.  It is a matter that needs to be understood by the general public. Scientists are not always able to collect fresh data and hence may use older data which might have been gathered in less ethical ways or with questionable means.

Now this is where it falls to the individual. Some scientists may have no quarrel using data from any source so long as the data can help them gain an understanding of what is going on. Others may take  a more ethical route and prefer to make sure that animals have been treated fairly. Others simply try not to disturb the animals. There are myriad ways of thinking and whether they are right or wrong is simply a matter of perspective.

In my opinion, using the whaling data was fine. I understand the fact that in a way, the whaling industry is still supported if you use the data but the animals are dead and the data is already collected. Sure, this may be used to justify further whaling and I am not for that.  I do not agree with whaling due to the damage it does to the general population and the fact that whales  cannot recover from such harvesting easily. But in this particularly case the data are already present so why not use them. It is a moral conundrum surely but it won’t change the fact that these animals are dead already. In a way it is best that they at least be used for something.

My main issue is the way journalism has handled the particular subject.  Flaring articles accusing the university for whaling while very little was actually given in terms of what had happened.   Like most press these days, some articles were unbiased and provided information and some didn’t. This led to a confusing state both amongst students, staff and the rest of the world.  Maybe if it was handled better by both the University and the press then no confusion would have happened and people would be able to reach a conclusion on the own on whether they support what happened or not.

In the end of the day what appeared to be a shocking story ended up being a matter of personal views and opinions as the fog cleared out, but some damage may have already been done  that may be irreversible. Once again don’t trust what you read and question everything at least once before you believe it.

Species of the Week: Sockeye Salmon

Species of the Week:
Sockeye Salmon(Oncorhynchus nerka)

1. Is a type of salmon that is usually red, can grow up to 84cm and  weighs from 2 to 7 kg.
2. It can be found in the Pacific and like other salmon are anadromous. This that the young are born in freshwater, make their way to the sea where they grow to a certain age and make their way upstream where they give birth in freshwater.
3. Their bodies become red and their faces turn green when they begin returning to their spawning grown.
4. They mostly feed on zooplankton.
5. To avoid predation these salmon change their position in the water column, timing and length of feeding and school formation.
6. Salmon are considered semelparous which means that they will die once they breed once.
7. When mating, competition between these salmon occurs, with males establishing an dominant male who gets to mate with the female.
8. However it is not always so as some males will sneakily mate with the females when the dominant male isn't present.
9. Females choose the nest site, prepare the nest and defend it until they die.
10. Salmon are considered very important for many forest habitats in neighboring the Pacific as the salmon provide nutrients for the plants after they die as well as food for scavengers.

Species of the week: Siberian tiger

Species of the week:
Siberian Tiger also known as Amur tiger ( Panthera tigris altaica)

1. It's a tiger subspecies usually found in small mountain ranges in the Russian Far East.
2. It is the largest tiger and in fact the largest cat species and it stands 112 to 120 cm tall and weigh from  118 kg (females) to 177 kg (males) with the heaviest recorded to be 222 kg.
3. A key habitat for the tigers are the Korean pine broadleaf forests and can be usually found in a mixture of decideous-coniferous and boreal forests.
4. They mostly feed on deer but will feed on smaller species such as salmon,rabbits hares and pikas.
5. They have been known to hunt bear as well when the ungulate population declines. Bears constitute about 5-8% of the Siberian tiger's diet.
6. Siberian tigers are also known for suppressing wolf numbers to the point of wolf numbers being very low or even extinct.
7. Mating occurs throughout the year and gestation period lasts 90-105 days.
8. Although litter size is 1-6 cubs usually 2-4 cubs are born.
9. Female cubs stay with their mother and will either share the territory or get some next to their mother, while males will disperse to find mates.
10. Siberian tigers are listed as "Endangered"on the IUCN Red List.

Species of the week: Cooper's hawk

Species of the week:
Cooper's hawk(Accipiter cooperii)

1. Cooper's hawk is a bird of prey native to North America.  It can be found from Northern Mexico all the way to Southern Canada..
2. Males are smaller than females as is often the case with birds of prey.
3. Males weight  about 220 to 410 g while females weigh from 300 to 700 g.
4. Males have a length of 35 to 46 cm while females length  is 42 to 50 cm.
5. Wingspan usually ranges from 62 to 94 cm.
6. They can be found in all kinds of habitats, usually in deciduous forests and open woodlands but also nest in cities.
7. Most of their diet comes from small to medium size birds such as Robins, thrashes, jays, doves and pigeons etc and they usually complement their diet with small mammals and lizards.
8. They hunt using an ambush technique usually dropping from cover or flying quickly through vegetation.
9. They live up to 12 years in the wild but the longest recorded has been 20 years.
10. It is considered as "Least Concern"in the IUCN Red List.

Species of the week: Cougar

First of all let me wish you guys a Happy New Year. Hope 2014 brings you luck and joy. Updates will be sporadic until February when my exams will end but expect the occasional article(I hope).
In addition to that species of the week will now include subspecies to add variety.


Species of the week:
Cougar(Puma concolor)

1. It is a cat native only to the Americas.
2. Although it is placed in the small cat family(Felinae) it's size and characteristics are similar to the big cats(Pantherinae).
3. They stand about 60-90 cm tall and and can reach up to 2.5m from head to tail.
4. Male cougars weigh about 50-100 kg while females weigh 29-64 kg.
5. Cougar diet compromises of anything that has meat from small rodents to large ungulates with a preferance to ungulates. This highly depends on the region and food availability.
6. They mate all year around with females coming in estrus for about 8 days every 23 days.
7. Gestation period last about 90-92 days and a litter is birthed about every one or two years of their reproductive lives.
8. Litter size can range from 1-6 cubs with the norm being 2-3 cubs.
9. Life expectancy is about 13 years in the wild and around 20 in captivity.
10. Cougars overall are listed as "Least Concern" in the IUCN Red List. However several subspecies can be considered to be under threat of extinction.