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"A single kick delivered some 195 Newtons of force - and Madeleine's foot touched the rubber snake, on average, for just 15 milliseconds (0.015 seconds). Blinking your eyes takes 150 milliseconds.
"So they deliver five to six times their own bodyweight in a tenth of the time it takes to blink an eye, which is really quite surprising," Dr Portugal told BBC News."
Ready to go!!!
This Brent goose has been staying here in SW-Iceland for several weeks eating to increase its bodyweight by 40% to fuel the flight to the Arctic islands of Canada. Now probably just waiting for favorable winds. The current northerly winds are not.
The black guillemot is a medium-sized bird with adults normally 30 to 32 centimetres (12 to 12+1⁄2 inches) in length and with wingspans of 52 to 58 cm (20+1⁄2 to 23 in). The bodyweight can range from 300 to 460 grams (10+1⁄2 to 16 ounces).
Adults have both summer and winter plumage and there is no sexual difference in this that can be identified in the field. The English common name “Black Guillemot” references their strikingly black breeding summer plumage which is totally black except for a large white patch on the upper side of their wings.
During the summer plumage, their legs, feet and inside of the mouth are all a bright coral-red, and their beak is a black. Adults lose their summer plumage in an early fall moult where their upper plumage become barred with light grey and white, their head is a pale grey, their underparts white, and legs and feet a pale red.
They retain their white wing patch, black beak and red inside their mouth. The call in the breeding season is a high whistle. The red gape is also prominent then.
Juveniles and immatures can easily be identified by the spotting of the white wing patch with grey or brown feathers and is easy to see even at far distances in the field.
This image was taken on Spitsbergen.
The Pantanal
Brazil
South America
The green iguana (Iguana iguana), also known as the American iguana, is a large, arboreal, mostly herbivorous species of lizard of the genus Iguana. Usually, this animal is simply called the iguana. The green iguana ranges over a large geographic area; it is native from southern Brazil and Paraguay as far north as Mexico, and have been introduced from South America to Puerto Rico.
Considered an invasive species; in the United States, feral populations also exist in South Florida (including the Florida Keys), Hawaii, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.
A herbivore, it has adapted significantly with regard to locomotion and osmoregulation as a result of its diet. It grows to 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) in length from head to tail, although a few specimens have grown more than 2 metres (6.6 ft) with bodyweights upward of 20 pounds (9.1 kg).
The Black guillemot is a medium-sized bird with adults normally 30 to 32 centimetres (12 to 12+1⁄2 inches) in length and with wingspans of 52 to 58 cm (20+1⁄2 to 23 in). The bodyweight can range from 300 to 460 grams (10+1⁄2 to 16 ounces). Adults have both summer and winter plumage and there is no sexual difference in this that can be identified in the field.
The English common name “Black Guillemot” references their strikingly black breeding summer plumage which is totally black except for a large white patch on the upper side of their wings. During the summer plumage, their legs, feet and inside of the mouth are all a bright coral-red, and their beak is a black. Adults lose their summer plumage in an early fall moult where their upper plumage become barred with light grey and white, their head is a pale grey, their underparts white, and legs and feet a pale red.
They retain their white wing patch, black beak and red inside their mouth. The call in the breeding season is a high whistle. The red gape is also prominent then.
Juveniles and immatures can easily be identified by the spotting of the white wing patch with grey or brown feathers and is easy to see even at far distances in the field.
This image was taken in the marina at Isafordjur on the north west of Iceland
She loves our Agastache flower aka hummingbird mint flower.
Interesting Facts about Hummingbirds (Source: hummingbirds.ucdavis.edu/hummingbird_information/interest... )
Flight
The number of times a hummingbird’s wings beat is different from one species to another, and ranges from 720 to 5400 times per minute when hovering.
Hummingbirds are the only birds that can fly backwards.
Some hummingbirds fly at speeds greater than 33 miles per hour.
A hummingbird’s wing beats take up so much energy, they spend the majority of their time resting on branches and twigs.
Hummingbirds got their name from the humming noise their wings make in flight.
Approximately 25-30% of a hummingbird’s bodyweight is flight muscle, as opposed to other birds, which average 15%.
Hummingbirds can fly in the rain and, like dogs, shake their heads to dispel drops of water. Unlike dogs, however, a hummingbird shakes its head violently, 132 times per second, and rotating 202 degrees—all while flying and maintaining direction!
Ratu lebah, Queen bee
Can you spot the queen? She is the one with abdomen which is noticeably longer than the worker bees surrounding her. She is very busy in her daily routine as a queen’s of the hive, but a queen does not directly control the hive. Her sole function is to serve as the reproducer. A well-mated and well-fed queen can lay about 2,000 eggs per day, more than her own bodyweight in eggs every day. She is continuously surrounded by worker bees who meet her every need, giving her food and disposing of her waste. The attendant workers also collect and then distribute queen mandibular pheromone, a pheromone that inhibits the workers from starting queen cells. The queen lays a fertilized (female) or unfertilized (male) egg according to the width of the cell. Drones are raised in cells that are significantly larger than the cells used for workers. The queen fertilizes the egg by selectively releasing sperm from her spermatheca as the egg passes through her oviduct.
When the queen get older and cant performed her duty, the colony will replace her. As soon as a new queen is available, the workers will kill the reigning queen by "balling" her, colloquially known as "cuddle death": clustering tightly around her until she dies from overheating. That is the way of the nature; absolutely no penchant scheme!
Doctor Erskine sits patiently at the bench, back straight and a leg crossed. He hummed a slow melody as he tapped his foot. He reaches for his watch, the hands do not move but a reflection of a red, white, and blue object does. He looks to his side to see Steve Rogers, torn from battle and weary.
Erskine: "Steve, care to sit down?"
Steve hesitates as he begins to wonder where exactly he is.
Erskine: "Oh c'mon now, I don't bite."
Steve perches himself next to Erskine, confused, but not threatened.
Erskine: "It's been a long while,"
He chuckles.
Erskine: "I'm proud of what you've accomplished, Steve."
Steve nods and begins to smile, his smile sours as he lowers and turns his head.
Steve: "How are you alive?"
Erskine: "You know the answer, I think the better question is how are you alive?"
Before Steve can open his mouth, Erskine continues.
Erskine: "The last thing you remember was that crash, as your creator, I stay in this realm until you die. Then I meet you on the other side."
Steve: "What?"
Erskine: "We are in limbo, Steve. I cannot fully die until my story is finished. You are yet another chapter, but now you are in limbo."
Steve: "How long have you been here?"
Erskine: "No matter, time relative to your reality is not relative to this one. Trains come and go but they do not board."
Steve: "So what does this mean?"
Erskine: "Merely a part of us are dead. But I have seen nothing constitute you being in the debt I possess now."
The train station begins to violently shake, Erskine sits perfectly still, Steve collapses to his feet.
Erskine: "Usually you get to decide whether you live or whether you die. But I made a deal to stay here as long as you could be alive."
Steve: "W-what?"
Erskine: "Don't miss your train, Steve. Not many get a second chance at life. It may not be perfect but the world will always need Captain America."
Steve: "Why are you doing this?"
Erskine: "I don't know, my whole family is on the other side. But I knew deep down that you were gravely missed."
Steve: "You shouldn't have done that, your family..."
Erskine: "Steve, I don't have an expiry date up here. Knowing how many more you save made this worth it. And look, you're still young. This world is much different than the one you know."
Steve: "Why do you choose when I come back?"
Erskine: "I don't."
A horn blares through the station, a white light grows brighter by the second, posters tear from the wall, light bulbs shatter, and Steve is smacked down to his back.
===========================
Steve rises like an undead. The two agents jolt in fear.
Coulson tries to stand but stumbles back down, Fury turns in amazement.
Steve: “Why... Why.”
Steve passes out. Blood rushes through his head and his mind begins to shift functions back into order.
Fury: “Rogers, c’mon now. Let’s get up!”
Steve slowly grips the side of the truck, hoisting himself up. Bending the metal of the bed, he releases his hand upon noticing the damage.
Steve: “Nice to meet you sir.”
He delivers a solid handshake to Fury before his hand begins to slip back, propelled by his bodyweight. He, in a last ditch effort, points to Coulson.
Steve: “Why is he tied—”
A thud rings within the Quinjet like a lone shot in a desolate field, Fury looks to Coulson again defeated, then to the camera.
Fury: “You see this Pierce? The fuck am I supposed to do?”
===========================
Wondering what happened in that jump? Read from Fury's side here!
I'm just a week from returning to the farm I grew up on in the extreme north of Scotland for the first time in over twenty years. The memories are beginning to flood back as I anticipate the feeling of driving along the potholed farm track.
The sensation touched a nerve as I dug out another gannet photo from the other weekend on Bempton's Cliff, and I realised I had seen this same look before. That gawp belonged on the beaky face of a quite astonished fertiliser salesman who was visiting the farm. I was only 16 or 17 and was driving one of the most powerful tractors in the area. I always liked to take the biggest and newest one. It was a thrill to be entrusted with such a machine. I had already been driving for years, and was already on my second car long before my classmates would get a chance to sit in a driving seat with an instructor. I could twiddle the steering wheel of the big tractor and swing in through muddy gateways with total accuracy or reverse big trailers into a building with inch perfect precision (well, not every time).
Tractors of that era were not very fast, not like the Fastracs they have now. To me at that age there was only one speed to go at which was flat out, whether in a tractor or in my MOT failure car in which I sat on an upturned milk crate flying from pot hole to pot hole as fast as I could on the single track road. The tractor had a throttle lever below the steering wheel. You pulled it back to go faster. There were two symbols on the dash. A tortoise and a hare . I always pulled the lever back to somewhere past the hare where it was in danger of snapping off. There was also a more conventional foot throttle, but when bouncing on rough ground whilst sat on a pneumatically sprung seat a bouncing wellington boot on the foot throttle made for jerky progress.
I spotted the stranger's red car a few hundred yards ahead, approaching me on the single track road. As the distance closed between us, I saw him pull into a gateway to allow me to pass. But I thought, "I'm in a big tractor, I can carry on down the verge and let the car come on down the road". But he didn't take the hint. But I was already driving the big tractor at full speed down the verge. Being sat up high in the big glass tractor cab I didn't appreciate the depth of the gateway that I now came to just before his car. The big machine dropped into the hollow and as it did so my bodyweight compressed the springs under the seat so that on the next bump I was fired as if in an ejector seat up into the roof of the cab, smashing my head on the steel roll-over frame inside. I fell, collapsing on the floor of the cab, my face against the bottom of the glass door, staring across at the stunned salesman sat in his car as the tractor thundered on by. I remember it clearly now. His eyes were just like those of the gannet.
Every little bit of that farm holds memories for me. I'm going home!
Hi Flickr!
I know it's been a while since last time. A lot has happened in my life. I've for instance taken a year off school. August has been an amazing month for me. I've kayaked on the waves in Lofoten where I saw the most beautiful scenery Nature has to offer..
I then went to Svendborg/Denmark as a travel leader for something called "Emax", a entrepreneurship conference that brings young entrepreneurs together from Scandinavia. As well as known and successful entrepreneurs that hold lectures to always inspire us.
After 4 days in Svendborg I went to Copenhagen and met a magnificent and heart lifting facebook friend called Cecilie. She'd been to India several times and it had changed her life completely. Some months ago I sent her a facebook mail and told her about my life and misery. She then told me to go and visit her and I did.
We did Yoga in the morning and had smoothies for breakfast. She had breath taking apartment with tall windows and a great positive atmosphere. We walked and talked. About Life so to speak. About how everything happens for a reason. About happiness, and how everything that happends to you - is eventually for you to get on the right path in your life. The one that makes you happy.
But what is happiness?
Is it a new car? A new television? Food? Desserts? Cakes? Having a boyfriend? Watching a movie? Shopping? Getting plastic surgery or a new camera and lens? Having a bed to sleep in? Having pets? Nice phones and computer? Being tall and skinny? Smoking?
I figured that for me personally all of these things are just temporarily - temporarily happiness to make me forget about the most important thing. - Happiness Within.
Happiness, true Happiness I’ve come to find after a lot of hard work and a million tears and bad episodes is not to find outside the body. But rather Inside. You can have all the money and external joy and that will still not make you happy. This is a well-known fact. Even though it's sometimes hard to realize.
So after being with Cecilie the visit India seemed so much closer. And I also realized how much I wanted to BELIEVE in something more than molecules and Darwin’s theory.
About how everything that happens for you is for a reason. About how I shouldn't identify myself 100% with my body. Because in the end; My "body" has it all; A bed with a million blankets, All the food I can dream of, Clothes (I recently gave away my own bodyweight in clothing to charity!!!!!! CRAZY), Shoes, Friends, School, A job, Income, A family, +++ and I STILL don't feel happy with myself. I'm on the quite opposite field. Wondering what the heck I'm doing here. And why I have to wake up to these days which are all the same. I WAS anyway.
There's so much "Magic" in the world. There's so much we cannot touch or see but is still there. Like our thoughts and feelings for instance. And there's so many tiny creatures that have a life that we cannot see. That scientists are yet to discover. Or maybe never will discover. However they live with us as fellow members on this earth.
There is so much astonishing in this world. Like how a seed can have all the "ingredients" and wisdom to become a solid tree fifty meters of the ground.
Humans should show more respect to our fellow members of this earth.
We destroy the woods and we kill the animals so we can eat their meat.
Surely if the slaughter houses where made of glass we would stop killing millions of animals every year. Surely we would use our energy to feed the humans that are starving on the other side of the planet.
I'm not saying that everyone should become a vegetarian. My theory is that I should eat what I can kill. Therefore I've stopped eating pigs, cows, sheep’s, birds, simply because I know in my heart that if I had a choice of eating a melon or killing that innocent lamb standing next to me I would with NO doubt choose that melon.
It's so easy to STOP thinking when it comes to food. You have everything cut in small pieces and files in the stores. It's hard to think about what you eat. It's too easy to think about it. In the end every human being has to find their own way. But if you're up for some changes please see this video: video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6361872964130308142#
I’m not even saying that “Happiness” isn’t to find on the outside for somebody. I’m not saying that my way will work for everybody. I’m not saying that no body has done this before me. I’m not saying that everybody should go to India. However, what I’m saying is #BE HAPPY – regardless of the costs. Fight for happiness like you would fight for your life. Never be satisfied with crying and being depressed year after year. And if happiness has come to you, I smile from ear to ear and hope you simply enjoy it to the fullest every single day!
Anyway, here comes the most important point in this text, and as I’ve written so much I’ll caps look it! I’VE QUIT SCHOOL AND AM BUYING MYSELF A TICKET TO AUSTRALIA, INDIA, NEPAL TO GO ON THE SCHOOL OF LIFE. TO SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS AND HEALTHINESS. I’M GOING ALONE. I’M SCARED. BUT STILL I’M SO HAPPY. I’M LEAVING NORWAY WITHIN TWO MONTHS.
There. I’ve said it.
And I’ll be poor.
And I’ll be alone.
My mind and Me.
And I’ll practice all that I’ve written in this text.
And I’ll throw away all my university books.
And I’ll have no job.
But to find myself. To try to understand life and appreciate it.
Go back to the beginning.
Following the road with bad balance and cerebral palsy.
It won't be easy!
Wish me luck!
Females laying eggs and pumping honeydew on the underside of a sugarcane blade. Cha Cha cross view 3D: honeydew balls to ~1 mm made over 12 hours after displacing and excluding the ants. Note smaller balls still in place on the backs of the insects and larger balls that are accumulations of the smaller extrusions over time. A Fermi calculation indicates a weight of balls that exceeds the combined bodyweight of the production line.
Just like that!
For those either too young or simply unaware, Tommy Cooper was probably the greatest UK comedian to have graced the stage. YouTube him and you won't be disappointed. A genius who could have you in stitches by barely doing anything. Lots of comics have figuratively died on stage. He never did until April 15th 1984 when he literally did. Live on TV. Poor guy.
In other news, we enjoyed a long dog walk this morning, I managed a 10 mile run this afternoon and I've eaten half my bodyweight in cake. Not a bad day really.
She loves our Agastache flower aka hummingbird mint flower!
Interesting Facts about Hummingbirds (Source: hummingbirds.ucdavis.edu/hummingbird_information/interest... )
Flight
The number of times a hummingbird’s wings beat is different from one species to another, and ranges from 720 to 5400 times per minute when hovering.
Hummingbirds are the only birds that can fly backwards.
Some hummingbirds fly at speeds greater than 33 miles per hour.
A hummingbird’s wing beats take up so much energy, they spend the majority of their time resting on branches and twigs.
Hummingbirds got their name from the humming noise their wings make in flight.
Approximately 25-30% of a hummingbird’s bodyweight is flight muscle, as opposed to other birds, which average 15%.
Hummingbirds can fly in the rain and, like dogs, shake their heads to dispel drops of water. Unlike dogs, however, a hummingbird shakes its head violently, 132 times per second, and rotating 202 degrees—all while flying and maintaining direction!
The green iguana (Iguana iguana), also known as the American iguana or the common green iguana, is a large, arboreal, mostly herbivorous species of lizard of the genus Iguana. Usually, this animal is simply called the iguana.
The native range of the green iguana extends from southern Mexico to central Brazil, Paraguay, and Bolivia and the Caribbean; specifically Grenada, Aruba, Curaçao, Trinidad and Tobago, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, and Útila. They have been introduced to Grand Cayman, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola (in the Dominican Republic), Guadeloupe, Texas, Florida, Hawaii, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Furthermore, green iguanas colonised the island of Anguilla in 1995 after being washed ashore following a hurricane. Though the species is not native to Martinique, a small wild colony of released or escaped green iguanas endures at historic Fort Saint Louis.
A herbivore, it has adapted significantly with regard to locomotion and osmoregulation as a result of its diet. It grows to 1.5 m (4.9 ft) in length from head to tail, although a few specimens have grown more than 2 m (6.6 ft) with bodyweights upward of 20 lb (9.1 kg).
Despite their name, green iguanas occur in different colours and types. In southern countries of their range, such as Peru, green iguanas appear bluish in colour, with bold blue markings. On islands such as Bonaire, Curaçao, Aruba, and Grenada, a green iguana's colour may vary from green to lavender, black, and even reddish brown. Green iguanas from the western region of Costa Rica are red, and animals of the northern ranges, such as Mexico, appear orange. Juvenile green iguanas from El Salvador are often bright blue, but lose this color as they get older.
This image was taken at Aruba, one of the Leeward Antilles, in the Caribbean Sea
The green iguana (Iguana iguana), also known as the American iguana or the common green iguana, is a large, arboreal, mostly herbivorous species of lizard of the genus Iguana. Usually, this animal is simply called the iguana.
The native range of the green iguana extends from southern Mexico to central Brazil, Paraguay, and Bolivia and the Caribbean; specifically Grenada, Aruba, Curaçao, Trinidad and Tobago, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, and Útila. They have been introduced to Grand Cayman, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola (in the Dominican Republic), Guadeloupe, Texas, Florida, Hawaii, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Furthermore, green iguanas colonised the island of Anguilla in 1995 after being washed ashore following a hurricane. Though the species is not native to Martinique, a small wild colony of released or escaped green iguanas endures at historic Fort Saint Louis.
A herbivore, it has adapted significantly with regard to locomotion and osmoregulation as a result of its diet. It grows to 1.5 m (4.9 ft) in length from head to tail, although a few specimens have grown more than 2 m (6.6 ft) with bodyweights upward of 20 lb (9.1 kg).
Despite their name, green iguanas occur in different colours and types. In southern countries of their range, such as Peru, green iguanas appear bluish in colour, with bold blue markings. On islands such as Bonaire, Curaçao, Aruba, and Grenada, a green iguana's colour may vary from green to lavender, black, and even reddish brown. Green iguanas from the western region of Costa Rica are red, and animals of the northern ranges, such as Mexico, appear orange. Juvenile green iguanas from El Salvador are often bright blue, but lose this color as they get older.
This image was taken at Aruba, one of the Leeward Antilles, in the Caribbean Sea
Miami Beach verfügt über 6 Trainingsorte in der ganzen Stadt. Egal, ob man Bodyweight-Training, Outdoor-Fitness oder Crossfit machen möchte und nach einem kostenlosen öffentlichen Fitnessstudio mit Klimmzugstange in Miami Beach sucht, hier ist man genau richtig.
Miami Beach has 6 workout places all around the city. Whether you do bodyweight exercise, outdoor fitness, or crossfit and you're looking for a free public gym with pull up bar in Miami Beach, you're at the right place.
A compilation of two videos taken this morning, lots of snow and two very excited dogs. Olive especially was hyper and ate/licked her bodyweight in snow lol. I put some grooming spray on their legs to help prevent 'snowball legs', same for Olive's coat and you can see her :)
Flickr is being really weird again, slow and layout is odd, sigh
another picture Trash pickers at Work...
Photo Taken by: D. Nowac (with my systematic camera)
I am the One n the far left, then it is Tony carrying Alex (the girl) and at the far right I think his name was Jonas? But I could be wrong??? year Perhaps is name was Linus????
Peace and Noise!
/ MushroomBrain in Uniform at work
P.S (the year might have been 98-99???)
...
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Café Frequenters episode 237
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...the revelation was no revelation to Jimmy, he had always known that quite a bit of his bodyweight was made up by fungi, but that it had reached his brain was a surprise...
Well perhaps not when he came to think of it, there had always been a shadow voice far back in his subcontious, but that it was intelligent surprised him...
So, there was three or more systems in one body...
...it was probably his digital enhancements that could keep the parasite at bay and not making it the dominant system, when the entity knew it could not become master it started to collaborate with the other systems...
it all made sense to the collective known as Jimmy
Juvenile Barn Owl (Tyto alba)
The barn owl (Tyto alba) is the most widely distributed species of owl, and one of the most widespread of all birds. It is also referred to as the common barn owl, to distinguish it from other species in its family, Tytonidae, which forms one of the two main lineages of living owls, the other being the typical owls (Strigidae). The barn owl is found almost everywhere in the world except polar and desert regions, Asia north of the Himalayas, most of Indonesia and some Pacific islands.
Phylogenetic evidence shows that there are at least three major lineages of barn owl, one in Eurasia and Africa, one in Australasia and one in the New World, and some highly divergent taxa on islands. Some authorities further split the group, recognising up to five species, and further research needs to be done to clarify the position. There is considerable variation between the sizes and colouring of the approximately 28 subspecies but most are between 33 and 39 cm (13 and 15 in) in length with wingspans ranging from 80 to 95 cm (31 to 37 in). The plumage on head and back is a mottled shade of grey or brown, the underparts vary from white to brown and are sometimes speckled with dark markings. The face is characteristically heart-shaped and is white in most species. This owl does not hoot, but utters an eerie, drawn-out shriek.
The barn owl is nocturnal over most of its range but in Britain and some Pacific islands, it also hunts by day. Barn owls specialise in hunting animals on the ground and nearly all of their food consists of small mammals which they locate by sound, their hearing being very acute. They mate for life unless one of the pair gets killed, when a new pair bond may be formed. Breeding takes place at varying times of year according to locality, with a clutch, averaging about four eggs, being laid in a nest in a hollow tree, old building or fissure in a cliff. The female does all the incubation, and she and the young chicks are reliant on the male for food. When large numbers of small prey are readily available, barn owl populations can expand rapidly, and globally the bird is considered to be of least conservation concern. Some subspecies with restricted ranges are more threatened.
Taxonomy and etymology
The barn owl was one of several species of bird first described in 1769 by the Tyrolean physician and naturalist Giovanni Antonio Scopoli in his Anni Historico-Naturales. He gave it the scientific name Strix alba. As more species of owl were described, the genus name Strix came to be used solely for the wood owls in the typical owl family Strigidae, and the barn owl became Tyto alba in the barn owl family Tytonidae. The name literally means "white owl", from the onomatopoeic Ancient Greek tyto (τυτώ) for an owl – compare English "hooter" – and Latin alba, "white". The bird is known by many common names which refer to its appearance, call, habitat or its eerie, silent flight: white owl, silver owl, demon owl, ghost owl, death owl, night owl, rat owl, church owl, cave owl, stone owl, monkey-faced owl, hissing owl, hobgoblin or hobby owl, dobby owl, white-breasted owl, golden owl, scritch owl, screech owl, straw owl, barnyard owl, and delicate owl. "Golden owl" might also refer to the related golden masked owl (T. aurantia). "Hissing owl" and, particularly in the US and in India, "screech owl", refers to the piercing calls of these birds. The latter name is more correctly applied to a different group of birds, the screech-owls in the genus Megascops.
The ashy-faced owl (T. glaucops) was for some time included in T. alba, and by some authors its populations from the Lesser Antilles still are. Based on DNA evidence, König, Weick & Becking (2009) recognised the American Barn Owl (T. furcata) and the Curaçao Barn Owl (T. bargei) as separate species. They also proposed that T. a. delicatula should be split off as a separate species, to be known as the eastern barn owl, which would include the subspecies T. d. sumbaensis, T. d. meeki, T. d. crassirostris and T. d. interposita. However the International Ornithological Committee has doubts about this and states that the split of Tyto delicatula from T. alba "may need to be revisited". Some island subspecies are occasionally treated as distinct species, a move which should await further research into barn owl phylogeography. According to Bruce in the Handbook of Birds of the World, Volume 5: Barn-owls to Hummingbirds, "a review of the whole group [is] long overdue". Molecular analysis of mitochondrial DNA shows a separation of the species into two clades, an Old World alba and a New World furcata, but this study did not include T. a. delicatula which the authors seem to have accepted as a separate species. A high amount of genetic variation was also found between the Indonesian T. a. stertens and other members of the alba clade.
The barn owl has a wider distribution than any other species of owl. Many subspecies have been proposed over the years but several are generally considered to be intergrades between more distinct populations. Twenty to thirty are usually recognised, varying mainly in body proportions, size and colour. Island forms are mostly smaller than mainland ones, and those inhabiting forests have darker plumage and shorter wings than those occurring in open grasslands. Barn owls range in colour from the almost beige-and-white nominate subspecies, erlangeri and niveicauda, to the nearly black-and-brown contempta.
Description
The barn owl is a medium-sized, pale-coloured owl with long wings and a short, squarish tail. There is considerable size variation across the subspecies with a typical specimen measuring about 33 to 39 cm (13 to 15 in) in overall length, with a wingspan of some 80 to 95 cm (31 to 37 in). Adult body mass is also variable with male owls from the Galapagos weighing 260 g (9.2 oz) while male Pacific barn owls average 555 g (19.6 oz). In general, owls living on small islands are smaller and lighter, perhaps because they have a higher dependence on insect prey and need to be more manoeuvrable. The shape of the tail is a means of distinguishing the barn owl from typical owls when seen in the air. Other distinguishing features are the undulating flight pattern and the dangling, feathered legs. The pale face with its heart shape and black eyes give the flying bird a distinctive appearance, like a flat mask with oversized, oblique black eyeslits, the ridge of feathers above the bill somewhat resembling a nose.
The bird's head and upper body typically vary between pale brown and some shade of grey (especially on the forehead and back) in most subspecies. Some are purer, richer brown instead, and all have fine black-and-white speckles except on the remiges and rectrices (main wing feathers), which are light brown with darker bands. The heart-shaped face is usually bright white, but in some subspecies it is brown. The underparts, including the tarsometatarsal (lower leg) feathers, vary from white to reddish buff among the subspecies, and are either mostly unpatterned or bear a varying number of tiny blackish-brown speckles. It has been found that at least in the continental European populations, females with more spotting are healthier than plainer birds. This does not hold true for European males by contrast, where the spotting varies according to subspecies. The bill varies from pale horn to dark buff, corresponding to the general plumage hue, and the iris is blackish brown. The toes, like the bill, vary in colour, ranging from pink to dark pinkish-grey and the talons are black.
On average within any one population, males tend to have fewer spots on the underside and are paler in colour than females. The latter are also larger with a strong female T. alba of a large subspecies weighing over 550 g (19.4 oz), while males are typically about 10% lighter. Nestlings are covered in white down, but the heart-shaped facial disk becomes visible soon after hatching.
Contrary to popular belief, the barn owl does not hoot (such calls are made by typical owls, like the tawny owl or other members of the genus Strix). It instead produces the characteristic shree scream, ear-shattering at close range, an eerie, long-drawn-out shriek. Males in courtship give a shrill twitter. Both young and old can hiss like a snake to scare away intruders. Other sounds produced include a purring chirrup denoting pleasure, and a "kee-yak", which resembles one of the vocalisations of the tawny owl. When captured or cornered, the barn owl throws itself on its back and flails with sharp-taloned feet, making for an effective defence. In such situations it may emit rasping sounds or clicking snaps, produced probably by the bill but possibly by the tongue.
Distribution
The barn owl is the most widespread landbird species in the world, occurring in every continent except Antarctica. Its range includes all of Europe (except Fennoscandia and Malta), most of Africa apart from the Sahara, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, Australia, many Pacific Islands, North, Central and South America. In general it is considered to be sedentary, and indeed many individuals, having taken up residence in a particular location, remain there even when better foraging areas nearby become vacant. In the British Isles, the young seem largely to disperse along river corridors and the distance travelled from their natal site averages about 9 km (5.6 mi).
In continental Europe the distance travelled is greater, commonly somewhere between 50 and 100 kilometres (31 and 62 mi) but exceptionally 1,500 km (932 mi), with ringed birds from the Netherlands ending up in Spain and in Ukraine. In the United States, dispersal is typically over distances of 80 and 320 km (50 and 199 mi), with the most travelled individuals ending up some 1,760 km (1,094 mi) from the point of origin. Movements in the African continent include 1,000 km (621 mi) from Senegambia to Sierra Leone and up to 579 km (360 mi) within South Africa. In Australia there is some migration as the birds move towards the northern coast in the dry season and southward in the wet, and also nomadic movements in association with rodent plagues. Occasionally, some of these birds turn up on Norfolk Island, Lord Howe Island or New Zealand, showing that crossing the ocean is not beyond their capabilities. In 2008, barn owls were recorded for the first time breeding in New Zealand. The barn owl has been successfully introduced into the Hawaiian island of Kauai in an attempt to control rodents, however it has been found to also feed on native birds.
Behaviour and ecology
Like most owls, the barn owl is nocturnal, relying on its acute sense of hearing when hunting in complete darkness. It often becomes active shortly before dusk and can sometimes be seen during the day when relocating from one roosting site to another. In Britain, on various Pacific Islands and perhaps elsewhere, it sometimes hunts by day. This practice may depend on whether the owl is mobbed by other birds if it emerges in daylight. However, in Britain, some birds continue to hunt by day even when mobbed by such birds as magpies, rooks and black-headed gulls, such diurnal activity possibly occurring when the previous night has been wet making hunting difficult. By contrast, in southern Europe and the tropics, the birds seem to be almost exclusively nocturnal, with the few birds that hunt by day being severely mobbed.
Barn owls are not particularly territorial but have a home range inside which they forage. For males in Scotland this has a radius of about 1 km (0.6 mi) from the nest site and an average size of about 300 hectares. Female home ranges largely coincide with that of their mates. Outside the breeding season, males and females usually roost separately, each one having about three favoured sites in which to conceal themselves by day, and which are also visited for short periods during the night. Roosting sites include holes in trees, fissures in cliffs, disused buildings, chimneys and haysheds and are often small in comparison to nesting sites. As the breeding season approaches, the birds move back to the vicinity of the chosen nest to roost.
The barn owl is a bird of open country such as farmland or grassland with some interspersed woodland, usually at altitudes below 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) but occasionally as high as 3,000 metres (9,800 ft) in the tropics. This owl prefers to hunt along the edges of woods or in rough grass strips adjoining pasture. It has an effortless wavering flight as it quarters the ground, alert to the sounds made by potential prey. Like most owls, the barn owl flies silently; tiny serrations on the leading edges of its flight feathers and a hairlike fringe to the trailing edges help to break up the flow of air over the wings, thereby reducing turbulence and the noise that accompanies it. Hairlike extensions to the barbules of its feathers, which give the plumage a soft feel, also minimise noise produced during wingbeats. The behaviour and ecological preferences may differ slightly even among neighbouring subspecies, as shown in the case of the European T. a. guttata and T. a. alba that probably evolved, respectively, in allopatric glacial refugia in southeastern Europe, and in Iberia or southern France.
Diet and feeding
The diet of the barn owl has been much studied; the items consumed can be ascertained from identifying the prey fragments in the pellets of indigestible matter that the bird regurgitates. Studies of diet have been made in most parts of the bird's range, and in moist temperate areas over 90% of the prey tends to be small mammals, whereas in hot, dry, unproductive areas, the proportion is lower, and a great variety of other creatures are eaten depending on local abundance. Most prey is terrestrial but bats and birds are also taken, as well as lizards, amphibians and insects. Even when they are plentiful and other prey scarce, earthworms do not seem to be consumed.
In North America and most of Europe, voles predominate in the diet and shrews are the second most common food choice. Mice and rats form the main foodstuffs in the Mediterranean region, the tropics, sub-tropics and Australia. Barn owls are usually more specialist feeders in productive areas and generalists in drier areas. On the Cape Verde Islands, geckos are the mainstay of the diet, supplemented by birds such as plovers, godwits, turnstones, weavers and pratincoles, and on a rocky islet off the coast of California, a clutch of four young were being reared on a diet of Leach's storm petrel (Oceanodroma leucorhoa). In Ireland, the accidental introduction of the bank vole in the 1950s led to a major shift in the barn owl's diet: where their ranges overlap, the vole is now by far the largest prey item. Locally superabundant rodent species in the weight class of several grams per individual usually make up the single largest proportion of prey. In the United States, rodents and other small mammals usually make up ninety-five percent of the diet and worldwide, over ninety percent of the prey caught.
The barn owl hunts by flying slowly, quartering the ground and hovering over spots that may conceal prey. It may also use branches, fence posts or other lookouts to scan its surroundings, and this is the main means of prey location in the oil palm plantations of Malaysia. The bird has long, broad wings, enabling it to manoeuvre and turn abruptly. Its legs and toes are long and slender which improves its ability to forage among dense foliage or beneath the snow and gives it a wide spread of talons when attacking prey. Studies have shown that an individual barn owl may eat one or more voles (or their equivalent) per night, equivalent to about twenty-three percent of the bird's bodyweight. Excess food is often cached at roosting sites and can be used when food is scarce.
Small prey is usually torn into chunks and eaten completely including bones and fur, while prey larger than about 100 g (4 oz), such as baby rabbits, Cryptomys blesmols, or Otomys vlei rats, is usually dismembered and the inedible parts discarded. Contrary to what is sometimes assumed, the barn owl does not eat domestic animals on any sort of regular basis. Regionally, non-rodent foods are used as per availability. On bird-rich islands, a barn owl might include some fifteen to twenty percent of birds in its diet, while in grassland it will gorge itself on swarming termites, or on Orthoptera such as Copiphorinae katydids, Jerusalem crickets (Stenopelmatidae) or true crickets (Gryllidae). Bats and even frogs, lizards and snakes may make a minor but significant contribution to the diet; small Soricomorpha like Suncus shrews may be a secondary prey of major importance.
The barn owl has acute hearing, with ears placed asymmetrically. This improves detection of sound position and distance and the bird does not require sight to hunt. The facial disc plays a part in this process, as is shown by the fact that with the ruff feathers removed, the bird can still locate the source in azimuth but fails to do so in elevation. Hunting nocturnally or crepuscularly, this bird can target its prey and dive to the ground, penetrating its talons through snow, grass or brush to seize small creatures with deadly accuracy. Compared to other owls of similar size, the barn owl has a much higher metabolic rate, requiring relatively more food. Weight for weight, barn owls consume more rodents—often regarded as pests by humans—than possibly any other creature. This makes the barn owl one of the most economically valuable wildlife animals for agriculture. Farmers often find these owls more effective than poison in keeping down rodent pests, and they can encourage barn owl habitation by providing nest sites.
Barn owls living in tropical regions can breed at any time of year, but some seasonality in nesting is still evident. Where there are distinct wet and dry seasons, egg-laying usually takes place during the dry season, with increased rodent prey becoming available to the birds as the vegetation dies off. In arid regions, such as parts of Australia, breeding may be irregular and may happen in wet periods, triggered by temporary increases in the populations of small mammals. In temperate climates, nesting seasons become more distinct and there are some seasons of the year when no egg-laying takes place. In Europe and North America, most nesting takes place between March and June when temperatures are increasing. The actual dates of egg-laying vary by year and by location, being correlated with the amount of prey-rich foraging habitat around the nest site and often with the phase of the rodent abundance cycle. An increase in rodent populations will usually stimulate the local barn owls to begin nesting; thus, even in the cooler parts of its range, two broods are often raised in a good year.
Females are ready to breed at ten to eleven months of age although males sometimes wait till the following year. Barn owls are usually monogamous, sticking to one partner for life unless one of the pair dies. During the non-breeding season they may roost separately, but as the breeding season approaches they return to their established nesting site, showing considerable site fidelity. In colder climates, in harsh weather and where winter food supplies may be scarce, they may roost in farm buildings and in barns between hay bales, but they then run the risk that their selected nesting hole may be taken over by some other, earlier-nesting species. Single males may establish feeding territories, patrolling the hunting areas, occasionally stopping to hover, and perching on lofty eminences where they screech to attract a mate. Where a female has lost her mate but maintained her breeding site, she usually seems to manage to attract a new spouse.
Once a pair-bond has been formed, the male will make short flights at dusk around the nesting and roosting sites and then longer circuits to establish a home range. When he is later joined by the female, there is much chasing, turning and twisting in flight, and frequent screeches, the male's being high-pitched and tremulous and the female's lower and harsher. At later stages of courtship, the male emerges at dusk, climbs high into the sky and then swoops back to the vicinity of the female at speed. He then sets off to forage. The female meanwhile sits in an eminent position and preens, returning to the nest a minute or two before the male arrives with food for her. Such feeding behaviour of the female by the male is common, helps build the pair-bond and increases the female's fitness before egg-laying commences.
Barn owls are cavity nesters. They choose holes in trees, fissures in cliff faces, the large nests of other birds such as the hamerkop (Scopus umbretta) and, particularly in Europe and North America, old buildings such as farm sheds and church towers. Buildings are preferred to trees in wetter climates in the British Isles and provide better protection for fledglings from inclement weather. Trees tend to be in open habitats rather than in the middle of woodland and nest holes tend to be higher in North America than in Europe because of possible predation by raccoons (Procyon lotor). No nesting material is used as such but, as the female sits incubating the eggs, she draws in the dry furry material of which her regurgitated pellets are composed, so that by the time the chicks are hatched, they are surrounded by a carpet of shredded pellets. Oftentimes other birds such as jackdaws (Corvus monedula) nest in the same hollow tree or building and seem to live harmoniously with the owls.
Before commencing laying, the female spends much time near the nest and is entirely provisioned by the male. Meanwhile the male roosts nearby and may cache any prey that is surplus to their requirements. When the female has reached peak weight, the male provides a ritual presentation of food and copulation occurs at the nest. The female lays eggs on alternate days and the clutch size averages about five eggs (range two to nine). The eggs are chalky white, somewhat elliptical and about the size of bantam's eggs, and incubation begins as soon as the first egg is laid. While she is sitting on the nest, the male is constantly bringing more provisions and they may pile up beside the female. The incubation period is about thirty days, hatching takes place over a prolonged period and the youngest chick may be several weeks younger than its oldest sibling. In years with plentiful supplies of food, there may be a hatching success rate of about 75%. The male continues to copulate with the female when he brings food which makes the newly hatched chicks vulnerable to injury.
The chicks are at first covered with greyish-white down and develop rapidly. Within a week they can hold their heads up and shuffle around in the nest. The female tears up the food brought by the male and distributes it to the chicks. Initially these make a "chittering" sound but this soon changes into a food-demanding "snore". By two weeks old they are already half their adult weight and look naked as the amount of down is insufficient to cover their growing bodies. By three weeks old, quills are starting to push through the skin and the chicks stand, making snoring noises with wings raised and tail stumps waggling, begging for food items which are now given whole. The male is the main provider of food until all the chicks are at least four weeks old at which time the female begins to leave the nest and starts to roost elsewhere. By the sixth week the chicks are as big as the adults but have slimmed down somewhat by the ninth week when they are fully fledged and start leaving the nest briefly themselves. They are still dependent on the parent birds until about thirteen weeks and receive training from the female in finding, and eventually catching, prey.
Moulting
Feathers become abraded over time and all birds need to replace them at intervals. Barn owls are particularly dependent on their ability to fly quietly and manoeuvre efficiently, and in temperate areas their prolonged moult lasts through three phases over a period of two years. The female starts to moult while incubating the eggs and brooding the chicks, a time when the male feeds her so she does not need to fly much. The first primary feather to be shed is the central one, number 6, and it has regrown completely by the time the female resumes hunting. Feathers 4, 5, 7 and 8 are dropped at a similar time the following year and feathers 1, 2, 3, 9 and 10 in the bird's third year of adulthood. The secondary and tail feathers are lost and replaced over a similar timescale, again starting while incubation is taking place. In the case of the tail, the two outermost tail feathers are first shed followed by the two central ones, the other tail feathers being moulted the following year.
In temperate areas, the male owl moults rather later in the year than the female, at a time when there is an abundance of food, the female has recommenced hunting and the demands of the chicks are lessening. Unmated males without family responsibilities often start losing feathers earlier in the year. The moult follows a similar prolonged pattern to that of the female and the first sign that the male is moulting is often when a tail feather has been dropped at the roost. A consequence of moulting is the loss of thermal insulation. This is of little importance in the tropics and barn owls here usually moult a complete complement of flight feathers annually. The hot-climate moult may still take place over a long period but is usually concentrated at a particular time of year outside the breeding season.
Predators and parasites
Predators of the barn owl include large American opossums (Didelphis), the common raccoon, and similar carnivorous mammals, as well as eagles, larger hawks and other owls. Among the latter, the great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) in the Americas and the Eurasian eagle-owl (B. bubo) are noted predators of barn owls (though there is little evidence for predation on wild birds by great horned owls). In Europe, the chief diurnal predators are the northern goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) and the common buzzard (Buteo buteo). The goshawk and the eagle owl are on the increase because of the greater protection these birds now receive.
When disturbed at its roosting site, an angry barn owl lowers its head and sways it from side to side, or the head may be lowered and stretched forward and the wings drooped while the bird emits hisses and makes snapping noises with its bill. A defensive attitude involves lying flat on the ground or crouching with wings spread out.
Barn owls are hosts to a wide range of parasites. Fleas are present at nesting sites and externally the birds are attacked by feather lice and feather mites which chew the barbules of the feathers and which are transferred from bird to bird by direct contact. Blood-sucking flies such as Ornithomyia avicularia are often present, moving about among the plumage. Internal parasites include the fluke Strigea strigis, the tape worm Paruternia candelabraria, several species of parasitic round worm and spiny-headed worms in the genus Centrorhynchus. These gut parasites are acquired when the birds feed on infected prey which provide intermediate hosts for the parasites. There is some indication that female birds with more and larger spots have a greater resistance to external parasites. This is correlated with smaller bursae of Fabricius, glands associated with antibody production, and a lower fecundity of the blood-sucking fly Carnus hemapterus that attacks nestlings.
Lifespan
Unusually for such a medium-sized carnivorous animal, the barn owl exhibits r-selection, producing large number of offspring with a high growth rate, many of which have a relatively low probability of surviving to adulthood. While wild barn owls are thus decidedly short-lived, the actual longevity of the species is much higher – captive individuals may reach twenty years of age or more. But occasionally, a wild bird reaches an advanced age. The American record age for a wild barn owl is eleven and a half years, while a Dutch bird was noted to have reached an age of seventeen years, ten months. Another captive barn owl, in England, lived to be over twenty-five years old. Taking into account such extremely long-lived individuals, the average lifespan of the barn owl is about four years, and statistically two-thirds to three-quarters of all adults survive from one year to the next. However, the mortality is not evenly distributed throughout the bird's life, and only one young in three manages to live to its first breeding attempt.
The most significant cause of death in temperate areas is likely to be starvation, particularly over the autumn and winter period when first year birds are still perfecting their hunting skills. In northern and upland areas, there is some correlation between mortality in older birds and adverse weather, deep-lying snow and prolonged low temperatures. Collision with road vehicles is another cause of mortality, and may result when birds forage on mown verges. Some of these birds are in poor condition and may have been less able to evade oncoming vehicles than fit individuals would have been. Historically, many deaths were caused by the use of pesticides, and this may still be the case in some parts of the world. Collisions with power-lines kill some birds and shooting accounts for others, especially in Mediterranean regions.
Status and conservation
Barn owls are relatively common throughout most of their range and not considered globally threatened. However, locally severe declines from organochlorine (e.g., DDT) poisoning in the mid-20th century and rodenticides in the late 20th century have affected some populations, particularly in Europe and North America. Intensification of agricultural practices often means that the rough grassland that provides the best foraging habitat is lost. While barn owls are prolific breeders and able to recover from short-term population decreases, they are not as common in some areas as they used to be. A 1995–1997 survey put their British population at between 3,000 to 5,000 breeding pairs, out of an average of about 150,000 pairs in the whole of Europe. In the USA, barn owls are listed as endangered species in seven Midwestern states, and in the European Community they are considered a Species of European Concern.
In some areas, it may be an insufficiency of suitable nesting sites that is the factor limiting barn owl numbers. The provision of nest boxes under the eaves of buildings and in other locations can be very successful in increasing the local population. In Malaysia, large areas of rainforest were felled to make way for oil palm plantations and with few tree cavities for breeding, the barn owl population, with its ability to control rodent pests, diminished. The provision of two hundred nest boxes in a trial saw almost one hundred percent occupancy and as the programme expanded, the plantations supported one of the densest barn owl populations in the world. Similarly, providing nesting boxes has increased the number of barn owls in rice-growing areas of Malaysia where the rodents do much damage to the crop. However, although barn owl numbers have increased in both these instances, it is unclear as to how effective this biological control of the rats is as compared to the trapping and baiting that occurred previously.
Common names such as "demon owl", "death owl", or "ghost owl" show that traditionally, rural populations in many places considered barn owls to be birds of evil omen. Consequently, they were often persecuted by farmers who were unaware of the benefit these birds bring. The Canary barn owl is particularly at risk, and as late as 1975, hunting by fearful locals was limiting the population on Fuerteventura where only a few dozen pairs remain. On Lanzarote a somewhat larger number of these birds still seem to exist, but altogether this particular subspecies is precariously rare: Probably less than three hundred and perhaps fewer than two hundred individuals still remain. Similarly, the birds on the western Canary Islands which are usually assigned to the nominate subspecies have declined much, and here wanton destruction seems still to be significant. On Tenerife they seem relatively numerous but on the other islands, the situation looks about as bleak as on Fuerteventura. Due to their assignment to the nominate subspecies, which is common in mainland Spain, the western Canary Islands population is not classified as threatened.
In the United Kingdom, the "Barn Owl Nest Box Scheme" is promoted by the World Owl Trust and has many participants in local areas such as Somerset where a webcam has been set up inside a nest box in which seven young were reared in 2014. Another barn owl nest box live-streaming webcam located in California, United States has proved popular online. In May 2012, it was revealed that farmers in Israel and Jordan had, over a period of ten years, replaced pesticides by barn owls in a joint conservation venture called "Project Barn Owl".
[Credit: en.wikipedia.org/]
© 2010 by Papafrezzo Photography. All rights reserved.
Bekkalokket photoclub organized that Bergen Aquarium (Akvariet) was open after normal hours. We could go behind the scenes and had all the time to make some pictures of the animals. Here the Green Iguana.
Taken handheld at ISO 3200, f/4.0, 1/400s, 105mm. No flash.
The Green Iguana or Common Iguana (Iguana iguana) is a large, arboreal herbivorous species of lizard of the genus Iguana native to Central and South America. The green iguana ranges over a large geographic area, from southern Brazil and Paraguay to as far north as Mexico and the Caribbean Islands; and in the United States as feral populations in South Florida (including the Florida Keys), Hawaii, and the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.
A herbivore, it has adapted significantly with regard to locomotion and osmoregulation as a result of its diet. It grows to 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) in length from head to tail, although a few specimens have grown more than 2 metres (6.6 ft) with bodyweights upward of 20 pounds (9.1 kg).
Commonly found in captivity as a pet due to its calm disposition and bright colors, it can be demanding to care for properly. Space requirements and the need for special lighting and heat can prove challenging to an amateur hobbyist.
[from the Green Iguana entry on Wikipedia]
Juvenile Barn Owl (Tyto alba)
The barn owl (Tyto alba) is the most widely distributed species of owl, and one of the most widespread of all birds. It is also referred to as the common barn owl, to distinguish it from other species in its family, Tytonidae, which forms one of the two main lineages of living owls, the other being the typical owls (Strigidae). The barn owl is found almost everywhere in the world except polar and desert regions, Asia north of the Himalayas, most of Indonesia and some Pacific islands.
Phylogenetic evidence shows that there are at least three major lineages of barn owl, one in Eurasia and Africa, one in Australasia and one in the New World, and some highly divergent taxa on islands. Some authorities further split the group, recognising up to five species, and further research needs to be done to clarify the position. There is considerable variation between the sizes and colouring of the approximately 28 subspecies but most are between 33 and 39 cm (13 and 15 in) in length with wingspans ranging from 80 to 95 cm (31 to 37 in). The plumage on head and back is a mottled shade of grey or brown, the underparts vary from white to brown and are sometimes speckled with dark markings. The face is characteristically heart-shaped and is white in most species. This owl does not hoot, but utters an eerie, drawn-out shriek.
The barn owl is nocturnal over most of its range but in Britain and some Pacific islands, it also hunts by day. Barn owls specialise in hunting animals on the ground and nearly all of their food consists of small mammals which they locate by sound, their hearing being very acute. They mate for life unless one of the pair gets killed, when a new pair bond may be formed. Breeding takes place at varying times of year according to locality, with a clutch, averaging about four eggs, being laid in a nest in a hollow tree, old building or fissure in a cliff. The female does all the incubation, and she and the young chicks are reliant on the male for food. When large numbers of small prey are readily available, barn owl populations can expand rapidly, and globally the bird is considered to be of least conservation concern. Some subspecies with restricted ranges are more threatened.
Taxonomy and etymology
The barn owl was one of several species of bird first described in 1769 by the Tyrolean physician and naturalist Giovanni Antonio Scopoli in his Anni Historico-Naturales. He gave it the scientific name Strix alba. As more species of owl were described, the genus name Strix came to be used solely for the wood owls in the typical owl family Strigidae, and the barn owl became Tyto alba in the barn owl family Tytonidae. The name literally means "white owl", from the onomatopoeic Ancient Greek tyto (τυτώ) for an owl – compare English "hooter" – and Latin alba, "white". The bird is known by many common names which refer to its appearance, call, habitat or its eerie, silent flight: white owl, silver owl, demon owl, ghost owl, death owl, night owl, rat owl, church owl, cave owl, stone owl, monkey-faced owl, hissing owl, hobgoblin or hobby owl, dobby owl, white-breasted owl, golden owl, scritch owl, screech owl, straw owl, barnyard owl, and delicate owl. "Golden owl" might also refer to the related golden masked owl (T. aurantia). "Hissing owl" and, particularly in the US and in India, "screech owl", refers to the piercing calls of these birds. The latter name is more correctly applied to a different group of birds, the screech-owls in the genus Megascops.
The ashy-faced owl (T. glaucops) was for some time included in T. alba, and by some authors its populations from the Lesser Antilles still are. Based on DNA evidence, König, Weick & Becking (2009) recognised the American Barn Owl (T. furcata) and the Curaçao Barn Owl (T. bargei) as separate species. They also proposed that T. a. delicatula should be split off as a separate species, to be known as the eastern barn owl, which would include the subspecies T. d. sumbaensis, T. d. meeki, T. d. crassirostris and T. d. interposita. However the International Ornithological Committee has doubts about this and states that the split of Tyto delicatula from T. alba "may need to be revisited". Some island subspecies are occasionally treated as distinct species, a move which should await further research into barn owl phylogeography. According to Bruce in the Handbook of Birds of the World, Volume 5: Barn-owls to Hummingbirds, "a review of the whole group [is] long overdue". Molecular analysis of mitochondrial DNA shows a separation of the species into two clades, an Old World alba and a New World furcata, but this study did not include T. a. delicatula which the authors seem to have accepted as a separate species. A high amount of genetic variation was also found between the Indonesian T. a. stertens and other members of the alba clade.
The barn owl has a wider distribution than any other species of owl. Many subspecies have been proposed over the years but several are generally considered to be intergrades between more distinct populations. Twenty to thirty are usually recognised, varying mainly in body proportions, size and colour. Island forms are mostly smaller than mainland ones, and those inhabiting forests have darker plumage and shorter wings than those occurring in open grasslands. Barn owls range in colour from the almost beige-and-white nominate subspecies, erlangeri and niveicauda, to the nearly black-and-brown contempta.
Description
The barn owl is a medium-sized, pale-coloured owl with long wings and a short, squarish tail. There is considerable size variation across the subspecies with a typical specimen measuring about 33 to 39 cm (13 to 15 in) in overall length, with a wingspan of some 80 to 95 cm (31 to 37 in). Adult body mass is also variable with male owls from the Galapagos weighing 260 g (9.2 oz) while male Pacific barn owls average 555 g (19.6 oz). In general, owls living on small islands are smaller and lighter, perhaps because they have a higher dependence on insect prey and need to be more manoeuvrable. The shape of the tail is a means of distinguishing the barn owl from typical owls when seen in the air. Other distinguishing features are the undulating flight pattern and the dangling, feathered legs. The pale face with its heart shape and black eyes give the flying bird a distinctive appearance, like a flat mask with oversized, oblique black eyeslits, the ridge of feathers above the bill somewhat resembling a nose.
The bird's head and upper body typically vary between pale brown and some shade of grey (especially on the forehead and back) in most subspecies. Some are purer, richer brown instead, and all have fine black-and-white speckles except on the remiges and rectrices (main wing feathers), which are light brown with darker bands. The heart-shaped face is usually bright white, but in some subspecies it is brown. The underparts, including the tarsometatarsal (lower leg) feathers, vary from white to reddish buff among the subspecies, and are either mostly unpatterned or bear a varying number of tiny blackish-brown speckles. It has been found that at least in the continental European populations, females with more spotting are healthier than plainer birds. This does not hold true for European males by contrast, where the spotting varies according to subspecies. The bill varies from pale horn to dark buff, corresponding to the general plumage hue, and the iris is blackish brown. The toes, like the bill, vary in colour, ranging from pink to dark pinkish-grey and the talons are black.
On average within any one population, males tend to have fewer spots on the underside and are paler in colour than females. The latter are also larger with a strong female T. alba of a large subspecies weighing over 550 g (19.4 oz), while males are typically about 10% lighter. Nestlings are covered in white down, but the heart-shaped facial disk becomes visible soon after hatching.
Contrary to popular belief, the barn owl does not hoot (such calls are made by typical owls, like the tawny owl or other members of the genus Strix). It instead produces the characteristic shree scream, ear-shattering at close range, an eerie, long-drawn-out shriek. Males in courtship give a shrill twitter. Both young and old can hiss like a snake to scare away intruders. Other sounds produced include a purring chirrup denoting pleasure, and a "kee-yak", which resembles one of the vocalisations of the tawny owl. When captured or cornered, the barn owl throws itself on its back and flails with sharp-taloned feet, making for an effective defence. In such situations it may emit rasping sounds or clicking snaps, produced probably by the bill but possibly by the tongue.
Distribution
The barn owl is the most widespread landbird species in the world, occurring in every continent except Antarctica. Its range includes all of Europe (except Fennoscandia and Malta), most of Africa apart from the Sahara, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, Australia, many Pacific Islands, North, Central and South America. In general it is considered to be sedentary, and indeed many individuals, having taken up residence in a particular location, remain there even when better foraging areas nearby become vacant. In the British Isles, the young seem largely to disperse along river corridors and the distance travelled from their natal site averages about 9 km (5.6 mi).
In continental Europe the distance travelled is greater, commonly somewhere between 50 and 100 kilometres (31 and 62 mi) but exceptionally 1,500 km (932 mi), with ringed birds from the Netherlands ending up in Spain and in Ukraine. In the United States, dispersal is typically over distances of 80 and 320 km (50 and 199 mi), with the most travelled individuals ending up some 1,760 km (1,094 mi) from the point of origin. Movements in the African continent include 1,000 km (621 mi) from Senegambia to Sierra Leone and up to 579 km (360 mi) within South Africa. In Australia there is some migration as the birds move towards the northern coast in the dry season and southward in the wet, and also nomadic movements in association with rodent plagues. Occasionally, some of these birds turn up on Norfolk Island, Lord Howe Island or New Zealand, showing that crossing the ocean is not beyond their capabilities. In 2008, barn owls were recorded for the first time breeding in New Zealand. The barn owl has been successfully introduced into the Hawaiian island of Kauai in an attempt to control rodents, however it has been found to also feed on native birds.
Behaviour and ecology
Like most owls, the barn owl is nocturnal, relying on its acute sense of hearing when hunting in complete darkness. It often becomes active shortly before dusk and can sometimes be seen during the day when relocating from one roosting site to another. In Britain, on various Pacific Islands and perhaps elsewhere, it sometimes hunts by day. This practice may depend on whether the owl is mobbed by other birds if it emerges in daylight. However, in Britain, some birds continue to hunt by day even when mobbed by such birds as magpies, rooks and black-headed gulls, such diurnal activity possibly occurring when the previous night has been wet making hunting difficult. By contrast, in southern Europe and the tropics, the birds seem to be almost exclusively nocturnal, with the few birds that hunt by day being severely mobbed.
Barn owls are not particularly territorial but have a home range inside which they forage. For males in Scotland this has a radius of about 1 km (0.6 mi) from the nest site and an average size of about 300 hectares. Female home ranges largely coincide with that of their mates. Outside the breeding season, males and females usually roost separately, each one having about three favoured sites in which to conceal themselves by day, and which are also visited for short periods during the night. Roosting sites include holes in trees, fissures in cliffs, disused buildings, chimneys and haysheds and are often small in comparison to nesting sites. As the breeding season approaches, the birds move back to the vicinity of the chosen nest to roost.
The barn owl is a bird of open country such as farmland or grassland with some interspersed woodland, usually at altitudes below 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) but occasionally as high as 3,000 metres (9,800 ft) in the tropics. This owl prefers to hunt along the edges of woods or in rough grass strips adjoining pasture. It has an effortless wavering flight as it quarters the ground, alert to the sounds made by potential prey. Like most owls, the barn owl flies silently; tiny serrations on the leading edges of its flight feathers and a hairlike fringe to the trailing edges help to break up the flow of air over the wings, thereby reducing turbulence and the noise that accompanies it. Hairlike extensions to the barbules of its feathers, which give the plumage a soft feel, also minimise noise produced during wingbeats. The behaviour and ecological preferences may differ slightly even among neighbouring subspecies, as shown in the case of the European T. a. guttata and T. a. alba that probably evolved, respectively, in allopatric glacial refugia in southeastern Europe, and in Iberia or southern France.
Diet and feeding
The diet of the barn owl has been much studied; the items consumed can be ascertained from identifying the prey fragments in the pellets of indigestible matter that the bird regurgitates. Studies of diet have been made in most parts of the bird's range, and in moist temperate areas over 90% of the prey tends to be small mammals, whereas in hot, dry, unproductive areas, the proportion is lower, and a great variety of other creatures are eaten depending on local abundance. Most prey is terrestrial but bats and birds are also taken, as well as lizards, amphibians and insects. Even when they are plentiful and other prey scarce, earthworms do not seem to be consumed.
In North America and most of Europe, voles predominate in the diet and shrews are the second most common food choice. Mice and rats form the main foodstuffs in the Mediterranean region, the tropics, sub-tropics and Australia. Barn owls are usually more specialist feeders in productive areas and generalists in drier areas. On the Cape Verde Islands, geckos are the mainstay of the diet, supplemented by birds such as plovers, godwits, turnstones, weavers and pratincoles, and on a rocky islet off the coast of California, a clutch of four young were being reared on a diet of Leach's storm petrel (Oceanodroma leucorhoa). In Ireland, the accidental introduction of the bank vole in the 1950s led to a major shift in the barn owl's diet: where their ranges overlap, the vole is now by far the largest prey item. Locally superabundant rodent species in the weight class of several grams per individual usually make up the single largest proportion of prey. In the United States, rodents and other small mammals usually make up ninety-five percent of the diet and worldwide, over ninety percent of the prey caught.
The barn owl hunts by flying slowly, quartering the ground and hovering over spots that may conceal prey. It may also use branches, fence posts or other lookouts to scan its surroundings, and this is the main means of prey location in the oil palm plantations of Malaysia. The bird has long, broad wings, enabling it to manoeuvre and turn abruptly. Its legs and toes are long and slender which improves its ability to forage among dense foliage or beneath the snow and gives it a wide spread of talons when attacking prey. Studies have shown that an individual barn owl may eat one or more voles (or their equivalent) per night, equivalent to about twenty-three percent of the bird's bodyweight. Excess food is often cached at roosting sites and can be used when food is scarce.
Small prey is usually torn into chunks and eaten completely including bones and fur, while prey larger than about 100 g (4 oz), such as baby rabbits, Cryptomys blesmols, or Otomys vlei rats, is usually dismembered and the inedible parts discarded. Contrary to what is sometimes assumed, the barn owl does not eat domestic animals on any sort of regular basis. Regionally, non-rodent foods are used as per availability. On bird-rich islands, a barn owl might include some fifteen to twenty percent of birds in its diet, while in grassland it will gorge itself on swarming termites, or on Orthoptera such as Copiphorinae katydids, Jerusalem crickets (Stenopelmatidae) or true crickets (Gryllidae). Bats and even frogs, lizards and snakes may make a minor but significant contribution to the diet; small Soricomorpha like Suncus shrews may be a secondary prey of major importance.
The barn owl has acute hearing, with ears placed asymmetrically. This improves detection of sound position and distance and the bird does not require sight to hunt. The facial disc plays a part in this process, as is shown by the fact that with the ruff feathers removed, the bird can still locate the source in azimuth but fails to do so in elevation. Hunting nocturnally or crepuscularly, this bird can target its prey and dive to the ground, penetrating its talons through snow, grass or brush to seize small creatures with deadly accuracy. Compared to other owls of similar size, the barn owl has a much higher metabolic rate, requiring relatively more food. Weight for weight, barn owls consume more rodents—often regarded as pests by humans—than possibly any other creature. This makes the barn owl one of the most economically valuable wildlife animals for agriculture. Farmers often find these owls more effective than poison in keeping down rodent pests, and they can encourage barn owl habitation by providing nest sites.
Barn owls living in tropical regions can breed at any time of year, but some seasonality in nesting is still evident. Where there are distinct wet and dry seasons, egg-laying usually takes place during the dry season, with increased rodent prey becoming available to the birds as the vegetation dies off. In arid regions, such as parts of Australia, breeding may be irregular and may happen in wet periods, triggered by temporary increases in the populations of small mammals. In temperate climates, nesting seasons become more distinct and there are some seasons of the year when no egg-laying takes place. In Europe and North America, most nesting takes place between March and June when temperatures are increasing. The actual dates of egg-laying vary by year and by location, being correlated with the amount of prey-rich foraging habitat around the nest site and often with the phase of the rodent abundance cycle. An increase in rodent populations will usually stimulate the local barn owls to begin nesting; thus, even in the cooler parts of its range, two broods are often raised in a good year.
Females are ready to breed at ten to eleven months of age although males sometimes wait till the following year. Barn owls are usually monogamous, sticking to one partner for life unless one of the pair dies. During the non-breeding season they may roost separately, but as the breeding season approaches they return to their established nesting site, showing considerable site fidelity. In colder climates, in harsh weather and where winter food supplies may be scarce, they may roost in farm buildings and in barns between hay bales, but they then run the risk that their selected nesting hole may be taken over by some other, earlier-nesting species. Single males may establish feeding territories, patrolling the hunting areas, occasionally stopping to hover, and perching on lofty eminences where they screech to attract a mate. Where a female has lost her mate but maintained her breeding site, she usually seems to manage to attract a new spouse.
Once a pair-bond has been formed, the male will make short flights at dusk around the nesting and roosting sites and then longer circuits to establish a home range. When he is later joined by the female, there is much chasing, turning and twisting in flight, and frequent screeches, the male's being high-pitched and tremulous and the female's lower and harsher. At later stages of courtship, the male emerges at dusk, climbs high into the sky and then swoops back to the vicinity of the female at speed. He then sets off to forage. The female meanwhile sits in an eminent position and preens, returning to the nest a minute or two before the male arrives with food for her. Such feeding behaviour of the female by the male is common, helps build the pair-bond and increases the female's fitness before egg-laying commences.
Barn owls are cavity nesters. They choose holes in trees, fissures in cliff faces, the large nests of other birds such as the hamerkop (Scopus umbretta) and, particularly in Europe and North America, old buildings such as farm sheds and church towers. Buildings are preferred to trees in wetter climates in the British Isles and provide better protection for fledglings from inclement weather. Trees tend to be in open habitats rather than in the middle of woodland and nest holes tend to be higher in North America than in Europe because of possible predation by raccoons (Procyon lotor). No nesting material is used as such but, as the female sits incubating the eggs, she draws in the dry furry material of which her regurgitated pellets are composed, so that by the time the chicks are hatched, they are surrounded by a carpet of shredded pellets. Oftentimes other birds such as jackdaws (Corvus monedula) nest in the same hollow tree or building and seem to live harmoniously with the owls.
Before commencing laying, the female spends much time near the nest and is entirely provisioned by the male. Meanwhile the male roosts nearby and may cache any prey that is surplus to their requirements. When the female has reached peak weight, the male provides a ritual presentation of food and copulation occurs at the nest. The female lays eggs on alternate days and the clutch size averages about five eggs (range two to nine). The eggs are chalky white, somewhat elliptical and about the size of bantam's eggs, and incubation begins as soon as the first egg is laid. While she is sitting on the nest, the male is constantly bringing more provisions and they may pile up beside the female. The incubation period is about thirty days, hatching takes place over a prolonged period and the youngest chick may be several weeks younger than its oldest sibling. In years with plentiful supplies of food, there may be a hatching success rate of about 75%. The male continues to copulate with the female when he brings food which makes the newly hatched chicks vulnerable to injury.
The chicks are at first covered with greyish-white down and develop rapidly. Within a week they can hold their heads up and shuffle around in the nest. The female tears up the food brought by the male and distributes it to the chicks. Initially these make a "chittering" sound but this soon changes into a food-demanding "snore". By two weeks old they are already half their adult weight and look naked as the amount of down is insufficient to cover their growing bodies. By three weeks old, quills are starting to push through the skin and the chicks stand, making snoring noises with wings raised and tail stumps waggling, begging for food items which are now given whole. The male is the main provider of food until all the chicks are at least four weeks old at which time the female begins to leave the nest and starts to roost elsewhere. By the sixth week the chicks are as big as the adults but have slimmed down somewhat by the ninth week when they are fully fledged and start leaving the nest briefly themselves. They are still dependent on the parent birds until about thirteen weeks and receive training from the female in finding, and eventually catching, prey.
Moulting
Feathers become abraded over time and all birds need to replace them at intervals. Barn owls are particularly dependent on their ability to fly quietly and manoeuvre efficiently, and in temperate areas their prolonged moult lasts through three phases over a period of two years. The female starts to moult while incubating the eggs and brooding the chicks, a time when the male feeds her so she does not need to fly much. The first primary feather to be shed is the central one, number 6, and it has regrown completely by the time the female resumes hunting. Feathers 4, 5, 7 and 8 are dropped at a similar time the following year and feathers 1, 2, 3, 9 and 10 in the bird's third year of adulthood. The secondary and tail feathers are lost and replaced over a similar timescale, again starting while incubation is taking place. In the case of the tail, the two outermost tail feathers are first shed followed by the two central ones, the other tail feathers being moulted the following year.
In temperate areas, the male owl moults rather later in the year than the female, at a time when there is an abundance of food, the female has recommenced hunting and the demands of the chicks are lessening. Unmated males without family responsibilities often start losing feathers earlier in the year. The moult follows a similar prolonged pattern to that of the female and the first sign that the male is moulting is often when a tail feather has been dropped at the roost. A consequence of moulting is the loss of thermal insulation. This is of little importance in the tropics and barn owls here usually moult a complete complement of flight feathers annually. The hot-climate moult may still take place over a long period but is usually concentrated at a particular time of year outside the breeding season.
Predators and parasites
Predators of the barn owl include large American opossums (Didelphis), the common raccoon, and similar carnivorous mammals, as well as eagles, larger hawks and other owls. Among the latter, the great horned owl (Bubo virginianus) in the Americas and the Eurasian eagle-owl (B. bubo) are noted predators of barn owls (though there is little evidence for predation on wild birds by great horned owls). In Europe, the chief diurnal predators are the northern goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) and the common buzzard (Buteo buteo). The goshawk and the eagle owl are on the increase because of the greater protection these birds now receive.
When disturbed at its roosting site, an angry barn owl lowers its head and sways it from side to side, or the head may be lowered and stretched forward and the wings drooped while the bird emits hisses and makes snapping noises with its bill. A defensive attitude involves lying flat on the ground or crouching with wings spread out.
Barn owls are hosts to a wide range of parasites. Fleas are present at nesting sites and externally the birds are attacked by feather lice and feather mites which chew the barbules of the feathers and which are transferred from bird to bird by direct contact. Blood-sucking flies such as Ornithomyia avicularia are often present, moving about among the plumage. Internal parasites include the fluke Strigea strigis, the tape worm Paruternia candelabraria, several species of parasitic round worm and spiny-headed worms in the genus Centrorhynchus. These gut parasites are acquired when the birds feed on infected prey which provide intermediate hosts for the parasites. There is some indication that female birds with more and larger spots have a greater resistance to external parasites. This is correlated with smaller bursae of Fabricius, glands associated with antibody production, and a lower fecundity of the blood-sucking fly Carnus hemapterus that attacks nestlings.
Lifespan
Unusually for such a medium-sized carnivorous animal, the barn owl exhibits r-selection, producing large number of offspring with a high growth rate, many of which have a relatively low probability of surviving to adulthood. While wild barn owls are thus decidedly short-lived, the actual longevity of the species is much higher – captive individuals may reach twenty years of age or more. But occasionally, a wild bird reaches an advanced age. The American record age for a wild barn owl is eleven and a half years, while a Dutch bird was noted to have reached an age of seventeen years, ten months. Another captive barn owl, in England, lived to be over twenty-five years old. Taking into account such extremely long-lived individuals, the average lifespan of the barn owl is about four years, and statistically two-thirds to three-quarters of all adults survive from one year to the next. However, the mortality is not evenly distributed throughout the bird's life, and only one young in three manages to live to its first breeding attempt.
The most significant cause of death in temperate areas is likely to be starvation, particularly over the autumn and winter period when first year birds are still perfecting their hunting skills. In northern and upland areas, there is some correlation between mortality in older birds and adverse weather, deep-lying snow and prolonged low temperatures. Collision with road vehicles is another cause of mortality, and may result when birds forage on mown verges. Some of these birds are in poor condition and may have been less able to evade oncoming vehicles than fit individuals would have been. Historically, many deaths were caused by the use of pesticides, and this may still be the case in some parts of the world. Collisions with power-lines kill some birds and shooting accounts for others, especially in Mediterranean regions.
Status and conservation
Barn owls are relatively common throughout most of their range and not considered globally threatened. However, locally severe declines from organochlorine (e.g., DDT) poisoning in the mid-20th century and rodenticides in the late 20th century have affected some populations, particularly in Europe and North America. Intensification of agricultural practices often means that the rough grassland that provides the best foraging habitat is lost. While barn owls are prolific breeders and able to recover from short-term population decreases, they are not as common in some areas as they used to be. A 1995–1997 survey put their British population at between 3,000 to 5,000 breeding pairs, out of an average of about 150,000 pairs in the whole of Europe. In the USA, barn owls are listed as endangered species in seven Midwestern states, and in the European Community they are considered a Species of European Concern.
In some areas, it may be an insufficiency of suitable nesting sites that is the factor limiting barn owl numbers. The provision of nest boxes under the eaves of buildings and in other locations can be very successful in increasing the local population. In Malaysia, large areas of rainforest were felled to make way for oil palm plantations and with few tree cavities for breeding, the barn owl population, with its ability to control rodent pests, diminished. The provision of two hundred nest boxes in a trial saw almost one hundred percent occupancy and as the programme expanded, the plantations supported one of the densest barn owl populations in the world. Similarly, providing nesting boxes has increased the number of barn owls in rice-growing areas of Malaysia where the rodents do much damage to the crop. However, although barn owl numbers have increased in both these instances, it is unclear as to how effective this biological control of the rats is as compared to the trapping and baiting that occurred previously.
Common names such as "demon owl", "death owl", or "ghost owl" show that traditionally, rural populations in many places considered barn owls to be birds of evil omen. Consequently, they were often persecuted by farmers who were unaware of the benefit these birds bring. The Canary barn owl is particularly at risk, and as late as 1975, hunting by fearful locals was limiting the population on Fuerteventura where only a few dozen pairs remain. On Lanzarote a somewhat larger number of these birds still seem to exist, but altogether this particular subspecies is precariously rare: Probably less than three hundred and perhaps fewer than two hundred individuals still remain. Similarly, the birds on the western Canary Islands which are usually assigned to the nominate subspecies have declined much, and here wanton destruction seems still to be significant. On Tenerife they seem relatively numerous but on the other islands, the situation looks about as bleak as on Fuerteventura. Due to their assignment to the nominate subspecies, which is common in mainland Spain, the western Canary Islands population is not classified as threatened.
In the United Kingdom, the "Barn Owl Nest Box Scheme" is promoted by the World Owl Trust and has many participants in local areas such as Somerset where a webcam has been set up inside a nest box in which seven young were reared in 2014. Another barn owl nest box live-streaming webcam located in California, United States has proved popular online. In May 2012, it was revealed that farmers in Israel and Jordan had, over a period of ten years, replaced pesticides by barn owls in a joint conservation venture called "Project Barn Owl".
[Credit: en.wikipedia.org/]
Iguane au zoo de Montpellier.
L'Iguane vert (Iguana iguana), parfois appelé Iguane commun, est une grande espèce de lézards arboricoles et herbivores du genre Iguana originaire d'Amérique du Sud et Centrale. L'adulte mesure environ 1,5 m de la tête à la queue, et certains spécimens peuvent atteindre les 2 m et peser 5 kg, ce qui en fait le plus imposant des iguanes. Il prend diverses couleurs selon sa région d'origine, sa teinte pouvant prendre différents tons de vert, mais aussi être rosée, bleuâtre ou orangée. Il se caractérise également par les anneaux noirs visibles sur sa queue et sa crête d'épines dorsales. L'Iguane vert passe le plus clair de son temps dans les arbres, à se nourrir de feuillage. C'est un animal territorial qui se montre agressif envers les autres mâles, notamment en période de reproduction. Les femelles pondent une fois par an, et dès l'éclosion les jeunes sont livrés à eux-mêmes, souvent victimes de prédateurs comme le basilic. Ils atteignent leur maturité sexuelle à trois ans.
L'Iguane vert a une aire de répartition très étendue qui va du Sud du Brésil et du Paraguay au Nord du Mexique, aux Îles Caraïbes. Il est également présent aux États-Unis où on y trouve des populations issues du marronnage, notamment dans le Sud de la Floride (dont l'archipel des Keys), à Hawaï et la vallée du Rio Grande au Texas, où il constitue une menace pour l'équilibre écologique local. En Amérique du Sud, l'Iguane vert est apprécié pour sa viande et pour ses œufs, et est chassé ou élevé pour fournir les marchés locaux, mais aussi pour approvisionner le marché des animaux de compagnie. Il est en effet de plus en plus couramment élevé en captivité en tant que nouvel animal de compagnie du fait de son tempérament calme et de ses couleurs vives, bien qu'il exige des soins particuliers et suffisamment d'espace. Les captures d'animaux sauvages ont fait chuter les effectifs, même si l'espèce n'est pas encore menacée.
Iguana in the zoo of Montpellier.
The Green Iguana or Common Iguana (Iguana iguana) is a large, arboreal herbivorous species of lizard of the genus Iguana native to Central, South America, and the Caribbean. The green iguana ranges over a large geographic area, from southern Brazil and Paraguay as far north as Mexico and the Caribbean Islands especially in Puerto Rico where they are also known as "Gallina de palo" and they are very common throughout the island where is seen as an intruder animal from South America; and in the United States as feral populations in South Florida (including the Florida Keys), Hawaii, and the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.
A herbivore, it has adapted significantly with regard to locomotion and osmoregulation as a result of its diet. It grows to 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) in length from head to tail, although a few specimens have grown more than 2 metres (6.6 ft) with bodyweights upward of 20 pounds (9.1 kg).
Commonly found in captivity as a pet due to its calm disposition and bright colors, it can be very demanding to care for properly. Space requirements and the need for special lighting and heat can prove challenging to an amateur hobbyist.
Must attribute with link to: www.ptpioneer.com
Picture of a girl exercising outdoors on a yoga mat doing the side plank exercise and wearing gym clothing.
Miami Beach verfügt über 6 Trainingsorte in der ganzen Stadt. Egal, ob man Bodyweight-Training, Outdoor-Fitness oder Crossfit machen möchte und nach einem kostenlosen öffentlichen Fitnessstudio mit Klimmzugstange in Miami Beach sucht, hier ist man genau richtig.
Miami Beach has 6 workout places all around the city. Whether you do bodyweight exercise, outdoor fitness, or crossfit and you're looking for a free public gym with pull up bar in Miami Beach, you're at the right place.
Fairfax, Maine had celebrated what would become the standardized Halloween holiday since 1925. Back in the day, it had made the wise transition from tolerating youths engaged in vandalism and arson, to promoting wholesome events the the entire town could enjoy. Through all the naysayers that disliked the macabre themes, the costumes and exchange of sweets persisted, and the community overall took pride in the festivities.
For the past five Halloweens, Roger had not known that sensation. Where Christmas or Thanksgiving could be spent indoors with close relatives, Halloween most certainly, intrinsically needed a touch of rebellion, a smidge of boldness.
For the past five Halloweens, no parade. Roger remembered he really liked it when he was younger; probably wouldn’t be the same anymore, but it was nevertheless a missing piece to the season.
For the past five Halloweens, fewer and fewer people felt like decorating their lawns and street corners. There were certainly taller fences around the lawns, though, and every few street corners there was a police officer. Fairfax, still contending with an influx of meta-human crime, would have its Halloween, in some shape or form. Roger stood by that same sentiment. In fact, the envelope, he felt, could be pushed a little more.
He leans off the Kings’ front gate as Chris finally hops out the door, checking his costume.
Roger inspects the ensemble. “From this, I’m getting… medieval C.H.U.D?”
Chris’ head jerks up from his last button. “Frankenstein. Frankenstein’s monster. He’s not medieval, he’s… one of those ‘-ian’ eras.”
“Still, you’re carrying a… sword.”
“The Creature definitely survived the Arctic at the end. And he was definitely smart enough to start using a weapon. He disliked guns, right? So.”
Roger scoffs. “Man, if you could go back and learn that the author said Frankenstein wields a sword in a potential sequel, I’d give you all my candy tonight.”
He glances over his shoulder, also back at the door. “You told your parents you’re staying at whose house?”
Chris winces. “‘Vic’s’.”
Roger does a double-take at his friend. “‘Vic’!?”
“Hey they asked me before I even had a name ready in my head, and it just sorta... Don’t worry Roger, they don’t even know Vicki, and won’t think about it twice.”
“Yeah… okay,” Roger groans. “We’ve got an hour and forty-five to get stocked. Then I get you and the others past ‘security’… Old guy on the end of my street still has a hole in his backyard fence, straight to the park. Then, the farm out to the east-“
“You’re eerily familiar with this,” Chris chuckles.
“Roger!”
The boys, almost onto the sidewalk, spin around at the sound of Mrs. King’s voice.
“Your parents can still make it over tonight? I’ve got more food than I know what to do with.” She smiles.
“Will-do Mrs. K, just as soon as my dad’s off work!”
She nods. “Chris, don’t stay out later than nine, and stay in Vic’s house until the morning.”
Roger sees Chris begin to protest, when Mrs. King adds on, “For your father, please.”
“Yes, Mom.”
She retreats inside and they resume their walk through the quietest streets Fairfax had seen on Halloween to date.
“My folks are really glad yours are back, Chris. I don’t think I knew, when we were little, how it was… that they lost good friends too…”
Chris’ eyes snap out of a glaze. “Mm.”
“How’s Gary? Does he remember any friends from here? You could’ve invited him along too, you know; it’d have gone cool with me.”
“Ha, no,” Chris says dismissively. “That bookworm doesn’t care about sneaking out, or having any adventures. Or candy. Imagine that. Thirteen, and doesn’t like candy.”
Glinda rounds a corner in front of them, and Chris points. “Ah, I get it… ‘cause, Glinda, and she’s a witch…”
“Hey guys! Isn’t this dress smart?” She fluffs some of the hair under the brim of her pointed hat. “I found a matching bag too!”
“That’s… rad,” Roger almost yawns. “Vicki was supposed to be be here with you. She’s your sleepover alibi.”
“Behind schedule,” Glinda hums. “Said she needed more time for an outfit and, I quote, she ‘could track down those two delinquents, and their secret hideout, blindfolded’, so she said go on ahead.”
“You’ll keep up with us? You’re not going to get all antsy?” Roger inquires.
“You’re not scaring me tonight, Roger Dunbar.”
“Sure, sure. But if you do get cold feet, just remember there’s no place like home, and click your heels.”
“That’s the strangest idiom you’ve ever come up with,” Glinda declares, waving her wand at him.
Roger once again becomes flustered. “It’s not an idi-“
“I’d actually just as soon wait for Vicki,” Chris interrupts. “We still have time to stay around her house and trick-or-treat, before we head off. You DID say we’d all stick together.”
Roger flips down the black mask that had been resting in his hair and points a finger at Chris. “‘I am ALtering the dealll.”
Chris fails to hide the growing dimples on his cheeks, and he nods. “Okay, I’ll give you that one.”
Glinda wrinkles her nose. “Why’d you make your voice all deep?”
“You have GOT to watch movies.”
***
“I’m already late, so it’s no big deal if I’m MORE late,” Vicki offers. “You change your mind?”
Frannie Nash keeps fiddling with the straps of her backpack. “Don’t have a costume.”
“The boys can shove their costumes. Just bring you. … they’re not a bad group.”
“I won’t have fun,” Frannie states. Her voice didn’t raise at all. It wasn’t even an argument.
Vicki sighs. “I wouldn’t force you to go. Just don’t want you to think I’m picking favorites.”
Frannie tucked in her neck. “You’re not, I know.”
They were just about to cover the last of the park’s turf and cross the street to Frannie’s house, and before the crosswalk went green, Vicki wanted to be sure things were squared away.
“Then that’s the end of it. I won’t bring that stuff up, okay? I trust you with your own judgements.”
“Thanks Vicki-“
Someone leaps straight through the shrub on Vicki’s right before the pair of girls reach the corner. She and the apparent prankster stumble onto their knees and palms in the sod, with a startled Frannie a split-second away from taking off.
“Why don’t you watch it, you-!“
Vicki sees him face-on just for a moment, as he was already pulling himself up without an apology nor an indication he had succeeded in some deliberate bit of tomfoolery. He was terrified. The boy she saw every recess, walking alone outside of school, had undeniable panic written into his features.
Frannie backs up as he stands and continues his flight by successfully vaulting a bench this time. “I… I have to go Vicki. See you…”
“Frannie…” Vicki starts. She blinks away the spinning in her head from the collision, and brushes off her sleeves as Frannie scurries the last stretch of her way home. Vicki scans for the boy again, inadvertently kicking something with a muddied high-top. His… sketch pad?
She recovers it, and finds herself flipping through heavily-worn pages. The same figure drawn over and over, but in various poses, each running into the next like a meticulous comic. Vicki catches herself.
“Stop being a busybody and go after him. He’s going to miss this.”
She’s stopped again from picking up his trail, but this time, for a very different reason. She can just make out a another face, situated between some trees that Frannie and she had passed before their encounter with the boy. It had the strangest quality to it; Vicki was looking directly at it, but felt as though its attributes were in a distant memory, hazy and indistinguishable. She shook her head and tried again to focus on whoever it was, but the same ambiguity suffocated her perception. Was the face… glowing? Was it attached to a body?
“Definitely time to go home,” Vicki affirmed to herself. “I’ll find the boy tomorrow.”
She dashed off of park property, purposely jaywalking in the hopes of getting one of the officers stationed all over to notice, in case the face was following her. But there was no one to be seen, anywhere. Not even lights in houses, despite the sun being on the horizon. At the top of her lungs Vicki hollered for anyone at all to come out, but to her ears, nothing but a whisper escaped her.
Now she ran without thinking. The two remaining blocks to her house flew by. Sheer fright kept her from devoting energy to anything but her legs. It was only once she was gripping the iron work on her home’s front gate that her thoughts caught up with her. What if the thing stopped chasing her and targeted Frannie instead? Was it even a good idea to go inside? This had to be a dream… except, she could remember the entire day…
Vicki swung open the gate, but the metal hinges didn’t creak like they had for years and years. The latch didn’t even feel right. She hurried past the trees whose branches were being tossed in a wind she failed to feel in her hair or jacket. She felt as though she were on the verge of nausea. Coming to a halt at her stoop, Vicki realized her neighbor’s dog was in its yard. She almost cried at the sight of something not out of place, until it turned its snout down between its forelegs and howled, long and plaintive. She’d never seen a dog do that, not in that way.
Her knuckles were gripped over the banister, bloodless and frigid. The face was off to the side of her yard, wavering, its specific characteristics still not discernible.
“You should find the boy,” it spoke to Vicki.
“What do you want?!” Vicki begged.
“Maybe he can help you,” was all it suggested.
“You’re doing this! Get away or-!”
“Find your friend and this can stop. I do not think you will be safe, otherwise.”
Vicki drew a breath, and dared two steps back towards the gate. The face made no move to intercept her. So she took off once more. She had to find him. Her mind was starved for something, anything normal.
***
Glinda takes a moment and again studies the imposing cornstalks encircling her and her friends. They shift as one and rustle in the breeze. There were no glimmering fangs or gnarled claws to be seen waiting impatiently within the wall of husks. She allows herself another exhale and returns to Roger and Chris, sorting their earnings for the night.
“Another cherry one, Chris. Trade me.”
“It’s your loss, but here,” Chris accepts, chucking a small packet from his own bucket.
“Not a loss at all,” Roger says, catching it. “Cherry ones always taste like the cough syrup.”
“What’s wrong with that?”
“You hurt me physically, Chris. But y’know what..?”
Roger passes two unwarranted candy bars towards Chris. The largest ones he had.
“Whoa, how’d I earn these?”
“For not being a square, even with a cop for a dad. Honestly I thought you might not sneak out here tonight.”
Chris rocks back and snorts. “Pshaw! I’ve been WAITING to do this kind of stuff again. It was no fun when we moved to the city. Hey Glinda, you should get one of these too.”
Glinda takes the candy. “Thanks… Roger, why did you think Chris wouldn’t come? Didn’t you say you both did this all the time when you were little?”
“He means specifically here. Because it’s a crim-” Chris begins with a mouthful of licorice, before Roger gives him a wide-eyed look.
“‘Because’..?” Glinda probes. “Because what? Roger…”
She watches the boy expectantly. Chris, between the two, pulls his wig down over his face.
“It’s nothing Glinda; inside-joke we have,” Roger brushes it off.
Glinda is unfazed.
Roger caves in. “It’s uh… may be, in a way, possibly, an off-limits zone? Right now?”
She continues drilling a hole through him with her eyes.
“Because of a shady investigation dealing with radiation?”
“WHAT?”
“That was really smooth, Chris,” Roger moans. “Really smooth.”
“You weren’t going to say anything before you lead me out to a creepy field that might be mutating us into sludge-monsters as we speak? Roger Dunbar I’m…”
“Glinda, chill! Chris’ dad was actually on the scene; he said no one there had any side-effects!”
Chris adds, “They didn’t find any, with the screening processes they used. There’s actual a few ways they didn’t try, Dad said-“
Roger’s face goes red. “Chris, I swear, you’re one syllable away from getting duct-taped… the next time I have some.”
“We should’ve gone back so long ago anyway!” Glinda protests. “I let you ditch Vicki, and then I find out… Oh, I want to leave!”
“If Vicki is still on her way here, then we can’t go now!” Roger reasons.
“Guys, I…” Chris perks up. “That was something out there I just heard…”
“Don’t you start!” Glinda sniffs. “You think it’s so funny, trying to razz me with dumb-“
“No, I’m REALLY serious. There shouldn’t be any caretakers out here.”
“… Would they have kept investigators out this late?” Roger asks, now in a hushed tone.
Glinda backs into to the adjacent barrier of corn. “I want to go now.”
Roger scoops up his helmet. “Yeah. Forget the candy.”
The three kids inch away, eyes locked on the thicket whence the noises are carrying. Glinda whips out a Polaroid camera from her robes as Roger and Chris come up alongside her.
“What are you doing with that?” Roger hisses.
“Maybe we can blind whoever it is, long enough for us to escape. I… I thought I would take pictures, mostly if Vicki got here, to show off…”
“You can’t share where we were at school, Glinda! If you brag about this, who knows which of your friends would blab-“
“I won’t NOW!” Glinda seethes, nearly giving away their position. “Why’d I have to choose you two to spend Halloween with? Of all the pea-brained…”
She trails off, and Chris lets out an unintentional squeak. Something bipedal, bullet-shaped and dripping lurches out of the greenery. It gives a caw like that of a sickly crow, and clumsily scoots one of the discarded containers of candy around with the entirety of its bulky upper-half.
“We… say… nothing,” Roger murmurs.
“Yep.”
“Mhm.”
The new arrival seems preoccupied with an Almond Joy; enough, to not to notice the trio, even when Roger’s lightsaber prop slips from his belt loop and lands noisily in a puddle. Glinda’s heart almost stops. Chris motions fervently.
“Maybe it can’t hear, c’mon…”
Just as the kids are mere feet from circling around to another row of crops, the clouds part slightly to reveal an ominous full moon. Glinda’s sequined clothes are illuminated a vivid sapphire, contrasting the murky landscape. What must have been the monster’s head wobbles upright, wrappers lodged in its lumpy skin. A string of slick globes lines its underbelly. At the top, two more are side by side; these ones luminescent and, without a doubt, lidded. The thing produces an unearthly trill, and hurls itself bodily after the reflection.
The kids scream at the charging abomination. Chris pushes Glinda and Roger ahead of him into the leaves, then sidesteps a rubbery appendage lashing through the vegetation. Glinda sees him cowering as the attacker rips away more of their means of cover. She tries to make herself pivot, but her knees lock.
“I can’t. I have to. I can’t. He’s going to get-“
The flailing beast slams the ground, settling Glinda’s dilemma for her as she is flung backward in a wave of wet earth. It spots her again, with the unobstructed moon still transforming her into a beacon. Glinda lays frozen in the muck, with the hideous shape tramping ever closer. A hundred thoughts try to enter her mind, only to be extinguished to making way for a hundred more. She didn’t remember what she last said to Vicki. The last thing she HAD said to her parents had been a lie. Did Roger know…
Roger was yards away, dust in his vision. Their eyes meet. Glinda’s internal shouts pounded in her head like the tide.
“He can’t leave. Please don’t. Please.”
But from her lips, different words sprung: “RUN! JUST RUN!”
Roger looks to Chris now, but his friend is sprawled out, breathing hoarsely with his arms tangled over his face. Glinda watches, dumbstruck, as Roger snags a shredded portion of Chris’ cape and flings it over the monster’s peaked scalp, then tries weighing down one of its squirming tentacles with his entire bodyweight, hanging from it like it were a jungle gym. All the while Roger yells like a madman, perhaps more astonished by his initiative than Glinda herself.
He only holds on for so long. The greenish brute hurls Roger up and into some yet-undisturbed stalks, which luckily cushion him enough to save him from landing directly on his neck. Before it can also remove its crude blindfold, one of the growths on its torso bursts. It squawks hellishly, turning too late to counter a limber figure’s flying kick in its side. Rescuer and beast impact the ground so hard that Glinda bounces back to her feet only due in part to her own power. The kids’ defender stands up, slapping away a tentacle and driving a knee into his foe. Glinda and Roger race to Chris’ side, trying to keep track of the fight at the same time.
Their relief is quickly dispelled. The man who intervened observes the kids through the hollow eyes of an angular mask. One hand tightens into a fist. The other points beyond the valley, back towards Fairfax’s residential area. An electronic roar reverberates from his slitted mouthpiece.
“Oorrrrrr elllssee… yooouuuu neexttt”
Glinda and Roger made the decision nonverbally. Even Chris, barely conscious, was able to find his bearings. They ran.
***
Vicki could feel her pulse in her ears. She had scoured the park, the outlying properties of Fairfax and was well into the “wilderness” by now. No indications of the boy having come this way, nor had there been anyone to help her. Whatever was following her, it had to be… concealing everyone from her, and vice versa. It could have been messing with the time too; Vicki felt she could have been searching for half a day, easily, except the sun had been setting all the while. She pauses. Immediately, she could tell the being with an indefinite form was upon her.
“You need to find him.”
“HOW,” Vicki said between gasps, “can I, if you’re changing everything? He could’ve been-“
“I am not altering your perceptions now; we are away from… distractors. Please, continue.”
Vicki remembers Glinda and the others. They would be out this way, if she was right in thinking that Roger was daring them to visit that laboratory… something about an incident had been on the news, days ago. If there were any chance of running into them on this path, Vicki knew she had to divert. As much as she wanted to see them again, not be alone… she couldn’t drag them into this.
“There’s nothing out this way. Not any place he could be hiding,” she lies.
“There must be,” it retorts. Vicki hears emotion this time. It’s growing irritated. “It”… sounded female.
Vicki could hardly stand it anymore. “If you know Fairfax why can’t YOU find him yourself?!”
“You. Will not. Be safe,” the voice reminds her.
“There’s… there’s an abandoned mine to the south!” Vicki recollects in a moment of clarity.
“Show me.”
The trek ensues. Now, Vicki does not feel as though she is in limbo; her exertions are actually tiring, and the air finally begins to cool. She nears the mine, ready to collapse, trying to ignore her blistering soles. She had thought for years that she might be the single person in Fairfax to know of this location, but if the boy had proven to be so elusive, it stood to reason he had also found such a place. If he wasn’t here… Vicki was prepared to challenge her captor to do their worst; her stamina was all but gone.
“Check the the left passage,” Vicki rasped, flopping an arm at the overgrown wooden frames nestled in a shallow hill. “The other one is caved in just a few yards in. … hey… Hey, are you there?”
There is not but a symphony of crickets to answer her. The world, for the first time in what may have been an eternity only to her, seemed tangible. No less sinister, however.
She is given no chance to call again. A wrist and a shoulder hoist her from under the arms straight up into a tree. Her stomach is further upset, her queasiness making her question what she sees: Athletic-looking boots with a sheen from accumulated dew, pounding up the trunk, are the means by which she is being whisked away. She and the gravity-defier tip onto a sturdy branch just at the apex of their jump. They steady one another on the small beam. It’s the boy.
“What in the NAME of-“
“How did you get here?” the boy demands sharply.
“You THREW me up here!” Vicki wails shakily.
“I did no such- I mean ‘here,’ as in, the mine!”
She reveals the boy’s dropped book and thrusts it at him. “Take this thing, and get me down! I don’t want anything else to do with you… you meta-maniacs!”
“You didn’t… you led someone else here?” He grabs her shoulder and looks over his own. The forest is… quiet. Expect for a soft, rhythmic whooshing, maybe of an owl. Also a metallic clatter of equal pitch.
The boy plunges off the vantage point instantly, covering Vicki’s mouth. The tree fragments like kindling above them. The boy lands light as a feather despite their velocity, and deposits Vicki in a dry gulley.
“Do NOT come out until I lose them again, or they get me and have left.”
“What?!”
He takes out his returned sketchpad and effortlessly outlines more figures in an action sequence. Vicki watches his hand become imperceptible as it flies over the page. Then he pockets it and front-flips back to the regular forest floor. Vicki clambers a short ways up the embankment only to duck again as clods of dirt, from another violent impact, rain down. The boy has confronted a giant of a man, who is reeling in a ball and chain from a newly-formed crater. The links each had the circumference of a football, and the weighted end, not much smaller than a disco ball. The villain hefts them back to him as if they were paper mâché.
“Enough dodgeball, kid. You didn’t make bail,” he rumbles through a latticed visor. The ends of the chain jostle at his heels.
Then “she” materializes between Vicki’s hiding spot and the boy. The face from before now belongs to a body, sinewy and swirling with the entire color spectrum. Her white hair behaves almost like the rays shooting off her skin. The boy doesn’t wait for them to get any closer; he dives at a medium-sized tree, and propels himself a second time off its bough, aiming for the man with the chain. The trunk snaps off from his kick and begins to fall on the shining woman, but she flicks two fingers at it, and it dissipates into a swarm of bats.
The boy has evaded yet another flailing chain, nimbly taking a few steps on it as its length rockets beneath him. He executes a roundhouse kick for the man’s head, but to Vicki’s shock, the villain doesn’t budge, and boy’s ankle twists. He flops unto a grass patch and screams; the blades have become real blades, courtesy of the woman. Vicki’s seen enough.
“Go to hell!” she bellows, pitching a rock from the ditch with her might. It cracks the woman on the spine, and at once she slumps to one knee. Vicki realizes that a piece of the woman has actually chipped off. The shard lay there, losing its multitude of hues.
“Glass…”
The large man scrambles to his accomplice’s side. Vicki equips another rock, when sirens can suddenly be discerned. She thought she might have even heard dogs. The man lifts up Vicki’s tormentor and starts to flee, which she resists.
“The boy has to be dealt with. And her, too” Vicki overhears her wheeze.
“He IS dealt with, and the girl’s left with the mess. We’re done here.”
He turns to Vicki briefly as he exits, repeating himself with a snarl. “We’re DONE here. I’m warning you now: Don’t get caught up in this.”
Vicki flips him off as he barrels away with the woman. She then crouches at the boy’s side. He’s clutching in vain at countless puncture wounds in his belly and ribs.
“Lie still. There’s a patrol coming, and they can help you.” In truth, Vicki didn’t know that. She had no idea how serious his injuries were.
The boy seems to only now be aware of the sirens, as well as blue and red flashes breaking through the leaves. He sits up and pitifully hugs her shoulder.
“It’s okay,” she reassures.
“I can’t afford to bet that they’re really police. And neither c-augh, can you,” he coughs.
“What?” She feels on her shoulder that he’s holding one torn-out sheet from his book. In the darkness she can just see there are two distinct figures drawn on it, not the same one over and over like before. They were falling.
“I haven’t done this before, so I’ll understand you wanting to kill me after.”
“What are you-“
He throws himself a short distance upward, then pulls Vicki with him straight through the ground.
The green iguana (Iguana iguana), also known as the American iguana or the common green iguana, is a large, arboreal, mostly herbivorous species of lizard of the genus Iguana. Usually, this animal is simply called the iguana. The green iguana ranges over a large geographic area; it is native from southern Brazil and Paraguay as far north as Mexico.
A herbivore, it has adapted significantly with regard to locomotion and osmoregulation as a result of its diet. It grows to 1.7 m (5.6 ft) in length from head to tail, although a few specimens have grown more than 2 m (6.6 ft) with bodyweights upward of 20 lb (9.1 kg).
Commonly found in captivity as a pet due to its calm disposition and bright colors, it can be very demanding to care for properly. Space requirements and the need for special lighting and heat can prove challenging to the hobbyist.
Taxonomy
The species was first officially described by Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1758. Since then, numerous subspecies have been identified, but later classified as merely regional variants of the same species.
Using nuclear and mitochondrial DNA-sequence data to explore the phylogenic history of the green iguana, scientists from El Salvador, Mexico, and the United States studied animals collected from 17 countries. The topology of phylogeny indicated that the species originated in South America and eventually radiated through Central America and the Caribbean. The study revealed no unique mitochondrial DNA haplotypes for subspecific status, but did indicate the deep lineage divergence between Central and South American populations.
Naturalists once classified the Central American iguanas as a separate subspecies (I. i. rhinolopha), but this classification was later found to be invalid based on mitochondrial DNA, and iguanas with similar nose projections appeared randomly in other populations and interbred freely with those that do not share this trait. Genetic studies in the late 2010s still recovered I. rhinolopha as a distinct species, along with several other cryptic lineages present in I. iguana, and classifying only the South American populations may be the "true" green iguana. Two new insular subspecies (I. i. insularis and I. i. sanctaluciae) endemic to St. Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada were also identified in 2019; a 2020 study also recovered both these subspecies as part of a distinct species, the southern Antillean horned iguana (I. insularis). The study also found the Saban black iguana (I. melanoderma), described in that study, to be the sister group of South American I. iguana, with the clade containing both being sister to that of I. insularis. The Reptile Database disagrees with these conclusions, and groups all of these within the green iguana, with four subspecies: I. i. melanoderma, I. i. insularis, I. i.sanctaluciae, and I. i. iguana.
Etymology
The word "iguana" is derived from a Spanish form of the Taíno name for the species: iwana. In some Spanish-speaking countries, males of the species are referred to as garrobo or ministro and juveniles are called iguanita or garrobito.
Distribution and habitat
The native range of the green iguana extends from southern Mexico to central Brazil, Paraguay, and Bolivia and the Caribbean; specifically Grenada, Aruba, Curaçao, Bonaire, Trinidad and Tobago, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Montserrat, Saba and Útila. They have been introduced to Grand Cayman, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola (in the Dominican Republic), Saint Martin (island), Guadeloupe, Martinique, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, Texas, Florida, Hawaii, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Furthermore, green iguanas colonised the island of Anguilla in 1995 after being washed ashore following a hurricane. Though the species is not native to Martinique, a small wild colony of released or escaped green iguanas endures at historic Fort Saint Louis.
Green iguana has been introduced from South America to Puerto Rico and is very common throughout the island, where it is colloquially known as gallina de palo ("bamboo chicken" or "chicken of the tree") and considered an invasive species; in the United States, feral populations also exist in South Florida (including the Florida Keys), Hawaii, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. Green iguanas have also successfully colonised the island of Anguilla, arriving on the island in 1995 after rafting across the Caribbean from Guadeloupe, where they were introduced.
The green iguana has become rare in parts of its native range of Central and South America due to hunting of wild iguanas for food, where iguanas have received the sobriquet gallino de palo ("bamboo chicken" or "chicken of the trees"). Overhunting resulted in a partial closure of markets in Nicaragua in 1976, while the government of Panama had taken action by the late 1960s to protect iguanas.
Green iguanas are diurnal, arboreal, and are often found near water. Agile climbers, Iguana iguana can fall up to 50 feet (15 m) and land unhurt (iguanas use their hind leg claws to clasp leaves and branches to break a fall). During cold, wet weather, green iguanas prefer to stay on the ground for greater warmth. When swimming, iguanas remain submerged, letting their legs hang limply against their sides. They propel through the water with powerful tail strokes.
While they may often be found in trees, these animals are well-known burrowers. The size of their burrow can range from 0.3 to 2.4 metres (1 ft 0 in to 7 ft 10 in) deep, with a diameter of 10 to 20 centimetres (4 to 7+3⁄4 in). They have been observed burrowing in canals, levees, and dikes and along seawalls in southern Florida. If individuals do not dig their own, they may even use gopher tortoise burrows or usurp those of the Florida burrowing owl.
Description
The green iguana is a large lizard and is probably the largest species in the iguana family, though a few in the genus Cyclura may match or exceed it in weight. Adults typically grow to 1.2 to 1.7 m (3.9 to 5.6 ft) in length from head to tail.[8] As in all iguanas, the tail comprises much of this length, and the snout-to-vent length of most green iguanas is 30 to 42 cm (12 to 17 in). A typical adult male weighs around 4 kg (8.8 lb) while the smaller adult female typically weighs 1.2 to 3 kg (2.6 to 6.6 lb). A few large males can reach or exceed 8 kg (18 lb) in weight and 2 m (6.6 ft) long. Some specimens have even reportedly been measured at a body weight of greater than 9.1 kg (20 lb).
Despite their name, green iguanas occur in different colours and types. In southern countries of their range, such as Peru, green iguanas appear bluish in colour, with bold blue markings. On islands such as Bonaire, Curaçao, Aruba, and Grenada, a green iguana's colour may vary from green to lavender, black, and even reddish brown. Green iguanas from the western region of Costa Rica are red, and animals of the northern ranges, such as Mexico, appear orange. Juvenile green iguanas from El Salvador are often bright blue, but lose this color as they get older.
Adult iguanas found on most of St. Lucia, mainly on the northeastern coast, Louvette, and Grand Anse, have many differences from other green iguana populations. They are light green with predominant black stripes. Instead of the typical orange dewlap, the iguanas of St. Lucia have a black dewlap. When compared to the common green iguana, females lay about half the number of eggs, 25 instead of 50. Scales to the back of their head, near the jawbone, are smaller. Their irises are white or cream, whereas other green iguanas have yellow irises.
Green iguanas possess a row of spines along their backs and tails, which helps to protect them from predators. Their whip-like tails can be used to deliver painful strikes, and like many other lizards, when grabbed by the tail, iguanas can allow it to break, so they can escape and eventually regenerate a new one. In addition, iguanas have a well-developed dewlap, which helps regulate their body temperature. This dewlap is used in courtships and territorial displays.
Green iguanas have excellent vision, enabling them to detect shapes and motions at long distances.[37] As green iguanas have only a few rod cells, they have poor vision in low-light conditions. At the same time, they have cells called double-cone cells that give them sharp color vision and enable them to see ultraviolet wavelengths. This ability is highly useful when basking so they can ensure they absorb enough sunlight to produce vitamin D.
Green iguanas have a white photosensory organ on the top of their heads called the parietal eye (also called the third eye, pineal eye, or pineal gland), in contrast to most other lizards that have lost this primitive feature. This "eye" has only a rudimentary retina and lens and cannot form images, but is sensitive to changes in light and dark and can detect movement. This helps the iguana detect predators stalking it from above.
Green iguanas have very sharp teeth that are capable of shredding leaves and even human skin. These teeth are shaped like a leaf, broad and flat, with serrations on the edge. The similarity of these teeth to those of one of the first dinosaurs discovered led to the dinosaur being named Iguanodon, meaning "iguana tooth", and the incorrect assumption that it had resembled a gigantic iguana. The teeth are situated on the inner sides of the jawbones, which is why they are hard to see in smaller specimens.
Primarily herbivorous, green iguanas are presented with a special problem for osmoregulation; plant matter contains more potassium and as it has less dense nutritional content, more must be eaten to meet metabolic needs. As green iguanas are not capable of creating liquid urine more concentrated than their bodily fluids, like birds they excrete nitrogenous wastes as urate salts through a salt gland. As a result, green iguanas have developed a lateral nasal gland to supplement renal salt secretion by expelling excess potassium and sodium chlorides.
Green iguanas from Guatemala and southern Mexico (which may belong to the distinct species I. rhinolopha) predominantly have small horns on their snouts between their eyes and their nostrils, whereas others do not.
Reproductive biology
Male green iguanas have highly developed femoral pores on the underside of their thighs, which secrete a scent (females have femoral pores, but they are smaller in comparison to those of the males). In addition, the dorsal spines that run along a green iguana's back are noticeably longer and thicker in males than they are in females, making the animals somewhat sexually dimorphic.
Male green iguanas tend to display more dominant behaviors, such as head bobbing and tail whipping. They also tend to develop a taller dorsal crest than females, as well as taller dorsal spines (or spikes). Large, round, very pronounced jowls are generally a male characteristic. Jowls are located under the jaw and are protected by the subtympanic plate, which is a large, green, circular-shaped scale.
Green iguanas are oviparous, with females laying clutches of 20 to 71 eggs once per year during a synchronized nesting period. The female green iguana gives no parental protection after egg laying, apart from defending the nesting burrow during excavation. In Panama, the green iguana has been observed sharing nest sites with American crocodiles, and in Honduras with spectacled caimans.
The hatchlings emerge from the nest after 10–15 weeks of incubation. Once hatched, the young iguanas look similar to the adults in color and shape, resembling adult females more so than males and lacking dorsal spines.
Juveniles stay in familial groups for the first year of their lives. Male green iguanas in these groups often use their own bodies to shield and protect females from predators, and it appears to be the only species of reptile to do this.
Behavior
When frightened by a predator, green iguanas attempt to flee, and if near a body of water, dive into it and swim away. If cornered by a threat, the green iguana extends and displays the dewlap under its neck, stiffens and puffs up its body, hisses, and bobs its head at the aggressor. If the threat persists, the iguana can lash with its tail, bite, and use its claws in defense. The wounded are more inclined to fight than uninjured prey.
Green iguanas use "head bobs" and dewlaps in a variety of ways in social interactions, such as greeting another iguana or to court a possible mate.[8] The frequency and number of head bobs have particular meanings to other iguanas.
Green iguanas are hunted by predatory birds, and their fear of these is exploited as a ploy to catch them in the wild. A hunter imitates the sound of a hawk by whistling or screaming, causing the iguana to freeze and making its capture easier.
Diet
Green iguanas are primarily herbivores, with captives feeding on leaves such as turnip, mustard, and dandelion greens, flowers, fruit, and growing shoots of upwards of 100 different species of plant. In Panama, one of the green iguana's favorite foods is the wild plum (Spondias mombin).
Although they consume a wide variety of foods if offered, green iguanas are naturally herbivorous and require a precise ratio of minerals (two to one calcium to phosphorus) in their diet. Captive iguanas must have a variety of leafy greens along with fruits and vegetables such as turnip greens, collard greens, butternut squash, acorn squash, mango, and parsnip. Juvenile iguanas often eat feces from adults to acquire the essential microflora to digest their low-quality and hard-to-process vegetation-only diet.
Some debate exists as to whether captive green iguanas should be fed animal protein. Some evidence shows wild iguanas eating grasshoppers and tree snails, usually as a byproduct of eating plant material. Wild adult green iguanas have been observed eating birds' eggs and chicks. They occasionally eat a small amount of carrion or invertebrates. Zoologists, such as Adam Britton, believe that such a diet containing protein is unhealthy for the animal's digestive system, resulting in severe long-term health damage, including kidney failure and leading to premature death. On the other side of the argument is that green iguanas at the Miami Seaquarium in Key Biscayne, Florida, have been observed eating dead fish, and individuals kept in captivity have been known to eat mice without any ill effects. De Vosjoli writes that captive animals have been known to survive and thrive on eating nothing but whole rodent block, or monkey chow, and one instance of romaine lettuce with vitamin and calcium supplements. When found in unnatural habitats, especially those of high human population, they have also been known to feed on human garbage and poultry feces. Captive iguanas should not be fed lettuce or meat, and instead receive the vitamins and minerals they need from a purely herbivorous diet.
As an invasive species
Caribbean
In the aftermath of Hurricane Luis and Hurricane Marilyn in 1995, a raft of uprooted trees carrying 15 or more green iguanas landed on the eastern side of Anguilla – an island where green iguanas had never been recorded before. These iguanas were apparently accidentally caught on the trees and rafted 320 km (200 mi) across the ocean from Guadeloupe, where green iguanas are an introduced species. Examination of the weather patterns and ocean currents indicated that the iguanas had probably spent three weeks at sea before arriving on Anguilla. Evidence of this new colony breeding on the island was found within two years of its arrival.
In February 2012, the government of Puerto Rico proposed that the islands' iguanas, which were said to have a population of 4 million and considered to be a non-native nuisance, be eradicated and sold for meat.
Iguanas have especially established introduced populations on islands in the Lesser Antilles, such as most of the French West Indies, Sint Eustatius, and Dominica.
Fiji
The green iguana is present as an invasive species on some of the islands of Fiji, where it is known as the American iguana. It poses a threat to the native iguanas through the potential spread of disease and to humans by spreading Salmonella. They were initially brought to Qamea in 2000 by an American who wanted them to eat the numerous insects on the island, although they are primarily herbivorous. They are now on the islands of Laucala, Matagi and Taveuni.
United States
The green iguana is established on Oahu and Maui, Hawaii, as a feral invasive species, despite strict legislation banning the importation of any reptiles, and in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. As most reptiles carry Salmonella spp., this is a concern and a reason legislation has been sought to regulate the trade in green iguanas.
Due to a combination of events, the green iguana is considered an invasive species in South Florida, and is found along the east coast, as well as the Gulf Coast, of Florida from Key West to Pinellas County. The original small populations in the Florida Keys were stowaways on ships carrying fruit from South America. Over the years, other iguanas were introduced into the wild, mostly originating through the pet trade. Some escaped and some were intentionally released by their owners; these iguanas survived and then thrived in their new habitat. They commonly hide in the attics of houses and on beaches. They often destroy gardens and landscaping. They seem to be fond of eating a native endangered plant, Cordia globosa, and feeding on nickernut (Caesalpinia) a primary food plant of the endangered Miami blue butterfly (Cyclargus thomasi bethunebakeri); additionally on Marco Island, green iguanas have been observed using the burrows of the Florida burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia floridana), a species of special concern, all of which can make them more of a serious threat to Florida's ecosystem than originally believed. Currently, the damage green iguanas have caused has become significant and expected to increase, but controversy remains on how to deal with the problem.
In January 2008, large numbers of iguanas established in Florida dropped from the trees in which they lived, due to unseasonably cold nights that put them in a state of torpor and caused them to lose their grip on the tree branches. Though no specific numbers were provided by local wildlife officials, local media described the phenomenon as a "frozen iguana shower" in which dozens "littered" local bike paths. Upon the return of daytime warmth, many (but not all) of the iguanas "woke up" and resumed their normal activities. This occurred again in January 2010, January 2018, and December 2020 after prolonged cold fronts once again hit southern Florida.
Other countries
Iguanas are also present in Ishigaki Island, Singapore, Thailand, and Taiwan.
Captivity
Green iguanas are by far the most globally traded reptiles, representing 46% of the total reptile trade in the US from 1996 and 2012, with annual imports reaching 1 million in 1996. The American pet trade has put a great demand on the green iguana; 800,000 iguanas were imported into the U.S. in 1995 alone, primarily originating from captive farming operations based in their native countries (Honduras, El Salvador, Colombia, and Panama). However, these animals are demanding to care for properly over their lifetimes, and many die within a few years of acquisition.
Recently, an increase in illegal trading has been identified, and a trade ban for transport within and out from the Lesser Antilles was suggested.
Green iguanas thrive only in temperatures of 79 °F (26 °C) to 95 °F (35 °C) and must have appropriate sources of UVB and UVA lighting, or else their bodies cannot produce vitamin D that promotes calcium absorption, which can result in a metabolic bone disease that can be fatal. In some locales (such as New York City and Hawaii), iguanas are considered exotic pets, and ownership is prohibited. Due to the potential impact of an introduced species on Hawaii's ecosystem, the state has strict regulations regarding the import and possession of green iguanas; violators can spend three years in jail and be fined up to $200,000.
Conservation
The green iguana is listed under Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), meaning that international trade is regulated through the CITES permit system. In addition, the green iguana is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN, with a mention of habitat depletion from development being a possible concern for green iguana populations in the future. Historically, green iguana meat and eggs have been eaten as a source of protein throughout their native range, and are prized for their alleged medicinal and aphrodisiac properties. Efforts to raise green iguanas in the past have been made to raise green iguanas in captivity as a food source in an attempt to encourage more sustainable land use in Panama and Costa Rica.
In 2020, iguana researchers collaborated to create an extended and 'live' database on genetic variation within the green iguana. The intent of the database is primarily to guide population management, hybrid identification, and monitoring of invasions and illegal trade.
Cultural references
The Moche people of ancient Peru worshipped animals and often depicted green iguanas in their art. The green iguana and its relative the black iguana (Ctenosaura similis) have been used as a food source in Central and South America for the past 7,000 years. It is possible that some of the populations in the Caribbean were translocated there from the mainland by various tribes as a food source. In Central and South America, green iguanas are still used as a source of meat and are often referred to as gallina de palo ("bamboo chicken" or "chicken of the tree"), because they are said to taste like chicken.
The weasel is a cute looking wee mammal but in reality they are fierce little creatures! They need to eat half their bodyweight in food every day so they are a fearsome predator!
Jersey cattle are a small breed of dairy cattle. Originally bred in the Channel Island of Jersey, the breed is popular for the high butterfat content of its milk and the lower maintenance costs attending its lower bodyweight, as well as its genial dispo…jersey cows
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The Goldcrest (Regulus regulus) is a tiny kinglet of conifer woodland, scrub, parks and gardens. In autumn, resident birds are joined by large numbers on migration; they arrive on the east coast and are often found in bushes on sand dunes. The goldcrest is widespread in the UK, apart from in areas which are treeless, such as fens and northern Scotland. In winter, it joins other tits and woodland birds in flocks. Although it is our smallest songbird, it can lay up to 12 eggs in a clutch, which is about one and a half times the adult female's bodyweight. Photo by Nick Dobbs, Bournemouth 17-02-17
Just in case you're in doubt … here's the same bird flying away shortly afterwards!
I took my camera out with the biggish lens on it, in the faint hope of spotting something a bit further away and lucky me!
Mind you, that lens is a heavy beast … weighing over 5 lbs it's about 5% of my bodyweight, and thus hard to focus, specially with Pup wanting to move on! 😁
I phase through the jewellery store's door, smashing through a glass display table as I go.
Moth runs forwards, but before he can even react, I send a fist into his face, causing him to drop his spoils and fly backwards towards another table, which in moments is reduced to shards of glass under his bodyweight.
He fumbles around, unable to see due to the mask covering his eyes, and shouts out.
"AH, DAMMIT! C'MON! IS THAT ALL YOU'VE-"
I grab him by the collar and haul him to his feet, and before he can make another sound I uppercut him in the jaw. He spins backwards, the mask flying off his head, and lands on the shards of the ruined table.
Satisfied he won't be making any sudden movements, I leave Moth and turn to M'gann, crouching in the corner.
Thanks to her quick thinking, it seems she was able to lower her body mass and let the bullets simply pass through her.
I kneel next to her and place my hand on her back.
"It's alright, M'gann."
She looks up to me, then lets out a relieved sigh.
"I'm sorry J'onn, I...I tried, I really did, but...I managed to get the bullets to phase through me..."
She brings her hands up to her face, then drops her head and begins to sob.
"Don't worry."
I hear the sound of broken glass from behind me, then turn to see Moth reaching out for his bag. I take a step forwards, placing my feet directly in front of his face, then look down.
"Any sensible man would have gone for the gun first."
He strains his neck and looks up, shocks of unwashed black hair hanging over his eyes.
"Ah shit..."
"Indeed."
I look back at M'gann, now crouching in the same spot as before, then look out the window to see the lights of a police patrol car.
"How convenient."
The door bursts open and two of my colleagues from the Denver police enter. Officer Riles, gun trained on Mr Moth, walks forwards and looks at me.
"Oh. It's you."
Riles lowers his gun as his partner walks in, a man I know from the DPD as Officer Richardson, and he moves around and cuffs Moth - who by now has realised his best bet is to sit silently.
Not realising his work colleague is stood before him in natural form, Riles moves forward to join his partner and begins to speak into the radio hanging from his shirt.
"This is dispatch - situation is under control, it appears we've had help from the Martian Manhunter."
He looks up at me and continues.
"Suspect seems to be our old pal Harper Merridew...Yeah, same job as last time... Yeah, he's-"
Harper Merridew, who I assume is Mr Moth, stirs on the ground as Officer Richardson hauls him to his feet.
"Don't call me that! It's Mr Moth now!"
Riles nods condescendingly at Merridew and continues to speak into his radio.
"Yeah, the register's been looted; same job as usual... Yeah, alright. We'll be on our way."
Riles lets go of the radio and looks back to me and M'gann, who has now got up off the floor and is stood alongside me.
He scratches his neck awkwardly then looks at me.
"Well, uh...thanks, I guess."
He nods sharply then exits the store with Merridew in tow.
M'gann waits until we are alone, then turns to me.
"I'm sorry."
"Whatever for?"
She looks down.
"I screwed up. I thought I could handle him, but... I was wrong. And it nearly got me killed."
I sigh.
"Don't ever be sorry, M'gann. You are learning; that is nothing to be sorry about."
She shrugs.
"These are only the first steps. Mistakes will be made."
She looks up.
"If I have taught you anything, M'gann, it's that if something is easy to do, it is not worth doing. Just remember that."
She nods, and I turn to the door.
"You know, you've got some decent moves. For an old man, of course."
I have to laugh. Even in the face of defeat, M'gann remains as strong as ever.
I smile at her.
"I'm not old, M'gann. Just wise."
She laughs.
"An important lesson has been learnt toady, one that will remain with you for the rest of your life. No matter what else you learn in your time here, this will always stay with you - always. Now come, let's not hang about here."
And with that, we exit the store and make our way into the late afternoon sunlight of the city.
The term 'peacock' is commonly used to refer to birds of both sexes. Technically, only males are peacocks, females are peahens, and together, they are called peafowl.
Blue or Indian peacocks are members of the pheasant family, known for their iridescent tails. The peacocks brilliant ‘train’ contains over 200 shimmering feathers of bronze and green, each one decorated with eyespots. Their long trains are not the tail quill feathers but elongated upper tail feather coverts.
Peacocks weigh between 9 and 13 lbs. (4 to 5.9 kg) have a 35 to 50 in. (90 to 130 cm) body and a 60 in. (150 cm) 150-cm (60-inch) train with iridescent colouring of blue and green on its head, neck and breast. Both males and females have sharp, powerful metatarsal spurs also known as ‘kicking thorns’ which they use to defend themselves against predators. Their legs are strong but because their wing surface to bodyweight ratio is not large they are incapable of long flights.
Peafowl are mainly ground dwelling birds preferring forests and farmland. They can also be found in bushlands and rainforests. Many will nest on the ground while some will roost in trees. They are ground feeding omnivores. they scratching around in leaf litter either early in the morning or at dusk to find food then retreat to the shade and security of the woods for the hottest portion of the day. They eat mostly plants, flower petals, seed heads and actively hunt insects like ants, crickets, termites, millipedes and other arthropods and small mammals. Blue peafowl also eat small snakes.
Domesticated peafowl may also eat bread and cracked grain such as oats and corn, cheese, cooked rice and sometimes cat food. It has been noticed by keepers that peafowl enjoy protein rich food including larvae that infest granaries, different kinds of meat and fruit, as well as vegetables including dark leafy greens, broccoli, carrots, beans, beets, and peas.
Blue peacocks, though native to the warm and humid climates of India and Sri Lanka can survive northern winters. The life span of a healthy peafowl can be 40 to 50 years.
The blue peafowls conservation status is LC (least concern).
The green iguana (Iguana iguana), also known as the American iguana or the common green iguana, is a large, arboreal, mostly herbivorous species of lizard of the genus Iguana. Usually, this animal is simply called the iguana. The green iguana ranges over a large geographic area; it is native from southern Brazil and Paraguay as far north as Mexico, and has been introduced from South America to Puerto Rico and is very common throughout the island, where it is colloquially known as gallina de palo ("bamboo chicken" or "chicken of the tree") and considered an invasive species; in the United States, feral populations also exist in South Florida (including the Florida Keys), Hawaii, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.[6][7] Green iguanas have also successfully colonised the island of Anguilla, arriving on the island in 1995 after rafting across the Caribbean from Guadeloupe, where they were introduced.
A herbivore, it has adapted significantly with regard to locomotion and osmoregulation as a result of its diet. It grows to 1.5 m (4.9 ft) in length from head to tail, although a few specimens have grown more than 2 m (6.6 ft) with bodyweights upward of 20 lb (9.1 kg).
Commonly found in captivity as a pet due to its calm disposition and bright colors, it can be very demanding to care for properly. Space requirements and the need for special lighting and heat can prove challenging to the hobbyist.
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The Green Iguana or Common Iguana (Iguana iguana) is a large, arboreal herbivorous species of lizard of the genus Iguana native to Central and South America. The green iguana ranges over a large geographic area, from southern Brazil and Paraguay to as far north as Mexico and the Caribbean Islands; and in the United States as feral populations in South Florida (including the Florida Keys), Hawaii, and the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.
A herbivore, it has adapted significantly with regard to locomotion and osmoregulation as a result of its diet. It grows to 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) in length from head to tail, although a few specimens have grown more than 2 metres (6.6 ft) with bodyweights upward of 20 pounds (9.1 kg).
Commonly found in captivity as a pet due to its calm disposition and bright colors, it can be demanding to care for properly. Space requirements and the need for special lighting and heat can prove challenging to an amateur hobbyist
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It's been a long time coming, but I finally came across some sleeping Blue Banded Bees;
It's always amazed me how these thing sleep like they do... hanging off the end of a dead stem or similar and supporting their bodyweight with just the grip of their jaws (I guess you'd call them).
Miami Beach verfügt über 6 Trainingsorte in der ganzen Stadt. Egal, ob man Bodyweight-Training, Outdoor-Fitness oder Crossfit machen möchte und nach einem kostenlosen öffentlichen Fitnessstudio mit Klimmzugstange in Miami Beach sucht, hier ist man genau richtig.
Miami Beach has 6 workout places all around the city. Whether you do bodyweight exercise, outdoor fitness, or crossfit and you're looking for a free public gym with pull up bar in Miami Beach, you're at the right place.
Details best viewed in Original Size.
We were driving down the Ding Darling wildlife drive when I spotted in the distance what I first thought was a monitor lizard. As I got closer I could tell that it was a full grown adult Green Iguana recently introduced to Florida by the unscrupulous pet trade and pet owners and by corrupt politicians who ignore the damage that exotic animals do to native species and their habitat and who allow the trade in these exotic species to continue.
According to Wikipedia, the Green Iguana also known as common iguana or American iguana, is a large, arboreal, mostly herbivorous species of lizard native to Central, South America, and the Caribbean. Usually, this animal is simply called the iguana. The Green Iguana ranges over a large geographic area, from southern Brazil and Paraguay as far north as Mexico and the Caribbean Islands. They have been introduced from South America to Puerto Rico and are very common throughout the island, where they are colloquially known as "Gallina de palo" and considered an invasive species; in the United States feral populations also exist in South Florida (including the Florida Keys), Hawaii, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. An herbivore, it has adapted significantly with regard to locomotion and osmoregulation as a result of its diet. It grows to 5 feet (1.5m) in length from head to tail, although a few specimens have grown more than 6.6 feet (2m) with bodyweights upward of 20 pounds (9.1 kg). Commonly found in captivity as a pet due to its calm disposition and bright colors, it can be very demanding to care for properly. Space requirements and the need for special lighting and heat can prove challenging to an amateur hobbyist.
The green iguana (Iguana iguana), also known as common iguana or American iguana, is a large, arboreal, mostly herbivorous species of lizard of the genus Iguana native to Central, South America, and the Caribbean. Usually, this animal is simply called the iguana. The green iguana ranges over a large geographic area, from southern Brazil and Paraguay as far north as Mexico and the Caribbean Islands.
An herbivore, it has adapted significantly with regard to locomotion and osmoregulation as a result of its diet. It grows to 1.5 meters (4.9 ft) in length from head to tail, although a few specimens have grown more than 2 metres (6.6 ft) with bodyweights upward of 20 pounds (9.1 kg).
Green iguanas are diurnal, arboreal, and are often found near water. Agile climbers, Iguana iguana can fall up to 50 feet (15 m) and land unhurt (iguanas use their hind leg claws to clasp leaves and branches to break a fall). During cold, wet weather, green iguanas prefer to stay on the ground for greater warmth. When swimming, an iguana remains submerged, letting its four legs hang limply against its side. They propel through the water with powerful tail strokes.
In South and Central America, where the green iguana is native, it is an endangered species in some countries because people have been hunting and eating this “chicken of the trees” for a long time.
This image was taken at the Colombian National Aviary, near Cartagena in Columbia.