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This is an immature cooper's hawk perched and looking for its next victim at the Gilbert, AZ Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch.
The American bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) is a very large native frog to southern and eastern parts of the United States and Canada. This frog is an introduced species to California where it is an apex predator with a voracious appetite. Bullfrogs eat anything they can catch including other amphibians, reptiles, rodents, crayfish, birds, and even bats.
I think anybody with an insecurity, which is everyone, appreciates the fact that it's much easier to be a predator than it is to be prey.
James Van Der Beek
I was allowed to look deeply into the eyes of this beautiful red kite (Milvus milvus). I'm not sure if he looked at me with interest or friendly:-O.
• Fennec fox
• Fénec, feneco, zorro del desierto
The fennec fox (Vulpes zerda) is a small crepuscular fox native to the deserts of North Africa, ranging from Western Sahara and Mauritania to the Sinai Peninsula. Its most distinctive feature is its unusually large ears, which serve to dissipate heat and listen for underground prey.
Its name comes from the species' Arabic name: fanak (فَنَك), which means "little fox".
Scientific classification:
Domain:Eukaryota
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Chordata
Class:Mammalia
Order:Carnivora
Infraorder:Cynoidea
Family:Canidae
Subfamily:Caninae
Tribe:Vulpini
Genus:Vulpes
Species:V. zerda
The fennec is the smallest fox species. Its coat, ears, and kidney functions have adapted to the desert environment with high temperatures and little water. It mainly eats insects, small mammals and birds. The fennec has a life span of up to 14 years in captivity and about 10 years in the wild. Its main predators are the Verreaux's eagle-owl, jackals and other large mammals. Fennec families dig out burrows in the sand for habitation and protection, which can be as large as 120 m2 (1,300 sq ft) and adjoin the burrows of other families. Precise population figures are not known but are estimated from the frequency of sightings; these indicate that the fennec is currently not threatened by extinction. Knowledge of social interactions is limited to information gathered from captive animals. The fennec's fur is prized by the indigenous peoples of North Africa, and it is considered an exotic pet in some parts of the world.
In captive fennec foxes, glaucoma is a common eye disease. Its prevalence in captive animals is due to factors like genetic predisposition (limited genetic diversity), environmental stress, lack of exercise, and age (captive animals often live longer).
Oasis Wildlife Fuerteventura, La Lajita, Fuerteventura, Islas Canarias
Look closely and you'll see a ring of silver inside the hole. It is a large fender washer. Putting it in that location will prevent squirrels from gnawing open the hole so they can get at the eggs or hatchlings. In this box, since it's being used by Chickadees (and they didn't mind my adding this while they had eggs inside), the opening is 1.25 inches. A bluebird needs 1.5 inches.
The sun was dropping and my wife and I were driving back to the exit of the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge. At that point, our eyes were still open for something exciting, but we never expected what we saw next. Suddenly, my wife yelled out, "eagle." A juvenile Bald Eagle had just plunged into the water and was in the process of capturing a Ring-necked Duck. That struggle caused the eagle's entire body to be submerged in the water except for his flapping wings. After he seized the duck, the eagle flew to one of the few spots still in full sun. And the sun was behind us. This was a major break. Needless to say, it was breathtaking to experience, but also very sad because we love ducks. It was so hard for us to watch the eagle ripping at the duck and, finally, flying away with it. This is one of three in a series.
Carrizo Plain National Monument, San Luis Obispo County, California, USA.
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Prehistoric carnivore/dinosaur statue seen in front of The Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia.
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Foxes are skilled hunters, so it is unfortunate that they can so quickly become scavengers of human garbage.
Their prey typically consists of small rodents and animals up to rabbit size. Foxes have excellent senses and use them all while hunting, including their ability to sense changes in magnetic fields. When mice are under the snow, foxes pinpoint their precise location by sensing an infinitesimal change in magnetic field and pounce to that location.
Foxes are closely related to dogs but interestingly have eyes and retractable claws like cats.
Keep foxes hunting.... don't feed the wildlife!
Another shot of yesterday's snake encounter. Snake is a non-venomous Kopstein's Bronzeback (Dendrelaphis kopsteini), and the poor lizard is most likely the Flying Lizard Draco formosus, able to change its colours to blend in with its surroundings.
In the ten-or-so minutes I stood taking photos of this scene - right from when the snake first captured the lizard (the sudden movement caught my attention), right up to the snake finally heading off into the undergrowth with only about half the lizard's long tail sticking out of it's mouth - I estimated that the snake was longer than my 178cm hight. Like other colubrid snakes (like the Asian vine snake) this one was quite skinny and had a very long tail. Interestingly, in all of the many shots I took yesterday, this snake's tail remained close to it's head the whole time it was trying to swallow this lizard.