View allAll Photos Tagged incisors
Elephants are the largest living land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana), the African forest elephant (L. cyclotis), and the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus). They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae and the order Proboscidea; extinct relatives include mammoths and mastodons. Distinctive features of elephants include a long proboscis called a trunk, tusks, large ear flaps, pillar-like legs, and tough but sensitive grey skin. The trunk is prehensile, bringing food and water to the mouth and grasping objects. Tusks, which are derived from the incisor teeth, serve both as weapons and as tools for moving objects and digging. The large ear flaps assist in maintaining a constant body temperature as well as in communication. African elephants have larger ears and concave backs, whereas Asian elephants have smaller ears and convex or level backs.
Always at work during the day, late in the evening... always at work. I'd take an early morning amble on the island to look at the mists and the coming of the first light, or later to enjoy the greens of the forest, and once again as the Sun set: always at work they were, the ground a constant movement of bits of green leaves, pink blossoms, various debris, smallish dead animals of all sorts. All being carried to their metropolitan home deep in the soil by these Red Leafcutter Ants, an Atta this, I think, possibly 'cephalotes' (look at that Big Head). Those incisors are really quite sharp, and it's amazing how quickly our Ants cut up leafy material into haulable pieces.
The Alabama Hills are a range of hills & rock formations near the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada in the Owens Valley, west of Lone Pine in Inyo County, California. Dozens of natural arches are among the features of the Alabama Hills, such as: Mobius Arch, Lathe Arch, the Eye of Alabama and Whitney Portal Arch.
The Alabama Hills were named for the CSS Alabama, a Confederate warship deployed during the American Civil War. When news of the ship's exploits reached prospectors in California sympathetic to the Confederates, they named many mining claims after the ship, and the name came to be applied to the entire range.
When the Alabama was finally sunk off the coast of Normandy by the USS Kearsarge in 1864, prospectors sympathetic to the Union named a mining district, a mountain pass, a mountain peak, and a town after the Kearsarge.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alabama_Hills
Through Mobius’ Arch are seen L to R: Lone Pine Peak, Peak, & then darker appearing incisor-shaped Crooks Needle & Keeler Needle followed by Mt. Whitney. Mt. Whitney is the highest mountain in the contiguous United States and the Sierra Nevada, with an elevation of 14,505 feet (4,421 m).
www.mountwhitneyforum.com/images/wpsmb-webcam1-legend.jpg
Fuji X-S10. Fuji XF 10-24mm f/4 R OIS. 10mm, f/4, 1/4000 sec, ISO 320.
Photographed in Botswana, Africa - From a boat, no cover
=> Please click twice on the image to see the largest size. <=
It was great to actually be in the water with this elephant in Botswana...but apparently our boat got closer than the guide should have taken it and the elephant let him know very clearly to not come any closer. Please notice that the photo is not a heavy crop...it was shot at 100mm.
Yesterday, August 12, 2022 was World Elephant Day!! nationaltoday.com/world-elephant-day/
Thanks for your visits and comments...much appreciated!
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From Wikipedia: The African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana), also known as the African savanna elephant, is one of two living African elephant species. It is the largest living terrestrial animal, with bulls reaching a shoulder height of up to 3.96 m (13 ft 0 in) and a body mass of up to 10.4 t (11.5 short tons). It is distributed across 37 African countries and inhabits forests, grasslands and woodlands, wetlands and agricultural land.
Diet:
The African bush elephant is herbivorous. Its diet consists mainly of grasses, creepers and herbs. Adults can consume up to 150 kg (330 lb) per day. During the dry season, the diet also includes leaves and bark.
Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are an informal grouping within the subfamily Elephantinae of the order Proboscidea; extinct non-elephant proboscideans include the mastodons, gomphotheres, and stegodonts. Elephantinae also contains several extinct groups, including the mammoths and straight-tusked elephants. African elephants have larger ears and concave backs, whereas Asian elephants have smaller ears, and convex or level backs. The distinctive features of all elephants include a long proboscis called a trunk, tusks, large ear flaps, massive legs, and tough but sensitive skin. The trunk is used for breathing, bringing food and water to the mouth, and grasping objects. Tusks, which are derived from the incisor teeth, serve both as weapons and as tools for moving objects and digging. The large ear flaps assist in maintaining a constant body temperature as well as in communication. The pillar-like legs carry their great weight.
Elephants are scattered throughout sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia and are found in different habitats, including savannahs, forests, deserts, and marshes. They are herbivorous, and they stay near water when it is accessible. They are considered to be keystone species, due to their impact on their environments. Elephants have a fission–fusion society, in which multiple family groups come together to socialise. Females (cows) tend to live in family groups, which can consist of one female with her calves or several related females with offspring. The groups, which do not include bulls, are usually led by the oldest cow, known as the matriarch.
Males (bulls) leave their family groups when they reach puberty and may live alone or with other males. Adult bulls mostly interact with family groups when looking for a mate. They enter a state of increased testosterone and aggression known as musth, which helps them gain dominance over other males as well as reproductive success. Calves are the centre of attention in their family groups and rely on their mothers for as long as three years. Elephants can live up to 70 years in the wild. They communicate by touch, sight, smell, and sound; elephants use infrasound, and seismic communication over long distances. Elephant intelligence has been compared with that of primates and cetaceans. They appear to have self-awareness, and appear to show empathy for dying and dead family members.
African bush elephants and Asian elephants are listed as endangered and African forest elephants as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). One of the biggest threats to elephant populations is the ivory trade, as the animals are poached for their ivory tusks. Other threats to wild elephants include habitat destruction and conflicts with local people. Elephants are used as working animals in Asia. In the past, they were used in war; today, they are often controversially put on display in zoos, or exploited for entertainment in circuses. Elephants are highly recognisable and have been featured in art, folklore, religion, literature, and popular culture.
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Masai Mara National Reserve
Kenya
East Africa
The spotted hyena is the most social of the Carnivora in that it has the largest group sizes and most complex social behaviors. Its social organization is unlike that of any other carnivore, bearing closer resemblance to that of cercopithecine primates (baboons and macaques) with respect to group-size, hierarchical structure, and frequency of social interaction among both kin and unrelated groupmates.
Cubs are born with soft, brownish black hair, and weigh 1.5 kg on average. Unique among carnivorous mammals, spotted hyenas are also born with their eyes open and with 6–7 mm long canine teeth and 4 mm long incisors. Also, cubs will attack each other shortly after birth. This is particularly apparent in same sexed litters and can result in the death of the weaker cub. – Wikipedia
African Elephants (Loxodonta africana) are the largest animals walking the Earth. Their herds wander through 37 countries in Africa. They are easily recognized by their trunk that is used for communication and handling objects. And their large ears allow them to radiate excess heat. Upper incisor teeth develop into tusks in African elephants and grow throughout their lifetime.
As with all wild equines, zebra have barrel-chested bodies with tufted tails, elongated faces and long necks with long, erect manes. Their elongated, slender legs end in a single spade-shaped toe covered in a hard hoof. Their dentition is adapted for grazing; they have large incisors that clip grass blades and highly crowned, ridged molars well suited for grinding. Males have spade-shaped canines, which can be used as weapons in fighting. The eyes of zebras are at the sides and far up the head, which allows them to see above the tall grass while grazing. Their moderately long, erect ears are movable and can locate the source of a sound.
Unlike horses, zebras and asses have chestnut callosities only on their front limbs. In contrast to other living equines, zebra forelimbs are longer than their back limbs. Diagnostic traits of the zebra skull include: its relatively small size with a straight profile, more projected eye sockets, narrower rostrum, reduced postorbital bar, a V-shaped groove separating the metaconid and metastylid of the teeth and both halves of the enamel wall being rounded.
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Sheepshead: Archosargus probatocephalus
Appearance:
Basic silvery color with 5 or 6 distinct vertical black bars on the sides; bars are not always the same on both sides
Prominent teeth, including incisors, molars and rounded grinders
No barbels on the lower jaw
Habitat:
Sheepshead are an inshore species and are commonly found around oyster bars, seawalls and in tidal creeks. They move nearshore during late winter and early spring for spawning.
Behavior:
Sheepshead are fractional spawners (they only lay a portion of their eggs at a time) in inshore waters, typically in March and April. They are omnivorous feeding mostly on crustaceans and small fish.
Source: myfwc.com
Elephants are the largest living land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana), the African forest elephant (L. cyclotis), and the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus). They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae and the order Proboscidea; extinct relatives include mammoths and mastodons. Distinctive features of elephants include a long proboscis called a trunk, tusks, large ear flaps, pillar-like legs, and tough but sensitive grey skin. The trunk is prehensile, bringing food and water to the mouth and grasping objects. Tusks, which are derived from the incisor teeth, serve both as weapons and as tools for moving objects and digging. The large ear flaps assist in maintaining a constant body temperature as well as in communication. African elephants have larger ears and concave backs, whereas Asian elephants have smaller ears and convex or level backs.
Elephants are scattered throughout sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia and are found in different habitats, including savannahs, forests, deserts, and marshes. They are herbivorous, and they stay near water when it is accessible. They are considered to be keystone species, due to their impact on their environments. Elephants have a fission–fusion society, in which multiple family groups come together to socialise. Females (cows) tend to live in family groups, which can consist of one female with her calves or several related females with offspring. The leader of a female group, usually the oldest cow, is known as the matriarch.
This hippo is performing a territorial or dominance display. with other members of his pod looking on....
This large incisors can reach up to 50 cm (1 ft 8 in). They play no role in eating. They are used for fighting, with bulls sometimes killing each other in territorial disputes.
“Truth has sharp teeth, so do not expect anything beautiful (to see) when it smiles to you.” ― Ratko Petrović
This sea otter was munching on one crab when it was first spotted. Then it dove down and disappeared - only to resurface with this treasure. Side note: in looking through all of my photos (and as can be seen in this one) it is missing its lower left incisor. Makes me wonder how that happened which led me to this article:https://www.montereybayaquarium.org/stories/learning-from-sea-otter-teeth
A redo of a image I had posted previously. This tine I used a single iRAW mage of a single 25 minutes exposure instead of doing HDR. Looking north from the southern end of Alabama Hills. Located in Lone Pine, CA. I call these rock formations "Tooth Rocks" as they look like some big incisors.
I haven't posted a photo of a yawning Hippo in a while. This one is from earlier this year...
The size of those incisors never fail to impress...
Feared by some, revered by others, the Aye-aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis) is surely one of Madagascar's most bizarre lemurs. Unique among primates, the Aye-aye's front incisors grow continuously like a rodent, leading to the early belief that they were some sort of gigantic nocturnal squirrel. Equally unusual are its long bony middle fingers which are used by the animal to tap tree trunks for the sound of insect grubs inside and then extract them like a fish hook. Unfortunately, Aye-ayes have become gravely endangered from habitat loss and persecution by people: they are often killed on sight due to the superstition that they are an omen of death. Tomasina, Madagascar.
Photographed in Tanzania, Africa from a safari vehicle
Please click twice on the image to view at the largest size
This very healthy-looking, Black-backed Jackal struck a pose that allowed me to capture an image showing how really handsome they are.
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From Wikipedia: The black-backed jackal (Lupulella mesomelas is a medium-sized canine native to eastern and southern Africa. These regions are separated by roughly 900 kilometers.
One region includes the southernmost tip of the continent, including South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe. The other area is along the eastern coastline, including Kenya, Somalia, Djibouti, Eritrea, and Ethiopia. It is listed by the IUCN as least concern, due to its widespread range and adaptability, although it is still persecuted as a livestock predator and rabies vector.
Compared to other members of the genus Canis, the black-backed jackal is a very ancient species, and has changed little since the Pleistocene, being the most basal wolf-like canine, alongside the closely related side-striped jackal. It is a fox-like animal with a reddish brown to tan coat and a black saddle that extends from the shoulders to the base of the tail. It is a monogamous animal, whose young may remain with the family to help raise new generations of pups. The black-backed jackal has a wide array of food sources, feeding on small to medium-sized animals, as well as plant matter and human refuse.
Description:
Skull and skeleton
The black-backed jackal is a fox-like canid with a slender body, long legs, and large ears. It is similar to the closely related side-striped jackal and more distantly related to the golden jackal, though its skull and dentition are more robust and the incisors much sharper. It weighs 6–13 kg (13–29 lb), stands 38–48 cm (15–19 in) at the shoulder, and measures 67.3–81.2 cm (26.5–32.0 in) in body length.
The base colour is reddish brown to tan, which is particularly pronounced on the flanks and legs. A black saddle intermixed with silvery hair extends from the shoulders to the base of the tail. A long, black stripe extending along the flanks separates the saddle from the rest of the body, and can be used to differentiate individuals. The tail is bushy and tipped with black. The lips, throat, chest, and inner surface of the limbs are white. The winter coat is a much deeper reddish brown. Albino specimens occasionally occur.
Diet: Black-backed jackals are omnivores, which feed on invertebrates, such as beetles, grasshoppers, crickets, termites, millipedes, spiders, and scorpions. They also feed on mammals, such as rodents, hares, and young antelopes up to the size of topi calves. They also feed on carrion, birds, lizards and snakes. A pair of black-backed jackals in the Kalahari desert was observed to kill a kori bustard, and on a separate occasion, a black mamba by prolonged harassment of the snake and crushing of the snake's head. Black-backed jackals occasionally feed on fruits and berries. It also feeds on eggs of birds. In coastal areas, they feed on beached marine mammals, seals, fish, and mussels. A single jackal is capable of killing a healthy adult impala. Adult dik-diks and Thomson's gazelles seem to be the upper limit of their killing capacity, though they target larger species if those are sick, with one pair having been observed to harass a crippled bull rhinoceros. They typically kill tall prey by biting at the legs and loins, and frequently go for the throat. In Serengeti woodlands, they feed heavily on African grass rats. In East Africa, during the dry season, they hunt the young of gazelles, impalas, topi, tsessebe, and warthogs. In South Africa, black-backed jackals frequently prey on antelopes (primarily impala and springbok and occasionally duiker, reedbuck, and steenbok), carrion, hares, hoofed livestock, insects, and rodents. They also prey on small carnivores, such as mongooses, polecats, and wildcats. On the coastline of the Namib Desert, jackals feed primarily on marine birds (mainly Cape and white-breasted cormorants and jackass penguins), marine mammals (including Cape fur seals), fish, and insects. Like most canids, the black-backed jackal caches surplus food.
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Island Of Madagascar
Off The East Coast of Africa
Palmarium Reserve
Endangered lemur photographed at night aided by a guide holding a spotlight.
The aye-aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis) is a lemur, a strepsirrhine primate native to Madagascar that combines rodent-like teeth that perpetually grow and a special thin middle finger.
It is the world's largest nocturnal primate, and is characterized by its unusual method of finding food; it taps on trees to find grubs, then gnaws holes in the wood using its forward slanting incisors to create a small hole in which it inserts its narrow middle finger to pull the grubs out.
From an ecological point of view the aye-aye fills the niche of a woodpecker, as it is capable of penetrating wood to extract the invertebrates within.
The aye-aye is the only extant member of the genus Daubentonia and family Daubentoniidae. It is currently classified as Endangered by the IUCN.
The aye-aye is an arboreal animal meaning that it spends most of its life high in the trees. Aye-ayes sleep, eat, travel and mate in the trees and are most commonly found close to the canopy where there is plenty of cover from the dense foliage. - Wikipedia
Foto 29: complesso del Tempio dei Guerrieri,
Chiken Itza, Mexico.
Foto del 2009
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NIENTE SOLDI, POCA GUERRA
Torniamo un po' sulla terra a raccontar di loro.
L'espansione dei Maya non avvenne come un Impero unitario,
ma attraverso la fondazione di numerose città-stato, le quali,
nonostante la lingua e la religione comune,
rimanevano molto indipendenti tra loro.
Addirittura non sono mai sorte grandi rivalità o guerre intestine.
All'interno di questi centri urbani,
la vita era regolata da un'élite,
una classe dominante di nobili e sacerdoti,
al di sopra dei quali stava un re che veniva venerato come un semidio.
Il resto dei comuni cittadini era composto perlopiù da coltivatori di mais.
Cereale, allora, ancora sconosciuto nel resto del pianeta.
Fagioli, cacao, mais e monili erano gli elementi alla base della vita quotidiana e del commercio.
Erano abili incisori,
per fortuna sono numerosi i reperti su pietra giunti fino a noi con iscrizioni ad adornare i templi.
Straordinari intagliatori d'oro,
metallo che però ebbe un valore esclusivamente decorativo,
poiché nella loro cultura non era contemplato il denaro.
Quindi, udite udite, non aveva un costo.
Comincio a capire come mai questo popolo ha guerreggiato poco.
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© Il testo e la foto sono di esclusiva proprietà dell'autore, Stefano Paradossi, che ne detiene i diritti e ne vieta qualsiasi utilizzo da parte di terzi. La foto fa parte dell'Archivio Fotografico della famiglia Paradossi.
© The text and the picture are of exclusive property of the author, Stefano Paradossi, who owns the rights and prohibits any use by third parties. The image is part of the Photo Archive of the Paradossi family.
Blue Hour T-Rex-image
#Smile on Saturday
Proud of his Shiny Incisors ! and Scary Meat Eater
**Portraying the name of a Band**theme
English psychedelic Rock Band 1967-70. Marc Bolan was band leader and song writer. Their song "Bang a Gong" was a favorite long after 1970.
This steel T-rex is most grey with shiny teeth, I've wanted to add other colors with strobe on this subject for a long time.
Sad remains of another little Antechinus (small marsupial mouse) killed on the back roads. I let the "bugs" clean it up then I can show the tiny bones to the children at work (Early Childhood Centre).
"Small native carnivorous marsupial, greyish-brown above and paler below. Long pointed head with bulging eyes and four pairs of small sharp incisor teeth. Ears are large, thin and crinkly with a notch in the margin. Tail is the same length as the body or shorter and is sparsely haired. Body: 70 mm - 140 mm; It weighs up 71 grams."
Macro Mondays: Dried
Masai Mara National Reserve
Kenya
East Africa
Reasons for the open mouth stance of Hippos -
Being such large, thick skinned animals they have to have a large gape and long 'tushes' to have any effect on a challenger. With their heads above water, the bulls frequently open their mouths wide as a show of dominance.
Whether intentionally or not this shows off their weaponry. The gape is certainly not used in the feeding process as they seldom, if ever, eat vegetation other than short grass and occasionally other plants. They lack cutting incisors and 'crop' the short vegetation with their broad, stiff lips.
Being communal animals, the adapted, forward facing 'tushlike' bottom incisors are sometimes used for 'poking' away others in the group to make space. The enlarged canines, which are very sharply honed top on bottom, are solely used as defensive weapons - the only weapons (apart from their bulk) that they have.
To bring these huge 'tushes' to effect they need to open their mouths wide. Although the females, with relatively smaller 'tushes', rarely become involved in territorial disputes they do have to be able to defend themselves (and will do so when necessary) and their young from large crocodiles and herd competition.
On Explore - October 19, 2022 - Thanks to all my Flickr friends!
Like most red squirrels, spotting a Caucasian Squirrel is definitely becoming a rare sight. Climate change affects nature differently in every corner of the world.
The last time I came across the local squirrels was at the beginning of July. Due to the extreme heat in the region, Caucasian Squirrels are certain to spend very hot hours in their nests. Because I haven't been seen them around very often for more than 2 months.
Today, it was cloudy weather in the North Aegean Region of Türkiye the strong North wind was shaking the olive branches.
I was walking in an olive grove and patiently waiting to see the Caucasian Squirrel. After waiting for about an hour the reward came. Group of squirrels were playing around the pomegranate trees 100 meters in front of me. I was under the olive tree with a wide trunk. I didn't move, waiting for them to climb the centuries-old olive trees and retreat to their den inside the follow in the middle of the tree.
I saw the Mr & Mrs Caucasian Squirrel couple enter their century-old olive tree hollow. I move and started to wait next olive tree trunk, which is about 7 meters away. I had already begun to wait silently for 30 minutes when the male Caucasian Squirrel noticed my presence immediately. Curious male took out his head first, then his half body checked and after making sure then female followed him.
The moment I had been waiting for a long time happened in front of me. Even though I was wearing a camouflage cover, they were aware of my presence. I had to use 1.4 TC for close-up when the light was enough.
Today they made me very happy. I hope you wouldn't mind 14 series of Caucasian Squirrel photos and you'll like it just as much as I do.
The Caucasian squirrel - Sciurus anomalus ; The Caucasian squirrel or Persian squirrel, is a tree squirrel in the genus Sciurus found in temperate broadleaf and mixed forests in south-western Asia.
The species is usually said to have first been described in 1778 by Johann Friedrich Gmelin in the 13th edition of Systema Naturae,and named Sciurus anomalus. However, some authors argue that this work was actually published in 1788, and that the true first description was made by Johann Anton Güldenstädt in 1785.
Description -
Caucasian squirrels are small tree squirrels, with a total length of 32 to 36 cm (13 to 14 in), including the 13 to 18 cm (5.1 to 7.1 in) tail, and weighing 250 to 410 g (8.8 to 14.5 oz). The color of the upper body fur ranges from greyish brown to pale grey, depending on the subspecies, while that of the underparts is rusty brown to yellowish, and that of the tail, yellow brown to deep red. The claws are relatively short, compared with those of other tree squirrels, and females have either eight or ten teats.
Samuel Griswold Goodrich described the Caucasian squirrel in 1885 as "Its color is grayish-brown above, and yellowish-brown below".
Physical Description -
Caucasian squirrels have a dental formula of incisors 1/1, canines 0/0, premolars 1/1, and molars 3/3, totaling 20. They have four fingered fore feet and five fingered hind feet. Sex differences in body length or mass are not evident.
Distribution and habitat -
Caucasian squirrels are native to south-western Asia, where they are found from Turkey, and the islands of Gökçeada and Lesbos in the west, Iran in the southeast, and as far as Israel and Jordan in the south.It is one of only two species of the genus Sciurus to be found on Mediterranean islands,and, although Eurasian red squirrels have been recently introduced to some areas, is the only species of Sciurus native to the wider region.
The species mainly lives in forested areas dominated by oak, pine, and pistachio, up to altitudes of 2,000 metres (6,600 ft).
Biology and behavior -
The squirrels are diurnal, and solitary, although temporary groups may forage where food is plentiful. Their diet includes nuts, seeds, tree shoots, and buds,with the seeds of oak and pine being particularly favored. Like many other squirrels, they cache their food within tree cavities or loose soil, with some larders containing up to 6 kg (13 lb) of seeds. They live in trees, where they make their dens, but frequently forage on the ground, and are considered less arboreal than Eurasian red squirrels. They commonly nest in tree hollows lined with moss and leaves, and located 5 to 14 m (16 to 46 ft) above the ground, but nests are also sometimes found under rocks or tree roots. Their alarm call is high-pitched, and said to resemble the call of the European green woodpecker, and they mark their territories with urine and dung.
Breeding occurs throughout the year, but is more common in spring or autumn. Litters range from two to seven, with three or four being typical, and the young are fully mature by five or six months of age.
Conservation -
A survey in 2008 found that the species remained abundant within Turkey, however declines are noted in population within the Levant region. The guides for a survey in 1993 in Israel stated that they considered the species to be nearly extinct within the area studied. Whilst the Caucasian squirrel is threatened by poaching and deforestation, the declines recorded are not sufficient to qualify them as anything other than "Least Concern" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.[1] Hunting of the species is banned by the Central Hunting Commission, and the Caucasian squirrel is protected by the Bern Convention and the EU Habitats Directive.
This information is sourced from "Wikipedia".
Thank you so much for visiting my stream, whether you comments , favorites or just have a look.
I appreciate it very much, wishing the best of luck and good light.
© All rights reserved R.Ertug Please do not use this image without my explicit written permission. Contact me by Flickr mail if you want to buy or use Your comments and critiques are very well appreciated.
Lens - With Nikon TC 14E II - hand held or Monopod and definitely SPORT VR on. Aperture is f8 and full length. All my images have been converted from RAW to JPEG.
I started using Nikon Cross-Body Strap or Monopod on long walks. Here is my Carbon Monopod details : Gitzo GM2542 Series 2 4S Carbon Monopod - Really Right Stuff MH-01 Monopod Head with Standard Lever - Really Right Stuff LCF-11 Replacement Foot for Nikon AF-S 500mm /5.6E PF Lense -
Thanks for stopping and looking :)
It seemed like a simple enough idea.... but I needed more light. Out came the tripod, furniture had to be moved, a reading light had to be positioned, a cookie tray became a beauty dish (one hand is now useless), the other hand adjusted the focus, my incisors fired the remote.
3/90
Adult male hippo yawns wildly, Upper Shire valley, Liwonde National Park, Malawi, Africa
The common hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius), or hippo is semiaquatic, inhabiting rivers, lakes and mangrove swamps, where territorial bulls preside over a stretch of river and groups of five to thirty females, their young, and a few young adult males.
During the day, they remain cool by staying in the water or mud; reproduction and childbirth both occur in water. They emerge at dusk to graze on grasses.
Female hippos reach sexual maturity at five to six years and have a gestation period of eight months.
"Yawning" serves as a threat display. When fighting, male hippos use their incisors to block each other's attacks and their large canines to inflict injuries.
My son's Raccoon (Procyon lotor) skull.
The biologist in me has always marveled anything to do with the natural world. This skull was the remains of a road kill. When my son found it, it was mostly clean already, but it still smelled musky. We brought it home to sterilize in the summer sun for a couple of years. When we brought it in the house we were able to easily id it from the dental formula: I 3/3, C 1/1, Pm 4/4, M 2/2 X 2 = 40. (I= incisor, C=canine, Pm=premolar, M=molar, the fraction separates the number of teeth on the upper and lower mandibles, and the last number is the total # of teeth).
Please don't use this image on websites, blogs, etc. without my permission.
(In Explore 2021-07-29)
© 2021 John McKeen. All Rights Reserved.
This image is an original work and may not be reproduced without the permission of the photographer/artist. It is not available for use on websites, blogs or other media without explicit written permission and may not be downloaded or altered in any way
* African elephants are the largest animals walking the Earth. Their herds wander through 37 countries in Africa. They are easily recognized by their trunk that is used for communication and handling objects. And their large ears allow them to radiate excess heat. Upper incisor teeth develop into tusks in African elephants and grow throughout their lifetime.
There are two species of African elephants—the savanna (or bush) elephant and the forest elephant. Savanna elephants are larger than forest elephants, and their tusks curve outwards. In addition to being smaller, forest elephants are darker and their tusks are straighter and point downward. There are also differences in the size and shape of the skull and skeleton between the two species.
Cornelis Schut (Antwerp, May 13, 1597 - Antwerp, April 29, 1655) engraver of the scenes and papermaker - allegory of Music - wool/loomwork; silk - Measurements: 448 cm x 380 cm Pinacoteca del Castello Sforzesco
Al centro dell'arazzo vi è la personificazione della Musica: una donna che suona il liuto. Alla sua destra, un giovane vestito con un'armatura sta suonando un'arpa. Sulla sinistra invece una figura femminile di spalle imbraccia il violino ma non lo sta suonando, forse perchè è intenta a leggere uno spartito posto vicino a lei. Un giovane ricciuto suona il violoncello ma è nascosto da una fontana decorata con sculture di una sirena e di un tritone. In primo piano sono sparsi a terra degli strumenti musicali (oboe, concertina e triangolo) e un libro di spartiti. Alle spalle dei suonatori vi è una figura femminile col capo decorato di fiori (il personaggio sembra indicare la fontana). Assiste alla scena un giovane appoggiato alla balaustra di un portico di un palazzo, sulla sinistra dell'arazzo. Sulla destra dell'arazzo vi è un vaso con garofani.
Notizie storico-critiche: In questo arazzo, come nell'arazzo della Grammatica, piuttosto che una rappresentazione allegorica, sembra di trovarsi di fronte ad una scena realista, tratta dalla realtà. Tuttavia non mancano colte allusioni: il giovane abbigliato con un'armatura potrebbe essere Davide o Orfeo (con evidenti riferimenti all'ambito musicale). La sirena scolpita nella fontana alluderebbe alla dolcezza del canto.
Altre colte citazioni erano previste dallo Shut se si osserva l'incisione di cui questo arazzo è copia, con alcune varianti: nell'arazzo è aggiunto un quarto suonatore (il violoncellista); i fiori raccolti nel vaso posto sulla balaustra nel'insione sono narcisi e non garofani; la figura femminile appoggiata alla balustra è alata nella stampa dello Shut. Probabilmente era immagine di Eco, ninfa amata da Narciso, condannata a ripetere ciò che le viene detto. Il fatto che nell'arazzo non ci siano narcisi ma garofani e che la figura femminile appoggiata alla balaustra non sia alata, fa perdere la colta citazione mitologica.
Sono note sei repliche del cartone.
At the center of the tapestry is the personification of Music: a woman playing the lute. To her right, a young man dressed in armor is playing a harp. On the left instead, a female figure with her back to her is holding a violin but is not playing it, perhaps because she is intent on reading a score placed near her. A curly-haired young man is playing the cello but is hidden by a fountain decorated with sculptures of a mermaid and a triton. In the foreground are scattered musical instruments (oboe, concertina and triangle) and a book of sheet music. Behind the players is a female figure with a head decorated with flowers (the figure seems to be pointing to the fountain). Attending the scene is a young man leaning against the balustrade of a portico of a palace, on the left of the tapestry. On the right of the tapestry there is a vase with carnations.
Historical-critical news: In this tapestry, as in the Grammar tapestry, rather than an allegorical representation, it seems to be in front of a realistic scene, taken from reality. However, there is no lack of learned allusions: the young man dressed in armor could be David or Orpheus (with obvious references to the musical world). The mermaid sculpted in the fountain would allude to the sweetness of the song.
Other learned quotations were provided by Shut if one observes the engraving of which this tapestry is a copy, with some variations: in the tapestry a fourth player is added (the cellist); the flowers picked in the vase placed on the balustrade in the inscription are narcissus and not carnations; the female figure leaning on the balustrade is winged in the print of Shut. She was probably the image of Echo, a nymph loved by Narcissus, condemned to repeat what she is told. The fact that in the tapestry there are no daffodils but carnations and that the female figure leaning against the balustrade is not winged, makes the learned mythological quotation lost.
Six replicas of the cartoon are known.
#doodlewashJune2022 prompt: Beaver.
Did you know that a beaver can close his lips behind his incisor teeth, and hold his tongue tightly against the roof of his mouth, so that he can gnaw underwater without swallowing water?
This was another experiment to see if I could get that glisteny-wet look of wet fur by using gold and silver metallic paint. I kinda like it. I'll have to play with this more, just for the fact that it scanned rather well. I'm not sure if that's because of the brand of watercolor or the colors I used beneath the metallic. Possibly both.
* Hahnemühle The Collection Hot Press Watercolor Paper
* Aquafine Watercolor
* Reference Image by Diana from Pixabay.
@Hahnemühle_USA #PostcardsForTheLunchBag #dalerrowney1783
#LifeImitatesDoodles #Doodlewash #WorldWatercolorGroup
#ZebraAmbassador #ZebraPen_USA @zebrateam_usa
This is who he is when in complete trust :). A real clown.
On another note, here you can see why his tongue is always hanging out. He is not missing teeth, but his jaw is deformed and his teeny teeth (the canine on this side is as big as his incisors) are kind of wonky. This adds to his charm in my opinion :).
Photographed in Kenya from a safari vehicle, no cover.
=> Please click on the image to see the largest size. <=
This handsome, healthy-looking jackal was very curious about us but still cautious enough to keep its distance.
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From Wikipedia:
Description:
The black-backed jackal is a fox-like canid with a slender body, long legs, and large ears. It is similar to the closely related side-striped jackal and more distantly related to the golden jackal, though its skull and dentition are more robust and the incisors much sharper.
The base colour is reddish brown to tan, which is particularly pronounced on the flanks and legs. A black saddle intermixed with silvery hair extends from the shoulders to the base of the tail. A long, black stripe extending along the flanks separates the saddle from the rest of the body, and can be used to differentiate individuals. The tail is bushy and tipped with black. The lips, throat, chest, and inner surface of the limbs are white. The winter coat is a much deeper reddish brown. Albino specimens occasionally occur.
Behaviour
The black-backed jackal is a monogamous and territorial animal, whose social organisation greatly resembles that of the golden jackal. However, the assistance of elder offspring in helping raise the pups of their parents has a greater bearing on pup survival rates than in the latter species. The basic social unit is a monogamous mated pair which defends its territory through laying faeces and urine on range boundaries. Scent marking is usually done in tandem, and the pair aggressively expels intruders. Such encounters are normally prevented, as the pair vocalises to advertise its presence in a given area. It is a highly vocal species, particularly in Southern Africa.[10] Sounds made by the species include yelling, yelping, woofing, whining, growling, and cackling. It communicates with group members and advertises its presence by a high-pitched, whining howl, and expresses alarm through an explosive cry followed by shorter, high-pitched yelps. This sound is particularly frantic when mobbing a leopard. In areas where the black-backed jackal is sympatric with the African golden wolf, the species does not howl, instead relying more on yelps. In contrast, black-backed jackals in Southern Africa howl much like golden jackals.[10] When trapped, it cackles like a fox.
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I found the top part of a Beaver skull and thought it might make a good Halloween image. I placed it on some twigs on a shrub so I could shoot at this angle. In photo shop, I eliminated the twigs, darkened the background, brightened up the natural orange coloured incisors, and added eye highlights.
An impossible perspective of a living Beaver :)
Feared by some, revered by others, the Aye-aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis) is surely one of Madagascar's most bizarre lemurs. Unique among primates, the Aye-aye's front incisors grow continuously like a rodent, leading to the early belief that they were some sort of gigantic nocturnal squirrel. Equally unusual are its long bony middle fingers which are used by the animal to tap tree trunks for the sound of insect grubs inside and then extract them like a fish hook. Unfortunately, Aye-ayes have become gravely endangered from habitat loss and persecution by people: they are often killed on sight due to the superstition that they are an omen of death. Tomasina, Madagascar.
For my video; youtu.be/16R9_rbRq1A?si=-WZJkNm9XE-c9DDR,
Flinders Chase, South Australia, Australia
Kangaroo Island, Island of the Dead' in the language of the Kaurna people') is Australia's third-largest island, after Tasmania and Melville Island. It lies in the state of South Australia, 112 km (70 mi) southwest of Adelaide.
Kangaroos are marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use, the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern grey kangaroo, and western grey kangaroo. Kangaroos are indigenous to Australia and New Guinea. The Australian government estimates that 42.8 million kangaroos lived within the commercial harvest areas of Australia in 2019, down from 53.2 million in 2013
Kangaroos have large, powerful hind legs, large feet adapted for leaping, a long muscular tail for balance, and a small head. Like most marsupials, female kangaroos have a pouch called a marsupium in which joeys complete postnatal development.
Because of its grazing habits, the kangaroo has developed specialized teeth that are rare among mammals. Its incisors are able to crop grass close to the ground and its molars chop and grind the grass. Since the two sides of the lower jaw are not joined or fused together, the lower incisors are farther apart, giving the kangaroo a wider bite. The silica in grass is abrasive, so kangaroo molars are ground down and they actually move forward in the mouth before they eventually fall out, and are replaced by new teeth that grow in the back. This process is known as polyphyodonty and, amongst other mammals, only occurs in elephants and manatees.
I've only seen Chuckie (the woodchuck) 3 times over the past year. Finally got a shot of our Groundhog.
Guinevere Fouroux takes a sip of her own drink, watching with concern as he downed his. "It's all right... most of it came out, I think, but don't worry, I'll--" Motion out of the corner of her eye catches her attention, in time to see a blur of fur and teeth leap in her direction. All she can think to do is duck, glass crashing to the floor as she fumbles for her gun, pulling it free just as a hard body crashes into hers and sends her sprawling.
Sounds of him passing through the doorway would quickly be followed be a low growl that rose in pitch as he launched into Guin, heavy form crashing into the slender female with all the male ocelot's weight. Sharp, dagger like claws extended from his fingers and attempted to bury themselves into her flesh, one at her thigh and the other hand aimed for her waist to assist in pulling her down. If he managed to land on his mark or not seemed not to matter as he readied to sink those teeth into her. Either he hadn't noticed her hand shifting for her weapon, or didn't care..he seemed totally consumed in apparently eating this woman.
Forgetten Tomorrow didn't pause for a moment then, the glass would fall to the ground shattering against the carpet as he moved back behind the bar. His motions were smooth-- the elephant gun was pulled free from behind the bar-- it was always locked and loaded so he didn't need to worry about putting a bullet into it. His right hand moved slower coming to the back of the gun-- his finger creeping out to wrap around the trigger. There was a grunt. "Wrong -FUCKING- place to barge in asshole."
Guinevere Fouroux cries out as something sharp pierces her thigh, but she doesn't stop to think, heart in her throat. She hears Forge's voice but can't see a thing, buried under a wall of fur and muscle and the smell of blood and decay... she flings herself to one side, trying to get out from under him or knock him away enough to bring up her gun, remembering the routine as she'd been taught. But she can't -see-, and whatever it is is right on top of her, so she points the gun up and finger tightens on the trigger. "Get OFF of me!" she gasps.
Ugarte let out a harsh snarl as he lunged forwards, long curved incisors aimed for the woman's throat/shoulder area, claws tugging against Guin's flesh as he used his grip for leverage. The scene unfolding closely resembled one of those predatory cat attacks you might see on National Geographic. Hopefully he would manage the bite before the gunfire erupted, he was hungry..and if this attack turned out to be fruitless...he'd have one hell of a time hunting with a few holes in him.
Forgetten Tomorrow watched Swara's head lunge and his finger would pull upon the trigger of the shotgun. The room would erupt with the loud sound of the *BANG* as the smell of gunpowder filled the room. His body would slide off the top of the bar-- he had been leaning over it to get a decent shot at Swara's back. The barrel of his gun was smoking then.
Guinevere Fouroux struggles to steady her gun with one hand and push this man... thing... off of her with the other, but neither is working. Adrenaline rushes through her and she doesn't feel any pain, not yet, even as she feels sharp, tiny daggers sink into her shoulder. Instinctively her hand jerks up, pressing the gun into his chest, but before she can shoot the world explodes around her. Her gun hand spasms, squeezing the trigger whether she intends to or not--but her ears are ringing and the sound is lost.
Ugarte let out a murr of pleasure as he felt blood wet his pallet, and he seemed to suckle upon the inflicted wound even as she struggled beneath him. It would seem as if the grip he held would never slacken, at least until that deafening retort echoed off the walls of the small lobby and suddenly he found himself heaved forwards and to the right as a white hot fire tore through his side in a explosion of crimson gore, the slug passing threw him and embedding itself either in Guin if she was unlucky, or the carpeted floor very close by. The shot from behind, as painful and possibly life-threatening as it was, actually aided in taking Guin's shot point-blank in the chest, the smaller pistol round slicing threw the meaty muscle near his arm pit and lodging itself in the back of his shoulder guard. He let out a mixture of a pained cry and a hiss as he collapsed face down next to Guin, blood already starting to pool about him and stain snow-colored furr a pinkish red.
Forgetten Tomorrow moved around the outside of the bar and he would release his right hand from the butt of the gun holding it in his left hand. He wasn't even thinking of Guin at the moment and the possibility that she could have been shot. He would swing his arm up and then bringing it flying down trying to slam it into the side of Swara's head much like a golfer off the tee.
Calee Lykin heads straight for the hotel, after all they had a bar, and she worked there, surely they stocked cream. She stops in the doorway, the scent of blood, fresh blood, filled her nose, causing her ears to perk and her oceanic orbs to scan around, wondering what was going on.
Guinevere Fouroux squeezes her eyes shut as she feels the hot rush of blood--hers or his, she has no idea. The full weight of the man's body collapses on hers, driving her gun hand against her own chest and trapping her against the floor. Panic flares in her chest, and she'd try to push him off... but pain rips through her shoulder at the attempt. She hears voices, somewhere over the rush of blood in her own ears, past this wall of fur blocking her sight. "Forge?" she whispers, knowing he's there, somewhere, and tries again to fumble her way out from under his body.
Kiri Mayako slides in through the door. She sees Guin lying on the floor, Forge standing over her with a shotgun, the neko with the attitude problem she banned from the walks, Calee, a woman with no pants and a giant saw, and a nun. It was the beginning of a very bad joke. "What the fuck is going on?" she asks, hands on her pistols.
Scientific Name: Equus grevyi
Description : The Grevy's zebra is the largest living wild equid. It can be distinguished from other species of zebra by its larger ears and narrower stripes. Vertical stripes cover most of the head and body, with the exception of the belly, which is white. The stripes are narrow and close-set, being broader on the neck, and they extend to the hooves. The belly and the area around the base of the tail lack stripes. The legs are long and are marked with horizontal stripes which extend down to the hooves.
A broad black stripe runs along the centre of the back, and is separated from the other stripes by a narrow white zone. The mane is very tall and erect, and also striped. Its head is large, long, and narrow with elongated nostril openings. The eyes are large, round and heavily fringed. It is mule-like in appearance with a brown muzzle and a relatively short, strong neck. The ears are very large, rounded, and conical. Foals are born with brown and white striping, with the brown stripes darkening to black as they get older. They have a mane that extends to the length of the back and shortens when they reach adulthood. There is no difference between the sexes.
Head and body length: 250-300 cm
Height at shoulder: 140-160 cm
Tail length: 38-60 cm
Weight: 352-450 kg
Distribution : Southern and eastern Ethiopia, northern Kenya.
Habitat : Sub-desert, plains and arid, open bushed grasslands.
Food : Herbivorous nomadic grazer: feeds primarily on coarse grasses and sedges, but will eat bark, leaves, buds, fruits, and roots. Grevy’s zebras have incisors that they use to clip grass and numerous cheek-teeth that grind their food.
Reproduction and Development : Within a single population, around ten percent of the mature stallions will occupy territories from which they have sole access to receptive females, although other males are still tolerated within the area, provided females are not in oestrus. Amongst these territorial stallions, the most dominant ones control territories near open watering holes, which mostly attract mares with foals, while more subordinate stallions control territories away from water with more abundant vegetation, which mostly attracts mares without foals. The resident stallions of territories will try to subdue the entering mares with dominance rituals and then continue with courtship and copulation.
Grevy's zebras can mate and give birth year-round, but most mating takes place at the beginning of the rainy season and births mostly take place in August or September after the rainy season. Mares become sexually mature at three to four years. A female in estrous may wander though as many as four male territories a day and will mate with the dominant stallions in each of them. Bachelors, or outside territorial stallions, sometimes "sneak" copulation of mares in another stallion’s territory. While female associations with individual males are brief and mating is promiscuous, females who have just given birth will reside with one male for long periods of time and mate exclusively with that male. Lactating females are harassed by males more often than non-lactating ones and thus associating with one male and his territory provides an advantage as he will guard her against other males.
Gestation of the Grevy's zebra normally lasts 13 months, with a single foal being born. Within an hour after birth, the young are up and about. Initially, the mare and her newborn stay away from the others for a few days, preventing other mares from approaching her foal. Isolating the foal in this way helps with bonding and prevents it from accepting another female as its mother. She imprints her striping pattern, scent and vocalization on her foal. After this period of bonding, and until the foals reach the age of three months, females form small groups (three females and their foals). Mares may leave their foals in "kindergartens" while searching for water. Kindergartens tend to be guarded by an adult which may be a territorial male. Foals remain dependent on their mother’s milk until six to eight months of age and stay with its mother for up to two to three years.
Adaptations : Zebras rely largely on their sense of sight and hearing. Large eyes set far back on the head give a wide field of view. The large ears can rotate to pick up sounds from many directions. The zebra’s stripes are used as a camouflage to hide the zebra from its predators. The stripes on a moving zebra serve as a disruptive pattern, confusing a pursuing predator. Long legs and hooves help the animal to run fast. A zebra can run up to 64 km/h. Speed is its only defense from predators (lions, cheetahs, and hyenas), from which they can outrun over long distances.
As a response to the sparse plant life in their habitat, Grevy's zebras usually do not form stable herds and only congregate during periods when they must migrate to find grazing or water. Grevy's zebras have a much more open society than those of other equid species and associations between individuals, other than between a mother and her foal, rarely last for more than a few months.
Male territories are patrolled and marked with dung and are the largest of any living herbivore - up to ten square kilometres. Territorial males also vocalize loudly to assert their dominance within the territory. To adapt to a semi-arid environment, Grevy's zebra foals take longer intervals between suckling bouts and do not drink water until they are three months old. Stallions have large testicles and can ejaculate a large amount of semen to replace the sperm of other males. This is a useful adaptation for a species whose females mate polyandrously.
Threats to Survival : There has been a 70% reduction in population size in the last 30 years. Threats include hunting for skin and meat, and loss of grazing habitat and access to water, due to competition with increasing herds of domestic livestock. Additional threats are due to reduced river flow due to irrigation, and uncontrolled tourism in reserves, which causes disturbance and destruction of vegetation.
Status : IUCN: Endangered; CITES: Appendix I
Zoo Diet : High fibre bulk cube, timothy hay, carrots, and apples.
Toronto Zoo Website
Swara Lannock's tail lashed back and forth behind him slowly as he unknowingly drew that rough, pink tongue across his dark hued lips. Battered and nicked ears flicked at the voices that rose up from below, listening intently to what he could catch of the conversation as he continued to keep that unflinching stare of rust colored eyes fixed on Guin. He wondered for a moment about her reaction if she would spot him perched up here...he wasn't trying to hide any longer. Spotted fingers drifted to his belt again to pull out another small object, this time dropping it straight down below him where it would land with a dull crack. His head tilting to one side curiously.
Sebastian Ricks tilts his head. "They're the rooster crowing on top of the dungheap, bonita. Or they think they are. Makes them want to strut. Not surprised they're visiting the church. From what I know of the UAC, they don't like it when their playthings get away. Or forget their place." The soft clatter behind him makes him turn. He glances at the floor, then casually lifts his eyes to the balcony above. "Oh look, bonita," he drawls. "A furry cockroach."
Guinevere Fouroux's lips twist in a dry smile, rather enjoying the image of UAC soldiers as preening roosters... she only wishes they were so powerless. "Nothing but bullies," she mutters, but before she can say anything else something drops to the carpet behind him. Her eyes drop, brow furrowing, and she steps closer to it as she sees Bastian look up. Crouching, she reaches out with tentative fingers, then draws back sharply. "It's a bone," she whispers, then follows his gaze. Her breath catches. White... white and gray, and it's all she remembers. Everything and nothing. She stumbles back, back to her feet, eyes on the balcony. "I think... " She swallows, and blinks rapidly. "I think that's him... "
Sebastian Ricks steps past Guin. He rolls the bone toward him with his boot, then crouches with absent grace to pick it up. "Finger bone," he clarifies. It vanishes into his pocket as if it had never been. "The one who bit you?" he asks, cocking his head to eye the cat perched over their heads. With a cold, bright grin, he straightens and gives the cat a mocking wave. "Hey there, ese. Back for seconds?"
Swara Lannock's mouth drew into a wide wolfish grin as she looked up, two thick carnivorous fangs peeking out from beneath his upper lip, not the type of fangs you would expect on a neko, these were made distinctly big cat incisors. His tail swayed wildly, enough so that the tip would be seen swinging up from behind the low wall he perched on. It was apparent he gained far too much amusement from the woman's reaction. He watched with curious eyes as the finger bone was scooped up and deposited away like some trinket..his trinket to be exact. "You smell, delicious...ape" he murred in a playful, yet dangerous tone. The male's words didn't go unheard, he just chose to let them go unanswered for now.
Sebastian Ricks folds his arms over his chest in a flutter of black lace cuffs. "Eh, bonita, what are you gonna do? Like being chased down by a rabid dog, hey?" He watches the cat with a sly smile. "Just a dumb animal. Don't know no better."
I just looked down and instintively snapped this shot.... then I ran....
This is a Nutria. The coypu, or nutria (Myocastor coypus) is a large, herbivorous, semiaquatic rodent and the only member of the family Myocastoridae. The coypu somewhat resembles a very large rat in appearance. Adults are typically 5–9 kg (10-20 lb) in weight, and 40–60 cm (15-24 inches) in body length, with a 30–45 cm (12-18 inches) tail. They have a coarse, darkish brown outer fur with a soft under-fur. Two distinguishing marks are the presence of a white patch on the muzzle, and webbed hind feet. They can also be identified by their bright orange-yellow incisor teeth (unlike rats, which have brownish yellow incisors). The nipples of female coypu are high on her flanks. This allows their young to feed while the female is in the water.
Coypu can also be mistaken for another widely dispersed semi-aquatic rodent that occupies the same wetland habitats, the muskrat. The muskrat, however, is smaller, more tolerant of cold climates, and has a laterally flattened tail that it uses to assist in swimming, whereas the tail of a coypu is round.
They are herbivorous, feeding on river plants, and live in burrows alongside stretches of water.
The coypu, or nutria (Myocastor coypus) is a large, herbivorous, semiaquatic rodent and the only member of the family Myocastoridae. The coypu somewhat resembles a very large rat in appearance. Adults are typically 5–9 kg (10-20 lb) in weight, and 40–60 cm (15-24 inches) in body length, with a 30–45 cm (12-18 inches) tail. They have a coarse, darkish brown outer fur with a soft under-fur. Two distinguishing marks are the presence of a white patch on the muzzle, and webbed hind feet. They can also be identified by their bright orange-yellow incisor teeth (unlike rats, which have brownish yellow incisors). The nipples of female coypu are high on her flanks. This allows their young to feed while the female is in the water.
Coypu can also be mistaken for another widely dispersed semi-aquatic rodent that occupies the same wetland habitats, the muskrat. The muskrat, however, is smaller, more tolerant of cold climates, and has a laterally flattened tail that it uses to assist in swimming, whereas the tail of a coypu is round.
They are herbivorous, feeding on river plants, and live in burrows alongside stretches of water.
On Explore - August 14 , 2021 Thanks to all my Flickr friends!
Like most of the red squirrels, spotting a Caucasian Squirrel (Scours anomalous) is becoming a rare sight.
It was a windy and hot early morning in Turkish North Aegean Region, I was waiting patiently in an olive grove, after waited 4 hours, the reward came, there was a group of squirrels playing and impossible to take a shot.
Only this one briefly stopped and posed for me on the tree and disappeared again, left a few walnuts on the tree for them and hopefully, I’ll come back to find them again next week.
The Caucasian squirrel - Sciurus anomalus ; The Caucasian squirrel or Persian squirrel, is a tree squirrel in the genus Sciurus found in temperate broadleaf and mixed forests in south-western Asia.
The species is usually said to have first been described in 1778 by Johann Friedrich Gmelin in the 13th edition of Systema Naturae,and named Sciurus anomalus. However, some authors argue that this work was actually published in 1788, and that the true first description was made by Johann Anton Güldenstädt in 1785.
Description -
Caucasian squirrels are small tree squirrels, with a total length of 32 to 36 cm (13 to 14 in), including the 13 to 18 cm (5.1 to 7.1 in) tail, and weighing 250 to 410 g (8.8 to 14.5 oz). The color of the upper body fur ranges from greyish brown to pale grey, depending on the subspecies, while that of the underparts is rusty brown to yellowish, and that of the tail, yellow brown to deep red. The claws are relatively short, compared with those of other tree squirrels, and females have either eight or ten teats.
Samuel Griswold Goodrich described the Caucasian squirrel in 1885 as "Its color is grayish-brown above, and yellowish-brown below".
Physical Description -
Caucasian squirrels have a dental formula of incisors 1/1, canines 0/0, premolars 1/1, and molars 3/3, totaling 20. They have four fingered fore feet and five fingered hind feet. Sex differences in body length or mass are not evident.
Distribution and habitat -
Caucasian squirrels are native to south-western Asia, where they are found from Turkey, and the islands of Gökçeada and Lesbos in the west, Iran in the southeast, and as far as Israel and Jordan in the south.It is one of only two species of the genus Sciurus to be found on Mediterranean islands,and, although Eurasian red squirrels have been recently introduced to some areas, is the only species of Sciurus native to the wider region.
The species mainly lives in forested areas dominated by oak, pine, and pistachio, up to altitudes of 2,000 metres (6,600 ft).
Biology and behavior -
The squirrels are diurnal, and solitary, although temporary groups may forage where food is plentiful. Their diet includes nuts, seeds, tree shoots, and buds,with the seeds of oak and pine being particularly favored. Like many other squirrels, they cache their food within tree cavities or loose soil, with some larders containing up to 6 kg (13 lb) of seeds. They live in trees, where they make their dens, but frequently forage on the ground, and are considered less arboreal than Eurasian red squirrels. They commonly nest in tree hollows lined with moss and leaves, and located 5 to 14 m (16 to 46 ft) above the ground, but nests are also sometimes found under rocks or tree roots. Their alarm call is high-pitched, and said to resemble the call of the European green woodpecker, and they mark their territories with urine and dung.
Breeding occurs throughout the year, but is more common in spring or autumn. Litters range from two to seven, with three or four being typical, and the young are fully mature by five or six months of age.
Conservation -
A survey in 2008 found that the species remained abundant within Turkey, however declines are noted in population within the Levant region. The guides for a survey in 1993 in Israel stated that they considered the species to be nearly extinct within the area studied. Whilst the Caucasian squirrel is threatened by poaching and deforestation, the declines recorded are not sufficient to qualify them as anything other than "Least Concern" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.[1] Hunting of the species is banned by the Central Hunting Commission, and the Caucasian squirrel is protected by the Bern Convention and the EU Habitats Directive.
This information is sourced from "Wikipedia".
Thank you so much for visiting my stream, whether you comments , favorites or just have a look.
I appreciate it very much, wishing the best of luck and good light.
© All rights reserved R.Ertug Please do not use this image without my explicit written permission. Contact me by Flickr mail if you want to buy or use Your comments and critiques are very well appreciated.
Lens - With Nikon TC 14E II hand held - Monopod and SPORT VR on. Aperture is f8 and full length. All my images have been converted from RAW to JPEG.
I started using Monopod on long walks. Here is my Carbon Monopod details : Really Right Stuff MH-01 Monopod Head with Standard Lever - Release Clamp - Nikkor AF-S 200-500mm f/5.6 ED VR fitted MPR-113 Multi-Purpose Rail lens foot and Gitzo GM2542 Series 2 4S Carbon Monopod.
Thanks for stopping and looking :)
Their dependence on water restricts the Burchell's Zebra to wander further than ten to 12 km from water. Densely vegetated areas are avoided. Predominantly a grazer, feeding in areas with short grass. Zebra have a strong sensitive upper lip with which it gathers herbage by collecting the grass between the lip and the lower incisors before plucking the harvest. The Burchell's Zebra lives in small family units, which typically consist of one stallion and one mare with their foals. Non-breeding stallions occur in bachelor groups.
Info source URL: www.krugerpark.co.za/africa_burchells_zebra.html
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Photo capture date & Location: 2018-08 Segaia Bush Retreat
Despite their amusing appearance, hippos are one of the greatest killers in Africa.
They weigh up to 3 tons, the third biggest land animals. They have enormous tusk-like canines and slicing incisor teeth, developed for fighting. At a measured force of 1821 PSI, the hippo’s bite is over twice that of any big cat. And whilst they may prefer to wallow around in muddy pools, they can get a fair gallop on reaching speeds of 30 km/h.
While most herbivores ignore anything that is not a direct threat, hippos are highly territorial. The majority of attacks on humans have been without provocation and occur both in and out of the water. The exact figures are patchy, but the number of people killed by hippos each year is between 500 and 1,000, depending on the source.
Whichever the real number, I am glad to be far away and to rely on my telephoto lens to get a closeup of this group.
While the Arctic Ground Squirrel looks cuddly and soft, they have very large incisors. Also know as the Parka Squirrel, they are a favorite meal for Polar Bear, Grizzly Bear, Wolf, Wolverine, Lynx, Arctic Fox, Red Fox, Golden Eagles, Bald Eagles, and Owls. During the summer months, they communicate danger to one another. According to Wikipedia, if the threat is from the ground, it is a low guttural sound, if the threat is from the air, it is a high-pitched sound. They are one of the mammals that truly hibernate during winter. Their heartbeat slows to one beat per minute and their core temperature drops to a few degrees below freezing.
A very comprehensive site about the Ground Squirrel can be found at: animaldiversity.org/accounts/Spermophilus_parryii/
Beaver Moon over San Francisco
Chase the full moon with the San Francisco skyline view at Alameda. It was about 12 miles away to see it with a bit hazy and moisture over the water. It was hard to take a sharp shot of the city buildings. My favorite part was the pink sunrise colors and these early birds flying over the moon to the North Farallon Islands.
The Full Moon in November is named after beavers who build their winter dams at this time of year. It is also called Frost Moon and Mourning Moon, depending on the winter solstice.
Busy Beavers in the Moonlight
According to some sources, the Full Moon for November is named after beavers because this is the time they become particularly active building their winter dams in preparation for the cold season. The beaver is mainly nocturnal, so they keep working under the light of the Full Moon.
Beavers make dams of wood and mud. In the middle, they build dome-shaped homes called lodges with underwater entrances. Beavers continue to grow throughout their lives, and so do their teeth. They constantly gnaw on wood, but because the enamel in a beaver's incisors contains iron, their front teeth never wear down.
Chase the moon continues. It was one of the lucky snapshots of the moon, not easy at all :). Thanks for looking!
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#sf #sanfrancisco #fullmoon #moon #beavermoon #三藩市
In the farthest, darkest corner of my basement, a life-and-death struggle plays out between a vole skull and a pipe wrench.
As it turns out, they fought to a draw and the skull was spared. Next spring it will be posted on the garden fence to scare away marauding chipmunks.
Skull and wrench are both courtesy of 95wombat Jr., who found one on a pier where an owl had barfed it out and the other at a neighborhood garage sale.
Island of Madagascar
Off The East Coast Of Africa
Palmarium Reserve
Another image of the red ruffed lemur can be seen in the first comment section.
Wikipedia-
The red ruffed lemur (Varecia rubra) is one of two species in the genus Varecia, the ruffed lemurs; the other is the black-and-white ruffed lemur (Varecia variegata). Like all lemurs, it is native to Madagascar and occurs only in the rainforests of Masoala, in the northeast of the island.
It is one of the largest primates of Madagascar with a body length of 53 cm, a tail length of 60 cm and a weight of 3.3–3.6 kg. Its soft, thick fur is red and black in colour and sports a buff or cream colored spot at the nape, but a few are known to have a white or pink patch on the back of the limbs or digits and a ring on the base of the tail in a similar color.
The red ruffed lemur is a very clean animal and spends a lot of time grooming itself and in social grooming. The lower incisors (front teeth) and the claw on the second toe of the hind foot are specially adapted for this behavior. The lower incisors grow forward in line with each other and are slightly spaced. This creates a toothcomb which can be used to groom its long, soft fur. The claw is also used for grooming.
The red ruffed lemur lives 15–20 years in the wild. In captivity, 25 years is not uncommon, and one lived to be about 33 years old. It is a diurnal animal, and most active in the morning and evening. The red ruffed lemur is mainly a fruit-eater, especially figs.
When I looked at the picture of this bunny taken a few days ago in Charlestown Meadows, I saw a strange tooth. I looked it up and low and behold, rabbit teeth continue to grow throughout their lives. Once in a while they have this issue where a tooth does not get worn down and continues to grow. Hope somehow he can break that tooth and live a normal life.