Animal Aqua » Animal

Animal life ( from Switzerland )

AnimalAqua — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 05:59:40 +0000

The animal life of Switzerland is mainly Alpine, but a mixture of species familiar to southern and north-central Europe is also found. Animal life is protected, except during a brief annual hunting season. The Alpine tourists may observe marmots, which live in the high meadows, and the chamois. Large herds of the round ibex, which had died out in the Swiss Alps and has since been reintroduced, have again developed in several areas, especially in the Bernina region of GraubÃ¼nden (canton) and in the Saastal of Valais. In the forests there are deer, rabbits, foxes, badgers, squirrels, and many varieties of birds, including the eagle, while lake and river trout may be found but are no longer as abundant as in the past. Snakes and lizards are concentrated in the south, but insects, in great variety, are diffused throughout the country.

[tags]animal, switzerland[/tags]

Animal life ( from Indonesia )

AnimalAqua — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 05:32:14 +0000

Indonesia is located in the transitional zone between two of the world’s major faunal regions: the Oriental of Asia in the west and the Australasian of Australia and New Guinea in the east. The boundary of these realms, called Wallace’s Line, runs between Borneo and Celebes in the north and Bali and Lombok in the south. To the west the Asian animal community includes such mammals as the rhinoceros, the orangutan, the tapir, the tiger, and the elephant. Animals related to Australian fauna include birds such as cockatoos, bowerbirds, and birds of paradise, as well as marsupials such as bandicoots (small insectivorous, herbivorous, marsupial mammals) and cuscuses (brightly coloured, woolly-haired arboreal marsupials). Many of the islands contain endemic species. Among these are such birds as the Javanese peacock and the Sumatran drongo. A certain mountain goat lives only on the rugged slopes of the Barisan Mountains of Sumatra. A unique species of proboscis monkey is unique to Kalimantan, and the babirusa (a large wild pig) and the anoa (a small wild ox with nearly straight horns) can be found only in Celebes. A giant lizard-the prehistoric Komodo dragon, which attains a length of 12 feet (3.7 metres)-occurs on two small islands, Rinca and Komodo, between Sumbawa and Flores. Some of these endemic species have become exceedingly rare. Most of the remaining single-horned Java rhinoceroses, for example, are now restricted to the Ujon Kulon National Park on the western tip of Java. This nearly extinct species is one of the world’s most highly protected forms of wildlife. Another such endangered species is the orangutan, which is native to Borneo and Sumatra. Orangutan rehabilitation centres have been established on the edge of the Mount Leuser National Park in northern Sumatra and in a game preserve on Cape Puting in southern Kalimantan in an effort to prevent the capture and slaughter of the animals and to train those that have been held captive to return to the wild. Indonesia has an enormous and varied insect life that includes many unusual species. Examples include giant walkingsticks that can attain 8 inches (20 cm) in length, walking leaves, huge atlas beetles, elegant luna moths, and beautiful bird-wing swallowtails.

[tags]indonesia, animal, life, species[/tags]

Animal life ( from Kalahari Hindu Kush )

AnimalAqua — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 05:16:57 +0000

Well-adapted species of wildlife are found throughout the mountains. The Siberian ibex and the markhor (both wild goats) negotiate the high crags, while Marco Polo sheep and urial (another wild sheep) occasionally are found in the high pamir. Black and brown bears still exist in isolated valleys, and the Chitral valley wildlife preserve is a domain of the rare snow leopard. The rich birdlife of the mountains includes vultures and eagles. The streams of the northern slope contain brown trout in abundance. Human depredation has reduced the variety and distribution of wildlife throughout the Hindu Kush, although efforts to create wildlife preserves in unpopulated areas have met with some success. The display of horns at pagan and Muslim religious sites demonstrates the cultic importance of the ibex. A vestige of this cult persists in domesticated animal husbandry, where, by custom, only males may milk goats.

[tags]animals, hindu, kalahari[/tags]

Animal Life From North Africa

AnimalAqua — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 05:05:38 +0000

North Africa forms part of the Palaearctic zoogeographic region. Its fauna is similar to that of the Middle East, though its birdlife is more like that of the southern Mediterranean. Species are far less numerous and diverse than in the Ethiopian and Madagascan zoogeographic regions that lie in sub-Saharan Africa. Rupestrian art (i.e., inscribed on rock) bears witness to greater diversity during past pluvial climatic phases, but climate alone is not to blame for the region’s faunal degradation; many wild animals have disappeared or become extremely rare through widespread killing by humans over the centuries, some quite recently: elephants, bears, lions, leopards, hyenas, ostriches, and cheetahs to name but a few.

The wild boar, Barbary red deer, jackal, lynx, and Barbary sheep, or aoudad, are still found in forested mountain areas, however, and gazelles and oryx still inhabit the desert. Reptiles and insects are also fewer than in other parts of Africa, though locust swarms occasionally do tremendous damage to vegetation. In recent years greater efforts have been made to control and conserve the region’s wildlife.

Animal Life From Tigris – Euphrates River System

AnimalAqua — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 04:52:46 +0000

Wild pigs are common in the marshes and have spread into newly planted eucalyptus groves in other parts of the alluvial plain. Jackals, hyenas, and mongooses are found along the rivers in southern Iraq, and a large variety of Indian jungle cat reportedly still inhabits remote tamarisk thickets. Lions were last sighted along the Tigris in 1926. Foxes, wolves, and gazelles are common in the alluvial plain, and some of these range as far north as central Anatolia. Among the smaller animals are several species of gerbil, the jerboa (desert rat), hares, shrews, bats, the hedgehog, the river otter, and the Buxton’s mole rat, which covers the entrance of its riverbank burrow with a mound of clay.

Locally resident birds include babblers, bulbuls, scrub warblers, sand grouse, crows, owls, a variety of hawks, falcons, eagles, and vultures. In spring and fall, many birds migrating between Europe and Asia such as pelicans, storks, and various geese fly along the rivers’ courses, and the marshes provide a breeding ground for some migratory species.

There are several kinds of viper and a small cobra, as well as a variety of nonvenomous snakes. Lizards can reach lengths of nearly two feet. Frogs, toads, and turtles abound in the rivers and marshes. Members of the carp family are the dominant freshwater fish of the Tigris-Euphrates system. Barbels weighing as much as 300 pounds (135 kg) have been recorded. There are several varieties of catfish, as well as the spiny eel. Some saltwater species including anchovy, gar, and sea bream range upriver at least as far as Baá¹£rah, and the Ganges shark has been known to reach Baghdad.

Animal Life From Arabian Desert

AnimalAqua — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 04:45:12 +0000

The animal life is varied and unique. Desert insects include the fly, the malaria-carrying Anopheles mosquito, fleas, lice, roaches, ants, termites, beetles, and mantids (predatory insects that camouflage themselves as leaves, twigs, or pebbles). Also found are the scavenging dung beetle, myriads of butterflies, moths, and caterpillars, and the pestiferous locust that once plagued the landscape but has now been brought under control. Arachnida (a class of segmented invertebrates) include large sapulgids (scorpion-killers), scorpions, ticks, and spiders. Sapulgids grow to eight inches (20 cm) in length. Scorpions also range up to eight inches and are coloured black, green, yellow, red, and off-white. The scorpion’s painful sting is deadly to small children.

Pools in oases contain small fish. There are a few amphibious animals, such as newts, salamanders, toads, and frogs. Reptiles include lizards, snakes, and turtles. The dab (or dabb), a fat-tailed lizard, lives on the plains and reaches a length of up to three and a half feet (more than one metre). It is a vegetarian with toothless jaws, and its tail, roasted, is a Bedouin delicacy. The monitor lizard reaches lengths up to three feet (nearly one metre) and feeds on locusts and other insects. Many lizards, including skinks, geckos, agamids, and collared lizards, are found in the sand. Lively and pretty, a salmon-coloured lizard, the dammsa seeks the black beetle for food and literally dives and swims in the slipfaces of the sand dunes. An agamid lizard (tuhayi) scurries across the sand with its tail coiled like a watch spring, uncoiling when it stops. Among the snakes, all of which are feared by most Arabs, the sand cobra relative of the sea snake is slim, sand-coloured, and venomous. Vipers abound in sand and rocks but, being nocturnal, are seldom seen in the heat of day.

Birds of the Arabian Desert include local species as well as migrant groups from northern Europe, Africa, and India. The local birds breed from late winter to early spring. Many of the young display excellent camouflage. The bifasciated (striped) lark, the sand grouse, the Arabian courser, and the lesser bustard live in the desert year-round, as do several falcons, eagles, and vultures. The peregrine falcon is seen in Asir, saker and lanner falcons (a brown falcon with a golden cap) are found in Najd and eastern Saudi Arabia, and the kestrel is everywhere. The saker falcon (an aggressive, light brown falcon) is often captured young and trained by Bedouin falconers to hunt the bustard and sand grouse. Ravens in pairs or flocks may appear anywhere. Three eagle species are known the white tailed, golden, and tawny eagles. Vultures were more numerous when camels were in greater use. The largest, a black species with a wingspread of up to 9 feet (2.7 metres), has nearly disappeared. The Egyptian vulture (ar-rakhamah), a medium sized white and black bird with yellow markings, is widely distributed. The lammergeier (bearded vulture) lives in Asir and Yemen. There also are several owls, among which a burrowing species is common.

Migrant birds follow several flyways, one through the central Najd and others on each coast. Water and shore birds migrate in fall and spring between northern Europe and the tropics. Bee eaters, warblers, babblers, carrion kites, swallows, martins, swifts, wheatears, shrikes, larks, flycatchers, hoopoes, and some exotic species may be seen alone, in pairs, or in flocks. Cranes, herons, flamingos, ducks, and small wading birds feed on shores and in the intermittent lakes. The ostrich, once abundant in the sand deserts, has been extinct since 1940.

Mammals were numerous before the Arabs hunted them from motor vehicles. Gazelles roamed the plains in herds of hundreds before World War II and afterward almost became extinct, until the Saudi government began to regulate hunting and established wildlife preserves. The oryx, which nearly had disappeared by 1960, was reintroduced after having been bred in captivity. The ibex, a cliff-dwelling species of wild goat, has begun to recover after its numbers were decimated. In desert plains the ratel (a badgerlike carnivore), the fox, and the civet live in territorial isolation. The hyena lives wherever sheep are herded, preferring escarpments that provide cover. Jackals also are seen, especially at dusk when they seek water. There are hares, as well as golden sand rabbits. Small rodents include the jerboa, mice, rats, and porcupines, while small hedgehogs are found among rocks. Troops of baboons roam in Asir.

Plants and Animal Life

AnimalAqua — Mon, 11 Dec 2006 18:47:37 +0000

Plant and animal life

Peru
Peruvian plant and animal life can be classified according to the three main physiographic regions: the Costa, the Sierra, and the Monta

Mecca
Plant and animal life are scarce and consist of species that can withstand the high degree of aridity and heat. Natural vegetation is sparse, and includes tamarisks and various types of acacia. Wild animals include wild cats, wolves, hyenas, foxes, mongooses, and kangaroo rats (jerboas).

Netherlands Antilles
The vegetation of the southern Netherlands Antilles, much overgrazed by animals, is sparse. Cacti and other drought-resistant plants abound. The island of Bonaire is known for its flamingos.

Missouri
Originally, about two-thirds of Missouri was forested, and the remainder was covered with prairie grasses. The river bluffs and valleys of the Ozark Plateau have a wide variety of unusual plants, including fameflower, royal catchfly, Trelease’s larkspur, coneflower (Rudbeckia maxima), gayfeather, and fringed poppy mallow. Trelease’s larkspur and coneflower are found in the wild in Missouri. Elk, deer, bison, and bears once were plentiful, as were such smaller animals as beavers, otters, and mink. After settlement and the development of agriculture, most of the larger animals, with the exception of deer, disappeared, and animals with valuable fur were trapped until near extinction.

Argentina
Argentina’s fauna and flora vary widely from the country’s mountainous zones to its dry and humid plains and its subpolar regions. In heavily settled regions the makeup of animal and plant life has been profoundly modified.

Bahamas
Extensive and beautiful forests of Caribbean pine are found on Grand Bahama, Great Abaco, Andros, and New Providence. Hardwood forests, known locally as coppices, also occur on some of the islands. Elsewhere, the woody vegetation consists mostly of shrubs and low trees. Animal life is dominated by frogs, lizards, and snakes, all of them nonpoisonous, and several species of bats are found in caves along the more rocky coasts. Larger animals include the agouti, a rodent; the raccoon; the iguana; and the elegant flamingo, the national bird. All of these have been much reduced in numbers and in distribution. In addition, several animals notably sheep, horses, and other livestock have been introduced from Europe. The surrounding waters abound with fish and other edible marine animals, such as conch and crayfish.

Karachi
The natural vegetation is scanty. Seaweed rises in tangles, and mangroves grow along some of the shores. Coarse grass, cactus, and castor plants occur on the plains and hills, and date and coconut palms grow in the river valleys. The common wild animals are wolves, chinkaras (a type of gazelle), hog deer, jackals, wild cats, and hares. Domestic animals include sheep, goats, horses, and cows. Local birds include geese, ducks, snipe, cranes, flamingos, and ibis. Various types of snakes are found in the region, particularly cobras, kraits, vipers, and pythons.

Gambia
The vegetation cover of The Gambia is savanna on the uplands, various kinds of inland swamp in the low-lying areas, and mangrove swamp along the brackish lower Gambia River. Few wild animals are native to the region, and those that survive are under pressure from the human and domestic animal populations. In the middle and upper river areas there are warthogs, monkeys, baboons, antelope, pygmy hippopotamuses, and crocodiles.

Baltic states
Despite being intensively farmed over the centuries, more than one-third of the Baltic region remains forested; in some districts, forests occupy more than one-half of the land. Birches and conifers are common as both adapt well to the often poorly drained, infertile, podzolic soils. Because of the long occupation by humans, animal life is restricted mainly to smaller animals, although elk, bear, roe deer, wolves, and wild boar occur, as do hares and badgers.

Grenada
The island is verdant, with a year-round growing season and a wide variety of tropical fruits, flowering shrubs, and ferns. There are also forests of teak, mahogany, saman (known as the rain tree), and blue mahoe (a strong-fibred tree) in the interior. The animal life is varied and includes such wild animals as the mona monkey (a small, long-tailed, West African species that was introduced by slaves), the manicou (a species of opossum), the agouti (a rabbit-sized rodent, which is brown or grizzled in colour), the iguana, the mongoose, and a variety of turtles and land crabs.

Romania
Forests, which cover about a quarter of Romania’s area, are an important component of the vegetation cover, particularly in the mountains. Up to about 2,600 feet, oaks predominate, followed by beeches between 2,600 and 4,600 feet and conifers between 4,600 and 5,900 feet. At the highest levels, Alpine and sub-Alpine pastures are found. In the tableland and plains regions, the natural vegetation has to a large degree been obliterated by centuries of human settlement and agriculture. The rich and varied Romanian animal life includes some rare species, notably the chamois, which is found on the Alpine heights of the Carpathians. Forest animals include the brown bear, red deer, wolf, fox, wild pig, lynx, and marten and various songbirds. The lower course of the Danube, particularly the delta, is rich in animal, bird, and fish life. Among the fish, the most valuable is undoubtedly the sturgeon, yielding caviar.

Niger
The vegetation of the desert zone clusters around the oases; it includes the date palm and cultivated corn (maize). Animal life, which must be able to endure hunger and thirst, includes the dromedary. In the Sahel zone, where the doum palm and the cram-cram (Cenchrus biflorus, a prickly grass) appear, the vegetation has a short life cycle and is principally used for grazing. Animal life includes the ostrich and the gazelle. In the cultivated zone the vegetation includes acacia trees, doum palms, and palmyra palms, as well as baobabs. Wildlife, which has partially disappeared, includes antelope, elephants, and warthogs; giraffes are found in the Zarmaganda and Damergou regions, and hippopotamuses and crocodiles on the banks of the Niger. The extreme southwest is a savanna region where baobabs, kapok trees, and tamarind trees occur. Animal life is preserved in the National Park, where antelope, lions, buffalo, hippopotamuses, and elephants may be seen.

Kansu
Although vegetation is rather limited in the mountain area, primeval forests still exist in the high mountains of the Liu-p’an range in the eastern part of Kansu. On the floor of the Kansu Corridor, willows and poplars grow along the roads and ditches. Wild animals include marmots, deer, and foxes.

Inner Mongolia
Much of the western territory is barren, while the mountains in the northeast are forested. Large areas of the central region, however, consist of grassland, which provides pasture for sheep, goats, cattle, and the famous Mongolian horses and Bactrian camels. Sheep and goats (roughly in equal proportions) are by far the most important, the most ubiquitous, and the most numerous of the animals raised on the grasslands.

Saudi Arabia
Much of Saudi Arabia’s vegetation belongs to the North African Indian desert region. Plants are xerophytic and are mostly small herbs and shrubs that are useful as forage. There are a few small areas of grass and trees in southern Asir. The date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) is widespread, though about one-third of the date palms grown are in Ash-SharqÄ«yah province. Animal life includes the wolf, hyena, fox, honey badger, mongoose, porcupine, baboon, hedgehog, hare, sand rat, and jerboa.

Larger animals such as the gazelle, oryx, leopard, and mountain goat were relatively numerous until about 1950, when hunting from motor vehicles reduced these animals almost to extinction. Birds include falcons (which are caught and trained for hunting), eagles, hawks, vultures, owls, ravens, flamingos, egrets, pelicans, doves, and quail, as well as sand grouse and bulbuls. There are several species of snakes, many of which are poisonous, and numerous types of lizards. There is a wide variety of marine life in the gulf. Domesticated animals include camels (now little used for transportation), fat-tailed sheep, long-eared goats, salukis, donkeys, and chickens.

Animal resources from South America

AnimalAqua — Mon, 11 Dec 2006 18:39:27 +0000

Animal resources constitute a major portion of the economies of most South American countries. In pre-Columbian times, relatively few animals were domesticated, and almost none of them extended beyond the geographic limits of their wild ancestors. An exception was the Muscovy duck. Llamas and alpacas were domesticated in the high Andes in Inca times and probably earlier. Guinea pigs were domesticated as a meat source in pre-Inca times in the Andean highlands from Colombia to Argentina. Among animals introduced to the continent were cattle, horses, goats, sheep, and pigs, all of which adapted rapidly and thrived in the New World. Cattle have become especially important in areas such as the Llanos in Venezuela and Colombia, the Argentine Pampas, and the rolling plains of Uruguay, while sheep and goats predominate on the drier, colder grazing lands of the high mountainous areas and Patagonia. Game is plentiful in most habitats, though mammals are few and specialized. Deer are represented by several species. A variety of animals are exported as pets or for zoos.

Several Neotropical animals provide world-famous fur or wool. Chinchilla, native to the high Andes from Peru to northern Argentina, were hunted for their delicate gray fur to the point of near extinction. VicuÃ±as continue to be hunted despite protective laws and a ban placed on the trade of their fur. Efforts are being undertaken to increase their numbers by â€œranchingâ€ vicuÃ±as. The giant otter of the Amazon, several spotted cats such as the ocelot and jaguar, and rodents like the nutria also provide highly prized furs.

The colonies of seabirds along the Peruvian and Chilean coasts produce an accumulation of dung (guano) which is an important fertilizer. Pinnipeds (a suborder of aquatic carnivorous animals, including seals and walruses) are exploited for their oil and furs, particularly in Uruguay. Fur seals and sea lions are found along the southern coasts of South America, although their numbers have been reduced by hunting.

Animal Resources from Africa