Tag mammal

Claws of the Tasmanian Devil 

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The Tasmanian Devil (Sarcophilus harrisii) is a marsupial mammal from Tasmania, Australia. It is a dasyurid.

It is the size of a small dog, but it is the largest carnivorous marsupial in the world. It grows to about 65 centimetres (26 inches) long. 

Similar to a hyena, its front legs are slightly longer than its back legs. Its jaws and teeth are similar to a hyena’s jaws – very strong and powerful, enabling it to crush bones and tear meat from its prey. It eats small kangaroos, wombats, possums, sheep, birds, fish, reptiles, vegetation, and carcasses (the bodies of dead animals).

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What are the similarities and differences between the bat, bird, and insect?

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What are the similarities and differences between the bat, bird, and insect?  

The bat is a mammal, whereas the bird and insect are not mammals. 

The bat and bird have two legs, whereas the insect has six legs.

The bat, and many species of birds and insects can fly. The bat is the only mammal that can fly. 

The bat, bird, and insect fly in different ways.

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Sichuan Takin – a lot of bovine manure

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The Sichuan Takin (Budorcas taxicolor tibetana) is an ungulate bovine mammal native to Sichuan, Gansu and Xinjiang in China and the Himalaya Mountains. It is a goat-antelope related to goats and sheep. 

The Sichuan Takin is known to produce a lot of manure. Most bovines (cattle – such as cows and bulls) produce a lot of manure.

How much manure does the Sichuan Takin produce?

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How many ants does an Anteater eat?

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How many ants does an Anteater eat?

The Giant Anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) is a large mammal in the Myrmecophagidae family from Central America and South America. Its head is elongated, with a thick neck, and a long, and tubular snout (nose). At the end of the snout are small nostrils and a small mouth with no teeth. 

The Giant Anteater is insectivorous – it eats insects – especially termites and ants, as well as beetles and honeybees. It does not destroy the ant nest or termite mound completely – instead, it leaves some ants and termites so that they can rebuild the colony to ensure that there are more ants and termites in the future. It uses its claws to dig them up, and then it uses its long, sticky tongue to collect the insects. Its tongue has backward-curved papillae with sticky saliva. 

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Common Raccoon

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The Common Raccoon (Procyon lotor) is a mammal in the Procyonidae family of raccoons. It is a procyonid. It is also known as the Northern Raccoon.

The Common Raccoon has peppery-grey fur with long hair. It also has underfur, which acts as an insulator to keep it warm in winter. It has a black face mask, a ringed tail, short rounded ears, black rounded eyes, and a dog-like nose. Its front claws are sharp.

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RESEARCH: Harbour Seals can change their voice to make them sound bigger

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Scientific researchers have determined that Harbour Seals can learn to change their voice to make them sound bigger, and that the behaviour is not a result of their anatomy.

Bigger animals usually have deeper (lower pitched) voices than smaller animals, but the Harbour Seal (Phoca vitulina) seems to be different. The Harbour Seal seems to be able to learn to change its voice. 

The Harbour Seal, a marine (saltwater) mammal in the Phocidae family of seals is a pinniped (fin-footed, semi-aquatic mammal such as a seal, sea lion, and walrus) found in the Northern Hemisphere. It is found in the Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Baltic Sea, and the North Sea.

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Kirk’s Dik-Dik – young male antelopes

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The Kirk’s Dik-Dik (Madoqua kirkii) is a small mammal in the Bovidae family of antelopes. It is native to eastern Africa.

The Kirk’s Dik-Dik is one of the smallest antelopes in the world. It grows to 35-46 centimetres (14-18 inches) tall. 

The Kirk’s Dik-Dik’s photographed are both males. Only the male has horns. The horns are backward slanting and short at 8 centimetres (3 inches) long. 

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Australian Swamp Rat

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The Australian Swamp Rat (Rattus lutreolus) is a mammal in the Muridae family of rodents and true mice. It is also known as the Eastern Swamp Rat.

The Australian Swamp Rat has a stocky body with black-brown fur and black feet. Its underbelly is lighter. It has small, rounded ears, and small, dark, round eyes. It has long, white whiskers. Its tail is long, dark-grey, scaly, and without hair.

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Southern Lechwe

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The Southern Lechwe (Kobus leche) is an ungulate (hoofed) mammal in the Bovidae family of cattle and antelopes. It is also known as the Red Lechwe.

The Southern Lechwe is golden brown with a white belly. The male is darker than the female. The male has long, spiral horns. The female does not have horns. Its hind legs (back legs) are longer than those of other antelopes – perhaps to be able to walk in the marshy soil. Its legs have a water-repellent substance on its legs, which enables it to run in knee-high water.

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Fossa

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The Fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox) is a carnivorous mammal in the Eupleridae family of euplerids and mongooses.

The Fossa looks like a cross between a large mongoose and a small cougar. It has cat-like features, but with a longer, slimmer body than a cat. Its fur is short, straight, and reddish brown, or light and dark-brown. It has large, rounded ears, brown eyes, and a short, rounded nose with whiskers.

It has semi-retractable claws – it can extend its claws but they cannot retract fully into their big paws. It has flexible ankles that enable it to climb up and down trees head-first. It can also jump from tree to tree. It has a long tail. It has scent glands.

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Alaskan Wolf

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The Alaskan Wolf (Canis lupus pambasileus) is a mammal and subspecies of the Grey Wolf in the Canidae family of dogs, wolves, and jackals. It is a canid or canine mammal. It is also known as the Yukon Wolf.

The Alaskan Wolf is dog-like with thick tawny grey or rusty-tan fur with a mixture of black hair. It has a triangular-shaped face with a wide forehead and medium-sized ears and brown eyes.

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Southern Brown Bandicoot

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The Southern Brown Bandicoot (Isodon obesulus) is a marsupial (pouched) mammal in the Peramelemorphia family of short-nosed bandicoots. 

The Southern Brown Bandicoot has a rounded, stocky body with a short snout (nose) and short, rounded ears. It has short, coarse, brown to yellowish-brown fur with black flecks. Its underbelly and legs are creamy-white or yellowish-grey. It has a short, tapered tail that is brown above and white below. It has five pink toes on each foot, with short claws. 

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Bilby

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The Bilby (Macrotis lagotis) is a marsupial (pouched) mammal in the Thylacomyidae family of pouched mice. It is also known as the Rabbit-Bandicoot or the Rabbit-Eared Bandicoot. It is related to the Bandicoot.

The Bilby has soft grey or blue-grey fur, with a white underbelly. It looks like a large mouse with a long, pointy nose, whiskers, long hairless rabbit-like ears, and a long tail. Its tail has a white tuft of hair at the tip. It has strong forelimbs (front legs) with large, pointed claws. 

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