The red-winged fairywren (Malurus elegans) is a perching bird in the family Maluridae. It is non-migratory, and endemic to the southwestern corner of Western Australia. The sexes are dimorphic: females, juveniles and non-breeding males have predominantly grey-brown plumage, but breeding males adopt brilliant colours, with an iridescent silvery-blue crown and upper back, red-brown shoulders, a black throat, grey-brown wings and pale underparts. Though the red-winged fairywren is locally common, there is evidence of a decline in numbers. Primarily insectivorous, it forages and lives in the shelter of scrubby vegetation in temperate wetter forests dominated by the karri (Eucalyptus diversicolor), remaining close to cover to avoid predators. Like
The European red fox (vulpes vulpes), is a highly adaptable, opportunistic omnivorous mammal characterised by its big ears, bushy tail and reddish-brown coats. The red fox is an introduced pest specie in Australia, originating in North America, Europe, Asia and North Africa. The red fox was brought to Australia for by British colonies for recreational hunting as early as 1855 and from then the fox rapidly spread across the southern area's of Australia, except for Tasmania, coinciding with the distribution rabbits, as they are the key prey of the red fox. Within 20 years, the red fox had achieved pest status in Australia. This species rapid spread was reliant on the lack of natural predators in Australian, only having only the dingoes and Tasmanian devil to compete for food in certain areas like Tasmania, where the fox populations seem to be supressed. Their introduction has been the reason for the extinction and decline of many native Australian species, especially terrestrial mammals including the Long-nosed
The wetlands of spring welcomes migrating shorebird species, including sandpipers, stilts, plovers, dunlins, curlews, and avocets. The colors of summer come alive with an array of birds atop trees with beautiful sounds filling the air. These include black-chinned, calliope, broad-tailed, red-tailed hawk, white-crowned sparrow, tanager and rufous hummingbird. Cranes and geese make their appearance in early fall, coyotes, northern shovelers dabble on the water, javelina, and mule deer idle or prance about in the open meadow, and wild turkeys trek in their roosting
At an early age, Yaki started to take an interest in nature. When Yaki was five, birds would meet him along the path he took to school from his family farm, in Northern Saskatchewan. He closely observed the birds to discover the name of the species at school. Yaki’s
The reading passage proposes three theories which support the idea that a dinosaur which is called edmontosaurus survived in the winter by migrating to the south, the more hospitable region than the extremely cold in the North Slope. However, the professor in the listening respectively contradicts each theory in the reading passage by using strong evidence as support.
Their typical white feathers represent innocence and
This scientific report on Golden-Collared Manakins provided detailed information surrounding the experiment. Not only the predictions, known facts and assumptions before conducting the experiment were included, but also an extremely detailed procedure. By providing the procedure in such detail, the experiment can be re-produced and the hypothesis can be tested a second time under the exact same conditions. The experiment was designed to determine if the Golden-Collared Manakin’s behavior places specific demands on the brain, which would support the hypothesis that males and females have unique neural phenotypes that are specific to each sex. The scientists collected 12 manakin’s (6 female, 6 male) from Gamboa, Panama; after a short observation
Tristan Albatross is apart of the D. dabbenena species. The Tristan Albatross is a fairly big seabird known for spending time near the ocean waters. The Tristan Albatross, which is hard to differentiate from the Wandering Albatross, has a wingspan up to 9-10 ft. and is primarily white with a dark back. Compared to the Wandering Albatross, they are slightly smaller, a little darker and they never really obtain their full white plumage. Their geographic distribution is very tough for experts and researches to find know due to the simple fact that they look so much like the Wandering Albatross. Although experts aren’t completely uninformed, by using tracking devices there is research that shows them in a wide variety of different places. Males
This bird, the Red-Tailed Kilopi, is very unique and can be found in forest in the Northern Hemisphere. Its namesake red-tail tells that it is a female Kilopi. Blue-tailed Kilopies are the males and they tend to live in more humid climates. Female Kilopies are bred in scientific laboratories. They have the same skull as a falcon and their bottom jaw is also red. They have feathered necks that insulate their vocal chords, which they use to communicate with other birds. They have large bodies, suited for warming their long legs, which help them to hunt in the tall grasses. Their legs help them on land too. Their strides make them one of the fastest birds on land and their claws help to propel them. Their claws also help to catch unsuspecting
According to Ireland (2012), a habitat is defined as the place where the organism lives and the niche defines the organism’s “job,” or role in the community. Everything from where an organism lives to what it eats to what time of day it is active helps define its niche. Knowing the habitat requirements of any organism allows us to predict its location (Ireland, 2012, pg.50). Two organisms I chose that represent unique adaptations to a particular environment are the Maned Wolf and Zunda Flying Lemur. The maned wolf have the most unbelievably long legs, a characteristic that helps them see above the tall grasses of central South America and It is believed that the maned wolf’s distinctive legs are an adaptation
The red wolf is one of the most endangered wild canids in the world, once common
Probosciger aterrimus, better known as the “palm cockatoo”, is the largest bird species of the parakeet (Psittaciformes) family (Taylor 2000). This highly threatened cockatoo species can be found dwelling in many tropical and woodland regions, including those of lowland New Guinea and the savanna habitat of Cape York Peninsula, Australia (Murphy et al. 2003), and can be identified by its long, plumaged body, curled erectile crest, and naked cheek patches. Of particular interest, and perhaps the most distinctive of this cockatoo’s traits, is the long, strong hooked beak. As with many bird species, the palm cockatoo’s bill has adapted to its specific dietary preferences and feeding strategies; in particular, the shock absorbing ability of the large, powerful bill allows the granivore-frugivore (grain or seed-eating – fruit-eating, respectively) (Koutsos et al. 2001) parakeet to scavenge for hard nuts that are otherwise inaccessible to other parakeet species. Further supporting the granivorous diet-accommodating beak morphology of the palm cockatoo is a study conducted by Munshi-South and Wilkinson (2006) that conclusively correlated the evolution of longer lifespans in parrots with the adoption of seed-based diets. If parrot species do in fact achieve longer lifespans by adopting granivorous diets, natural selection’s favoring of traits maximizing the adoption of a granivorous diet in the palm cockatoo should be relatively equally distributed amongst all members of the
A Katydids or Bush Cricket is an insect that can be found on branches of trees or brushes. They care commonly found in the eastern United States and are also found in the tropics. Its most active at night an sing in the evenings. They get their name from the sound they make. The come in different colors, shapes and sizes. They have wings and will fly away from danger.
The long-billed Curlew, in my opinion, is a neat looking bird. It’s the largest shorebird in North America, it’s bill can get up to 8 ½ in, and it only weighs one to two pounds. The reason I am talking about them is because their population has dropped tremendously. Back in 1979 there was about 2,000, now there is less than 200. One of the reasons they’re dying is because of people hunting. They are not hunting curlews but if a predator goes near their nest the curlews will start to make noise, and then the hunter gets mad and just kills the curlew. Then the baby curlews have no one to protect them or feed them when they hack. Another reason is people like me riding dirt bikes or quads off the trail and the curlews lay their eggs on the ground.
The Howardian Hills embrace a wide range of wildlife habitats. Otter, water vole, dipper, kingfisher and heron haunt the banks of the River Derwent. Predominant fish include chub, dace, gudgeon, perch, pike and roach, and lamprey are prevalent. Wetland areas and ponds provide the ideal environment for dragonflies and damselflies. Both fallow and roe deer are widespread throughout the woodland regions; fox, hare, shrew, stoat and weasel populate the fringes; and rabbits occupy the fields and meadows.
The laughing kookaburra lives in environments such as woodlands and open forests, they can also be found in almost any part of Eastern Australia as long as there is trees big enough with hollows to build their nests in as well as open patches available to be used as hunting grounds. Environmental challenges the kookaburra faces include deforestation which reduces their opportunities to build nests. They also suffer poisoning from pesticides from eating insects that have come into contact with common household pesticides used to kill insects, the poison can cause sickness, infertility or in extreme cases death. There are many structural adaptations in the laughing kookaburra. The feet of a laughing kookaburra help their stealth and steadiness,