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Facts About Acid Rain
Rain or different kinds of precipitation that contain raised hydrogen particle levels, making it acidic, are alluded to as corrosive downpour. Raised degrees of hydrogen particles cause the downpour to have a low pH, making it harming to oceanic creatures and plants and it can make paint strip and erode steel structures, extensions and stone models. Corrosive downpour creates when sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emanations respond with environmental water particles and produce corrosive. In spite of the fact that the impacts of contamination on structures were noted during the 1600s, the connection between barometrical contamination and the corrosive downpour it produces was first brought to consideration in 1852 in Manchester, England. Governments have been working since the 1970s to lessen these outflows and their endeavors have had extremely sure outcomes.
Acid rain can also be produced from volcanic eruptions, burning coal and even rotting plant life.
Scientists and researchers use the pH scale to measure the acidity of rain. A neutral pH (neither acidic or alkaline) is 7, while normal rain usually has a pH of about 5.6. Acid rain generally has a pH between 4.2 and 4.4. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, Over 250 monitoring sites collect acid rain across the United States, Canada, and the US Virgin Islands.
Acid rain cannot rot your skin. It usually doesn't taste or smell any different than normal rain.
When the pH levels in rivers, streams, lakes, and soil are lowered due to acid rain, it takes a disastrous toll on the ecosystem. Many fish are not able to survive in an acidic environment, and plants begin to die because the acid dissolves nutrients in the soil. Plants can also soak up some of the toxins in the acid rain, making them unfit for human consumption.
The sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide that creates acid rain can cause diseases such as cancer, asthma and even heart disease. It's a concern in the air, but not in the rain itself.
Acid corrodes stone and rock, which could be dangerous for the livability of a home or building if the foundation becomes corroded. Sculptures, statues, and paint exposed to the elements are also horribly damaged.
The acid in acid rain can damage a car's paint job, but it won't melt the car.
Acid Rain Became Well-Known in the 20th CenturyEven though it was first identified back in the 19th century, acid rain became well-known by many during the 1980s. By this point, many understood the link between the prevalence acid rain and the proliferation of unchecked emissions from industry. According to the National Science Foundation, acid rain started in the USA in the 1950s thanks to pollutants from coal plants in the Midwest.
Acid rain can actually kill a forest. The acid rain can kill the leaves on the trees by cutting off their light and nutrient supply. It also changes the acidity in the soil, making it impossible for trees and other plant life to grow. It also poisons the soil and plant life.
Through the 1970 Clean Air Act, United States Congress intended to regulate acid emission. They further strengthened the act in 1990. The legislation seemed to have an effect, as sulfate and nitrate rates in precipitation were cut by 40% by the new millennium, according to the National Science Foundation.
When acid rain lands in the water such as streams, lakes and rivers, it changes the pH and makes the water toxic to the fish and other life in the water.
Federal reports have suggested the Environmental Protection Agency, in particular, is having some trouble reducing the amount of acid rainfall. A 2013 report from the Government Accountability Office said at the time, 88% of the Great Lakes were impaired by acid rain, and that 21,000 miles of streams were tainted in the central Appalachian Mountains.
Entire lakes have been declared dead because of acid rain.
The only real solution to combatting acid rain is by burning fewer fossil fuels and promoting alternative energy, which has had mixed success in recent years. Individuals can use less electricity and drive less to reduce emissions and converse energy as well.
Acid rain has a pH of 4.3 while pure water is perfectly balanced at 7.
Acid rainfall can cause serious repertory problems and greatly impact human health. It has been estimated that around 550 premature deaths each year occur due to acid rain.
Acid rain has the same approximate pH as vinegar and orange juice.
In drier areas, people see acid gas or acid dust in lieu of rain, and even acid snow in colder parts of the world. The toxic acids in the atmosphere can mix with essentially any material, including hail or fog.
Rain is not the only type of precipitation that can be called acid rain. Snow, fog, and even dust can contain the same damaging toxins as acid rain.
In some parts of the world, where the pH of water in lakes or streams is more alkaline, acid rain has less of an effect. Some soils and rocks also contain high levels of calcium and magnesium, which can inhibit or even neutralize acid rain.
Acid rain can be neutralized the same way as acid can be. In some environments acid rain is more problematic. For instance, Eastern Canada lacks a natural alkalinity. Lime is able to neutralize acid, but there is no lime in the ground in some areas and because of this the acid rain is able to do more damage.
Acid rain directly impacts the livelihoods of trees. It damages the protective layers on leaves and disrupts the photosynthesis process by inhibiting the plant's ability to take in carbon dioxide. Experts have pointed to acid rain as the cause of forest death in many parts of the world.
Sulphur dioxide, which is a major contributor to acid rain, is produced by burning fossil fuels and it is a by-product of many industrial processes.
Robert Angus Smith wrote about the relationship between acid rain and pollution back in the mid-19th century. He also first coined the phrase 'acid rain'.
A large amount of the acid rain that reaches Canada is the result of emissions in the United States.
Today's acid rain is primarily fueled by nitrogen emissions mixing with rain. The monitoring of nitrogen emissions has varied by country. Some see the debate about climate change as potentially inhibiting progress in keeping track of emissions.
Nitrogen oxide, a major contributor to acid rain, is produced by the exhaust from vehicles, from furnaces and other equipment. A large amount of Canada's nitrogen oxide emissions originate in the United States.
With an ever-growing global population, more and more farmers will use nitrogen fertilizer to feed people, thus creating more nitric acid, according to Scientific American. Leaders are discussing the management of nitrogen emissions and monitoring requirements.
Despite major efforts to decrease acid rain, it is still killing lakes and aquatic life. 95,000 lakes in North America have been damaged by acid rain.
Technology is constantly being produced to detect the amounts of pollutants like sulfur dioxide. A camera created by the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid's Laboratorio del Infarrojo could help this problem. It could work along side an alarm system to signal the leak of specific gases. Some technology has the ability to detect compounds in real time, even if the actual device is hundreds of meters away.
Tag : Miscellaneous, Nature
Facts About Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. was brought into the world on January fifteenth, 1929 to Michael King Sr. his dad, and Alberta Williams King, his mom. He was brought into the world in Atlanta, Georgia, with the legitimate name of Michael King. In 1934 his dad changed both of their names to Martin and added 'Luther' to pay tribute to a German reformer named Martin Luther. Martin Luther King Jr. had a more established sister Willie Christine King and a more youthful sibling Alfred Daniel Williams King. After he procured both a B.A. what's more, B.Div. Degree he wedded Coretta Scott and had four kids. Ruler dedicated his life to the social liberties development and was a minister until his death in 1968 at 39 years old.
Martin Luther King Jr. skipped grade 9 and grade 12. As a result, he was only 15 years old when he entered college.
Martin Luther King Jr.'s father was a Baptist minister.
After completing a divinity degree at Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania, King went to graduate school at Boston University. He earned his PhD in 1955.
Martin left high school when he was 15 and enrolled at Morehouse College.
Six years prior to his famous march in Washington, King was among civil rights leaders who spoke at the Lincoln Memorial during the 1957 Prayer for Pilgrimage.
At the age of 19 Martin earned a B.A. in sociology from Morehouse College.
King went to jail a reported 29 times.
In 1951 Martin earned a degree from Crozer Theological Seminary.
He was arrested multiple times for civil disobedience, and once for driving 30 miles per hour in a 25 zone.
Martin married Coretta Scott in 1953.
In October 1958, King was signing copies of his book in Blumstein's department store when Izola Curry approached him. She asked him if he was Martin Luther King, and he said yes. She then replied, "I've been looking for you for five years" and plunged a letter opener into his chest, just below his collar.
In 1954 Martin became a minister of a Baptist church in Montgomery, Alabama.
King underwent hours of surgery to remove the blade of the letter opener from beside his aorta. Later, the doctors told him that one sneeze could have punctured the aorta and killed him.
Martin's house was bombed in 1956, the result of him leading a boycott of segregated buses in Montgomery, Alabama.
The night before King was assassinated, he made a speech that foretold his death.
In 1957 Martin helped to form the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference).
King's assassin, James Earl Ray, pled guilty to murder but later recanted.
In 1958 Martin Luther King Jr. was stabbed in the chest with a letter opener while he was signing books on his book tour for Stride Toward Freedom. The woman who had tried to kill him that day was Izola Ware Curry.
King's widow Coretta Scott believed that the mafia, local, state, and federal governments were involved in a conspiracy to murder her husband.
In 1963 Martin was arrested and sent to jail over anti-segregation protests in Birmingham, Alabama. This was the same year he gave his famous speech 'I Have a Dream' to 200,000 protesters during the March on Washington.
Martin Luther King Jr.'s mother Alberta was shot and killed while playing the organ at a Sunday church service in 1974.
In 1964 Martin Luther King Jr. won the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to combat racial inequality without using violence. He was the youngest male to win the Nobel Peace Prize at the age of only 35.
Other than George Washington, Martin Luther King Jr. is the only other American to have his birthday celebrated as a federal holiday.
Martin Luther King Jr. won a Grammy for Best Spoken Word Album in 1971. His album was called Why I Oppose the War in Vietnam.
In 1983, President Reagan signed the bill creating a holiday to celebrate King.
In 1974 Martin Luther King Jr.'s mother was murdered while attending church and playing the organ.
Not many people know that Martin Luther King Jr. was a smoker.
There are more than 700 streets in the United States named after Martin Luther King Jr. There are also many schools and other buildings named after him.
During his first year at seminary, King's professor gave him a C in public speaking. By his final year he had straight A's and was the valedictorian of his class.
On April 4th, 1968 at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis Tennessee Martin Luther King Jr. was shot and killed.
At the time of King's wedding to Coretta Scott, honeymoon suites did not allow African Americans. A friend of King's owned a funeral parlor and offered to lend it to the couple for their honeymoon.
In 1969, James Earl Ray received a 99-year sentence after pleading guilty to Martin Luther King Jr.'s murder.
King once convinced Nichelle Nichols, who played Uhura on Star Trek, to stay on the Science Fiction show. Nichols was intending to quit after the first season of Star Trek, but King persuaded her of the importance of her role as a black woman playing a main character.
After his death Martin Luther King Jr. was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, as well as the Congressional Gold Medal.
King's mother was an talented organist and choir leader.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day began to be celebrated in 1971 in many cities and states. In 1986 it became a federal holiday.
King received $54,123 for winning the Nobel Prize (equivalent to about $400,000 now), all of which he donated to the Civil Rights Movement.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial is located in Washington, D.C. in West Potomac Park.
The Martin Luther King Jr. National Monument was the first monument on the National Mall in Washington to be dedicated to an African American. The statue is located between the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials.
The Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site (also known as the King Center) is located in Atlanta, Georgia.
Tag : Government, People
Facts About Lorises
Loris is a kind of primate. There are in excess of ten distinct types of loris which possess tropical rainforest, scour woodlands, semi-deciduous timberland, swamps, rural nurseries… They can be found in India, southeast Asian and Sri Lanka. Number of lorises dropped radically over the most recent few years because of natural surroundings misfortune and chasing (neighborhood individuals use them for strict and clinical purposes or they sold them as pets). Thin loris is a jeopardized species while the entire group of moderate lorises is fundamentally imperiled.
Size of the loris depends on the species. Bornean slow loris is the smallest species; it weighs only 9 to 11 ounces. The Bengal slow loris is the largest species; it weights between 2.2 and 4.6 pounds and reaches length between 10 and 15 inches (from head to the tail).
The slow loris is one of the rarest primates. Their closest relative is the African bushbabies.
Loris is covered with fur. Color of the fur can be grey, brown, yellow, red, silver or golden.
Slow lorises may be slow, but they can travel around 8 kilometers in one night. That's a long distance for such a slow mammal!
Frontally positioned large eyes are the most prominent feature of the loris. They ensure binocular vision and perception of depth. Their eyes also have specific reflective layer (called tapetum lucidum) which provides excellent eyesight during the night.
Muscles on a Nycticebus species allow them to remain still for hours at a time.
Other than eyes, loris has excellent sense of smell, which is used for the detection of the prey.
The movement of a slow loris is snakelike. This is because a slow loris has more spinal vertebra than other primates.
Loris is an omnivore (eats both meat and vegetation). Its diet is usually composed of insects, slugs, small mammals, fruit, leaves and various types of eggs.
The second finger on a slow loris is smaller than the rest for gripping purposes.
Loris is a nocturnal animal (active during the night). It spends most of the time in the trees, where it walks slowly and silently or stays motionless while waiting for the prey to appear.
Out of all the primates, Nycticebus coucang has the longest tongue. This tongue is used to drink nectar.
Loris walks by using all four extremities. This type of locomotion is called quadrupedalism. Front and hind limbs are about the same size.
The home range of a slow loris can be as large as 3200 square meters, about 2 square miles! They also can have as many as 60 different sleeping sites that they use!
Just like humans, loris has a thumb opposed to other fingers (thumb is not aligned with other fingers). This feature allows loris to grip the branches while walking and to hold the prey.
In parts of Asia, the slow loris is believed to be able to cure over 100 diseases!
Loris has very strong grip. It can hang from the branch (attached by its feet) for hours when it uses both hands for feeding.
Compared to other nocturnal creatures, a slow loris has one of the slowest rates of development.
Loris sleeps during the day in a very specific position. It curls in the ball, placing its head between the legs.
All Nycticebus species have a light reflecting layer in their eyes called tapetum lucidum.
Although loris is a solitary creature (live on its own), it can often be seen sleeping in the group of couple of lorises.
Their eyes are the largest of all the other primates and are the most forward facing.
Loris is the only known "poisonous" primate. It has a patch filled with venom under its elbow used for protection against the predators. When faced with danger, loris licks its elbow and covers its teeth with poison. As soon as oris bites its enemy, it will deliver the venom.
A slow loris has the ability to see in close to complete darkness.
1Loris reaches sexual maturity between 10 months (females) and one year (males). Depending on the species, lorises mate twice a year, once per year, or every year and a half. Female gives birth to usually one baby (two babies maximally).
Loris also uses venom to protect its offspring. By covering the baby with venom, mother keeps the predators away from her offspring while she searches for food.
Sometimes even the venomous protection is not enough to save the babies from the predators, such as orangutans which readily eat them.
Lifespan of most loris species is between 15 and 20 years in captivity.
Tag : Animals, Nature
Facts About The Cairo Citadel
The Cairo Citadel is situated on Mokattam Hill in Cairo, Egypt. Initially it was worked as an illustrious home and furthermore as military sleeping shelter by the ruler Saladin. He concluded that Cairo should have been ready to shield itself from any danger. When it was finished in 1182, Saladin was not, at this point the leader of Egypt. At the point when it was finished, Al Malek El Kamel was the leader of Egypt and he was the main ruler to live in it. During the 1860s, Egypt's ruler Khedive Ismail moved out of the Citadel of Cairo into his own new palace. From that point on the Citadel of Cairo was not, at this point utilized as the seat of government.
The Citadel of Cairo was the home for the rulers of Egypt for 700 years.
The Cairo Citadel was originally built in 1176. That means it's medieval because the medieval period ran from the 5th to the 15th century.
The Citadel is a medieval Islamic fortification. It was built during the Ayyubid Dynasty.
Since 1976, it has been protected as part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Historic Cairo. UNESCO is a special department of the United Nations, which promotes world peace and cultural respect by protecting places of historical importance.
The Citadel was built on hill to make it easy to see attackers and to make it more difficult for them to attack.
The Cairo Citadel is a religious place for Muslims, the people who belong to the Islamic faith.
Construction of the Citadel began in 1176-1183 and it was completed in 1184.
It contains mosques, which are places of worship – like churches are for Christians.
The Citadel was supposed to be the centerpiece of a wall that was to be built to protect Cairo and Fustat from the Crusaders.
In fact, there are three mosques inside: Alabaster Mosque; Al-Nasir Muhammad Mosque; and the Mosque of Sulayman Pasha. Cairo was once the centre of the Islamic world, meaning it was the most important city for Muslims everywhere.
Saladin was the ruler of Egypt when construction of the Citadel began but when it was finished he was no longer king. The first king to live in the Citadel was Al Malek El Kamel.
The Citadel was made strong so that it could be used to defend the city against invaders.
The wall that Saladin had begun to build to protect Cairo and Fustat was still under construction after he died. It was still being built in 1238, many years after his death.
It was fortified between 1176 and 1183 to protect it from the Crusaders.
The Citadel was enlarged in the 13th to 14th century.
The Citadel's main defences were its location on top of a hill, stone towers and the great wall around it.
The Cairo Citadel is considered to be one the most elegant of the fortresses that were built during the middle ages.
During World War II, the British army were based there, and today, Egyptian soldiers still use it.
Saladin also had a well for water built inside the Citadel. It is called the Well of Joseph and still can be seen today.
The Citadel actually joined the ancient city of Cairo with a nearby city called Ayyubid to protect both places from the Crusaders.
It was approximately 280 feet deep. When the well could not supply enough water for all the people and humans living there, they brought water from the Nile to keep an adequate supply.
The Citadel is sometimes referred to as Muhammad Ali Citadel.
Cairo was invaded by the French in 1798. The Citadel was important in helping to protect the city but Napoleon Bonaparte's army eventually took control.
Today, visitors to Cairo Citadel can explore the three museums inside.
The Cairo Citadel is also called the 'Mohamed Ali Citadel'. The reason for this is because the Mosque of Mohamed Ali is there. The Mosque was built in memory of Muhammad's oldest son Tusun Pasha who died in 1816.
The Bijou Palace was originally built by Muhammad Ali Pasha. Inside is his official audience hall, the place where he would greet his guests. It contains his throne and a huge chandelier.
There are three mosques at the Citadel of Cairo: Mosque of Al-Nasir Muhammad, Mosque of Suleiman Pasha and the Mosque of Mohamed Ali.
In the Carriage Museum, you can see a collection of amazing royal carriages. There is also the Egyptian Military Museum, which has only been inside the Citadel since 1949.
The Citadel of Cairo is considered to be one of the 'greatest monuments of medieval warfare'.
It has been said that the Cairo Citadel has the best views in the city. From the terraces inside, you can see superb Cairo views. On a clear day, you can even see the Pyramids of Giza in the distance.
From the 19th century on, the Cairo Citadel underwent six major reconstruction projects.
Despite the fortifications, in 1798 the Citadel was controlled by the French. Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte's armies invaded Egypt and Syria to protect their ability to trade in the region. This led to the discovery of the famous Rosetta Stone and the birth of egyptology (the study of Ancient Egypt).
Of all the non- pharaoh-related monuments in Egypt, the Cairo Citadel is one of the most popular.
Today the Cairo Citadel is a historic site. Its mosques and museums are historically preserved for future generations to be able to enjoy.
Tag : Architecture, Miscellaneous, Places
Facts About Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, alludes to functions of the Carnival festivity, starting on or after the Christian galas of the Epiphany and coming full circle on the day preceding Ash Wednesday, which is known as Shrove Tuesday.
The first Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans was held in 1838.
Mardi Gras began as an extravagant celebration for Christians in Europe. It reached North America in the early 18th century.
The Mistick Krewe of Comus is credited with making New Orleans the most popular Mardi Gras destination in the United States when they introduced floats to the parade in 1857. Comus is the Greek God of Revelry.
Many countries celebrate Mardi Gras as the last day of the Carnival season.
Around 1.4 million people visit New Orleans during carnival season.
Other names for Mardi Gras include Martes de Carnaval (in Mexico), Karneval (Germany), J'Ouvert (Trinidad), Fastan (Sweden), and Martedi Grasso (Italy).
Carnival season in New Orleans officially kicks off every year on Twelfth Night (which marks the Epiphany) when a group called the Phunny Phorty Phellows rides down St. Charles in a streetcar throwing out the first beads.
A French Cajun phrase for Mardi Gras is 'Laissez les bons temps rouler', which means 'Let the good times roll'.
Krewe of Rex, founded in 1872, is responsible for originating several Mardi Gras traditions including the official colors and giving out Spanish gold coins.
Some countries celebrate Mardi Gras as 'Pancake Day', and indulge in eating pancakes. Ireland, Australia, England, Canada and New Zealand celebrate Pancake Day.
There are over 70 parades held throughout the New Orleans metropolitan area during carnival season.
Purple, gold and green and the official colors of Mardi Gras. Purple is meant to signify justice, gold is meant to signify power and green signifies faith.
"Laissez les bon temps rouler" means "let the good times roll" in Cajun French, which seems appropriate.
The first Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans took place in 1837.
New Orleans, Baton Rouge, the Louisiana Northshore doggies get their own parades.
The first floats in the parades in New Orleans Mardi Gras appeared in 1857.
Purple, gold, and green are the official Mardi Gras colors.
The clubs that hold parades or balls at Mardi Gras are called Krewes.
The color purple represents justice.
In 1872 the tradition of naming kings and queens began when the Russian grand duke visited New Orleans Mardi Gras and a royal reception was held for him. The grand duke's royal colors were purple, gold and green, which became Mardi Gras' official colors.
The gold color symbolizes power.
Millions of colored beaded necklaces are thrown from floats at Mardi Gras.
Green is used to represent faith.
When Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in August 2005 it was believed that Mardi Gras would be cancelled the following year. It was decided that Mardi Gras would go on.
The Krewe of Rex also selected the theme song "If Ever I Cease to Love," which has since been adopted as the anthem for Mardi Gras.
The French Quarter in New Orleans was mostly undamaged in Hurricane Katrina.
It's believed that the bead-throwing tradition started in the 1880s when a man dressed as Santa became popular with the crowd for tossing them.
Masquerades and feasts are a big part of Mardi Gras. The ancient Roman festivals of Saturnalia and Lupercalia also featured feasts and masquerades.
The beads used to be made of glass but are now primarily made of plastic.
The first American city to hold a parade for Mardi Gras was Mobile, Alabama.
The city estimates around 25 million pounds of beads get thrown into the streets each year.
One of the biggest Mardi Gras celebrations in the U.S. is held in Galveston, Texas.
After clogged storm drains that caused excess flooding, the city cleared the drains of 45 million tons of beads!
In 1875 Louisiana named Mardi Gras a state holiday. Today is also a state holiday in Alabama and Florida.
Parade attendees request the trinkets by yelling the phrase "Throw me something mister!"
Rio de Janeiro hosts one of the world's largest Mardi Gras celebrations in the world.
Although beads are the most common, many of the krewes offer up various trinkets to the crowd as they make their way down the street.
It is illegal to ride a Mardi Gras float in New Orleans if you're not wearing a mask. This law came into effect to allow people to associate with anyone they wanted to, without social barriers.
One of the most coveted trinkets to catch is a golden coconut thrown during the Zulu parade.
Tag : Entertainment, Holidays, Miscellaneous
Facts About Oryx
Oryx is a large antelope. It reaches 5 to 7 feet in length; 18 to 35 inches in height at the shoulder and weight between 220 to 450 pounds, depending on the species.
Originally, various oryx species were found in all of Africa's arid regions.
Oryx is easily recognized by horse-like neck with mane, white head covered with black triangular patches and long V-shaped horns that can be straight or swept back. Females have thinner horns than males. Horns are usually 2 to 3 feet long.
Well adapted to the conditions of their hot, arid habitats, oryx can live as long as 20 years.
Oryx is territorial animal which uses its horns to establish dominance in the herd. Dominant male uses its dung to mark the territory.
The social system of the oryx is unusual in that nonterritorial males live in mixed groups with females, or with females and their young.
Oryx lives in herds whose size depends on the available food. When the food is abundantly present (after the rainy season), oryx can be found in herds composed of couple of hundreds of animals. During dry season, when the food is scarce, oryx lives in small herds composed of less than 30 animals.
Males that dominate are territorial to a degree, marking their areas with dung deposits.
Oryx is an herbivore which prefers eating grass and thorny shrubs. They eat during the morning and in the late afternoon, when the temperature is lower.
Groups are composed of 10 to 40 males and females of all ages and both sexes; herds of up to 200 are common in some East African habitats.
Oryx can survive long period without water (even couple of weeks). Also, certain plants, such as wild melon, underground roots and tuber, can provide enough moisture.
Oryx typically feed in early morning and late afternoon and sometimes on moonlit nights.
Oryx has unique mechanism which helps it survive in the arid and desert conditions where the temperatures are high most of the time. Unlike other mammals, oryx can rise its body temperature to prevent perspiration and loss of body-water during the day. It also uses specific network of capillaries in the nose to cool down the blood that is traveling to the brain. Cooling of the blood prevents over-heating of the brain.
Their diets consists mainly of coarse grasses and browse from thorny shrubs.
Oryx has excellent sense of smell. It can detect rainfall 50 miles away. Once the rainfall is detected, whole herd is on the move.
In desert areas oryx consume thick leaved plants, wild melons, as well as roots and tubers they dig out of the ground.
Just like other antelopes, oryx uses its speed to avoid predators. It can reach the speed of 37 miles per hour.
They may drink if water is available but can survive days or even weeks without it.
When faced with direct threats, animals in the herd stand sideways to appear larger. If that does not scare the predators - oryx will use its long horns for self-defense.
A female leaves the herd to give birth and hides the calf for 2 or 3 weeks, visiting a few times a day to nurse it.
Typical predators of the oryx are lions, wild dogs and hyenas.
Like other antelope species, oryx primarily depend on flight to escape from predators such as lions, wild dogs and hyenas.
Oryx mates throughout the whole year. As soon as pregnancy ends, female can mate again.
The oryx is a good example of an antelope that has successfully adapted to the harsh conditions of dispersed food, intense heat and little or no water.
Pregnancy lasts 8 and the half months. Calf can run as soon as it is born, but it stays hidden in the grass for the first couple of weeks of its life, until characteristic body coloration appears.
The female comes into heat soon after giving birth. The more frequent estrus cycles enable females to produce calves at 9-month intervals.
Young oryx feeds on milk between 6 and 9 months. Oryx reaches sexual maturity at the age of two years. At that time, young males usually leave their herd and join some other.
Herd composition in the wild constantly changes according to need.
Oryx lives 20 years both in the captivity and in the wild (if the environmental conditions are good).
Tag : Animals, Miscellaneous, Nature
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