# document

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"Their shell is greenish-yellow when fresh but soon fades to dull cream when exposed to light. The nest is a simple shallow and wide scrape in a hidden location; males will drag sticks, grass, and leaves in the area surrounding the nest so it resembles a firebreak as wide as their neck can reach. The incubation period is 29\u201343 days. All the eggs hatch within 36 hours of each other even though the eggs in one nest were laid perhaps as much as two weeks apart. As it seems, when the first young are ready to hatch they start a call resembling a pop-bottle rocket or even fireworks, even while still inside the egg, thus the hatching time is coordinated. Greater rheas are half-grown about three months after hatching, and sexually mature by their 14th month.\n\n=== Predators ===\nThe natural predators of adult greater rheas are limited to the cougar (Puma concolor), which are found in most areas inhabited by greater rheas and are certain to be their leading predator, and the jaguar (Panthera onca), which are found with greater rheas and opportunistically hunt them in the Paraguayan chaco, central Bolivia and the Brazilian cerrado. "


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"Feral dogs are known to kill younger birds, and the crested caracara (Caracara plancus) is suspected to prey on hatchlings. Armadillos sometimes feed on greater rhea eggs; nests have been found which had been undermined by a six-banded armadillo (Euphractus sexcinctus) or a big hairy armadillo (Chaetophractus villosus) and the rhea eggs were broken apart. Predation on young rheas has also been reportedly committed by greater grisons (Galictis vittata).Captive-bred greater rheas exhibit significant ecological na\u00efvete. This fearlessness renders them highly vulnerable to predators if the birds are released into the wild in reintroduction projects. Classical conditioning of greater rhea juveniles against predator models can prevent this to some degree, but the personality type of the birds \u2013 whether they are bold or shy \u2013 influences the success of such training. In 2006, a protocol was established for training greater rheas to avoid would-be predators, and for identifying the most cautious animals for release.\n\n== Status and conservation ==\n\nThe greater rhea is considered a Near Threatened species according to the IUCN, and they have a decreasing range of about 6,540,000 square kilometres (2,530,000 sq mi). "


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"The species is believed to be declining due to increased hunting and the conversion of central South American grasslands to farmland and ranchland. The populations of Argentina and Uruguay are most seriously affected by the decline.Farmers sometimes consider the greater rhea pests, because they will eat broad-leaved crop plants, such as cabbage, chard and bok choy. Where they occur as pests, farmers tend to hunt and kill greater rheas. The burning of crops in South America has also contributed to their decline.International trade in wild-caught greater rheas is restricted as per CITES Appendix II.The rheas in Germany are legally protected in a similar way to native species. In its new home, the greater rhea is considered generally beneficial as its browsing helps maintain the habitat diversity of the sparsely populated grasslands bordering the Schaalsee biosphere reserve. They are however considered as a threat to local farmers and described as an invasive species since 2015 according to the NHBS. German authorities have issued 'alternatives' to culling the birds which still sparks controversy.\n\n"


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"== Relationship with humans ==\n\nAncient humans in the Patagonia region used to hunt greater rhea, and stencils of greater rhea feet dating back to the early holocene can be found at rock art sites such as Cueva de las Manos.This species is farmed in North America and Europe similar to the emu and ostrich. The main products are meat and eggs, but rhea oil is used for cosmetics and soaps and rhea leather is also traded in quantity. Male greater rheas are very territorial during the breeding season. The infant chicks have high mortality in typical confinement farming situations, but under optimum free-range conditions chicks will reach adult size by their fifth month.\n\n== References ==\n\n== Further reading ==\n\nAccordi, Iury Almeida; Barcellos, Andr\u00e9 (Jun 2006). \"Composi\u00e7\u00e3o da avifauna em oito \u00e1reas \u00famidas da Bacia Hidrogr\u00e1fi ca do Lago Gua\u00edba, Rio Grande do Sul\" [Bird composition and conservation in eight wetlands of the hidrographic basin of Gua\u00edba lake, State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil] (PDF) (in Portuguese). Sociedade Brasileira de Ornitologia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-12-19.\nTinoco, Penha; Young, Robert Young (Jun 2006). "


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"\"The fishing rhea: a new food item in the diet of wild greater rheas\" (PDF). Sociedade Brasileira de Ornitologia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-12-19.\nSchuh, Hans (March 20, 2003). \"Alleinerziehender Asylant\" [Single-parent families seeking asylum]. Die Zeit (in German). Retrieved July 22, 2011.\n\n== External links ==\nRheas\nRhea videos, photos and sounds on the Internet Bird Collection\nGreater rhea media from ARKive"


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"The Philippine sailfin lizard, crested lizard, sail-fin lizard, sailfin water lizard, soa-soa water lizard (Hydrosaurus pustulatus) or its native name ibid is an oviparous lizard endemic to several of the islands that make up the Philippines and is also found in New Guinea and some parts of Eastern Indonesia. The Philippine Sailfin Lizard is a protected species in its native country of the Philippines as it is a target for exotic pet collectors and sought after in the international pet trade. This is largely because these lizards have unique dorsal crests (otherwise known as sailfins) that give the organism a structure similar to a sail, and the Philippine sailfin lizard also has very bright coloration patterns that make them attractive to the eye. The pustulatus species is unique within the Hydrosaurus genus because of the confusion for the past several decades of classifying these organisms amongst other lizards within their same genus in their habitat. They are also very talented swimmers, and smaller juvenile lizards can run on top of water due to their bodily structure. The genus Hydrosaurus means water dragon, which reflects the aforementioned abilities lizards have in water. "


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"The Philippine sailfin lizard usually lies close to bodies of water, stays in tree branches, and runs across the ground to get around their habitat. They utilize their sailfins/scales to do territorial displays in the presence of a competitor or a predator. In terms of their reproduction, they utilize sexual reproduction and breed one time each year, but they can produce multiple clutches of eggs with between 2 and 8 eggs. These eggs are buried into the soil for a period of two months before hatchlings are produced. Philippine sailfin lizards are heavily studied by herpetologists and other scientists, as they are unique amongst other reptile lizards with regard to their coloration and form.\n\n== History and taxonomy ==\nIn 1829, Johann Friedrich von Eschscholtz discovered a new sailfin lizard species in the Philippines and designated it as Hydrosaurus pustulatus. The genus Hydrosaurus is specific to Southeast Asia, and it only contains three major species (with two additional species falling under H. amboinensis): H. amboinensis, H. pulsatus, and H. weberi. The Philippine sailfin lizard and the genus Hydrosaurus is also commonly referred to as a water dragon due to their excellent ability to swim in and sometimes run across water. "


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"There have been issues with the taxonomic identification of Hydrosaurus pustulatus because the original descriptions were of immature members of the  species in the 1800\u2019s and were not descriptive enough for diagnostic procedures in environmental studies. As a result, efforts for understanding the spread of different taxonomic groupings have been a challenge.\n\n== Habitat and distribution ==\nThe Philippine sailfin lizard is found across several of the islands that comprise the Philippines, including Guimaras, Romblon, Negros, and Cebu, but the lizard is not found in Palawan Island. The lizard is also found in New Guinea and some of eastern Indonesia. The Philippine sailfin lizard lives in tropical wooded habitats near water, like rivers, riverbanks, rice-fields and mangrove. The Philippine sailfin lizard also lives in moderately high densities in these habitats. The Philippine sailfin lizard also prefers the bodies of water that they reside nearby being freshwater. Due to confusion with H. amboinensis, the exact distribution in the Philippines has been labelled with some uncertainty. However, a genetic study that sampled individuals throughout the Philippine archipelago (from Mindanao in south to Luzon in north) found that all were H. pustulatus, which is divided into six clades. "


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"Additionally, the Philiippine sailfin lizard is often found near rocky areas close to a stream.\n\n== Behavior and appearance ==\nIn terms of the physical characteristics, Philippine sailfin lizards are large and usually grow to a length between two and three feet, including its tail, but males are larger than females and can grow up to between 3 and 4 feet long (91 - 120 centimeters). These lizards typically weigh between 3 and 5 pounds (1.4 - 2.3 kg). Additionally, this species of lizard has a unique characteristic being its crest or sailfin, which is an upright part of its body that occurs from the base of the tail to the lower area of the back. This crest or sailfin is used not only to help with its ability to swim efficiently in water, but is also thought to assist with the lizard's ability to do territorial displays and heat/cool in different environments. The crest also makes the Philippine sailfin lizard\u2019s body look like a sail with regard to its structure. Overall, the body and tail of the Philippine sailfin lizard is largely cylindrical.  "


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"The juvenile Philippine sailfin lizard is an excellent swimmer and has flattened toes along with smaller mass compared to adults that enable it to run across water, similar to the basilisks. The adult Philippine sailfin lizard does not usually retain a smaller mass and loses the ability to run across water, but it uses these flattened toes to swim very effectively. The flattened toes also have scale fringes that can be used for swimming and running on top of water as mentioned before. Males have a larger crest on their back than the females. The males also have bigger heads, taller sails on their tails, and darker limbs. During mating season, the head of the Philippine sailfin lizard becomes violet while only the neck area of a female\u2019s crest can become violet. In terms of coloration, Philippine sailfin lizards have dark green and brown skin, and can also have yellow patches on the back side of their body and near their heads. The Philippine sailfin lizard has a flattened tail that is used to propel in water more quickly, adding to its natural born ability to be agile and swift in water to evade prey. "


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"In the presence of predators, the Philippine sailfin lizard either drops from the tree branch it is residing on, runs, or swims to the bottom of the body of water it is closest to and can hold its breath for up to 15 minutes. Philippine sailfin lizards are also diurnal and spend most of the day time resting in vegetation out in the sun. In general, the Philippine sailfin lizard utilizes running to move around its habitats and away or toward predators and competitors, and their lifespan can be anywhere between 10 and 20 years. The Philippine sailfin lizard also has a unique physical feature being a vestigial eye (which is also known as parietal or pineal eye) on the top of the lizard's skull that can detect differing angles of light from the sun and is thought to be used to find a sense of direction.\n\n== Life cycle and reproduction ==\nPhilippine sailfin lizards reproduce through sexual reproduction, and they only breed once every year with potentially multiple clutches of eggs. "


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"In order for female Philippine sailfin lizards to lay their eggs after mating and birth, they dig relatively shallow holes in soil near their watery-habitats, and these eggs then incubate for approximately two months. The eggs then eventually become hatchlings during the rainy season, which actually are born with a natural swiftness and agility that allows them to evade their predators by running across the water unlike adult lizards that swim. These female Philippine sailfin lizards are able to lay several clutches of eggs a year that each can contain anywhere between 2 and 8 eggs. It's also important to note that these eggs are laid above the flood line.\n\n== Conservation ==\nPhilippine sailfin lizards have now been classified as vulnerable by the IUCN. Their main threats are habitat loss, being hunted for food, and collection for the pet trade. The factors contributing to this vulnerable conservation status include habitat loss, hunting by exotic meat collectors and the pet trade. "


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"It is currently illegal according to Philippine law to export the lizard out of the country, but some exotic pet collectors claim to already be in possession of these lizards and breed them in captivity to sell them to buyers in the United States of America. In fact, the median price for these lizards is $700, which is considerably more expensive than other lizards. Some of the most well known trading centers for the Philippine sailfin lizards are 1) Puerto Princesa City, Palawan Island, 2) Cebu City, Cebu Island, and 3) Davao City, Mindanao Island. It\u2019s essential that conservation efforts to create protected areas within the Philippines for the Philippine sailfin lizard are within the habitats that they normally live in and not these trading areas. In terms of the history of the pet trade, Philippine sailfin lizards were sold in higher frequency between  1980 and 1990 because the Philippines as a country was exporting them internationally, but they now do not export these lizards anymore, leaving Indonesia to be the primary source of exporting them.\n\n== Diet ==\nThe Philippine sailfin lizards are omnivores and they eat plants including leaves and fruits in addition to insects and crustaceans. "


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"Juvenile Philippine sailfin lizards start out preferring meat more than plants, but the balance comes as they age. Their diet is easy to replicate, which is why they are a target for exotic pet collectors, but they\u2019re not as docile compared to other lizards. The Philippine sailfin lizard\u2019s omnivorous diet is also reflected by its relatively simple dental complexity, specifically with the posterior teeth of the mouth having less defined tricuspid teeth and the posterior teeth being tricuspid. As a result, the lizard cannot primarily be a carnivore since its teeth were not designed to do so.\n\n== In captivity ==\nIn terms of keeping a Philippine sailfin lizard in captivity, they are typically kept in large enclosures with tropical-styled heating, semi-arboreal resources, access to submerging in water to mimic their natural environment. Breeding in captivity has only been done in a few cases, but this explanation has also been used as a method of smuggling the Philippine sailfin lizards out of their native habitats for sale. Since it is common in many parts of the Philippines, the pet trade in many regions still continues and some are even unrecognized by the government. "


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"It\u2019s also important to note that the Philippine sailfin lizards are to be approached with caution when held captive as they are extremely nervous and can scratch people, but studies have shown that hand-feeding these lizards helps them become less nervous and gain trust.\n\n== Gallery ==\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links =="


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"Lampropeltis getula, commonly known as the eastern kingsnake, common kingsnake, or chain kingsnake,  is a harmless colubrid species endemic to the United States and Mexico. It has long been a favorite among collectors. Nine subspecies are currently recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.\n\n== Description ==\n\nAdult specimens of the speckled kingsnake, L. g. holbrooki, are the smallest race at 91.5 cm (36.0 in) in snout-to-vent length (SVL) on average, while L. g. getula is the largest at 107 cm (42 in) SVL on average. Specimens up to 208.2 cm (82.0 in) in total length (including tail) have been recorded. Weight can vary from 285 g (10.1 oz) in a small specimen of 87.2 cm (34.3 in) in total length, to 2,268 g (80.0 oz) in large specimens, of over 153 cm (60 in) in total length.The color pattern consists of a glossy black, blue black, or dark brown ground color, overlaid with a series of 23-52 white chain-like rings. Kingsnakes from the coastal plains have wider bands, while those found in mountainous areas have thinner bands or may be completely black.\n\n"


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"== Common names ==\nCommon names for L. getula include eastern kingsnake, common kingsnake, chain kingsnake, kingsnake, Carolina kingsnake, chain snake, bastard horn snake, black kingsnake, black moccasin, common chain snake, cow sucker, eastern kingsnake, horse racer, master snake, North American kingsnake, oakleaf rattler, pied snake, pine snake, racer, rattlesnake pilot, thunder-and-lightning snake, thunderbolt, thunder snake, wamper, wampum snake. In North Carolina, it is also called the pied piper.\n\n== Geographic range ==\nL. getula is found in the United States in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, portions of Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, south and southwest Illinois, southern Indiana, southern Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, southern and western Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, southern Ohio, Oklahoma, southern Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, southern Utah, Virginia, and West Virginia. It is also found in northern Mexico, including all of Baja California. It has been introduced to Gran Canaria in the Canary Islands, where in 2014,  the population had reached an estimated 20,000 individuals.\n\n"


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"== Habitat ==\nThe preferred habitats of L. getula are open areas, particularly grassland, but also chaparral, oak woodland, abandoned farms, desert, low mountains, sand, and any type of riparian zone, including swamps, canals, and streams. A study on the habitat use of the Eastern Kingsnake found that overall they prefer and can be found in sites with thick layer of leaf litter and dense shrubbery. From their observations throughout the course of research, they found that 79% of their tracked specimen spent the majority of their time concealed under the cover of soil and leaf litter.Although commonly described as diurnal, some reports suggest that the Eastern Kingsnake are crepuscular or nocturnal during the hottest parts of the year It has been found that Eastern Kingsnake home ranges often show little-to-no overlap.Some studies show that Eastern Kingsnakes (L. g. getula), especially males, are territorial, and will commence in combat if their territory is threatened by another snake.\n\n"


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"== Diet ==\nL. getula eats other snakes, including venomous snakes such as copperheads (Agkistrodon contortrix), which are responsible for more venomous snakebites than any other in the United States, as well as coral snakes (Micruroides and Micrurus), massasaugas (Sistrurus catenatus), and other rattlesnakes (Crotalus and Sistrurus). Among the non-venomous snakes preyed upon include common garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis), common watersnakes (Nerodia sipedon), ring-necked snakes (Diadophis punctatus), smooth earth snakes (Virginia valeriae), and worm snakes (Carphophis amoenus).It has developed a hunting technique to avoid being bitten by clamping down on the jaws of the venomous prey, but even if envenomated, it is immune. It also eats amphibians, turtle eggs, bird eggs (including those of the northern bobwhite [Colinus virginianus]), lizards (such as five-lined skinks [Plestiodon fasciatus]), and small mammals (such as white-footed mice [Peromyscus leucopus]), which it kills by constriction.Due to their diet of eating other snake species, kingsnakes are a key factor in the spread of ophidiomycosis. This is a relatively new snake fungal disease originating from the fungus, Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola. This disease has a variety of impacts on snakes and the extent of this impact is still being researched.\n\n== Reproduction ==\nL. getula is oviparous. "


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"Adult females lay up to several dozen eggs that hatch after 2.0-2.5 months of incubation. Hatchlings are brightly colored and feed on small snakes, lizards, and rodents. Eastern Kingsnakes (L. g. getula) are active from April\u2013October in most parts of their habitat range and breeding occurs in the spring months. Neck-biting is a common behavior when mating.\n\n== In captivity ==\nLong a favorite among collectors, L. getula does well in captivity, living to 25 years or more. Some of the most popular subspecies of the common kingsnake kept in captivity are the California, Brooks', Florida, and Mexican black kingsnakes.\n\n== Subspecies ==\n\n== References ==\n\n== Further reading ==\nHubbs, Brian (2009). Common Kingsnakes: A Natural History of Lampropeltis getula. Tempe, Arizona: Tricolor Books. 436 pp. ISBN 978-0975464113.\nLinnaeus C (1766). Systema natur\u00e6 per regna tria natur\u00e6, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, diferentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio Duodecima, Reformata. Stockholm: L. Salvius. 532 pp. (Coluber getulus, new species, p. 382). (in Latin).\nPowell R, Conant R, Collins JT (2016). Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Fourth Edition. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. xiv + 494 pp. "


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"ISBN 978-0-544-12997-9. (Lampropeltis getula, p. 379 + Plate 34).\nSmith HM, Brodie ED Jr (1982). Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification. New York: Golden Press. 240 pp. ISBN 0-307-13666-3 (paperback), ISBN 0-307-47009-1 (hardcover). (Lampropeltis getula, pp. 180\u2013181).\nStebbins RC (2003). A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians, Third Edition. The Peterson Field Guide Series. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Company. xiii + 533 pp. ISBN 978-0-395-98272-3. (Lampropeltis getula, pp. 364\u2013366 + Plate 44 + Map 153).\n\n== External links ==\n\nLampropeltis getula at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed July 14, 2008 {{{year}}}.\nEastern Kingsnake at the Florida Museum of Natural History. Accessed June 29, 2008."


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"The red-crested turaco (Tauraco erythrolophus) is a turaco, a group of African Otidimorphae birds. It is a frugivorous bird endemic to western Angola. Its call sounds somewhat like a jungle monkey.\n\n== Description ==\nThe red-crested turaco weighs 210-325 g and is 45-50 cm long. It looks similar to the Bannerman's turaco, but differs in crest and face colors. Both sexes are similar.\n\n== Behaviour ==\nThey are seen in flocks of up to 30 birds, or in pairs. They usually remain in trees, only coming down to eat or drink.\n\n=== Voice ===\nA deep barking call. the female's call is slightly higher-pitched than the male's. They are highly vocal, particularly at dawn.\n\n=== Reproduction ===\nRed-crested turacos are monogamous. Both mates build a flimsy nest 5 to 20 meters above the ground in dense foliage. After laying eggs, both birds incubate the eggs. The young leave the nest at 4-5 weeks old.\n\n== As a national bird ==\nThe red-crested turaco is the national bird of Angola. It occurs quite commonly along the length of the Angolan escarpment and adjacent forested habitats.\n\n== Gallery ==\n\n== References =="


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"The leopard tortoise (Stigmochelys pardalis) is a large and attractively marked tortoise found in the savannas of eastern and southern Africa, from Sudan to the southern Cape. It is the only extant member of the genus Stigmochelys, although in the past, it was commonly placed in Geochelone. This tortoise is a grazing species that favors semiarid, thorny to grassland habitats. In both very hot and very cold weather, it may dwell in abandoned fox, jackal, or aardvark holes. The leopard tortoise does not dig other than to make nests in which to lay eggs. Given its propensity for grassland habitats, it grazes extensively upon mixed grasses. It also favors succulents and thistles.\n\n== Taxonomy and etymology ==\nThe phylogenic placement of the leopard tortoise has been subject to several revisions. Different authors have placed it in Geochelone (1957), Stigmochelys (2001), Centrochelys (2002), and Psammobates (2006). More recently, consensus appears to have settled on Stigmochelys, a monotypic genus. Considerable debate has occurred about the existence of two subspecies, S. p. pardalis and S. p. babcocki, but recent work does not support this distinction.Stigmochelys is a combination of Greek words: stigma meaning \"mark\" or \"point\" and chelone meaning \"tortoise\". "


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"The specific name pardalis is from the Latin word pardus meaning \"leopard\" and refers to the leopard-like spots on the tortoise's shell.\n\n== Description ==\n\nThe leopard tortoise is the fourth-largest species of tortoise in the world, with typical adults reaching 40 cm (16 in) and weighing 13 kg (29 lb). Adults tend to be larger in the northern and southern ends of their range, where typical specimens weigh up to 20 kg (44 lb), and an exceptionally large tortoise may reach 70 cm (28 in) and weigh 40 kg (88 lb).The carapace is high and domed with steep, almost vertical sides. Juveniles and young adults are attractively marked with black blotches, spots, or even dashes and stripes on a yellow background. In mature adults, the markings tend to fade to a nondescript brown or grey. The head and limbs are uniformly colored yellow, tan, or brown.\n\n== Distribution and habitat ==\nThey are widely distributed across the arid and savanna regions of eastern and southern Africa, extending from South Sudan and Somalia, across East Africa, to South Africa and Namibia. The species is generally absent from the humid forest regions of Central Africa. "


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"Over this range, the leopard tortoise occupies the most varied habitats of any African tortoise, including grasslands, thorn-scrub, mesic brushland, and savannas. They can be found at altitudes ranging from sea level to 2,900 m (9,500 ft).\n\n== Ecology and behavior ==\n\nLeopard tortoises are herbivorous; their diet consists of a wide variety of plants including forbs, thistles, grasses, and succulents. They sometimes gnaw on bones or even hyena feces to obtain calcium, necessary for bone development and their eggshells. Seeds can pass undigested through the gut, so the leopard tortoise plays a significant role in seed dispersal. Normally active during the day, they are less active during hot weather or during the dry season.The leopard tortoise reaches sexual maturity between  12 and 15 years old, and may live as long as 80 to 100 years. During the mating season, males fight over females, ramming and butting their competitors. They trail after females for quite some distance, often ramming them into submission. When mating, the male makes grunting vocalizations. Nesting occurs between May and October when the female digs a hole and lays a clutch of five to 30 eggs. "


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"As many as five to seven clutches may be laid in a single season. Incubation  takes 8\u201315 months depending on temperature.  The numerous predators of the eggs and hatchlings include monitor lizards, snakes, jackals, and crows. Adults have few natural predators, but lions and hyenas have occasionally been reported preying on them.\n\n== Conservation ==\nThe leopard tortoise is a widespread species and remains common throughout most of its range. Human activities, including agricultural burning, consumption, and especially commercial exploitation in the pet trade, are potential threats, but have not yet caused significant population declines. They are increasingly being bred in captivity for the pet trade. For example, most tortoises exported from Kenya and Tanzania originate in captive-breeding programs, alleviating collection from the wild.The leopard tortoise has been listed in Appendix II of CITES since 1975, and in 2000, the United States banned their import because of the risk posed by heartwater, an infectious disease carried by tortoise ticks that could seriously impact the US livestock industry.\n\n== Gallery ==\n\n== References ==\n\n== Further reading ==\nBell T (1828). \"Descriptions of three new Species of Land Tortoises\". Zoological Journal 3: 419\u2013421. (Testudo pardalis, new species, pp. 420\u2013421). "


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"(in English and Latin).\nBranch, Bill (2004). Field Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern Africa. Third Revised edition, Second impression. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 399 pp. ISBN 0-88359-042-5. (Geochelone pardalis, pp. 29\u201330 + Plate 4).\nGray JE (1873). Hand-list of the Specimens of Shield Reptiles in the British Museum. London: Trustees of the British Museum. (Edward Newman, printer). iv + 124 pp. (Stigmochelys, new genus, p. 5).\nLoveridge A (1935). \"Scientific Results of an Expedition to Rain Forest Regions in Eastern Africa. I. New Reptiles and Amphibians from East Africa\". Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zo\u00f6logy at Harvard College 79: 1\u201319. (Testudo pardalis babcocki, new subspecies, pp. 4\u20135).\n\n== External links ==\nSpecies Stigmochelys pardalis at The Reptile DatabaseEdqvist, Ulf. \"Tortoise Trust Web - Observations on Dehydration in Reptiles\". www.tortoisetrust.org. Retrieved 2016-04-11.\n\"Geochelone pardalis (Leopard Tortoise) Care \u2013 Misty Corton\". www.chelonia.org. Retrieved 2016-04-11.\nIUCN/SSC Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group"


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"The Indian star tortoise (Geochelone elegans) is a threatened tortoise species native to India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka where it inhabits dry areas and scrub forest. It has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 2016, as the population is thought to comprise more than 10,000 individuals, but with a declining trend. It is threatened by habitat loss and poaching for the illegal wildlife trade. It was upgraded to CITES Appendix I in 2019 by full consensus among all member states, giving it the highest level of international protection from commercial trade. Conservation group TRAFFIC found 6,040 were seized globally that were intended to be sold in the pet trade.\n\n== Anatomy and morphology ==\nThe carapace of G. elegans is very convex, with dorsal shields often forming humps; the lateral margins are nearly vertical; the posterior margin is somewhat expanded and strongly serrated. It has no nuchal scute, and the supracaudal is undivided, and curved inward in the male; the shields are strongly striated concentrically. The first vertebral scute is longer than broad, and the others are broader than long, with the third at least as broad as the corresponding costal. "


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"The plastron is large, truncated or openly notched in front, and deeply notched and bifid behind; the suture between the humerals is much longer than that between the femorals; the suture between the pectorals is very short; the axillary and inguinal sutures are rather small. The head is moderate in size, with the forehead swollen, convex, and covered with rather small and irregular shields; the beak is feebly hooked, bi- or tricuspid; the edges of the jaws are denticulated; the alveolar ridge of the upper jaw is strong. The outer-anterior face of the fore limbs have numerous unequal-sized, large, imbricate, bony, pointed tubercles; the heel has large, more or less spur-like tubercles; a group of large conical or subconical tubercles is found on the hinder side of the thigh. The carapace is black, with yellow areolae from which yellow streaks radiate; these streaks are usually narrow and very numerous. The plastron likewise has black and yellow, radiating streaks. The Indian star tortoise can grow to 10 inches long.\n\nThe patterning, although highly contrasting, is disruptive and breaks the outline of the tortoise as it sits in the shade of grass or vegetation. "


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"They are mostly herbivorous and feed on grasses, fallen fruit, flowers, and leaves of succulent plants, and will occasionally eat carrion. In captivity, however, they should never be fed meat.\nThe sexual dimorphism of adult Indian star tortoises is quite apparent. Females are considerably larger than their male counterparts. In addition, the females' plastrons are much flatter than those of the males, which have a concave shape.\nThe shape of this creature is presumed to be specially adapted to naturally assist it to return to a stable stance after it has been turned over. Mathematicians G\u00e1bor Domokos of the Budapest University of Technology and Economics and P\u00e9ter V\u00e1rkonyi of Princeton University designed a homogeneous object called a g\u00f6mb\u00f6c that has exactly one unstable balance point and exactly one stable balance point. Just as a bottom-weighted (nonhomogeneous weight distribution) sphere would always return to the same upright position, they found it was possible to construct a shape that behaves the same way. After that, they noted the similarity to the Indian star tortoise and subsequently tested 30 turtles by turning them upside down. They found many of them to be self-righting.\n\n"


id: da1c547adb9648e70ea3ea1046486f6
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"== Distribution and habitat ==\n\nThe Indian star tortoise ranges from India (except Lower Bengal), extending west to Sindh province (Pakistan) and Sri Lanka. A large number of specimens of this species are found in the illegal wildlife trade in India. Few studies exist which have quantified wild populations and the effect of trade on them.\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links ==\n\nIndian Star Tortoise"


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"The blue-crowned parakeet, blue-crowned conure,  or sharp-tailed conure (Thectocercus acuticaudatus) is a small green Neotropical parrot with a blue head and pale beak native to large parts of South America, from eastern Colombia in the north to northern Argentina in the south. They inhabit savanna-like habitats, woodland and forest margins, but avoid dense humid forest such as the Amazon.\nThis species is officially called a parakeet by the AOU and by birders, though usually called conures in aviculture.\n\n== Taxonomy ==\nWhile T. acuticaudatus is the only species in the monotypic genus Thectocercus, this species has five subspecies:\nThectocercus acuticaudatus (Vieillot 1818)\nThectocercus acuticaudatus acuticaudatus (Vieillot 1818)\nThectocercus acuticaudatus haemorrhous (Spix 1824)\nThectocercus acuticaudatus koenigi (Arndt 1995)\nThectocercus acuticaudatus neoxenus (Cory 1909)\nThectocercus acuticaudatus neumanni (Blake and Traylor 1947)Previously, this species was part of the genus Aratinga, but that genus was split in four distinct genera once various phylogenetic studies showed that the genus, as traditionally defined, was polyphyletic.\n\n== Description ==\n\nThe blue-crowned parakeet is a medium-sized bird measuring approximately 37 cm (14.5 in) in length and weighing between 140 and 190 g (4.9 and 6.7 oz).\n"


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"Blue-crowns are born with red coloring around the head, but blue-crowns are predominantly green, with dull blue coloring on the forehead, crown, cheeks, and ears in the nominate, but less blue in other subspecies. It has a ring of white featherless skin around each eye, though this is bright orange-yellow in wild T. acuticaudata neumanni.  The breast feathers may also be tinged with blue, though they are more commonly green to yellow-green. Closed wing coloring matches that of the body while extended wings show blue-brown, becoming chestnut on the outer flight feathers. The tail feathers are green on top, maroon to red-brown on the underside, iridescing to bright orange and scarlet under full-spectrum light. Legs are pink-brown with grey-brown claws. The upper mandible is horn-colored, tapering to a needle-sharp, grey-black tip. In the southern and western nominate and subspecies neumanni, the lower mandible is horn-colored in juveniles, fading to grey-black by the bird's second year. The remaining eastern, central and northern subspecies retain the horn-colored lower mandible throughout adulthood.\n\n== Breeding ==\nThe blue-crowned parakeet's nest is a hole in a tree. The eggs are white and there are usually three to four in a clutch. "


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"The female incubates the eggs for 26 days, and the chicks fledge from the nest about 52 days after hatching.\n\n== Aviculture ==\nBlue-crowned parakeets are generally called blue-crowned conures in aviculture. They are social birds and are relatively good talkers compared to other conures.  They have become quite popular as pets, with a reputation as one of the \"easier\" parrots to care for. However, they are also intelligent, high-energy birds that require a lot of attention and a cage with ample room and toys. They can also be quite loud at times. Consequently, they are more appropriate companions for serious bird enthusiasts rather than the casual birdkeeper.\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links ==\n\n\"Species factsheet: Aratinga acuticaudata\". BirdLife International 2008. Retrieved 3 January 2009.https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22685648/132058639\nhttps://avibase.bsc-eoc.org/species.jsp?lang=EN&avibaseid=4BE8E5F1B316CC94"


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"The red-fronted parrot (Poicephalus gulielmi), also known as Jardine's parrot, is a medium-sized mainly green parrot distributed across wide areas of Africa. It has three subspecies.  The extent and shade of the red or orange plumage on its head, thighs, and bend of wings vary depending on the subspecies.\nThey are popular as pets, partly because of their ability to mimic speech and copy sounds. Trapping of wild birds for the pet trade is a potential threat to wild populations; however, they are protected by CITES (appendix II) making the trade, import and export of all wild-caught parrots illegal.\n\n== Description ==\n\nThe red-fronted parrot is 28 cm (11 in) long. It is mostly green and has a short black squarish tail. Black feathers on the head, neck, back, and wings have lighter green edges giving a scalloped appearance. The lower mandible is dark grey and the upper mandible has a horn coloured base and a dark grey tip. The irises are red-orange, the eyerings are pinkish-grey, and the legs are grey-brown. "


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"The amount of red or orange on the forecrown, the bend of the wing, and thighs varies in the three subspecies but is absent in all young birds \u2013 juveniles having a dark smokey appearance above a paler beak and brown irises. The adult male and female are identical in external appearance. Gender determination of chicks is normally carried out by breeders using DNA analysis of a feather sample or by internal examination of the cloaca. This latter method is cheaper and quicker but does cause some distress to the bird.\n\n== Taxonomy ==\nThe first red-fronted parrot to be scientifically identified was named Congo Jack. The parrot was brought back live from the Congo to the United Kingdom by Sir William Jardine's son on his return from a three-year cruise on HMS Favourite. Congo Jack became tame and whistled and screamed, rather than talk.  Sir William Jardine gave the species the binomial name Pionus Gulielmi after his son, William R.N. (Latin: Gulielmi means \"William's\"), and published the description in 1849.Three subspecies are now recognized:\nPoicephalus gulielmi, (Jardine 1849)\nP. g. gulielmi, (Jardine 1849) \u2013 orange-red on forehead to forecrown, wings, and thighs. Endemic to the Congo River basin. "


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"This subspecies has also been introduced to the island of Puerto Rico.\nP. g. fantiensis, Neumann 1908 \u2013 the forecrown is orange and there is an orange-red or orange on the wings, slightly smaller. Distributed from Liberia to southern Ghana.\nP. g. massaicus, Fischer & Reichenow 1884 \u2013 similar to P. gulielmi except on the head the orange-red is less extensive occurring on the forehead above the beak. Endemic to the highlands (1800 to 3500m) of southern Kenya and northern Tanzania.\n\n== Behaviour ==\n\n=== Breeding ===\nThe red-fronted parrot nests in tree cavities. The eggs are white and there are usually three or four in a clutch. The female incubates the eggs for about 27 days and the chicks leave the nest about 80 days after hatching.\n\n=== Feeding ===\nThey fly swiftly making noisy calls above the forest in pairs or small groups between their night-time roosts and feeding grounds. They feed quietly in the upper canopy of trees, where they are well camouflaged.\n\n== Pets ==\n\nUsually called Jardine's parrots, the red-fronted parrot is becoming an increasingly popular pet, owing to increased availability and a growing following. They are particularly playful, intelligent, and affectionate. "


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"Some speak very clearly, and imitate other birds expertly. Their size, temperament, and voice makes them good candidates for apartment dwellers, though they can give a shrill call. Captive bred birds have an endearing nature, bonding well, usually imperceptibly or only slightly favouring one member of the family more than others. They are not as \"needy\" as some companion species and so long as they are occupied, can be left alone for longer periods without emotional stress (allowing the owners to work for example).\n\n== Conservation status ==\nThe wild red-fronted parrot population in Africa is difficult to estimate, because of its vast range. They are potentially threatened by trapping of wild parrots for the pet trade;\nThey are listed on appendix II of The Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), along with almost all other parrot species. This has made the trade, import and export of all wild caught parrots illegal.\n\n== References ==\n\n== Cited texts ==\nForshaw, Joseph M. (2006). Parrots of the World; an Identification Guide. Illustrated by Frank Knight. Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-09251-6.\n\n== External links ==\n\nhttp://www.wingscc.com/aps/jardine.htm\nhttp://www.parrots.org/index.php/encyclopedia/profile/jardines_parrot/"


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"The river cooter (Pseudemys concinna) is a species of freshwater turtle in the family Emydidae. The species is native to the central and eastern United States.\n\n== Geographic range ==\nP. concinna is found from Virginia south to central Georgia, west to eastern Texas, Oklahoma, and north to southern Indiana.\n\n== Habitat ==\nP. concinna is usually found in rivers with moderate current, as well as lakes and tidal marshes.\n\n== Subspecies ==\nThere are two subspecies which are recognized as being valid.\nPseudemys concinna concinna (LeConte, 1830) \u2013 eastern river cooter\nPseudemys concinna suwanniensis Carr, 1937 \u2013 Suwannee cooter \u2013 sometimes regarded as a separate species, P. suwanniensisNota bene: A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Pseudemys.\nThe coastal plain cooter or Florida cooter (P. floridana) was formerly considered a subspecies of P. concinna, but is now considered a distinct species.\n\n== Name ==\nThe genus Pseudemys includes several species of cooters and red-bellied turtles. Pseudemys concinna is the species known as the river cooter. "


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"The name \"cooter\" may have come from an African word \"kuta\" which means \"turtle\" in the Bambara and Malink\u00e9 languages, brought to America by African slaves.\n\n== Behavior ==\nThe river cooter basks on logs or sun-warmed rocks, and is frequently found in the company of other aquatic basking turtles (sliders and painteds) sometimes piled up on top of each other. All are quick to slip into the water if disturbed. Diurnal by nature, P. concinna wakes with the warming sun to bask and forage. It can move with surprising speed in the water and on land. It is not unusual for it to wander from one body of fresh water to another, but many individuals seem to develop fairly large home ranges, which they seldom or never leave. It sleeps in the water, hidden under vegetation. In areas that are quite warm it remains active all winter, but in cooler climates can become dormant during the winter for up to two months, in the mud, underwater. It doesn't breathe during this time of low metabolism, but can utilize oxygen from the water, which it takes in through the cloaca. "


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"The river cooter prefers to be well hidden under aquatic plants during the winter dormancy period or while sleeping each night.\n\n=== Diet ===\nThe species P. concinna is highly omnivorous and will eat anything, plant or animal, dead or alive. Diet seems to be determined by available food items. While some writers feel that this species of turtle will not eat meat, predatory behavior has been observed. Although it can't swallow out of water, it will leave the water to retrieve a tasty bug or worm, returning to the water to swallow. It will also enthusiastically chase, kill and eat small fish. It has also been observed eating carrion found along the river's edge. The river cooter has tooth-like cusps in the upper jaw, probably an adaptation to aid in eating leaves and fibrous vegetation. Its primary diet includes a wide variety of aquatic plants, and some terrestrial plants that grow near the water's edge. It will happily take fallen fruits as well. In captivity, any kind of plant will be eaten, and some \"meats\", too. Turtles will also take calcium in a separate form, such as a cuttlebone, so that the turtle can self-regulate calcium intake.\n\n"


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"== Conservation status ==\nThe river cooter is faced with loss of habitat, predation by animals, slaughter on the highways, and use as a food source by some people. Hatchlings are particularly vulnerable. During their overland scramble to the river, many hatchlings will be taken by avian and mammal predators. Alligators and muskrats await them in the water. Some will be taken and sold to pet stores. Populations are down in some areas, and there have been increasing reports of injured turtles, but this species as a whole is hardy, and continues to thrive. P. concinna can live 40 years or more.\n\n== Reproduction ==\nThe mating habits of the river cooter are very similar to those of the red-eared slider. As with the other basking turtles, the males tend to be smaller than females. The male uses his long claws to flutter at the face of the much larger female. Often, the female ignores him. After detecting what may be a pheromone signal while sniffing at a female's tail, a male river cooter will court a female by swimming above her, vibrating his long nails and stroking her face. Females have also been observed doing this to initiate courtship. "


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"If the female is receptive, she will sink to the bottom of the river and allow the male to mount for mating. If she does mate, after several weeks the female crawls upon land to seek a nesting site. Females often cross highways looking for suitable nesting spots. Females will lay between 12 and 20 eggs at a time, close to water. The eggs hatch within 45 to 56 days and the hatchlings will usually stay with the nest through their first winter.\nMating takes place in early spring. Nesting usually occurs from May to June. The female chooses a site with sandy or loamy soil, within 100 ft (30 m) of the river's edge. She looks for a rather open area, with no major obstacles for the future hatchings to negotiate on their way to the river. The nest is dug with the hind feet. She lays 10\u201325 or more eggs in one or more clutches. Eggs are ellipsoidal, approximately 1.5 inches (4 cm) long. Incubation time is determined by temperature, but averages 90\u2013100 days. Hatchlings generally emerge in August or September. There have been reported instances of late clutches over-wintering and hatching in the spring. "


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"A hatchling will have a round carapace, about 1.5 inches (4 cm) diameter, that is green with bright yellow markings.\n\n== In the wild ==\nIn the wild P. concinna feeds on aquatic plants, grasses, and algae. Younger ones tend to seek a more protein enriched diet such as aquatic invertebrates, crustaceans, and fish. Older turtles may occasionally seek prey as well, but mostly partake of a herbivorous diet.\nThe river cooter can sometimes be found basking in the sun, but is very wary and will quickly retreat into the water if approached. Otherwise, it is difficult to find in the water, which may be due to its ability to breathe while fully submerged. As a result, little is known about its biology and behavior.\nThe river cooter lives in a wide variety of freshwater and even brackish locations. Rivers, lakes, ponds and marshes with heavy vegetation provide ideal habitat. Large webbed feet make the river cooter an excellent swimmer, capable of negotiating moderately strong river currents of major river systems. It will collect in large numbers on peninsular floodplains associated with a river oxbow.\n\n== Conservation ==\nIn Indiana, the river cooter is listed as an endangered species.\n\n"


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"=== United States federal regulations on commercial distribution ===\nA 1975 U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulation bans the sale (for general commercial and public use) of turtle eggs and turtles with a carapace length of less than 4 inches (100 mm). This regulation comes under the Public Health Service Act and is enforced by the FDA in cooperation with State and local health jurisdictions. The ban has been effective in the U.S. since 1975 because of the public health impact of turtle-associated Salmonella. Turtles and turtle eggs found to be offered for sale in violation of this provision are subject to destruction in accordance with FDA procedures. A fine of up to $1,000 and/or imprisonment for up to one year is the penalty for those who refuse to comply with a valid final demand for destruction of such turtles or their eggs.Many stores and flea markets still sell small turtles due to an exception in the FDA regulation which allows turtles under 4 inches (100 mm) to be sold \"for bona fide scientific, educational, or exhibitional purposes, other than use as pets."


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"\"As with many other animals and inanimate objects, the risk of Salmonella exposure can be reduced by following basic rules of cleanliness. Small children must be taught not to put the turtle in their mouth and to wash their hands immediately after they finish \"playing\" with the turtle, feeding it, or changing the water.\n\n== References ==\n\n== Further reading ==\nBehler, John L.; King, F. Wayne (1979). The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. 743 pp., 657 plates. (Chrysemys concinna, pp. 447-448 + Plate 287).\nConant R (1975). A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Second Edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. xviii + 429 pp. + Plates 1-48. ISBN 0-395-19979-4 (hardcover), ISBN 0-395-19977-8 (paperback). (Chrysemys concinna, pp. 63-65 + Plates 6, 10 + Map 23).\nLeConte J (1830). \"Description of the Species of North American Tortoises\". Annals of the Lyceum of Natural History of New York 3: 91-131. (Testudo concinna, new species, pp. 106-108). (in English and Latin).\nPowell R, Conant R, Collins JT (2016). Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Fourth Edition. "


id: cda335728d3c1916fe5a2adf344c05f
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"Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. xiv + 494 pp. 47 plates, 207 figures. ISBN 978-0-544-12997-9. (Pseudemys concinna, pp. 212-213 + Plates 17, 22; P. suwanniensis, p. 216 + Plate 18 + Figure 83 on p. 180 + photo on p. 172).\nSeidel, Michael E. (1994). \"Morphometric analysis and taxonomy of cooter and red-bellied turtles in the North American genus Pseudemys (Emydidae)\". Chelonian Conservation and Biology 1 (2): 117-130.\nSmith, Hobart M.; Brodie, Edmund D. Jr (1982). Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification. New York: Golden Press. 240 pp. ISBN 0-307-13666-3 (paperback), ISBN 0-307-47009-1 (hardcover). (Pseudemys concinna, pp. 58-59).\nStejneger L, Barbour T (1917). A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. 125 pp. (Pseudemys concinna, p. 119)."


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"The roan antelope (Hippotragus equinus) is a savanna antelope found in western, central, and southern Africa. Named for its roan colour (a reddish brown), it has lighter underbellies, white eyebrows and cheeks and black faces, lighter in females. It has short, erect manes, very light beards and prominent red nostrils. It is one of the largest antelope, measuring 190\u2013240 cm (75\u201394 in) from head to the base of the tail, and a 37\u201348 cm (15\u201319 in) long tail. Males weigh 242\u2013300 kg (534\u2013661 lb) and females 223\u2013280 kg (492\u2013617 lb). Its shoulder height is around 130\u2013140 cm (51\u201355 in).\n\n== Taxonomy and evolution ==\nThe roan antelope shares the genus Hippotragus with the extinct bluebuck (H. leucophaeus) and the sable antelope (H. niger), and is a member of the family Bovidae. It was first described by French naturalist \u00c9tienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire in 1803. The specific epithet equinus derives from the Latin equus (\"horse-like\"), referring to the horse-like appearance of this antelope.In 1996, an analysis of mitochondrial DNA extracted from a mounted specimen of the bluebuck found that it was outside the clade containing the roan and sable antelopes. "


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"The study therefore concluded that the bluebuck is a distinct species, and not merely a subspecies of the roan antelope. The cladogram below shows the position of the roan antelope among its relatives, following the 1996 analysis:\nIn 1974, palaeoanthropologist Richard Klein studied the fossils of Hippotragus species in South Africa. Most of these were found to represent the bluebuck and the roan antelope. The roan antelope seems to have appeared in the Nelson Bay Cave region following climatic changes in the Holocene.\n\n=== Subspecies ===\nSix subspecies are recognised:\nH. e. bakeri (Heuglin, 1863): Occurs in Sudan (East Africa).\nH. e. cottoni Dollman and Burlace, 1928: Occurs in Angola, Botswana, the southern Democratic Republic of the Congo, central and northern Malawi, and Zambia (Southern Africa).\nH. e. equinus \u00c9. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1803: Occurs in Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe (Southern Africa).\nH. e. koba (Gray, 1872): Range extends from Senegal to Benin (West Africa).\nH. e. langheldi Matschie, 1898: Occurs in Burundi, the northern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda (East Africa).\nH. e. scharicus (Schwarz, 1913): Occurs in Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad and eastern Nigeria (Central Africa).\n\n"


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"== Characteristics ==\n\n=== Physical description ===\nThe roan antelope is a large antelope with a horse-like build. It is the largest antelope in the genus Hippotragus, and one of the largest species of antelopes in the world. Only elands, bongos and large male greater kudus can exceed them in weight on average. The roan antelope stands 135\u2013160 centimetres (53\u201363 in) at the shoulder, and weighs 230\u2013320 kilograms (510\u2013710 pounds). The head-and-body length is typically between 235 and 285 centimetres (93 and 112 inches). The dark tail, terminating in a black tuft, measures up to 54 cm (21 in).\nCharacteristic features include a short, erect mane of grayish brown hair extending from the back of the neck along the midline of the back up to the withers, white patches around the eyes and the mouth on the otherwise black face, and long, narrow ears with 3\u20135 cm (1.2\u20132.0 in) long tufts. The horns are ringed and arched backwards, which can reach 100 cm (39 in) long in males, slightly shorter in females. The long legs are supported by large hooves. The short, smooth coat is brown to amber. "


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"The ventral parts are yellow to white, while the neck and the manes are gray to black.\nThey are somewhat similar in appearance to the sable antelopes and can be confused where their ranges overlap. Sable antelope males are notably darker, being brownish-black rather than dark brown.\n\n=== Habitat and behavior ===\nRoan antelopes can be found in woodland, grassland, and savannah; mainly in the tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome, which range in tree density from forest with a grassy understory (such as the central Zambezian Miombo woodlands) to grasslands dotted with few trees, where they eat mid-length grasses.\nThey live in small herds and form harem groups of 5 to 15 animals with one dominant male. Males commonly fight among themselves for dominance of their herd, brandishing their horns while both animals are on their knees.\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links ==\n\n\"Maharif\" . New International Encyclopedia. 1905. A subspecies."


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"The great horned owl (Bubo virginianus), also known as the tiger owl (originally derived from early naturalists' description as the \"winged tiger\" or \"tiger of the air\"), or the hoot owl, is a large owl native to the Americas. It is an extremely adaptable bird with a vast range and is the most widely distributed true owl in the Americas. Its primary diet is rabbits and hares, rats and mice, and voles, although it freely hunts any animal it can overtake, including rodents and other small mammals, larger mid-sized mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and invertebrates. In ornithological study, the great horned owl is often compared to the Eurasian eagle-owl (Bubo bubo), a closely related species, which despite the latter's notably larger size, occupies the same ecological niche in Eurasia, and the red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis), with which it often shares similar habitat, prey, and nesting habits by day, thus is something of a diurnal ecological equivalent. The great horned owl is one of the earliest nesting birds in North America, often laying eggs weeks or even months before other raptorial birds.\n\n== Description ==\nThe great horned owl is generally colored for camouflage. "


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"The underparts of the species are usually light with some brown horizontal barring; the upper parts and upper wings are generally a mottled brown usually bearing heavy, complex, darker markings. All subspecies are darkly barred to some extent along the sides, as well.\n\nA variable-sized white patch  is seen on the throat. The white throat may continue as a streak running down the middle of the breast even when the birds are not displaying, which in particularly pale individuals can widen at the belly into a large white area. South American great horned owls typically have a smaller white throat patch, often unseen unless actively displaying, and rarely display the white area on the chest. Individual and regional variations in overall color occur, with birds from the subarctic showing a washed-out, light-buff color, while those from the Pacific Coast of North America, Central America, and much of South America can be a dark brownish color overlaid with blackish blotching. The skin of the feet and legs, though almost entirely obscured by feathers, is black. Even tropical great horned owls have feathered legs and feet. "


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"The feathers on the feet of the great horned owl are the second-longest known in any owl (after the snowy owl). The bill is dark gunmetal-gray, as are the talons.All great horned owls have a facial disc. This can be reddish, brown, or gray in color (depending on geographical and racial variation) and is demarked by a dark rim culminating in bold, blackish side brackets. This species' \"horns\" are tufts of feathers, called plumicorns. The purpose of plumicorns is not fully understood, but the hypothesis that they serve as a visual cue in territorial and sociosexual interactions with other owls is generally accepted.\n\n=== Physiology and measurements ===\n\nThe great horned owl is the heaviest extant owl in Central and South America and is the second-heaviest owl in North America, after the closely related, but very different-looking snowy owl. It is heavily built, with a barrel-shaped body, a large head, and broad wings. Its size can vary considerably across its range, with populations in interior Alaska and Ontario being largest and populations in California and Texas being smallest, though those from the Yucat\u00e1n Peninsula and Baja California appear to be even smaller. "


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"Adult great horned owls range in length from 43 to 64 cm (17 to 25 in), with an average of 55 cm (22 in), and possess a wingspan of 91 to 153 cm (3 ft 0 in to 5 ft 0 in), with an average of 122 cm (48 in). Females are somewhat larger than males. Mean body weight is 1,608 g (3.545 lb) for females and 1,224 g (2.698 lb) for males. Depending on subspecies, maximum weight can reach 2,503 g (5.518 lb).\n\nThe wing chord length is 297\u2013400 mm (11.7\u201315.7 in). The wing loading, the measured wing area compared to weight, is high, meaning the wings are relatively small in surface area for the bird's weight; the species' wing loading has been described as proportionately the highest among raptors. The tail, being relatively short as is typical of most owls, is 175 to 252 mm (6.9 to 9.9 in) long. Like other owl species, the great horned owl is capable of \u201csilent flight\u201d, which is the way owls fly while making almost no discernable noise, despite their large size. This is made possible thanks to three main components of the owl's wing structure. "


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"The leading edge of their feathers have serrations that help to disrupt the turbulence generated by wing flapping, then the softer feathers help deaden the sound, and finally the trailing fringe of the feathers that works to finish cutting the sounds made by flight. The structure of the great horned owl wing also allows it to fly at a very low speeds for the size of the species, as slow as 2 miles per hour when they are gliding on breezes.\n\nThe legs, feet, and talons are large and powerful. Tarsal length is 54\u201380 mm (2.1\u20133.1 in). The average foot span of a fully spread foot, from talon to talon, is around 20 cm (7.9 in), as compared to 8 cm (3.1 in) in long-eared owls, 13 to 15 cm (5.1 to 5.9 in) in barn owls, and 18 cm (7.1 in) in the great grey owl. Great horned owls can apply at least 300 lb/in2 of crushing power in their talons, a pressure considerably greater than the human hand is capable of exerting. "


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"In some big females, the gripping power of the great horned owl may be comparable to much larger raptor species such as the golden eagle.The hard, inflexible bill of the great horned owl is 3.3\u20135.2 cm (1.3\u20132.0 in) long, although the culmen, the exposed bill portion as measured along the top of the beak, is only 2.1 to 3.3 cm (0.83 to 1.30 in).The outer ear openings, which are concealed by feathers on the sides of the head, are relatively smaller than those of the Eurasian eagle owl, being 2.3 cm (0.91 in) in vertical axis, with the left ear slightly larger than the right. Like most exclusively (or near exclusively) nocturnal species, the great horned owl has asymmetrical ear holes that allow for the triangulation of sounds when hunting in the dark. The different-height holes, while still close together, are differentiated enough that the owl is able to use the timing and direction of the sound waves hitting each hole to precisely locate prey even if the prey is located under cover such as snow. The disc-like shape of their faces also helps to direct the sounds they hear toward their ears. "


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"While the true nature/purpose of the ear tufts that are present on the great horned owl is unknown, researchers agree that the tufts do not play any role in the hearing ability of the owl. It is estimated that their hearing is up to ten times that of a human being.The great horned owl's eyes, just slightly smaller than the eyes of a human being, are large even for an owl and rank proportionately among the largest eyes of all terrestrial vertebrates. The great horned owl has cylindrical eyes which creates more distance from the lens of the eye to the retina, which allows it to act more like a telephoto lens for farther distance sight compared to that possible from round eyes. They are visually highly adapted for nocturnal hunting and provide a wide, almost completely binocular field of view, a large corneal surface and a predominantly rod retina. The great horned owl's eye contains both rods and cones like most species that see in color, but the vision of a great horned owl closely resembles that of many other nocturnal species. "


id: 1290ae8f141c315b94ebb55dd7d85704
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"The peak wavelengths that are observed by the cones is 555 nm and the research suggests that the great horned owl has relatively weak color vision, especially compared to other bird species. Despite (or perhaps as a result of) the poorer sense of color vision, the owl manages to have excellent night vision. Instead of turning its eyes, an owl must turn its whole head, and the great horned owl can rotate its neck 270\u00b0. The iris is yellow, except in the amber-eyed South American great horned owl (B. v. nacurutu).\n\n=== Calls ===\nThe great horned owl's song is normally a low-pitched but loud ho-ho-hoo hoo hoo (or also transcribed as bu-bubu booh, who-hoo-ho-oo or who-ho-o-o, whoo-hoo-o-o, whoo) and can last for four or five syllables. The call is resonant and has warranted descriptions as varied as \"solemn\" and \"terrifying\". The female's call is higher and rises in pitch at the end of the call. Female vocalizations are higher in pitch because of a smaller syrinx in the larger sex. Calling seems to peak after rather than before midnight. Usually, territorial hooting decreases in February or March at the onset of egg laying. "


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"On occasion, this species exhibits \"an indescribable assemblage of hoots, chuckles, screeches, and squawks, given so rapidly and disconnectedly that the effect is both startling and amusing\". Descriptions of some of these odd sounds including a growling krrooo-ooo note pair, a laughing whar, whah, wha-a-a-a-ah, a high-pitched ank, ank, ank; a weak, soft erk, erk, a cat-like meee-owwwwww, a hawk-like note of ke-yah, ke-yah, and a nighthawk-like peent. These vocalizations may be variously uttered when the birds are disturbed and angered at the nest (frequently preceding an attack on an interloping human or other animal), represent the vocal development of young owls, or are given during courtship and during territorial disputes with other owls. Young owls still in the care of their parents make loud, persistent hissing or loud, piercing screeching sounds that are often confused with the calls of the barn owl.\n\n=== Species identification ===\n\nThe combination of the species' bulk, prominent ear tufts and barred plumage distinguishes it through much of the range, but it may be easily confused with the lesser or Magellanic horned owl (B. magellanicus), which may overlap in range. "


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"The Magellanic horned owl was once considered a subspecies of the great horned, but is now almost universally considered a distinct species, as is supported by genetic materials, with the great horned being the paraspecies. Overall coloration is similar, but the Magellanic is markedly smaller with smaller feet and a smaller head, with finer, but more numerous brownish bars on the underside, rather than the blotchy, irregular barring typical of great horned owls. Other eagle-owls may superficially be somewhat similar, but the species is generically allopatric with the exception of wintering snowy owls. More tropical species with ear tufts, the stygian owl (A. stygius) and striped owl (A. clamator), are much smaller. Other large owls lack ear tufts.\n\n== Taxonomy ==\nThe great horned owl is part of the genus Bubo, which may include as many as 25 other extant taxa, predominantly distributed throughout Africa. The great horned owl represents one of the one or two radiations of this genus across the Bering land bridge to the Americas. "


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"Whereas the Magellanic horned owl clearly divided once the owl had spread through the Americas, the consensus seems to be that the snowy owl and the great horned owl divided back in Eurasia and the snowy then spread back over the Arctic through northernmost North America separately from the radiation of the horned owl. The great horned and Eurasian eagle-owls may in fact be conspecifics, based on similarities in life history, geographic distribution, and appearance. In one case, a zoo-kept male great horned owl and female Eurasian eagle-owl produced an apparently healthy hybrid. Genetic testing indicates that the snowy owl, not the Eurasian eagle-owl, is the most closely related living species. Pleistocene era fossils have been found of Bubo owls in North America, which may either be distinct species or paleosubspecies, from as far east as Georgia, but predominantly in the Rocky Mountains and to the west of them. Almost all fossils indicate these owls were larger than modern great horned owls.\n\n=== Subspecies ===\n\nA large number of subspecies, more than 20 altogether, have been named. However, many of these are not true subspecies and only examples of individual or clinal variation. "


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"Subspecies differences are mainly in color and size and generally follow Gloger's and Bergmann's rules: The most conservative treatments of great horned owl subspecies may describe as few as 10, although an intermediate number is typical in most writings.\nCommon/eastern great horned owl (Bubo virginianus virginianus) (Gmelin, 1788)Eastern United States eastwards from at least as far west as Minnesota to Texas; northeastwards in distribution to southern Quebec, southern Ontario, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. Resident all-year. The race B. v. mesembrinus from Central America south of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, may be merely a southerly leg of this race, as its coloring is almost exactly the same as virginianus, although with rather smaller body size. However, mesembrinus type owls are discontinuous in range, with only paler owls from pallescens and mayensis found in the in-between range before the northern virginianus reappears back up in South Texas.\nThe \"nominate race\" is a medium-hued form, neither darkly saturated nor strikingly pale. Darker gray or somewhat paler individuals are known. It tends to be richly tinged with rufous and barred distinctly blackish-brown below with rather soft contrast. "


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"The feet can range from tawny to buff to creamy and are the legs are typically barred dark to a moderate extent. The facial disc is often a solid cinnamon-red color. This is mid-to-large race, with a wing chord length of 319\u2013371 mm (12.6\u201314.6 in), averaging 339 mm (13.3 in), in males and 343\u2013388 mm (13.5\u201315.3 in), averaging 362.8 mm (14.28 in), in females. Unexpectedly, although it is not the longest-winged, the nominate is the heaviest known race as males weigh from 985 to 1,588 g (2.172 to 3.501 lb), averaging 1,318 g (2.906 lb), and females weigh from 1,417 to 2,503 g (3.124 to 5.518 lb), averaging 1,768.5 g (3.899 lb); the prior figures originally from a huge sample around Michigan. In comparison, B. v. subarcticus, though averaging longer in wing length averages somewhat less heavy. On the contrary, in Costa Rica, within the range of the possibly synonymous mesembrinus, great horned owls average approximately 1,000 g (2.2 lb), the lightest average mass reported anywhere for this species.  "


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"Other standard measurements of this race are a tail length of 190 to 235 mm (7.5 to 9.3 in), a tarsus length of about 56 to 58 mm (2.2 to 2.3 in) and a bill length of 35 to 50 mm (1.4 to 2.0 in). B. v. virginianus also tends to have relatively the longest ear tufts on any race.South American great horned owl (Bubo virginianus nacurutu) (Vieillot, 1817)A lowland form occurring in disjunct populations from eastern Colombia to the Guyanas; also from Brazil and Uruguay south of the Amazon Basin to Bolivia, the Buenos Aires Province in northern Argentina and western Paraguay; resident all-year. Includes the proposed subspecies scotinus, elutus, and deserti. The status of this form, especially the relationships between the scattered subpopulations and with ssp. nigrescens and the Magellanic horned owl, deserves more study.\nDull, earthy brownish color is typical; birds from the semiarid interior of Brazil often have much white on uppertail- and ear-coverts against a dull gray background (sometimes separated as deserti). This race is less fuscous than nigrescens. It is the only subspecies where the iris is amber, not yellow. "


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"The Magellanic horned owl, while somewhat similar in coloring, has yellow eyes like other horned owls, not amber eyes. B. v. nacurutu is a medium-sized race, smaller than most in North America but not as small as some of the Mexican races. The wing chord length is 330\u2013354 mm (13.0\u201313.9 in) in males and 340\u2013376 mm (13.4\u201314.8 in) in females. The tail in both sexes can range from 184 to 217 mm (7.2 to 8.5 in). Only three birds have had published weights, two males scaling 1,011 and 1,132 g (2.229 and 2.496 lb) and one female weighing 1,050 g (2.31 lb). The most notable feature of this race is its large bill, at 43 to 52 mm (1.7 to 2.0 in), which is the biggest of any horned owl race despite the otherwise moderate size of B. v. nacurutu.Northern/sub-Arctic great horned owl (Bubo virginianus subarcticus) (Hoy, 1852)Breeding range from Mackenzie, British Columbia region east to the southern Hudson Bay; southern limit unclear but at least reaches to Montana and North Dakota. Non-breeding birds are regularly found south to latitude 45\u00b0S, i.e. Wyoming or South Dakota, occasionally ranging beyond this limit especially in years with low prey in the north. "


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"This race includes the birds described as occidentalis (based on a wintering individual, as was the original subarcticus) and sclariventris. The older name wapacuthu was occasionally used for this subspecies, but it cannot with certainty be assigned to a recognizable taxon and is thus considered a nomen dubium. The population described as algistus is probably based on wandering individuals and/or various intergrades of subarcticus with other races.\nThis is the palest form of horned owl, with the ground color essentially whitish with a faint buff tinge above; black underside barring variable from indistinct to pronounced, being most often prominent on the upper chest amongst otherwise pale plumage. This race shows little to no reddish coloration. B. v. subarcticus shows a very high degree of clinal variation, ranging from in the Contiguous United States where owls are often medium-grayish and more heavily marked to the subarctic zone in Canada where very pale birds with almost non-existent markings are prominent. Very pale birds are similar to a young female snowy owl from a distance. In this race, the feet range from immaculate white to buff, with little or no mottling. "


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"In the west of Canada, subarcticus may hybridize with the dark saturatus and may do the same with this similarly dark heterocnemis in the east. In both cases, they may produce intermediate looking hybrids of reddish tone, like a virginianus but with sharper contrasting of colors. This is one of the largest-bodied subspecies. The wing chord length is 323\u2013372 mm (12.7\u201314.6 in), averaging 346.7 mm (13.65 in), in males and 339\u2013390 mm (13.3\u201315.4 in), averaging 362.5 mm (14.27 in), in females. Body mass ranges from 865 to 1,460 g (1.907 to 3.219 lb), averaging 1,196.5 g (2.638 lb), in males and from 1,112 to 2,046 g (2.452 to 4.511 lb), averaging 1,556 g (3.430 lb), in females. Tail length is 200 to 225 mm (7.9 to 8.9 in) and 220 to 240 mm (8.7 to 9.4 in) in males and females, respectively. Bill length is 35 to 43 mm (1.4 to 1.7 in) in both and one bird had a tarsus of 66 mm (2.6 in).California great horned owl (Bubo virginianus pacificus) (Cassin, 1854)Central and southern California west of the Sierra Nevada except for the San Joaquin Valley, south to Northwestern Baja California, Mexico. "


id: bdce95177686e026679777c4d61bb146
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"Intergrades with pallescens in San Diego County, California (see also below). Resident all-year.\nVery rich brown, dark underside barring distinct, less pronounced than in saturatus but more pronounced than in pallescens. Humeral area is black. Feet are mottled dark. The facial disc is often even darkly mottled. This is a fairly small-bodied race, in fact including the lightest wild great horned owl adult ever weighed. The wing chord length is 305\u2013362 mm (12.0\u201314.3 in), averaging 332.5 mm (13.09 in), in males and 335\u2013375 mm (13.2\u201314.8 in), averaging 351.4 mm (13.83 in), in females. Body mass ranges from 680 to 1,272 g (1.499 to 2.804 lb), averaging 991.7 g (2.186 lb), in males and from 825 to 1,668 g (1.819 to 3.677 lb), averaging 1,312.7 g (2.894 lb), in females. Tail length is 175 to 218 mm (6.9 to 8.6 in) and 203 to 230 mm (8.0 to 9.1 in) in males and females, respectively. Bill length is 34 to 41 mm (1.3 to 1.6 in) and one bird had a tarsus of 57 mm (2.2 in).Coastal great horned owl (Bubo virginianus saturatus) (Ridgway, 1877)Pacific coast from southeastern Alaska to northern California. Includes the previously described form of  B. v. leucomelas. "


id: b0e31e3ddf23cfdcf2fa18a545a74f91
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"The often-recognized race B. v. lagophonus is often now considered a mere clinal variation of the same race from interior Alaska to Oregon, the Snake River, and northwestern Montana. These forms may be reported in winter as far south as Colorado and Texas, but these are in times of irruption.\nA dark and overall brownish form with heavily barred and mottled underside, with a dull tawny base. Inland birds (lagophonus) tend to have a more grayish base, the coastal owls being more richly brown. Otherwise, inland and coastal owls are practically the same. The facial disc can range from gray to reddish-gray to dark rufous. The feet are fairly dusky gray typically, although some buff-footed individuals are known, and legs are more prominently barred with black than in other North American races. This is a large race going on linear measurements, which in Alaskan owls outmatch those of all other races but for heterocnemis in Ontario (which may itself be a discontinuous eastern wing of this race). The wing chord length is 330\u2013370 mm (13\u201315 in), averaging 348.3 mm (13.71 in), in males and 339\u2013400 mm (13.3\u201315.7 in), averaging 374.7 mm (14.75 in), in females. "


id: fbefb328b1b5765fb5b57b1994880652
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"Tail length is 191 to 245 mm (7.5 to 9.6 in) and 196 to 252 mm (7.7 to 9.9 in) in males and females. In both sexes, known bill and tarsal lengths are 35 to 44 mm (1.4 to 1.7 in) and 62 to 70 mm (2.4 to 2.8 in). No weights are known to have been published.North Andean great horned owl (Bubo virginianus nigrescens) (Berlepsch, 1884)Andes; arid temperate and puna zones from Colombia to northwestern Peru. Resident all-year round. Presumably synonymous with the described columbianus.\nA dark, cold gray-brown form with heavy fuscous blotching. Arguably this is the darkest colored race on average, though it could be rivaled by individuals from saturatus and elachistus. This race has only minimally the rufous tinge seen in other darkish races, although some nigrescens may have a cinnamon facial disc. The largest winged race of owl in South America, this owl has a wing chord length of 345\u2013365 mm (13.6\u201314.4 in) in males and 350\u2013382 mm (13.8\u201315.0 in) in females. The tail in both sexes can range from 185 to 217 mm (7.3 to 8.5 in). "


id: 4d11bb1011ef39b5dc807af627a1ddc3
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"Bill length is 40 to 50 mm (1.6 to 2.0 in), again relatively long as in nacurutu and one bird had a tarsal length of 80 mm (3.1 in), indicating relatively long legs in the race. No published weights are known. Apparently, despite its sizeable wing area, nigrescens is notably smaller overall when specimens are compared side-by-side with those from saturatus.Desert great horned owl (Bubo virginianus pallescens) (Stone, 1897)San Joaquin Valley southeastwards through arid regions of southeastern California and southern Utah eastwards to western Kansas and southwards to Guerrero and western Veracruz in Mexico; intergrades with pacificus in San Diego County, if not elsewhere; vagrant individuals of saturatus and the Rocky Mountains population, which look similar to intergrades, also seem to occur in its range. Resident all-year. This race is likely synonymous with melanocercus.\nA pale dusky buff form with indistinct barring, especially on the underside. Darker individuals tend to have a deeper fulvous base to their upper sides. Humeral area is umber in color and the feathers of the feet are white and usually unmarked. A small race, it averages slightly larger in wing length than pacificus but weighs less on average. "


id: 8917d5b5eb35f1466cbc0ca1e5a5db3f
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"The wing chord length is 318\u2013367 mm (12.5\u201314.4 in), averaging 337.2 mm (13.28 in), in males and 332\u2013381 mm (13.1\u201315.0 in), averaging 348.9 mm (13.74 in), in females. Body mass ranges from 724 to 1,257 g (1.596 to 2.771 lb), averaging 914.2 g (2.015 lb), in males and from 801 to 1,550 g (1.766 to 3.417 lb), averaging 1,142.2 g (2.518 lb), in females. In both sexes, tail length is 190 to 235 mm (7.5 to 9.3 in) and bill length is 33 to 43 mm (1.3 to 1.7 in).Yucat\u00e1n great horned owl (Bubo virginianus mayensis) (Nelson, 1901)Endemic to the southern two-thirds of the Yucat\u00e1n Peninsula. Resident all-year.\nA medium-pale form, fairly similar to pallescens in both hue and ventral markings. Going on linear measurements, B. v. mayensis is smaller than all North American horned owls, even the smallish pallescens, and is only slightly larger at median than the following race. This race has wing chord and tail lengths of 297\u2013340 mm (11.7\u201313.4 in) and 180 to 198 mm (7.1 to 7.8 in) in males and 303\u2013357 mm (11.9\u201314.1 in) and 199 to 210 mm (7.8 to 8.3 in) in females. "


id: a562d3393540fc286a9e8495a3115a76
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"In both sexes, the bill length is 39 to 41 mm (1.5 to 1.6 in) and tarsal length is 54 to 65 mm (2.1 to 2.6 in).Baja California great horned owl (Bubo virginianus elachistus) (Brewster, 1902)Southern Baja California, Mexico. Resident all-year.\nSimilar in color to pacificus but even darker and more heavily barred, like a miniaturized saturatus. It is considerably (5\u201310%) smaller than pacificus linearly; some size overlap does occur though. On average, it is the smallest known subspecies. Males have a wing chord length of 305 to 335 mm (12.0 to 13.2 in), tail length of 175 to 206 mm (6.9 to 8.1 in) and bill length of 33 to 38 mm (1.3 to 1.5 in). A single female had a wing chord of 330 mm (13 in) and tail of 211 mm (8.3 in).Northeastern great horned owl (Bubo virginianus heterocnemis) (Oberholser, 1904)Breeds in eastern Canada (northern Quebec, Labrador, Newfoundland). Its southern breeding range seems to be delineated by the Saint Lawrence River.  In winter, this race may disperses southwards throughout Ontario to as far as the Northeastern United States. This subspecies may be synonymous with saturatus, although it is distributed far to the east of that race. "


id: bba18431843a1fef549fd947f5b55048
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"B. v. heterocnemis is surrounded by the much paler subarcticus to its west and quite differently marked virginianus to its south, the latter two overlap and possibly hybridize in some of the northeast.\nA fairly dark and grey, heavily barred form. Feet pale with dusky mottling. Going on median reported linear measurements (since body mass is unknown), this is the largest bodied subspecies on average. Males have a wing chord length of 350 to 365 mm (13.8 to 14.4 in) and females range from 370 to 390 mm (15 to 15 in). In both sexes, the tail is 220 to 250 mm (8.7 to 9.8 in) and the bill is 38 to 48 mm (1.5 to 1.9 in).Rocky Mountains great horned owl (Bubo virginianus pinorum) (Dickerman & Johnson, 2008)The Rocky Mountains population breeds south of the Snake River in Idaho south to Arizona, New Mexico, and the Guadalupe Mountains of Texas. Westwards, it is presumed to occur to the Modoc Plateau and Mono Lake of California. "


id: fcd916ee5d846797f7ac15843666b0a9
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"This race was included in the presumed subspecies occidentalis, but was recently first described and named as a distinct subspecies and makes up the missing piece in the once-muddled distribution of great horned owls in the West and Rockies. Downslope movements into valleys occupied by pallescens might occur, but this needs study.\nA medium gray form, intermediate in coloring between saturatus and pallescens. Moderately barred and tinged buff or ochraceous on the underside. Feet mottled. This is a largish race, wing chord lengths being inexplicably greater in males, at 350 to 397 mm (13.8 to 15.6 in), than in females, at 327 to 367 mm (12.9 to 14.4 in). Tail length can range from 190 to 233 mm (7.5 to 9.2 in) and a female weighed 1,246 g (2.747 lb).\n\n== Distribution and habitat ==\n\nThe breeding habitat of the great horned owl extends high into the subarctic of North America, where they are found up to the northwestern and southern Mackenzie Mountains, Keewatin, Ontario, northern Manitoba, Fort Chimo in Ungava, Okak, Newfoundland and Labrador, Anticosti Island and Prince Edward Island. "


id: aa84372b1a986a7af7aac53d90998725
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"They are distributed throughout most of North America and very spottily in Central America and then down into South America south to upland regions of Argentina, Bolivia and Peru, before they give way to the Magellanic horned owl, which thence ranges all the way to Tierra del Fuego, the southern tip of the continent. It is absent or rare from southern Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica to Panama (where only two records) in Central America and the mangrove forests of northwestern South America. The species is also absent from the West Indies, the Haida Gwaii and almost all off-shore islands in the Americas, its ability to colonize islands apparently being considerably less than those of barn owls and short-eared owls. Since the division into two species, the great horned owl is the second most widely distributed owl in the Americas, just after the barn owl.The great horned owl is among the world's most adaptable owls or even bird species in terms of habitat. "


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created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"The great horned owl can take up residence in trees that border all manner of deciduous, coniferous, and mixed forests, tropical rainforests, pampas, prairie, mountainous areas, deserts, subarctic tundra, rocky coasts, mangrove swamp forests, and some urban areas. It is less common in the more extreme areas of the Americas. In the Mojave and Sonora Deserts, they are absent from the heart of the deserts and are only found on the vegetated or rocky fringes. Even in North America, they are rare in landscapes including more than 70% old-growth forest, such as the aspen forest of the Rockies. They have only been recorded a handful of times in true rainforests such as the Amazon rainforest. In the Appalachian Mountains, they appear to use old-growth forest but in Arkansas are actually often found near temporary agricultural openings in the midst of large areas of woodland. Similarly in south-central Pennsylvania, the owls use cropland and pasture more than deciduous and total forest cover, indicating preference for fragmented landscapes. "


id: 944bbb7c4b3984399dab1af8b13a47a
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"In prairies, grasslands and deserts, they can successfully live year round as long as there are rocky canyons, steep gullies and/or wooded coulees with shade-giving trees to provide them shelter and nesting sites.In mountainous areas of North America, they are usually absent above the tree line, but great horned owls can be found up to 2,100 m (6,900 ft) in California and 3,300 m (10,800 ft) in the Rockies. In the Andean Mountains,  on the other hand, they have adapted to being a true montane species, often found at least 3,300 m (10,800 ft) above sea level and are regularly recorded in treeless Puna grassland zones at 4,100 to 4,500 m (13,500 to 14,800 ft) in Ecuador and Peru. They are generally rare in non-tidal wetland habitat, and are replaced in the high Arctic tundra by snowy owls. They prefer areas where open habitats, which they often hunt in, and woods, where they tend to roost and nest, are juxtaposed. Thus lightly populated rural regions can be ideal. This species can occasionally be found in urban or suburban areas. "


id: fe0dd81184845ae10b68a96a114b29e2
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"However, they seem to prefer areas with less human activity and are most likely to be found in park-like settings in such developed areas, unlike eastern and western screech owls (Megascops asio & M. kennicottii) which may regularly occur in busy suburban settings. All mated great horned owls are permanent residents of their territories, but unmated and younger birds move freely in search of company and a territory, and leave regions with little food in winter.\n\n== Behavior ==\n\nIn most aspects of their behavior, great horned owls are typical of owls and most birds of prey. From experimentally raising young owls in captivity, Paul L. Errington felt that they were a bird of \"essentially low intelligence\" that could only hunt when partially wild and instinctually driven by hunger to hunt whatever they first encounter. He showed captive birds that were provided strips of meat from hatching, rather than having to hunt or to simulate hunting to obtain food, had no capacity to hunt. "


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"On the contrary, William J. Baerg compared behaviorally his captive-raised great horned owls to parrots, which are famously intelligent birds, although not as often playful \"it knows its keeper and usually accepts whatever he wishes to do with a good deal of tolerance\". Arthur C. Bent also noted the variability in temperaments of great horned owls to their handlers, some generally pleasant, though most are eventually aggressive. Most captive specimens, once mature, seem to resent attempts at contact and are often given to attacking their keepers. They will only follow cues when conditioned from an early age but rarely with the same level of success seen in some diurnal birds of prey trained for falconry or entertainment, although this does not necessarily correlate with intelligence as posited by Errington. Carl D. Marti also disagrees with Errington's assessments, noting that their prey selection is not as \"completely random as Errington suggested\"; while \"Great Horned Owls appeared to select their mammalian prey in general relation to the prey populations...cottontails, appeared to be selected as prey out of relation to their population status.\"Like most owls, the great horned owl makes great use of secrecy and stealth. "


id: 895fb000d5e422ee86a278bb35e875ad
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"Due to its natural-colored plumage, it is well camouflaged both while active at night and while roosting during the day. During the daytime it roosts usually in large trees (including snags & large hollows but usually thick branches) but may occasionally be in crevices or small caves in rocks or in dense shrubbery. Pine and other coniferous trees may be preferred where available since they are particularly dense and provide cover throughout the year. Typically, males have a favorite roosting site not far from the nest, sometimes used over successive years. While roosting, great horned owls may rest in the \"tall-thin\" position, where they sit as erect and hold themselves as slim as is possible. The kind of posture is well known as a further method of camouflage for other owls, like long-eared owls or great grey owls, especially if humans or other potential mammalian carnivores approach them. The Eurasian eagle owl rarely, if ever, assumes the tall-thin position. Outside of the nesting season, great horned owls may roost wherever their foraging path ends at dawn. Generally great horned owls are active at night, although in some areas they may be active in the late afternoon or early morning. "


id: 3227506f3de5f711368b3f05e8926017
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"At dusk, the owl utters a few calls before flying to a more open sing-post, i.e. large bare branch or large rocks to deliver song. Normally several perches are used to mark occupied territory or to attract a female. Despite its camouflage and cryptic locations, this species can still sometimes be spotted on its daytime roosts, especially by American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos). Since owls are, next to red-tailed hawks, perhaps the main predator of crows and their young, crows sometimes congregate from considerable distances to mob owls and caw angrily at them for hours on end. When the owls try to fly off to avoid this harassment, they are often followed by the corvids.\n\n=== Territoriality and movements ===\nTypically, great horned owls are highly sedentary, often capable of utilizing a single territory throughout their mature lives. Although some species such as snowy owls, northern saw-whet owls, long-eared and short-eared owls are true migrants, most North American owls are not migratory and will generally show fidelity to a single territory year around. In great horned owls, mated pairs occupy territories year-round and long-term. "


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created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"Territories are established and maintained through hooting, with highest activity before egg-laying and second peak in autumn when juveniles disperse, and can range from an average of 16 km2 (6.2 sq mi) in Yukon to an average of 2.1 km2 (0.81 sq mi) in Wyoming.Most territorial defense is performed by males, but females frequently assist their partners in hooting contests with neighbors or intruders, even during incubation. On occasion, although territory borders may be successfully maintained via vocalizations alone without even seeing the competing owl, such confrontations may turn physical, with various levels of threats distinguished. The highest threat level involves the spreading of wings, bill-clapping, hissing, higher-pitched screams of longer duration, with general body poised to strike with its feet at intruder. If the intruder continues to press the confrontation, the defending owl will \"hop\" forward and strike it with feet, attempting to grasp and rake with claws.Territoriality appears to place a limit on the number of breeding pairs in a given area. Individuals prevented from establishing a territory live a silent existence as \"floaters\". Radio-telemetry revealed that such floaters concentrate along boundaries of established territories. "


id: 992d1a3ec00e951808b2fc6c161a40e8
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"At Kluane Lake in Yukon, incursions into neighboring territories were observed only twice\u2014by females when a neighboring female had died or emigrated, suggesting that territorial defense may be sex-specific. At least four dead great horned owls in Kluane were apparently killed by others of their own species in territorial conflicts. Owls killed by other horned owls are sometimes cannibalized, although the origin of the killing may have been territorial aggression. Northern populations occasionally irrupt south during times of food shortage, but there is no annual migration even at the northern limits of the great horned owl's range.\n\n=== Hunting behavior ===\n\nHunting tends to peak between 8:30 pm and midnight and then can resume from 4:30 am to sunrise. Hunting tends to be most prolonged during winter by virtue of prey being more scarce.  However, great horned owls can learn to target certain prey during daylight in the afternoon when it is more vulnerable, such as eastern fox squirrels (Sciurus niger) while they're building their leaf nests and chuckawallas (Sauromalus ater) sunning themselves on desert rocks. Owls hunt mainly by watching from a snag, pole or other high perch. "


id: 1b8848419b32364c10a9ceaab8168066
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"During hunting forays, they often fly about 50 to 100 m (160 to 330 ft) from perch to perch, stopping to survey for food at each, until they sense a prey item below. From such vantage points, owls dive down to the ground, often with wings folded, to ambush their prey. Effective maximum hunting distance of an owl from an elevated perch is 90 m (300 ft). Due to their short but broad wings, great horned owls are ideally suited for low speed and maneuverability. Despite reports that they do not hunt on the wing, they also sometimes hunt by flying low over openings on the ground, scanning below for prey activity. Great horned owls can fly at speeds of more than 65 km/h (40 mph) in level flight. Hunting flights are slow, often quartering low above the ground where prey is likely to occur in open country or open woodland. Brief hovering flight (for about 6\u201318 seconds) has been described, especially in windy areas. On occasion owls may actually walk on the ground in pursuit of small prey or, rarely, inside a chicken coop to prey on the fowl within. "


id: d0a364482f8f18d3e1818a551fd5bc23
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"Rodents and invertebrates may be caught on foot around the base of bushes, through grassy areas, and near culverts and other human structures in range and farm habitat. The great horned owl is generally a poor walker on the ground; it walks like a starling, with a pronounced side-to-side gait. They have been known to wade into shallow water for aquatic prey, although this has been only rarely reported. Owls can snatch birds and some arboreal mammals directly from tree branches in a glide as well. The stiff feathering of their wings allows owls to produce minimal sound in flight while hunting.Almost all prey are killed by crushing with the owl's feet or by incidentally stabbing of the talons, though some may be bitten about the face as well. Prey is swallowed whole when possible. When prey is swallowed whole, owls regurgitate pellets of bone and other non-digestible bits about 6 to 10 hours later, usually in the same location where the prey was consumed. "


id: a8381b6afba4f571ba7d99e1664138ef
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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vector_id: 1581
content:
"Great horned owl pellets are dark gray or brown in color and very large, 7.6 to 10.2 cm (3.0 to 4.0 in) long and 3.8 cm (1.5 in) thick, and have been known to contain skulls up to 3 cm (1.2 in) in width inside them. However, not all prey can be swallowed at once, and owls will also fly with prey to a perch and tear off pieces with their bill. Most dietary studies focus on pellets found under perches and around nests, since they provide a more complete picture of the diversity of prey consumed, but prey remains outside of pellets may provide clues to prey excluded from the pellets and a combination of both is recommended. Many large prey items are dismembered. Great horned owls may behead large prey before taking it to its nest or eating perch. The legs may also be removed, as may (in some bird prey) the wings. The great horned owl will also crush the bones of its prey to make it more compact for carrying. On occasion, the owls may return to the kill site to continue eating if the prey is too heavy to fly with after dismemberment. "


id: f4a9d4a45875ac71cc058be72261798
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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content:
"Many owls will accrue a cache of prey, especially those who are nesting. Caches must be at a safe location, usually the crotch of a tall tree. In northern regions, where large prey is prevalent, an owl may let uneaten food freeze and then thaw it out later using its own body heat.  Hunting success seems to require fairly open understory, and experimental testing of microhabitat proved that open areas provided more hunting success on five species of rodent, with cloudy nights and denser bush foliage both decreasing success.\n\n== Prey and trophic ecology ==\n\nPrey can vary greatly based on opportunity. According to one author, \"Almost any living creature that walks, crawls, flies, or swims, except the large mammals, is the great horned owl's legitimate prey\". In fact, the great horned owl has the most diverse prey profile of any raptor in the Americas. Over 500 species have been identified as great horned owl prey, with dozens more identified only to genus or general type (especially numerous invertebrates) and presumably several more unknown from their relatively little-studied populations in the Neotropics. Mammals (more than 200 species) and birds (nearly 300 species) make up the majority of their diet. "


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"Their diet in North America is made up of 87.6% mammals, 6.1% birds, 1.6% reptiles and amphibians with the remaining 4.7% being made up by insects, other assorted invertebrates and fish. Estimated mass of individual prey for the owls has ranged from as little as 0.4 g (0.014 oz) to as much as 6.8 kg (15 lb) Most prey is in the range of 4 g (0.14 oz) (shrews) to 2,300 g (5.1 lb) (jackrabbits). A single owl requires about 50 to 100 g (1.8 to 3.5 oz) of food per day and can subsist on a large kill over several days. "


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"Despite the great diversity of prey taken by these predators, in most of the continental United States from the East to the Midwest as well as Canada and Alaska, great horned owls largely live off just a handful of prey species: three species of lagomorph: the eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus), the snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus) and the black-tailed jackrabbit (Lepus californicus); two species of New World mice: the white-footed mouse and the North American deermouse (Peromyscus leucopus & maniculatus); approximately three species of vole: the meadow, prairie and woodland voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus, ochrogaster & pinetorum); and one introduced pest, the brown rat.\n\n=== Rodents ===\n\nSmall rodents form the great majority of great horned owl prey by number. Weighing a mere 14 to 31.5 g (0.49 to 1.11 oz) and 20 to 58 g (0.71 to 2.05 oz) on average, the nine species of New World mice in Peromyscus and eight species voles in Microtus recorded in the diet would appear to be overly small to be as important as they are to a predatory bird of this size. "


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"The prominence of these genera is undoubtedly due to the abundance of both genera in the wooded edge habitats frequented by great horned owls. It is estimated that a family of owls with two offspring would need to take about a half dozen (voles) to a dozen (mice) of these rodents every night to satisfy their dietary requirements but apparently the accessibility and abundance of these foods is irresistible as their numeric dominance is indisputable. By winter in areas that hold heavy snow, Peromyscus mice often come to outnumber the voles in the diet since the mice tend to travel over the surface of the snow while the voles make tunnels underneath the snow. In fact, a healthy family of great horned owls can decimate a colony of field rats, thus potentially performing a key role in controlling a highly destructive pest.  Great horned owls living in the timbered fringes of garbage or refuse dumps may subsist mostly on rats.In the Rockies, California, the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico, the diversity of this species' diet rises, in sync with the diversity of rodents. "


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"Especially important, from Colorado to Washington state is the northern pocket gopher (Thomomys talpoides), although assorted other pocket gophers (Geomys, Cratogeomys, Zygogeomys, Pappogeomys and other Thomomys ssp.)are readily taken. While the northern weighs from 90 to 120 g (3.2 to 4.2 oz), other pocket gophers hunted average from 95 to 545 g (0.209 to 1.202 lb) in mass. From Washington to Baja California a very important food is the pocket mice, primarily the Great Basin pocket mouse (Perognathus parvus). While the Great Basin species is a relative giant at 22 g (0.78 oz), other hunted pocket mice (which may include both Perognathus and Chaetodipus ssp.)can average nearly as light as 8 g (0.28 oz). In East Texas, the 159 g (5.6 oz) hispid cotton rat (Sigmodon hispidus) is the most commonly recorded prey species. The same species constituted 75% by number of a small sampling in Oklahoma. In semi-desert and other arid habitats, kangaroo rats become increasingly important prey, ten species have been reported in the diet but most prominently the Ord's  and Merriam's kangaroo rats (Dipodomys ordii & merriami), both being widespread, numerous and relatively diminutive (at 42 and 48 g (1.5 and 1.7 oz)). "


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"Eight known larger species of kangaroo rats, including the giant kangaroo rat (Dipodomys ingens) averaging at 152 g (5.4 oz), are also taken.The squirrels, including ground squirrels, marmots (Marmota), prairie dogs (Cynomys), chipmunks and tree squirrels, are diurnal and so are largely unavailable to great horned owls as prey. Occasionally though, one will be caught from their leaf nest, nest hole or burrow entrance first thing in the morning or in the late afternoon and approximately 35 species have been successfully predated by these owls. In general larger sized than other rodent families, the species hunting range from the 62 g (2.2 oz) gray-collared chipmunk (Tamias cinereicollis) to the 5,775 g (12.732 lb) hoary marmot (Marmota caligata); thus, squirrels can be provide a very fulfilling meal.  An even larger rodent is sometimes attacked as prey by great horned owls, the North American porcupine (Erethizon dorsatum), in which average adults range from 4,500 to 9,000 g (9.9 to 19.8 lb). This has been determined from owls who have porcupine quills imbedded in them, sometimes resulting in death. "


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"On occasion, they are successful in killing porcupine, even adults as determined by the size of the quills left behind and prey remains at bloodied kill sites. Other rodents recorded as secondary prey in North America include flying squirrels (Glaucomys ssp.), the golden mouse (Ochrotomys nuttalli), red-backed voles & bog lemmings (Myodes & Synaptomys ssp.), the muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus), the northern grasshopper mouse (Onychomys leucogaster), the northern pygmy mouse (Baiomys taylori) and jumping mice (Zapus & Napaeozapus ssp.).\n\n=== Lagomorphs ===\n\nAlthough generally no match for rodents in sheer quantity of individuals, in terms of prey biomass, the most significant prey of North American great horned owls are hares and rabbits. About a dozen lagomorphs species are known to be hunted by the owl, from the relatively tiny 420 g (0.93 lb) pygmy rabbit to several hares weighing more than 2,000 g (4.4 lb). Two hare species, the black-tailed jackrabbit and snowshoe hare, are so important to the owls as a food source that the local owl populations sharply rise and fall in sync with the hares' cyclical population trends. "


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"With adult weights of 800 to 1,900 g (1.8 to 4.2 lb) in adult cottontails, 900 to 2,000 g (2.0 to 4.4 lb) in snowshoe hares and 1,400 to 2,700 g (3.1 to 6.0 lb) in black-tailed jackrabbits, these species are overall the largest regular prey for this species. In Utah, where great horned owls are dependent on the jackrabbits, average brood size rose from 2 at jackrabbit population lows to 3.3 when the jackrabbits were at their peak. At the peak of population cycle, jackrabbits accounted for 90.2% and desert cottontails (Sylvilagus audubonii) for another 8.7% of prey biomass. In the short-grass prairie of Colorado, mountain cottontail (Sylvilagus nuttallii) and black-tailed jackrabbits predominated in October to December, making up 42.9% by number (and nearly all the biomass), thence dropping to 9.3% by number in April, while voles rose to 32.2% peak in May, down to a minimum of 10.2% by number in June. Further north in Colorado, in the absence of jackrabbits, the mountain cottontails falls to third place by number (12.9%) behind the northern pocket gopher (36.5%) and prairie vole (24.7%) but still dominates the biomass, making up about half. "


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"In central Utah, the lagomorphs (black-tailed jackrabbit/desert cottontail) and Ord's kangaroo rat each made up 39% of the food by number, respectively. The mountain cottontail dominates the biomass of prey in the Sierran foothills of California, making up 61.1% of the biomass, although are numerically secondary to desert woodrat. Remarkably, in the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area of Idaho, individual rodents (1159 counted) were more than 10 times more numerous than lagomorphs (114 counted) by quantity and yet the jackrabbit and mountain cottontail still made up approximately half of the biomass. The dependence on lagomorphs also extends into Mexico, as in Baja California about a quarter of identified prey was black-tailed jackrabbit and either desert or the larger Mexican cottontail (Sylvilagus cunicularius). In the northern boreal forest, great horned owls are even more dependent on the snowshoe hare. At the peak of the 10 year hare cycle, snowshoe hares were by far the largest component of both summer and winter diets (77\u201381% and 90\u201399%, respectively, in Alberta; 83\u201386% and 75\u201398%, respectively, in Yukon). At the lowest point of the hare's cycle, summer diets consisted of only 0\u201316% snowshoe hare in Alberta and 12.7% in Yukon. "


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"When hares were scarce, great horned owls in these regions fed mostly on large rodents, mice and voles, grouse and ducks. Because fewer of these alternative prey species are available in boreal forest during winter, owls had to emigrate or suffer high mortalities if they stayed. In Alberta, the local population of great horned owls can increase threefold from hare population lows to peaks. The dependency on the snowshoe hare by the great horned owl extends into Alaska as well.\n\n=== Other mammals ===\nOther mammals are taken readily as well. From both the tropics and the United States, several species of opossum may be taken, down to the size of the tiny dwarf fat-tailed mouse opossum (Thylamys velutinus). In Brazil, white-eared opossum (Didelphis albiventris) were found in 12% of pellets, but all specimens appeared to be juveniles each weighing about 1,000 g (2.2 lb). Quite differently, in Pennsylvania, Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginianus) made up 6% by number of prey but due to their large size (approximately 2,500 g (5.5 lb)) and that all specimens were adults, they occupied the highest percentage of biomass of any species in a wide study from that state. "


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"At least eight species of shrews are taken by opportunity and make up the smallest mammalian prey taken by great horned owls, as specimens of least shrew (Cryptotis parva) or masked shrew (Sorex cinereus) have had an estimated weight of only 2 g (0.071 oz). One of the more regularly taken shrews, though, is the larger 19.5 g (0.69 oz) northern short-tailed shrew (Blarina brevicauda), which was represented in more than 2% of pellets in the Upper Midwest. Moles, of at least four or five species, are also widely but lightly reported as prey. Remnants of armadillo, presumably nine-banded armadillo (Dasypus novemcinctus), have been found around owl nests in the south. 11 species of bat are known to be hunted by great horned owls. One pellet in Texas was found to be composed entirely of Mexican free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiliensis). Smaller species of mammalian carnivore, such as ringtail (Bassariscus astutus), American mink (Neogale vison), black-footed ferret (Mustela nigripes) and various other small mustelids (Mustela ssp.), are sometimes taken as prey. Prey in the form of canids, like foxes or coyotes (Canis latrans) are often juveniles presumably snatched from the mouths of dens by night. "


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"Kit and swift foxes of up to adult size may taken. Surprisingly, at least two cases of a great horned owl preying on an adult raccoon (Procyon lotor) have been reported. One instance of an owl taking a bobcat (Lynx rufus) as prey was also reportedly observed. In one case, a great horned owl was the likely killer of an adult female fisher (Martes pennanti), though young ones are typically taken. Occasionally, domestic carnivores are also prey. A few cases of young or small dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) and several of juvenile and adult cats (Felis silvestris catus) being killed by great horned owls have been reported. The most infamous predatory association amongst relatively larger carnivores is that with skunks. Due to their poor sense of smell, great horned owls are the only predators to routinely attack these bold mammals with impunity. All six skunk species found in North America are reported as prey, including adult striped skunks (Mephitis mephitis), which can be three times as heavy as the attacking owl. In one single nest, the remains of 57 striped skunks were found. "


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"Due to the proclivity of skunk predation, great horned owls nests frequently smell strongly of skunk and occasionally stink so powerfully of skunk that they leave the smell at kill sites or on prey remains.\n\n=== Birds ===\n\nAfter mammals, birds rank as the next most important general prey group. Birds are usually considerably secondary in the diet but outnumber the mammals in the diet by diversity, as more than 250 species have been killed in North America alone. Statistically, the most significant avian prey seems to be galliforms, of which they are known to have preyed on 23 species, basically consisting of all of the native species found in the United States. In the Upper Midwest, the ring-necked pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) and northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) were the fifth and sixth (out of 124 identified species) most significant prey species in 4838 pellets. Errington characterized the predatory pressure exerted on bobwhites by great horned owls as \"light but continuous pressure\", which may be considered characteristic of the species' hunting of all galliforms. "


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"Usually coveys of quail are partially protected by spending the night roosting communally in dense thickets but should a hunting owl be able to track down the communal roost, losses can be fairly heavy until the roost relocates. Similarly, owls may track down sleeping grouse, which also roost in vegetation but more openly than quail. Some grouse, such as greater prairie chicken (Tympanuchus cupido), sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus) and greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus),  may also been vulnerable to great horned owls while displaying conspicuously in openings on a lek first thing in the morning. In the boreal forest, especially in years where the snowshoe hare experiences population decreases, great horned owls prey fairly heavily (approximately 25% of biomass) on ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) and spruce grouse (Falcipennis canadensis), enough so in the earlier bird to possibly contribute to population reductions. Larger species of galliform are not immune to predation either. On Protection Island in Washington state, introduced common peafowl (Pavo cristatus) are an important prey item. The wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo), 4 to 8 kg (8.8 to 17.6 lb) on average between the sexes, is probably the largest bird the great horned owl hunts in which they kill adults. "


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"Both full-grown wild turkeys and adult domestic turkeys have been hunted and killed. Under normal circumstances, domestic chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) will be ignored in favor of wild prey. On occasion, individual owls, especially inexperienced juveniles, will become habitual fowl killers. These errant owls mainly hunt chickens, though will also take domestic guineafowl, turkeys and anything else available. In general, chickens kept in locked cages with enclosed tops overnight are safe from great horned owls; not so chickens left free range or in open enclosures.While galliforms are widely reported, the few cases where great horned owls locally turn to birds as the primary food source over mammals, these may often be local responses to the abundance of breeding water birds or concentrations of roosting water birds, since they tend to roost in relatively open spots. They have been known to predate more than 110 different species of assorted water bird. "


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"In prairie wetlands of North Dakota, avian prey, primarily represented by ducks and the American coot (Fulica americana) came to represent 65% by number and 83% by biomass of the diet of the local owls, also including secondarily grebes, smaller rails and shorebirds as well as upland-based species like grey partridge (Perdix perdix), sharp-tailed grouse and passerines. 77% of the ducks in that study were juveniles, the largest duck being a male mallard (Anas platyrhnychos) weighing approximately 1,250 g (2.76 lb), but nearly all the coots were adults. On Protection Island, Washington, where they are no native land mammals, rhinoceros auklets (Cerorhinca monocerata), both adults and nestlings, were the most numerous prey, present in 93% of 120 pellets. Species as large as adult Canada geese, snow goose and great blue herons have been successfully killed. The nestlings of even larger species like trumpeter swans (Cygnus buccinator), American white pelicans (Pelecanus eryhtrorhynchos), brown pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis) and sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis) have also been killed by these owls.\nOther assorted birds are taken seemingly at random opportunity. The predatory effect of this species on other raptorial birds, which is often considerable, is explored in the following section. "


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"In Brazil, it was found in a small study that birds overall outnumbered mammals in pellets, although most were not determined to species and the ones that were shown a tremendously diverse assemblage of birds with no obvious dietary preference. Although not usually numerically significant, 86 species of passerine have been taken by great horned owls. Members from most North American families are known as prey, although among smaller types such as chickadees, warblers, sparrows, cardinals, wrens and most tyrant flycatchers only a few species from each have been recorded. Nonetheless, an occasionally unlucky migrant or local breeder is sometimes snatched. Fledgling songbirds are regularly taken in spring and summer. The smallest avian prey known for great horned owls are the 5.8 g (0.20 oz) blue-grey gnatcatcher (Polioptila caerulea) and the 6.2 g (0.22 oz) ruby-crowned kinglet (Regulus calendula). Somewhat larger bodied families are more prominent, i.e. the corvids (14 species) and icterids (14 species) and, secondarily, the kingbirds (Tyrannus ssp.), thrushes, mimids and European starling (Sturnus vulgaris). This is likely due to the fact that the larger passerines usually roost in relatively open spots and have larger, more conspicuous nests. "


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"Crows and ravens tend to be grabbed off of their communal roosts by night.\n\n=== Other prey ===\nThe great horned owl rarely misses an opportunity to hunt reptiles and amphibians. However, lizards are largely unavailable as prey due to their typically diurnal periods of activity. However, some snakes are partially or largely nocturnal, and more than a dozen species are hunted in North America. Snakes hunted range from small, innocuous garter snakes (Thamnophis ssp.)and night snakes (Hypsiglena torquata) to venomous species like cottonmouths (Agkistrodon piscivorus) and prairie rattlesnakes (Crotalus virdis) and formidable, large species like common king snakes (Lampropeltis getula) and black rat snakes (Pantherophis obsoletus), which in mature specimens can rival the owl in mass and sheer predatory power. The capture of the hatchlings of very large reptiles such as loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) and American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) by great horned owls has been reported, in both cases likely when the baby reptiles are attempting to make their way to the security of water. On rare occasion, salamanders, frogs and toads are reported as prey.  On rare occasions, fish are taken including goldfish (Carassius auratus), bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus), bullheads (Ameiurus ssp."


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"), other catfish, suckers, sunfish, eels and dace and chub. Many types of invertebrates are recorded as prey. These include mainly insects, but also crayfish, crabs, spiders, scorpions and worms. The occasionally invertebrate prey taken largely consists of common, large insects such as various beetles, crickets, grasshoppers, water bugs and katydids, some of which the great horned owl has even reportedly caught via \"hawking\", i.e. swooping at on the wing. In some cases, the content of insects in great horned owl pellets may actually be due to the owls eating other birds which have freshly eaten insects in their own stomachs. It is commonly believed that routine insectivory in great horned owls is mainly restricted to inexperienced young owls too unskilled to graduate to larger prey yet. It is clearly inefficient for owls of this size to attempt to raise young on a diet of foods as small as insects. Although rare, carrion-feeding has been recorded in great horned owls, especially ones wintering in Canada and other northern areas during harsh weather. Road kills are sometimes opportunistically eaten. "


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"A case of an owl scavenging a white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) carcass, ultimately tearing off the deer's leg, was captured on a motion capture video camera set out to film wildlife.\n\n=== Urban vs rural diet ===\nStudies comparing the diets of rural and urban great horned owls have identified that the most abundant rodent prey in their environment fulfils the majority of their diet. A study of food niche overlap between closely nested barn and great horned owls living in rural north-eastern Oregon identified voles as by far the most common prey. In southwestern British Columbia, Townsend's voles were the most common prey species, while consumption of rats increased as the nesting location became more urban and rats replaced voles as the most abundant and stable food source.  A similar focus on rats was found in populations in urban parks in Seattle.  Although a stable and highly abundant food source, a diet consisting of primarily rats can be harmful to urban great horned owls due to bioaccumulation of rodenticides.\n\n=== Interspecific predatory relationships ===\n\nDue to their very broad dietary habits, the great horned owls share their prey with many other predators, including avian, mammalian and reptilian ones. "


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"Almost every study comparing the diets of North American owls illustrates the considerable overlap in the dietary selection of these species, as all species, besides the primarily insectivorous varieties, rely on many of the same small rodent species for most of their diet, extending from the small northern saw-whet owl and eastern screech owl to the great horned and great grey owls.In a long-term study of a block of Michigan, all nine species of accipitrid, falcon and owl that stayed to breed there were found to be primarily dependent on the same two rodent genera, the meadow vole and the two common Peromyscus species. In the Great Basin, the owls share black-tailed jackrabbit and desert cottontail as the primary prey with golden eagles, red-tailed hawks and ferruginous hawks (Buteo regalis); all four species had diets with more than 90% of the biomass is made up of those lagomorphs. Of these, the great horned owl and golden eagle were able to nest most closely to one another because they had the most strongly dissimilar periods of activity. "


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"In California, when compared to the local red-tailed hawks and western diamondback rattlesnakes (Crotalus atrox), the diets were most similar in that by number about 15-20% of all three species' diets depended on cottontails, but the largest portion was made up of ground squirrels in the hawk and the rattlesnake and desert woodrats and other assorted rodents in the great horned owl. In the boreal forests, the great horned owl's prolificacy as a snowshoe hare hunter places it second only to the Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis) among all predators. Although locally dependent on the hares as their main food, northern goshawks (Accipiter gentilis), red-tailed hawks and golden eagles apparently do not have as large of an impact on the hares, nor do mammalian carnivore generalists that also kill many hares, like the fisher, bobcat, wolverine (Gulo gulo), coyote and larger varieties (i.e. wolves (Canis lupus), cougars (Puma concolor) and bears (Ursus ssp.)).The relationship between great horned owls and other raptorial birds in its range is usually decidedly one-sided. "


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"While certain species, such as the red-tailed hawk and northern goshawk, might be seen as potential competition for the owls, most others seem to be regarded merely as prey by great horned owls. The great horned owl is both the most prolific and diverse predator in America of other birds of prey, with other accomplished raptor-hunters such as the goshawk and the golden eagle being more restricted in range, habitat and number in North America and thus having a more minor impact. All studies have found raptors are a small portion of this owl's diet but predation can be seriously detrimental for such prey, as raptors tend to be territorial and sparsely distributed as a rule and thus can be effectively decimated by a small number of losses. In the gray hawk (Buteo plagiatus), for example, in a study of one breeding block of Arizona, the owls were observed to visit nests nightly until all the nestlings were gone.Raptorial birds in general tend to have large, conspicuous nests which may make them easier for a hunting owl to locate. "


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"The great horned owl gains an advantage by nesting earlier than any other raptor in its range (indeed any bird), as it is able to exploit the other raptors as food while in a more vulnerable state as their own nestlings have become well developed. On average, great horned owls begin nesting about three weeks before red-tailed hawks begin to build nests, although some raptors may locally breed as much as two months after the owls.More so than diurnal varieties of raptor, fairly significant numbers of owls are hunted, as all species are to some extent nocturnal and thus their corresponding activity can attract the horned owl's unwanted attention. The extent of predation on other owls depends on the habitat preferences of the other species. Eastern and western screech owls may be most vulnerable since they prefer similar wooded edge habitat. In a block of Wisconsin, great horned owls were responsible for the failure of 78% of eastern screech owl's nests. "


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"Long-eared owls and, to a lesser extent, barn owls tend to hunt in open, sparsely treed habitats more so than great horned owls, but since they may return to wooded spots for nesting purposes, they may be more vulnerable there. The long-eared owl and barn owls are often compared to the great horned owl as these medium-sized species often occur in abutting habitats and often hunt primarily the same vole and mice species, although the alternate prey of the great horned tends to be much larger, including the smaller owls themselves. In a pair of studies from Colorado, the average weight of prey for long-eared owls was 28 to 30 g (0.99 to 1.06 oz), 46 to 57.1 g (1.62 to 2.01 oz) for barn owl and 177 to 220 g (6.2 to 7.8 oz) for the great horned owl.Both young and adult great grey owls, despite their superficially superior size, are apparently hunted with impunity by great horned owls. In the boreal forests, both the northern hawk owl and great grey owl appear to be in greater danger of great horned owl predation in years where the snowshoe hare have low populations. "


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"Great horned owls were the leading cause of mortality in juvenile spotted owls (30% of losses) and juvenile great grey owls (65% of losses). Less is known about relations with the snowy owl, which may compete with great horned owls for food while invading south for the winter. Anecdotally, both snowy and great horned owls have rarely been reported to dominate or even kill one another depending on the size and disposition of the individual owls, although the snowy's preference for more open areas again acts as something of a buffer. The snowy may be the one North American owl too formidable for the great horned owl to consider as prey.Whereas owls of any age are freely attacked by great horned owls whether nesting or not, when it comes to diurnal raptors, great horned owls are mainly a danger around the nest. They often hunt diurnal raptors when they come across their often relatively conspicuous active platform nests during hunting forays in spring and summer, taking numbers of both nestlings and brooding adults. Again, like owls, diurnal raptors are attacked depending on the relative similarity of their habitat preferences to the owl. "


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"Cooper's hawks (Accipiter cooperii) and red-tailed hawks tend to be most vulnerable, as they prefer the same wooded edges frequented by great horned owls. Other diurnal raptors may be attracted to more enclosed wooded areas, such as sharp-shinned hawks (Accipiter striatus) or zone-tailed hawks (Buteo albonotatus), or more open plain and meadow areas, such as Northern harriers (Circus hudsonius) and ferruginous hawks, but this is almost never a total insurance against predation as all of these are recorded prey.In a study of red-shouldered hawk (Buteo lineatus) and broad-winged hawk (Buteo brachyurus) breeding in New York, despite their nesting in deeper woods than those that host these owls, the main cause of nest failure was great horned owl predation. Similarly, the great horned owl was the primary cause of nesting failure for both desert-dwelling Harris's hawks (Parabuteo unicinctus) and forest-dwelling northern goshawk in Arizona (39% and 40% of failures, respectively), wetland-inhabiting osprey (Pandion haliaetus) in Delaware (21% of failures) and peregrine falcons (Falco peregrinus) in the Western United States (27% of failures). "


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"The fact that many of the nests great horned owls use are constructed by accipitrids may lead to localized conflicts, almost always to the detriment of the hawks rather than the owls. While the young of larger diurnal raptors are typically stolen in the night, great horned owls also readily kill large adult raptors both in and out of breeding seasons, including osprey, northern goshawk and rough-legged buzzard.Great horned owls are frequently mobbed by other birds. Most accipitrids will readily mob them, as will falcons. Hen harriers, northern goshawks, Cooper's hawks, Harris's hawks, red-tailed hawks, Swainson's hawks, ferruginous hawks, red-shouldered hawks, American kestrels, peregrine falcons, prairie falcons (Falco mexicanus) and common ravens (Corvus corax) are among the reported species who have been recorded diving on great horned owls when they discover them. In Arizona and Texas, they may be mobbed by Mexican jays and western scrub jays (Aphelocoma wollweberi & californica) and western and Cassin's kingbirds (Tyrannus verticalis & vociferans). In addition, there are several documented incidences of American crows mobbing a great horned owl, in groups of dozens or even hundreds of crows. In response to mobbing, if the owl flies it alights to the nearest secluded spot. "


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"If an owl alights on ground or on exposed branch or ledge, it may respond to swooping and stooping flights of corvids and raptors with threat display and raising of its wings.\n\n== Reproduction ==\n\nGreat horned owls are some of the earliest-breeding birds in North America, seemingly in part because of the lengthy nightfall at this time of year and additionally the competitive advantage it gives the owl over other raptors. In most of North America, courtship is from October to December and mates are chosen by December to January. This species was once thought to be strictly monogamous, but recent analysis indicates one male may mate with two females simultaneously, as was discovered for the first time in 2018 in Reno, Nevada. During courtship in late fall or early winter, the male attracts the attention of his mate by hooting emphatically while leaning over (with the tail folded or cocked) and puffing up his white throat to look like a ball. The white throat may serve as a visual stimulus in the low light conditions typical of when this owl courts. He often flies up and down on a perch, while approaching the potential mate. "


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"Eventually, he comes to approach the female and tries to rub his bill against hers while repeatedly bowing. If receptive, the female hoots back when the pair meet but is more subdued in both her hoot and display. The male may convince the female by bringing her freshly caught prey, which they will share. While males often hoot emphatically for about a month or six weeks towards the end of the year, the period where females also hoot is usually only a week to ten days. Pairs typically breed together year after year and may mate for life, although they associate with each other more loosely when their young become mostly independent. Pairs rekindling their reproductive relationship in the winter may perform a milder courtship to strengthen pair bonds before producing young.Males select nesting sites and bring the females' attention to them by flying to the nest and then stomping on it. Considering the owls' large size, nests with open access are preferred to those enclosed with surrounding branches. Like all owls, great horned owls do not build their own nest. "


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"Great horned owls tend to examine an area for an abandoned nest, generally from larger birds like hawks, and take over the nest for raising their own young. They nest in a wider variety of sites than any other North American bird. Many nests are in cavernous hollows of dead trees or their branches, and especially in southern states in large trees along the edge of old-growth lots. In mountainous or hilly areas, especially in canyons of the Southwest and Rocky Mountains, cliff ledges, small caves, and other sheltered depressions may be used. Owls living in prairie country, in the absence of other animals' nests, riparian tree-hollows or man-made structures, will use boulders, buttes, railroad cuts, low bushes and even the bare ground as nest sites. Ground nests have also been recorded in the midst of tall grasses in Florida and in the midst of brushy spots on desert ground. Even the burrow entrances of American badger and coyote dens have reportedly been used as nests, in spite of the inherent risk of sharing space with such potentially dangerous co-inhabitants. "


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"Nesting behavior for the great horned owl appears to be more closely related to prey availability than it does to seasonal conditions. There has been some evidence that if prey availability is low enough then the species may forgo mating entirely for a season. Male and female owls of the species have been observed to help incubate the eggs once they have been laid on a nest.\n\nMost tree nests used by great horned owls are constructed by other animals, often from a height of about 4.5 to 22 m (15 to 72 ft) off the ground. They often take over a nest used by some other large bird, sometimes adding feathers to line the nest but usually not much more. Allegedly there have some cases where the owls have reinforced a nest structure or appeared to have reconstructed a nest, but as a rule no owl species has ever been known to actually build a nest. Great horned owls in the Southwest may also use nests in cacti, built by Harris's hawk and red-tailed hawk, as well as large hollows in cacti. "


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"The nests they use are often made by most larger types of acciptrids, from species as small as Cooper's hawks to bald eagle and golden eagle, though perhaps most often those of red-tailed hawks and other buteonines. Secondly in popularity are crow and raven (Corvus ssp.)nests. Even Canada goose, black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) and great blue heron nests have been used, the latter sometimes right in the midst of an active heronry. The leaf nests of squirrels are also regularly used but in general great horned owls are partial to stick nests since they provide a much firmer, safer foundation.The stage at which eggs are laid is variable across North America. In Southern Florida, eggs may be laid as early as late November to as late as early January. In the southeast, from south Texas to Georgia, egg laying may begin from late December to early February. From Southern California to northern Louisiana, egg laying is from early February to late March. The largest swath of egg-laying owls from central California to South Carolina to as far north as Ohio and Massachusetts is from late February to early April. "


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"In the Rocky Mountains, Northwestern United States, northern New England and eastern Canada, egg laying is from early March to late April. In the rest of Canada and Alaska, egg laying may be from late March to early May. The latest known date of egg laying was in mid-June in Saskatchewan and the Yukon Territory. In northwestern Utah and north-central Alberta, egg-laying can be 3\u20134 weeks earlier than usual when food is abundant and weather is favorable. For owls found in more tropical climates, the dates of the breeding season are somewhat undefined. There are usually 2 eggs per clutch, but clutches range in size from 1 to 6 eggs (over 3 is uncommon, over 4 is very rare), depending on environmental conditions. The average egg width is 46.5 mm (1.83 in), the average length is 55 mm (2.2 in) and the average weight is 51 g (1.8 oz), although mass could be slightly higher elsewhere because this figure is from Los Angeles County, CA where the owls are relatively small. The incubation period ranges from 28 to 37 days, averaging 33 days. "


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"The female alone usually does all the incubation and rarely moves from the nest, while the male owl captures food and brings it to her, with the first nightly food delivery typically occurring soon after dark.The young weigh 34.7 g (1.22 oz) at birth on average and can gain about 33 g (1.2 oz) a day for the first four weeks of life, with typical weights in the range of 800 or 1,000 g (1.8 or 2.2 lb) by 25\u201329 days for males and females, respectively. When first hatched the young are covered in whitish gray down, with some brownish about the wings. Gradually the soft juvenal downy plumage comes through the down, being typically a cinnamon-buff color, but with variable hues predicting the eventual color of the mature owls. The extent of down gradually diminishes, developing mature-looking plumage by late summer, although many first year birds still have scattered bits of down into autumn. By late autumn, first-year birds look similar to adults but with a slightly warmer, reddish tinge, less well developed ear tufts and a smaller white throat patch. "


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"The nestling owls develop mostly in behavior between two weeks and two months of age, in which time they adapt the ability to defend themselves, grasp foods and climb. Vocally, the young are able to exert weak chips while still in the egg, developing into a raspy chirp shortly after hatching. The calls of the young increase rapidly in intensity, pitch and character, some juvenile males mimicking their father's hooting in fall but usually they conclude with various odd gurgling notes. The earliest competent hooting by juvenile owls is not until January. Young owls move onto nearby branches at 6 weeks and start to fly about a week later. However, the young are not usually competent fliers until they are about 10 to 12 weeks old. The age at which the young leave the nest is variable based on the abundance of food.The young birds stay in an area ranging from 13 to 52 ha from the nest into fall, but will usually disperse up to several thousand hectares by the end of fall. "


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"The offspring have been seen still begging for food in late October (5 months after leaving the nest) and most do not fully leave their parents territory until right before the parents start to reproduce for the next clutch (usually December to January). Birds may not breed for another year or two, and are often vagrants (\"floaters\") until they establish their own territories. Based on the development of the bursa, great horned owls reach sexual maturity at two years of age.\n\n=== Urban vs rural nesting ===\nWhile urban and rural populations show little difference in productivity, there are differences in nest selection.  Rural owls use old raptor nests more frequently than urban birds, who utilize crow or squirrel nests. Additionally, urban nesting individuals utilize trees that are taller/wider in diameter and nest much higher compared to rural nesting Great Horned Owls. The reason behind this increased tree height is due to the fact that urban areas have large trees used for ornamentation, shade and shelter. The higher nesting within the taller trees was attributed to human avoidance. "


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"Both rural and urban nesting sites were often within range of paved roads, likely a result of the great horned owl\u2019s tendency to hunt along roadwaysStudies have shown that nesting in urban areas can influence adult great horned owls to lay eggs earlier than those who nest in rural areas. In Wisconsin, eggs in urban nests hatched a month earlier (January rather than February) than their counterparts in rural areas, probably due to increased protection from wind and cold. Nesting owls at sites in Winnipeg, Manitoba began nesting five to six weeks earlier than those in rural parts of Manitoba, presumably due to experiencing an extremely warm winter by Winnipeg\u2019s standards, as well as benefitting from the local urban heat island.\n\n== Mortality and longevity ==\n\n=== Longevity and natural mortality ===\nGreat horned owls seem to be the most long-living owl in North America. Among all owls, they may outrank even the larger Eurasian eagle owl in known longevity records from the wild, with almost 29 years being the highest age for an owl recorded in North America. In captivity, the record for the longest lived great horned owl was 50 years. "


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"A more typical top lifespan of a great horned owl is approximately 13 years. In general, great horned owls are most vulnerable in the early stages of life, although few species press attacks on the owl's nests due to the ferocious defensive abilities of the parents. Occasionally, nestlings and fledglings will fall from the nest too early to escape or to competently defend themselves and fall prey to foxes, bobcat, coyotes, or wild or feral cats. Occasionally raccoons and American black bears consume eggs and nestlings from tree nests and Virginia opossum may take the rare unguarded egg. Crows and ravens have been reported eating eggs and small nestlings. This can normally only happen when owls are driven from the nest by human activity or are forced to leave the nest to forage by low food resources but on occasion huge flocks of crows have been able to displace owls by harassing them endlessly. In general, great horned owls rarely engage in siblicide, unlike many other raptorial birds. Siblicide occurred at 9 of 2,711 nests in Saskatchewan. "


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"Most cases where young owls are killed and/or consumed by their siblings or parents appear to occur when the nestling is diseased, impaired or starving or is inadvertently crushed. Adults generally have no natural predators, excepting both North American eagles and other owls of their own species.Occasionally, great horned owls may be killed by their own prey. Although typically able to kill skunks without ill effect, five owls were found blind after getting sprayed in their eyes by skunks. Cases where the quills of porcupines have killed or functionally disabled them have been observed as well. Violent fights have been observed between great horned owls after attempts to capture rat snakes and black racers. When a peregrine falcon repeatedly attacked a great horned owl near its nest along the Hudson River, it was apparently unable to dispatch the larger raptor despite several powerful strikes. During their initial dispersal in fall, juvenile owls have a high mortality rate, frequently more than 50%. For owls in the Yukon Territory, juvenile survival in the 9 weeks after dispersal has dropped from 80% to 23.2% in a span of three years in response of instability of food supply. "


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"In the Yukon, adults on territory had an average annual survival rate of 90.5%. Anemia, caused by Leucocytozoon ziemanni and the drinking of blood by swarming, blood-drinking blackflies (Simulium ssp.), was a leading cause of juvenile mortality in the Yukon.\n\n=== Human-related mortality ===\nThe great horned owl is not considered a globally threatened species by the IUCN. Including the Magellanic species, there are approximately 5.3 million wild horned owls in the Americas. Most mortality in modern times is human-related, caused by owls flying into man-made objects, including buildings, cars, power lines, or barbed wire. In one study, the leading cause of death for owls was collision with cars, entanglement with wires, flying into buildings and, lastly, electrocution. Among 209 banded nestlings in yet another study, 67% were found dead after independence: 56 were found shot, 41 were trapped, 15 hit by cars, 14 found dead on highways and 14 electrocuted by overhead power lines. "


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"Secondary poisoning from pest control efforts is widely reported variously due to anticoagulant rodenticides, strychnine, organophosphates (famphur applied topically to cattle (Bos primigenius taurus)), organochlorines, and PCBs.Frequently, the species were denominated a pest due to the perceived threat it posed to domestic fowl and potentially small game. The first genuine nature conservationists, while campaigning against the \"Extermination Being Waged Against the Hawks and Owls\", continued to advocate the destruction of great horned owls due to their predatory effect on other wildlife. Thus, small bounties were offered in trade for owl bodies. Around the turn of the 20th century, the great horned owl was considered endangered in the state of Michigan because of the large number of poachers who were illegally hunting and collecting it. Hunting and trapping of great horned owls may continue on a small scale but is now illegal in most countries.\n\n=== Effect on conservation-dependent species ===\nOccasionally, these owls may prey on threatened species. Following the devastation to its populations from DDT, the reintroduction of the peregrine falcon to the Mississippi and Hudson Rivers was hampered by great horned owls killing both young and adult peregrines at night. "


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"Similarly, as mainly recorded in New England, attempts to reintroduce ospreys, after they were also hit hard by DDT, were affected by heavy owl predation on nestlings, and the owls were also recorded to take a large toll locally on the threatened colonies of roseate terns. Where clear-cutting occurs in old-growth areas of the Pacific Northwest, spotted owls have been badly affected by considerable great horned owl predation. While at least the ospreys and peregrines have rebounded admirably nonetheless, bird and mammal species that are much rarer overall sometimes fall prey to great horned owls, many in which even sporadic losses can be devastating. Among the species considered threatened, endangered or critically endangered by the IUCN which are also known to be killed by great horned owls are Townsend's ground squirrels (Urocitellus townsendii), Pacific pocket mice (Perognathus pacificus), giant kangaroo rats, Stephens' kangaroo rat (Dipodomys stephensi), black-footed ferrets, greater and lesser prairie chickens, marbled murrelets (Brachyramphus marmoratus), ivory-billed woodpeckers, Florida scrub jays (Aphelocoma coerulescens), pinyon jays, Kirtland's warblers (Setophaga kirtlandii) and rusty blackbirds (Euphagus carolinus). "


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"The American Bird Conservancy's \"green list\" includes birds with considerable population declines (many classed as near threatened by the IUCN) or other immediate threats and/or restricted populations. Altogether, great horned owls hunt 50 different species from that list.\n\n== Iconography and myth ==\nMany warrior-based tribes of Native Americans admired the great horned owl for their \"strength, courage and beauty\". The Pima of the Southwest believed that owls were reincarnations of slain warriors who fly about by night. The Arikara of the Great Plains had mystic owl societies in which initiates were made to adorn a facial mask made of the wing and tail feathers of great horned owls. Some Indian nations regarded the great horned owl as a friendly spiritthat could aid in matters of love, such as the Passamaquoddy of Maine, who felt the call of this species was a magical love flute designed to ignite human passions. The Hopi of the Southwest also associated this owl with fertility, albeit of a different kind: they believed the calling of the owls into summer predicted hot weather, which produced good peach crops. "


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"During the winter solstice, the Hopi performed a ceremony with great horned owl feathers in hopes of summoning the heat of summer. Tribes in New Mexico were known to use owl wing-feathers to produce arrows which could strike their enemies with a minimum of sound. The Zuni held owl feathers in their mouths hoping to gain some of the silence that owls use in ambushes while striking their own enemies from other tribes. The Iroquois felt the origin of the great horned owl was due to an unformed owl annoying Raweno, the almighty creator, while Raweno created the rabbit, causing Raweno to make the owl \"covered with mud\" (dark camouflage) and doomed to ceaselessly call \"whoo whoo\", which he used while harassing Raweno by night because Raweno was active during the day.\n\n=== Provincial bird ===\nThe great horned owl is the provincial bird of Alberta.\n\n== References ==\n\n== Further reading ==\n\n== External links ==\n\n\"Great Horned Owl media\". Internet Bird Collection.\nInformation on Owls, a compilation of various sources pertaining to owls\nGreat Horned Owl - Bubo virginianus - USGS Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter\nGreat Horned Owl photo gallery at VIREO (Drexel University)"


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"The Angolan giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis angolensis or Giraffa giraffa angolensis), also known as the Namibian giraffe, is a subspecies of giraffe that is found in northern Namibia, south-western Zambia, Botswana, and western Zimbabwe.\n\n== Taxonomy ==\nA 2009 genetic study on this subspecies suggests the northern Namib Desert and Etosha National Park populations each form a separate subspecies. However, genetic studies based on mitochondrial DNA do not support the division into two subspecies., but could identify giraffes in southern Zimbabwe as the Angolan giraffe, suggesting a further eastward distribution than expected.\n\n== Description ==\nThis subspecies has large brown blotches with edges that are either somewhat notched or have angular extensions. The spotting pattern extends throughout the legs but not the upper part of the face. The neck and rump patches tend to be fairly small. The subspecies also has a white ear patch.\n\n== Habitat ==\nHome range size of Angolan giraffes was found to be larger in unproductive areas such as the Namib Desert and much smaller in more productive areas such as Lake Manyara National Park. "


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"However, that home range size could be affected by abiotic(e.g climate), biotic(e.g forage availability, predator densities) and human influence(e.g population growth)\n\n== Seasonal movement ==\nAs far as seasonal movements of giraffes were concerned, they were not as distinctive as those in other giraffe populations around the world. Male Giraffe  moves longer than Female giraffe and also it has longer average daily movement (5.64km compared to 1.87km in 180 days during hot-dry season).\n\n== Foraged activity ==\nAngolan Giraffe tends to forage into the mountain during the cold-dry and early hot-dry season. It mainly eats Commiphora for living.\n\n== Conservation ==\nApproximately 13,000 animals are estimated to remain in the wild; and about 20 are kept in zoos.\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links ==\nMedia related to Angolan Giraffes at Wikimedia Commons\nData related to Giraffa camelopardalis angolensis at Wikispecies"


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"The white-cheeked turaco (Menelikornis leucotis) is a species of bird in the family Musophagidae. It is found in Eritrea, Ethiopia, and South Sudan. A mid-sized species, it measures about 43 cm (17 in) in length, including a tail of 19 cm (7.5 in), and weighs about 200\u2013315 g (7.1\u201311.1 oz).\nThis species is the most commonly raised turaco in captive conditions.\n\n== Distribution and habitat ==\nThe white-cheeked turaco is native to Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Eritrea, where it is found in Podocarpus and juniper forests in the highland regions.\n\n== Subspecies ==\nThere are two subspecies, the nominate subspecies M. l. leucotis found in the Podocarpus forests of Eritrea, Ethiopia and southeastern South Sudan and M. l. donaldsoni found in south-central Ethiopia south of the Rift Valley and in the extreme west of Somalia. The latter is quite distinct in plumage colour - the eastern population is separated from the larger population by the escarpment.\nThe white-crested turaco has been shown to hybridise with the sympatric Ruspoli's turaco (Menelikornis ruspolii) that contributed more to concerns about Ruspoli's turaco that is considered endangered.\n\n"


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"== In captivity ==\nIn captivity a 'cinnamon' colour sport (a recessive colour mutation) first occurred spontaneously in birds bred by Mr D Jones in Gloucestershire, England and is now present in captive birds in other countries.\nA single white-cheeked turaco has been living wild in east London (Leytonstone and South Woodford). The sighting was recorded and confirmed in October 2009. It has survived the climate and potential predators for at least seven years and appears to be living in harmony with native species. It's believed to be an escaped or released pet. Sightings in gardens have continued to delight Londoners.  In 2014 another bird (or the same one who fancied a change of scenery perhaps?)was sighted in Langton Green, Kent and has caused much interest to the residents, being featured in the village magazine.Sightings in East London have continued into 2017 with the turaco seen in January enjoying scraps under bird feeders in residential gardens near Wanstead Park and in July flying around the treetops in Bushwood.  It was seen again in the trees opposite St Gabriel's Church, Aldersbrook, and photographed on 30 March 2021.  "


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"In addition, there have been various sightings of the same (or similar) bird in Wimbledon since April 2016. A turaco was sighted in Havant, Hampshire, in August 2019 and again in May 2020. It has a ring on the left leg. There have been confirmed sightings in Cardiff, Wales from January 2020 and has also been seen in March 2022.\n\n== Gallery ==\n\n== References ==\n\nInternational Turaco Society ITS Magazine 1993-2012"


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"The crested caracara (Caracara plancus) is a bird of prey in the family Falconidae. It is found from the southern United States through Central and South America to Tierra del Fuego. It was formerly placed in the genus Polyborus.\n\n== Description ==\nThe crested caracara has a total length of 50\u201365 cm (20\u201326 in) and a wingspan of 120\u2013132 cm (47\u201352 in). Its weight is 0.9\u20131.6 kg (2.0\u20133.5 lb), averaging 1,348 g (2.972 lb) in seven birds from Tierra del Fuego. Individuals from the colder southern part of its range average larger than those from tropical regions (as predicted by Bergmann's rule) and are the largest type of caracara. In fact, they are the second-largest species of falcon in the world by mean body mass, second only to the gyrfalcon. The cap, belly, thighs, most of the wings, and tail tip are dark brownish, the auriculars (feathers surrounding the ear), throat, and nape are whitish-buff, and the chest, neck, mantle, back, upper tail coverts, crissum (the undertail coverts surrounding the cloaca), and basal part of the tail are whitish-buff barred dark brownish. "


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"In flight, the outer primaries show a large conspicuous whitish-buff patch ('window'), as in several other species of caracaras. The legs are yellow and the bare facial skin and cere are deep yellow to reddish-orange. Juveniles resemble adults, but are paler, with streaking on the chest, neck, and back, grey legs, and whitish, later pinkish-purple, facial skin and cere.\n\n== Behavior ==\nA bold, opportunistic raptor, the crested caracara is often seen walking around on the ground looking for food. It mainly feeds on carcasses of dead animals, but steals food from other raptors, raids bird and reptile nests, and takes live prey if the possibility arises (mostly insects or other small prey [such as small mammals, small birds, amphibians, reptiles, fish, crabs, and worms], but at least up to the size of a snowy egret). It may also eat fruit. It is dominant over the black and turkey vulture at carcasses. The crested caracara takes live prey that has been flushed by wildfire, cattle, and farming equipment. The opportunistic nature of this species means that the crested caracara seeks out the phenomena associated with its food, e.g. wildfires and circling vultures. "


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"It is typically solitary, but several individuals may gather at a large food source (e.g. dumps). Breeding takes place in the Southern Hemisphere spring/summer in the southern part of its range, but timing is less strict in warmer regions. The nest is a large, open structure, typically placed on the top of a tree or palm, but sometimes on the ground. The typical clutch size is two eggs.\n\n== Distribution and habitat ==\nThe crested caracara occurs from Tierra del Fuego in southernmost South America to the southern United States, Mexico, and Central America. An isolated population occurs on the Falkland Islands. It avoids the Andean highlands and dense humid forest, such as the Amazon rainforest, where it is largely restricted to relatively open sections along major rivers. Otherwise, it occurs in virtually any open or semi-open habitat and is often found near humans.\nReports have been made of the crested caracara as far north as San Francisco, California. and, in 2012, near Crescent City, California. Some are believed to possibly be living in Nova Scotia, with numerous sightings throughout the 2010s. "


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"In July 2016 a northern caracara was reported and photographed by numerous people in the upper peninsula of Michigan, just outside of Munising. In June 2017, a northern caracara was sighted far north in St. George, New Brunswick, Canada. A specimen was photographed in Woodstock, Vermont in March 2020. The species has recently become more common in central and north Texas and is generally common in south Texas and south of the US border. It can also be found (nesting) in the Southern Caribbean (e.g. Aruba, Cura\u00e7ao and Bonaire), Mexico, and Central America.\n\n=== Florida caracara ===\nFlorida is home to a relict population of northern caracaras that dates to the last glacial period, which ended around 12,500 BP. At that time, Florida and the rest of the Gulf Coast were covered in an oak savanna. As temperatures increased, the savanna between Florida and Texas disappeared. Caracaras were able to survive in the prairies of central Florida and the marshes along the St. Johns River. Cabbage palmettos are a preferred nesting site, although they also nest in southern live oaks. "


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"Their historical range on the modern-day Florida peninsula included Okeechobee, Osceola, Highlands, Glades, Polk, Indian River, St. Lucie, Hardee, DeSoto, Brevard, Collier, and Martin counties. They are currently most common in DeSoto, Glades, Hendry, Highlands, Okeechobee, and Osceola Counties. It has been seen on the East Coast as far as extreme eastern Seminole County, Florida (Lake Harney), where it is now considered a resident, but listed as threatened.\n\n=== Crested caracara in Mexico ===\nMexican ornithologist Rafael Mart\u00edn del Campo proposed that the northern caracara was possibly the sacred \"eagle\" depicted in several pre-Columbian Aztec codices, as well as the Florentine Codex. This imagery was adopted as a national symbol of Mexico, but it is not the bird depicted on the flag, which is a golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), which is the national bird.\n\n=== Texan eagle ===\nBalduin M\u00f6llhausen, the German artist accompanying the 1853 railroad survey (led by Lt. Amiel Weeks Whipple) from the Canadian River to California along the 35th parallel, recounted observing what he called the \"Texan Eagle\", which, in his account, he identified as Audubon's Polyborus vulgaris. This sighting occurred in the Sans Bois Mountains in southeastern Oklahoma. "


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"Many Texans incorrectly refer to the caracara as the \u201cMexican eagle\u201d.\n\n== Status ==\nThroughout most of its range, its occurrence is common to very common. It is likely to benefit from the widespread deforestation in tropical South America, so is considered to be of least concern by BirdLife International.\n\n== References ==\n\n== Further reading ==\nDove, C. & R. Banks. 1999. A Taxonomic study of Crested Caracaras (Falconidae). Wilson Bull. 111(3): 330\u2013339. Available online (PDF) Archived 2012-03-02 at the Wayback Machine\nFerguson-Lees, J., D. Christie, P. Burton, K. Franklin & D. Mead (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm. ISBN 0-7136-8026-1\nRestall, R., C. Rodner, & M. Lentino (2006). Birds of Northern South America. Vol. 1 & 2. Helm, London. ISBN 0-7136-7242-0 (vol. 1); ISBN 0-7136-7243-9 (vol. 2)\nSchulenberg, T., D. Stotz, D. Lane, J. O'Neill, & T. Parker III (2007). Birds of Peru. Helm, London. ISBN 978-0-7136-8673-9\n\n== External links ==\n\nPhotos and text \u2013 arthurgrosset.com\nPhotos and text \u2013 faunaparaguay.com"


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"The sitatunga or marshbuck (Tragelaphus spekii) is a swamp-dwelling antelope found throughout central Africa, centering on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo, Cameroon, parts of Southern Sudan, Equatorial Guinea, Burundi, Ghana, Botswana, Rwanda, Zambia, Gabon, the Central African Republic, Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya.\nThe sitatunga is confined to swampy and marshy habitats. Here they occur in tall and dense vegetation as well as seasonal swamps, marshy clearings in forests, riparian thickets and mangrove swamps.\n\n== Taxonomy and genetics ==\nThe scientific name of the sitatunga is Tragelaphus spekii. The species was first described by the English explorer John Hanning Speke in 1863. Speke first observed the sitatunga at a lake named \"Little Windermere\" (now Lake Lwelo, located in Kagera, Tanzania). In his book Journal of the Discovery of the Source of the Nile, Speke called the animal \"nzo\u00e9\" (Kiswahili name for the animal) or \"water-boc\" (due to its resemblance to the waterbuck). The scientific name has often been misstated as T. spekei, and either Speke or Sclater is referred to as the binomial authority.\n"


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"Speke had stated in a footnote in his book that the species had been named Tragelaphus spekii by English zoologist Philip Sclater. However, according to the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (Article 50.1.1) and the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature, that acknowledge the person who first described the species, simply declaring Sclater as the authority in a footnote is insufficient to recognise him as the author. Hence, Speke was recognised as the correct authority and T. spekii (where spekii is the genitive of the Latinised \"Spekius\") was considered the correct name for the species.The sitatunga is placed under the genus Tragelaphus and in the family Bovidae. In 2005, Sandi Willows-Munro of the University of KwaZulu-Natal (Durban) carried out a mitochondrial analysis of the nine Tragelaphus species. mtDNA and nDNA data were compared. The results showed that sitatunga plus bongo (T. eurycerus) form a monophyletic clade with the mountain nyala (T. buxtoni) and bushbuck (T. scriptus). The greater kudu (T. strepsiceros) split from this clade approximately 8.6 million years ago.Within Tragelaphus, the bushbuck, bongo, sitatunga and nyala (T. angasii) are particularly close relatives. The bushbuck and sitatunga are genetically similar enough to hybridise. "


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"Hybrids between bongo and sitatunga have proved to be fertile. The sitatunga is more variable in its general characters than any other member of the tribe Strepsicerotini, that consists of the genera Taurotragus (elands) and Tragelaphus, probably because of their confinement to swampy and marshy habitats.On the basis of physical characteristics such as hair texture, coat colour and the coat stripes, up to ten subspecies of the sitatunga have been described. However, these factors may not be reliable since hair texture could vary with the climate, while pelage colour and markings vary greatly among individuals. Moreover, the coat might darken and the stripes and spots on it might fade with age, especially in males. The species might even be monotypic, however, based on different drainage systems, three distinct subspecies are currently recognised:\nT. s. spekii (Speke, 1863): Nile sitatunga or East African sitatunga. Found in the Nile watershed.\nT. s. gratus (Sclater, 1880): Congo sitatunga or forest sitatunga. Found in western and central Africa.\nT. s. selousi (W. Rothschild, 1898): Southern sitatunga or Zambezi sitatunga. Found in southern Africa.\n\n== Description ==\n\nThe sitatunga is a medium-sized antelope. It is sexually dimorphic, with males considerably larger than females. "


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"The head-and-body length is typically between 136\u2013177 cm (54\u201370 in) in males and 104\u2013146 cm (41\u201357 in) in females. Males reach approximately 81\u2013116 cm (32\u201346 in) at the shoulder, while females reach 72\u201390 cm (28\u201335 in). Males typically weigh 76\u2013119 kg (168\u2013262 lb), while females weigh 24\u201357 kg (53\u2013126 lb). The tail is 14\u201337 cm (5.5\u201314.6 in) long. The saucer-shaped ears are 11\u201317 cm (4.3\u20136.7 in) long. Only the males possess horns; these are spiral in shape, have one or two twists and are 45\u201392 cm (18\u201336 in) long. The sitatunga is almost indistinguishable from the nyala, except in pelage and spoor. Speke pointed out that, though \"closely allied\" to the waterbuck, the sitatunga lacks stripes and is spotted instead.The coat colour varies geographically, but, in general, is a rufous red in juveniles and chestnut in females. There are white facial markings, as well as several stripes and spots all over, though they are only faintly visible. White patches can be seen on the throat, near the head and the chest. A pair of inguinal scent glands are present. The coats of males darken with age, becoming gray to dark brown. "


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"Males develop a rough and scraggy mane, usually brown in colour, and a white dorsal stripe. There is a chevron between the eyes of the males.The body and legs of this antelope are specially adapted to its swampy habitat. The hooves of the male are elongated and widely splayed. The rubbery, shaggy, water-repellent coat is minimally affected by slimy and muddy vegetation. The wedge-like shape and lowering of the head, coupled with the backward bend of the horns (in males) provides for easy navigation through dense vegetation. The pasterns are flexible, and the hooves, banana-like in shape, can reach a length of up to 16 cm (6.3 in) in the hindlegs and 18 cm (7.1 in) in the forelegs. The pointed toes allow it to walk slowly and almost noiselessly through the water. Moreover, the colour of the coat provides an excellent camouflage. Hearing is acute, and the ears are so structured that the animal can accurately determine the direction from where a sound has originated. This adaptation is of profound use in habitats where long sight is of very little value due to the density and darkness of the environment.\n\n"


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"== Ecology and behaviour ==\n\nSitatunga are active mainly during the early hours after dawn, the last one or two hours before dusk, and at night, and spend a large part of this time feeding. Basically sedentary, they rest in flat areas and reed beds, especially during the hotter part of the day. They seldom leave their swamp habitat during the daytime. Though sitatunga commonly form pairs or remain solitary, larger groups have also been observed. A study in Kenya recorded a herd of as many as nine individuals, comprising an adult male, four females and four juveniles. Loose groups may be formed but interaction among individuals is very low. Individuals generally associate only with their own sex.The sitatunga is not territorial. Males may engage in locking horns with other males and attacking vegetation using their horns. They may perform feinting by raising their forelegs with the hindlegs rooted in the ground as a threat display. Sitatunga interact with each other by first touching their noses, which may be followed by licking each other and nibbling. Alarmed animals may stand motionless, with the head held high and one leg raised. "


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"Sitatunga may occasionally emit a series of coughs or barks, usually at night, which may cause other animals to join in, and these sounds can be heard across the swamp. This barking may be used by females to warn off other females. Males often utter a low bellow on coming across a female or a herd of females in the mating season. A low-pitched squeak may be uttered while feeding. Mothers communicate with their calves by bleats.Sitatunga can feed or rest close to southern lechwe herds, but do not interact with them. They often attract yellow-billed oxpeckers, African jacanas and great egrets. Sitatunga are good swimmers, but limit themselves to water with profuse vegetation in order to escape crocodiles. In some cases, for instance when troubled by flies or pursued by predators, the sitatunga might fully submerge themselves in the water except for the nose and the eyes, which they keep slightly above the water surface. Due to its close association with water, the sitatunga are often described as \"aquatic antelopes\", like the waterbuck. They often dry themselves under the sun after feeding in water. Predators of the sitatunga include lions, wild dogs, crocodiles and leopards.\n\n"


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"=== Diet ===\nSitatunga are selective and mixed feeders. They feed mainly on new foliage, fresh grasses, sedges and browse. Preferred plants include: bullrushes (Typha), sedges (Cyperus), aquatic grasses (Vossia, Echinochloa, Pennisetum, Leersia, Acroceras and Panicum. Species in Umbelliferae and Acanthaceae are preferred in Saiwa Swamp National Park (Kenya), and Fabaceae species are preferred in Bangweulu and Busanga (in Kafue National Park). They feed mostly in the wetland fringes. Diet preferences may vary seasonally in swamps where water levels change notably. Like the gerenuk, the sitatunga may stand on its hindlegs to reach higher branches of trees, or even use its horns to pull down the branches.A study recorded forty major species eaten by the animal, the majority of which were herbs. Sweet potato was the most preferred crop. The study predicted an increase in preference for crops due to seasonal food variations. Another study showed that annual floods affect the seasonal movement and diet of the species. These floods force the animals out of the reed beds onto the flooded grasslands when the water levels are high. At low water levels the cattle take over the flooded plains and send the sitatunga back to their original place.\n\n"


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"=== Reproduction ===\n\nFemales are sexually mature by one year of age, while males take one-and-a-half-year before they mature. Breeding occurs throughout the year. When females gather, the males compete among each other for the right to mate, showing polygyny in males. The rutting male approaches the female in a lower bending posture, sniffing her vulva. The female may move slowly or react nervously. Even if the female flees, the male continues pursuing her steadily, without showing any sign of hurry. A receptive female will raise her head with her mouth wide open, following which the male will begin attempts at mounting. At the time of mounting the female lowers her head, while the male first bends and then straightens his forelegs and rests his head and neck on her back. The two remain together for one or two days, during which time the male ensures that no other male can approach the female.Gestation lasts for nearly eight months, after which generally a single calf is born. Parturition occurs throughout the year, though a peak may occur in the dry season. Calves are hidden adroitly, and brought out of cover only in the presence of many other sitatunga. "


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"The mother gazes and nods at the calf to summon it for nursing. A calf follows its mother about even after she has given birth to another calf. The mother suckles and licks her calf for about six months. The calf takes time to master the specialised gait of the sitatunga, and thus often loses its balance and falls in water. Males, and even some females, have been observed to leave their herds even before reaching sexual maturity due to intrasexual competition. Lifespan recorded in captivity averages 22 to 23 years.\n\n== Habitat and distribution ==\nThe sitatunga is an amphibious antelope (meaning it can live on both land and water) confined to swampy and marshy habitats. They occur in tall and dense vegetation of perennial as well as seasonal swamps, marshy clearings in forests, riparian thickets and mangrove swamps. Sitatunga move along clearly marked tracks in their swampy habitat, often leading to reed beds. These tracks, up to 7 m (23 ft) wide, can lead to feeding grounds and nearby riverine forests. The sitatunga hold small home ranges near water bodies  In savannas, they are typically found in stands of papyrus and reeds (Phragmites species and Echinochloa pyramidalis). "


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"They share their habitat with the Nile lechwe in the Sudd swamps and with the southern lechwe in Angola, Botswana and Zambia.The sitatunga is native to Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, The Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. It is extinct in Niger, where it formerly occurred in the Lake Chad region, and is feared to be extinct in Togo, where its habitat has been taken over by dense human settlements. While it is localised and sporadic in western Africa, the sitatunga is still common in the forests of central Africa and certain swampy regions in central, eastern and southern Africa.\n\n== Threats and conservation ==\nHabitat loss is the most severe threat to the survival of the sitatunga. Other threats include the increasing loss of wetlands, that has isolated populations; and long-term changes in the water level, that affects the nearby vegetation and thus bears upon their diet. Vast areas of Bangweulu and Busanga are burnt every year, placing animals like the sitatunga at grave risk given the inflammability of swamps. "


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"The sitatunga has been classified under the Least Concern category by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), and under Appendix III (Ghana) of the Washington Convention (CITES).In Senegal, intensive hunting for meat and habitat degradation have made the sitatunga very rare. Formerly it was common throughout Gambia, but now it is confined to a few inaccessible swamps; a population has been introduced in the Abuko Nature Reserve. On the other hand, though the animal is hunted by locals primarily for food, Botswana still supports a large portion of the total population. The species is of great economic significance for northern Botswana, that produces some of the world's biggest sitatunga trophies. Its status is unclear in Chad, Ghana, Guinea, Burundi and Mozambique and Zimbabwe. Significant populations still exist in countries such as Cameroon, Central African Republic, The Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Tanzania and Zambia. The inaccessibility of its habitat has rendered population estimates very difficult. In 1999, Rod East of the IUCN SSC Antelope Specialist Group estimated a total population of 170,000, but this is likely to be an overestimate. "


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"Its numbers are decreasing in areas of heavy human settlement, but are stable elsewhere.Around 40 percent of the populations (based on the overestimate of 170,000) occurs in protected areas, mainly in Okavango Delta and Linyanti and Chobe swamps (Botswana); Dja Faunal Reserve and Lob\u00e9k\u00e9 National Park (Cameroon); Bangassou (Central African Republic); Odzala National Park, Lake T\u00e9l\u00e9 Community Reserve, Likouala and Salonga National Park (The Democratic Republic of Congo); Monte Al\u00e9n National Park (Equatorial Guinea); Saiwa Swamp National Park (Kenya); Akagera National Park (Rwanda); Moyowosi and Kigosi Game Reserves (Tanzania); Bangweulu and Busanga Swamps (Zambia). However, only a few are of these parks and reserves are well-protected and managed.\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links ==\nAfrican Wildlife Fund"


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"Gr\u00e9vy's zebra (Equus grevyi), also known as the imperial zebra, is the largest living wild equid and the most threatened of the three species of zebra, the other two being the plains zebra and the mountain zebra. Named after Jules Gr\u00e9vy, it is found in parts of Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia. Superficially, Gr\u00e9vy's zebras\u2019 physical features can help to identify it from the other zebra species; their overall appearance is slightly closer to that of a mule, compared to the more \u201cequine\u201d (horse) appearance of the plains and mountain zebras. Compared to other zebra species, Gr\u00e9vy\u2019s are the tallest; they have mule-like, larger ears, and have the tightest stripes of all zebras. They have distinctively erect manes, and more slender snouts.\nThe Gr\u00e9vy's zebra live in semi-arid savanna, where they feed on grasses, legumes, and browse, such as acacia; they can survive up to five days without water. They differ from the other zebra species in that they do not live in a harem, and they maintain few long-lasting social bonds. Stallion territoriality and mother\u2013foal relationships form the basis of the social system of the Gr\u00e9vy's zebra. "


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"Despite a handful of zoos and animal parks around the world having had successful captive-breeding programs, in its native home this zebra is listed by the IUCN as endangered. Its population has declined from 15,000 to 2,000 since the 1970s. In 2016, the population was reported to be \u201cstable\u201d; however, as of 2020, the wild numbers are still estimated at only around 2,250 animals, in part due to anthrax outbreaks in eastern Africa.\n\n== Taxonomy and naming ==\nThe Gr\u00e9vy's zebra was first described by French naturalist \u00c9mile Oustalet in 1882. He named it after Jules Gr\u00e9vy, then president of France, who, in the 1880s, was given one by the government of Abyssinia. Traditionally, this species was classified in the subgenus Dolichohippus with plains zebra and mountain zebra in Hippotigris. Groves and Bell (2004) place all three species in the subgenus Hippotigris.Fossils of zebra-like equids have been found throughout Africa and Asia in the Pliocene and Pleistocene deposits. Notable examples include E. sanmeniensis from China, E. cautleyi from India, E. valeriani from central Asia and E. oldowayensis from East Africa. The latter, in particular is very similar to the Gr\u00e9vy's zebra and may have been its ancestor.\n"


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"The modern Gr\u00e9vy's zebra arose in the Middle Pleistocene. Zebras appear to be a monophyletic lineage and recent (2013) phylogenies have placed Grevy's zebra in a sister taxon with the plains zebra. In areas where Gr\u00e9vy's zebras are sympatric with plains zebras, the two may gather in same herds and fertile hybrids do occur.\n\n== Description ==\n\nThe Gr\u00e9vy's zebra is the largest of all wild equines. It is 2.5\u20132.75 m (8.2\u20139.0 ft) in head-body with a 55\u201375 cm (22\u201330 in) tail, and stands 1.45\u20131.6 m (4.8\u20135.2 ft) high at the withers. These zebras weigh 350\u2013450 kg (770\u2013990 lb). Gr\u00e9vy's zebra differs from the other two zebras in its more primitive characteristics.:\u200a147\u200a It is particularly mule-like in appearance; the head is large, long, and narrow with elongated nostril openings;:\u200a147\u200a the ears are very large, rounded, and conical and the neck is short but thick. The zebra's muzzle is ash-grey to black in colour with the lips having whiskers. The mane is tall and erect; juveniles have a mane that extends to the length of the back and shortens as they reach adulthood.As with all zebra species, the Grevy's zebra's pelage has a black and white striping pattern. "


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"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 and are just white in color, which is unique to the Grevy's zebra. Foals are born with brown and white striping, with the brown stripes darkening as they grow older.\n\n== Range and ecology ==\n\nThe Gr\u00e9vy's zebra largely inhabits northern Kenya, with some isolated populations in Ethiopia.:\u200a147\u200a It was extirpated from Somalia and Djibouti and its status in South Sudan is uncertain. It lives in Acacia-Commiphora bushlands and barren plains. Ecologically, this species is intermediate between the arid-living African wild ass and the water-dependent plains zebra.:\u200a147\u200a Lactating mares and non-territorial stallions use areas with green, short grass and medium, dense bush more often than non-lactating mares and territorial stallions.Gr\u00e9vy's zebras rely on grasses, legumes, and browse for nutrition. They commonly browse when grasses are not plentiful. Their hindgut fermentation digestive system allows them to subsist on diets of lower nutritional quality than that necessary for ruminant herbivores. Grevy's zebras can survive up to a week without water, but will drink daily when it is plentiful. "


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"They often migrate to better watered highlands during the dry season. Mares require significantly more water when they are lactating. During droughts, the zebras will dig water holes and defend them. The Gr\u00e9vy's zebra's main predator is the lion, but adults can be hunted by spotted hyenas. African hunting dogs, cheetahs and leopards almost never attack adults, even in desperate times, but sometimes prey on young animals, although mares are fiercely protective of their young. In addition, they are susceptible to various gastro-intestinal parasites, notably of the genus Trichostrongylus.\n\n== Behaviour and life history ==\n\nAdult stallions mostly live in territories during the wet seasons but some may stay in them year round if there's enough water left. Stallions that are unable to establish territories are free-ranging:\u200a151\u200a and are known as bachelors. Mares, young and non-territorial stallions wander through large home ranges. The mares will wander from territory to territory preferring the ones with the highest-quality food and water sources. Up to nine stallions may compete for a mare outside of a territory. Territorial stallions will tolerate other stallions who wander in their territory. However, when an oestrous mare is present the territorial stallion keeps other stallions at bay."


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":\u200a151\u200a Non-territorial stallions might avoid territorial ones because of harassment. When mares are not around, a territorial stallion will seek the company of other stallions. The stallion shows his dominance with an arched neck and a high-stepping gait and the least dominant stallions submit by extending their tail, lowering their heads and nuzzling their superior's chest or groin.:\u200a151\u200aZebras produce numerous sounds and vocalisations. When alarmed, they produce deep, hoarse grunts. Whistles and squeals are also made when alarmed, during fights, when scared or in pain. Snorts may be produced when scared or as a warning. A stallion will bray in defense of his territory, when driving mares, or keeping other stallions at bay. Barks may be made during copulation and distressed foals will squeal. The call of the Gr\u00e9vy's zebra has been described as \"something like a hippo's grunt combined with a donkey's wheeze\". To get rid of flies or parasites, they roll in dust, water or mud or, in the case of flies, they twitch their skin. They also rub against trees, rocks and other objects to get rid of irritations such as itchy skin, hair or parasites. "


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"Although Gr\u00e9vy's zebras do not perform mutual grooming, they do sometimes rub against a conspecific.\n\n=== Reproduction ===\n\nGr\u00e9vy's zebras can mate and give birth year round, but most mating takes place in the early rainy seasons and births mostly take place in August or September after the long rains. An oestrous mare may visit as many as four territories a day and will mate with the stallions in them. Among territorial stallions, the most dominant ones control territories near water sources, which mostly attract mares with dependant foals, while more subordinate stallions control territories away from water with greater amounts of vegetation, which mostly attract mares without dependant foals.\n\nThe resident stallions of territories will try to subdue the entering mares with dominance rituals and then continue with courtship and copulation. Gr\u00e9vy's zebra 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 mares mate polyandrously. Bachelors or outside territorial stallions sometimes \"sneak\" copulation of mares in another stallion's territory. "


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"While mare associations with individual stallions are brief and mating is promiscuous, mares who have just given birth will reside with one stallion for long periods and mate exclusively with that stallion. Lactating females are harassed by stallions more often than non-lactating ones and thus associating with one male and his territory provides an advantage as he will guard against other males.Gestation of the Gr\u00e9vy's zebra normally lasts 390 days, with a single foal being born. A new-born zebra will follow anything that moves, so new mothers prevent other mares from approaching their foals while imprinting their own striping pattern, scent and vocalisation on them. Mares with young foals may gather into small groups. Mares may leave their foals in \"kindergartens\" while searching for water. The foals will not hide, so they can be vulnerable to predators. However, kindergartens tend to be protected by an adult, usually a territorial stallion. A mare with a foal stays with one dominant territorial stallion who has exclusive mating rights to her. While the foal may not be his, the stallion will look after it to ensure that the mare stays in his territory. "


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"To adapt to a semi-arid environment, Gr\u00e9vy's zebra foals have longer nursing intervals and wait until they are three months old before they start drinking water. Although offspring become less dependent on their mothers after half a year, associations with them continue for up to three years.\n\n== Relationship with humans ==\n\nThe Gr\u00e9vy's zebra was known to the Europeans in antiquity and was used by the Romans in circuses. It was subsequently forgotten in the Western world for a thousand years. In the seventeenth century, the king of Shoa (now central Ethiopia) exported two zebras; one to the Sultan of Turkey and another to the Dutch governor of Jakarta. A century later, in 1882, the government of Abyssinia sent one to French president Jules Gr\u00e9vy. It was at that time that the animal was recognised as its own species and named in Gr\u00e9vy's honour.\n\n=== Status and conservation ===\n\nThe Gr\u00e9vy's zebra is considered endangered. Its population was estimated to be 15,000 in the 1970s and by the early 21st century the population was lower than 3,500, a 75% decline."


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":\u200a11\u200a In 2008 it was estimated that there are less than 2,500 Gr\u00e9vy's zebras still living in the wild, further declining to fewer than 2,000 mature individulas in 2016. Nonetheless, the Gr\u00e9vy's zebra population trend was considered stable as of 2016.There are also an estimated 600 Gr\u00e9vy's zebras in captivity.:\u200a20\u200a Captive herds have been known to thrive, like at White Oak Conservation in Yulee, Florida, United States, where more than 70 foals have been born. There, research is underway in partnership with the Conservation Centers for Species Survival on semen collection and freezing and on artificial insemination.The Gr\u00e9vy's zebra is legally protected in Ethiopia. In Kenya, it is protected by the hunting ban of 1977. In the past, Gr\u00e9vy's zebras were threatened mainly by hunting for their skins which fetched a high price on the world market. However, hunting has declined and the main threat to the zebra is habitat loss and competition with livestock. Cattle gather around watering holes and the Gr\u00e9vy's zebras are fenced from those areas.:\u200a17\u200a Community-based conservation efforts have shown to be the most effective in preserving Gr\u00e9vy's zebras and their habitat. "


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"Less than 0.5% of the range of the Gr\u00e9vy's zebra is in protected areas. In Ethiopia, the protected areas include Alledeghi Wildlife Reserve, Yabelo Wildlife Sanctuary, Borana National Park, and Chelbi Sanctuary. In Kenya, important protected areas include the Buffalo Springs, Samburu and Shaba National Reserves and the private and community land wildlife conservancies in Isiolo, Samburu and the Laikipia Plateau.The mesquite plant was introduced into Ethiopia around 1997 and is endangering the zebra's food supply. An invasive species, it is replacing the two grass species, Cenchrus ciliaris and Chrysopogon plumulosus, which the zebras eat for most of their food.\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links ==\n\n\"Wildlife Gr\u00e9vy's Zebra\" \u2013 summary from the African Wildlife Foundation\nImages and footage of Gr\u00e9vy's zebra from ARKive.org\n\"To Catch a Zebra\" Archived 14 February 2021 at the Wayback Machine by Brian Jackman \u2013 story of catching endangered Gr\u00e9vy's zebra for relocation\n\"Why are the Grevy's Zebras in Trouble?\"\u2013 Rich Blundell reports from Kenya\nGrevy's Zebra Trust \u2013 a Kenyan organization dedicated to preserving the Gr\u00e9vy's zebra"


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"The great argus (Argusianus argus) is a species of pheasant from Southeast Asia.\nIt is not to be confused with the two species of closely related crested argus, genus Rheinardia.\n\n== Taxonomy ==\n\nCarl Linnaeus gave the great argus its specific name (from which its common name and genus name are derived) because of the intricate eye-like patterns on its wings, in reference to Argus, a hundred-eyed giant in Greek mythology. There are two subspecies recognized: Nominate argus of the Malay peninsula and Sumatra, and A. a. grayi of Borneo. William Beebe considered the two races to be distinct species, but they have since been lumped.\n\n=== Double-banded argus ===\nThe double-banded argus (Argusianus bipunctatus), known only from a portion of a single primary flight feather, was long considered a potential second species. It was described in 1871 from this feather piece, found in a millinery shipment imported to London. Its origin was hypothesized to be from Java, Indonesia or Tioman Island of Malaysia, because of the great argus's absence from these locations. Parkes (1992) rejected the double-banded argus's validity and argued that it almost certainly represents a mutant form of the great argus. "


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"The IUCN, following the precautionary principle, listed this taxon as extinct until 2012. It was removed from the IUCN Red list because the IOC had removed this species from its list of valid bird taxa in 2011. While the feather is indeed quite distinct, it represents a fairly simple divergence: The entirely asymmetrically-patterned vanes are instead near-symmetrical, and both bear the darker brown shaftward area with dense whitish speckles. The shaft is thinner than usual and the feather would probably not have been useful for flight.Nothing similar has come to notice ever since, and as the feather piece is not a composite of two feather halves glued together but an apparently natural specimen, a hoax or fake can be ruled out. Despite all conjecture that has been built around the feather piece, all that can be said is that at some time around 1870, an argus pheasant which bore at least one such feather was shot in an unknown location. "


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"Even if this individual was one of the last remnants of a now-extinct population, it is unlikely that only a single feather would have been taken from an unusual specimen of a well-known, often-hunted, and conspicuous bird, and that this single feather would have then been bundled into a shipment of normal great argus feathers. The feather is now housed in the Natural History Museum in London.\n\n== Names ==\nMalay language: Kuang raya \"great pheasant\"\n\n== Description ==\n\nThe great argus is a brown-plumaged pheasant with a blue head and neck, rufous red upper breast, black hair-like feathers on the crown and nape, and red legs.\nUnusual among Galliformes, the great argus has no uropygial gland.\n\n=== Male and female plumage ===\nThe male is one of the largest of all pheasants, measuring 160\u2013200 cm (63\u201379 in) in total length, including a tail of 105\u2013143 cm (41\u201356 in), and weighing 2.04\u20132.72 kg (4.5\u20136.0 lb). Males have very long tail feathers and huge, broad and greatly elongated secondary wing feathers decorated with large eyespots. Young males develop their adult plumage in their third year.Females are smaller and duller than males, with shorter tails and fewer eyespots. "


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"They measure 72\u201376 cm (28\u201330 in) in total length, including a tail of 30\u201336 cm (12\u201314 in), and weighs 1.59\u20131.7 kg (3.5\u20133.7 lb).\n\n== Behaviour ==\n\n=== Diet ===\nIt feeds on the forest floor in early morning and evening.\n\n=== Mating dance ===\n\nThe male clears an open spot in the forest and prepares a dancing ground. He announces himself with loud calls to attract females, then he dances before her with his wings spread into two enormous fans, revealing hundreds of \"eyes\" while his real eyes are hidden behind it, staring at her.\n\n=== Breeding ===\nDespite displays similar to polygamous birds and though the great argus was thought to be polygamous in the wild, it has been discovered that it is actually monogamous. The hen lays only two eggs.\n\n== Distribution and habitat ==\nThe great argus is native to the jungles of Borneo, Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula in southeast Asia.\n\n== Conservation ==\nDue to ongoing habitat loss and to being hunted in some areas, the great argus is evaluated as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. It is listed on Appendix II of CITES.\n\n== References ==\n\n== Further reading ==\nFuller, Errol (2000). "


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"Extinct Birds (2nd ed.). Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-850837-9.\n\n== External links ==\n\nARKive \u2013 images and movies of the Great Argus (Argusianus argus)\nBirdLife Species Factsheet\nRed Data Book"


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"The yellow-bellied slider (Trachemys scripta scripta) is a land and water turtle belonging to the family Emydidae. This subspecies of pond slider is native to the southeastern United States, specifically from Florida to southeastern Virginia, and is the most common turtle species in its range. It is found in a wide variety of habitats, including slow-moving rivers, floodplain swamps, marshes, seasonal wetlands, and permanent ponds. Yellow-bellied sliders are popular as pets.\n\n== Description ==\nAdult male yellow-bellied sliders typically reach 5\u20139 inches (13\u201323 cm) in length; females range from 8\u201313 inches (20\u201333 cm). The carapace (upper shell) is typically brown and black, often with yellow stripes. The skin is olive green with prominent patches of yellow down the neck and legs. As the name implies, the plastron (bottom shell) is mostly yellow with black spots along the edges. Adults tend to grow darker as they age. Yellow-bellied sliders are often confused with eastern river cooters, who also have yellow stripes on the neck and yellow undersides, but the latter lack the green spots characteristic of this species. The yellow belly often has an \"s\"-shaped yellow stripe on its face. They also have markings shaped like question marks on their bellies. "


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"Females of the species reach a larger body size than the males do in the same populations.\n\nMating can occur in spring, summer, and autumn. They have polygynandrous mating behavior. Courtship consists of biting, foreclaw display, and chasing.  Yellow-bellied sliders are capable of interbreeding with other T. scripta subspecies, such as red-eared sliders, which are commonly sold as pets. The release of non-native red-eared sliders into local environments caused the state of Florida to ban the sale of red-eared sliders in order to protect the native population of yellow-bellied sliders.Yellow-bellied slider movement is highly instigated by dry seasons, where they can be found traveling terrestrially to locate a new water source. One study also found movement is also highly motivated by reproductive recruitment. Differences between male and female movements were observed. Males were more active than females in spring to the end of autumn. Males also exhibited more terrestrial and aquatic movements than females. Finally, long periods of movements were exclusively males.Mating takes place in the water. Suitable terrestrial area is required for egg-laying by nesting females, who will normally lay 6\u201310 eggs at a time, with larger females capable of bearing more. "


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"The eggs incubate for 2\u20133 months and the hatchlings will usually stay with the nest through winter. Hatchlings are almost entirely carnivorous, feeding on insects, spiders, crustaceans, tadpoles, fish, and carrion. As they age, adults eat less and less meat, and up to 95% of their nutritional intake eventually comes from plants.The slider is considered a diurnal turtle; it feeds mainly in the morning and frequently basks on shore, on logs, or while floating, during the rest of the day. At night, it sleeps on the bottom or on the surface near brush piles. Highest densities of sliders occur where algae blooms and aquatic macrophytes are abundant and are of the type that form dense mats at the surface, such as Myriophyllum spicatum and lily pads (Nymphaeaceae). Dense surface vegetation provides cover from predators and supports high densities of aquatic invertebrates and small vertebrates, which offer better foraging than open water.Some common predators of the yellow-bellied slider include raccoons, opossums, red foxes, and skunks. Other than predators, yellow-bellied sliders are susceptible to respiratory infections which can cause wheezing, drooling, or puffiness in the eyes and is commonly caused by bacteria.  "


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"Additionally, these turtles can develop fungal spores that can lead to shell rot, they can also develop metabolic bone disease which can stunt the growth of their shells and cause them to be more brittle and prone to damage The lifespan of yellow-bellied sliders is over 30 years in the wild, and over 40 years in captivity.Since yellow-bellied sliders are long-lived organisms, they require high survivorship to maintain stable populations. They are particularly susceptible to negative effects associated with anthropogenic habitat modification such as increased presence of human-subsidized predators and increased road mortality. Recruitment could also be decreased in populations in highly urbanized areas due to a decrease in habitat connectivity and potential nesting sites.\n\n== As pets ==\n\n=== Housing ===\n\nBaby yellow-bellied sliders may be kept in a fairly small tank (20 to 40 gallons), but as they age,  after about three years, they will require much more space. One adult may be housed in a 75 US gal (284 l) or larger aquarium. The turtles require enough water to turn around, with a depth of 16\u201318 in (41\u201346 cm) recommended. Water temperature should be kept between 72 and 80 \u00b0F (22\u201327 \u00b0C) and properly filtered. "


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"Keeping fish with turtles is usually avoided due to the risk that the turtle will eat the fish. Sliders need a basking area that is kept warm during the day and that will allow the turtle to move around, balance, and dry off completely. This area should average 89\u201395 \u00b0F (32\u201335 \u00b0C) and can be heated with a UV-A heat lamp. A second lamp that produces UV-B is absolutely essential for the turtle to metabolize calcium properly. Direct, unfiltered sunlight is preferable. The lamps should be switched on during daylight hours.\n\n=== Diet ===\nPond plants such as elodea (anacharisan) and cabomba can also be left in the water, while human-consumed vegetables such as romaine lettuce, escarole and collard greens must be changed daily. As sliders are omnivores, insects and freshly killed fish may also be provided for protein. Commercially processed animal-based reptile food may be given too, but any sort of leftovers should be immediately removed to prevent fouling the water or turtle's habitat.\n\n== Gallery ==\n\n== See also ==\nRed-eared slider \u00d7 yellow-bellied slider sometimes called yellow-eared slider\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links =="


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"The red lory (Eos bornea) is a species of parrot in the family Psittaculidae. It is the second-most commonly kept lory in captivity, after the rainbow lorikeet.\n\n== Taxonomy ==\nIn 1751 the English naturalist George Edwards included an illustration and a description of the red lory in the fourth volume of his A Natural History of Uncommon Birds. He used the English name \"The long-tailed scarlet lory\". Edwards based his hand-coloured etching on a stuffed specimen that he had purchased from a toyshop in London. He was uncertain of its origin. Edward gave his specimen to the collector Hans Sloane and subsequently a visitor to Sloane's house suggested that the bird may have come from Borneo. When in 1758 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for the tenth edition, he placed the red lory with the other parrots in the genus Psittacus. Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name Psittacus borneus and cited Edwards' work. The red lory is now one of six species placed in the genus Eos that was introduced by the German naturalist Johann Georg Wagler in 1832. The genus name is from the Ancient Greek e\u014ds meaning \"dawn\". "


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"The specific epithet borneus, bornea is a toponym from Borneo. This is an error as the species does not occur on the island.There is some uncertainty as to whether Edwards' plate actually depicts a red lory and the binomial name Eos rubra (Gmelin, 1788) has sometimes been used for this species.The word \"lory\" comes from the Malay l\u016bri, a name used for a number of species of colourful parrots. The name was used by the Dutch writer Johan Nieuhof in 1682 in a book describing his travels in the East Indies. The spelling \"laurey\" was used by English naturalist Eleazar Albin in 1731 for a species of parrot from Brazil, and then in 1751 Edwards used the spelling \"lory\" for five species of parrot from the East Indies. Edwards credited Nieuhof for the name.Two subspecies are recognised:\nE. b. cyanonotha (Vieillot, 1818) \u2013 Buru (central Maluku Islands)\nE. b. bornea (Linnaeus, 1758) \u2013 south Maluku Islands and Kai Islands\n\n== Description ==\n\nThe red lory is about 31 cm (12 in) long. They weigh 30-300 grams. It is mostly red and all the plumage of the upper body is red. "


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"There are red, blue, and black marks on the back and wings, and the tail is reddish-brown with blue under-tail coverts. The beak is orange and the legs are grey. The irises are red except in E. b. bernsteini, which has brown irises. There is no bare skin at the base of the lower mandible. The male and female have identical external appearance. Juveniles are duller and have brown irises and a brownish beak. Their bills are narrower and less powerful than other types of parrots and their gizzards are generally thin-walled and weak. A defining characteristic of a Lory is their brush tongues with papillae at the tips to help them feed on pollen and nectar.\n\n== Distribution and habitat ==\nLories and lorikeets live in Indonesia, New Guinea, Australia and the Pacific. The red lory in particular is endemic to the Moluccas and surrounding islands in Indonesia. Its natural habitats are tropical moist lowland forests and tropical mangrove forests.\nIt also was introduced to Taiwan.\n\n== Aviculture ==\nThis intelligent bird has a playful personality and a colourful appearance. They are often described as flamboyant, theatrical and pugnacious birds. "


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"The subspecies, Buru red lory (Eos bornea cyanonothus) is darker, more maroon in colour, and is often confused in captivity with the nominate. Inadvertent interbreeding between the two subspecies has made a clear identification difficult for pet owners as hybrids can be found. The other two subspecies are not as common, Rothschild's red lory (Eos bornea rothschildi) and Bernstein's red lory (Eos bornea bernsteini). Lories are very intelligent, trainable, affectionate, playful and curious and they can display interesting behaviors. For example, some lories have wrapped themselves in a washcloth for sleeping or some sleep on their backs with their feet up in the air. When kept as a pet, they should be given toys (ropes, bells, balls, swings), chewing items and branches. They require much attention and care. They should be bathed frequently in a bird bath, bowl or shower, and they can be dried by the sun or by a blow drier. A moderate amount of their feathers should be clipped to prevent them from flying. Young birds must be socialized and exposed to new people and new things (new cages, toys, vet visits, wing and nail clippings). "


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"Outdoor housing is preferred, but if housed in cages, the cages must be large and cleaned often. They may be kept alone or with others, as long as they are closely monitored for signs of aggression. Mated pairs defend their territories forcefully.\n\n== Diet ==\nIn the wild, lories eat nectar, pollen, fruits, and occasional insects. As pets they should be fed a good formulated diet. Smaller lories should be fed fresh nectar (commercial or home-made) daily. Larger birds can be fed pellets from a bird food company, or fruits and vegetables such as apples, pomegranates, papaya, grapes, cantaloupe, pineapple, figs, kiwi, and corn-on-the-cob. Lories can be given treats to reward positive behavior. Fresh, clean water should be provided daily.\n\n== Gallery ==\n\n== References ==\n\n\"Species factsheet: Eos bornea\". BirdLife International (2008). Retrieved 20 March 2009.\nRosemary Low.  Encyclopedia of Lories (1998)\n\n== Cited texts ==\nForshaw, Joseph M. (2006). Parrots of the World; an Identification Guide. Illustrated by Frank Knight. Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-09251-6.\n\n== External links ==\nRed Lory (Eos bornea) videos and photos at Internet Bird Collection"


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"The green-thighed parrot (Pionites leucogaster), also known as the eastern white-bellied parrot, is a species of parrot in the family Psittacidae. The species was previously known as the white-bellied parrot (or white-bellied caique in aviculture) and contained three subspecies including the nominate race, but recent morphological work suggested the species should be split into three:\ngreen-thighed parrot or eastern white-bellied parrot (Pionites leucogaster)\nblack-legged parrot or western white-bellied parrot (Pionites xanthomerius)\nyellow-tailed parrot or central white-bellied parrot (Pionites xanthurus)The green-thighed parrot is found in humid forest and wooded habitats in the Amazon south of the Amazon River in Brazil. It is generally fairly common throughout its range and is easily seen in a wide range of protected areas, such as the Cristalino State Park (near Alta Floresta), Xingu National Park, and Amaz\u00f4nia National Park in Brazil. However, it is believed that deforestation in the Amazon will cause a rapid decline in population.\n\n== Description ==\n\nThe green-thighed parrot has an orange-yellow head and vent, a white or off-white belly, green wings, thighs and back, bluish primary feathers, a pinkish-horn beak, and pinkish legs and feet. "


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"Juveniles have brownish or black feathers on the head and nape, yellow feathers on the white belly, and greyish legs. Generally, the off-colored feathers will be lost and replaced by orange or white feathers respectively as the bird matures. Young birds also have dark brown irises, which will change to a rust or orange with age. The white breast feathers of wild caiques are often stained a chestnut brown (or \"isobel\") color. This may be due to tannin staining, as result of their particular affinity for bathing by rubbing their bodies against wet leaves and other plant matter.The head and nape plumage of the white-bellied parrot has been observed to fluoresce strongly under ultraviolet light.\n\n== References ==\n\nCollar, N. (1997). Pionites leucogaster (White-bellied Parrot). Pp. 457 in: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., & Sargatal, J. eds (1997). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Vol. 4. Sangrouse to Cuckoos. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. ISBN 84-87334-22-9\nParr, M., & Juniper, T. (1998). A Guide to the Parrots of the World. Pica Press, East Sussex. ISBN 1-873403-40-2\nSchulenberg, T., Stotz, D. Lane, D., O'Neill, J, & Parker, T. (2007). Birds of Peru.  Helm, London. ISBN 978-0-7136-8673-9\nSigrist,  T. (2006). "


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"The gemsbok or South African oryx (Oryx gazella) is a large antelope in the genus Oryx. It is native to the extremely dry, arid regions of Southern Africa; notably, the Kalahari Desert. Some authorities formerly classified the East African oryx, or beisa oryx, as a subspecies.\nThe gemsbok is depicted on the coat of arms of Namibia, where the current population of the species is estimated at 373,000 individuals. In the town of Oranjemund, resident gemsbok wander freely around the streets, taking advantage of the vegetation in the town, such as the grass in parks, road medians, and browsing on low branches of the many trees.\n\n== Name ==\nThe name gemsbok is from Afrikaans, which itself is from the Dutch word of the same spelling, meaning \"male chamois\", composed of gems (\u201cchamois\u201d) + bok (\u201cbuck, male goat\u201d). The Dutch gems is further from German G\u00e4mse (\"chamois\"). Although some superficial similarities in appearance (especially in the facial pattern) are noticed, the chamois and the oryx are not closely related. The usual pronunciation in English is .\n\n== Description ==\nGemsbok is light taupe to tan in color, with lighter patches toward the bottom rear of the rump. "


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"Their tails are long and black in color. A blackish stripe extends from the chin down the lower edge of the neck, through the juncture of the shoulder and leg along the lower flank of each side to the blackish section of the rear leg. They have muscular necks and shoulders, and their legs have white 'socks' with a black patch on the front of both the front legs, and both sexes have long, straight horns. Comparably, the East African oryx lacks a dark patch at the base of the tail, has less black on the legs (none on the hindlegs), and less black on the lower flanks. One very rare color morph is the \"golden oryx\", in which the gemsbok's black markings are muted and appear to be golden.\nGemsbok are the largest species in the genus Oryx. They stand about 1.2 m (3.9 ft) at the shoulder. The body length can vary from 190 to 240 cm (75 to 94 in) and the tail measures 45 to 90 cm (18 to 35 in). Male gemsbok can weigh between 180 and 240 kg (400 and 530 lb), while females weigh 100\u2013210 kg (220\u2013460 lb).\n\n"


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"=== Horns ===\n\nGemsbok are widely hunted for their spectacular horns that average 85 cm (33 in) in length.  From a distance, the only outward difference between males and females is their horns, and many hunters mistake females for males each year.  In males horns tend to be thicker with larger bases.  Females have slightly longer, thinner horns.\nFemale gemsbok use their horns to defend themselves and their offspring from predators, while males primarily use their horns to defend their territories from other males.Gemsbok are one of the few antelope species where female trophies are sometimes more desirable than male ones. A gemsbok horn can be fashioned into a natural trumpet and, according to some authorities, can be used as a shofar.\n\n== Ecology and biology ==\nGemsbok live in herds of about 10\u201340 animals, which consist of a dominant male, a few nondominant males, and females. They are mainly desert-dwelling and do not depend on drinking water to supply their physiological needs. They can reach running speeds of up to 60 km/h (37 mph).\n\n=== Diet ===\nThe gemsbok is generally a grazer but changes to browsing during the dry season or when grass is sparse. "


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"It may dig up to a meter deep to find roots and tubers, supplementing its water intake by eating wild tsamma melons and cucumbers, which can provide all the water required (3 liters per 100 kg bodyweight and day).\n\n=== Reproduction ===\n\nThe gemsbok is polygynous, with one resident male mating with the receptive females in the herd. The male is known to secure exclusive mating access to the females by attempting to herd mixed or nursery herds onto his territory. The gemsbok has no specified breeding season, but the young in a given herd tend to be of a similar age due to reproductive synchrony between females. Pregnant females leave the herd before giving birth. The gestation period lasts 270 days and mothers give birth to 1-2 offspring. The calf remains hidden 6 weeks after birth, after which mother and calf rejoin the herd. The calf is weaned at 3.5 months, becomes independent at 4.5 month, and achieves sexual maturity at 1.5\u20132 years in both sexes.\n\n== Introduction to North America ==\nIn 1969, the New Mexico State Department of Game and Fish decided to introduce gemsbok to the Tularosa Basin, New Mexico, in the United States. "


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"Ninety-three were released from 1969 to 1977, with the current population estimated to be around 3,000 individuals. As they are capable of year-round breeding, the transplanted population thrives in the absence of their natural predators, such as the lion (Panthera leo), cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) and leopard (Panthera pardus). Except for calves, the oryx is too large to be preyed on by the cougar (Puma concolor) and most other major American desert carnivores, since the jaguar (Panthera onca) is extirpated from the state, and the reintroduced Mexican wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) is too low in population numbers (and all known Mexican wolf populations are over 100 miles away). The species is therefore primarily managed by regulated hunting. Gradually expanding their range from Tularosa Basin towards the west and northwest, an unknown number of animals are now also established in the San Andres National Wildlife Refuge, the Jornada Biosphere Reserve as well as the endorheic drainage basins east of Caballo Mountains, especially where these are traversed by the Jornada del Muerto trail north of Upham.\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links ==\n\nAnimal Diversity Web's article on the gemsbok"


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"The Siamese fireback (Lophura diardi), also known as Diard's fireback, is a fairly large, approximately 80 cm (31 in) long, pheasant. The male has a grey plumage with an extensive facial caruncle, crimson legs and feet, ornamental black crest feathers, reddish brown iris and long curved blackish tail. The female is a brown bird with blackish wing and tail feathers.\n\nThe Siamese fireback is distributed to the lowland and evergreen forests of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam in Southeast Asia. This species is also designated as the national bird of Thailand. The female usually lays between four and eight rosy eggs.\n\n== Naming ==\nThe scientific name commemorates the French naturalist Pierre-M\u00e9dard Diard.\nThis species of pheasant has a common name in Thai Kai Fah Phaya Lo (Thai: \u0e44\u0e01\u0e48\u0e1f\u0e49\u0e32\u0e1e\u0e0d\u0e32\u0e25\u0e2d; Lord Lo's pheasant), according to Thai folk literature, Lilit Phra Lo where Phra Lo, the protagonist, is charmed by following the pheasant until he meets Phra Phuean and Phra Phaeng, the two sisters and later his lovers.\n\n== Status ==\nDue to habitat loss and over-hunting in some areas, the Siamese fireback was evaluated as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, however, it is now Least Concern.\n\n"


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"== Gallery ==\n\n== See also ==\nNational symbols of Thailand\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links ==\n\nBirdLife Species Factsheet\nRed Data Book\nEbird"


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"The black-and-white ruffed lemur (Varecia variegata) is an endangered species of ruffed lemur, one of two which are endemic to the island of Madagascar. Despite having a larger range than the red ruffed lemur, it has a much smaller population that is spread out, living in lower population densities and reproductively isolated. It also has less coverage and protection in large national parks than the red ruffed lemur. Three subspecies of black-and-white ruffed lemur have been recognized since the red ruffed lemur was elevated to species status in 2001.Together with the red ruffed lemur, they are the largest extant members of the family Lemuridae, ranging in length from 100 to 120 cm (3.3 to 3.9 ft) and weighing between 3.1 and 4.1 kg (6.8 and 9.0 lb). They are arboreal, spending most of their time in the high canopy of the seasonal rainforests on the eastern side of the island.  They are also diurnal, active exclusively in daylight hours. Quadrupedal locomotion is preferred in the trees and on the ground, and suspensory behavior is seen during feeding.  "


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"As the most frugivorous of lemurs, the diet consists mainly of fruit, although nectar and flowers are also favored, followed by leaves and some seeds.The black-and-white ruffed lemur has a complex social structure and is known for its loud, raucous calls. It is unusual in that it exhibits several reproductive traits typically found in small, nocturnal lemurs, such as a short gestation period, large litters and rapid maturation. In captivity, they can live up to 36 years.\n\n== Taxonomy ==\nThe black-and-white ruffed lemur is one of two species in the genus Varecia, the other being the red ruffed lemur (V. rubra). Three subspecies are recognized: the white-belted black-and-white ruffed lemur (V. v. subcincta), the Hill's ruffed lemur, (V. v. editorum), and the black-and-white ruffed lemur (V. v. variegata, the nominate subspecies).\n\n== Description ==\n\nTogether with the red ruffed lemur, the species is the largest extant member of the family Lemuridae, ranging in length from 100 to 120 cm (3.3 to 3.9 ft) and weighing between 3.1 and 4.1 kg (6.8 and 9.0 lb).\nThe black-and-white ruffed lemur is always both black and white; the general color patterns do not usually vary. "


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"Abdomen, tail, hands and feet, inner limbs, forehead, face and crown are black. The fur is white on the sides, back, hind limbs and on the hindquarters. Males and females are alike.\n\n== Distribution and habitat ==\nThe species inhabits the eastern rainforests of Madagascar. It occurs at low to moderate altitudes, in primary forests with tall and mature trees, and by preference deep inside contiguous blocks of vegetation, although patchy forests are made use of if necessary.The three subspecies have slightly different ranges. The white-belted black-and-white ruffed lemur is found furthest to the north, the southern black-and-white ruffed lemur is found furthest to the south, and the black-and-white ruffed lemur has a geographic range between the other two subspecies.\n\n== Diet ==\nWild black-and-white ruffed lemurs have a highly frugivorous diet, with fruit making up 92% of their overall diet. Smaller percentages of leaves, nectar, seeds, and even fungi make up the remainder. Their diet is also influenced by the seasons, with certain plant parts and fruits only ripening or becoming available during certain times of the year. Water consumption also varies throughout the year and can be influenced by diet. "


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"The number of tree species utilized by for food by the lemurs can range from 19 to 40 species depending on location. The larger part of fruit items in the diet is provided by four taxa of fruit trees: Ravensara species, Chrysophyllum boivinianum, Protorhus species, and Harungana madagascariensis.\n\n== Behavior ==\n\n=== Female dominance ===\nBlack-and-white ruffed lemurs demonstrate the rare behavior of female social dominance both within and outside the context of feedings. This is also found in other ruffed lemurs as well as in ring-tailed lemurs and red ruffed lemurs. Aggressive interactions between males and females are usually won by the female even when they do not show aggressive behavior towards the male. Unlike other species of lemurs, black-and-white ruffed lemur females occasionally show submission and more aggression needs to be maintained in order for the female to win the interaction instead of having an undecided interaction. Male aggression does not vary among seasons.One of the main reasons that black-and-white ruffed lemurs exhibit dominance is for feeding purpose; that is they are able to establish priority over males in feeding. "


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"Reproductive females need more access to food because of the costs of carrying and caring for offspring which is why they establish this feeding priority. Energy demands in this species are particularly high. Female dominance in feeding is maintained through demonstrating some aggressive behavior and leading the group to food in order to have first access to the food. Dominance is not thought to be established in younger females so groups lacking a mature female may not have a dominant female. When a dominant female is present, she leads the group to the food source and eats more than the rest of the group.\n\n=== Communication ===\nThe black-and-white ruffed lemur demonstrates several different call types each of which last several seconds. Most lemurs of a group participate in any one chorus. These lemurs are particularly known for their loud roar/shriek choruses which have several purposes including group movement, spacing among different groups, and alarming other members of the group of predators. Unlike the calls of other species, the calls of the black-and-white ruffed lemur are not likely to be for the establishment of territory for a group. "


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"The calling behavior is participated in throughout the course of a day, not concentrated at any one point of the day; however calls are usually not heard at night.\n\n=== Interspecific interactions ===\nBlack-and-white ruffed lemurs are known to form a natural hybrid zone with the red ruffed lemur. This zone may have once been very large before humans came into contact with the two subspecies.  The calls of the two organisms differ in frequency and pulse rate.\n\n=== Social structure ===\nStudies of groups of black-and-white ruffed lemurs both in captivity and in the wild have demonstrated a variety of social structures from pairs to large groups. Groups have been shown to exhibit a range of fission fusion dynamics, meaning that group size can fluctuate based on resource availability. When resources (e.g. food) are plentiful, the environment can support a larger group of lemurs, but when resources are scarce, the group may split into smaller sub-groups to survive. The sub-groups can rejoin and split as needed with environmental and social cues. Parenting in this species of lemurs is unique in that no single infant is invested in but instead, females bear litters of multiple offspring. "


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"Males also play a role in the parenting of the offspring especially in smaller groups where the certainty of paternity is high. In larger groups, the chance of a female mating with more than one male increases as does uncertainty in paternity. This tends to decrease the level of male care of offspring. Instead of clinging to the mother, offspring are placed into a nest which is guarded by both parents, described in detail below.\n\n=== Reproduction ===\nBoth males and females reach sexual maturity between the ages of 1.5 and 3 years, although breeding is not necessarily successful during the first year of maturity. Males exhibit testicular enlargement as they mature, which gradually increases over the months leading to their breeding window. After successfully breeding with a female, the male's testicles gradually reduce to normal. When females become sexually mature and enter estrus during the breeding season, their vaginas begin to open slightly, starting with a small pink dot and line, which is easily visible because the skin around the vulva is black. The pink area gradually opens over the course of several days. Once fully opened, vaginal estrus lasts 2\u20133 days. "


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"During this time, there is an even smaller window of time (6\u201312 hours) when the female is in behavioral estrus, and breeding is only possible during this period. After breeding, the female's vulva gradually closes and remains black and closed for the remainder of the year. Gestation lasts an average of 102.5 days and typically results in a litter of 2\u20136 offspring that are unable to cling to their mother, as in other primates. The female builds a nest where infants remain until they can leave it on their own. For the first two weeks after birth, the female stays with the infants nearly 24 hours a day. Both males and females will guard the nest. There is evidence that related as well as unrelated females will deposit their infants in communal nests and share in parental care while other individuals forage, resulting in increased infant survival compared to single-nesting females.\n\n== Conservation ==\nAll three subspecies of the black-and-white ruffed lemur are classified as Critically Endangered by the IUCN. The numbers of black-and-white ruffed lemurs are on a steep downward trend, dropping 80% in the 21 years before 2020, the equivalent to three generations. "


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"The Vasey studies in 2003 indicated that Nosy Mangabe is the most densely populated area of black and white ruffed lemurs. It had around 29\u201343 individuals/km2. Next in decreasing order came Anatanamatazo with 10\u201315 individuals/km2, and then Manomba with.4-2.5 individuals/km2.\n\n=== Threats in the wild ===\nWhile predators may be a large threat to the black and white ruffed lemur, the principal threat to their survival comes from the human inhabitants of the island. Since they are comparatively large to other species of lemurs they are hunted as bushmeat by poachers and village men who are looking to feed their families. Another threat to the lemurs is the agricultural practices of the local community. The slash-and-burn method of agriculture is very devastating to the natural habitat of the black and white ruffed lemur.The black-and-white ruffed lemur is preyed upon by the Henst's goshawk (Accipiter henstii), fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox), ring-tailed mongoose (Galidia elegans) and brown-tailed mongoose (Salanoia concolor).  Nesting behavior poses the greatest risks for predation, especially mammalian predators.\n\n=== Reintroduction ===\nBlack-and-white ruffed lemurs were part of a reintroduction program from 1997 to 2001, organized by the Madagascar Fauna Group and the Duke University Primate Center (now Duke Lemur Center). "


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"A total of 13 individuals that were born in human care in the United States were released at the Betampona Reserve, which is in their native range in the rainforests of eastern Madagascar. Prior to being released, individuals were selected by the ruffed lemur Species Survival Plan based on genetic information, health status, life history, and behavioral traits.All of the individuals underwent a \"boot camp\" program prior to release that gave the lemurs experience in a free-range naturally wooded environment. During this time, the lemurs were able to improve their physical abilities in a forest canopy as well as forage for naturally growing food. The lemurs were released in 3 groups, each consisting of a family group or pairing, to mimic their natural grouping patterns.Once released into the wild, the animals each had radio transmitting collars, to aid in the research and monitoring possibilities post-release. The lemurs were provided with some supplementary food and their health and behavior was monitored. At least 5 of the released individuals were killed by fossa, a native predator of lemurs, including a breeding pair that had previously raised triplets. "


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"Of the surviving lemurs, at least 1 male successfully merged with an existing wild group and reproduced. Future reintroduction efforts are halted due to habitat degradation and fragmentation.\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links ==\n\nARKive \u2013 images and movies of the ruffed lemur (Varecia variegata)\nParco Zoo Punta Verde The black and white ruffed lemur \u2013 Varecia variegata\nblack-and-white ruffed lemur at Animal Diversity Web"


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"The Gila monster (Heloderma suspectum,  HEE-l\u0259) is a species of venomous lizard native to the Southwestern United States and the northwestern Mexican state of Sonora. It is a heavy, typically slow-moving reptile, up to 56 centimetres (22 in) long, and it is the only venomous lizard native to the United States. Its venomous close relatives, the four beaded lizards (all former subspecies of Heloderma horridum) inhabit Mexico and Guatemala. The Gila monster is sluggish in nature, so it is not generally dangerous and very rarely poses a real threat to humans. However, it has a fearsome reputation and is sometimes killed in spite of the species being protected by state law in Arizona.\n\n== History ==\n\nThe name \"Gila\" refers to the Gila River Basin in the U.S. states of Arizona and New Mexico, where the Gila monster was once plentiful. Heloderma means \"studded skin\", from the Ancient Greek words helos (\u1f27\u03bb\u03bf\u03c2), \"the head of a nail or stud\", and derma (\u03b4\u03ad\u03c1\u03bc\u03b1), \"skin\". Suspectum comes from the describer, paleontologist Edward Drinker Cope. At first, this new specimen of Heloderma was misidentified and considered to be a northern variation of the beaded lizard already known to live in Mexico. "


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"He suspected that the lizard might be venomous due to the grooves in the teeth.\n\nThe Gila monster is the largest extant lizard species native to North America north of the Mexican border. Its snout-to-vent length ranges from 26 to 36 cm (10 to 14 in). The tail is about 20% of the body size, and the largest specimens may reach 51 to 56 cm (20 to 22 in) in total length. Body mass is typically in the range of 550 to 800 g (1.21 to 1.76 lb). They appear strong in their body structure with a stout snout, massive head, and \"little\"-appearing eyes, which can be protected by a nictitating membrane.The Gila monster has four close living relatives, all of which are beaded lizards. There are three species in Mexico: Heloderma exasperatum, Heloderma horridum and Heloderma alvarezi, as well as another species in Guatemala: Heloderma charlesbogerti.The evolutionary history of the Helodermatidae may be traced back to the Cretaceous period (145 to 166 million years ago), when Gobiderma pulchrum and Estesia mongolensis were present. The genus Heloderma has existed since the Miocene, when H. texana lived. "


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"Fragments of osteoderms from the Gila monster have been found in Late Pleistocene (10,000 to 8,000 years ago) deposits near Las Vegas, Nevada. Because the helodermatids have remained relatively unchanged morphologically, they are occasionally regarded as living fossils. Although the Gila monster appears closely related to the monitor lizards (varanids) of Africa, Asia, and Australia, their wide geographical separation and distinct features indicate that Heloderma is better placed in a separate family.\n\n== Skin ==\n\nThe scales of the head, back, and tail contain little pearl-shaped bones (osteoderms) similar to those found in the beaded lizards from further south. The scales of the belly are free from osteoderms. Female Gila monsters go through a total shed lasting about 2 weeks before depositing their eggs. The dorsal part is often shed in one large piece. Adult males normally shed in smaller segments in August. The young seem to be in constant shed. Adults have more or less yellow to pink colors on a black surface. Hatchlings have a uniform, simple, and less colorful pattern. This drastically changes within the first 6 months of their lives. "


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"Hatchlings from the northern area of the species' distribution have a tendency to retain most of their juvenile pattern.\n\nThe heads of males are very often larger and more triangular-shaped than in females. The length of the tail of the two sexes is statistically very similar, so it does not help in differentiation of the sexes. Individuals with stout tail ends occur in both nature and under human breeding.\n\n== Distribution and habitat ==\n\nThe Gila monster is found in the Southwestern United States and Mexico, a range including Sonora, Arizona, parts of California, Nevada, Utah, and New Mexico. No records have been given from Baja California. They inhabit scrubland, succulent desert, and oak woodland, seeking shelter in burrows, thickets, and under rocks in locations with a favorable microclimate and adequate humidity. Gila monsters depend on water resources and can be observed in puddles of water after a summer rain. They avoid living in open areas, such as flats and open grasslands.\n\n== Ecology ==\n\nGila monsters spend 90% of their lifetime underground in burrows or rocky shelters. They are active in the morning during the dry season (spring and early summer). "


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"The lizards move to different shelters every 4\u20135 days up to the beginning of the summer season. By doing so, they optimize for a suitable microhabitat. Later in the summer, they may be active on warm nights or after a thunderstorm. They maintain a surface body temperature of about 30 \u00b0C (86 \u00b0F). Close to 37 \u00b0C (99 \u00b0F), they are able to decrease their body temperature by up to 2 \u00b0C (3.6 \u00b0F) by an activated, limited evaporation via the cloaca. One study investigating a population of Gila monsters in southwestern Utah noted that the lizard's activity peaked from late April to mid June. The average distance traveled during their bouts of activity was 210 metres (690 ft), but on occasion some lizards would travel distances greater than 1 kilometre (0.62 mi). During the Gila monster's active season of approximately 90 days, only ten days were spent active. Gila monsters are slow sprinters, but they have relatively high endurance and maximal aerobic capacity (VO2 max) compared to other lizards. They are preyed upon by coyotes, badgers and raptors. Hatchlings are preyed on by snakes, such as kingsnakes (Lampropeltis sp.).\n\n"


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"== Diet ==\nThe Gila monster's diet consists of a variety of food items \u2013 small mammals (such as young rabbits, hares, mice, ground squirrels, and other rodents), small birds, snakes, lizards, frogs, insects, other invertebrates, carrion, and the eggs of birds, lizards, snakes, and tortoises. Three to four extensive meals in spring are claimed to give them enough energy for a whole season. Nevertheless, they feed whenever they come across suitable prey. Young Gila monsters can swallow up to 50% of their body weight in a single meal. Adults may eat up to one third of their body weight in one meal.The Gila monster uses its extremely acute sense of smell to locate prey. The strong, two-ended tipped tongue, which is pigmented in black-blue colors, picks up scent molecules to be transferred to the opening of the Jacobson organ around the middle of the upper mouth cavern.\nPrey may be crushed to death if large, or eaten alive, most of the time head first, and helped down by muscular contractions and neck flexing. "


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"After food has been swallowed, the Gila monster may immediately resume tongue flicking and search behavior for identifying more prey such as eggs or young in nests. Gila monsters are able to climb trees, cacti, and even fairly straight, rough-surfaced walls.\n\n== Venom ==\n\n=== Pioneer beliefs ===\nIn the Old West, the pioneers believed a number of myths about the Gila monster, including that the lizard had foul or toxic breath and that its bite was fatal. The Tombstone Epitaph of Tombstone, Arizona, wrote about a Gila monster that a local person caught on May 14, 1881:\n\nThis is a monster, and no baby at that, it being probably the largest specimen ever captured in Arizona. It is 27 inches long and weighs 35 lb. It was caught by H. C. Hiatt on the road between Tombstone and Grand Central Mill, and was purchased by Messrs. Ed Baker and Charles Eastman, who now have it on exhibition at Kelley's Wine House, next door above Grand Hotel, Allen Street. "


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"Eastern people who have never seen one of these monsters should not fail to inspect his Aztecship, for they might accidentally stumble upon one some fine day and get badly frightened, except they know what it is.\nOn May 8, 1890, southeast of Tucson, Arizona Territory, Empire Ranch owner Walter Vail captured and thought he had killed a Gila monster. He tied it to his saddle and it bit the middle finger of his right hand and would not let go. A ranch hand pried open the lizard's mouth with a pocket knife, cut open his finger to stimulate bleeding, and then tied saddle strings around his finger and wrist. They summoned Dr. John C. Handy of Tucson, who took Vail back to Tucson for treatment, but Vail experienced swollen and bleeding glands in his throat for sometime afterward.Dr. Handy's friend, Dr. George Goodfellow of Tombstone, was among the first to research the actual effects of Gila monster venom. Scientific American reported in 1890, \"The breath is very fetid, and its odor can be detected at some little distance from the lizard. "


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"It is supposed that this is one way in which the monster catches the insects and small animals which form a part of its food supply \u2013 the foul gas overcoming them.\"Goodfellow offered to pay local residents $5.00 for Gila monster specimens. He bought several and collected more on his own. In 1891, he purposely provoked one of his captive lizards into biting him on his finger. The bite made him ill and he spent the next five days in bed, but he completely recovered. When Scientific American ran another ill-founded report on the lizard's ability to kill people, he wrote in reply and described his own studies and personal experience. He wrote that he knew several people who had been bitten by Gila monsters, but had not died from the bite.\n\n=== Venom delivery ===\n\nThe Gila monster produces venom in modified salivary glands at the end of its lower jaws, unlike snakes, whose venom is produced in glands behind the eyes. "


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"The Gila monster lacks strong musculature in glands above the eyes; instead, in Heloderma, the venom is propelled from the gland via a tubing to the base of the lower teeth and then by capillary forces into two grooves of the tooth and then chewed into the victim. The teeth are tightly anchored to the jaw (pleurodont). Broken and regular replacement teeth have to wait every time to go into position in a determinate \"wavelike\" sequence. They change/replace their teeth during their entire life. The Gila monster's bright colors might be suitable to teach predators not to bother this \"painful\" creature. Because the Gila monster's prey consists mainly of eggs, small animals, and otherwise \"helpless\" prey, the Gila monster's venom is thought to have evolved for defensive rather than for hunting use.\n\n=== Toxicity ===\nThe venom of a Gila monster is normally not fatal to healthy adult humans. No reports of fatalities have been confirmed after 1930, and the rare fatalities recorded before that time occurred in adults who were intoxicated by alcohol or had mismanaged the treatment of the bite. The Gila monster can bite quickly, and may not release the victim without intervention. "


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"If bitten, the victim may attempt to fully submerge the lizard in water, pry the jaws open with a knife or stick, or physically yank the lizard free. While pulling the lizard directly increases risk of severe lacerations from the lizard's sharp teeth, it may also mitigate envenomation. Symptoms of the bite include excruciating pain, edema, and weakness associated with a rapid drop in blood pressure.\nYouTuber and wildlife educator Coyote Peterson described the bite as \"like hot lava coursing through your veins\" and claimed it was \"the worst pain [he] had ever experienced.\"It is generally regarded as the most painful venom produced by any vertebrate.More than a dozen peptides and other substances have been isolated from the Gila monster's venom, including hyaluronidase, serotonin, phospholipase A2, and several kallikrein-like glycoproteins responsible for the pain and edema caused by a bite, without producing a compartment syndrome. Four potentially lethal toxins have been isolated from the Gila monster's venom, which cause hemorrhage in internal organs and exophthalmos (bulging of the eyes), and helothermine, which causes lethargy, partial paralysis of the limbs, and hypothermia in rats. "


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"Some are similar in action of the vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), which relaxes smooth muscle and regulates water and electrolyte secretion between the small and large intestines. These bioactive peptides are able to bind to VIP receptors in many different human tissues. One of these, helodermin, has been shown to inhibit the growth of lung cancer.\n\n=== Toxins and drug research ===\nThe constituents of H. suspectum venom that have received the most attention from researchers are the bioactive peptides, including helodermin, helospectin, exendin-3, and exendin-4. Exendin-4, which is specific for H. suspectum, has formed the basis of a class of medications for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, known as Glucagon-like peptide-1 agonists.\nIn 2005, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the drug exenatide (marketed as Byetta) for the management of type 2 diabetes. It is an extravagantly synthetic blueprint of the protein exendin-4, isolated from the Gila monster's venom. In a 3-year study with people with type 2 diabetes, exenatide showed healthy sustained glucose levels. The effectiveness is because the lizard protein is 53% identical to glucagon-like peptide-1 analog (GLP-1), a hormone released from the human digestive tract that helps to regulate insulin and glucagon. "


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"Using a sophisticated injection formula with sustained release of the drug the lizard protein remains effective much longer than the human hormone, This helps diabetics keep their blood glucose levels under control for a week by a single injection. Exenatide also slows the emptying of the stomach and causes a decrease in appetite, contributing to weight loss.The antidiabetic exenatide (Byetta\u00ae) from the venomous Gila monster is also an example of a medical value of venom peptides, targeting G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs).\n\n== Lifecycle ==\nThe Gila monster emerges from brumation in early March. H. suspectum sexually matures at 4\u20135 years old. It mates in April and May. The male initiates courtship by flicking his tongue to search for the female's scent. If the female rejects his advances, she will bite him and chase him away. When successful, copulation has been observed in captivity to last from 15 minutes to two and a half hours. There is only a single record of attempted mating outside of a shelter. The female lays eggs at the end of May into June. A clutch may consist of up to six (rarely up to eight) eggs. "


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"The incubation in captivity lasts about 5 months, depending on the incubation temperature. The hatchlings are about 16 cm (6.3 in) long and can bite and inject venom as soon as they are hatched.\nThe egg development and hatching time of young in the wild has been a subject of ongoing speculation. The first model stated that youngsters hatch in fall and stay underground. The second theory postulated a nearly developed embryo remains inside the egg over winter and hatches in spring. Hatchlings (weight about 35 g (1.2 oz)) are observed at the end of April to early June.\nDiscussions of the exact egg development and hatching cycle of the Gila monster came to an abrupt and unexpected end on October 28, 2016, when a backhoe was digging at the outer walls of a house in a suburb of northern Tucson. The backhoe extracted a nest of H. suspectum with five eggs in the process of hatching. The Gila monster is now known to hatch near the end of October and immediately proceed into hibernation without surfacing. They then appear on the surface from May through June the following year when prey should be abundant.\n"


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"In summer, Gila monsters gradually spend less time on the surface to avoid the hottest part of the season; occasionally, they may be active at night. Females that have laid eggs are exhausted and thin, fighting for survival, and have to spend extra effort to \"reconstitute\". The brumation of Gila monsters begins in October. Gila monsters can live up to 40 years in captivity, though rarely.\nLittle is known about the social behavior of H. suspectum, but it has been observed engaging in male to male combat, in which the dominant male lies on top of the subordinate one and pins it with its front and hind limbs. While fighting, both lizards arch their bodies, pushing against each other and twisting around in an effort to gain the dominant position. A \u201cwrestling match\u201d ends when the pressure exerts their forces, although bouts may be repeated. These bouts are typically observed in the mating season. Males with greater strength and endurance are thought to enjoy greater reproductive success. "


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"Although the Gila monster has a low metabolism and one of the lowest lizard sprint speeds, it has one of the highest aerobic scope values (the increase in oxygen consumption from rest to maximum metabolic exertion) among lizards, allowing it to engage in intense aerobic activity for a sustained period of time.\n\n== Conservation status ==\nGila monsters are listed as near threatened by the IUCN. They are listed as \"Apparently Secure\" by NatureServe.In 1952, the Gila monster became the first venomous animal to be given legal protection. They are now protected in all states of their distribution. International trade in the species is regulated under Appendix II of CITES.\n\n=== Relocation ===\n\"Possibly the greatest threat to the continued existence of helodermatids is the man-made destruction of their habitat as the land is developed for construction or to create more cultivable land.\"Gila monsters found in these situations and relocated \u2013 with best intentions \u2013 up to 1.2 km (0.75 mi)  away, return to where they were found within 2 months and at great effort. This is up to five times the normal energy use than if they had not been removed, which uses up their energy stores unnecessarily. "


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"The same is true for animals relocated to appropriate habitats. Besides this, they also become more exposed to predators. Therefore, the process of simple relocation is \"na\u00efve\" and potentially dangerous for both the relocated animals and existing populations and for the inhabitants of the region where the resettlement is taking place. If relocating the lizards further away, they might be totally disoriented, thus their survival is still very questionable. A more successful strategy would be, for example, if the new \"settlers\" were offered intensive education about this species (e.g., limited toxicity, lifestyle) with the aim of tolerating the reptile or even being proud of having this unique \"roommate\" in one's own neighborhood.In 1963, the San Diego Zoo became the first zoo to successfully breed Gila monsters in captivity. In the last two decades, experienced breeders have shared their knowledge and expertise to give advice to other herpetologists on overcoming the difficulties in Heloderma reproduction under human care.\n\n== Relationship with humans ==\nThough the Gila monster is venomous, in having laggard movement, it poses little threat to humans. However, it has a fearsome reputation and is often killed by humans. "


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"Myths that have formed about the Gila monster include that the animal's breath is toxic enough to kill humans, that it can spit venom like a spitting cobra, that it can leap several feet in the air to attack, and that the Gila monster did not have an anus and therefore expelled waste from its mouth, the source of its venom and \"fetid breath\" (likely stemming from the fact that its venom in fact has an intense, specific smell). Among Native American tribes, the Gila monster had a mixed standing. The Apache believed its breath could kill a man, and the Tohono O'Odham and the Pima believed it possessed a spiritual power that could cause sickness. In contrast, the Seri and the Yaqui believed the Gila monster's hide had healing properties.\nThe Gila monster starred as a monster in the film The Giant Gila Monster (though the titular monster was actually portrayed by a Mexican beaded lizard). It played a minor role in the motion picture The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. In Brock Brower's 1971 novel The Late Great Creature, fictional horror movie star Simon Moro is presented as famous for playing the reptilian werewolf-like Gila Man. "


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"The 2011 animated film Rango featured a Gila monster as an Old West outlaw named Bad Bill, voiced by Ray Winstone.The Gila monster has also seen usage as a mascot and state symbol. The official mascot of Eastern Arizona College located in Thatcher, Arizona, is Gila Hank, a gun-toting, cowboy hat-wearing Gila monster.  In 2017, the Vegas Golden Knights selected a Gila monster named Chance as their official mascot. In 2019, the state of Utah made the Gila monster its official state reptile.\n\n== Gallery ==\n\n== References ==\n\n== Further reading ==\nBeck, Daniel D. (2005). Biology of Gila Monsters and Beaded Lizards. Berkeley: University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-24357-9.\nBogert, Charles M.; Rafael Martin del Campo (1956). The Gila Monster and its allies: the relationships, habits, and behavior of the lizards of the Family Helodermatidae. New York: Bull. Amer. Mus. Natur. Hist. 109:1\u2013238. p. 238. Online .pdf\nCapula, Massimo; Behler (1989). Simon & Schuster's Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of the World. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-671-69098-1.\nCarmony, Neil B.; Brown, David (1991). Gila Monster: Facts and Folklore of America's Aztec Lizard. Silver City, NM: High-Lonesome Books. ISBN 0-944383-18-1."


id: 20a1e84d432b10336a8aa792ca1aeac0
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"{{cite book}}:  CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)\nCogger, Harold; Zweifel, Richard (1992). Reptiles & Amphibians. Sydney, Australia: Weldon Owen. ISBN 0-8317-2786-1.\nDitmars, Raymond L (1933). Reptiles of the World: The Crocodilians, Lizards, Snakes, Turtles and Tortoises of the Eastern and Western Hemispheres. New York: Macmillan. p. 321.\nFreiberg, Dr. Marcos; Walls, Jerry (1984). The World of Venomous Animals. New Jersey: TFH Publications. ISBN 0-87666-567-9.\nRoever, J. M.; Hiser, Iona Seibert (1972). The Gila Monster. Austin, Tex: Steck-Vaughn Co. ISBN 0-8114-7739-8.{{cite book}}:  CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)\nSchwandt, Hans-Joachim (2019). heloderma.net The Gila Monster Heloderma suspectum, Edition Chimaira, Frankfurt/Main, ISBN 978-3-89973-441-6\nStebbins, Robert (2003). Western Reptiles and Amphibians. New York: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0-395-98272-3.\nStephan F. K. Schaal, Krister T. Smith, J\u00f6rg Habersetzer (2018). Messel \u2013 An Ancient Greenhouse Ecosystem. Frankfurt am Main: Senckenberg Forschungsinstitut. ISBN 978-3-510-61411-0.{{cite book}}:  CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)\n\n== External links ==\nData related to Heloderma suspectum at Wikispecies\nMedia related to Heloderma suspectum at Wikimedia Commons"


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"The yellow anaconda (Eunectes notaeus), also known as the Paraguayan anaconda, is a boa species endemic to southern South America. It is one of the largest snakes in the world but smaller than its close relative, the green anaconda. No subspecies are currently recognized. Like all boas and pythons, it is non-venomous and kills its prey by constriction.\n\n== Etymology ==\n\nThe Neo-Latin specific name notaeus derives from Ancient Greek: \u03bd\u03c9\u03c4\u03b1\u03af\u03bf\u03c2, romanized: n\u014dtaios, lit.\u2009'dorsal' (\u03bd\u03c9\u03c4\u03b1\u03af\u03bf\u03c2 is a poetic form of \u03bd\u03c9\u03c4\u03b9\u03b1\u03af\u03bf\u03c2/n\u014dtiaios). In distinguishing his new species Eunectes notaeus from Eunectes murinus, Edward Drinker Cope stated, \"Dorsal scales are larger and in fewer rows.\"== Description ==\n\nAdults grow to an average of 3.3 to 4.4 m (10.8 to 14.4 ft) in total length. Females are generally larger than males, and have been reported up to 4.6 m (15.1 ft) in length. They commonly weigh 25 to 35 kg (55 to 77 lb), but specimens weighing more than 55 kg (121 lb) have been observed. The color pattern consists of a yellow, golden-tan or greenish-yellow ground color overlaid with a series of black or dark brown saddles, blotches, spots and streaks.\n\n"


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"== Distribution and habitat ==\nThe range of the yellow anaconda encompasses the drainage of the Paraguay River and its tributaries, from the Pantanal region in Bolivia, Paraguay, and western Brazil to northeastern Argentina and northern Uruguay.\nIt prefers mostly aquatic habitats, including swamps, marshes, and brush-covered banks of slow-moving rivers and streams. The species appears to have been introduced in Florida, although it is unknown whether the small population (thought to derive from escaped pets) is reproductive.\n\n== Ecology ==\nThe yellow anaconda forages predominantly in shallow water in wetland habitats. Most predation occurs from June to November, when flooding has somewhat subsided and wading birds are the most common prey. Observations and analysis of gut and waste contents from regularly flooded areas in the Pantanal region of southwestern Brazil indicate that they are generalist feeders that employ both ambush predation and wide-foraging strategies.\nTheir prey consists nearly exclusively of aquatic or semi-aquatic species, including a wide variety of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish and eggs. Larger specimens can prey upon larger animals, such as brocket deer, capybaras or peccaries. The prey-to-predator weight ratio is often much higher than for other types of Boidae. "


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"Cannibalism has been observed in this species, though it is not clear how often this occurs.The yellow anaconda has few predators. Juveniles and the occasional adult may be taken by caimans, larger anacondas, jaguars, cougars, some canids such as the crab-eating fox, mustelids, and raptors. The species is also hunted by humans for its skin.\n\n== Interactions with humans ==\n\nIn captivity the species has a reputation for being unpredictable and somewhat dangerous to humans. In the United States, the import, transportation and sale of the species across state lines were banned in 2012 to try to prevent the yellow anaconda from becoming an invasive species in areas such as the Florida Everglades. The conservation status of the yellow anaconda has not been assessed by the IUCN.\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links ==\n\nEunectes notaeus at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 4 July 2008."


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"The American bison (Bison bison) is a species of bison native to North America. Sometimes colloquially referred to as American buffalo or simply buffalo (a different clade of bovine), it is one of two extant species of bison, alongside  the European bison. Its historical range, by 9000 BC, is described as the great bison belt, a tract of rich grassland that ran from Alaska to the Gulf of Mexico, east to the Atlantic Seaboard (nearly to the Atlantic tidewater in some areas) as far north as New York, south to Georgia and, according to some sources, further south to Florida, with sightings in North Carolina near Buffalo Ford on the Catawba River as late as 1750. Once roaming in vast herds, the species nearly became extinct by a combination of commercial hunting and slaughter in the 19th century and introduction of bovine diseases from domestic cattle.  With a population in excess of 60 million in the late 18th century, the species was culled down to just 541 animals by 1889. Recovery efforts expanded in the mid-20th century, with a resurgence to roughly 31,000 wild bison as of March 2019. "


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"For many years, the population was primarily found in a few national parks and reserves. Through multiple reintroductions, the species now freely roams wild in several regions in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, with it also being introduced to Yakutia in Russia.Two subspecies or ecotypes have been described: the plains bison (B. b. bison), smaller in size and with a more rounded hump, and the wood bison (B. b. athabascae)\u2014the larger of the two and having a taller, square hump. Furthermore, the plains bison has been suggested to consist of a northern plains (B. b. montanae) and a southern plains (B. b. bison) subspecies, bringing the total to three. However, this is generally not supported. The wood bison is one of the largest wild species of extant bovid in the world, surpassed only by the Asian gaur. Among extant land animals in North America, the bison is the heaviest and the longest, and the second tallest after the moose.\nSpanning back many millennia, Native American tribes have had cultural and spiritual connections to the American bison. It is the national mammal of the United States of America.\n\n"


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"== Etymology ==\n\nThere are two living species of bison: the American bison and the European bison; and two types of buffalo: the African buffalo, native to Africa, and the water buffalo, native to Asia. Samuel de Champlain applied the term buffalo (buffles in French) to the bison in 1616 (published 1619), after seeing skins and a drawing shown to him by members of the Nipissing First Nation, who said they travelled forty days (from east of Lake Huron) to trade with another nation who hunted the animals. In English usage, the term buffalo dates to 1625 in North America, when the term was first recorded for the American mammal. The word buffalo is derived from the French \u201cb\u0153uf,\u201d a name given to bison when French fur trappers working in the US in the early 1600s saw the animals. The word b\u0153uf came from what the French knew as true buffalo, animals living in Africa and Asia. The term bison was first recorded in 1774, and is the correct scientific terminology.\nIn Plains Indian languages in general, male and female bison are distinguished, with each having a different designation rather than there being a single generic word covering both sexes. "


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"Thus:\n\nin Arapaho: bii (bison cow), hen\u00e9\u00e9cee (bison bull)\nin Lakota: pt\u00e9 (bison cow), t\u021fat\u021f\u00e1\u014bka (bison bull)Such a distinction is not a general feature of the language (for example, Arapaho possesses gender-neutral terms for other large mammals such as elk, mule deer, etc.), and so presumably is due to the special significance of the bison in Plains Indian life and culture.\n\n== Description ==\n\nA bison has a shaggy, long, dark-brown winter coat, and a lighter-weight, lighter-brown summer coat. Male bison are significantly larger and heavier than females. Plains bison are often in the smaller range of sizes, and wood bison in the larger range. Head-rump lengths at maximum up to 3.5 m (11 ft 6 in) for males and 2.85 m (9 ft 4 in) for females long and the tail adding 30 to 95 cm (1 ft 0 in to 3 ft 1 in). Heights at withers in the species can reach up to 186 to 201 cm (6 ft 1 in to 6 ft 7 in) for B. b. bison and B. b. athabascae respectively. "


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"Typically weights can range from 318 to 1,179 kg (701 to 2,599 lb), 460 to 988 kg (1,014 to 2,178 lb) with medians of 730 to 792.5 kg (1,609 to 1,747 lb) (B.b. bison) and 943.6 kg (2,080 lb) (B.b.athabascae) in males, and 360 to 640 kg (790 to 1,410 lb) with medians of 450 to 497.6 kg (992 to 1,097 lb) in females, although the lowest weights probably representing typical weight around the age of sexual maturity at 2 to 3 years of age. The heaviest wild bull for B.b.bison ever recorded weighed 1,270 kg (2,800 lb) while there had been bulls estimated to be 1,400 kg (3,000 lb). B.b.athabascae is significantly larger and heavier on average than B.b.bison while the number of recorded samples for the former was limited after the rediscovery of a relatively pure herd. Elk Island National Park, which has wild populations of both wood and plains bison, has recorded maximum weights for bull bison of 1186 kg (plains) and 1099 kg (wood), but noted that 3/4 of all bison over 1000 kg were wood bison. "


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"When raised in captivity and farmed for meat, the bison can grow unnaturally heavy and the largest semidomestic bison weighed 1,724 kg (3,801 lb). The heads and forequarters are massive, and both sexes have short, curved horns that can grow up to 60 cm (2 ft)  long with 90 cm (3 ft) to 124 cm (4 ft) width, which they use in fighting for status within the herd and for defense.\nBison are herbivores, grazing on the grasses and sedges of the North American prairies. Their daily schedule involves two-hour periods of grazing, resting, and cud chewing, then moving to a new location to graze again. Sexually mature young bulls may try to start mating with cows by the age of two or three years, but if more mature bulls are present, they may not be able to compete until they reach five years of age.\nFor the first two months of life, calves are lighter in color than mature bison. One very rare condition is the white buffalo, in which the calf turns entirely white.\n\n== Evolution ==\nBison are members of the tribe Bovini. "


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"Genetic evidence from nuclear DNA indicates that the closest living relatives of bison are yaks, with bison being nested within the genus Bos, rendering Bos without including bison paraphyletic. While nuclear DNA indicates that the two living bison species are each others closest living relatives, the mitochondrial DNA of European bison is more closely related to that of domestic cattle and aurochs, which is either suggested to be the result of incomplete lineage sorting or ancient introgression. Bison first appeared in Asia during the Early Pleistocene, around 2.6 million years ago. Bison only arrived in North America 195,000 to 135,000 years ago, during the late Middle Pleistocene, descending from the widespread Siberian steppe bison (Bison priscus), which had migrated through Beringia. Following its first appearance in North America, the bison rapidly differentiated into new species such as the largest of all bison, the long-horned Bison latifrons as well as Bison antiquus. The first appearance of bison in North America is considered to define the regional Rancholabrean faunal stage, due to its major impact on the ecology of the continent. "


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"Modern American bison are thought to have evolved from B. antiquus during the Late Pleistocene-Holocene transition via the intermediate form Bison occidentalis.\n\n=== Differences from European bison ===\n\nAlthough they are superficially similar, the American and European bison exhibit a number of physical and behavioral differences. Adult American bison are slightly heavier on average because of their less rangy build, and have shorter legs, which render them slightly shorter at the shoulder. American bison tend to graze more, and browse less than their European relatives, because their necks are set differently. Compared to the nose of the American bison, that of the European species is set farther forward than the forehead when the neck is in a neutral position. The body of the American bison is hairier, though its tail has less hair than that of the European bison. The horns of the European bison point forward through the plane of its face, making it more adept at fighting through the interlocking of horns in the same manner as domestic cattle, unlike the American bison which favors charging. American bison are more easily tamed than the European, and breed more readily with domestic cattle.\n\n"


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"=== Crossbreeding with cattle ===\nDuring the population bottleneck, after the great slaughter of American bison during the 1800s, the number of bison remaining alive in North America declined to as low as 541. During that period, a handful of ranchers gathered remnants of the existing herds to save the species from extinction. These ranchers bred some of the bison with cattle in an effort to produce \"cattalo\" or \"beefalo\". Accidental crossings were also known to occur. Generally, male domestic bulls were crossed with bison cows, producing offspring of which only the females were fertile. The crossbred animals did not demonstrate any form of hybrid vigor, so the practice was abandoned. The proportion of cattle DNA that has been measured in introgressed individuals and bison herds today is typically quite low, ranging from 0.56 to 1.8%. In the United States, many ranchers are now using DNA testing to cull the residual cattle genetics from their bison herds. The U.S. National Bison Association has adopted a code of ethics which prohibits its members from deliberately crossbreeding bison with any other species.\n\n"


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"== Range and population ==\n\nDespite being the closest relatives of domestic cattle native to North America, bison were never domesticated by Native Americans. Later attempts of domestication by Europeans prior to the 20th century met with limited success. Bison were described as having a \"wild and ungovernable temper\"; they can jump close to 1.8 m (6 ft) vertically, and run 55\u201370 km/h (35\u201345 mph) when agitated. This agility and speed, combined with their great size and weight, makes bison herds difficult to confine, as they can easily escape or destroy most fencing systems, including most razor wire. The most successful systems involve large, 6-metre (20 ft) fences made from welded steel I beams sunk at least 1.8 m (6 ft) into concrete. These fencing systems, while expensive, require very little maintenance. Furthermore, making the fence sections overlap so the grassy areas beyond are not visible prevents the bison from trying to get to new range.\nPopulation estimates in 2010 ranged from 400,000 to 500,000, with approximately 20,500 animals in 62 conservation herds and the remainder in approximately 6,400 commercial herds. According to the IUCN, roughly 15,000 bison are considered wild, free-range bison not primarily confined by fencing.\n"


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"The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has reintroduced bison to over a dozen nature preserves around the United States. In October 2016, TNC established its easternmost bison herd in the country, at Kankakee Sands nature preserve in Morocco, Newton County, Indiana.  In 2014, U.S Tribes and Canadian First Nations signed a treaty to help with the restoration of bison, the first to be signed in nearly 150 years.\n\n=== Habitat and trails ===\n\nAmerican bison live in river valleys, and on prairies and plains.  Typical habitat is open or semiopen grasslands, as well as sagebrush, semiarid lands, and scrublands. Some lightly wooded areas are also known historically to have supported bison.  Bison also graze in hilly or mountainous areas where the slopes are not steep.  Though not particularly known as high-altitude animals, bison in the Yellowstone Park bison herd are frequently found at elevations above 2,400 m (8,000 ft) and the Henry Mountains bison herd is found on the plains around the Henry Mountains, Utah, as well as in mountain valleys of the Henry Mountains to an altitude of 3,000 m (10,000 ft). "


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"Reintroduced plains bison in Banff National Park have been observed to roam mountainous areas including high ridges and steep drainages, and archaeological finds indicate some bison historically may have spent their lives within mountains while others may have migrated in and out of mountains.\nThose in Yukon, Canada, typically summer in alpine plateaus above treeline. The first thoroughfares of North America, except for the time-obliterated paths of mastodon or muskox and the routes of the mound builders, were the traces made by bison and deer in seasonal migration and between feeding grounds and salt licks. Many of these routes, hammered by countless hoofs instinctively following watersheds and the crests of ridges in avoidance of lower places' summer muck and winter snowdrifts, were followed by the aboriginal North Americans as courses to hunting grounds and as warriors' paths. They were invaluable to explorers and were adopted by pioneers.\nBison traces were characteristically north and south, but several key east\u2013west trails were used later as railways. Some of these include the Cumberland Gap through the Blue Ridge Mountains to upper Kentucky. "


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"A heavily used trace crossed the Ohio River at the Falls of the Ohio and ran west, crossing the Wabash River near Vincennes, Indiana. In Senator Thomas Hart Benton's phrase saluting these sagacious path-makers, the bison paved the way for the railroads to the Pacific.\n\n=== Mexico ===\n\nThe southern extent of the historic range of the American bison includes northern Mexico and adjoining areas in the United States as documented by archeological records and historical accounts from Mexican archives from 700 CE to the 19th century. The Janos-Hidalgo bison herd has ranged between Chihuahua, Mexico, and New Mexico, United States, since at least the 1920s. The persistence of this herd suggests that habitat for bison is suitable in northern Mexico. In 2009, genetically pure bison were reintroduced to the Janos Biosphere Reserve in northern Chihuahua adding to the Mexican bison population. In 2020, the second herd was formed in Maderas del Carmen. A private reserve named Jag\u00fcey de Ferniza has kept bisons since before the above-mentioned reintroductions in Coahuila.\n\n"


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"=== Introductions to Siberia ===\n\nSince 2006, an outherd of wood bison sent from Alberta's Elk Island National Park was established in Yakutia, Russia as a practice of pleistocene rewilding; wood bison are the most closely related to the extinct bison species. The bison are adapting well to the cold climate, and Yakutia's Red List officially registered the species in 2019; a second herd was formed in 2020.In Pleistocene Park, there are also 24 plains bison as wood bison could not be acquired.\n\n== Behavior and ecology ==\n\nBison are migratory and herd migrations can be directional as well as altitudinal in some areas. Bison have usual daily movements between foraging sites during the summer. In the Hayden Valley, Wyoming, bison have been recorded traveling, on average, 3 km (2 mi) per day. The summer ranges of bison appear to be influenced by seasonal vegetation changes, interspersion and size of foraging sites, the rut, and the number of biting insects. The size of preserve and availability of water may also be a factor. Bison are largely grazers, eating primarily grasses and sedges. On shortgrass pasture, bison predominately consume warm-season grasses. "


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"On mixed prairie, cool-season grasses, including some sedges, apparently compose 79\u201396% of their diet. In montane and northern areas, sedges are selected throughout the year. Bison also drink water or consume snow on a daily basis.\n\n=== Social behavior and reproduction ===\n\nFemale bison live in maternal herds which include other females and their offspring. Male offspring leave their maternal herd when around three years old and either live alone or join other males in bachelor herds. Male and female herds usually do not mingle until the breeding season, which can occur from July through September. However, female herds may also contain a few older males. During the breeding season, dominant bulls maintain a small harem of females for mating. Individual bulls \"tend\" cows until allowed to mate, by following them around and chasing away rival males. The tending bull shields the female's vision with his body so she will not see any other challenging males. A challenging bull may bellow or roar to get a female's attention and the tending bull has to bellow/roar back. The most dominant bulls mate in the first 2\u20133 weeks of the season. "


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"More subordinate bulls mate with any remaining estrous cow that has not mated yet. Male bison play no part in raising the young.\n\nBison herds have dominance hierarchies that exist for both males and females. A bison's dominance is related to its birth date. Bison born earlier in the breeding season are more likely to be larger and more dominant as adults. Thus, bison are able to pass on their dominance to their offspring as dominant bison breed earlier in the season. In addition to dominance, the older bison of a generation also have a higher fertility rate than the younger ones.Bison mate in August and September; gestation is 285 days. A single reddish-brown calf nurses until the next calf is born. If the cow is not pregnant, a calf will nurse for 18 months. Cows nurse their calves for at least 7 or 8 months, but most calves seem to be weaned before the end of their first year. At three years of age, bison cows are mature enough to produce a calf. "


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"The birthing period for bison in boreal biomes is protracted compared to that of other northern ungulates, such as moose and caribou.Bison have a life expectancy around 15 years in the wild and up to 25 years in captivity. However, males and females from a hunted population also subject to wolf predation in northern Canada have been reported to live to 22 and 25 years of age, respectively.Bison have been observed to display homosexual behaviors, males much more so than females. In the case of males, it is unlikely to be related to dominance, but rather to social bonding or gaining sexual experience.\n\n=== Horning ===\nBison mate in late spring and summer in more open plain areas. During fall and winter, bison tend to gather in more wooded areas. During this time, bison partake in horning behaviors. They rub their horns against trees, young saplings, and even utility poles. Aromatic trees like cedars and pine seem to be preferred. Horning appears to be associated with insect defense, as it occurs most often in the fall when the insect population is at its highest. "


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"Cedar and pines emit an aroma after bison horn them and this seems to be used as a deterrent for insects.\n\n=== Wallowing behavior ===\n\nA bison wallow is a shallow depression in the soil, which bison use either wet or dry. Bison roll in these depressions, covering themselves with dust or mud. Past and current hypotheses to explain the purpose of wallowing include grooming associated with shedding, male-male interaction (typically rutting), social behavior for group cohesion, play, relief from skin irritation due to biting insects, reduction of ectoparasite (tick and lice) load, and thermoregulation. Bison wallowing has important ecosystem engineering effects and enhances plant and animal diversity on prairies.\n\n=== Predation ===\n\nWhile often secure from predation because of their size and strength, in some areas, vulnerable individuals are regularly preyed upon by wolves. Wolf predation typically peaks in late winter, when elk migrates south and bison are distressed with heavy snows and shortages of food sources, with attacks usually being concentrated on weakened and injured cows and calves. Wolves more actively target herds with calves than those without. The length of a predation episode varies, ranging from a few minutes to over nine hours. "


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"Bison display five apparent defense strategies in protecting calves from wolves: running to a cow; running to a herd; running to the nearest bull; running in the front or center of a stampeding herd; entering water bodies, such as lakes or rivers. When fleeing wolves in open areas, cows with young calves take the lead, while bulls take to the rear of the herds, to guard the cows' escape. Bison typically ignore wolves not displaying hunting behavior. Wolf packs specializing in bison tend to have more males, because their larger size than females allows them to wrestle prey to the ground more effectively. Healthy, mature bulls in herds rarely fall prey.\nGrizzly bears are known to feed on carcass and may steal wolves' kills. While grizzlies can also pose a threat to calves and sometimes old, injured, or sick adult bison, direct killing of non-calves is rare even when targeting lone and injured young individuals; attacking healthy bison is risky for bears, who can be killed instead.\n\n=== Dangers to humans ===\nBison are among the most dangerous animals encountered by visitors to the various North American national parks and will attack humans if provoked. "


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"They appear slow because of their lethargic movements, but can easily outrun humans; bison have been observed running as fast as 65 to 70 km/h (40 to 45 mph) for 8 km (5 mi). Bison may approach people for curiosity, and close encounters including to touch the animals can be dangerous, and gunshots do not startle them.\n\nBetween 1980 and 1999, more than three times as many people in Yellowstone National Park were injured by bison than by bears. During this period, bison charged and injured 79 people, with injuries ranging from goring puncture wounds and broken bones to bruises and abrasions. Bears injured 24 people during the same time. Three people died from the injuries inflicted\u2014one person by bison in 1983, and two people by bears in 1984 and 1986.\n\n== Hunting ==\n\nBuffalo hunting, i.e. hunting of the American bison, was an activity fundamental to the Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains. "


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"This activity was later adopted by American professional hunters, as well as by the U.S. government, in an effort to sabotage the central resource of some American Indian Nations during the later portions of the American Indian Wars, leading to the near-extinction of the species around 1890. For many tribes the buffalo was an integral part of life\u2014something guaranteed to them by the Creator. In fact, for some Plains indigenous peoples, bison are known as the first people. The concept of species extinction was foreign to many tribes. Thus, when the U.S. government began to massacre the buffalo, it was particularly harrowing to the Indigenous people. As Crow chief Plenty Coups described it: \"When the buffalo went away the hearts of my people fell to the ground, and they could not lift them up again. After this nothing happened. There was little singing anywhere.\"Spiritual loss was rampant; bison were an integral part of traditional tribal societies and they would frequently take part in ceremonies for each bison they killed to honor its sacrifice. "


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"In order to boost morale during this time, Sioux and other tribes took part in the Ghost Dance, which consisted of hundreds of people dancing until 100 persons were lying unconscious.Today, many conservation measures have been taken by Native Americans with the Inter Tribal Bison Council being one of the most significant. It was formed in 1990, composed of 56 tribes in 19 states. These tribes represent a collective herd of more than 15,000 bison and focus on reestablishing herds on tribal lands in order to promote culture, revitalize spiritual solidarity, and restore the ecosystem. Some Inter Tribal Bison Council members argue that the bison's economic value is one of the main factors driving its resurgence. Bison serve as a low cost substitute for cattle, and can withstand the winters in the Plains region far easier than cattle.\n\n=== As livestock ===\nBison are increasingly raised for meat, hide, wool, and dairy products. The majority of American bison in the world are raised for human consumption or fur clothing. "


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"Bison meat is generally considered to taste very similar to beef, but is lower in fat and cholesterol, yet higher in protein than beef, which has led to the development of beefalo, a fertile hybrid of bison and domestic cattle. In 2005, about 35,000 bison were processed for meat in the U.S., with the National Bison Association and USDA providing a \"Certified American Buffalo\" program with birth-to-consumer tracking of bison via RFID ear tags. A market even exists for kosher bison meat; these bison are slaughtered at one of the few kosher mammal slaughterhouses in the U.S., and the meat is then distributed nationwide.\nBison are found in publicly and privately held herds. Custer State Park in South Dakota is home to 1,500 bison, one of the largest publicly held herds in the world, but some question the genetic purity of the animals. "


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"Wildlife officials believe that free roaming and genetically pure herds on public lands in North America can be found only in: the Yellowstone Park bison herd; the Henry Mountains bison herd at the Book Cliffs and Henry Mountains in Utah; at Wind Cave National Park in South Dakota; Fort Peck Indian Reservation in Montana; Mackenzie Bison Sanctuary in the Northwest Territories; Elk Island National Park and Wood Buffalo National Park in Alberta; and Prince Albert National Park in Saskatchewan. Another population, the Antelope Island bison herd on Antelope Island in Utah, consisting of 550 to 700 bison, is also one of the largest and oldest public herds in the United States, but the bison in that herd are considered to be only semifree roaming, since they are confined to the Antelope Island. In addition, recent genetic studies indicate that, like most bison herds, the Antelope Island bison herd has a small number of genes from domestic cattle. In 2002, the United States government donated some bison calves from South Dakota and Colorado to the Mexican government. "


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"Their descendants live in the Mexican nature reserves El Uno Ranch at Janos and Santa Elena Canyon, Chihuahua, and Boquillas del Carmen, Coahuila, located near the southern banks of the Rio Grande, and around the grassland state line with Texas and New Mexico.\nRecent genetic studies of privately owned herds of bison show that many of them include animals with genes from domestic cattle. For example, the herd on Santa Catalina Island, California, isolated since 1924 after being brought there for a movie shoot, were found to have cattle introgression. As few as 12,000 to 15,000 pure bison are estimated to remain in the world. The numbers are uncertain because the tests used to date\u2014mitochondrial DNA analysis\u2014indicate only if the maternal line (back from mother to mother) ever included domesticated bovines, thus say nothing about possible male input in the process. Most hybrids were found to look exactly like purebred bison; therefore, appearance is not a good indicator of genetics.\nThe size of the Canadian domesticated herd (genetic questions aside) grew dramatically through the 1990s and 2000s. The 2006 Census of Agriculture reported the Canadian herd at 195,728 head, a 34.9% increase since 2001.  "


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"Of this total, over 95% were located in Western Canada, and less than 5% in Eastern Canada. Alberta was the province with the largest herd, accounting for 49.7% of the herd and 45.8% of the farms. The next-largest herds were in Saskatchewan (23.9%), Manitoba (10%), and British Columbia (6%). The main producing regions were in the northern parts of the Canadian prairies, specifically in the parkland belt, with the Peace River region (shared between Alberta and British Columbia) being the most important cluster, accounting for 14.4% of the national herd. Canada also exports bison meat, totaling 2,075,253 kilograms (4,575,150 lb) in 2006.A proposal known as Buffalo Commons has been suggested by a handful of academics and policymakers to restore large parts of the drier portion of the Great Plains to native prairie grazed by bison. Proponents argue that current agricultural use of the shortgrass prairie is not sustainable, pointing to periodic disasters, including the Dust Bowl, and continuing significant human population loss over the last 60 years. However, this plan is opposed by some who live in the areas in question.\n\n"


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"== Genetics ==\n\nA major problem that bison face today is a lack of genetic diversity due to the population bottleneck the species experienced during its near-extinction event. Another genetic issue is the entry of genes from domestic cattle into the bison population, through hybridization.Officially, the \"American buffalo\" is classified by the United States government as a type of cattle, and the government allows private herds to be managed as such. This is a reflection of the characteristics that bison share with cattle.  Though the American bison is not only a separate species, but also is usually regarded as being in a separate genus from domestic cattle (Bos taurus), they clearly have a lot of genetic compatibility and American bison can interbreed with cattle, although only the female offspring are fertile in the first generation. These female hybrids can be bred back to either bison or domestic bulls, resulting in either 1/4 or 3/4 bison young. Female offspring from this cross are also fertile, but males are not reliably fertile unless they are either 7\u20448 bison or 7\u20448 domestic. "


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"Moreover, when they do interbreed, crossbreed animals in the first generation tend to look very much like purebred bison, so appearance is completely unreliable as a means of determining what is a purebred bison and what is a crossbred cow.  Many ranchers have deliberately crossbred their cattle with bison, and some natural hybridization could be expected in areas where cattle and bison occur in the same range. Since cattle and bison eat similar food and tolerate similar conditions, they have often been in the same range together in the past, and opportunity for crossbreeding may sometimes have been common.\nIn recent decades, tests were developed to determine the source of mitochondrial DNA in cattle and bison, and most private \"buffalo\" herds were actually crossbred with cattle, and even most state and federal buffalo herds had some cattle DNA. With the advent of nuclear microsatellite DNA testing, the number of herds known to contain cattle genes has increased. As of 2011, though about 500,000 bison existed on private ranches and in public herds, perhaps only 15,000 to 25,000 of these bison were pure and not actually bison-cattle hybrids. "


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"\"DNA from domestic cattle (Bos taurus) has been detected in nearly all bison herds examined to date.\"Significant public bison herds that do not appear to have hybridized domestic cattle genes are the Yellowstone Park bison herd, the Henry Mountains bison herd, which was started with bison taken from Yellowstone Park, the Wind Cave bison herd, and the Wood Buffalo National Park bison herd and subsidiary herds started from it, in Canada.\nA landmark study of bison genetics performed by James Derr of Texas A&M University corroborated this. The Derr study was undertaken in an attempt to determine what genetic problems bison might face as they repopulate former areas, and it noted that bison seem to be adapting successfully, despite their apparent genetic bottleneck. One possible explanation for this might be the small amount of domestic cattle genes that are now in most bison populations, though this is not the only possible explanation for bison success.\n\nIn the study, cattle genes were also found in small amounts throughout most national, state and private herds. "


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"\"The hybridization experiments conducted by some of the owners of the five foundation herds of the late 1800s, have left a legacy of a small amount of cattle genetics in many of our existing bison herds.\"He also said, \"All of the state owned bison herds tested (except for possibly one) contain animals with domestic cattle mtDNA.\"It appears that the one state herd that had no cattle genes was the Henry Mountains bison herd; the Henry Mountain herd was started initially with transplanted animals from Yellowstone Park. However, the extension of this herd into the Book Cliffs of central Utah involved mixing the founders with additional bison from another source, so it is not known if the Book Cliffs extension of the herd is also free of cattle hybridization.\nA separate study by Wilson and Strobeck, published in Genome, was done to define the relationships between different herds of bison in the United States and Canada, and to determine whether the bison at Wood Buffalo National Park in Canada and the Yellowstone Park bison herd were possibly separate subspecies. "


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"The Wood Buffalo Park bison were determined to actually be crossbreeds between plains and wood bison, but their predominant genetic makeup was that of the expected \"wood buffalo\".  However, the Yellowstone Park bison herd was pure plains bison, and not any of the other previously suggested subspecies. Another finding was that the bison in the Antelope Island herd in Utah appeared to be more distantly related to other plains bison in general than any other plains bison group that was tested, though this might be due to genetic drift caused by the small size of only 12 individuals in the founder population. A side finding of this was that the Antelope Island bison herd appears to be most closely related to the Wood Buffalo National Park bison herd, though the Antelope Island bison are actually plains bison.\n\nRange history of bison in North America\n\nIn order to bolster the genetic diversity of the American bison, the National Park Service alongside the Department of the Interior announced on May 7, 2020, the 2020 Bison Conservation Initiative. This initiative focuses on maintaining the genetic diversity of the metapopulation rather than individual herds. "


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"Small populations of bison are at considerably larger risk due to their decreased gene pool and are susceptible to catastrophic events more so than larger herds. The 2020 Bison Conservation Initiative aims to translocate up to three bison every five to ten years between the Department of the Interior's herds. Specific smaller herds will require a more intense management plan. Translocated bison will also be screened for any health defects such as infection of brucellosis bacteria as to not put the larger herd at risk.\n\n== As a symbol ==\n\n=== Native Americans ===\n\nAmong many Native American tribes, especially the Plains Indians, the bison is considered a sacred animal and religious symbol.  According to University of Montana anthropology and Native American studies professor S. Neyooxet Greymorning, \"The creation stories of where buffalo came from put them in a very spiritual place among many tribes.  The buffalo crossed many different areas and functions, and it was utilized in many ways. It was used in ceremonies, as well as to make tipi covers that provided homes for people, utensils, shields, weapons and parts were used for sewing with the sinew.\""


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"The Sioux consider the birth of a white buffalo to be the return of White Buffalo Calf Woman, their primary cultural prophet and the bringer of their \"Seven Sacred Rites\".  Among the Mandan and Hidatsa, the White Buffalo Cow Society was the most sacred of societies for women.\n\n=== North America ===\nThe American bison is often used in North America in official seals, flags, and logos. In 2016, the American bison became the national mammal of the United States. The bison is a popular symbol in the Great Plains states: Kansas, Oklahoma, and Wyoming have adopted the animal as their official state mammal, and many sports teams have chosen the bison as their mascot. In Canada, the bison is the official animal of the province of Manitoba and appears on the Manitoba flag. It is also used in the official coat of arms of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.\nSeveral American coins feature the bison, most famously on the reverse side of the \"buffalo nickel\" from 1913 to 1938. In 2005, the United States Mint coined a nickel with a new depiction of the bison as part of its \"Westward Journey\" series. "


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"The Kansas and North Dakota state quarters, part of the \"50 State Quarter\" series, each feature bison. The Kansas state quarter has only the bison and does not feature any writing, while the North Dakota state quarter has two bison. The Montana state quarter prominently features a bison skull over a landscape. The Yellowstone National Park quarter also features a bison standing next to a geyser.\nOther institutions which have adopted the bison as a symbol or mascot include:\n\n== See also ==\n\n== References ==\n\n== Further reading ==\n\n== External links ==\n\n\"Bison bison\". Integrated Taxonomic Information System.\nBuffalo Field Campaign\nWatch the NFB documentary The Great Buffalo Saga\nTraditional use of Tatanka (buffalo)\nBison skeletal structure and bones"


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"The rhinoceros iguana (Cyclura cornuta) is an endangered species of iguana that is endemic to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic) and its surrounding islands. A large lizard, they vary in length from 60 to 136 centimetres (24 to 54 in), and skin colours range from a steely grey to a dark green and even brown. Their name derives from the bony-plated pseudo-horn or outgrowth which resembles the horn of a rhinoceros on the iguana's snout. It is known to coexist with the Ricord's iguana (C. ricordii); the two species are the only taxa of rock iguana to do so.\n\n== Taxonomy ==\nThe rhinoceros iguana is a species of lizard belonging to the genus Cyclura.   The rhinoceros iguana's specific name, cornuta, is the feminine form of the Latin adjective cornutus, meaning \"horned\" and refers to the horned projections on the snouts of males of the species.  The species was first identified by Pierre Joseph Bonnaterre in 1789.In addition to the nominate race (C. c. cornuta) found on Hispaniola, the other subspecies is the extinct Navassa Island iguana (C. c. onchiopsis). "


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"The Mona ground iguana (Cyclura stejnegeri) from Puerto Rico was originally thought to be a subspecies (and still is by some taxonomists), as Cyclura cornuta stejnegeri.\n\n== Anatomy and morphology ==\nThe rhinoceros iguana, like other members of the genus Cyclura, is a large-bodied, heavy-headed lizard with strong legs and a vertically flattened tail. A crest of pointed horned scales extends from the nape of their neck to the tip of their tail. Their color is a uniform gray to brown drab. Most adults weigh 4.56 to 9 kilograms (10.1 to 19.8 lb). Like all reptiles, rhinoceros iguanas are cold-blooded, meaning they need external sources to heat themselves; they move as the sun shifts in order to get an optimal internal temperature.These iguanas are characterized by the growth of bony prominent tubercles on their snouts which resemble horns. Males possess an adipose pad in the form of a helmet on the occipital region of the head, and a large dewlap. This species, like other species of Cyclura, is sexually dimorphic; males are larger than females, and have more prominent dorsal crests and \"horns\" in addition to large femoral pores on their thighs, which are used to release pheromones.\n\n"


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"== Distribution and habitat ==\n\nRanging throughout Hispaniola (in both Haiti and the Dominican Republic), rhinoceros iguana populations are stable only on Isla Beata, and the extreme of the Barahona Peninsula, inside Jaragua National Park. There are moderately dense populations in the southeastern region of Haiti and its offshore islands, including the brackish lake of \u00c9tang Saum\u00e2tre, as well as the Dominican hypersaline Lake Enriquillo and its lake island, Isla Cabritos. Populations in Haiti are even more endangered due to deforestation, poaching for bushmeat, and human clearing practices. In general, the iguanas are found most abundantly in (although not restricted to) scrub woodland in Hispaniolan dry forests, which are characterized by xeric, rocky habitats of eroded limestone in coastal terraces and lowlands of the mainland, and several offshore islands and small cays in a variety of subtropical life zones and habitat types. The biome that the rhinoceros iguanas live in are ones that receive very little rain with little trees and shrubs. This species has been known to exhibit phenotypic plasticity like other iguanas. "


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"While historically present near coastlines, human activity and introduced predators have forced rhinoceros iguanas inland.An individual was photographed on May 4, 2008 on Limbe Island in northern Haiti. It had been caught by a group of fishermen from Bas-Limbe, Bord de Mer village. The rhinoceros iguanas caught on Limbe Island are illegally eaten by the local population. This sighting represents a new area previously not thought to be in the range of C. cornata.\nAside from Hispaniola and its surrounding islands, the rhinoceros iguana was previously found on Navassa Island (with an endemic subspecies: C. c. onchiopsis), but was extirpated there.\n\n== Behaviour ==\nRhinoceros iguanas, like most members of Cyclura, are usually docile and well-tempered. Although quick to flee when attacked or threatened, they will aggressively attack by biting and repeatedly striking with their thick tail if cornered.\n\n== Diet ==\n\nThe rhinoceros iguana, like most Cyclura species, is primarily herbivorous, consuming leaves, flowers, berries, and fruits from different plant species. A study in 2000 by Dr Allison Alberts of the San Diego Zoo revealed that seeds passing through the digestive tracts of Cyclura species germinate more rapidly than those that do not. "


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"These seeds in the fruits consumed by cycluras have an adaptive advantage by sprouting before the end of very short rainy seasons. The rhinoceros iguana is also an important means of distributing these seeds to new areas (particularly when females migrate to nesting sites) and, as the largest native herbivores of their island's ecosystem, they are essential for maintaining the balance between climate and vegetation. Rhinoceros iguanas do appear to be opportunistic carnivores, as individual animals have been observed eating small lizards, snakes, and insects.\n\n== Ecology ==\nThe rhinoceros iguana's only confirmed native predator is the Hispaniola racer (Haitiophis anomalus), a large snake which has been recorded to give chase to juvenile iguanas, as well as wait for them outside the exit holes of their burrow. However, most predation of iguanas comes from invasive species like feral dogs (Canis familiaris), feral cats (Felis catus), small Indian mongooses (Urva auropunctata), and feral pigs (Sus domesticus), which all feed on eggs, adults, and juveniles.\n\n== Mating and reproduction ==\nMale rhinoceros iguanas, unlike other members of the genus Cyclura, reach sexual maturity at four to five years of age. Females become sexually mature at two to three years of age. "


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"Male rhinoceros iguanas are territorial and the most aggressive males will have the largest range of territory. Mating takes place at the beginning of, or just prior to, the first rainy season of the year (May to June) and lasts for two to three weeks. Females lay from 2 to 34 eggs, with an average clutch size of 17, within 40 days. Females guard their nests for several days after laying their eggs, and incubation lasts approximately 85 days.Notably, despite rhinoceros iguanas exhibiting some sexual dimorphism in size and horn development, they exhibit comparatively less sexual dimorphism than most other iguanas. Both male and female rhinoceros iguanas lack prominent mid-dorsal spines on their neck, which are typically very large in male iguanas of other species, both have well-developed dewlaps, and both develop horns. By contrast, in many other animals that exhibit horns such as ungulates or rhinoceros beetles, horns are often only present in males. Rhinoceros iguanas are also reported to show less dimorphism in size than other iguana species. "


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"This reduced dimorphism has been suggested to be due to intense female-female competition in rhinoceros iguanas, given the scarcity of nesting sites in their island environment, and females will use their horns to fight with one another over access to nesting sites much as males fight for access to females. Similar female-female combat over nesting sites has been documented in other island iguanas such as the marine iguana.\n\n== Conservation ==\n\nAlthough rhinoceros iguanas are the most common species of Cyclura kept in captivity, approximately 10,000-16,000 iguanas remain in the wild. A successful breeding program existed at the Parque Zool\u00f3gico Nacional of the Dominican Republic (ZooDom) from 1974 to 1994, with an average of 100 babies hatching annually. These efforts included reintroductions of captive-bred \"head-started\" young to several protected areas in the southwest Dominican Republic, in order to reduce the odds of predation by snakes and introduced carnivorans, such as mongooses or feral cats and dogs. The program has not continued since 1995, due to an administrative change at the zoo. International trade in the species is regulated under the Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. "


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"Illegal logging, competition from domestic grazers (cows, pigs, goats), predation on young by invasive species, limestone mining, harvesting for the pet trade, hunting for bushmeat, pollution, and wildfires are all manmade threats to the rhinoceros iguana's survival.\n\n== Captivity ==\n\nThe rhinoceros iguana is well established in captivity, both in public and private collections. As of 2007, rhinoceros iguanas were present in captivity throughout the United States (total 39 males, 32 females, and 36 undetermined individuals) at 20 zoological institutions, with an additional 533 animals of unassigned subspecies, reported by seven American Zoological and Aquarium Association institutions. The actual number may be much higher, considering animals kept at European and Asian zoos, and the amount kept as pets in private collections. As a result, the demand for wild-caught animals to supply zoos and the pet trade has been reduced.\n\n== Gallery ==\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links ==\n\nProfile on Cyclura.com\nRhinoceros Iguanas at the Nashville Zoo\nIguana at PhotoSig.com\nIguanario de los Tocones, Dominican Republic"


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"The axolotl (; from Classical Nahuatl: \u0101x\u014dl\u014dtl [a\u02d0\u02c8\u0283o\u02d0lo\u02d0t\u026c] (listen)), Ambystoma mexicanum, is a paedomorphic salamander closely related to the tiger salamander. Axolotls are unusual among amphibians in that they reach adulthood without undergoing metamorphosis. Instead of taking to the land, adults remain aquatic and gilled. The species was originally found in several lakes underlying what is now Mexico City, such as Lake Xochimilco and Lake Chalco. These lakes were drained by Spanish settlers after the conquest of the Aztec Empire, leading to the destruction of much of the axolotl\u2019s natural habitat.\nAxolotls should not be confused with the larval stage of the closely related tiger salamander (A. tigrinum), which are widespread in much of North America and occasionally become paedomorphic. Neither should they be confused with mudpuppies (Necturus spp.), fully aquatic salamanders from a different family that are not closely related to the axolotl but bear a superficial resemblance.As of 2020, wild axolotls were near extinction due to urbanization in Mexico City and consequent water pollution, as well as the introduction of invasive species such as tilapia and perch. "


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"They are listed as critically endangered in the wild, with a decreasing population of around 50 to 1,000 adult individuals, by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) and are listed under Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). Axolotls are used extensively in scientific research due to their ability to regenerate limbs, gills and parts of their eyes and brains. Axolotls were also sold as food in Mexican markets and were a staple in the Aztec diet.\n\n== Description ==\n\nA sexually mature adult axolotl, at age 18\u201327 months, ranges in length from 15 to 45 cm (6 to 18 in), although a size close to 23 cm (9 in) is most common and greater than 30 cm (12 in) is rare. Axolotls possess features typical of salamander larvae, including external gills and a caudal fin extending from behind the head to the vent. External gills are usually lost when salamander species mature into adulthood, although the axolotl maintains this feature. This is due to their neoteny evolution, where axolotls are much more aquatic than other salamander species.Their heads are wide, and their eyes are lidless. "


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"Their limbs are underdeveloped and possess long, thin digits. Males are identified by their swollen cloacae lined with papillae, while females are noticeable for their wider bodies full of eggs. Three pairs of external gill stalks (rami) originate behind their heads and are used to move oxygenated water. The external gill rami are lined with filaments (fimbriae) to increase surface area for gas exchange. Four-gill slits lined with gill rakers are hidden underneath the external gills, which prevent food from entering and allow particles to filter through.\n\nAxolotls have barely visible vestigial teeth, which develop during metamorphosis. The primary method of feeding is by suction, during which their rakers interlock to close the gill slits. External gills are used for respiration, although buccal pumping (gulping air from the surface) may also be used to provide oxygen to their lungs. Buccal pumping can occur in a two-stroke manner that pumps air from the mouth to the lungs, and with four-stroke that reverses this pathway with compression forces.\n\nAxolotls have four pigmentation genes; when mutated they create different color variants. The normal wild-type animal is brown/tan with gold speckles and an olive undertone. "


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"The five more common mutant colors are leucistic (pale pink with black eyes), golden albino (golden with gold eyes), xanthic (grey with black eyes), albino (pale pink/white with red eyes) which is more common in axolotls than some other creatures, and melanoid (all black/dark blue with no gold speckling or olive tone). In addition, there is wide individual variability in the size, frequency, and intensity of the gold speckling and at least one variant that develops a black and white piebald appearance on reaching maturity. Because pet breeders frequently cross the variant colors, double homozygous mutants are common in the pet trade, especially white/pink animals with pink eyes that are double homozygous mutants for both the albino and leucistic trait. Axolotls also have some limited ability to alter their color to provide better camouflage by changing the relative size and thickness of their melanophores.\n\n== Habitat and ecology ==\n\nThe axolotl is native only to the freshwater of Lake Xochimilco and Lake Chalco in the Valley of Mexico. Lake Chalco no longer exists, having been drained as a flood control measure, and Lake Xochimilco remains a remnant of its former self, existing mainly as canals. "


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"The water temperature in Xochimilco rarely rises above 20 \u00b0C (68 \u00b0F), although it may fall to 6\u20137 \u00b0C (43\u201345 \u00b0F) in the winter, and perhaps lower.Surveys in 1998, 2003, and 2008 found 6,000, 1,000, and 100 axolotls per square kilometer in its Lake Xochimilco habitat, respectively. A four-month-long search in 2013, however, turned up no surviving individuals in the wild. Just a month later, two wild ones were spotted in a network of canals leading from Xochimilco.The wild population has been put under heavy pressure by the growth of Mexico City. The axolotl is currently on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's annual Red List of threatened species. Non-native fish, such as African tilapia and Asian carp, have also recently been introduced to the waters. These new fish have been eating the axolotls' young, as well as their primary source of food.Axolotls are members of the tiger salamander, or Ambystoma tigrinum, species complex, along with all other Mexican species of Ambystoma. Their habitat is like that of most neotenic species\u2014a high-altitude body of water surrounded by a risky terrestrial environment. These conditions are thought to favor neoteny. "


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"However, a terrestrial population of Mexican tiger salamanders occupies and breeds in the axolotl's habitat.The axolotl is carnivorous, consuming small prey such as mollusks, worms, insects, other arthropods, and small fish in the wild. Axolotls locate food by smell, and will \"snap\" at any potential meal, sucking the food into their stomachs with vacuum force.\n\n== Use as a model organism ==\n\nToday, the axolotl is still used in research as a model organism, and large numbers are bred in captivity. They are especially easy to breed compared to other salamanders in their family, which are rarely captive-bred due to the demands of terrestrial life. One attractive feature for research is the large and easily manipulated embryo, which allows viewing of the full development of a vertebrate. Axolotls are used in heart defect studies due to the presence of a mutant gene that causes heart failure in embryos. Since the embryos survive almost to hatching with no heart function, the defect is very observable. "


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"The axolotl is also considered an ideal animal model for the study of neural tube closure due to the similarities between human and axolotl neural plate and tube formation; the axolotl's neural tube, unlike the frog's, is not hidden under a layer of superficial epithelium. There are also mutations affecting other organ systems some of which are not well characterized and others that are. The genetics of the color variants of the axolotl have also been widely studied.\n\n=== Regeneration ===\nThe feature of the axolotl that attracts most attention is its healing ability: the axolotl does not heal by scarring and is capable of the regeneration of entire lost appendages in a period of months, and, in certain cases, more vital structures, such as tail, limb, central nervous system, and tissues of the eye and heart. They can even restore less vital parts of their brains. They can also readily accept transplants from other individuals, including eyes and parts of the brain\u2014restoring these alien organs to full functionality. "


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"In some cases, axolotls have been known to repair a damaged limb, as well as regenerating an additional one, ending up with an extra appendage that makes them attractive to pet owners as a novelty. In metamorphosed individuals, however, the ability to regenerate is greatly diminished. The axolotl is therefore used as a model for the development of limbs in vertebrates. There are three basic requirements for regeneration of the limb: the wound epithelium, nerve signaling, and the presence of cells from the different limb axes. A wound epidermis is quickly formed by the cells to cover up the site of the wound. In the following days, the cells of the wound epidermis divide and grow quickly forming a blastema, which means the wound is ready to heal and undergo patterning to form the new limb.\nIt is believed that during limb generation, axolotls have a different system to regulate their internal macrophage level and suppress inflammation, as scarring prevents proper healing and regeneration. However, this belief has been questioned by other studies. Axolotl\u2019s regenerative properties leave the species as the perfect model to study the process of stem cells and its own neoteny feature. "


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"Current research can record specific examples of these regenerative properties through tracking cell fates and behaviors, lineage tracing skin triploid cell grafts, pigmentation imaging, electroporation, tissue clearing and lineage tracing from dye labeling. The newer technologies of germline modification and transgenesis are better suited for live imaging the regenerative processes that occur for axolotls.\n\n=== Genome ===\nThe 32 billion base pair long sequence of the axolotl's genome was published in 2018 and was the largest animal genome completed at the time. It revealed species-specific genetic pathways that may be responsible for limb regeneration. Although the axolotl genome is about 10 times as large as the human genome, it encodes a similar number of proteins, namely 23,251 (the human genome encodes about 20,000 proteins). The size difference is mostly explained by a large fraction of repetitive sequences, but such repeated elements also contribute to increased median intron sizes (22,759 bp) which are 13, 16 and 25 times that observed in human (1,750 bp), mouse (1,469 bp) and Tibetan frog (906 bp), respectively.\n\n=== Neoteny ===\n\nWhen most amphibians are young, they live in water, and they use gills that can breathe in the water. "


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"When they become adults, they go through a process called metamorphosis, in which they lose their gills and start living on land. However, the axolotl is unusual in that it has a lack of thyroid stimulating hormone, which is needed for the thyroid to produce thyroxine in order for the axolotl to go through metamorphosis; therefore, it keeps its gills and lives in water all its life, even after it becomes an adult and is able to reproduce. Its body has the capacity to go through metamorphosis if given the necessary hormone, but axolotls do not produce it, and must be exposed to it from an external source, after which an axolotl undergoes an artificially-induced metamorphosis and begins living on land. One method of artificial metamorphosis induction is through an injection of iodine, which is used in the production of thyroid hormones.\nAn axolotl undergoing metamorphosis experiences a number of physiological changes that help them adapt to life on land. These include increased muscle tone in limbs, the absorption of gills and fins into the body, the development of eyelids, and a reduction in the skin's permeability to water, allowing the axolotl to stay more easily hydrated when on land. "


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"The lungs of an axolotl, though present alongside gills after reaching non-metamorphosed adulthood, develop further during metamorphosis.An axolotl that has gone through metamorphosis resembles an adult plateau tiger salamander, though the axolotl differs in its longer toes. The process of artificially inducing metamorphosis can often result in death during or even following a successful attempt, and so casual hobbyists are generally discouraged from attempting to induce metamorphosis in pet axolotls.Neoteny is the term for reaching sexual maturity without undergoing metamorphosis. Many other species within the axolotl's genus are also either entirely neotenic or have neotenic populations. Sirens and Necturus are other neotenic salamanders, although unlike axolotls, they cannot be induced to metamorphose by an injection of iodine or thyroxine hormone.\nThe genes responsible for neoteny in laboratory animals may have been identified; however, they are not linked in wild populations, suggesting artificial selection is the cause of complete neoteny in laboratory and pet axolotls.Six adult axolotls (including a leucistic specimen) were shipped from Mexico City to the Jardin des Plantes in Paris in 1863. Unaware of their neoteny, Auguste Dum\u00e9ril was surprised when, instead of the axolotl, he found in the vivarium a new species, similar to the salamander. "


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"This discovery was the starting point of research about neoteny. It is not certain that Ambystoma velasci specimens were not included in the original shipment. Vilem Laufberger in Prague used thyroid hormone injections to induce an axolotl to grow into a terrestrial adult salamander. The experiment was repeated by Englishman Julian Huxley, who was unaware the experiment had already been done, using ground thyroids. Since then, experiments have been done often with injections of iodine or various thyroid hormones used to induce metamorphosis.Neoteny has been observed in all salamander families in which it seems to be a survival mechanism, in aquatic environments only of mountain and hill, with little food and, in particular, with little iodine. In this way, salamanders can reproduce and survive in the form of a smaller larval stage, which is aquatic and requires a lower quality and quantity of food compared to the big adult, which is terrestrial. If the salamander larvae ingest a sufficient amount of iodine, directly or indirectly through cannibalism, they quickly begin metamorphosis and transform into bigger terrestrial adults, with higher dietary requirements. "


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"In fact, in some high mountain lakes there live dwarf forms of salmonids that are caused by deficiencies in food and, in particular, iodine, which causes cretinism and dwarfism due to hypothyroidism, as it does in humans.\n\n== Captive care ==\n\nThe axolotl is a popular exotic pet like its relative, the tiger salamander (Ambystoma tigrinum). As for all poikilothermic organisms, lower temperatures result in slower metabolism and a very unhealthily reduced appetite. Temperatures at approximately 16 \u00b0C (61 \u00b0F) to 18 \u00b0C (64 \u00b0F) are suggested for captive axolotls to ensure sufficient food intake; stress resulting from more than a day's exposure to lower temperatures may quickly lead to disease and death, and temperatures higher than 24 \u00b0C (75 \u00b0F) may lead to metabolic rate increase, also causing stress and eventually death. Chlorine, commonly added to tapwater, is harmful to axolotls. A single axolotl typically requires a 150-litre (40-US-gallon) tank. Axolotls spend the majority of the time at the bottom of the tank.\n\nSalts, such as Holtfreter's solution, are often added to the water to prevent infection.In captivity, axolotls eat a variety of readily available foods, including trout and salmon pellets, frozen or live bloodworms, earthworms, and waxworms. "


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"Axolotls can also eat feeder fish, but care should be taken as fish may contain parasites.Substrates are another important consideration for captive axolotls, as axolotls (like other amphibians and reptiles) tend to ingest bedding material together with food and are commonly prone to gastrointestinal obstruction and foreign body ingestion. Some common substrates used for animal enclosures can be harmful for amphibians and reptiles. Gravel (common in aquarium use) should not be used, and is recommended that any sand consists of smooth particles with a grain size of under 1mm. One guide to axolotl care for laboratories notes that bowel obstructions are a common cause of death, and recommends that no items with a diameter below 3 cm (or approximately the size of the animal's head) should be available to the animal.There is some evidence that axolotls might seek out appropriately-sized gravel for use as gastroliths based on experiments conducted at the University of Manitoba axolotl colony, but these studies are outdated and not conclusive. As there is no conclusive evidence pointing to gastrolith use, gravel should be avoided due to the high risk of impaction.\n\n"


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"== Cultural significance ==\nThe species is named after the Aztec deity Xolotl, who transformed himself into an axolotl. They continue to play an outsized cultural role in Mexico, and have appeared in cartoons and murals.In 2020, it was announced that the axolotl will be featured on the new design for Mexico's 50-peso banknote, along with images of maize and chinampas.\n\n== See also ==\nMudpuppies\nOlm\nTexas salamander\nTexas blind salamander\nLake Patzcuaro salamander\nBarred tiger salamander\nAmphibious fish\nHandfish\nRegenerative biomedicine\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links ==\n\nAmbystomatidae at Curlie\nFollow the Eggs, Hatchlings and Juveniles\nMating Dance and Laying Eggs\nFollow the Eggs and Hatchlings (2nd Batch)\nIndiana U Axolotl Colony\nUniversity of KY Axolotl Colony\nMystical amphibian venerated by Aztecs nears extinction\nThe animal that\u2019s everywhere and nowhere\n\"Axolotl\" . Encyclop\u00e6dia Britannica. Vol. 20 (11th ed.). 1911. p. 63.\n\"The Tao of Axolotl\" \u2013 thetolteciching.com; on folklore"


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"The blue-and-yellow macaw (Ara ararauna), also known as the blue-and-gold macaw, is a large South American parrot with mostly blue top parts and light orange underparts, with gradient hues of green on top of its head. It is a member of the large group of neotropical parrots known as macaws. It inhabits forest (especially varzea, but also in open sections of terra firme or unflooded forest), woodland and savannah of tropical South America. They are popular in aviculture because of their striking color, ability to talk, ready availability in the marketplace, and close bonding to humans. They can also live for 65\u201370 years.\n\n== Taxonomy ==\nThe blue-and-yellow macaw was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae. He placed it with all the other parrots in the genus Psittacus and coined the binomial name Psittacus ararauna. This macaw is now one of the eight extant species placed in the genus Ara that was erected in 1799 by the French naturalist Bernard Germain de Lac\u00e9p\u00e8de. The genus name is from ar\u00e1 meaning \"macaw\" in the Tupi language of Brazil. "


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"The word is an onomatopoeia based on the sound of their call. The specific epithet ararauna comes from the Tupi Ar\u00e1ra \u00fana meaning \"big dark parrot\" for the hyacinth macaw. The word ararauna had been used by the German naturalist Georg Marcgrave in 1648 in his Historia Naturalis Brasiliae. The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.\n\n== Description ==\nThese birds can reach a length of 76\u201386 cm (30\u201334 in) and weigh 0.900\u20131.5 kg (2\u20133 lb), making them some of the larger members of their family. They are vivid in appearance with bright aqua blue feathers on the top of their body except for the head, which is lime colored. The bottom, however, is a rich deep yellow/light orange. Their beak is black, as well as the feathers under their chin. Its feet are of a gray color, save for black talons. The bird has white skin, with its face having nearly no feathers beside a few black ones spaced apart from each other forming a striped pattern around the eyes. The irises are pale light yellow.\n"


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"Blue-and-yellow macaws can live from 30 to 35 years in the wild, and reach sexual maturity between the ages of 3 and 6 years.Little variation in plumage is seen across the range. Some birds have a more orange or \"butterscotch\" underside color, particularly on the breast. This was often seen in Trinidad birds and others of the Caribbean area. The blue-and-yellow macaw uses its powerful beak for breaking nutshells, and for climbing up and hanging from trees. As well as nuts, it will also feed on seeds, fruits, vegetable matter, bark and leaves, also insects, snails and small animals.\n\n== Distribution and habitat ==\nThis species occurs in Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Paraguay. The range extends slightly into Central America, where it is restricted to Panama. While most breed in rural and forested areas, small numbers breed in urban cities such as Rondon\u00f3polis (Mato Grosso, Brazil), nesting in dead palms planted for ornamental purposes alongside city roads. Although they were nearly wiped out in Trinidad due to human activity during the 1970s, a recent programme of reintroduction has proved successful. "


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"Between 1999 and 2003, wild-caught blue-and-yellow macaws were translocated from Guyana to Trinidad, in an attempt to re-establish the species in a protected area around Nariva Swamp; despite this, the IUCN still lists them as extirpated from the country. A small breeding population descended from introduced birds is found in Puerto Rico, and another has inhabited Miami-Dade County, Florida, since the mid-1980s.\n\n== Breeding ==\n\nThe blue-and-yellow macaw generally mates for life. They nest almost exclusively in dead palms and most nests are in Mauritia flexuosa palms. The female typically lays two or three eggs. The female incubates the eggs for about 28 days. One chick is dominant and gets most of the food; the others perish in the nest. Chicks fledge from the nest about 97 days after hatching. The male bird's color signals readiness for breeding. The brighter and bolder the colors, the better the chance of getting a mate.\n\n== Conservation and threats ==\nThe blue-and-yellow macaw is on the verge of being extirpated in Paraguay, but it still remains widespread and fairly common in a large part of mainland South America. The species is therefore listed as Least Concern by BirdLife International.  "


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"It is listed on CITES Appendix II, trade restricted. Its current wild population is estimated to be between 100,000 and 200,000 individuals.\n\n== Aviculture ==\nEven well-tended blue-and-yellow macaws are known to \"scream\" for attention, and make other loud noises. Loud vocalizations, especially \"flock calls\", and destructive chewing are natural parts of their behavior and should be expected in captivity. Due to their large size, they also require plentiful space in which to fly around. According to World Parrot Trust, an enclosure for a blue-and-yellow macaw should, if possible, be at least 15 m (50 ft) in length. Captive macaws, kept with good diet, exercise, and veterinary care are known to have lived 60 or more years. People considering a macaw as a companion parrot must be aware of this and consider that the bird may outlive the owner.\nThe blue-and-yellow macaw has been noted to blush its bare facial skin and fluff the feathers of its cheeks, head and nape when interacting with humans. This may be an expression of the parrot's emotional state.\n\n"


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"== Gallery ==\n\n== See also ==\nList of macaws\n\n== References ==\n\n== Further reading ==\nDoane, Bonnie Munro & Qualkinbush, Thomas (1994): My parrot, my friend : an owner's guide to parrot behavior. Howell Book House, New York. ISBN 0-87605-970-1\nHilty, Steven L. (2003): Birds of Venezuela. Christopher Helm, London. ISBN 0-7136-6418-5\nForshaw, J.M. Parrots of the World. New Jersey. T.F.H. Publications Inc. 1978. ISBN 0-87666-959-3\n\n== External links ==\n\nData related to Ara ararauna at Wikispecies\nWorld Parrot Trust Parrot Encyclopedia \u2013 Species Profile\nBlue-and-yellow macaw videos, photos & sounds on the Internet Bird Collection."


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"The Sumatran tiger is a population of Panthera tigris sondaica on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. It is the only surviving tiger population in the Sunda Islands, where the Bali and Javan tigers are extinct.Sequences from complete mitochondrial genes of 34 tigers support the hypothesis that Sumatran tigers are diagnostically distinct from mainland subspecies. In 2017, the Cat Classification Task Force of the Cat Specialist Group revised felid taxonomy and recognizes the living and extinct tiger populations in Indonesia as P. t. sondaica.\n\n== Taxonomy ==\n\nFelis tigris sondaicus was the scientific name proposed by Coenraad Jacob Temminck in 1844 for a tiger specimen from Java.Panthera tigris sumatrae was proposed by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1929, who described a skin and a skull of a tiger zoological specimen from Sumatra.\nThe skull and pelage pattern of tiger specimens from Java and Sumatra do not differ significantly.P. t. sondaica is therefore considered the valid name for the living and extinct tiger populations in Indonesia.\n\n"


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"== Evolution ==\nAnalysis of DNA is consistent with the hypothesis that Sumatran tigers became isolated from other tiger populations after a rise in sea level that occurred at the Pleistocene to Holocene border about 12,000\u20136,000 years ago. In agreement with this evolutionary history, the Sumatran tiger is genetically isolated from all living mainland tigers, which form a distinct group closely related to each other. The isolation of the Sumatran tiger from mainland tiger populations is supported by multiple unique characters, including two diagnostic mitochondrial DNA nucleotide sites, ten mitochondrial DNA haplotypes and 11 out of 108 unique microsatellite alleles. The relatively high genetic variability and the phylogenetic distinctiveness of the\u2002Sumatran tiger indicates that the gene flow between island and mainland populations was highly restricted.\n\n== Characteristics ==\nThe Sumatran tiger was described based on two zoological specimens that differed in skull size and striping pattern from Bengal and Javan tiger specimens. It is darker in fur colour and has broader stripes than the Javan tiger. Stripes tend to dissolve into spots near their ends, and on the back, flanks and hind legs are lines of small, dark spots between the regular stripes. "


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"The frequency of stripes is higher than in other subspecies.\nMales have a prominent ruff, which is especially marked in the Sumatran tiger.The Sumatran tiger is one of the smallest tigers. Males measure between the pegs 2.2 to 2.55 m (87 to 100 in) in head-to-body length, with the greatest skull length of 295 to 335 mm (11.6 to 13.2 in) and weigh 100 to 140 kg (220 to 310 lb). Females weigh 75 to 110 kg (165 to 243 lb) and measure 2.15 to 2.30 m (85 to 91 in) in length between the pegs with a greatest length of skull of 263 to 294 mm (10.4 to 11.6 in).\n\n== Distribution and habitat ==\nThe Sumatran tiger persists in small and fragmented populations across Sumatra, from sea level in the coastal lowland forest of Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park on the southeastern tip of Lampung Province to 3,200 m (10,500 ft) in mountain forests of Gunung Leuser National Park in Aceh Province. It is present in 27 habitat patches larger than 250 km2 (97 sq mi), which cover 140,226 km2 (54,142 sq mi). "


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"About a third of these patches are inside protected areas.Sumatran tigers prefer lowland and hill forests, where up to three tigers live in an area of 100 km2 (39 sq mi). They use non-forest habitats and human-dominated landscapes at the fringes of protected areas to a lesser degree.In 1978, the Sumatran tiger population was estimated at 1,000 individuals, based on responses to a questionnaire survey. In 1985, a total of 26 protected areas across Sumatra containing about 800 tigers were identified. In 1992, an estimated 400\u2013500 tigers lived in five Sumatran national parks and two protected areas. At that time, the largest population unit comprised 110\u2013180 individuals in Gunung Leuser National Park.\nAs of 2011, the tiger population in Kerinci Seblat National Park in central Sumatra comprised 165\u2013190 individuals, which is more than anywhere else on the island. The park has the highest tiger occupancy rate of Sumatra's protected areas, with 83% of the park showing signs of tigers.Sumatra's total tiger population was estimated at 618\u2009\u00b1\u2009290 individuals in 2017.\n\n== Ecology and behaviour ==\n\nSumatran tigers strongly prefer uncultivated forests and make little use of plantations of acacia and oil palm even if these are available. "


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"Within natural forest areas, they tend to use areas with higher elevation, lower annual rainfall, farther from the forest edge, and closer to forest centres. They prefer forest with dense understory cover and steep slope, and they strongly avoid forest areas with high human influence in the forms of encroachment and settlement. In acacia plantations, they tend to use areas closer to water and prefer areas with older plants, more leaf litter, and thicker subcanopy cover. Tiger records in oil palm plantations and rubber plantations are scarce. The availability of adequate vegetation cover at the ground level serves as an environmental condition fundamentally needed by tigers regardless of the location. Without adequate understory cover, tigers are even more vulnerable to persecution by humans. Human disturbance-related variables negatively affect tiger occupancy and habitat use. Variables with strong impacts include settlement and encroachment within forest areas, logging, and the intensity of maintenance in acacia plantations.Camera trapping surveys conducted in southern Riau revealed an extremely low abundance of potential prey and a low tiger density in peat swamp forest areas. "


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"Repeated sampling in the newly established Tesso Nilo National Park documented a trend of increasing tiger density from 0.90 individuals per 100 km2 (39 sq mi) in 2005 to 1.70 individuals per 100 km2 (39 sq mi) in 2008.In the Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park, nine prey species larger than 1 kg (2.2 lb) of body weight were identified including great argus, pig-tailed macaque, Malayan porcupine, Malayan tapir, banded pig, greater and lesser mouse-deer, Indian muntjac, and Sambar deer.\n\n== Threats ==\n\nMajor threats include habitat loss due to expansion of palm oil plantations and planting of acacia plantations, prey-base depletion, and illegal trade primarily for the domestic market.Tigers need large contiguous forest blocks to thrive. Between 1985 and 1999, forest loss within Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park averaged 2% per year. A total of 661 km2 (255 sq mi) of forest disappeared inside the park, and 318 km2 (123 sq mi) were lost in a 10-km buffer, eliminating forest outside the park. Lowland forest disappeared faster than montane forest, and forests on gentle slopes disappeared faster than forests on steep slopes. "


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"Most forest conversions resulted from agricultural development, leading to predictions that by 2010, 70% of the park will be in agriculture. Camera-trap data indicated avoidance of forest boundaries by tigers. Classification of forest into core and peripheral forest based on mammal distribution suggests that by 2010, core forest area for tigers will be fragmented and reduced to 20% of the remaining forest.Sumatra's largest tiger population in Kerinci Seblat National Park is threatened by a high rate of deforestation in its outer regions. Drivers are an unsustainable demand for natural resources created by a human population with the highest rate of growth in Indonesia, and a government initiative to increase tree-crop plantations and high-intensity commercial logging, which ultimately leads to forest fires. The majority of the tigers found in the park were relocated to its center where conservation efforts are focused, but issues in the lowland hill forests of the outskirts remain. While being a highly suitable tiger habitat, these areas are also heavily targeted by logging efforts, which substantially contributes to declines in local tiger numbers.The expansion of plantations is increasing greenhouse gas emissions, playing a part in anthropogenic climate change, thus further adding to environmental pressures on endangered species. "


id: a5f412ea3d845a7f1e8104cd778ed16c
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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"Climate-based movement of tigers northwards may lead to increased conflict with people. From 1987 to 1997, Sumatran tigers reportedly killed 146 people and at least 870 livestock. In West Sumatra, Riau, and Aceh, a total of 128 incidents were reported; 265 tigers were killed and 97 captured in response, and 35 more tigers were killed from 1998 to 2002. From 2007 to 2010, the tigers caused the death of 9 humans and 25 further tigers were killed.In 1997, an estimated 53 tigers were killed by poachers and their parts sold throughout most of northern Sumatra. Numbers for all of Sumatra are likely to be higher. Farmers killed many of the tigers to prevent livestock losses. They sold them to gold and souvenir shops, and pharmacies. In 2006, wildlife markets were surveyed in 28 cities and nine seaports in seven Sumatran provinces; 33 of 326 retail outlets offered tiger parts like skins, canines, bones, and whiskers. Tiger bones fetched the highest average price of US$116 per kg, followed by canines. There is evidence that tiger parts are smuggled out of Indonesia. "


id: 2ed2b93194e85adab7574d70ba2f9859
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
updated_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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vector_id: 321
content:
"In July 2005, over 140 kg (310 lb) of tiger bones and 24 skulls were confiscated in Taiwan in a shipment from Jakarta.In 2013\u20132014, Kerinci Seblat National Park experienced an upsurge in poaching, with the highest annual number of snare traps being removed for a patrol effort similar to previous years. Evidence is scarce and misunderstood on whether the strategies implemented to diminish poaching are succeeding despite the investment of millions of dollars annually into conservation strategies.\n\n== Conservation ==\n\nPanthera tigris is listed on CITES Appendix I. Hunting is prohibited in Indonesia.In 1994, the Indonesian Sumatran Tiger Conservation Strategy addressed the potential crisis that tigers faced in Sumatra. The Sumatran Tiger Project (STP) was initiated in June 1995 in and around the Way Kambas National Park to ensure the long-term viability of wild Sumatran tigers and to accumulate data on tiger life-history characteristics vital for the management of wild populations. By August 1999, the teams of the STP had evaluated 52 sites of potential tiger habitat in Lampung Province, of which only 15 were intact enough to contain tigers. "


id: 9fe06bb797e7c22c005f71646ad4947d
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
updated_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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content:
"In the framework of the STP, a community-based conservation programme was initiated to document the tiger-human dimension in the park to enable conservation authorities to resolve tiger-human conflicts based on a comprehensive database rather than anecdotes and opinions.In 2007, the Indonesian Forestry Ministry and Safari Park established cooperation with the Australia Zoo for the conservation of Sumatran tigers and other endangered species. The program includes conserving Sumatran tigers and other endangered species in the wild, efforts to reduce conflicts between tigers and humans, and rehabilitating Sumatran tigers and reintroducing them to their natural habitat.\nIndonesia's struggle with conservation has caused an upsurge in political momentum to protect and conserve wildlife and biodiversity. In 2009, Indonesia's president committed to substantially reduce deforestation, and policies across the nation requiring spatial plans that would be environmentally sustainable at national, provincial, and district levels.Between 2005 and 2015, about US$210 million have been invested into tiger law-enforcement activities that support forest ranger patrols, as well as the implementations of front-line law-enforcement activities by the Global Tiger Recovery Plan, which aims to double the number of wild tigers by 2020.\n"


id: 14d474d0b12fd3947a1d721d7d8a9cfd
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
updated_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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index: document
vector_id: 55
content:
"In November 2016, Batu Nanggar Sanctuary was opened in North Padang Lawas Regency, North Sumatra\nfor conservation of Sumatran wildlife.An interview survey among 600 consumers revealed that most were willing to pay consistently more for a \"tiger-friendly\" produced good if this product would be conducive to Sumatran tiger conservation.\n\n=== In captivity ===\n\nAs of 2013, about 375 captive Sumatran tigers were listed in the global studbook and management plan, with 50 of them housed in 14 zoos in Australia and New Zealand. All of them were offspring of 15 founders. Fourteen cubs showed congenital vestibular system dysfunctions such as ataxia, strabismus, nystagmus, head tilting and falling that resolved when they were two years old. The cause for this disorder is most likely their close genetic relation and inbreeding.\n\n== See also ==\n\n== References ==\n\n== External links ==\n\n\"Species portrait Panthera tigris\". International Union for Conservation of Nature/SSC Cat Specialist Group. Archived from the original on 2014-11-12. and \"short portrait P. t. sumatrae\". International Union for Conservation of Nature/SSC Cat Specialist Group. Archived from the original on 2014-12-13.\n\"Sumatran Tiger Trust Conservation Program\". World Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Archived from the original on 2015-03-01.\n"


id: f2b81a49f650205d507f4116dbfeefcb
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
updated_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
content_type: text
index: document
vector_id: 2341
content:
"\"Tiger Facts \u2212 Sumatran Tiger\". The Tiger Foundation. Archived from the original on 2013-12-31.\nOverweight captive Sumatran tiger (338 lb (153 kg)) at the National Zoological Park (United States)\nIndonesia races to catch tiger alive as villagers threaten to \u2018kill the beast\u2019"


id: cd9205af2802930d33f8d2e4a8970b43
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
updated_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
content_type: text
index: document
vector_id: 1947
content:
"The golden pheasant (Chrysolophus pictus), also known as the Chinese pheasant, and rainbow pheasant, is a gamebird of the order Galliformes (gallinaceous birds) and the family Phasianidae (pheasants). The genus name is from Ancient Greek khrusolophos, \"with golden crest\", and pictus is Latin for \"painted\" from pingere, \"to paint\".\n\n== Description ==\nIt is native to forests in mountainous areas of western China, but feral populations have been established in the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, the Falkland Islands, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. In England they may be found in East Anglia in the dense forest landscape of the Breckland as well as Tresco on the Isles of Scilly.\nThe adult male is 90\u2013105 cm (35\u201341 in) in length, its tail accounting for two-thirds of the total length. It is unmistakable with its golden crest and rump and bright red body. The deep orange \"cape\" can be spread in display, appearing as an alternating black and orange fan that covers all of the face except its bright yellow eye with a pinpoint black pupil.\n\n"


id: b31b36db04376decbc39ad974588d73c
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
updated_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
content_type: text
index: document
vector_id: 1680
content:
"Males have a golden-yellow crest with a hint of red at the tip. The face, throat, chin, and the sides of neck are rusty tan. The wattles and orbital skin are both yellow in colour, and the ruff or cape is light orange. The upper back is green and the rest of the back and rump is golden-yellow. The tertiaries are blue whereas the scapulars are dark red. Other characteristics of the male plumage are the central tail feathers, black spotted with cinnamon, as well as the tip of the tail being a cinnamon buff. The upper tail coverts are the same colour as the central tail feathers. The male also has a scarlet breast, and scarlet and light chestnut flanks and underparts. Lower legs and feet are a dull yellow.\nThe female (hen) is much less showy, with a duller mottled brown plumage similar to that of the female common pheasant. She is darker and more slender than the hen of that species, with a proportionately shorter tail (half her 60\u201380 cm (24\u201331 in) length). The female's breast and sides are barred buff and blackish brown, and the abdomen is plain buff. She has a buff face and throat. "


id: 86d8245fb7009d06a6b5742366c82583
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
updated_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
content_type: text
index: document
vector_id: 1257
content:
"Some abnormal females may later in their lifetime get some male plumage. Lower legs and feet are a dull yellow.\nBoth males and females have yellow legs and yellow bills.\nThey feed on the ground on grain, leaves and invertebrates, but they roost in trees at night. During winter, flocks tend to forage close to human settlements at the edge of forest, taking primarily wheat leaves and seeds. While they can fly clumsily in short bursts, they prefer to run and spend most of their time on the ground. This type of flying is commonly known as \"flapping flight\" and is due to a lack of a deep layer of M. pectoralis pars thoracicus and the tendon that attaches to it. This muscle is commonly attributed to the stabilization of flight in other birds; however, the absence of this deep layer causes this mode of \"flapping flight\" is simply a mechanism that it shares with other ground birds in order to escape predators. However, they would rather prefer to simply run away and hide from their predators rather than to fly. If startled, they can suddenly burst upwards at great speed and with a distinctive wing sound.\n"


id: 822cf1800febc638c9b1ae7b46a075d6
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
updated_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
content_type: text
index: document
vector_id: 1204
content:
"Golden pheasants lay 8 to 12 eggs at a time and will then incubate these for around 22\u201323 days. They tend to eat berries, grubs, seeds and other types of vegetation.\nThe male has a metallic call in the breeding season.\nThe golden pheasant is commonly found in zoos and aviaries, but often as hybrid specimens that have the similar Lady Amherst's pheasant in their lineage.\nThere are also different mutations of the golden pheasant known from birds in captivity, including the dark-throated, yellow, cinnamon, salmon, peach, splash, mahogany and silver. In aviculture, the wild type is referred to as \"red-golden\" to differentiate it from these mutations.\nThe coloration in the feathers can be an indication to the genetic quality of the male golden pheasant. hue, brightness, and chroma are usually measured to see color differences. results show that heterozygosity of the most polymorphic major histocompatibility complex locus was highly related with the chroma and brightness of the feathers.\n\n== Gallery ==\n\n== See also ==\n\nList of endangered and protected species of China\n\n== References =="


id: 216c51a2a67c89e292623464441d06b8
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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vector_id: 180
content:
"The Komodo dragon (Varanus komodoensis), also known as the Komodo monitor, is a member of the monitor lizard family Varanidae that is endemic to the Indonesian islands of Komodo, Rinca, Flores, and Gili Motang. It is the largest extant species of lizard, growing to a maximum length of 3 metres (10 ft), and weighing up to 70 kilograms (150 lb).\nAs a result of their size, Komodo dragons are apex predators, and dominate the ecosystems in which they live. Komodo dragons hunt and ambush prey including invertebrates, birds, and mammals. It has been claimed that they have a venomous bite; there are two glands in the lower jaw that secrete several toxic proteins. The biological significance of these proteins is disputed, but the glands have been shown to secrete an anticoagulant. Komodo dragons' group behavior in hunting is exceptional in the reptile world. The diet of Komodo dragons mainly consists of Javan rusa (Rusa timorensis), though they also eat considerable amounts of carrion. Komodo dragons also occasionally attack humans.\n"


id: 7bdbd55612874ae2abd2909051c392d7
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
updated_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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vector_id: 1137
content:
"Mating begins between May and August, and the eggs are laid in September; as many as 20 eggs are deposited at a time in an abandoned megapode nest or in a self-dug nesting hole. The eggs are incubated for seven to eight months, hatching in April, when insects are most plentiful. Young Komodo dragons are vulnerable and dwell in trees to avoid predators, such as cannibalistic adults. They take 8 to 9 years to mature and are estimated to live up to 30 years.\nKomodo dragons were first recorded by Western scientists in 1910. Their large size and fearsome reputation make them popular zoo exhibits. In the wild, their range has contracted due to human activities, and is likely to contract further from the effects of climate change; due to this, they are listed as Endangered by the IUCN Red List. They are protected under Indonesian law, and Komodo National Park was founded in 1980 to aid protection efforts.\n\n== Taxonomic history ==\n\nKomodo dragons were first documented by Europeans in 1910, when rumors of a \"land crocodile\" reached Lieutenant van Steyn van Hensbroek of the Dutch colonial administration. "


id: 5d2823018ec04e284d923f4f13e72006
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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index: document
vector_id: 809
content:
"Widespread notoriety came after 1912, when Peter Ouwens, the director of the Zoological Museum of Bogor, Java, published a paper on the topic after receiving a photo and a skin from the lieutenant, as well as two other specimens from a collector.The first two live Komodo dragons to arrive in Europe were exhibited in the Reptile House at London Zoo when it opened in 1927. Joan Beauchamp Procter made some of the earliest observations of these animals in captivity and she demonstrated their behaviour at a Scientific Meeting of the Zoological Society of London in 1928.The Komodo dragon was the driving factor for an expedition to Komodo Island by W. Douglas Burden in 1926. After returning with 12 preserved specimens and two live ones, this expedition provided the inspiration for the 1933 movie King Kong. It was also Burden who coined the common name \"Komodo dragon\". Three of his specimens were stuffed and are still on display in the American Museum of Natural History.The Dutch island administration, realizing the limited number of individuals in the wild, soon outlawed sport hunting and heavily limited the number of individuals taken for scientific study. "


id: 5cc3449024ce23e153963b8522c48459
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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vector_id: 804
content:
"Collecting expeditions ground to a halt with the occurrence of World War II, not resuming until the 1950s and 1960s, when studies examined the Komodo dragon's feeding behavior, reproduction, and body temperature. At around this time, an expedition was planned in which a long-term study of the Komodo dragon would be undertaken. This task was given to the Auffenberg family, who stayed on Komodo Island for 11 months in 1969. During their stay, Walter Auffenberg and his assistant Putra Sastrawan captured and tagged more than 50 Komodo dragons.Research from the Auffenberg expedition proved to be enormously influential in raising Komodo dragons in captivity. Research after that of the Auffenberg family has shed more light on the nature of the Komodo dragon, with biologists such as Claudio Ciofi continuing to study the creatures.\n\n=== Etymology ===\n\nThe Komodo dragon is also sometimes known as the Komodo monitor or the Komodo Island monitor in scientific literature, although this name is uncommon. To the natives of Komodo Island, it is referred to as ora, buaya darat ('land crocodile'), or biawak raksasa ('giant monitor').\n\n"


id: 1ab47dae83dc4e18dda16bab4c1e7c65
created_at: 2022-12-12 16:43:08
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vector_id: 115
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"=== Evolutionary history ===\nThe evolutionary development of the Komodo dragon started with the genus Varanus, which originated in Asia about 40 million years ago and migrated to Australia, where it evolved into giant forms (the largest of all being the recently extinct Varanus priscus, or \"Megalania\"), helped by the absence of competing placental carnivorans. Around 15 million years ago, a collision between the continental landmasses of Australia and Southeast Asia allowed these larger varanids to move back into what is now the Indonesian archipelago, extending their range as far east as the island of Timor.\nThe Komodo dragon is believed to have differentiated from its Australian ancestors about 4 million years ago. However, fossil evidence from Queensland suggests the Komodo dragon actually evolved in Australia, before spreading to Indonesia.Dramatic lowering of sea level during the last glacial period uncovered extensive stretches of continental shelf that the Komodo dragon colonised, becoming isolated in their present island range as sea levels rose afterwards. "


