|  Splendid Fairywren - Nature's Romeo  | The splendid fairywren (Malurus splendens) is a small breed of bird in the passerine family. Orginally the bird game from Western Australia, though they now live around the country, as far west as New South Wales and as far south as Queensland. Unlike other birds however, the splendid fairywren is not found of humans and are often only found in areas where there are lots of vegetation to protect them.
When many people think of this breed of bird, they automatically think of a small bright blue creature, similar to the blue jay. This is only partly true. While the male splendid fairywren is bright blue in color, this only happens during breeding. Normally the non-breeding male birds are brown in color, with a blue tail and ears. When the birds are ready to mate, both male and female molt, with males showing their new blue shade. If this alone isn't enough to impress the ladies, male birds have also been known to bring the female flowers. It's not uncommon to see a male gathering pink and purple flower petals to bring home to the females. This is usually done most around mating season, though it's not uncommon for males to do this year round, even while not breeding.
Male splendid fairywren continue this act of wooing the females, even while hunting for food. Like most birds, feed upon small insects, such as ants and spiders. They may also eat bird or flower seeds if they're around, but since these birds dislike human surroundings, they usually make due with what is found in nature. Once this food is found, both male and female will return home to rest and cuddle.
When it comes time to breed, usually in late August through January, the female splendid fairywren builds a round dome like nest out of grass and spiderwebs. These nests are often built close to the ground, but in heavily concealed locations, such as Hakea shrubs. This is to protect them from their main predators of bigger birds, including the gray butcherbirds, kookaburras, ravens and magpies. These birds commonly feed upon the splendid fairywren, though it's not uncommon for the male fairywren to distract the predators in an effort to protect the female.
Unlike most animals, splendid fairywren are socially monogamous. Once a male and a female have fallen in love, they will stay together until they die. Despite this romantic nature, females have no problem being sexually promiscuous, often mating with other males during the breeding season. Two to four eggs are usually laid during the breeding process, with incubation period for the eggs being around two weeks.
Once the babies are born, it is the males, not the females, who raise them. There are usually several male birds who work together to raise the young. While only one of these birds is the biological dad, the males don't seem to mind. The female splendid fairywren on the other hand, watches from afar, assisting only occasionally.
Despite this breeds dislike of humans and their struggles to adjust to urban areas, they're doing well and are currently under no threat of becoming endangered anytime soon. In fact, the splendid fairywren currently ranks "Least Concern" on the conservation status scale, which is the highest any animal can rank.
Picture of the splendid fairywren by Aviceda, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. | Read More » Diana Monkeys - The Most Heedful of All African Monkeys  | The Diana Monkey (Cercopithecus Diana) is among the highly endangered species. Among all African monkeys, the Diana monkey is the least known. Its body is medium sized with long legs and a slim built. Length of an adult male body is about 20.07 to 24.40 inches (51 to 62 cm) while the female adult body is 16.53 to 17.71 inches (42 to 45 cm) long. Its long tail is often curved in the shape of a question mark sign. Length of a male tail is 29.92 to 35.43 inches (76 to 90 cm) and that of a female tail is 20.47 to 28.74 inches (52 to 73 cm). It has a black face consisting of a white brow line, beard, and cheeks. The inner side of its arms and the frond part of its chest are also in white, while its tail, belly, and outer limbs have a covering of black fur. It has a prominent white stripe running diagonally down its outer thighs and its rump bears cream or red fur. Although size of males is significantly bigger than that of females, both genders have more or less similar appearance. Weight of an adult male monkey is about 11.02 to 11.9 pounds (5 to 5.4 kg) while the female adult body weighs about 8.81 to 11.02 pounds (4 to 5 kg).
The Diana Monkey is generally found in Liberia, West Africa, Sierra Leone, and the Ivory Coast. Common habitats of this threatened primate include primary and a few secondary rainforests as also semi-deciduous and gallery forests.
The Diana monkeys are arboreal in nature and prefer staying in high canopy forests where it is possible for them to rummage during the daytime for leaves, fruits, and insects. They are mostly seen in large groups composed of 5-50 individuals. These groups consist of one male and several females (generally 10) and their young ones. A well-know fact about diurnal primates is their tendency to live in groups as their main defense strategy. Groups can ensure safety to a large extent, since it is easier for individuals to alert other group members whenever they sense any danger. However, this behavior is noticed most frequently and in the most organized manner in Diana monkeys who are so vigilant that members of other primate varieties come to stay with them to derive maximum benefit from their observant eyes.
Breeding in Diana monkeys occurs all round the year. The gestation period lasts for six months and the female gives birth to a single young one after every six months.
Main subpopulations of this species are found in Liberia, where two civil wars have prohibited the execution of any comprehensive survey on the status and distribution of Diana monkeys. Estimates show that as much as 50% population of Diana monkeys from this country alone have probably died out as a result of hunting over the past three generations. Apart from hunting, this primate is also suffering dramatically because of lack of any wildlife protection, the increasing requirement for food, and the continued accessibility of firearms in Liberia and other countries.
Picture of the Diana Monkey by Andrew Gray, licensed under GFDL | Read More » The Squirrel Glider - a gliding flyer  | The squirrel glider (Petaurus norfolcensis) is a gliding mammal, somewhat similar to a possum, with a skin membrane covered with fur stretching between its front and hind legs. It's of the marsupial family Petauridae, and is one of the wrist-winged gliders of the genus Petaurus. The squirrel glider is very similar in appearance to the sugar glider, a smaller relative. Its upper side is a pearl-grey hue and its underside is white. This glider also has a black line from between its eyes down to its lower back. The tail is very long and bushy, with a grey color shading to black at the tip.
The squirrel glider is not a large animal, measuring in at 48 cm (18.9 inches). Of that length, 28 cm (11 inches) belongs to the tail, thus making the tail longer than the body. The weight of an adult averages about 230 grams, or approximately 8 oz (0.5 lbs).
The squirrel glider is able to glide from tree to tree, sometimes even at distances up to 50 meters, or about 164 feet. Generally, they glide shorter distances, though. This enables the glider to avoid predators they would otherwise meet on the ground. Not only can this animal glide using its skin membrane, it can also use its long tail to hold on to branches. However, the tail usually acts as a rudder when the animal is gliding.
The squirrel glider is a nocturnal creature, very active in foraging at night. It typically feeds on such things as tree sap, especially from eucalypt or Red Bloodwood trees; to obtain the sap, the glider gashes the tree trunk with its sharp teeth, causing the sap to flow. The glider also enjoys pollen and nectar from flowering shrubs and trees, as well as insects scavenged from flowers, leaves, and bark.
The squirrel glider nests in tree hollows padded with leaves. It tends to live in family groups comprised of about 9 members, usually one mature male with 2 females and offspring. The gliders breed between June and January, producing one or two offspring each year, which are weaned after 4 months and are independent by 10 months. Gliders live from 4-6 years in the wild.
The squirrel glider is endemic, or unique, to Australia, and is found particularly in eastern Australia. Though sparsely distributed, the squirrel glider is found from western Victoria to northern Queensland. It prefers habitats such as mature River Red gum forest and Box or Box-Ironbark woodlands which lie west of the Great Dividing Range, as well as Bloodwood forests in the coastal areas. It also favors mixed eucalypt forests with an acacia understory. The glider needs well-connected, lush tree canopies for gliding amongst.
The squirrel glider isn't an endangered species, but is threatened by various human activities such as clearing or breaking up of habitats, such as areas where roads cut through forest canopies and gliding distances are too great. Losing old-growth, mature, hollow-bearing trees also imperils the glider. The squirrel glider has predators such as owls, foxes, cats and dogs. | Read More » | |
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