Horseshoe Crab

Horseshoe crabs, common along the Delaware coast, have evolved little in the last 250 million years. Still, they have survived because of their hard, curved shells, which have made it difficult for predators to overturn them and expose their soft, vulnerable underbellies. The horseshoe crab has also survived because it can go a year

without eating and endure extreme temperatures and salinity.The Delaware Bay region is home to the largest population of the American horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus),which is found along the western shores of the Atlantic Ocean from Maine to the Yucatan. Another three species live in the coastal waters from Japan to Indonesia.Once called "Horsefoot Crabs" because of the resemblance of its shell to a horse hoof, the Horseshoe Crab isn't really a crab. Related to scorpions, ticks and land spiders, horseshoe crabs have their own classification (Class Merostomata).
Horseshoe crabs, common along the Delaware coast, have evolved little in the last 250 million years. Still, they have survived because of their hard, curved shells, which have made it difficult for predators to overturn them and expose their soft, vulnerable underbellies. The horseshoe crab has also survived because it can go a year
without eating and endure extreme temperatures and salinity.The Delaware Bay region is home to the largest population of the American horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus), which is found along the western shores of the Atlantic Ocean from Maine to the Yucatan. Another three species live in the coastal waters from Japan to Indonesia.Once called "Horsefoot Crabs" because of the resemblance of its shell to a horse hoof, the Horseshoe Crab isn't really a crab. Related to scorpions, ticks and land spiders, horseshoe crabs have their own classification (Class Merostomata).Click here to visit a new website from the University or Delaware College of Marine Studies devoted to the Horseshoe Crab.

Each spring during the high tides of the new and full moons, thousands of horseshoe crabs descend on the Delaware Bay shoreline to spawn.
Males, two-thirds the size of their mates, cluster along the water's edge as the females arrive. With glove-like claws on its first pair of legs, the male hangs on to the female's shell and is pulled up the beach to the high tide line.
The female pauses every few feet to dig a hole and deposit as many as 20,000 pearly green, birdshot-sized eggs. The male then fertilizes the eggs as he is pulled over the nest. After the spawning is complete, the crabs leave and the waves wash sand over the nest.

Walruses

Type:Mammal

Diet:Carnivore

Average life span in the wild:Up to 40 years

Size:7.25 to 11.5 ft (2.2 to 3.5 m)

Weight:Upto1.5 tons (1.4 metric tons)

Group name:Herd

Protection status:Endangered

Habitat:Russia,coastal areas from northeastern to Alaska.          

                                                                                                                                       

                

 Appearance-The Walrus's skin is dark brown and wrinkled with little stiff hairs sticking out.Young calves usually have more hair then adults. A walrus's skin is very tough and thick and a polar bear must work very hard to chew through the skin of a dead walrus for food. Walruses molt their skin. Walrus tusks can be very big. Male tusks can be up to 4 ft. and females can be up to 2 ft. Adult males weigh 900 kg. and measure about 3.1m. Female adults weigh about 560 kg. and measure about 2.6m. The Pacific walrus is slightly bigger than the Atlantic. A Walrus is actually an overgrown seal.Walruses are surrounded with wiskers and they smell their food around them with their whiskers. A walruses eyes are very small and it's head looks like it's too big for it's body.

Habitat-Most walruses live in the Alaskan Sea, the Chuckuchi Sea, Bristol Bay, the Bering Sea, the Atlantic and Pacific Sea, the Arctic Sea, Rocky shores, icefloats and icecaps. Most walruses migrate in the spring and fall so they can follow the food.

Grizzly Bear

The range of the grizzly bear once covered most of the western United States, Canada, and Mexico. Relentless human expansion and hunting has diminished the bears habitat to Alaska, western Canada, and a handful of northwest states. In the United States there are grizzly bears in reserves in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming and Washington.Grizzly bear habitat includes a wide range of territories. They can be found in valleys, brush meadows, mountains, and dense forests. They also live near rivers and coastal areas since they like fish.

The grizzly bear is a North American subspecies of the brown bear.These awe-inspiring giants tend to be solitary animals—with the exception of females and their cubs—but at times they do congregate. Dramatic gatherings of grizzly bears can be seen at prime Alaskan fishing spots when the salmon run upstream for summer spawning. In this season, dozens of bears may gather to feast on the fish, craving fats that will sustain them through the long winter ahead.Brown bears dig dens for winter hibernation, often holing up in a suitable-looking hillside. Females give birth during this winter rest and their offspring are often twins.

Grizzly bears are powerful, top-of-the-food-chain predators, yet much of their diet consists of nuts, berries, fruit, leaves, and roots. Bears also eat other animals, from rodents to moose.Grizzlies are typically brown, though their fur can appear to be white-tipped, or grizzled, lending them their traditional name.
Despite their impressive size, grizzlies are quite fast and have been clocked at 30 miles (48 kilometers) an hour. They can be dangerous to humans, particularly if surprised or if humans come between a mother and her cubs. Grizzly bear paw prints will have partial or full nail prints with the tips measuring up to 4 inches. The print of the base will be more oval versus a rounded base.

Bird of Paradies Part-1

 There are more than three dozen species in the family Paradisaeidae, more commonly known as the birds of paradiseMost are distinguished by striking colors and bright plumage of yellow, blue, scarlet, and green. These colors distinguish them as some of the world's most dramatic and attractive birds. The facts about these birds are as extra-ordinarily as their mythology. All in all there are 43 species and they live in the remote mountainous jungle of New Guinea. Any self-respecting highlanders used these feathers for his or hers decoration. Scientist think they are distance cousins of starlings. Their sizes are from thrush to crow.These birds also lend their name to a colorful flower. South Africa's bird-of-paradise (Strelitzia reginae) is a member of the banana family. It sports a beautiful flower believed to resemble the avian bird of paradise in flight.The name 'Birds of Paradise' came from the idea that they floated in heavenly paradise and therefore don't need any wings or limbs. Because the birds were so illusive that they were only found when they died and fell to earth. That is when the highlanders of New Guinea found the birds, hence the belief. A further reason gave the belief credibility that the highlanders presented the birds with the feathers on the skin and no wings . These birds are rarely seen and especially when they display their plumes in courtship.Birds of paradise are found in New Guinea and surrounding islands. The manucodes and riflebirds species also dwell in Australia. Birds of paradise are so attractive that their appearance once made them the target of skin hunters, who decimated some species.

Colossal squid

Colossal Squid,is also known as the Giant Cranch or Antartic Squid.Measuring longer than a school bus it measured around 26 feet (8 meters) long and weighed about 1,000 pounds (450 kilograms), but scientists believe the species may grow as long as 46 feet (14 meters),Sporting tentacles covered in razor-sharp hooks, the colossal squid is the stuff of nightmares. However, new research suggests the enormous sea creature may not be the fierce hunter of legend.Colossal squid lives some 3,000 to 6,000 feet (914 to 1,830 meters) beneath the Antarctic sea.

Squid is a effective predator:-The colossal squid is a predator, and it hovers in the dark depths of the ocean looking for prey. We know that colossal squid eat toothfish the squid on display was hauled up on a toothfish, still attached to the fish it had been eating. Toothfish caught on longlines often show signs of squid damage. Adult toothfish can grow up to two metres long, so the colossal squid is clearly a capable hunter, even in the dark.

Neither Lion nor Tiger but LIGER, Confused?

The liger is a big cat born from the cross breeding of a male lion and a female tiger. This combination produces an offspring with more lionistic features than if the reverse pairing had occured. That would produce a more tigeristic creature known as a tigon. Both are members of genus Panthera.There is no scientific name assigned to this animal because of it’s human assisted ancestory.

A liger looks like a giant lion with muted stripes but like thier tiger ancestors, ligers like swimming. This goes against the nature of a lion but is what makes creature special. It gets the best of both parents. That is not always the case though with crossbreeds. Sometimes the results go the other way and the animal gets the worst of both parents. That would suck! Enjoy the site and I hope you fall in love with the liger, even if you don’t agree with the science… remember it’s not the liger’s fault.

Male ligers are sterile but female ligers can reproduce. The 10 feet Liger who’s still growing…

On a typical day he will devour 20lb of meat, usually beef or chicken, and is capable of eating 100lb at a single setting.Ligers are not able to live in the wlid,because of there huge body structure,they are not able to hide in the forest.They can't run fast as compared to lion or tiger.Normally,seen that the average speed is 50mph.Normally,they are depend on human.

Humpback Whales an endangered species

Humpback Whales are endangered species on the earth,there are only between 30,000 and 40,000 humpback whales remain in the world. This is about one-third the number of whales that originally roamed the seven seas. It is important to protect humpback whales.

 Humpback Whales belong to the group of whales known as rorquals, a group that includes the Blue Whale, Fin Whale, Bryde's Whale, Sei Whale, and Minke Whale.

Rorquals have 2 characteristics in common:

dorsal fins on their backs, and ventral pleats running from the tip of the lower jaw to the navel area.They are characterised by the possession of baleen plates for sieving the krill upon which they feed.Humpback Whales are regular visitors to the waters between Hervey Bay and Fraser Island.Many humpback whales arrive in Hervey Bay from late July and remain until November when they begin their return to the southern ocean.Mothers and calves are a common sight for whale watching visitors. Responsible cruise operators are dedicated to keeping whales off the endangered species list.Humpback whales eat krill, which is a tiny shrimp.