Amazing Chinese Paddlefish - Giant Panda of the Rivers

Chinese Paddlefish, Psephurus gladius (simplified Chinese: 白鲟; traditional Chinese: 白鱘; pinyin: báixún), also known as Chinese Swordfish, are among the largest freshwater fish. It is one of two extant paddlefish species, the other being the American Paddlefish (Polyodon spathula). It is also called "elephant fish" (象魚; xiàngyú) because its snout resembles an elephant trunk. It is recorded sometimes in Classical Chinese as wěi-fish (鮪). More poetically, it is sometimes referred to as the "Giant Panda of the Rivers", not because of any physical resemblance to a panda, but because of its rarity and protected status.

The Chinese Paddlefish is the People's Republic of China's first-level protected animal. Its belly is white and back and head gray. They live mostly in the middle or lower part of the Yangtze (Chang Jiang), occasionally in large lakes. They feed on other fish, as well as small amounts of crabs and crayfish. Paddlefish are sexually mature at age seven or eight, with a typical body length of 2 metres and a weight of 25 kilograms. The Chinese paddlefish is also known as the elephant fish, because its long snout resembles an elephant's trunk. The snouts contain sensors that help them locate the small fish and crustaceans they survive on. Prized for their rich, plentiful meat, the giant animals are said to have been commonly offered as gifts to the Chinese emperor during imperial times.

California Condor

On April 19, 1987 the last known California Condor to exist in the wild was taken into captivity. The California Condor is one of the rarest of all North American birds and one of the rarest birds in the world. In fact, during the first half of the century there were only 60 individual condors. Now there is less than 40 despite the conservation efforts that are put forth by biologists and other American authorities. Today the California Condor's range is limited to a small region that is north of Los Angeles. Soaring at speeds of 35-40 miles per hour the California Condor cleaned carrion from roads, ranches and beaches. There is absolutely no record of these magnificent birds attacking a living animal, however they were routinely shot, mostly by farmers and ranchers. Also California Condors were being exterminated by lead poisoning. However, zoologists are trying to change the condor's upcoming fate. Molloko is the first ever captive condor that was bred in captivity in history, born in April, 1988 at the San Diego Wild Animal Park. Its future lies in the hands of captive breeding and when it gets older, reintroduction to the wild. Hopefully Molloko's story will help educate the public.

The California Condor is about 3-4 feet in length and varies in weight from 20-30 pounds. The California condor has a huge wingspan which is about 9-10 and a half feet. When nesting they nest in cracks of rocks and lay only one egg.

This bird's plumage is black with a tint of blue metallic reflections. It has white bars underneath its wing.

For more information about the recovery of these birds, visit the San Diego Wild Animal Park Condorminium. Another great resource, which includes the total number of California Condors in zoos and in the wild, and the history of the condor's plight can be found at the L.A. Zoo. 

Bilby - Amazing Facts

The bilby 'also known as the rabbit-eared bandicoot', is a rabbit-like marsupial. It lives in deserts, dry forests, dry grasslands, and dry shrubby areas in Australia. The bilby's pouch faces backwards. These big-eared, burrowing mammals are at risk of extinction.

The bilby, like all bandicoots, could be a nocturnal animal 'most active at night'. Digging with its sturdy, clawed feet, this solitary mammal excavates long, advanced burrows. Its underground dens are up to 1.5 m long.

The bilby is 38 cm long with 20 cm tail. Its sense of hearing and smell are glorious however its vision is poor.

The bilby is an omnivore 'eating plants and animals'. It eats insects 'like termites', lizards, mice, worms, snails, fruit, seeds, and a few plants. The bilby wants little or no water; it gets the water it wants from its food. It obtains food principally at dawn and at dusk.

The bilby is hunted by foxes and feral cats 'cats that have reverted to the wild'. The bilby retreats into its burrow for cover.

Takahe /Porphyrio hochstetteri Facts

The flightless Takahe (Porphyrio hochstetteri) is the largest living member of the Rallidae  family. Its average weight is about 2.75 kg (6 lbs) Haggis' is a people-friendly female Takahe at Maud Island, a restricted-entry DoC island in Pelorus Sound. It is a stocky bird, with reduced wings, strong legs and a massive bill.  

The Takahe could be a rare flightless bird found solely in New Zealand. it had been thought to be extinct within the 1800’s however was rediscovered 1948 in many remote valleys on South Island. It's a plumage of sensible blue and copper-green with giant red bill and a red frontal defend that protrudes out from its head. It feeds by stripping seeds from grasses. It nests on the bottom and lays 2 cream colored eggs with black blotches. The young are black in color with downy feathers. 

Takahes are endangered because ,their habitat has been destroyed for agriculture and construction of buildings, roads, and dams. When New Zealand was 1st discovered by explorers, they brought in several other forms of animals and these animals hunted the Takahe. The Takahe, being flightless and unable to fly away when in peril was quickly destroyed, rather like the Dodo Bird.

Bed Bugs Facts

Bed bugs, known scientifically as Cimex lectularius (Cimicidae) are little wingless insects that feed by hematophagy - completely on the blood of heat blooded-animals. As we have a tendency to are warm-blooded animals we have a tendency to are ideal hosts for them. 

Over various years bed bugs have evolved as nest parasites - inhabiting the nests of birds and also the roosts of bats. a number of them have learnt to adapt to the human atmosphere and live in our nests, i.e. our homes, and additional specifically, our beds. Newborns, referred to as hatchlings or nymphs, are tiny, concerning the dimensions of a poppy seed, whereas adults grow to concerning ¼ of an in. long. Their form is oval and flattened. each nymphs, eggs and adults are visible to the naked eye. 

They are referred to as bed bugs owing to their most popular habitat in human homes: sofas, bed mattresses and different soft furnishings.People who became sensitive to bed bug bites - their saliva - have lesions kind of like mosquito or flea bites. Most humans can assume they need been bitten by some insect, like a mosquito, and never notice who the true culprit was. 

They will reach their host either by crawling straight towards them, or climbing a wall and then across the ceiling till they feel a heat wave - after they jump down onto their host. The bug is drawn to the host by each its heat and also the presence of C02 (carbon dioxide). 

A bed bug pierces the skin of its host with what's referred to as a stylet fascicle

The Bird of Paradise Facts

The birds-of-paradise are members of the family Paradisaeidae of the order Passeriformes.For reasons of camouflage plumage of the females typically blends well with their habitat, unlike the bright attractive colors found on the males. The diet of the birds-of-paradise is dominated by fruit and arthropods. The centre of bird-of-paradise diversity is the large island of New Guinea; all but two genera are found in New Guinea. 
The males' vibrant plumage is utilized to attract females throughout their breeding season. The females are uninteresting brown with scattered brown specks. Courting males will strut around on a specific perch or a cleared spacing on the forest floor for hours, showing off their magnificent feathers of assorted shapes and sizes. once mating, the females will explode and make a nest on their own, taking care of the young unaided.

Some birds of paradise have any long tail and flank feathers trailing behind as they fly whereas some are adorned with vibrant feathers around the neck which could be erected to form ruffs.

Naturally, when explorers from various countries came to the land, the brightly coloured birds caught their attention. many were brought back to their homeland and also the Bird of Paradise feathers soon became a fashion statement. The trade in skins and feathers of the birds-of-paradise has been going on for two thousand years. The birds have been of considerable interest to Western collectors, ornithologists and writers as well. A number of species are threatened by hunting and habitat loss.

Chiff Chaff, Willow Warbler and Wood Warbler

The Common Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita) is a common and widespread leaf-warbler which breeds in open woodlands throughout northern and temperate Europe and Asia. A small insectivorous bird. The Chiffchaff is a small, dumpy, 10–12 centimetres (4 in) long leaf warbler.Greenish-brown above and off-white below, it is named onomatopoeically for its simple chiff-chaff song.  The best way of distinguishing the Chiffchaff from the Willow Warbler is by their song. The Chiffchaff's song sounds like its name "chiff chaff" or "zilp zalp", while the Willow Warbler's song is a melodic rippling phrase that rises quickly before slowly dying away. The Chiff Chaff's and Willow Warbler's calls are almost identical, "hweet" or "hooeet".

In the autumn, both species rarely sing so the call is often the easiest way of finding the warbler. 

Willow Warbler

Chiff Chaff

Wood Wabler

The small bird chiff chaff , the willow warbler and wood warbler have distinctly different songs. however, since they looked some what similar, it was thought that they wre all the same species.It was an English naturalist, Gilbert White , who first noticed that they were actually three different species. The differences in their songs acted like an isolating mechanism when the female wanted to atrract male during mating and this ensured that the species remained distinct.