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.