From the BBC Wildlife Website:
The giggling sounds of a hyena contain important information about the animal’s status, say scientists.
In the first study to decipher the hyena’s so-called “laugh”, they have shown that the pitch of the giggle reveals a hyena’s age.
What is more, variations in the frequency of notes used when a hyena makes a noise convey information about the animal’s social rank.
Read more here.
Today’s photo fact is about the Savanna Elephant, also known as the African Bush Elephant, which is one of three species of Elephant, the others being the Asian and African Forest Elephants. The Savanna Elephant is the largest Elephant and therefore the largest land animal on earth.
The elephant is the only mammal to have helical bands of muscle. These are all in their trunk, which enables them to move it strongly in pretty much any way imaginable. Elephants have a long gestation period of 22 months before the calf is born. Despite this they are still pretty incompetent on arrival and also blind. They will learn all their survival skills from the elder elephants in the herd. A number of females from the herd without a calf will help out looking after the calf, acting as babysitters.
For more ungulates and facts, visit our Ungulates gallery on Flickr.
Today’s photo fact is about the Giraffe which is endemic to Africa. There are quite a few different subspecies and possibly species with obviously distinct patterns, but the exact number of these is hotly debated.
While many probably know of a Pride of Lions and a Herd of Elephants, there are some more obscure collective nouns describing groups of animals.
A Tower of Giraffe is one, others include: Murder of Crows, Blaze of Dragons, Shiver of Sharks, Kaleidoscope of Butterflies, Gang of Weasels and a Crash of Rhinos…
Remember those to impress your mates!
For more ungulates and facts, visit our Ungulates gallery on Flickr.
Today’s photo fact is about the African Wild Dog which, as its name suggests, only occurs in Africa. It is an endangered species, with under 6000 left.
Wild dogs can’t kill animals in the same way as the big cats. Their front legs aren’t as strong and their claws are blunt as they don’t retract like on a cat. Therefore they can’t grab an animal to deliver a killer bite in the neck. Instead dogs tend to chase their victim to exhaustion when they can kill them more easily. With smaller prey they will grab it and vigorously shake it side to side, usually breaking the animal’s neck or back.
For more carnivores and facts, visit our Carnivores gallery on Flickr.
Researchers at the University of Ontario and the University of Regina have been feeding fruit bats ethanol to see what effect it has on their flying abilities reports the National Geographic. The diet consists of fermenting fruit and nectar which therefore contain ethanol and could potentially result in them flying around in a drunken stupor!
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The term Ectothermic is sometimes used interchangably with the term Cold-blooded. However, ectothermic comes from the greek meaning outside (ectos) and heat (thermos), i.e. describing animals that get heat from their surroundings. Cold-blooded however, isn’t really a great term as creatures that only use their surroundings to control their temperature could just as well have blood that is too hot as too cold. Reptiles are a perfect example of an ectothermic animal, basking in the sun to raise their temperature, and seeking shade when it all gets too hot!
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If Chuck Norris was an animal, there is only one he could be. The Honey Badger. While sounding like a sweet and friendly cuddle-buddy, the Honey Badger is actually an short-tempered, mean, stubborn, no-nonsense creature, and definitely one you don’t want to mess with. They’ve been seen attacking lions and killing snakes. In fact, this tough guy is in the Guinness Book of Records as the world’s most fearless animal.
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