giant Squid

Name: giant squid

Scientific name:  architeuthis

diet: carnivore

more information:



              Giant squids are huge creatures and are rarely seen by humans . When fully grown, a giant squid can be at least 10 meters long .Most of what people find out about them is from giant squids tat get washed up . The biggest giant squid ever found was18m and weighed around 900
kg.

              Here are some facts about the giant squid:


* Giant squids have beach-ball sized eyes !

* Scientist are not sure how this giant squid ranges, but fisher mans have spotted them in the seas all over the world.

*They are the worlds biggest invertebrates.

* Giant squids can change colour!

I found this video on youtube.

wombat

A common wombat 

Name: Wombat

Scientific name: vombatidae

Diet: Herbivore

More information:

         Wombats are found mainly in Australia.
A wombat, just like the kangaroo and other marsupials ,give birth to their young undeveloped.The young will then  crawl into their mothers pouch and spent about 5 months in there.

         wombats are nocturnal animals.They come out from their tunnels  at night to find food to eat .

         Wombats are about 70-120 cm big. They weigh approximately 15-35kg. Wombats also have incisors that cannot stop growing. they have to gnaw on tough vegetables to ensure that their incisors will not grow too long.

        Wombats , although cute, are pest to farmers because of the tunnels thy make in mud. Because of this, some farmers hunt them down. Wombats are also killed for their skin and sometimes just for fun by hunters.Thus, some species of the wombat are endangered while some species, such as the common wombat ,are not.



          

Helmeted hornbill

A helmeted hornbill 

Name: Helmeted hornbill


Scientific name: Rhinoplax vigil

diet: Omnivore

More information: 


          Helmeted hornbills are found in the South-east Asia , the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and Borneo. They are a large in the hornbill family.

        Helmeted hornbills are under the Near Threatened (NT)  on the ICUN Red List  as many people kill them for their   skull  which can be used to make ivories .

        Females weigh around 2.7kg while males weigh around 3.1kg.A female helmeted hornbill also has a blue patch on its neck . A male helmeted hornbill has a reddish patch on its neck.

       Helmeted hornbills love to eat figs too! They also eat fruits and sometimes even smaller hornbills!
    

    

Sloths

name : Sloth

Scientific name: folivora

Diet: Herbivore

More information :


           Sloths live in trees of the jungles of central and south america. They are medium - size mammals related to armadillos and ant- eaters . here are some facts about them:

* There are two families of sloth.The three-toed sloth and the two-toed sloth.

*two-toed sloths are generally larger than three-toed sloths and

*Three-toed sloths has a facial colouring which always makes them look like their smiling :)

*three-toed sloths also have 2 extra neck vertebrae .This allows them to turnn their heads almost all the way around!

* Sloths sleep for  at least 20 hours a day. They are very lazy creatures !

A sloth upside down! 

* Algae sometimes grow on the sloth's thick fur. Scientist think that this algae can  help them blend in with the green surroundings.

* sloths are good swimmers!

* There is an extinct sloth called the giant ground sloth. It can grow till as big as an elephant!

sea cucumber

 a bohadchia argus sea cucumber

Name: sea cucumber

Scientific name: holothuroidea

Diet: Scavenging omnivores

More information:


         Sea cucumbers are not an ocean vegetable. Instead, they are more like a marine creature. There are around 2000 species of sea cucumber.

         Sea cucumbers have an "interestingly weird" way of  defence . When they are irritated, they will squirt out their stomach linings .Predators will then be confused and give time for the sea cucumber to escape.
     
       If the sea cucumber is  furthur irritated , it will squirt out all its internal organs. Belief it or not, the sea cucumber can live for about 9 days without its internal organs. Soon, a new set of internal organs will grow but the sea cucumber will not grow its reproductive organs back.

      Sea cucumbers are also considered a delicacy .Some people enjoy eating them.

      This video will show the sea cucumber pooping too.Enjoy :)

Tapirs

tapir species 

Name: Tapir

Scientific name: Tapirus

Diet: herbivore

More information:



        Tapirs  stay in jungle / forested areas of South-east Asia, Central America and South America.

         There are 4 species of tapirs.The malayan tapir is the biggest species. However, all 4 species of tapirs are either endangered or vulnerable.

        Tapirs' average life span in the wild is around 25-30 years . They are endangered mostly due to habitat loss and hunting.

         Tapirs are also good swimmers and mostly stays submerged in water to cool off. They also can dive into the water to eat aquatic plants.
        

Singapore Night Safari

Entrance of the safari

              Yesterday, my mother brought me and my sister to the Singapore Night Safari. It is the worlds first nocturnal zoo. 

             First, we got on a tram ride to the east lodge. Then ,we went to the leopard trail. The leopard trail had animal enclosures such as the flying squirrel, bats,leopards ,golden cats and much much more. I found the bat enclosure very exciting as we were in the enclosure and bats swooped above our heads.
                
            Next , we walked to the fishing cat trail. First , we saw the striped hyenas. After that, we saw animals like the lesser mouse deer ,barking deer, and the fishing cat ! Of course there were more animals but I can't list them all down.

          When the fishing cat trail ended, we found ourselves back at the entrance of the safari so we took the tram all over again and skipped the  east lodge tram station . For the next half an hour or so, the tram    drove pass giraffes, deers,gazelles,tigers, zebras , and finally what I liked the most- elephants! There were a total of 5 elephants, including a baby elephant! On the tram ride , we also saw tapirs. 
  
        Once we got out of the tram, my mother brought me and my sister to eat ice-cream ! 

       We did not manage to catch any show like the fire- breathing man show or the animal trick show as it was drizzling. We also did not walk on the east lodge trail or the wallaby trail as it was already 10 plus. But in all , I found the Night Safari really nice. 
         

Owls

A Baby owl

name: owl

Scientific name: Strigiformes

Diet: carnivore

More information :



                Owls  are considered as a bird of prey.They hunt insects, other small birds and mammals. Some owls hunt fish too. Owls uses their powerful talons to catch its prey.
            
                They have a flat face and large eyes. Did you know? Owls can turn their heads as much as 270 degrees?   That is because owls cannot move their eye balls. Thus,  they need to move their entire head to look around.

              There are around 200 different species of  owls across the world.There are 2 families of owls. Barn-owls and typical owls. We can tell if that owl is a barn owl by looking at its face.If that owl has a heart shape face, that owl is a baarn-owl.

Alpaca

baby alpacas

Name: Alpaca

Scientific name: Vicugna pacos

diet:  Herbivore

Size: 78-104 cm at withers 

More information :

           Alpacas are a domesticated species. They are sort of a small version of a llama. 

          Alpacas are bred specially for its fiber.Alpaca fibers are similar to wool and can be use to make woven and knitted items.

          Did you know? Alpacas have a three-chambered stomach?This allows maximum extraction of nutrients from food they eat.

         Alpacas have a life span of around 20 years. The gestation period is around 350 days.

BLOBFISH

Name : blobfish 

A blobfish from front view 

Scientific name: Psychrolutes marcidus

size: <70cm 

More information: 
           
             Blobfishes live in deep waters off the coasts of mainland Australia and Tasmania .   Blobfishes live in depths  between 600-1200m.The flesh of the blobfish is primarily a gelatinous mass with a density slightly less than water  allowing it to float above the sea floor without using energy on swimming

           Blobfishes are rarely seen by humans because they live so deep in the waters. However, blobfishes are endangered due to bottom  trawling and deep-sea fishing.





Meaning:    Fishing with a trawl net .

Narwhals

Name : Narwhals

                
Scientific name :  Monodon monoceros

Diet : carnivore 

Size :  < 4.9 m

More information : 

          Narwhals are what some call the 
" unicorns of the sea" . That is because of the long tooth coming out of the narwhals head like the horn on unicorn's head. 

        Narwhals are porpoises and only males grow a prominent tooth upwards. some female narwhals also grow this tooth but it is not as nice as the male.

        Narwhals swim in usually 15-20. They live in the Arctic  coastal waters.

Red Panda

Name: Red panda

red panda 

scientific name:    Ailurus fulgens

Diet:  omnivore 

Size: 56 -63 cm  

More information: 


         A red panda lives in mountains in Nepal, China , Myanmar and other mountain woods. When It is cold, the red panda would wrap its long bushy tail around itself to keep warm.
        
        Do you know why red pandas have the word ' panda ' in  its name ? These red pandas are distantly related to the giant panda. They are also sort-of related to the raccoons. However, Red pandas have their own unique family. It is called, Ailuridae.

    Sadly, red pandas are endangered.The main reason is due to deforestation and poaching. 
      

Star-nosed mole

Name : Star - nosed mole

A star-nosed mole 

Scientific name : Condylura cristata

Size: 15-20 cm

Lifespan: 2-4 years

more information:


         Star-nosed moles have a circle of 22 pink rays at its end of its snout. They are found in mostly Canada and northeastern United States.
        The star-nosed mole is blind. It uses its pink rays to identify its food and to find its way around.
         Did you know? Star-nosed moles are so sharp they can examine 13 targets every second?
        You can find out more at
        http://www.dumville.org/moles/starnosed.html

possum

   name :  Possum  (opossum)

A possum 

   Scientific name:  Phalangeriformes
   
   diet : Omnivores 

   More information:  

    Possums are natives to New Guinea , Australia and Sulawesi.  They have a long thick an a tiny pair of pointy ears. Possums are nocturnal creatures too.
             Have you heard of the phrase "playing possum" ? It means to be pretending to sleep or pretending to be dead. Do you know why possum is used ? That is because possums play dead when threatened or harmed .The possum will look like its dead and smell like its dead. About 40 minutes to 4 hours later, the possum will regain consciousness.
              There are 69 species  of possums in the far east. The pygmy possum is the smallest while the brush tail possum is the biggest .
              some people keep possums as pets to. However, a few species of possums are endangered. 

frogs

Name: Frog

Scientific name: Anura

diet: Carnivorous

more information :

          Frogs are slimy amphibians. They have no tails.
          Before they mature, they have tails , no limbs and gills to help the breathe in the water. When they are in this stage , we call them tadpoles.
          Do you know how to tell between a male frog and a female frog ? Simple! Just look at its ear drum! if its ear drum is smaller than its eye, that frog is a female . If its ear drum is the same size as  its  eye,that frog is a male !

a blue poison dart frog 

          Frogs have webbed feet so they can swim well in the water. Frogs can jump very well too !  Their hind legs help them to jump high or far.
          There are many different species of frogs, however , some may be poisonous. 

Shanghai Wild Animal Park

          I paid a visit to Shanghai Wild Animal Park when on a trip to Shanghai a week or so ago.

Entrance of the safari 

          There were many animals in the zoo , such as cheetahs, zebras ,tigers and more. It is the only drive through animal safari in shanghai.
          As animals were roaming freely in the zoo, me and my classmates had to sit in a coach as we drove through part of the safari . The animals were separated  by herbivores and carnivores . Example, the zebras , camels ,gazelles and other animals were together in one gigantic enclosures. Tigers ,lions ,bears and cheetahs , the carnivorous animals each had a separate enclosure. 
         First, we visited the herbivores. As the coach drove through the big secure gates of the enclosure, I fished out my camera and got ready to snap photos of animals .Through the coach's glass windows , I managed to take many beautiful pictures of gazelles and camels. I felt that the animals had a lot of space to roam about in the giant enclosure .

           Next, we visited the meat-eaters ! I especially loved the majestic lions ! 
           Lastly , we went to watch sea lions perform tricks! I was amazed by how good the sea lions were ! They could balance balls on their heads and even play a ball game ! It was really funny !
           Then it was time to head back.
           Pandas?! No :(  I did not get to see them !
           After all , I was on a school trip and we did not have any time.
           But the safari was very nice ! I wished I could go there again :) 

Sea lions performing tricks !