Animals Directory

Posts Tagged ‘Small mammals’

The world’s largest cats are predators too heavy, but other species like this, they are larger than many domestic cats. Its distribution area covers Europe, Middle East, South and Central Asia and much of Africa. The European form is distributed from the Caucasus and Asia Minor throughout central and southern Europe, reaching as far north as Scotland and near the North Sea and Baltic Sea. However, it was exterminated by humans in many parts of central Europe during the last century, and today is not in large numbers rather than in the Carpathians. The wild cat is protected for several years.

It is of robust constitution, the queue is populated and wider than the domestic cat, with a layer of thick hair, predominantly brown color, lighter and cretaceous in the belly and lower parts, with four longitudinal black stripes on his forehead will converge in a line that runs along the spine. She lives in forests, and places little degraded and removed from urban centers. feeds on small rodents and other small mammals, invertebrates, passersby, and small amphibians.

Character is elusive and solitary, territorial, evening and night, which seriously restricts its study. It is believed that the European population has been disappearing, but the difficulty of the study mentioned, leads to the IUCN Red List include it in a prudent but ambiguous threat.

The African wildcat is less shy than other subspecies of wild cat. Is thought to be the ancestor of all domestic cats.

Mating takes place in February and March and May, the calves are born in the crevices of rocks, in burrows of other mammals Abandon or in hollow trees. Outside the period that feeds her brood, the wild cat is a solitary animal whose territory may comprise about 2 km ². It can sometimes be confused with a domestic cat scratch naturalized brown coat, but in the case of the Eurasian forms can be distinguished by its bushy tail, more robust and wide, with blunt, rounded termination, with at least three black rings completely closed . The only indubitable morphological test for distinguishing the mountains of the domestic cat is the measurement of cranial capacity slightly higher in the first.

The clouded leopard is a medium sized cat of Southeast Asia. Its length from 60 to 110 centimeters and weighing 11 to 20 kilos females, males up to 65/kg. Of arboreal habits, this species is an excellent climber who moves nimbly around the bush with its long tail that acts as a rocker.

The coat is covered with blotches of brown interior and black border, which helps the clouded leopard to blend into the leaves. Its name comes precisely from these spots, similar to a cloud. In China, known as Leopard mint, and also the spots resemble the leaves of this plant.

Features:

This animal has the peculiarity of being the cat with the longest canines in relation to the body of those who currently exist. Cranial architecture differs in several characteristics from that of other cats, so this animal is classified in a mono specific genus, Neophilias.

The rare clouded leopard hunting on the ground. Use their unique physical adaptations to catch the agile animals from trees, especially the primates like gibbons, macaques and proboscis monkeys. Also hunt rodents and other small mammals, birds, small Asian deer and porcupines. Occasionally up to about populated areas and stealing domestic animals, particularly chickens and other poultry.

Recently a team of U.S. scientists has discovered that the clouded leopard that lives in the islands of Borneo and Sumatra is an entirely new kind of feline. So far, it was believed that this enigmatic inhabitants of the equatorial forest belonged to the same species found in Southeast Asia.

Reproduction:

After a gestation period of 85 to 93 days, females give birth to a litter of 1 to 5 young. These are born blind and helpless, covered with patches of black color. Open their eyes at 10 days after birth and at 5 weeks and begin to actively pursue his mother. Become independent at 10 months after birth, but not sexually mature until two years old. Thereafter, the females may have a new litter every year. Life expectancy in captivity is only 17 years, so presumably live very little free time.

The captive breeding programs have made little progress, since males tend to be aggressive and attack instead females mate with them. This makes their preservation and reintroduction into the wild.

Habitat:

The clouded leopard lives in tropical and subtropical forests of eastern India, southern China, Burma, Indochina, Sumatra and Borneo. The subspecies native of Taiwan is extremely rare and is probably already extinct due to the impact of human activity on the island. It can be found equally in mountainous areas above 2000 meters altitude in depressed areas and wetlands, coastal mangroves and occasionally in grassy plains where you can be in transit.

The word opossum comes from the indigenous voice “Sarig,” while the name of opossum, very often too, is the English name. This animal is widespread in America from Canada to Chile and northern Argentina. It is common in the central part of this vast area, and is found in more dense forests and groves. In most parts of Argentina, Paraguay, southern Brazil and Uruguay, the species is common opossum (Didelphys azarai).

On the ground, this essentially American arboreal marsupial moves with remarkable slowness and clumsiness, laying the entire sole of the foot. But perched on the trees very lightly, also moves between the branches with security with opposable thumbs the rear feet and prehensile tail that is provided.

The senses of this marsupial, which appears more developed the smell.

As for your nutrition regimen, as well as small mammals, birds, eggs, reptiles and plants are added to large insects, larvae and even worms. If necessary draw on complies with fruit, corn and juicy roots. However, any food you prefer the blood, which often prompts him to behave with extraordinary ferocity: in houses, for example, slaughters chickens, sucks the blood and makes the flesh of their victims intact.

It is not easy to kill, because it has a great vitality and is ready to undertake simpre flee or hide in some place inaccessible broken. Where is closed every possible escape route, this marsupial has the remarkable habit of playing dead, his tongue hanging and glassy eyes, the aggressor, then, convinced that the animal is dead away, but soon after, the opossum up and limping back to the forest.

It has been observed in captive specimens that gestation lasts fourteen days, after which the female gives birth, or, rather, carries the young, whose number varies from four to sixteen of the uterus to pouch. At first small possums are reports and lack of eyes and ears. But after fifty days, the young animals are fully developed, have the same size as mice, the hair covering his entire body and eyes are already open. After sixty days of lactation in the marsupial, the weight of offspring has increased a hundredfold. And out of the bag marsupial soon after, when they have reached a size equivalent to a rat.

Due to the damage caused in poultry, farmers and farmers pursue relentlessly the opossum, which hunt by any means. The meat is not considered edible, due to foul odor it emits. In contrast, the skin is very much appreciated. In captivity, possums are rather dull and inactive.

We may often hear the Animals called raccoon, or even possibly become our pets at home. Raccoon (Procyon lotor) is a species of the weasel family and Olin coatis. This family is called Procyonidae and assigned to the Order Carnivora carnivores. These funds include the raccoon in carnivores, but this is only with regard to their relationship with other animals and names had been giving orders, not necessarily the eating habits of this species.

• Distribution:

Procyon lotor is Native American. distribution extends from Canada to Panama. He has been introduced in Europe and Asia.

• Habitat:

This species usually live in places where there are trees or shrubs near water or reservoir only. It is very common in coastal mangroves. Adapting to urban areas where water is available, including coastal areas.

• Habit:

Adults are stored in local action. Does not appear to defend this area from other members of the species, although it does not seem to recognize the constant companion. They gathered in a place where there is food and it is possible that in the nest through a few winters they were together.

• Reproduction:

Gestation period is 60-73 days. Usually occur three to four puppies in each shipment, but can be 1-7. Born with eyes closed, opening the third week of age. Young people are separated from the mother at the end of winter.

• Food:

Procyon lotor eat based on invertebrates, small mammals, fish, frogs, fruits and grains. They eat bird eggs and chicks and eggs crocodile and other reptiles. In the case of birds is one of the main reasons why you lose the whole colony. In urban areas far from home and in landfills.

• Description::

Raccoon measured in the head and body 42-60 cm. The tail has a length of 20 to 40 cm. Adult weight is 2 to 12 kg, in which men and women is greater than the weight increase as people live farther north. During the winter, in places where there are frozen, they remain in space out occasionally when the temperature rises, it is possible that during the long winter of an individual losing up to 50% by weight.