

  1. Help

Secrets of the Animal Kingdom


Secrets of the Animal Kingdom - Page Text Content

S: Secrets of the Animal Kingdom

BC: The End

FC: Secrets of the Animal Kingdom

1: Compiled by Form 3 Biology students & Ms N Scerri St.Theresa Girls Secondary School, Mriehel

2: Flamingos | Flamingos are pink or orange or white depending on what they eat. Flamingos eat algae ,and crustaceans that contain pigments. These pigments are found in the shrimp and blue green algae that the birds eat.

3: Flamingos breed while gathered in groups. They lay a single egg. Young flamingos are born grey and white and do not turn pink for two years.

4: Glasswing Butterfly | The scientific name of the glasswing butterfly is Greto Oto. Its wings span up to 6 cm and are almost completely transparent. Between the veins of its wings, the tissues are virtually see through.

5: The opaque borders of its wings have a dark brown colour and in some cases are tinted with red or orange. If it was not for its borders it would be completely transparent to the human eye.

6: Snakes | Snakes bodies are covered with plates and scales. Without this protective armor snakes could not move over rough or hot surfaces like tree bark, rocks, and hot desert sand. | Scales are made up of layers of cells stacked one on top of the other. The outer cells are dead and protect the living ones underneath them.

7: The jaws of the snakes are not fused together. That means that unlike our jaws, snakes jaws are not hooked up at the back of their mouths. This makes it possible for them to eat very big meals, bigger than their own heads! That would be like you swallowing a whole watermelon! . | Snakes have between 100-400 vertebrae with as many ribs attached! That is what makes them so flexible and helps them move along!

8: There are three species of zebras: Mountain, Plains, and Grevy’s zebras. For the most part, the different species cannot interbreed. Each zebra has unique stripes unlike any other zebra—like human fingerprints.

9: The Zebra | Members of a zebra family are caring! If one is attacked by a predator, others do not run away. They stick together as the stallion tries to drive away the predator.

10: Pearl Oysters

11: An oyster's age can be determined by the grooves in its hinge. Their predators include the octopus and the stingrays. Weather effects, such as cyclones are known to cause a great deal of mortality. | An oyster has the ability to change from male to female. When an oyster starts to breed it sets off a chain reaction with neighbouring oysters. Eggs and semen unite at the mercy of the currents and the fertilised egg remains in a plankton state for 20 - 30 days. By the 45th day the oyster reaches a diameter of 10mm

12: Duck-billed Platypus | The duck billed platypus is one of the world's weirdest endangered animal species. This is because it's got a duck's bill, otter's feet, a mammal's body and it lays eggs. It also has a scaly skin like a reptile's.

13: The Platypus is native to Australia and Tasmania, where it was hunted to near-extinction for its fur during the 1800s, but has been protected since the 20th century. However, it is at risk because of poaching. The female platypus has a pair of ovaries but only the left one functions. It lays one to three eggs and releases milk through pores in the skin. The babies, known as puggles, lick this milk.

14: The whiskers indicate the cat's mood. When a cat is angry or is feeling defensive, its whiskers will be pulled back. On the other hand, when a cat is happy, curious or content, its whiskers are more relaxed or pushed forward | The cat's whiskers are essential for navigation. They help the cat feel its way around and are so sensitive that they can detect the slightest directional chance in a breeze. | The Cat's Whiskers

15: The whiskers are connected to the cat's nervous system so that it can detect and respond to changes in its environment. | To measure an opening, cats use their whiskers. These help the cat judge whether or not it will fit through an opening, as the whiskers are roughly as wide as the cat's body. The whisker's tips are sensitive to pressure.

16: Whales do not drink seawater but indirectly extract water from their food by metabolizing fat. The whales breathe through the blow holes which are on the top of their heads. All mammals sleep but whales cannot afford to become unconscious for long because they may drown. It is thought that only half of their brain sleeps at a time so they rest but are never completely asleep. | Whales

17: Did you know that the blue whale's tongue is as long as an elephant and that its heart can be as large as a small car?

18: Lions | There are seven different species of Lions: African Lion Asiatic Lion American Lion Mountain Lion Cave Lion White Lion. | Wild life experts consider that most lions, with the exception of the Asiatic lion, are not endangered species.

19: A male lion's roar can be heard up to 5 km away; Lionesses hunt in groups. While one group of lions drives the prey to a certain area, another group will wait to ambush the approaching animals; A lion's eyesight is five times better than a human's, and it can hear prey that is more then 1.5 km away. Lionesses do most of the hunting and the males defend the territory. Lions are carnivores....I don't think you get any vegetarian lions! Lions commonly live up to 16 years of age.

20: Birds | Did you know? Birds DO have ears, just no ear flaps. In fact, only owls have ear flaps. Birds don't have ear flaps because otherwise they would hear a lot of wind noises while flying. | Some might ask why birds don't have any teeth. Well, birds do not need any teeth as they swallow the food whole instead of chewing it. To help them pick up food, birds have beaks.

21: Have you ever wondered... why do birds fly?? | Like every other animal, the bird needs some kind of locomotion or ability to move. Birds have the ability to fly. They fly in order to adapt to their environment, escape predators and to make themselves better hunters. Also, flying allows them to escape nasty weather and migrate to warmer temperatures.

22: Giraffes

23: A male giraffe can grow up to 5.5 meters and weigh up to 1724 kg. It can also easily live for up to 25 years. They have a blue tongue which may be as long as 53 cm! No two giraffes have the same pattern of spots. Because of their height, they sleep standing up because it can take too long for a giraffe to get back up on it's feet if a predator should approach. | In ancient rome, the romans used to think that a giraffe was a cross between a leopard and a camel and so they called it Giraffa camelopardalis.

24: Axolotl

25: An Axolotl is an amphibian native to Mexico which lives it's whole life underwater. It is classified as critically endangered, since it can only survive in the waters of Lake Xochimilco. In it's natural habitat its colours usually vary from black to greenish brown, but can also be a pinky albino colour. They also have an extraordinary ability to regenerate limbs, and parts of the brain!

26: Dolphins

27: Dolphin babies are born after a long gestation period inside mothers which can range between 11 and 18 months. Babies are delivered by mothers with the aid of another dolphin who makes the role of a midwife. After babies are born, they stay with their mothers for several years until they are able to survive by themselves.

28: | | Sources

29: Agius Abigail Barbara Nicole Camilleri Jade Falzon Sarah Marie Zahra Melanie | Contributors Attard Ylenia Cortis Cheryl Cini Julia Falzon Rebecca Marie Zammit Cristina | Azzopardi Melanie Cutajar Bernardette Dimech Shazy Galea Dorianne

Sizes: mini|medium|large|jumbo
Default User
  • By: Nathalie S.
  • Joined: over 7 years ago
  • Published Mixbooks: 8

About This Mixbook

  • Title: Secrets of the Animal Kingdom
  • Curious facts about A=animals
  • Tags: biology, animals
  • Published: over 6 years ago