LLAMA

                                                                   Llama

       The llama is a South American relative of the camel, though the llama does not have a hump. These sturdy creatures are domestic animals used by the peoples of the Andes Mountains. (Their wild relatives are guanacos and vicuñas). Native peoples have used llamas as pack animals for centuries. Typically, they are saddled with loads of 50 to 75 pounds (23 to 34 kilograms). Under such weight they can cover up to 20 miles (32 kilometers) in a single day. Pack trains of llamas, which can include several hundred animals, move large amounts of goods over even the very rough terrain of the Andes.

       Llamas are willing pack animals but only to a point. An overloaded llama will simply refuse to move. These animals often lie down on the ground and they may spit, hiss, or even kick at their owners until their burden is lessened.Llamas graze on grass and, like cows, regurgitate their food and chew it as cud. They chomp on such wads for some time before swallowing them for complete digestion. Llamas can survive by eating many different kinds of plants, and they need little water. These attributes make them durable and dependable even in sparse mountainous terrain.

       Llamas contribute much more than transportation to the human communities in which they live. Leather is made from their hides, and their wool is crafted into ropes, rugs, and fabrics. Llama excrement is dried and burned for fuel. Even in death, llamas can serve their human owners—some people slaughter them and eat their meat.






                                             

  Fast Fact

 Type:   Mammal

 Diet:    Herbivore

 Size:    Height at the shoulder, 47 in (120 cm)

 Weight:  250 lbs (113 kg)

 

WOLF

                                                 WOLF

       

        Wolves are legendary because of their spine-tingling howl, which they use to communicate. A lone wolf howls to attract the attention of his pack, while communal howls may send territorial messages from one pack to another. Some howls are confrontational. Much like barking domestic dogs, wolves may simply begin howling because a nearby wolf has already begun.

  Wolves are the largest members of the dog family. Adaptable gray wolves are by far the most common and were once found all over the Northern Hemisphere. But wolves and humans have a long adversarial history. Though they almost never attack humans, wolves are considered one of the animal world's most fearsome natural villains. They do attack domestic animals, and countless wolves have been shot, trapped, and poisoned because of this tendency.

  In the lower 48 states, gray wolves were hunted to near extinction, though some populations survived and others have since been reintroduced. Few gray wolves survive in Europe, though many live in Alaska, Canada, and Asia. Red wolves live in the southeastern United States, where they are endangered. These animals actually became extinct in the wild in 1980. Scientists established a breeding program with a small number of captive red wolves and have reintroduced the animal to North Carolina. Today, perhaps 100 red wolves survive in the wild.

The maned wolf, a distant relative of the more familiar gray and red wolves, lives in South America. Physically, this animal resembles a large, red fox more than its wolf relatives.Wolves live and hunt in packs of around six to ten animals. They are known to roam large distances, perhaps 12 miles (20 kilometers) in a single day. These social animals cooperate on their preferred prey—large animals such as deer, elk, and moose. When they are successful, wolves do not eat in moderation. A single animal can consume 20 pounds (9 kilograms) of meat at a sitting. Wolves also eat smaller mammals, birds, fish, lizards, snakes, and fruit.

Wolfpacks are established according to a strict hierarchy, with a dominant male at the top and his mate not far behind. Usually this male and female are the only animals of the pack to breed. All of a pack's adults help to care for youngpups by bringing them food and watching them while others hunt.

                                                                Fast Fact

Type:Mammal

Diet:Carnivore

Average life span in the wild:6 to 8 years

Size:Head and body, 36 to 63 in (91 to 160 cm);

Tail, 13 to 20 in (33 to 51 cm)

Weight:40 to 175 lbs (18 to 79 kg)

Group name:Pack

Protection status:Endangered

DINGO

DINGO

The dingo is legendary as Australia's wild dog, though it also occurs in Southeast Asia. The Australian animals may be descendents of Asian dingoes that were introduced to the continent some 3,000 to 4,000 years ago.



           These golden or reddish-colored canids may live alone (especially young males) or in packs of up to ten animals. They roam great distances and communicate with wolf-like howls.Dingo hunting is opportunistic. Animals hunt alone or in cooperative packs. They pursue small game such as rabbits, rodents, birds, and lizards. These dogs will eat fruits and plants as well. They also scavenge from humans, particularly in their Asian range.

        

           Dingoes breed only once a year. Females typically give birth to about five pups, which are not independent until six to eight months of age. In packs, a dominant breeding female will kill the offspring of other females.

Australia is home to so many of these animals that they are generally considered pests. A famous "dingo fence" has been erected to protect grazing lands for the continent's herds of sheep. It is likely that more dingoes live in Australia today than when Europeans first arrived.

            

       Though dingoes are numerous, their pure genetic strain is gradually being compromised. They can and do interbreed with domestic dogs to produce hybrid animals. Studies suggest that more than a third of southeastern Australia's dingoes are hybrids.

Fast Facts

Type:  Mammal

Diet:   Carnivore

Size:    Head and body, 3.5 to 4 ft (1.1 to 1.2 m);

Tail, 12 to 13 in (30 to 33 cm)Size relative to a 6-ft (2-m) man

Weight: 22 to 33 lbs (10 to 15 kg)

Group name: Pack

COYOTE

 Coyote             

        The coyote appears often in the tales and traditions of Native Americans—usually as a very savvy and clever beast. Modern coyotes have displayed their cleverness by adapting to the changing American landscape. These members of the dog family once lived primarily in open prairies and deserts, but now roam the continent's forests and mountains. They have even colonized cities like Los Angeles, and are now found over most of North America. Coyote populations are likely at an all-time high.

           These adaptable animals will eat almost anything. They hunt rabbits, rodents, fish, frogs, and even deer. They also happily dine on insects, snakes, fruit, grass, and carrion. Because they sometimes kill lambs, calves, or other livestock, as well as pets, many ranchers and farmers regard them as destructive pests.

                 

            Coyotes are formidable in the field where they enjoy keen vision and a strong sense of smell. They can run up to 40 miles (64 kilometers) an hour. In the fall and winter, they form packs for more effective hunting.Coyotes form strong family groups. In spring, females den and give birth to litters of three to twelve pups. Both parents feed and protect their young and their territory. The pups are able to hunt on their own by the following fall.
                 

           Coyotes are smaller than wolves and are sometimes called prairie wolves or brush wolves. They communicate with a distinctive call, which at night often develops into a raucous canine chorus.

Fast Facts

Type:Mammal

Diet:Omnivore

Average life span in the wild:Up to 14 years

Size:Head and body, 32 to 37 in (81 to 94 cm); Tail, 16 in (41 cm)

Size relative to a 6-ft (2-m) man

Weight:20 to 50 lbs (9 to 23 kg)

Group name:Pack

Did you know?

Coyotes are very good swimmers. In areas of the northeast United States, where coyotes have migrated since the 20th century, the animals have colonized the Elizabeth Islands of Massachusetts.

Brazilian Tapir

Brazilian Tapir

A relative of the rhinoceros, the Brazilian tapir, or lowland tapir, is one of four species of tapir.

Inhabiting the rain forests of South America, Brazilian tapirs live near water and are capable swimmers and divers. In fact, they sometimes run to the water to escape predators.

Splayed toes, four on each front foot and three on each hind foot, help the tapir successfully navigate through soggy ground.
Weighing between 150-250 kg (330-550 lb.), Brazilian tapirs measure around 2 m (6 ft.) in length. Adult Brazilian tapirs have brown coats that vary in shade, with darker hair on their sturdy legs and short, stiff manes. They also have short tails.
A long, flexible proboscis, or snout, helps tapirs grasp leaves, shoots, buds, fruit, and small branches to eat. They generally feed only at night, hiding in the cool forest during the day.
For 2 days every 2-3 months, the female Brazilian tapir is able to conceive. Once pregnant, she will carry the baby for over a year before giving birth!
Baby tapirs have brown fur with white stripes to help them blend into the rain forest floor. The white stripes fade as the calves mature.

The baby will suckle for several months until the mother stops producing milk. At 18 months, the calf is fully grown but may stay with its mother for a little longer.
While healthy adult tapirs are fairly successful at avoiding predators, such as jaguars, pumas, and anacondas, young tapirs are more susceptible to attacks.

Polar Bear

Polar Bear

Polar bears, or "sea bears," are the world's largest land predators, weighing up to 600 kg (1300 lb.) and measuring up to 3 m (10 ft.) tall. On average they live to be about 25 years old, reaching sexual maturity at around 4 years.

Although they appear white or yellow in color, their fur is actually clear and hollow, and their skin is black. Their visibly pale coloring is caused by the reflection and scattering of light.

Inhabiting the ice and sea of the Arctic, polar bears are well-equipped for survival in a harsh environment. Two coats of fur and a thick layer of blubber help insulate the polar bear's body from the cold, keeping its temperature at an even 37° C (98.6° F). In addition, polar bears' paws are especially adapted for walking on the ice and swimming in the sea. Hairs and bumps on the soles of their feet provide traction, while webbing between their toes allows for effective swimming strokes.

Polar bears are also equipped with strong noses. They use their powerful sense of smell when hunting for seals, their main source of food. They can smell a seal's breathing hole, or aglu, up to one mile away. Once located, a polar bear will wait patiently by the hole and attack the seal's head when it comes up for air. In ideal hunting conditions, the bear will just eat the seal fat, leaving the carcass for other animals. However, when food is scarce, polar bears will eat just about anything. Supplemental foods include walruses, short-legged reindeer, birds, bird eggs, kelp, and beached whales. When in proximity to human settlements, they have even been known to eat garbage such as Styrofoam.

Polar bears do not hibernate like other bears, but females do enter into a dormant state while pregnant. After mating in the spring, a female polar bear spends the summer ingesting large amounts of food and building a maternity den in a snow drift to prepare for the arrival of her cubs.
In the fall, she enters into a dormant state, remaining this way even as she gives birth. The litter, usually two cubs, will spend two years with their mother learning essential hunting and survival skills.

Global warming greatly impacts the fate of the polar bear. After conducting a series of nine studies in 2007, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) has predicted a loss of two-thirds of the world's polar bears by 2050 due to declines in ice habitats. Specifically, a reduction of large masses of ice results in limited access to seals. Not only does this adversely affect the health of adult polar bears, it also hinders the successful reproduction and nourishment of new bear cubs. Rising temperatures also result in unstable maternity dens, as snowdrifts melt and collapse.