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The Komodo dragon
Do you know that:
People believe that there are now only 4 thousands Komodo dragons left on the planet.
The Komodo dragon has a long life expectancy of about 50 years.
There are about 4 times as many male Komodos as females, in the wild.
Komodo dragons are easily confused with crocodiles. They are called the “Ora” or “land crocodile” by locals.
The Komodo dragon is the heaviest and largest living lizard in the world.
Komodos are able to grow as long as 10 feet and weigh more than 300 pounds.
Komodo dragons eat almost any kind of meat.
Komods are able to see prey and other objects as far as 985 feet away.
These dragons can run just as fast as humans can - up to 11 miles an hour. They just tire quickly.
There was an old belief in China that the tail of a dragon, when ground into powder, was a powerful medicine. Some believed that it could even stop a person from growing old!
The Komodo dragon is able to eat almost 80% of its weight in one meal.
Komodos hunting strategy is very simply. They will go for the feet, and bring down the prey. Then the Komodo dragon will rip its victim to pieces.
The Komodo dragons ancestors date back over 100 million years.
Komodos mouth saliva contains a host of deadly bacteria.
A Komodo will go through about 4 or 5 sets of teeth in his life.
These dragons have no natural enemies. The greatest threat they face is from other dragons, and humans.
Once a female dragon lays her eggs, she never comes back to check up on them.
Young Komodo dragons are able to climb trees, to help protect them, and to find food.
Hedgehogs - cute and funny animals
Do you know that:
Hedgehogs possess incredible sense of smelling.
Hedgies can be found in woods, parks, farmland, gardens.
All hedgehogs are capable of swimming and climbing trees.
When hedgies are born, their spines are very short and very soft.
Hedgehogs eat mice, birds, worms, slugs, adore eggs and various plants and fruits.
Hedgehogs Latin (scientific) name is “Erinaceus europaeus”.
Hedgehogs are nocturnal animals. Also they hibernate from November to the end of March every year.
Strangely hedgies live up to 3 years in the wild and in captivity – up to 10 years.
Hedgehogs prefer leading solitary lives.
Hedgehogs are very loud animals. They make various rather loud sounds (sneezing, snorting, purring, squealing, etc.).
Hedgies are born with closed eyes.
Many people posses hedgehogs as pets. Hedgies are very interesting to look at, they are not aggressive and have no odour.
Kangaroos playing with their mother
Do you know that:
- Baby kangaroos, regardless of sex, are always called Joeys. Male kangaroos are known as Jacks, Bucks or Boomers. Female kangaroos are known as Jills, Does or Flyers.
- Kangaroos can survive months without drinking water. Also, very often when they need water, kangaroos will dig their own water wells to find it.
- The female kangaroo will give birth to a new Joey just when it is time to eject the older kangaroo from her pouch. During the time of transition, she will simultaneously produce two different types of milk for the different needs of her young kangaroos. Each Joey knows which milk is theirs and will only nurse from the appropriate one.
- Joeys can be seen peeking from their mothers pouch. The "two-headed" kangaroos shocked the early Australian explorers. When they returned to Europe they told strange stories about the “two-headed” monster but other folks rarely believed them.
In the end – here is a hilarious video of Remi Gaillard playing funny kangaroo:
Racoon and dog playing
Another cool raccoon and dog video could be watched here:
Raccoon Vs Dog
This video sharing is disabled, that's why I can not embed it and just provide the link to it. But it shows a very cute dog and raccoon playing and "wrestling" each other.
Christian the lion - story
Two young Australians - Anthony Bourke and John Rendall visited Harrods in London in 1969. They fall in love with a young lion cub called Christian, and acting on impulse they immediately decided to buy him. Anthony and John had no previous experience with lions. After they took possession of Christian they moved the lion into their flat. The flat (in the centre of London) had a basement under a shop and this became Christian's home.
Christian - the lion - grew both in size and popularity and his boisterousness caused quite a stir in the antique shop he called home. Soon keeping a growing lion in the centre of London became untenable and this must have come to an end. It was a big relief when George Adamson agreed to help Christian adapt to his new found home in Kenya and the relocation began.
Adamson introduced Christian to an older male lion called “Boy”. The lion had been used in the movie “Born Free” and who also featured prominently in the documentary film “The Lions Are Free”. Later on Adamson introduced Christian the lion to a female cub Katania in order to form the nucleus of a new pride. Unfortunately, the pride suffered many setbacks: Katania was possibly devoured by crocodiles at a watering hole. Also another female in the pride was killed by wild lions. The bigger lion Boy was severely injured too. After that Boy lost his ability to socialize with other lions and humans, and was shot by Adamson after fatally wounding his assistant. The story end is sad and Christian became the sole surviving member of the original pride.
In 2008, a clip of the reunion with Christian, Anthony Bourke and John Rendall was posted on YouTube and became an internet sensation. Overnight people wanted to know more about the story of the lion Christian.