Although octopuses have eight limbs that are covered in suckers, they don’t have the hooks or sucker rings that squids do. Also, unlike the squid, who has a hard internal, backbone-like body part called a pen, the octopus doesn’t have bones. They do have a skull to protect their brain, though.

I’m writing this ABC book for my 12 year-old grandson, Eric. I’ve found many interesting facts about the animals I’ve featured, and I hope children of all ages, 9 -109 will enjoy them, too.


 

S is for Spider

A spider’s web of sticky silk
will capture bugs and flies.
They see whenever prey is near
because they have eight eyes.
A spider can adapt on land, 
above and underground; 
Antarctica’s the only place 
a spider can’t be found.

Fun Facts on Spiders

Spiders are probably the most adaptable species on our planet. They can live almost anywhere in the world, except in Antarctica.

Many people think spiders are insects but they aren't. Spiders belong to the animal group, 'arachnids,' along with scorpions, mites and ticks. They have two main body parts and eight legs. Unlike the spider, the ant and the fly are examples of insects. Each of these has three main body parts, but the fly also has wings.

      Spider                                Ant                                    Fly

*****

Burrowing spiders aren’t the first creatures that come to mind when you think of what is living beneath the earth, the Wolf spider and the Trapdoor spiders are just two of the many that spend most of their time underground. 

The Wolf Spider carries all of her hundreds of babies on her back until they are ready to leave. 

The Trapdoor Spider is thought to have travelled from Africa to Australia millions of years ago. This wouldn’t have been hard when you realise that the continents were joined way back then, but it would have been a very long walk! The name Trapdoor spider comes from the distinctive trapdoor entranceway they make for their homes. 

Wolf Spider                                             Trapdoor Spider              

*****

The Daddy long-legs have very toxic venom, but don’t worry, it’s only dangerous to insects. It could kill a human if their fangs were longer and strong enough to penetrate our skin. But, thankfully, they can’t! 
 

*****

The Peacock Spiders are so named because of their similarity to the male peacock bird. They have shimmering, colourful scales on their bottom which they use to attract female spiders. This species is so small that the largest ones are only as big as the rubber the end of a pencil. If these pretty little spiders can’t catch the eyes of a lady with their lovely little rainbows, they have a plan B--they dance!  

***** 
According to a huge myth that has been around for centuries, the tarantula is a gigantic spider that kills humans with one bite.  But this is not true.

A long time ago, the local people believed they were bitten by the tarantula, but in fact, it was probably the wolf spider instead. The real tarantula is nothing like this. It is more likely to run and hide when it feels threatened.

Most spiders can sense the heat from our bodies and will try their best to avoid us. The tarantula seldom inject venom, and if they do, it is no more harmful than a bee sting. There are about eight hundred known tarantula species. 

The picture below of the Red Knee tarantula is very docile. 

*****

King Baboon Tarantula is one of Africa's largest spiders. It has a leg span of up to 8 inches and has a rusty red-brown colour. These will feed on anything they can kill, but are totally harmless to humans. Their bite might be painful, but that’s all. Most spiders live for about a year. However, some tarantulas live more than 20 years.

*****

The Diving Bell Spiders. They construct an underwater bell in which they live. The spider swims to the surface to collect air and fills its diving bell. Bubbles then form on the hairs on the spider’s legs and body, allowing it to fill the bell and enabling it to swim outside the bubble for short periods of time.

*****

The Happy Spider. There are spiders in Hawaii that look like they are smiling, called the ‘Hawaiian happy-face spider.’ Unfortunately, these cheerful looking spiders are under threat of extinction. Most spiders don't take care of their babies; less than 1% of all spiders look after their young. However, the Hawaiian happy face spider is part of that 1% who shows motherly love. She guards her eggs and brings food for her babies to eat when they are small.

*****

A few extra fun facts.

There are approximately 38,000 known species of spiders. Scientists believe there are probably many more to be discovered.

An estimated one million spiders live on one acre of land. The number might be closer to three million in the tropics. It is estimated that a human is never more than ten feet away from a spider—ever.

Spiders are vital to a healthy ecosystem. They eat harmful insects, pollinate plants, and recycle dead animals and vegetation back into the earth. They are also a valuable food source for many small mammals, birds, and fish.

Spiders eat more insects than birds and bats combined.  All spiders spin silk, but not all spiders spin webs.

Web-weaving spiders have two or three claws at the tip of each leg that they use to swing from strand to strand without getting stuck in the sticky part of their web. Additionally, a spider’s body has a special oily substance that keeps it from getting stuck in its web.

A spider’s muscles pull its legs inward, but cannot extend its legs out again. Instead, it must pump a watery liquid into its legs to push them out. A dead spider’s legs are curled up because there is no fluid to extend the legs again.

The Goliath is the world’s biggest spider. It can grow up to eleven inches wide, and its fangs are up to one inch long. It hunts frogs, lizards, mice, and even small snakes and young birds.

The Patu Marplesi  is the world’s smallest spider. It is so small that 10 of them could fit on the end of a pencil.

The silk that comes out of the spider’s spinneret is liquid, but it hardens as soon as it comes in contact with air. Some spiders have up to seven types of silk glands, each creating a different type of silk—such as smooth, sticky, dry, or stretchy.

The Darwin Bark spider creates the strongest material made by a living organism. Their giant webs can span rivers, streams, and even lakes and are ten times stronger than Kevlar. (Kevlar is five times stronger than steel on an equal weight basis and provides reliable performance and solid strength).

A web made of strands of spider silk as thick as a pencil could stop a Boeing 747 jumbo jet in flight. Scientists still cannot replicate the strength and elasticity of a spider’s silk.

Hummingbirds use small sticks and the silk from spider webs to weave a nest for themselves.

Some male spiders give dead flies to the females as presents. Aww, that is so sweet!

Two kinds of jumping spiders have been found at 23,000 feet. At this height, no plants grow, but plant material blows up from lower elevations, which is enough to feed the tiny creatures.

Hundreds of years ago, people put spider webs on their wounds because they believed it would help stop the bleeding. Scientists now know that the silk contains vitamin K, which helps reduce bleeding. Now scientists in the United States Defense Department are trying to copy gold orb weaver silk in order to use it for bulletproof vests.
 

Author Notes

There is so much more I could have written about the creepy crawling spider, I know I'll have nightmares tonight, but perhaps this will help others. I hope you watch the film I've added, there are some incredibly beautiful spiders in the world. This is written in UK English. If you spot any errors, I'll be so happy if you let me know. Thank you for reading! xx

I’m writing this ABC book for my 12 year-old grandson, Eric. I’ve found many interesting facts about the animals I’ve featured, and I hope children of all ages, 9 -109 will enjoy them, too.
 

 T is for Turtle

The turtle rarely leaves the sea
except to lay her eggs.
The tortoise likes to stay on land
and has quite sturdy legs.
And there’s another that does both,
the tiny terrapin.
Although they’re slightly different,
these hardshells are all kin.
 

Turtle, Tortoise and Terrapin are all names for the hard-shelled, egg-laying reptiles. But, they are all turtles.

 Sea Turtle                        Tortoise                                          Terrapin

Turtles - Marine, ocean-going creatures.

Sea Turtles spend most of their life in the ocean, only leaving to lay their eggs in the sand. They have limbs that look like flippers with webbed feet. Although this helps them swim, it does make it a lot harder for them to move over the sand when they come to lay their eggs.

Sea turtles are very slow growing, and this most likely accounts for their long life. Although it’s hard to know how long they can live, some think it’s around fifty to eighty years for adults weighing between 240lbs and 420lbs. For the giant leatherback turtles, it is thought it could be well over one hundred years, with the largest of these coming in at a massive 2,000 pounds! It’s easy to recognise the leatherbacks from other turtles because they don’t have the hard shell. 

Many turtle species are illegally hunted throughout the world for their meat and eggs, and for other products including oil, leather and their shells. This has meant many are considered critically endangered.

Giant Leatherback turtles

*****

Tortoises - Land dwellers

Tortoises are turtles that are slow-moving land reptiles who like to live in warm climates. They have hard, scaly, domed shells into which they can draw in their heads. This is especially handy for protection against predators. They have thick, chunky legs, and round, stumpy feet with claws for gripping and walking on land. Tortoises from hot countries have a lighter coloured shell than those from cooler climates.                                                

 

Because tortoises don’t swim, they will burrow in the sand or earth to reach the cooler soil, or sand, in which to lay. 

When the amazing Galapagos tortoises were first discovered by Bishop Thomás de Berlanga, four hundred years ago, there were 300,000 giant tortoises living happily on this island, which was given the old Spanish name Galapago, meaning tortoise. Then man came, and tens of thousands were slaughtered to be eaten by pirates and sailors; their shells were kept as trophies. Added to that, the habitats of these giant tortoises were, over the years, destroyed by the introduction of goats, pigs and rats. In the 1950s the Galapagos Islands were declared to be a national park. 

Lonesome George

The most famous tortoise in the world was Lonesome George, the last of the La Pinta giant Galapagos tortoise subspecies, who died in June 2012 at one hundred years old. He was the poster boy for conservation throughout his life, and his death represented the extinction of these once-great creatures. 

*****

Terrapin - Land and water dwellers.

Terrapins are turtles that spend time both on land and in water. The wild terrapins enjoy brackish, swampy water, while others like the freshwater ponds and lakes. They both like to climb out of the water to lay on logs and rocks to sunbathe. The word ‘terrapin’ comes from an Algonquian Indian word meaning ‘a little turtle.’ 

The wild swampy water terrapins on the left, and the freshwater terrapins are on the right.

 

Terrapins are very aggressive and will bite. They also ‘bark’ when something upsets them and makes them angry. The terrapins in New Zealand are usually infected with salmonella bacteria. This can be passed on to humans if they come into contact with them. 

The male red-eared terrapins have very long claws on their forefeet and longer, thicker tails than the females. It is almost impossible to tell the gender of a terrapin until it is about eighteen to twenty-four months old. Females may breed at three to four years of age, but this timing seems to be related more to size than to age.

*****

Some extra fun facts of the three Ts

The names terrapin, turtle, and tortoise can cause confusion. Turtles are sea chelonians, tortoises are land chelonians, and terrapins are freshwater and swampy water chelonians that spend some time on land.

Turtles can hold their breath for five hours. Tortoises can also hold their breath for a long time, but they need to empty their lungs before bringing their head back inside their shell. Terrapins can hold their breath up to thirty minutes.  

Turtles love to eat jellyfish. They have special spikes in their mouth to hold them so they don't get away. Because their head doesn't slip into their shell like other turtles, they are more vulnerable to predators. 

In most species, gender is determined during fertilization. However, the sex of most turtles, alligators, and crocodiles is determined after fertilization. 

The sex of a turtle hatchling is determined by the temperature of the sand where its nest is.  Research has shown that the hatchlings will be male if the temperature is below 81.86 Fahrenheit. If it is over 87.8, they will be female. When temperatures fluctuate between the two, there will be the perfect mix of males and females.

Unfortunately, as the Earth is experiencing climate change, the warmer sand means more females are born. Therefore, the species will not have a chance to continue because there will not be enough to mate and produce offspring.

Hopefully, conditions will improve as scientists make more observations and discoveries. Then, they can plan for the future of this species, along with many more facing difficult circumstances.

Author Notes

Thank you so much for reading the letter T. I really appreciate you all. If you find any nits, I'm always happy to be told. This UK English.

Chapter 21
Amazing Animals - U

By Sandra Stoner-Mitchell

I’m writing this ABC book for my 12 year-old grandson, Eric. I’ve found many interesting facts about the animals I’ve featured, and I hope children of all ages, 9 -109 will enjoy them, too.







 

U is for Urchin.

Sea urchins are small animals
that don’t have brains or eyes.
They can still sense when danger’s near,
regardless of their size.
All urchins will eat anything,
there’s not much they won’t try,
they’ll eat both plant and animal.
whatever they come by.


Fun facts on Urchins

Although sea urchins don’t have a skeleton, they do have a hard outer body which is called a ‘test’. It’s made of ten plates joined together,
wrapped around the sea urchins, then covered in spines.  

Urchins are mostly spiny, ball-shaped animals that were given their name because up until the 1500s, hedgehogs were called urchins. Some of the spiny sea urchins look just like them.  

           Hedgehog                                                         Sea hedgehog

    

Images from Pixabay

 *****

Even though urchins don’t have brains or eyes, they can ‘see’ with their tentacle-like tube feet.  Scientists believe they have light sensors that not only detect light, but sense nearby predators, or anything that might harm them.  These sensors are all over their bodies and along their spines.

In a new study, researchers from Lund University in Sweden have since tested their vision. They discovered that even though they have low sensory vision, for an animal with no eyes, it is good enough to meet their basic needs.

In order to move, the urchins will use their hundreds of sticky tube feet to crawl over rocks and sand.  The water moving in and out of their bodies helps them control the movement of their feet.  Their spines also help them walk by using a layer of muscle under the test, their hard outer body.

Image by Jerry Kirkhart via Wikimedia Commons

Their beak-like mouth, called ‘Aristotle’s Lantern,' has five sharp teeth that can drill through rock. This is on the underside of their bodies, which is handy for scraping their food off the rocks and other surfaces as they move along.

*****

In recent years, the soaring growth of the gluttonous purple sea urchin has devastated the huge forests of bull kelp (a type of seaweed) in the coastal waters of northern California.  This kelp played a vital part in sheltering many other sea creatures.

It all began in 2013 when sea stars were suddenly wasting away from a mysterious illness. These sea stars played a vital part in their ecosystem. They preyed on the local purple urchins and kept their numbers in check. 
 

Purple sea urchin                                                Dying sea stars

 

With the loss of so many sea stars, mainly due to the rising temperature of the sea, the population of the purple urchins has soared. Now, without their main predator to stop them, these urchins, according to a recent study, have munched their way through ninety percent of the bull kelp along 217 miles of the California coast. 

*****

Hatpin urchins are one of the largest known species from the deep waters off Japan. Hatpins from the Mediterranean and eastern Atlantic have toxic spines up to twelve inches long. 

The slate pencil urchins are about five inches long and roughly a quarter of an inch thick, the same as a lead writing pencil. 

There are many different types of flower sea anemones, and they do look lovely. Giacomo Merculiano painted a selection of them which I’ve shown below. 

Although we don’t realise it because it’s not immediately obvious, when we touch sea anemones and corals, we can be seriously harming them. The human skin is coated with bacteria, and oils, which stay on it even in water. Flower urchins look lovely, but some can be highly poisonous. It’s best to leave them alone if you’re not sure. 

Painted by Giacomo Merculiano (1859–1935) - The royal natural history, Public Domain,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11535111

  Pencil urchin                                           Hatpin urchin

*****

Extra fun facts

After researching several sites to discover how many urchin species there are in our oceans, the answers vary from 200 and 950. This would certainly make studying them difficult.  What I did discover was they live in all our oceans in depths of 5,000 metres. (16,000 ft; 2,700 fathoms) They can also be found near coastal shorelines in little puddles.

Urchins have claw-like devices on the surface of their bodies, scattered among the spines. Their main purpose is protection against predators. Besides that, they are used for food collection and for the removal of foreign objects that get attached to their body.

Even though they are covered with sharp spines, they have many predators,  like otters, fish, crabs and sun stars. However, the urchins are also being used by humans for a popular meal and the preparation of sushi. Some eat them raw and some fry them. Their eggs are another luxury food.

*****

On the other hand, a recent study concluded that the red sea urchin living in shallow coastal waters is among the longest living animals on Earth. They can live between one and two hundred years, but....

Sea pollution and overfishing are major threats to the survival of sea urchins.  Because of their decreased numbers in the wild, they are on the threatened species list, and could very likely become endangered in the near future.

 

Author Notes

This one was hard! Thank you for reading my letter U, I do hope you enjoy reading the facts I've included in this one. There are many more, but again, I'm limited for space. Any errors, I'd be most grateful if you let me know. Thank you! This is written in UK English.

Chapter 22
AmaZing Animals - V

By Sandra Stoner-Mitchell

I'm writing this ABC book for my 12 year-old grandson, Eric. I've found many interesting facts of all the animals I've featured, and I hope children of all ages, 9 -109 will enjoy them, too. Thank you for reading todays letter, V. 











 

V is for Vulture

When we talk about the vulture 
a picture comes to mind,
its ugly face and bare long neck;
the fact is, that’s unkind.
Most won’t go near live animals,
to make a kill or maim;
but they’ll be there to clean the land
once death has made its claim.  

Fun Facts on Vultures 

The vulture is probably one of the only birds you really shouldn’t eat. Its diet, as we all know, is not going to give the meat the flavour we would enjoy. It’s chockablock with deadly bacteria. Plus, if you consider that no other animal, including other buzzards, would eat a dead vulture, it’s clear that it wouldn’t do us any good, either.

Nature knows what each of us needs to survive, and for vultures, it is a bald head and neck so that they can push their head right inside the carcass without worrying about getting their feathers messed up! Who of us would disagree with this? We all hate bad hair days! The only thing they have to do is have a quick clean-up once they’ve finished their meal.

 Now, many would ask why do we need these horrible looking buzzards. Well, if we didn’t have them, we would have more diseases, leading to more deaths. These creatures are Earth’s cleaners, happily removing all the bad toxins dead animals leave behind. A vulture's stomach acid is so corrosive, it allows them to safely eat putrid carcasses infected with hog cholera; botulinum, which causes botulism, and anthrax bacteria. All of  this is lethal even to other scavengers.

 Kevinsphotos from Pixabay 

*****

Back in the 1980s, there were more than eighty million white-rumped vultures in India until, for no reason that anyone could think of, they started dropping dead, literally in their millions. In fact, 95% of all the vultures died. 

 White Rumped Vulture

zoosnow from Pixabay 

This gave rise to thousands of feral dogs and rats, carriers of rabies and other nasty diseases. Without the vultures to pick the dead animals' bones clean, the spread of lethal diseases increased to disastrous levels. More animals were left to rot in the fields, and others were contaminating the water supplies. 

Years later scientists learned the vultures drastic death rate had been caused by the cows  that had been given the anti-inflammatory drug diclofenac. This drug is highly poisonous to vultures who eat the carcasses. Chemists have now developed a new drug called meloxicam, a safe substitute that is not deadly to vultures.

*****

The New World vultures' are the most widespread, breeding from Canada to the southern tip of South America.

                                                            New World Turkey Vulture                                                                                     

The turkey vultures don’t have a voice box, but they are able to make a hissing or grunting sound. They don’t build nests, either, but will find protected places, such as old hollow logs, caves, or abandoned buildings to lay their eggs. New World turkey vultures have an excellent sense of smell and can smell dead animals from a distance of one and a half miles.

*****

The Old World vultures range extends through the Sahel region of Africa. They are seen in the grasslands, mountains, and woodlands. 

Old World Ruppell’s Griffon Vulture

Ruppell’s griffon vultures do have voice boxes. Although they are normally quiet, they become very noisy when at their nest, and squeal a great deal when eating. They are considered the highest-flying bird, with a verified flight altitude of thirty seven thousand feet above sea level. 

These Old World vultures differ from their new world cousins because they do build their nests. They use sticks and leaves which are probably found in trees or on cliffs. Some will use the same nests for many years. While nesting, they will take turns to sit on it while their mate finds food.
 

*****

Another New World species is the common Black Vulture. This one breeds from southern North America to South America. The only other species of vulture in North America is the California condor, which is an endangered species on the very edge of extinction. 

The black vultures are an aggressive species and will hunt and attack live animals as well as scavenge the dead. They are far stronger than the docile turkey vultures and will follow them until they have found a new food source and then shoo them off and keep their meal.

The black vultures have weak feet and blunt talons. Their beaks are long and hooked, ideal for tearing flesh. They have a wingspan of almost five feet and can live up to twenty-six years.  

Extra Fun Facts

 The word vulture comes from the Latin word vellere, which means to pluck or tear.

Turkey vultures incubate their eggs anywhere from twenty-eight to forty days. They care for the young in the nest for sixty to eighty-four days before they are ready to live on their own.

  To Sum Up
 

Vultures have always been seen as loathsome creatures because of their revolting eating habits. We have slowly come to realise that these birds play an important role in the world by cleaning up the dead animals in our forests and fields. They are now on the endangered list, and this is perhaps the most important species of all our creatures. Without them, the world would succumb to so many more diseases than we have to deal with today. 

Author Notes

Thank you for reading my letter V for Vulture. Researching the vultures was quite revealing. I have now changed my opinion about them and will regard them with the respect they deserve. Please let me know if you find the errors that hid from me, lol, they seem to do that a lot. This is written in UK English. :)

Chapter 23
Amazing Animals - W

By Sandra Stoner-Mitchell

I'm writing this ABC book for my 12 year-old grandson, Eric. I've found many interesting facts of all the animals I've featured, and I hope children of all ages, 9 -109 will enjoy them, too. Thank you for reading today's letter, W.

 

W is for Walrus

They’re the giants of the Arctic,
Majestic in their size.
The ice cold ocean is their home. 
So lusty are their cries.
Their tusks for anchorage
while sleeping in the sea,
and in this harsh part of the world,
their lives are wild and free. 

Fun Facts on Walruses

Walruses are huge. Everyone knows that, but just how huge are they? They have a large amount of blubber just under their skin, about six inches thick, all around the neck and shoulders to keep them warm in the Arctic conditions they have to deal with throughout their lives.  Adding to that their length of eleven feet, it is no surprise to discover they weigh in at around three thousand pounds. That is roughly the weight of a small car! 

 

 

Walruses belong to the group of marine mammals that include seals and sea lions. These are called pinnipeds, which means they are fin or flipper-footed. They live in the ocean, but are able to stay on land for long periods of time.

Their skin is roughly four inches thick and very wrinkled around their necks and shoulders, making it much tougher for their two main predators, the polar bear and orca whales, to bite through. On top of all that, walruses have a thin covering of fur, but still look as if they’re bald.  Another asset is their ability to slow their heartbeat, allowing them to live comfortably in the Arctic.

*****

When it comes to resting, walruses are unique. They can sleep for up to nineteen hours a day, or, at times, they’ll swim continuously for more than three days without a break. When they do want to sleep whilst in the water, they use their tusks as an anchor to hook them onto a rigid piece of ice. If that isn’t possible, they will swim over to the land.

 

*****

The walruses whiskers are highly sensitive due to them being attached to muscles that are supplied with blood and nerves. They use the whiskers to locate prey on the sea-bed. Once found, instead of using their tusks to dig them out, they squirt water through their noses to stir up the burrowing prey.

Walruses don’t chew their food, instead, they swallow it whole. An adult walrus can eat between three to six thousand clams in one sitting, but they do have a varied diet feeding on shrimp, crabs, tube worms, soft corals, tunicates, sea cucumbers, various mollusks, and even parts of other pinnipeds.

A Walrus hunting by cocoparisienne at pixabay.com

 

*****

Both the male and female walruses have tusks that can grow as long as thirty-six inches. These tusks are, in fact, canine teeth which continue to grow throughout their lives and can weigh several pounds.  The length of these tusks have an important part to play in deciding which walrus will be the leader of the herd, also called a pod. The longer the tusk, the more respect that walrus will get. But, their power often comes to an abrupt end. Many fights break out between the male walruses. The leader can easily end up with broken tusks, thereby losing the respect of the herd.  

Pushing their tusks into the ice to help pull their gigantic bodies out of the sea, is another important part the tusks play. It is now thought the Greek name for walruses, Odobenidae, meaning ‘one that walks with teeth,’ came about when they were spotted doing this. It does look that way, even though they don’t.

 

*****

When danger strikes, walruses can become formidable fighters. Polar bears are among the few predators capable of bringing these creatures down, yet even they tend to give fully-grown adult walruses a wide berth. They’ve been known to fatally wound polar bears.

 

 

Some Extra Facts

Gomphotaria pugnax walruses lived on the shores of present-day California roughly six million years ago. They had four tusks, two on the upper jaw and two on the lower.

The threat of climate change in the Arctic is a hazard to walruses and polar bears. As habitats shrink, ice-dependent species like walruses are moving onto the land. In 2014, around thirty-five thousand walruses hauled themselves out onto a stretch of beach in Point Lay, creating an extremely dangerous condition for their safety.

Walruses are easily spooked when crowded together; any sound, such as a plane or the smell of a predator, can cause a deadly stampede as they rush to get back into the ocean. 

Recently, such a disturbance near Cape Schmidt, Russia, caused more than five hundred deaths, and many were young calves. 

Some scientific projections suggest that the Arctic could be ice-free in the summers as early as 2040 -- only twenty short years away.

 

*****

Walruses are sensitive creatures. They have been seen keeping watch over injured walruses and pushing their dead or dying into the water so nearby hunters can’t get to them. Females have also been seen to carry their dead babies away from hunters. 

The only pinniped larger than the walrus is the elephant seal. There has been one registered at a record-breaking, twenty-two feet three inches long, with a verified weight of 8,880 pounds. (4000 kg) I’m not sure I’d like it on my lap!

 

 

I hope you enjoy listening to the sounds the walrus makes. It's quite funny really.

Author Notes

If you come across any errors, I'd be most happy if you could tell me. Thank you!! This is written in UK English. xx

Chapter 24
AmaZing Animals - X

By Sandra Stoner-Mitchell

I'm writing this ABC book for my 12-year-old grandson, Eric. I've found many interesting facts of all the animals I've featured, and I hope children of all ages, 9 -109 will enjoy them, too. Thank you for reading today's letter, X.

X-ray-Tetra is a short piece because, as I’m sure you would realise, there is not much to learn about these little chappies. 

 

X is for X-ray-Tetra

Transparent X-ray-Tetra fish
are difficult to find,
so they can hide from predators,
and all, but their own kind.
They don’t eat food that swims on by
since they like hunting for
crustaceans, worms and insects, that
live on the ocean floor.

Fun Facts on X-ray Tetra

The X-ray Tetra got their name from their see-through body. Not only can you see their bones, but also the eggs inside a female at breeding time. They can lay between three and four hundred eggs. They hatch within twenty-four hours, and the babies, called fry, start swimming around in just a few days. 

 

They can be found in fresh water or the sea, and clear and salty water, too. This allows them to live in a variety of places, making them unique among other fish who can only survive in one area.

The transparent skin of the x-ray tetra helps them to blend in with the rocks and foliage. Their fins, though, are highly visible with yellow, white and black tips.  

These little fish are also prized with having a Weberian apparatus. This is a structure that connects the swim bladder to the hearing system. The ‘swim bladder’ is an internal gas-filled organ that aids many bony fish to stay at their current water depth without wasting energy swimming. 

Only fish that belong to the superorder ostariophysi have this device. This is a species with four frontal vertebrae joined together. They support a chain of small bones that connect the bladder with the ear. This gives them incredible hearing. 

It is easy to identify the sex of x-ray tetra fish because the females are noticeably larger than the males.

The x-ray tetra feeds on insect larvae, worms and small crustaceans. They also enjoy some tasty sea-monkeys. Pictured below.

Although they have many natural predators, the greatest threat to the x-ray tetra is water pollution. This fish is capable of surviving in many different conditions, but those brought about by human interference make it much harder for them to deal with.

Because of their appearance, these little fish are very popular for aquariums. Because they are shoal fish, they are best kept in groups of eight to ten. They don’t mind being kept with other fish that are happy to have them in the same aquarium.

 

Author Notes

This was very short. There isn't much to choose from for X. Although, there are some unpronounceable insects, but they had nothing of interest to write about. I hope you liked the one I did find. Thank you for reading. Two left to go!

Chapter 25
Amazing Animals - Y

By Sandra Stoner-Mitchell

I'm writing this ABC book for my 12 year-old grandson, Eric. I've found many interesting facts of all the animals I've featured, and I hope children of all ages, 9 -109 will enjoy them, too. Thank you for reading today's letter, Y

 

.



 

Y is for the Yak

Domestic yaks are numerous--
the wild are in decline.
They live high in the mountain tops,
for them, the cold is fine.
Their shaggy hair is warm and thick, 
to ease the freeze at night.
Their horns are long and very strong
to dig with and to fight.

Fun Facts on Yaks 

In the Tibetan language, it’s the male of the species that’s called a yak. The female is called a dri or nak. Yaks are a friendly animal with hardly any recorded attacks against humans. However, the females are very selective about who they’ll allow to milk them. If you aren’t in favour, be warned, and don’t try! 

Unable to use wood due to the lack of trees on the Tibetan plateau, the yak's dried dung provides the herders with the fuel they need for their fires ... and it’s plentiful. 

There are two types of yak, the domesticated and the wild. It is believed the ancient Qiang herdsmen domesticated the yaks about ten thousand years ago. They now number at least twelve million. They were bred for their ability to move around the mountains in freezing weather. Their meat, milk, and warm fur skins are also very important to the herders. 

Yaks are so sturdy and surefooted they are able to cross high mountains carrying incredibly heavy loads. They have been called the ‘boats of the plateau.’ Domesticated yaks are more active during the day and are used for plowing and threshing the hard ground. 

    

They live in herds of around ten to twenty animals; usually these are the females with their young. In the winter, when the temperature plummets way below freezing, the herds huddle together to keep warm, with their young staying in the centre. 

The male is more solitary, but many do form small bachelor herds. At the moment, there are no exact figures of how many wild yak there are in the world, but scientists believe there are between fifteen to twenty thousand, mostly living in the Northern Tibet Grassland.

Wild yaks are heavily built, and have strong bulky bodies, with sturdy legs and rounded, cloven hooves. Both male and female have long shaggy hair with a thick woolly undercoat.  

Wild yaks are social animals that live in herds of up to several hundred, though many are much smaller. Mostly, herds have females and their young with few adult males. The females prefer to graze much higher up the mountain than the males, taking their young with them. Like the domestic yaks, the wild male prefers to stay alone or with other males. Although the wild yaks can be aggressive when defending their young, they like to stay away from humans and will run if approached.  

The wild yak will mate with more than one female in a single breeding season, which is from July to September. Before this time, the solitary male will return to the herd. If more than one returns, they will fight for the right to mate with the females of their choice. Frightened or beaten yaks will then go off for a few days to graze, then come back to try again. 

 

The females will usually produce one calf every two years. After about thirty-five weeks, the mother will find a quiet spot to give birth. Within ten minutes, the calf will be on its legs and walking, and then they’ll both return to the herd. 

Yaks do enjoy a cold swim, they’re also happy in the freezing snow.

 

A few Extra Facts.

Yaks belong to the same animal family as the Asian Water Buffalo, the African Buffalo and the American Bison.

They are herbivores and munch on grass, flowers, moss and tubers. 

Wild male yaks can reach a height of 6-1/2 feet and weigh as much as 2,200 pounds. Females are about 1/3 the size. The domesticated yaks are normally smaller than their wild cousins, weighing only 600 to 1,100 pounds. 

Yaks have a different sound to other herds. As an example, cows produce a lowing mooing sound, and yaks make a series of grunts. 

The wild yaks live to be around twenty years, while those in captivity live a little longer.

Yak herders not only drink the animals’ milk but also use it to make delicious butter and cheese.

Wild yaks are making a come-back after being almost wiped out by hunters in the middle of the 20th century. Listed as vulnerable, one step above endangered, they still have a way to go before being taken off the list.

Author Notes

Thank you so much for reading the letter Y. Pictures from Pixabay and Puplic Domain.com and of course, Graham's cartoon illustration at the top. :0) If you find any nits, please let me know so that I can tread on them. This is written in UK English.

Chapter 26
AmaZing Animals - Z

By Sandra Stoner-Mitchell

I'm writing this ABC book for my 12 year-old grandson, Eric. I've found many interesting facts of all the animals I've featured, and I hope children of all ages, 9 -109 will enjoy them, too. Thank you for reading the final letter, Z

 

Z is for Zebra,

Wild zebras live in Africa
where nature can be hard.
When sleeping, they’ll be standing up,
while some remain on guard.
When zebras rest they stand in groups,
the reason is, no doubt,
when all the stripes are muddled up
it’s hard to pick one out.

Fun Fact on Zebras

The stripes on zebras are like a human’s fingerprints, no two are the same. In fact, scientists have used the stripes in the same way we use bar codes, to easily identify the zebras they’re studying. 

Zebras are mainly thought to have black or brown stripes on white skin, because the stripes stop at zebras' bellies, which are white. However, it is now known that zebras have black skin under their fine white hair coats! 

There are three species of zebra still in existence: the plains zebra, the mountain zebra and the Grevy’s zebra, with many sub species. The plains zebra are the most common of the three types. They live in small groups of one stallion and several mares with their young. They can be found in the grasslands of eastern and southern Africa. Pregnancy lasts thirteen months before the foal is born. 

The males that haven’t found their own herd will gather in a bachelor group. Some will try to take over another stallion’s herd, but they won’t find it easy. Even if it wins the battle, it still has to win the females' trust, which can take up to three years!

Stallions are males, of around 5-years-old, who have fought other males for the right to travel with that herd and mate with the females in the harem. 

There are two different mountain zebras, the Equus (eekwes) zebra and the Hartmannae. They live in South-western Angola and South West Africa. They like dry, stony, mountainous areas. They prefer slopes and can be found as high as two thousand metres above sea level. They do come down in the winter season, though.

The mountain zebras have hard, sharp hooves to help them climb and keep their balance. They don’t have the mountain beard, but do have a strange neck flap called a dewlap, a bit like the turkey. 

Hartmann’s zebra with dewlap.  Pixabay 

The Grevy’s zebra is the largest of the three species. Their stripes are usually narrower than the plains zebras. This species also has the largest ears, and the longest neck, which make them look almost mule-like. 

The Grevy's common name comes from a royal gift. In 1882, Menelik 11 was the emperor of Abyssinia, which today is Ethiopia. The emperor decided his local zebras were regal animals, and as a sign of his respect, he sent one to the president of France.

Grevy’s zebra with long ears. Pixabay

 

To tell species apart, it’s best to look at their rumps. In order below:

1) The Grant's broad black.    2) The Burchell's two-toned.   3) The Grevy's narrow, close-set.

Let me introduce you to the Zonkey! He is such a delight. His zebra mother fell in love with a donkey, and we were gifted with the Zedonks! And what a cutie he is. Another zebra fell in love with a horse! And we were gifted with the Zorse! 

Here we have a picture of a very rare spotted zebra. 

The Grevy’s zebra, unlike the plains zebra, which needs to drink every day, can go without water for five days.

Unlike almost every other animal, the zebras make many different sounds. The mountain zebras whinny like the horse, Grevy’s bray like donkeys, and the plains zebras bark like dogs! If a stallion becomes alarmed by approaching predators, it will squeal or make a snorting sound.

To help them in the wild, Zebras have been blessed with super hearing and eyesight. This helps them keep clear of hyenas, cheetahs, and other predators. They also pack a powerful kick, and can run up to 35 mph. Since speed is vital, a newborn foal is born with legs that are 75% the length of its mother's and is all set to run moments after birth.

A group is called a dazzle, a herd, or a zeal. When they are huddled together, the muddle of stripes makes it a lot harder for predators to single one out for a kill.

According to the IUCN's Red List of Threatened Species, the plains zebra is not endangered, while the mountain zebra is considered vulnerable, and the Grevy's zebra is endangered, due to drought and the loss of their natural habitats. 

.

That’s it! The whole alphabet is now completed. Thank you all for your wonderful support, and help with finding my nits!

 

 

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