Animal Facts!

Here will be facts about all the animals in Jamaa! (The page is not done yet.)

Wolves

• Wolves are the largest canines in existence. 
• There are five subspecies of gray wolves in North America.
• The brain of a dog is 15-30% smaller than the brain of a wolf.
• A wolf can hear 16 times better than a human.
• A wolf has excellent eyesight. However, they cannot focus from a long distance.
• Wolves weigh between 40-140 pounds. Females are 15 pounds lighter than males, on average.
• Wolves are born with blue eyes, but they gradually change to a gold-yellow. Very few have blue.
• It is common for a wolf to travel 20 miles in search of food.
• Wolves usually hunt prey larger than themselves- elk, deer, caribou, and even ox.
• A wolf can eat up to 20 pounds of meat in one meal.
• Wolves catch about 1/10 animals they hunt.
• Wolves require 1-3 quarts of water a day.
• A wolf can go many days without eating.
• A lone wolf is called a dispersal wolf.
• Lone wolves rarely howl or mark their scent.
• Wolf dens are in deep river banks, logs, rock outcrops, or upturned roots.
• Wolves do not howl at the moon.
• The only enemy of wolf is man.
• There is only one documented case of healthy wolves attacked a human.
• The gray wolf is listed as endangered in all the Lower 48 states except Minnesota.

Rabbits

• Rabbits are not rodents- they are lagomorphs. Other lagamorphs are pikas and hares.
• More than half of the world's rabbit population is in North America.
• A male rabbit is called a buck, a female a doe, and the babies are kittens or kits.
• They are not common in Eurasia. 
• A group of rabbit burrows is called a warren.
• Rabbit fur is soft, and can be brown, gray, and buff, a yellow-brown color.
• In Europe, rabbits are the main prey of red foxes, badgers, and lynxes.
• The longest-lived rabbit lived 16 years.
• Rabbits eat grass, forbs, and leafy weeds.
• Due to their diet, they must reingest their own droppings.
• There is a distinct difference between rabbits and hares- rabbits are born hairless, and with their eyes closed.
• Rabbits are raised for meat and kept as pets.
• Rabbit teeth never stop growing.
• Rabbits cannot vomit.
• Rabbits can purr.
• A group of rabbits is called a herd.
• A 4 pound rabbit can and will drink as much water as a 20 pound dog.
• Predators can literally scare a rabbit to death.
• Domestic rabbits can't breed with wild rabbits.
• The only place a rabbit sweats is on its paw pads.

Pandas

• Scientists do not know why pandas are black and white.
• Many find pandas cute, but they act like any grizzly bear.
• Males weigh up to 250 pounds, while females rarely reach 220.
• Pandas are listed as endangered.
• There are about 1,600 in the wild, and over 300 are in zoos.
• Pandas eat almost all bamboo, but maintain balance by eating grasses, small rodents, or musk deer.
• Adult pandas are generally solitary.
• Unlike other bears, pandas do not hibernate.
• Pandas were kept be ancient Chinese emperors.
• Female pandas will give birth once a year.
• A newborn cub is all white.
• The Chinese word for panda is Xiongmao, or Giant Cat Bear.
• Pandas live in the slopes of China and Tibet.
• There are two species of pandas: red pandas, and giant pandas.
• The giant panda is like a bear, while the red panda is like a raccoon.
• Red pandas eat acorns and roots as well as bamboo.
• Giant pandas generally stay on the ground, while red pandas spend time in trees. 

Koalas

• Aside from the greater glider and ringtail possum, koalas are the only mammal that can live on eucalyptus leaves.
• A koala can store little to no fat.
• A baby koala, called a joey, is born blind and less than 1 gram.
• Koalas give birth to one joey at a time.
• Koalas eat leaves and bark from 12 species of eucalyptus trees. 
• Koalas rarely drink water, as they get it from eucalyptus leaves.
• Koalas do not live in rainforests.
• Females may produce 5 or 6 joeys in their whole life time.
• Up to 4,000 koalas are being killed each year by cars or dogs.
• European settlers saw koala fur as good trading, and shot millions for their pelts.
• By 1924 koalas were extinct in southern Australia.
• Even after a koala dies, other koalas will stay out of its territory until the scent marks and scratches fade away.
• Eucalyptus leaves are very poisonous to many other animals. Koala digestive systems allow them to digest the leaves.
• After feeding on milk, joeys eat pap, a specialized form of droppings.
• A young koala eats leaves when it starts to ride on its mother's back.

Monkeys

• Monkeys do not like to be touched.
• Most monkeys are dangerous.
• Hawks, eagles, and humans are predators of monkeys.
• The loudest monkey is the Howler monkey.
• Monkeys can show many emotions, just like a human.
• Monkeys can laugh and smile.
• Like a human, each monkey has its own unique fingerprint.
• Monkeys have a brain that is large for their size.
• Monkeys are killed for stealing crops.
• Monkeys can be trained as service animals.
• There are 264 known species of monkeys.
• Monkeys have fingers and thumbs much like humans.
• Monkeys use tools such as rocks and sticks.
• Monkeys are very vocal animals.
• Monkeys are believed to be smarter than apes and lemurs.
• Monkeys have been sent into outer space and are used in experiments. 

Tigers

• Tigers are the largest of the four species of big cats.
• Tigers adapt well to their surroundings.
• When tigers hunt, they only have a few seconds to kill it before it can run away.
• They can take down animals larger than themselves.
• Tigers live alone.
• A tiger may have up to 3-4 cubs at a time.
• There are 6 out of 9 original subspecies of tigers left on Earth.
• All 6 of those subspecies are endangered.
• Most species of tigers have only less than 1,000 left.
• One of the problems is that most of the offspring don't live to the age to breed.
• The tigers that do survive in the wild can live to be about 15 years.
• In a zoo, tigers can live to 20 years.
• Siberian tigers live longer than the other species.
• Tigers can leap more than 30 feet.
• Tiger stripes help camouflage them in tall grass.
• The largest subspecies is the Siberian tiger.
•  Tiger cubs are blind at birth.