Red squirrel
About red squirrels.
They are solitary animals that live in treetops and try to remain there as much as possible, leaping from tree to tree. These squirrels build nests with twigs, moss, etc. and sometimes they use tree hollows for that purpose. Generally, each squirrel has more than one nest, to...
White-tailed deer
About white-tailed deers.
This species shows a clear sexual dimorphism: besides a big difference in size, males are the only ones with antlers. They shed them every winter and grow them again in spring at astonishing speed (up to 2.5 cm per day). Once on the ground, they are eaten...
Bongo
About bongos.
There are two bongo subspecies: the lowland bongo and the mountain bongo. The difference between them is very subtle. The mountain one weighs an average of 45 kg more and its fur is brighter. The mountain subspecies is critically endangered, there are only less than 200 individuals free in...
Harbor seal
About Harbor seals.
They are marine animals, extremely clumsy out of the water. They move on land as if they were caterpillars. These animals can dive at a depth of 180 meters and hold their breath under water up to 28 minutes. Each dive, however, takes normally an average of 3...
Bornean orangutan
About Bornean orangutans.
There are two orangutan species, each inhabiting one of the Indonesian islands: Bornean, the most common, and Sumatran. Orangutans are the largest living arboreal mammals. Other larger primates, like the gorilla, live on the ground and only climb trees for food. Orangutans, however, "nest" in tree branches and use...
Kinkajou
About kinkajous.
Despite its looks, the Kinkajou is not related to monkeys, but to raccoons and coatis. These animals have a very acute sense of hearing. They could easily hear the sound of a snake sliding in the rainforest. They can rotate its feet in the opposite direction and run backwards as...
Little owl
About little owls.
It is the smallest owl species in the United Kingdom, even though there are smaller species in the rest of the world. The pigmy owl would be an example. Despite being a very well known bird in Great Britain, the little owl is not autochthonous of this region. It...
Fennec fox
About the fennec fox.
It is the smallest existing wild canid or fox species, with barely the size of a kitten, and it has the largest ears. One of the uses of their large ears is to detect and locate potential prey, even under the ground of the desert where they...
Ferret
About ferrets.
The ferret is a domesticated subspecies of the polecat, from the family of mustelids. It is thought that the Romans domesticated it to hunt and control the population of little animals. Some researchers say that they could have emulated the Egyptians with their cats. This animal's body odor is...
Veiled chameleon
About the veiled chameleon.
Chameleons have the ability to change the pigmentation of their skin very fast. The individuals of this species also have a wide variety of colors they use mainly to express their mood. It uses the protuberance on its head, which gives it its name, to get water...
Red panda
About the red panda.
Despite its name, the red panda is not related to the giant panda. They are actually genetically closer to raccoons, skunks and mustelids. They are members of the order Carnivora, but, along with some other species (like the binturong or the giant panda), they don't usually eat...
British shorthair cat
About the British shorthair cat.
It is probably one of the oldest breeds in Great Britain. Its ancestors were brought to the islands by the Romans more than 2,000 years ago. The most common and popular color for this breed is blue (grey, a dilution of black), variant called "British Blue",...
Eastern grey kangaroo
About the eastern grey kangaroo.
Despite its scientific name (Macropus giganteus), that seems to say otherwise, this one is not the largest existing Kangaroo species. Its relative, the red kangaroo, is bigger in size. These animals eat mainly at night, resting in the shelter of shrubs during the day to avoid the heat. Like their relatives,...
Southern cassowary
About the southern cassowary.
The cassowary is the second largest bird on earth, after the ostrich, but it is the most dangerous. It has powerful legs with claws that enable it to attack with kicks at high speed. It is a remarkable looking animal with bright colors in neck and head (that change depending on its...
Ring-tailed lemur
About the ring-tailed lemur.
These animals have a long ringed tail that helps them move with agility from tree to tree. Unlike many other primates of similar size, lemurs don't have prehensile tails to grasp tree branches. Ring-tailed lemurs live in groups called troops. These troops consist of 6-30 individuals and the...
