I have been a lover of wildlife, environment and generally Mother Nature right from when I was little. I remembered staying glue to our T.V set to watch “Wild America” on NTA 2 Channel 5 and “Animals in Action” on Lagos Television (LTV) in those good old days. The mission of this thread is to expose many of us (myself inclusive) to the mysteries that make up these creatures we share this water Planet with. Any hidden, mysterious, facts you know about animals (plants and insects are included please) that can be educative will be fully appreciated, this is supposed to be an interactive thread as well, you are free to ask questions and post pictures too! I believe many brilliant minds will be here to educate us all. Let me kick start this thread while quoting from my book, ‘Some Raw Facts of Our World’

• Rhino horn is a tightly packed hair, a form of keratin like human hair and toenails.

• Sea ice is critical to Polar Bears (Ursus maritimus) survival, a platform from which they hunt their prey, mainly seals.

• A full-grown elephant needs about 140 kilograms of food and up to 200 litres of water every day.

• Elephants help their sick and injured ones. Cows often watch over dead calves, sometimes covering them with leaves and branches before moving on.

• Tiger parts are used in Traditional Chinese medicines for treatment of rheumatism and devil possession.

• Old and sick tigers and lions may become man-eaters as humans are considered easier prey.

• The giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) has the sharpest hoof and most powerful kick of all the animals.

• The Sable antelope (Hippotragus niger) is a match for a lion in combats.

• A full-grown dog is no match for a ratel (honey-badger).

• Snakes have powerful digestive enzymes (specialized proteins) to break down the hair, feathers, bones and other parts of their prey.

• Among the giant snakes (boids) and birds of prey, females are credited with their superiority and huge stature over their male counterparts.

• Elephant’s trunks are said to contain an estimated 40,000 number of muscles.

• The Ocean sunfish (Mola mola) produces up to 30,000,000 eggs in a clutch.

• Of all the whales, the one with the longest arms (front fins or flippers) is the Humpback (Megaptera novaengliae), which can grow to a length of 16 feet (5 metres).

• The illegal trade in wild fauna and flora has an international value of US $8 billion annually.

Nice post!

nke001: Nice post!

Thanks for dropping by, you may do well too by posting some 'facts' you know about these wonderful creatures we share this planet with

Wow!! Interesting faces.

So only sick lion/tigers prey on humans? Does that mean I can walk into healthy lion/tiger territory without fear?

Yoruba_Omoge: Wow!! Interesting faces.

So only sick lion/tigers prey on humans? Does that mean I can walk into healthy lion/tiger territory without fear?

Don't try that, remember they are carnivorous animals I am talking about 'habitual men-eaters' in this case

tomakint:
Don't try that, remember they are carnivorous animals I am talking about 'habitual men-eaters' in this case

If they're carnivorous, then aren't they "habitual man-eaters"? When does it become habitual?

•The Sable antelope (Hippotragus niger) is a match for a lion in combats.

Wow. . .

Look at the weapons on those babies!

Yoruba_Omoge:

Wow. . .

Look at the weapons on those babies!

Trust me the first time I did a thorough research on these 'pugnacious antelopes' I discovered that the 'The Forest' is indeed a battle for survival! A sable antelope is truly a match for a lion if cornered!

^^^answer my question about the habitual men-eaters

Yoruba_Omoge:

If they're carnivorous, then aren't they "habitual man-eaters"? When does it become habitual?

Let me break it down, three of the Big Cats' Lions, Tigers and Leopards can become habitual men-eaters if they are too old to hunt their usual fleet-footed preys or accidentally human encroachment to their habitats leads to change of diets and one thing about these afore-mentioned predators is that the moment they taste human flesh they hardly let go, stories abound from Kenya down to South Africa and far afield to India. Their becoming habitual men-eaters is gradual, so that's the point! Wao, I never knew you love wildlife like this, I thought Ileke-Idi was the bomb but here you are too, that's good!

tomakint:
Let me break it down, three of the Big Cats' Lions, Tigers and Leopards can become habitual men-eaters if they are too old to hunt their usual fleet-footed preys or accidentally human encroachment to their habitats leads to change of diets and one thing about these afore-mentioned predators is that the moment they taste human flesh they hardly let go, stories abound from Kenya down to South Africa and far afield to India. Their becoming habitual men-eaters is gradual, so that's the point! Wao, I never knew you love wildlife like this, I thought Ileke-Idi was the bomb but here you are too, that's good!

I don't think it necessarily has to do with change of diet, but more with available resource. carnivores will eat anything meat they come in contact with. Throw a man into a lion/tiger territory, healthy or not, they'll chop him up. Carnivorous animals like lions/tigers will eat anything that is readily available in their surrounding.

Forgive me, but I think any carnivore is a habitual man-eater. In other words, habitual M-E does not exist.

Yoruba_Omoge:

I don't think it necessarily has to do with change of diet, but more with available resource. carnivores will eat anything meat they come in contact with. Throw a man into a lion/tiger territory, healthy or not, they'll chop him up. Carnivorous animals like lions/tigers will eat anything that is readily available in their surrounding.

Forgive me, but I think any carnivore is a habitual man-eater.

I beg to differ, are you aware that Lions are faced with two regimes in the wild "Feast and Famine regime"? Feast is when there are abundance of wildebeest, Zebras and other prey items (because Lions prefer the flesh of these two ungulates) but during famine regime Lions and most predators will take on anything including decaying animals that's when you see them slugging it out with hyenas now coming to your point of carnivorous animals will readily eat humans I think it's not true why? they have been 'created to prefer certain preys for the other' and most times they will try to avoid humans I am talking from experience my dear

tomakint:
I beg to differ, are you aware that Lions are faced with two regimes in the wild "Feast and Famine regime"? Feast is when there are abundance of wildebeest, Zebras and other prey items (because Lions prefer the flesh of these two ungulates) but during famine regime Lions and most predators will take on anything including decaying animals that's when you see them slugging it out with hyenas now coming to your point of carnivorous animals will readily eat humans I think it's not true why? they have been 'created to prefer certain preys for the other' and most times they will try to avoid humans I am talking from experience my dear

Ohh now I get what you're saying

So tell me about your experience.

Yoruba_Omoge:

Ohh now I get what you're saying

So tell me about your experience.

Toss me some questions on wildlife first then we can move up the ladder gradually, if you don't mind

You didn't drop any facts about the Nigerian Politicians that dominate our society or you think those animals aren't part of wildlife??

.

yuzedo: You didn't drop any facts about the Nigerian Politicians that dominate our society or you think those animals aren't part of wildlife??

please don't derail abeg, trust me there is a lot to learn from this thread if you stick around, remember this is no 'politics section' thanks you!

tomakint:
Toss me some questions on wildlife first then we can move up the ladder gradually, if you don't mind

Ok, this may sound stupid, so I'm gonna apologize first, but why do birds bob their head up and down? And why do they move from side to side like a dance ritual? Is it for stability/balance?

I actually have a friend that's scared of birds lol. She's like "why do they move like that?" rotfl

more facts from me;
*If sea levels should rise by 75 to 85 metres, nearly all, except for a few coastal buildings would be submerged

*Ostrich’s egg is 4,500 times heavier than that of the smallest bird’s egg – the humming bird

*A reptile needs to stay warm while it is digesting food – a snake that has eaten, but cannot get to a warm place, may die because the food in its stomach will be too cold to digest

*The New Mexico whiptail lizards and other several species are all – female and can reproduce without mating, where the unfertilized eggs develop and hatch through a process called parthenogenesis

*Barbary apes are the only monkeys found in Europe, at the Gibraltar region

*In some species of fish families such as wrasses, parrot fishes and swamp eels every individual is born as a female while male are produced by sex reversal from female to male, a process called protogyny.

tomakint:
please don't derail abeg, trust me there is a lot to learn from this thread if you stick around, remember this is no 'politics section' thanks you!

lol.
What a knock-out punch.

Hmmmm, tomakint d zoologist abi na animal behavioural scientist. Animal planet and Nat Geo wild must top ur most watched stations. Kudos to u, I dey augment my animal knowledge small small.

Yoruba_Omoge:

Ok, this may sound stupid, so I'm gonna apologize first, but why do birds bob their head up and down? And why do they move from side to side like a dance ritual? Is it for stability/balance?

I actually have a friend that's scared of birds lol. She's like "why do they move like that?" rotfl

That's what we called 'Courtship Display or dance' to woo the intended partner for mating it's very common with partridges, pheasants, grouse etc and all those birds in the same family

Have always been in love with d wild and animals in general.

Is it safe to assume a sable antelope can take on a fully grown lion? Beats my imaginatn tho

tomakint:
That's what we called 'Courtship Display or dance' to woo the intended partner for mating it's very common with partridges, pheasants, grouse etc and all those birds in the same family

Not. . . the regular bobbing! I can distinguish the regular hopping/bobbing to courtship dance.
It aint no courtship. You know, the regular erratic movements birds make.

Yoruba_Omoge:

Not. . . the regular bobbing! I can distinguish the regular hopping/bobbing to courtship dance.
It aint no courtship. You know, the regular erratic movements birds make.

got no clue dearie

mebad: Have always been in love with d wild and animals in general.

Is it safe to assume a sable antelope can take on a fully grown lion? Beats my imaginatn tho

If in doubt just google about those 'pugnacious antelopes' they have been proved time and again to do just that against 'lone lions'

tomakint:
got no clue dearie

I'll try to post a video

Interesting . .

Yoruba_Omoge: Wow!! Interesting faces.

So only sick lion/tigers prey on humans? Does that mean I can walk into healthy lion/tiger territory without fear?

Yes you can.

vislabraye:

Yes you can.

bad guy!!

tomakint:

bad guy!!

Not funny

vislabraye:

Yes you can.

I'll follow closely behind you , don't worry.

Tomakint, from ur repertoire of knowledge, abeg wetin b the hormone wey dey make insects mostly ants follow one another for straight line or zig zag manner.?