ANIMALS FACTS - BIRDS and Animals

ANIMALS FACTS

Why are these blue things scattered all over the ground ?

The blue trinkets belong to a male satin bower bird. The colour blue is irresistible to these Australian birds. They collect all kinds of blue stuff from flowers to bits of glass to just plain trash. Then they carefully place their trinkets in and around a special "hut" , called a bower, that they build out of grass. Female bower birds inspect the bower and its decorations. If a female approves of the male's handiwork, she will mate with him and build her nest nearby.

Why is this animal poking nose into a mound of dirt ?

This giant ant eater is sniffing out a termite dinner. It will use its sharp, curved claws to slash an opening in this tough termite mound. Then it will flick its long, worm shaped tongue in and out of the hole, nabbing dozens of the tiny termites with each swipe of its sticky tongue. Some ant eaters can flick their 61 cm tongues in and out of a termite mound or anthill more than 150 times a minute. Now that is really "fast food!"

How do migratory animals find their way ?

Migration is the mass movement of groups of animals. It is caused by the animals' need to find food, due to climatic changes during the year and due to the need to breed. Migrating animals navigate in a variety of ways. Fish use their sense of smell to recognize their migration paths, and are guided by changing water temperatures. Birds use the position of the Sun to orientate themselves. Some birds have magnetic particles in their ear mechanism that can act as a compass. Mammals depend on their memory. They remember the routes of their migratory journey from generation to generation.

The Komoda Dragon

The Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard. It grows to 3 m in length, attains a weight of about 135 kg and may live to an age of about 100 years.