Brief Information about Animals
The jaguar makes its home in a wide-variety of habitats including deciduous forests, rainforests,
swamps, pampas grasslands and mountain scrub areas. Unlike many other cats, jaguars do not
avoid water; in fact, they are quite good swimmers. Rivers provide prey in the form of fish,
turtles, or caimans—small, alligator-like animals. Jaguars also eat larger animals such as deer,
peccaries, capybaras, and tapirs. They sometimes climb trees to prepare an ambush, killing their
prey with one powerful bite.
Bald eagles like lakes – big lakes. During the summer, they can be seen soaring above lakes and
in the nearby trees. They prefer lakes and reservoirs with lots of fish and surrounding forests. In
the winter, bald eagles can be seen around unfrozen lakes and hunting along coastlines,
reservoirs and rivers. During the migration, bald eagles are seen near all types of water habitats.
These powerful birds of prey use their talons to fish, but they get many of their meals by
scavenging carrion or stealing the kills of other animals. They live near water and favor coasts
and lakes where fish are plentiful, though they will also snare and eat small mammals.
Anteaters are found in Central and South America, where they prefer tropical forests and
grasslands. Anteaters are edentate animals—they have no teeth. But their long tongues are more
than sufficient to lap up the 35,000 ants and termites they swallow whole each day. The anteater
uses its sharp claws to tear an opening into an anthill and put its long snout and efficient tongue
to work.
Cardinals, also called "redbirds," do not migrate and have traditionally been more common in
warmer climes such as the U.S. southeast. However, in recent decades they have expanded their
common range north through the United States and even into Canada. This population growth
may be due to an increase in winter birdfeeders and to the bird's ability to adapt to parks and
suburban human habitats. The birds eat insects, seeds, grain, fruit, and sap.
Duck-Billed Platypuses are found in the lakes, streams and rivers of eastern mainland Australia
and Tasmania.
They build their burrows in banks. The males have sharp stingers on the heels of their rear feet
and can use them to deliver a strong toxic blow to any foe. Platypuses hunt underwater, where
they swim gracefully by paddling with their front webbed feet and steering with their hind feet
and beaver-like tail. Folds of skin cover their eyes and ears to prevent water from entering, and
the nostrils close with a watertight seal. In this posture, a platypus can remain submerged for a
minute or two and employ its sensitive bill to find food. These Australian mammals are bottom
feeders. They scoop up insects and larvae, shellfish, and worms in their bill along with bits of
gravel and mud from the bottom. All this material is stored in cheek pouches and, at the surface,
mashed for consumption. Platypuses do not have teeth, so the bits of gravel help them to "chew"
their meal.
The common Vampire bat is native from northern Mexico southward to Chile and central
Argentina and Uruguay as well as the island of Trinidad. It is found in both arid and humid
regions of the South American tropics and subtropics. They feed on blood from cows, pigs,
horses, and birds.
Skunks usually nest in burrows constructed by other animals, but they also live in hollow logs or
even abandoned buildings. In colder climates, some skunks may sleep in these nests for several
weeks of the chilliest season. Skunks are opportunistic eaters with a varied diet. They are
nocturnal foragers who eat fruit and plants, insects, larvae, worms, eggs, reptiles, small
mammals, and even fish. Nearly all skunks live in the Americas, except for the Asian stink
badgers that have recently been added to the skunk family.
Poison dart frogs, wear some of the most brilliant and beautiful colors on Earth. Depending on
individual habitats, which extend from the tropical forests of Costa Rica to Brazil, their coloring
can be yellow, gold, copper, red, green, blue, or black. The two-inch-long golden poison dart
frog has enough venom to kill 10 grown men. They eat ants, termites and beetles.
Peacocks are ground-feeders that eat insects, plants, and small creatures. There are two familiar
peacock species. The blue peacock lives in India and Sri Lanka, while the green peacock is found
in Java and Myanmar (Burma). A more distinct and little-known species, the Congo peacock,
inhabits African rain forests.
Loggerhead sea turtles have an enormous habitat range that encompasses all but the most frigid
waters of the world's oceans. They seem to prefer coastal habitats, but often frequent inland
water bodies and will travel hundreds of miles out to sea. They are primarily carnivores,
munching jellyfish, conchs, crabs, and even fish, but will eat seaweed and sargassum
occasionally.
Snowy owls live in and around the Arctic Tundra. A snowy owl's preferred meal is lemmings—
many lemmings. An adult may eat more than 1,600 lemmings a year, or three to five every day.
The birds supplement their diet with rabbits, rodents, birds, and fish. They are frequent migrants
to Canada, the northern United States, Europe, and Asia. Lemming availability may determine
the extent of southern migration, when owls take up summer residence on open fields, marshes,
and beaches.
Rattlesnakes live in many places and habitats in the Western Hemisphere, from mountains to
deserts and plains. They live in the dry, pine flatwoods, sandy woodlands, and coastal scrub
habitats from southern North Carolina to Florida and west to Louisiana. They eat household
pests such as rats and mice, as well as squirrels and birds.
Hares are a bit larger than rabbits, and they typically have taller hind legs and longer ears.
Snowshoe hares have especially large, furry feet that help them to move atop snow in the winter.
They also have a snow-white winter coat that turns brown when the snow melts each spring. It
takes about ten weeks for the coat to completely change color. Snowshoe hares feed at night,
following well worn forest paths to feed on trees and shrubs, grasses, and plants.
Beavers are among the largest of rodents. They are herbivores and prefer to eat leaves, bark,
twigs, roots, and aquatic plants. There are two species of beavers, which are found in the forests
of North America, Europe, and Asia. These animals are active all winter, swimming and foraging
in their ponds even when a layer of ice covers the surface.
Chimpanzees live in social communities of several dozen animals, and can habituate themselves
to African rain forests, woodlands, and grasslands. Chimps are generally fruit and plant eaters,
but they also consume insects, eggs, and meat, including carrion. They have a tremendously
varied diet that includes hundreds of known foods. Chimpanzees are one of the few animal
species that employ tools. They shape and use sticks to retrieve insects from their nests or dig
grubs out of logs. They also use stones to smash open tasty nuts and employ leaves as sponges to
soak up drinking water. Chimpanzees can even be taught to use some basic human sign
language.
African elephants are the largest land animals on Earth. They are slightly larger than their Asian
cousins and can be identified by their larger ears that look somewhat like the continent of Africa.
Elephants eat roots, grasses, fruit, and bark, and they eat a lot of these things. An adult elephant
can consume up to 300 pounds (136 kilograms) of food in a single day.
Mountain goats inhabit many of North America's most spectacular alpine environments. They
often appear at precipitous heights, from Alaska to the U.S. Rocky Mountains, showcasing
climbing abilities that leave other animals, including most humans, far below. Mountain goats
have cloven hooves with two toes that spread wide to improve balance. Rough pads on the
bottom of each toe provide the grip of a natural climbing shoe. Mountain goats have distinctive
beards and long, warm coats to protect them from cold temperatures and biting mountain winds.
Their dazzling white coats provide good camouflage on the snowy heights. During the more
moderate summer season goats shed this coat.
Bottlenose dolphins track their prey through the expert use of echolocation. They feed on
bottom-dwelling fish, though they also eat shrimp and squid. Bottlenose dolphins are found in
tropical oceans and other warm waters around the globe.
The common octopus can almost immediately match the colors, patterns, and even textures of its
surroundings. Predators such as sharks, eels, and dolphins swim by without even noticing it. It
will release a cloud of black ink to obscure its attacker's view, giving it time to swim away.
They prey on crabs, crayfish, and mollusks, and will sometimes use their ink to disorient their
victims before attacking.