Meet the Genet 🐾

The Genet (Genetta genetta) is a carnivorous mammal with a long (up to 100 cm), low-slung, and incredibly flexible body covered in short fur with a spotted coat. Its fluffy tail, up to 50 cm long, has scent glands that produce a strong-smelling liquid called musk.

Habitat and Behavior 🌳

Genets live in savannas and tropical forests in Africa and can also be found in southwestern Europe (Spain, France), typically near water sources. They are nocturnal, feeding on small animals, birds, eggs, and invertebrates. Fruits also play a significant role in their diet. During the day, they sleep in trees or rocky dens, curled up and covered with their long tail. 🌟

🌟 Meet the Indian Paradise Flycatcher 🌟

The Indian Paradise Flycatcher (Terpsiphone paradisi) is a stunning bird that grows up to 19-22 cm in length. 🐦

Did you know that males and females have different plumage colors? Females have reddish-brown feathers, light gray throats, and light bellies. Young males resemble females but have black throats and blue eye rings. 🔵

As they mature, males grow long tail feathers up to 24 cm in their 2nd year and up to 30 cm in their 3rd year, with a striking white coat. ❄️

These birds inhabit densely forested areas from Central Asia to India, northern and eastern China, and as far south as the Indonesian archipelago. 🌳

Fun fact: They love to bathe in shallow streams during dry weather, sometimes visiting multiple times a day to drink and preen their beautiful feathers! 🌟💦

Meet the Brazza's Monkey 🐒

The Brazza's Monkey (Cercopithecus neglectus) inhabits central Africa. It's named after French explorer Pierre Brazza.

Distinctive Features 🔍
This monkey has a recognizable orange stripe on its forehead, and white fur on its face forms a "beard and mustache".

Habitat 🌳
They live in dry mountain forests and swampy areas with tall grasses. They blend in perfectly with the green vegetation and can freeze in place when threatened, becoming almost invisible.

Social Structure 👪
Brazza's Monkeys live in small family groups led by one male. Males are almost twice as large as females, making them easy to identify.

Diet 🍔
They spend most of their time in trees, feeding on seeds, leaves, fruits, and insects. Occasionally, they eat bird chicks, eggs, and small reptiles. They may also forage on the ground for food.

Interesting fact: Brazza's Monkeys are expert foragers, using their agile hands and sharp eyesight to find food in the dense forest canopy! 🌟

🐸 Meet the Glass Frog (Centrolenidae) from South America! 🌟

Its skin is so thin and transparent that sunlight passes through, casting a very faint shadow. Why is this important? 🤔

Because its silhouette is invisible to predators from below when it sits on tree leaves! 🌿 From above, the frog blends in with the foliage thanks to its blurred outline. 🔍

Researchers photographed 55 glass frogs on green leaves and white backgrounds, using computer analysis to mimic predator vision. They found that the frogs changed brightness depending on the background, without actively changing color! 🔮

The effect is achieved through the frog's semi-transparency, with more transparent legs changing brightness more than the body. Mind blown, right? 🤯

🐦 Meet the Secretarybird, Sagittarius serpentarius! 👥 With its striking black and white plumage, this bird exudes importance, as if it holds a high-ranking position. 📝 The feathers on the back of its head resemble goose quills, which were historically used by court clerks in their wigs.

🌟 This African bird has earned the respect of locals by devouring a vast number of diverse snakes. It's even featured on the coats of arms of South Africa and Sudan! 🏛️

📏 The Secretarybird's body reaches 1.5m in length, weighing around 4kg, but its wingspan is impressive - over 2m! 🤯 Its unusual proportions include large, powerful wings and long, model-like legs. 🌟 Without a sufficient run-up, the bird can't take off, so it can run at speeds of over 30km/h.

🌍 You can only spot the Secretarybird in Africa, from Senegal and Somalia to the Cape of Good Hope. 🌟

🐭 Meet the Pacarana, Dinomys branickii! 🌟

This large rodent is the 5th biggest after the capybara, beaver, crested porcupine, and mara, with a body length of 70-80 cm and weighing 10-15 kg. 🤯

Its name "Dinomys" means "terrible mouse" in Greek, while "branickii" honors A. Branicke. 🙏

Unfortunately, the Pacarana's lifestyle is poorly studied. They inhabit lower parts of rocky mountain slopes and valleys in rainforests at 200-2000 m above sea level. They are rarely spotted in the wild. 🌳

In captivity, Pacaranas are calm, non-aggressive, and peaceful. In the wild, they are slow-moving and "phlegmatic". 😴

Interestingly, Pacaranas are monogamous and stay with their partner for life! 💕 Pregnancy lasts up to 8 months, with usually two babies per litter. They are low-maintenance and start eating solid food just a few days after birth. No wonder they're becoming popular pets! 🐾💕

Meet the Bengal Cat 🐱

The Bengal cat (Prionailurus bengalensis) is one of the most widespread cat species in the world. They're similar in size to domestic cats and come in various color variations across their vast range.

Variations in Appearance 🌎

Their appearance differs greatly depending on the region. In the north, their fur is mostly grey-brown, while in the south, it's more yellow, like a leopard's. The shape of their spots also varies - circular in the north and like black smudges in the south.

Size and Habitat 🏞️

Bengal cats range in size from 65 cm to 1 meter, including their 20-40 cm tail. They always live near water and thrive in various environments, from tropical forests to coniferous forests, savannas, and mountains. They avoid human settlements and only occasionally cross cultivated fields.

🐦 Meet the Eurasian Pygmy Owl (Glaucidium passerinum), a small but fierce bird that can hunt prey larger than itself! 🦉

It has a clever trick up its sleeve: two spots on the back of its head that resemble eyes. In this video, the owl moves its head so quickly that you can see both its real eyes and the "decoy" eyes. 👀

This unique feature is likely meant to deter attacks from behind, sending a message to potential predators: "I've got eyes on you, don't even try!" 😏

🐕 Meet the Bush Dog (Speothos venaticus), one of the most unusual dogs in the world! 🌟 It resembles an otter or a semi-aquatic animal due to its unique appearance.

With a bear-like muzzle, webbed feet, and a quirky short tail... It's hard to believe these dogs are actually dogs! 🐾 They hunt exclusively in water, making them truly one-of-a-kind.

They're relatively small: 55-75 cm in length, 12-15 cm tail, 25-30 cm in height, and weigh 5-7 kg. You can find them in Panama, Venezuela, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Argentina, and Brazil. 🌎

Despite their wide range, Bush Dogs are extremely rare. They were initially thought to be extinct, known only from fossil remains found in Brazil. 🌟

🐦💃 Himalayan Monal's Mating Dance 💃🐦

Meet the Himalayan Monal (Lophophorus impejanus), a stunning bird from the pheasant family and the national symbol of Nepal. 🇳🇵

The male's feathers shimmer in shades of green, red, purple, and blue, with a white belly and copper-colored tail. The crest on its head is a beautiful golden hue. 👑

The female has brown feathers with light stripes and brown-black cross lines, a white throat, and a blue ring around her eyes. Both males and females have this distinctive eye ring. 👀

Males reach 70 cm in length, with 23 cm of that being their tail. Females are slightly smaller and don't have a crest. 📏

🦌 Meet the European Fallow Deer (Dama dama), a medium-sized deer found in Europe and Western Asia (this one was spotted in Poland).

📏 They're larger than the European Roe Deer, but smaller than the Red Deer. This subspecies reaches lengths of 130-175 cm and shoulder heights of 80-105 cm.

🔍 What makes this deer special is its melanism, making it much darker than other individuals of the same species.

🐯 To put it into perspective, a classic example of melanism is the Black Panther, which isn't a separate species, but rather a dark-colored leopard or jaguar.

👀 So, it's fitting to call this deer the "panther" of the hoofed animals! 🦌

🐒 Meet the Siamang, the largest and heaviest gibbon species! 🌟

Reaching 75-90 cm in height and weighing 8-13 kg, these amazing primates have a unique throat pouch that serves as a resonator when they sing. Their songs can be heard up to 3-4 km away! 🎶

Found in the southern part of the Malay Peninsula and Sumatra, Siamangs are diurnal and inhabit dense tropical forests, spending most of their time in trees. With their long arms, they acrobatically swing from branch to branch and are also excellent swimmers! 🌳🏊‍♀️

Like all gibbons, Siamangs are monogamous, with each pair living in their own territory, which they fiercely defend from intruders. Their diet consists mainly of leaves and fruits, with occasional bird eggs and small vertebrates. 🍃🍉

Interesting fact: Siamangs are one of the few primate species that are known to be excellent swimmers! 🏊‍♀️

Jaguar vs Caiman: The Ultimate Hunt! 🐯🌟

Did you know that South American jaguars (Panthera onca) are excellent swimmers and can even catch small caimans for lunch? 🤯

These majestic predators have a diverse diet, consisting of at least 87 species, including capybaras, caimans, peccaries, deer, anteaters, tapirs, snakes (even anacondas!), water birds, and fish. 🐟

Their menu also features monkeys, foxes, iguanas, opossums, otters, rodents, and other small animals. With their powerful jaws, they can even crack open freshwater turtles and armadillos! 🌟

Unlike pumas, jaguars frequently attack domestic animals, especially large cattle. However, Asian buffalo, introduced to South American farmers as a profitable alternative to cows, prove to be an unreachable prey for them. 🐮

Meet the real sawflies Tenthredinidae - small, harmless insects 5-20 mm in size 🐜. But their voracious caterpillars are a different story...

Watch how they move to new food sources: the upper ones run on the backs of the lower ones! 🤯 This increases their speed.

The lower individuals move at a normal pace, while those on the second level move faster, their speed adding to the speed of the lower ones. When the upper ones reach the front of the column, they switch to the lower row.

This way, caterpillars moving in a group travel faster than solo ones 🚀.

🌟 Peaceful Coexistence 🌟

Meet the Keel-billed Toucan (Rhamphastos sulfuratus) and the Roseate Spoonbill (Ajaia ajaia) sharing a serene pond, despite the spoonbill's pretentious demeanor 😏.

Notice the spoonbill's unique spoon-shaped bill? 🥄 It's perfect for filtering mud and feeding on small aquatic creatures like crustaceans (which give them their pink hue), insects, mollusks, frogs, and tiny fish.

Fun fact: Roseate Spoonbill feathers were once highly prized by fashion designers for decorating ladies' hats, leading to their near-extinction. Although they're now protected in their nesting grounds, they still face threats from hunting during their winter migrations in South America 🌎.

These birds fly in a distinctive way, with their heads stretched forward and forming a long chain. During the day, they often snooze, standing on one leg and tucking their bill into their chest or under their wing. At night, they roost in well-hidden spots amidst dense wetlands 🌿.

🐝💀 Meet the Trigona necrophaga bees, also known as "vulture bees", that eat meat instead of pollen and produce honey from dead flesh! 🍯

Biologists studied these unique bees and found that their digestive system is similar to that of vultures, eagles, and hyenas. Their gut microbiome is specially adapted to break down meat. 🦅

Interestingly, these bees don't have stingers, but instead use their powerful jaws to defend themselves, which are covered in bacteria that can cause painful inflammation and boils. 🤕

Despite their unusual diet, the honey produced by these bees is sweet and safe for humans to consume. This is due to the bees' strict approach to storing their food - they keep the rotting meat in separate, well-insulated chambers within their hives, away from the honey stores. 🍯👍

Meet the Sacred Poison Dart Frog! 🐸💚

The Dendrobates leucomelas, a species of poison dart frog, inhabits the tropical regions of South America. 🌴

Toxic Skin Secretion 🚽
Their skin contains a poisonous mucus, which is accumulated through the consumption of toxic insects and the hosting of toxic fungi and bacteria on their skin.

Summer Snooze 😴
During the summer, these frogs enter a state of dormancy. Interestingly, indigenous communities have utilized the toxic mucus of these frogs to poison the tips of their hunting arrows! 🏹️

Many think lions can't climb trees. I don't know about lions, but lionesses can! 🐯🌳

Watch this video to see for yourself: a lioness attacks a leopard. The little one managed to escape, but it's unlikely it was the main target. 🐾💨

Most likely, the lioness was attracted to the leopard's leftover prey hanging from a tree branch. 🍖️🌲

🦌 Nara - The City of Deer 🦌

Nara is a center of Buddhist culture and the ancient capital of Japan. From 710 to 784, the imperial court was located here, and now it's a popular tourist destination.

📊 14 million people visit Nara every year to see the massive bronze Buddha, the largest wooden building in the world, and the adorable deer that roam freely in the city center.

🦌 According to Japanese legend, the god of thunder and swords, Takemikazuchi, arrived in Nara on a white deer to protect the newly built capital. Since then, locals consider deer divine creatures that guard their city. The animals are protected and feel safe.

🌳 In the city park, 1,200 deer live freely. Admission is free! Under the shade of trees, vendors sell special crackers for the deer. 10 crackers cost 150 yen ( approx. $1.40 USD). The treats disappear quickly! 🐰💨

🐦🎣 The Striated Tiger Heron (Tigrisoma fasciatum) uses a dead beetle as bait while fishing! 🐜

Found in Costa Rica, Colombia, and along the eastern slope of the Andes to Bolivia, these birds inhabit humid mountain forests, living along densely vegetated riverbanks. 🌿

They lead a mostly solitary life, pairing up only during breeding season. They catch prey on both land and water, feeding on small fish and insects. 🐟🐜