Desert Buzzard Hunting the White-tailed Antelope Squirrel. Notice that leisurely stroll among the cacti...

The Desert Buzzard (Parabuteo unicinctus) is a bird of prey from the family Accipitridae, found from the southwestern USA to Chile and central Argentina. This bird is known for its unique "cooperative hunting" practice in family groups, unlike most other predators that hunt alone.

The White-tailed (Antelope) Squirrel (Ammospermophilus leucurus) is a ground squirrel inhabiting deserts in the western USA. Interestingly, these tiny creatures don't need to drink water as they get all the necessary moisture from their food. They primarily feed on seeds from desert plants. 🌵🐿️

Japanese Giant Hornet (Vespa mandarinia japonica) - The World's Largest Hornet:

The Japanese giant hornet is the largest hornet in the world, with an average body length of 5.5 cm, a wingspan of 7.5 cm, and a stinger slightly over 6 mm long.

Habitat: Korea, China, Japan, Nepal, India.

Did You Know? The Japanese giant hornet's stinger rarely remains in its victim, allowing it to sting multiple times. Its neurotoxic venom contains mandarotoxin, which can cause severe pain, allergic reactions, cardiac arrest, and kidney failure in humans.

These hornets are aggressive predators, feeding on both ripe fruits and other insects, including their close relatives, bees. A scout hornet locates a bee hive and marks it, then several hunter hornets find and raid the hive, devastating everything in their path. A group of just 30 hornets can destroy a colony of 20-30 thousand bees! 🐝💥

Isidore's Hawk-Eagle (Black-chestnut Eagle) Spizaetus isidori inhabits the northwestern part of South America.

This includes Colombia and Venezuela, Ecuador and Peru, as well as Bolivia and northwestern Argentina. However, this bird is rare everywhere.

Isidore's Hawk-Eagles are very active birds and rarely rest. They perch on treetops, branches, and stumps bathed in sunlight, with the tips of their wings hanging below the end of their tail.

These eagles hunt woolly monkeys, sloths, wild boars, and other small mammals that primarily live in hilly areas. They also raid native chicken coops, which is why their population is constantly declining.

Fun Fact: Isidore's Hawk-Eagles are known for their impressive aerial displays during courtship, performing spectacular dives and rolls to attract a mate. 🦅💫

Maned Wolf (Guara) - Chrysocyon brachyurus

The maned wolf is the largest canid in South America. It resembles a large fox with tall, slender legs rather than a wolf. Its body is relatively short (125-130 cm), but its legs are very tall (75-85 cm at the shoulder), and it weighs 20-23 kg.

Its disproportionate build is further emphasized by its tall ears and short tail (30-45 cm). The maned wolf's long legs are an evolutionary adaptation to grassy plains, helping it survey the surroundings while moving through tall grass.

Maned wolves are nocturnal and crepuscular. Their social structure is based on a breeding pair that occupies a single hunting territory but is otherwise quite independent. The male and female rest, hunt, and travel separately.

Fun Fact: The maned wolf produces a distinctive, skunk-like odor from a gland near its tail, which it uses for marking territory. This unique scent is so strong that it can be detected by humans from a considerable distance! 🦊🌾

The smallest owl in the family of owls is the boreal owl (Aegolius funereus). This bird has fluffy plumage, a large head, and a pronounced facial disc. A distinctive feature of the species is the fluffy plumage on its legs. These owls have wide and long wings, and a small tail. Boreal owls have a distant resemblance to domestic owls, but the latter lack feathering on their legs.

Boreal owls are small birds, with males weighing around 120 g and females around 200 g. They lack ear tufts on their heads, but when startled, small "horns" of feathers form. These birds are known for their surprised facial expression. They have large, yellow eyes and lead a nocturnal lifestyle, hunting in the forest.

The mating call of male boreal owls can be heard in their habitats during the breeding season, which lasts from mid-March to mid-May.

🌟 Fun Fact: Boreal owls are known for their exceptional hunting skills, capable of catching prey even in complete darkness using their acute hearing and silent flight. 🌟

Bengal (Small) Cat Prionailurus bengalensis, also known as the Far Eastern Cat, is one of the most widespread wild cat species in the world. Their size is similar to that of a domestic cat, and across their vast range, they exhibit a variety of coat colors.

The appearance of Bengal cats varies greatly within the species. Those in the coastal regions look quite different from those on the islands of Indonesia. In the south, their base coat color is more yellow, like a leopard, while in the north, it is predominantly gray-brown.

Northern populations have circular spots on their fur, while southern populations have black streaks. The size of Bengal cats ranges from 65 cm (on the island of Java) to one meter (in the coastal regions), including a tail that can reach 20-40 cm.

Bengal cats always live near water. They adapt equally well in tropical forests, coniferous forests, savannas, or mountains.

Fun Fact: Bengal cats are excellent swimmers and are known to chase prey in the water, a rare trait among wild cats! 🐾💦

Arachnacris - A genus of large bush crickets found in the tropical forests of the Malay Peninsula, New Guinea, and the Bismarck Archipelago. Adults can reach up to 15 cm in body length, with a wingspan of up to 25 cm.

Arachnacris regalis - An omnivorous insect: its diet mainly consists of plant-based foods. However, it occasionally hunts smaller invertebrates and isn't averse to scavenging.

Despite belonging to the genus of True Crickets and having relatively long legs, Arachnacris regalis has lost the ability to jump. It also rarely flies, preferring to move by crawling. And that's a good thing! In its flying and jumping form, it would be quite unbearable!

Fun Fact: These crickets are named for their spider-like appearance, with long legs and a robust body. Their unique look and behavior make them a fascinating subject for entomologists.

Leopard after an attack by a porcupine...

Porcupine quills are not venomous, but they are not sterile either - and can cause painful, slow-healing wounds. Especially if a quill breaks off and its tip remains lodged in the leopard's skin.

These are the leopards that, once severely injured by porcupines, would turn into man-eaters, striking fear into villages in India. After all, an unarmed ordinary person is a completely defenseless animal, much easier for an injured leopard to hunt than any other creature in the jungle.

Fun Fact: Leopards are incredibly strong swimmers and often hunt for fish and crabs in rivers and streams. They are also known to climb trees, even with their heavy prey, to keep it safe from scavengers like lions and hyenas.

Glass Butterfly Greta oto is native to Central America, from Mexico to Argentina - but these shots were filmed at London Zoo.

Wingspan of Greta oto ranges from 5.5 to 6 cm. The tissue between the veins on its wings is transparent because it lacks colored scales.

The female lays eggs on plants of the genus Cestrum, which the caterpillar will later feed on, accumulating toxic alkaloids in its tissues. This makes the adult butterfly taste unpleasant to birds. Adult butterflies drink floral nectar.

In Spanish, the Glass Butterfly is called "espejitos," which translates to "little mirrors." When hit by car headlights, the semi-transparent parts of the wings gain a glossy, almost reflective property, making their Spanish name remarkably accurate. However, it doesn't matter how you name these butterflies - mirror, transparent, or glass - they are truly magical!

Fun Fact: The transparency of the Glass Butterfly's wings is not just for show.

It helps them blend into their surroundings and avoid predators. This unique adaptation makes them one of the most fascinating butterflies in the world.

Moschus moschiferus - the Musk Deer

A small even-toed ungulate, distinctive for its tusks and musk. Unlike deer, which it's sometimes mistaken for, it lacks antlers. Instead, males have long, curved tusks protruding from under the upper lip (7-9 cm), used for combat, and a abdominal gland producing musk.

Musk deer have unusually long hind legs, making their rump 5-10 cm higher than their withers when standing.

They prefer dark coniferous parts of the taiga with rock outcrops. They live solitarily and are sedentary in these areas.

Their diet mainly consists of epiphytic and terrestrial lichens, making up 65-95% of their winter diet. They also eat fir and cedar needles, some umbellifers, bilberry leaves, ferns, and horsetails.

Fun Fact: Musk deer are known for their musk, a strong-smelling substance used in perfumes and traditional medicine. It's so valuable that it's often called "liquid gold"! 💰💫

Oxpeckers (Buphagus) are unique birds found only in Africa, where they are widespread and commonly seen.

These birds are known for their close relationship with large ungulates. They perch on these animals, picking off insects and their larvae from the skin, which is their primary food source. Oxpeckers spend most of their time moving with their hosts, riding along as they graze.

Fun Fact: Oxpeckers have a mutualistic relationship with their hosts. While they benefit from the meal, they also help the animals by removing parasites and even alerting them to danger with their loud calls.

These birds are non-migratory and spend their days near grazing wildlife, such as elephants, rhinos, buffaloes, zebras, and wildebeests, or domestic livestock. At night, they roost in large groups in reeds. They cling to the animals' skin with their sharp claws, foraging for ticks, lice, and other parasites, as well as pulling out botfly larvae that have burrowed under the skin.

Snow Goat (Oreamnos americanus)

The snow goat is found in the western part of North America, in the mountain ranges of Idaho, Montana, and southeastern Alaska. In Canada, they inhabit Alberta, British Columbia, and the southern Yukon Territory.

This mountain-dwelling animal prefers remote, high-altitude areas above the tree line. During summer, they can often be spotted at elevations above 3,000 meters.

Snow goats feed on grasses and lichens and can withstand temperatures as low as -40°C. They typically move in small herds.

Their coat is thick, long, white, and fluffy. Externally, the snow goat resembles a common domestic goat. Both males and females have horns that grow up to 20-30 cm in length, with a rounded cross-section.

Fun Fact: Snow goats have special pads on the bottom of their hooves that help them climb steep, icy slopes with ease! 🏔️🐐

Two-colored (Crested) Pitohui (Pitohui dichrous), also known as the Two-colored Robin, inhabits New Guinea. It is one of the few venomous birds: its skin and feathers contain batrachotoxin, a powerful neurotoxin.

Humans and animals poisoned by batrachotoxin die from heart failure. However, touching the Two-colored Robin does not pose a danger to humans - unless they have cuts on their hands.

The bird's venomous nature is due to its diet. Two-colored Pitohuis eat Choresine pulchra beetles, which contain batrachotoxin. The bird has developed immunity to this toxin (it is even present in its internal organs) - unlike local residents, who consider this bird inedible. Lucky bird!

Fun Fact: The batrachotoxin found in the Pitohui is so potent that a single gram could kill up to 20,000 mice! 🐭💀