Sand Cat (Felis margarita)

Blurb from the Author: Look at that fluffy little face! Don’t let it fool you these guys are known as expert venomous snake killers. These guys are tough, with standing temperatures up to 126 degrees F! I think they deserved the spot as my last species of the week. I hope you all were able to learn about a really cool new species! 🙂

Lifespan: ~13 years

Population Size: ~27,264 individuals

Geographical Location: They reside in the aird, dry desert climates of North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, Western Asia, Central Asia, South Asia.

Diet: They are carnivores and eat prey like hares, birds, rodents, reptiles, insects, and snakes.

Size: 3-7.5lbs, 18-22.5 inches long

Conservation Status: least concern

Predators: Their predators include humans, snakes, jackals, owls, and dogs.

Reproduction: Interestingly, their mating season depends on the area in which they reside. (January-April (Sahara), April (Turkmenistan) & September- October (Pakistan)) Their gestation period lasts 59-63 days and they produce 2-8 kittens.

Communication: They communicate vocally through typical cats sounds (meowing, hissing and growling) as well as high pitched barking when looking for a mate. They also scent mark and claw/scratch different woody matter.

• Fun Facts:
• The dense fur on the bottom of their feet help to prevent burns from the sand
• They also do not leave footprints in the sand due to the dense fur on their paws
• They hide any leftover food that they have in the sand
• They can survive without water for a couple of months (they get water from the food they consume)
• They are very good at digging
• They are solitary (besides during the breeding season)
• They can run up to 25 mph
• They have excellent hearing and detect their prey by listening for the vibrations that they create
• They sometimes close their eyes at night to avoid being spotted by predators.
• Female cat name: Queen
• Male cat name: Tomcat
• They are nocturnal

VIDEO: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/video-captures-african-sand-cat-kittens-first-time-180965236/

Websites Used for Research: http://animalia.bio/sand-cat https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Felis_margarita/#lifespan_longevity https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/8541/50651884 https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/sand-cat

References: Wheeler, S. 2004. “Felis margarita” (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 08, 2020 at https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Felis_margarita/

Giant Golden-Crowned Flying Fox (Acerodon jubatus)

Blurb from the Author: I love bats! I think they are super interesting creatures, especially the giant fruit/ flying fox bats. I wanted to personally know more about these giant creatures so I decided to make them my species of the week. 🙂

Lifespan: ~12-23 years

Population Size: 10,000 individuals (decreasing 🙁 )

Geographical Location: They are endemic to the Philippines where they can be found in deep caves and or tropical rainforests.

Diet: They are frugivores! They especially favor figs, as they make up most of their diet along with some leaves here and there.

Size: ~2.5 lbs, wingspan of 1.5-1.7 meters, 7-11 inches long

Conservation Status: endangered 🙁

Predators: There are only a few known predators such as raptors, pythons, and humans.

Reproduction: Little is known about their reproduction system. What is known is that they have two reproduction periods throughout the year, but only produce one young in total from both of these periods combined and give birth in April-June.

Communication: They communicate both with their distinct individual smells and also vocally with squabbles, cackles, and screeches.

• Fun Facts:
• They actually have great eyesight unlike other bats that rely on echolocation for sight
• They are nocturnal
• They are genetically related to foxes
• In South America they are known as the cryptic creature “Chupacabra”
• They are very into personal grooming and use the water from local water sources to pour on themselves (with their wings) and clean themselves
• They mate upside down
• They are vital pollinators
• They cool themselves by fanning themselves with their wings and licking their bodies
• The ‘golden-crowned’ part of their name refers to the golden tuft of fur on the top of their head

Websites Used for Research: https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/139/21988328 http://animalia.bio/giant-golden-crowned-flying-fox https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Acerodon_jubatus/

References: Heinen, V. 2009. “Acerodon jubatus” (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 08, 2020 at https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Acerodon_jubatus/

Nilgiri marten (Martes gwatkinsii)

Blurb from the Author: I am a big fan of ferrets so I went to the next best thing, martens! This picture was absolutely striking and I couldn’t ignore it, nor did I know that this species of marten existed. As I continued my research about the nilgiri marten I found out that there was little known about this species so I did my best to provide what is known!

Lifespan: 10-14 years (in captivity) unknown (wild)

Population Size: 1,000 individuals 🙁

Geographical Location: They are endemic to southern India. They can more specifically be found in the western Ghats mountain range where there are tropical forests and growing plantations.

Diet: They are omnivorous (partial insectivores and frugivores) and eat foods such as birds, small mammals, insects, fruits, and seeds.

Size: ~5 lbs, ~2 ft long

Conservation Status: vulnerable 🙁

Predators: There are no specified predators, but it is assumed that natural carnivores within the nilgiri marten’s habitat will prey on them along with human who kill them for their pelts.

Reproduction: The information that is used to explain their reproduction methods is compiled from the mustelids family and the yellow-throated martens. It is assumed that they breed seasonally between February and March or June and August. The length of the females gestation period is either 30-65 days or 220-290 and they have 2-6 kits per litter.

Communication: Little is know about their communication, but again it is assumed that they are social creatures (based off of their other close marten cousins) and use scent marking and some vocalizations.

• Fun Facts:
• They are diurnal
• There is not many other known facts about them unfortunately

Websites Used for Research: http://animalia.bio/nilgiri-marten https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Martes_gwatkinsii/ https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/12847/86161239

References: Webb, A. 2013. “Martes gwatkinsii” (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 07, 2020 at https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Martes_gwatkinsii/

Sunda Flying Lemur (Galeopterus variegatus)

Blurb from the Author: You know the saying “the eyes are the window to the soul”? Well, this saying couldn’t be more true for this little guy. He stares right into your soul haha! His eyes captivated me and I couldn’t ignore him and not write about him. Besides his eyes, his fur color really caught my eye and how it helped him to blend into the trees. He also doesn’t look like your typical lemur, more of a flying squirrel or sugar glider deal. It perplexed me so I had to find out more! Surprisingly, I found out there is not much known about these guys.

Lifespan: ~7.5 years old

Population Size: unknown (but decreasing 🙁 )

Geographical Location: They can be found in the tropical rainforests of Southeast Asia.

Diet: They are herbivores (more specifically folivores and frugivores). They eat things such as the soft plant parts (fruits, flowers, and buds) nectar, sap and young leaves.

Size: 2-5 lbs, 50-69 cm long (including tail), wingspan of ~70 cm

Conservation Status: least concern

Predators: There are no specified predators to this species, but humans are known to be their top predator (habitat loss).

Reproduction: Not much is known about their reproduction systems, but unlike many species, the sunda flying lemur mates throughout the year. They have a gestation period of about 60 days and produce 1-2 offspring. These offspring cling onto their mothers while she makes a makeshift pouch out of her skin flaps to hold them close to her.

Communication: They are solitary creatures and not much is known about their communication. There is speculation that they possibly communicate with “ultrasound” calls that are difficult to hear with the human ear.

• Fun Facts:
• They don’t fly they glide!
• They glide with the extra folds of skin between their limbs and tail
• It is not a lemur (the name is very misleading in many ways haha)
• They are nocturnal
• They are great climbers
• They are also referred to as colugos
• Their closest living relatives are primates and bats
• They sleep in holes in trees or suspended from branches
• They are helpless on the ground (this is why they are never found on the ground and remain in trees)

Websites Used for Research: http://animalia.bio/sunda-flying-lemur https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Galeopterus_variegates/ https://news.mongabay.com/2018/05/first-record-of-ultrasound-communication-in-the-mysterious-sunda-colugo/

References:  Beatson, K. 2011. “Galeopterus variegates” (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 07, 2020 at https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Galeopterus_variegates/

Raccoon Dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides)

Blurb from the Author: I briefly glimpsed at this species while reading through some articles and I had to go back and look at it because I thought it looked like my boyfriend’s mom’s dog Cheyenne! (shes is a pug pomeranian mix) It confused me because I didn’t understand how some random person writing the article I was reading had a picture of their dog. (haha) I researched more into it because I wanted to know if they had an actual dog or a racoon dog (and it was extremely cute). Sadly, Cheyenne is definitely a dog, but that’s ok because she is just as cute! 🙂

Lifespan:  6-11 years

Population Size: unknown

Geographical Location: They can be found in Europe and Asia in countries such as China, Japan, South and North Korea, Russia, Vietnam, France, Finland, Serbia, etc. They live in temperate habitats including deciduous and coniferous forests, grasslands, shrublands, and urban areas.

Diet: They are omnivores and eat foods like insects, nuts, rodents, amphibians, berries, birds, nuts, fish, reptiles, eggs, mollusks, carrion, grains, etc.

Size: 9-22 lbs, 18-28 inches long

Conservation Status: least concern

Predators: The main predator that this species faces (like most species, unfortunately) are humans (road ways, poaching, nuscience killing) They can also be killed by feral dogs, wolves, foxes, wild cats, and birds of prey.

Reproduction: Their mating season ranges from January to April. They are, for the most part, monogamous and remain with one partner throughout their lifespan, but there have been cases of polygamy. The gestation period lasts from 60-70 days and they can produce a litter of pups ranging from 6-8 individuals. Both males and females help in raising the pups.

Communication: Surprisingly they do not bark! They vocalize to each other with growls, whines, yelps and mews. They will also scent mark and tail posture to communicate.

• Fun Facts:
• They are the only canid (dog family) that hibernates
• Known as the “tanuki” in Japanese folklore
• Their scientific name translates to “the night wanderer”
• They are not closely related to racoons
• They can be seen living in urban areas (they should NOT be kept as pets)
• They sometimes wash their food (yes wash!)
• They are nocturnal
• They are killed for their fur pelts (which is extremely messed up and I am 100% faux fur clothing)

Websites Used for Research: http://animalia.bio/raccoon-dog https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Nyctereutes_procyonoides/ https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/14925/85658776 https://www.softschools.com/facts/animals/raccoon_dog_facts/1044/

References: Carr, K. 2004. “Nyctereutes procyonoides” (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 05, 2020 at https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Nyctereutes_procyonoides/