BEAR

Polar bears are the top predator in the arctic marine ecosystem and the largest terrestrial carnivore. They evolved from brown bears during the Pleistocene, the time period that spanned from 1.8 million to 11,000 years ago. The polar bear's coat, covering it completely except for the nose and foot pads, is superbly adapted to Arctic environments. Along with a thick layer of body fat, the water-repellent coat insulates the bear from cold air and water. It also serves as camouflage; in fact, polar bears can sometimes pass as snow drifts. Surprisingly, the fur has no white pigment. Polar bears are excellent swimmers and can sustain a pace of 10 km/h by using their front paws like oars while their hind legs are held flat like a rudder. Adult males typically measure 6.5 - 9.8 feet from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail and weigh 780 - 1,500 lbs. Females are usually half the size of males, unless pregnant. The bear's body and neck are elongated, and the head is narrow and long with small, rounded ears.

CAMEL
Camels, the desert's biggest animals, are often called desert ships. Bactrian Camels' coat color varies from dark brown to sandy beige. Dromedary Camels are caramel in color. The coat is long and wooly, forming a mane and beard of long hair. The winter coat is shed with large sections, peeling off at once. The face of a Camel is long and triangular, with a split upper lip. Weight: Dromedary Camels weight from Camels will eat any vegetation they can find in their area: leaves, grasses, shrubs. They eat thorns, dry vegetation, and salty plants that most other animals avoid. When food is scarce Camels will eat bones, animal flesh, even rope and tents. All Camels have a complex 3-compartmented stomach. They regurgitate and rechew ingested forage, and are more efficient in food conversion than ruminants. Camels store fat in the humps, not water. When well fed the humps are full and erect, as resources decline, the humps shrink and lean to the side. All Camels have the remarkable ability of going without water for months, but when water is available Bactrian Camels may drink up to 60 liters, and Dromedary Camels drink up to 100 liters. Dromedary Camels weight from 300 to 700 kg; Bactrian Camels weight 600-1000 kg. Height: All Camels are 1.8-2.3 m tall at withers; Life Span: 40 years for Bactrians; up to 50 years for Dromedary.

CAT
The domestic cat (Felis catus] or Felis silvestris catus) is a small, usually furry, domesticated, carnivorous mammal. It is often called the housecat, or simply the cat when there is no need to distinguish it from other felids and felines. Cats are valued by humans for companionship and ability to hunt vermin and household pests. Cats are similar in anatomy to the other felids, with strong, flexible bodies, quick reflexes, sharp retractable claws, and teeth adapted to killing small prey. As crepuscular predators, cats use their acute hearing and ability to see in near darkness to locate prey. Not only can cats hear sounds too faint for human ears, they can also hear sounds higher in frequency than humans can perceive. This is because the usual prey of cats (particularly rodents such as mice) make high frequency noises, so the hearing of the cat has evolved to pinpoint these faint high-pitched sounds. Cats also have a much better sense of smell than humans.

DOG
Domestic dogs come in a bewildering variety of shapes and sizes. They have been selectively bred for millennia for various behaviors, sensory capabilities, and physical attributes, including dogs bred for herding livestock (collies, sheperds, etc.), different kinds of hunting (pointers, hounds, etc.), catching rats (small terriers), guarding (mastiffs, chows), helping fishermen with nets (Newfoundlands, poodles), pulling loads (huskies, St. Bernard's), guarding carriages and horsemen (Dalmatians), and as companion dogs. Some kinds were even bred simply as lap warmers (Pekingese). Their basic morphology though, no matter how modified, is that of their wild ancestors, gray wolves. Like many other predatory mammals, the dog has powerful muscles, fused wrist bones, a cardiovascular system that supports both sprinting and endurance, and teeth for catching and tearing. Compared to the bone structure of the human foot, dogs technically walk on their toes.

FISH
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate (or craniate) animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups. Most fish are ectothermic ("coldblooded"), allowing their body temperatures to vary as ambient temperatures change, though some of the large active swimmers like white shark and tuna can hold a higher core temperature. Fish are abundant in most bodies of water. They can be found in nearly all aquatic environments, from high mountain streams (e.g., char and gudgeon) to the abyssal and even hadal depths of the deepest oceans (e.g., gulpers and anglerfish). At 32,000 species, fish exhibit greater species diversity than any other class of vertebrates. Fish, especially as food, are an important resource worldwide. Commercial and subsistence fishers hunt fish in wild fisheries (see fishing) or farm them in ponds or in cages in the ocean (see aquaculture). They are also caught by recreational fishers, kept as pets, raised by fishkeepers, and exhibited in public aquaria. Fish have had a role in culture through the ages, serving as deities, religious symbols, and as the subjects of art, books and movies. Because the term "fish" is defined negatively, and excludes the tetrapods (i.e., the amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals) which descend from within the same ancestry, it is paraphyletic, and is not considered a proper grouping in systematic biology. The traditional term pisces (also ichthyes) is considered a typological, but not a phylogenetic classification.

FROG
The Common Frog is the most widespread species in Europe. Their relatively smooth skin varies in colour from olive green and yellow, to dark brown, speckled with black, brown or red and can lighten or darken to blend in with the surroundings. There are dark cross bars on the limbs and a dark patch behind the eyes. The under side of the body is off-white or yellow with some speckles. The skin can also be used to 'breathe' when oxygen demand is low such as when hibernating through the winter in the debris at the bottom of a pond - they will also hibernate in cool moist conditions under logs or other plant debris where it is unlikely to freeze. Males are slightly smaller than the females - an average size for an adult is 7.5 to 8 cm and 23g in weight. The males also have dark pads or swellings on the first digits of the fore legs which are used during mating to grip the female; they become more pronounced during the mating season. The long muscular hind limbs enable them to leap about 50cm. They prefer to be in cool, moist conditions under dense herbaceous foliage where they prey on invertebrates like slugs, snails, worms and insects, trapping them with their long, sticky tongues. This makes them a garden friend as anything which reduces the slug and snail population is most welcome. Apart from during the breeding season they are found in gardens, open fields and in woods, coming to bodies of shallow water in the spring to find a mate. They do not search for food in water, and do not feed during the mating period. In the food chain, frogs form part of the diet of birds such as herons, foxes and other hunting mammals - domestic cats can be a problem.

OX
An ox (plural oxen), also known as a bullock in Australia, New Zealand and India, is a bovine trained as a draft animal. Oxen are commonly castrated adult male cattle; castration makes the animals more tractable. Cows (adult females) or bulls (intact males) may also be used in some areas. Oxen are used for plowing, for transport (pulling carts, hauling wagons and even riding), for threshing grain by trampling, and for powering machines that grind grain or supply irrigation among other purposes. Oxen may be also used to skid logs in forests, particularly in low-impact, select-cut logging. Oxen are usually yoked in pairs. Light work such as carting household items on good roads might require just one pair, while for heavier work, further pairs would be added as necessary. A team used for a heavy load over difficult ground might exceed nine or ten pairs.

LION
The lion (Panthera leo) is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera,and a member of the family Felidae.With some males exceeding 250 kg (550 lb) in weight,it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger. Wild lions currently exist in SubSaharanAfrica andin Asia withan endangeredremnant population in Gir Forest National Park in India, having disappeared from North Africa and Southwest Asia in historic times. The lion is a vulnerable species, past two having seen in a its possibly African outside irreversible range. Lion designated population decline of thirty to fifty percent over the decades are populations untenable

reserves and national parks. Although the cause of the decline is not fully understood, habitat loss and conflicts with humans are currently the greatest causes of concern. Within Africa, the West African lion population is particularly endangered. Lions live for ten to fourteen years in the wild, while in captivity they can live longer than twenty years. In the wild, males seldom live longer than ten years, as injuries sustained from continual fighting with rival males greatly reduce their longevity. They typically inhabit savanna and grassland, although they may take to bush and forest. Lions are unusually social compared to other cats. A pride of

lions consists of related females and offspring and a small number of adult males.

subspecies

have

been

classified

asendangered by IUCN.

TIGER
The tiger (Panthera tigris) is the largest cat species, reaching a total body length of up to 3.3 metres (11 ft) and weighing up to 306 kg (670 lb). Their most recognizable feature is a pattern of dark vertical stripes on reddish-orange fur with lighter underparts. They have exceptionally stout teeth, and their canines are the longest among living felids with a crown height of as much as 74.5 mm (2.93 in) or even 90 mm (3.5 in). In zoos, tigers have lived for 20 to 26 years, which also seems to be their longevity in the wild. They are territorial and generally solitary but social animals, often requiring large contiguous areas of habitat that support their prey requirements. This coupled with the fact that they are indigenous to some of the more densely populated places on earth, has caused significant conflicts with humans. Tigers once ranged west widely to the across Asia, eastern coast

EEL
Eels are elongated fish, ranging in length from 5 centimetres (2.0 in) in the one-jawed eel (Monognathus ahlstromi) to 4 metres (13 ft) in the slender giant moray. Adults range in weight from 30 grams to well over 25 kilograms. They possess no pelvic fins, and many species also lack pectoral fins. The dorsal and anal fins are fused with the caudal or tail fin, forming a single ribbon running along much of the length of the animal. Most eels live in the shallow waters of the ocean and burrow into sand, mud, among rocks, or in cracks found in coral reefs. A majority of eel species are nocturnal, and thus are rarely seen. Sometimes, they are seen living together in holes, or "eel pits". Some species of eels also live in deeper water on the continental shelves and over the slopes deep as 4,000 metres (13,000 ft). Only members of the Anguillidae family regularly inhabit fresh water, but they too return to the sea to breed. Eels begin life as flat and transparent larvae, or leptocephali. Eel larvae drift in the surface waters of the sea feeding on marine snow, small particles that float in the water. Eel larvae then metamorphose into glass eels and then become

from Turkey in the

of Russia. Over the past 100 years, they have lost 93% of their historic range, and have been extirpated from southwest and central Asia, from the islands of Java and Bali, from the and from large areas of Southeast and Eastern Asia. Today, they range Siberian taiga to open grasslands and tropical mangrove swamps. The remaining six tiger

elvers before finally seeking out their juvenile and adult habitats.

caracaras, Laughing Falcon, forest falcons, and falconets.

FALCON
A falcon is any species of raptor in the genus Falco. The genus contains 37 species, widely distributed throughout Europe, Asia, and North America. Adult falcons have thin tapered wings, which enable them to fly at high speed and to change direction rapidly. Fledgling falcons, in their first year of flying, have longer flight feathers which makes their configuration more like that of a general-purpose bird such as a broadwing. This makes it easier to fly while learning the exceptional skills required to be effective hunters as adults. Peregrine Falcons have been recorded diving at speeds of 200 miles per hour (320 km/h), making them the fastest-moving creatures on Earth. Other falcons include the Gyrfalcon, Lanner Falcon, and the Merlin. Some small falcons with long narrow wings are called hobbies, and some which hover while hunting are called kestrels. The falcons are part of the family Falconidae, which also includes the

RAT
Rats are various medium-sized, longtailed rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. "True rats" are members of the genus Rattus, the most important of which to humans are the black rat, Rattus rattus, and the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus. Many members of other rodent genera and families are also referred to as rats, and share many characteristics with true rats. Rats are typically distinguished from mice by their size; rats are generally large muroid rodents, while mice are generally small muroid rodents. The muroid family is very large and complex, and the common terms rat and mouse are not taxonomically specific. Generally, when someone discovers a large muroid, its common name includes the term rat, while if it is small, the name includes the term mouse.

Scientifically, the terms are not confined to members of the Rattus and Musgenera, for example, the pack rat and cotton mouse.

ruminants, they lack upper incisors, instead having a tough pad at the front of their upper jaw. Some deer, such as those on the island of Rm,do consume meat when it is available

GOAT The domestic goat (Capra aegagrus hircus) is a

DEER
Deer (singular and plural) are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose,red deer, reindeer (caribou), fallow deer, roe deer and chital.Male deer of all species (except the Chinese water deer) and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year. In this they differ from permanently horned animals such as antelope; these are in the same order as deer and may bear a superficial resemblance. The musk deer of Asia and water chevrotain (or mouse deer) of tropical African and Asian forests are not usually regarded as true deer and form their own families, Moschidae and Tragulidae, respectively. Deer weights generally range from 30 to 300 kilograms (70 to 700 lb), though the smallest species, the Northern Pud, averages 10 kilograms (20 lb) and the largest, the moose, averages 431 kilograms (1,000 lb). They generally have lithe, compact bodies and long, powerful legs suited for rugged woodland terrain. Deer are also excellent jumpers and swimmers. Deer are ruminants, or cud-chewers, and have a four-chambered stomach. The teeth of deer are adapted to feeding on vegetation, and like other

subspecies

of

goat domesticated from

the wild

goat of southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the family Bovidae and is closely related to the sheep as both are in the goatantelope subfamily Caprinae. There are over three hundred distinct breeds of goat. Goats are one of the oldest domesticated species. Goats have been used for their milk, meat, hair, and skins over much of the world. In the twentieth century they also gained in popularity as pets. Female goats are referred to

as does or nannies, intact males their offspring are kids. Castrated males

as bucks or billies; meat from

are wethers. Goat

younger animals is called kid or cabrito, and from older animals is simply known as goat or sometimes called chevon, or in some areas mutton (which more often refers to adult sheep meat). Goats are among the earliest animals domesticated by humans.

ARMADILLOS
Armadillos are New World placental mammals with a leathery armor shell. Dasypodidae is the only surviving family in the order Cingulata, part of the

KOALA
The koala (Phascolarctos and the cinereus) is of

superorder Xenarthra along with the anteaters and sloths. The word armadillo in Spanish means "little armored one". The Aztec called them azotochtli, Nahuatlfor turtle-rabbit. There are approximately ten extant genera and around 20 extant species of armadillo, some of which are distinguished by the number of bands on their armor. Their average length is about 75 centimetres (30 in), including tail; the giant armadillo grows up to 150 centimetres (59 in) and weighs up to 59 kilograms (130 lb), while the pink fairy armadillos are diminutive species with an overall length of 12 to 15 centimetres (5 to 6 in). All species are native to the Americas, where they inhabit a variety of environments. Armadillos species are primarily found in South and Central America, particularly in Paraguay and surrounding areas. Many species are endangered. One species, the nine-banded armadillo, (Dasypus novemcinctus), is found in the United States, primarily in the south central states (notably Texas), but with a range that extends as far east as South Carolina and Florida and as far north as Nebraska; they have been consistently expanding their range in North America over the last century due to a lack of natural predators, and have been found as far north as southernIllinois.

an arboreal herbivorous marsupial native to Australia, only extant representative the family Phascolarctidae. The koala is found in coastal regions of eastern and southern Australia, from Adelaide to the southern part of Cape York Peninsula. Populations also extend for considerable distances inland in regions with enough moisture to support suitable woodlands. The koalas of South Australia were largely exterminated during the early part of the 20th century, but the state has since been repopulated with Victorian stock. The koala is not found in Tasmania or Western Australia. The koala is broadly similar in appearance to the wombat (its closest living relative), but has a thicker coat, much larger ears, and longer limbs. The koala has large, sharp claws to assist with climbing tree trunks. Weight varies from about 14 kg (31 lb) for a large southern male, to about 5 kg (11 lb) for a small northern female. The koala's five fingers include twoopposable thumbs, providing better gripping ability. The first two fingers are positioned in apposition on the front paws, and the first three fingers for the hind paws.The koala is one of the few mammals (other than primates) that hasfingerprints. Koala fingerprints are similar to human fingerprints; even with an electron microscope, it can be quite difficult to distinguish between the two.

BISON
The bison is a member of the bovine family. Commonly called buffalo (which is actually a different species not found in North America), it is the largest land mammal in North America. There are two subspecies: the wood bison in northern Canada, and the plains bison which once roamed across much of the continent. The bison has a large head with relatively small, curving horns. Its dark brown coat is long and shaggy on the forequarters, including the front legs, neck, and shoulders, while the rest of the body has shorter, finer hair. Bison mainly eat grasses and sedges. Height: 6-6.5 feet at the shoulder. Length: 10-12.5 feet. Weight: 900-2,000 lbs; males are larger than females. Lifespan: 18-22 years in the wild; over 30 years in captivity.

MONKEY
A monkey is a primate, either an Old World monkey or a New World monkey. There are about 260 known living species of monkey. Many are arboreal, although there are species that live primarily on the ground, such as baboons. Monkeys are generally considered to be intelligent. Unlike apes, monkeys usually have tails. Tailless monkeys may be called "apes", incorrectly according to modern usage; thus the tailless Barbary macaque is called the "Barbary ape". The New World monkeys are classified within the parvorder Platyrrhini, whereas the Old World monkeys (superfamily Cercopithecoidea) form part of the parvorder Catarrhini, which also includes the hominoids (apes and humans). Thus, as Old World monkeys are more closely related to hominoids than they are to New World monkeys, the monkeys are not a unitary (monophyletic) group.

Bison move continuously as they eat so that they rarely overgraze an area. They historically roamed great distances. The females, or cows, lead family groups. Bulls remain solitary or in small groups for most of the year, but rejoin the group during mating season. Bison often rub, roll, and wallow. Wallowing creates a saucer-like depression called a wallow. This wallow was once a common feature of the plains; usually these wallows are dust bowls without any vegetation. In winter, bison can dig through deep snow with their heads to reach the vegetation below. Bison have poor eyesight, but have acute hearing and an excellent sense of smell. Bison can reach speeds of up to 35 mph.

The diversity of modern snakes appeared during the Paleocene period (c 66 to 56 Ma ago).

SNAKE
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with many more joints than their lizard ancestors, enabling them to swallow prey much larger than their heads with their highly mobile jaws. To accommodate their narrow bodies, snakes' paired organs (such as kidneys) appear one in front of the other instead of side by side, and most have only one functionallung. the cloaca. Living snakes are found on every continent except Antarctica (and other polar regions), some large islands such as Ireland, New Zealand, and many small islands of the Atlantic currently and central Pacific.Fifteen families are recognized, Some species retain a pelvic girdle with a pair of vestigial claws on either side of

GIRRAFE
The giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis) is an African even-toed ungulate mammal, the tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant. Its specific name refers to its camel-like face and patches of color on a light background, which bear a vague resemblance to a leopard's spots. The giraffe is also noted for its extremely long neck and legs and prominent horns. It stands 56 m (1620 ft) tall and has an average weight of 1,200 kg (2,600 lb) for males and 830 kg (1,800 lb) for females. It is classified under the family Giraffidae, along with its closest extant relative, the okapi. There are nine subspecies, which differ in size, coloration, pattern, and range. The giraffe's scattered range extends from Chad in the north to South Africa in the south and from Niger in the west to Somalia in the east. Giraffes usually inhabit savannas, grasslands, and open woodlands. They prefer areas with plenty of acacia trees, which are important food sources, and can browse at heights that most other herbivores cannot reach. While adults are nearly invulnerable to predation, lions, leopards, spotted hyenas and wild dogs prey on calves. Giraffes commonly gather in aggregations that usually disband every few hours. Males establish social hierarchies through "neckings", which are combat bouts where the neck is used

comprising 456 genera and over 2,900 species. They range in size from the tiny, 10 cm-long thread snake to the Reticulated python of up to 8.7 meters (29 ft) in length. The fossil species Titanoboa cerrejonensis was 15 meters (49 ft) long. Snakes are thought to have evolved from either burrowing or aquatic lizards during the mid-Cretaceous period, and the earliest known fossils date to around 112 Ma ago.

as a weapon. Dominant males gain mating access to females, who bear the sole responsibility for raising the young.