Bawean Deer

Hyelaphus kuhlii

Today's animal is the Bawean Deer, which is also sometimes referred to as the Bawean Hog Deer or Kuhl's Deer. These ungulates are found on only one small Indoneasian island, Bawean, and are at a very high conservation risk.

Hunting by both humans and predators have historically keep the Deer population low, but now habitat loss and climate change have been added to the list of dangers and the Deer are considered to be Critically Endangered.

The Bawean Deer are small and brown, with their fawns having a spotted pattern. Males also posses antlers that come in handing when fighting for mates or territory. The Deer usually live alone or in very small groups, and they use a series of barks and squeaks to communicate. These vocalizations serve many purposes, like reuniting a mother and her fawn, or as a challenge call between males. Interestingly though, they don't seem to have an alarm sound for danger-- they just quietly run away.

There are around 250 Bawean Deer left in the wild, and hunting has been outlawed since 1977. There is still hope for the species, but it will definitely be an uphill battle!

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IUCN Status : Critically Endangered
Location : Bawean, Indonesia
Size : Height up to 2.3ft (70cm)

Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Mammalia -- Order : Artiodactyla
Family : Cervidae -- Genus : Hyelaphus-- Species : H. kuhlii

Image : Bardrock

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Jeholornis

Jeholornis

Today's animal has been in the news lately, due to a recent discovery relating to its fossils. But mor eon that in a bit. Jeholornis is one of the most ancient birds that we known off-- it lived more than 120 million years ago. Its fossils have been found in China, and were only discovered for the first time back in 2006. (Fun fact: the area where this bird was found is also home to the fossils of many of feathered creatures, including feathered Dinosaurs!)

Jeholornis does not seem to be a direct ancestor of mordern birds-- they come from different lines. However, because of how old this bird is, it can tell us a lot about the early members of the Aves class, and about the evolution of wings and feathers.

Recently, fossils have popped up that suggest Jeholornis had two tails. It was always known that they had a long train of feather, but now there are fossils that show a second tail-- a set of plumage that sticks up from the bird's back.

Scientists can only speculate what the second set of plumes was used for, but use in mating rituals is a good guess. The newly-found tail would jut out similar to the displays done by Peacocks. So far this is the only known bird to have this feather feature!

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Status : Extinct 120 Million Years
Location : China
Size : Total Length up to 2.5ft (80cm)

Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Aves -- Order : †Jeholornithiformes
Family : †Jeholornithidae -- Genus : †Jeholornis

Image : Aijuan Shi

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Iago Sparrow

Passer iagoensis

The Iago Sparrow is a small bird that is endemic to the Cape Verde islands, which are located in the Atlantic Ocean off of the western coast of Africa. They live in many different habitats, including urban areas and farms, as well as cliffs and plains.

The birds are sexually dimorphic when it comes to their plumage. Males have a black crown and vibrant reddish-brown feathers on the sides of their head. Females are more drab, and lack the crowns and bright cinnamon feathers.

Iago Sparrows are very social birds, and live in colonies year round. These groups are smaller during the breeding season, but can grow very large outside of it. It is believed that the birds have similar mating habits to House Sparrows, in that they build grass and feather lined nests, and produce up to 5 chicks per clutch.

Though they are endemic to only a few islands, these birds are very abundant. They are listed as being of least concern.

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IUCN Status : Least Concern
Location : Cape Verde
Size : Length up to 5in (13cm)

Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Aves -- Order : Passeriformes
Family : Passeridae -- Genus : Passer -- Species : P. iagoensis

Image : Ze Pinho

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Ammonite

Ammonite Model

Ammonite Fossil

Today we are going to talk about an entire Subclass of animals known as Ammonites. These shelled sea creatures lived for millions of years before going extinct along with the Dinosaurs during the late Cretaceous.

Between 240 and 65 million years ago, Ammonites could be found throughout the Oceans of the World. They ranged in size, depending on species, with the largest having shells that could grow as large as 1m in diameter. Ammonite fossils are more abundant than those of just about any other creature, since they lived for so many years and in so many places.

Ammonites lived in schools and hunted smaller sea creatures. They consumed their prey through a beak-like mouth hidden among its tentacles.

Ammonites most likely moved around by shooting water from spouts in their bodies. Their actual lifestyle is pretty speculative though, because unlike other prehistoric invertebrates (like Nautelids), the Ammonites have no living relatives.

A final fun fact to start the weekend? The name Ammonite comes from "Amun," an Egyptian god who was frequently depicted wearing spiraled horns (similar to the shell pattern).

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Status : Extinct for 65 million years
Location : Oceans worldwide
Size : Varies, up to 1m in shell diameter

Classification : Phylum : Mollusca -- Class : Cephalopoda -- Subclass : †Ammonoidea
Images : Lmbuga Commons , Rept0n1x

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Bajaichthys

Bajaichthys elegans

Bajaichthys elegans is known only from a single juvenile fossil that was discovered back in 1987. But the fossil is enough to tell us that this interesting looking creature is a relative to the modern-day Oarfish.

Monte Bolca, near Venice Italy, is the site where the fossil was found. This site is an important trove of fossils from the Eocene, especially the Lutetian Epoch. That time period lasted between roughly 47 and 41 million ago, and it was the same timet hat our buddy Bajaichthys lived.

This creature has quite an interesting look to it-- it has an anal fin that runs the entire length of the tail, a vary tall dorsal fin, and two little wing-like pelvic fins. Because of its anatomy, it could belong to one of two different Lamprid families, which is why is currently does not belong to a family at all! We won't know more until additional, adult forms are uncovered-- which may not happen for a very long time, if at all!

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Status : Extinct 41 million years
Location : Fossils found in Italy
Size : Length of 4cm

Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Actinopterygii -- Order : Lampriformes
Family: incertae sedis -- Genus : Bajaichthys -- Species : B. elegans

Image : Stanton F Fink

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White-throated Toucan

It isn't tough to figure out how this bird got it's common name-- just look at this picture! These birds, native to the Amazon, have sleek black bodies feathers, blue skin around the eyes, large colorful beaks, and brilliant white throats.

Once upon a time the two subspecies (called Cuvier's and Red-billed Toucans) were considered to be two totally different species. But now we know that they are all the same, and the two subspecies will even mate and hybridize with each other.

When it comes time to breed, a pair of Toucans will take over an abandoned nest, or find a cavity high up in the trees (they do not build their own nests). Both parents will help with incubation, and with feeding their young chicks who are born helpless. The young Toucans grow fast though! They flegde after about 6 weeks.

White-throated Toucans generally live in pairs, or in very small groups. They feed on fruits as well as on insects and small reptiles. And though they can fly, they do so very awkwardly, and never for very long distances. Good thing they tend to live in very dense forests where the next tree isn't too far away!

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IUCN Status : Least Concern
Location : South America
Size : Length up to 2ft (61cm)

Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Aves -- Order : Piciformes
Family : Ramphastidae -- Genus : Ramphastos-- Species : R. tucanus

Image : OpenCage

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Ciscaucasian Hamster

Mesocricetus raddei

The Ciscaucasian Hamster is also known as the Georgian Hamster, as it is only found in the country of Georgia, and in parts of Russia.

These Hamsters are not your average pet Hamsters! They can grow to nearly 1ft in length! The individuals that live at higher elevations tend to be larger than those who live down on the plains. Regardless of altitude, these rodents live in burrows that they construct underground.

These burrows can be amazingly extensive, and they are where the Hamsters flee to safety, where they hibernate each winter, and where they store food for use in the springtime when they come out of hibernation.

Ciscaucasian Hamsters can have massive litters that number up to 20 offspring at a time! Once again, there is a difference between the mountain and the plains populations, as the mountain Hamsters will produce only one or two litters each year, while the plains can have three or more!

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IUCN Status : Least Concern
Location : Georgia, Russia
Size : Body length up to 11in (28cm)

Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Mammalia -- Order : Rodentia
Family : Cricetidae -- Genus : Mesocricetus-- Species : M. raddei

Image : http://www.hlodavci.info/?p=145

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