Amazing facts about Hummingbird

Hummingbird

A hummingbird is the smallest bird in the world. This wonderful animal has many interesting facts that you. Here are some of facts about this amazing creature.

• Hummingbirds get their name from the humming sound produced from rapid movement of their wings, when they are in flight.
• Hummingbirds are found only in North America and South America.
• Hummingbirds are the tiniest birds in the world, most species measuring in the 7.5–13 cm (3–5 in) range.
• There are 343 species of hummingbird.
• The smallest hummingbird is the Bee Hummingbird and the largest one is the Giant Hummingbird.
• Hummingbirds have an average life span of 3 to 4 years.
• Hummingbirds can't smell.
• Hummingbird’s hearing and eyesight are better than human.
• Hummingbirds can see wavelengths into the near-ultraviolet.
• Hummingbirds have very weak feet – they mainly use them only for perching.
• A hummingbird's brain is approximately 4.2% of its body weight, the largest proportion in the bird kingdom.
• Hummingbird’s heart beat up to 1.260 times per minute and slows dramatically to 50-180 beat per minutes while resting.
• Hummingbirds have a body temperature of around 105 degrees F (40 degrees C).
• Hummingbirds don’t spend all day flying; the majority of their activity consists simply of sitting or perching.
• A hummingbird can rotate its wings in a circle.
• A Hummingbird is the only bird that can fly forwards, sideways, backwards, up, down and hover in mid-air.
• Normal flight speed for hummingbirds is about 25 miles per hour, but reaches fifty miles per hour during their courtship dives.
• During normal flight a hummingbirds wings beat about 60-80 times per second. In their courtship dives they will beat up to 200 times per second.

Hummingbird's wings beat in super slow motion

• Hummingbirds have the highest metabolic rates of any animals.
• Hummingbirds need to eat 5 to 8 times per hour for 30 to 60 seconds at a time.
• A major part of a hummingbird's diet is sugar from flower nectar and tree sap. Hummingbirds need protein to build muscle so they also eat insects and pollen.
• Hummingbirds have bills that are long and tapered, match perfectly for probing into the center of tubular shaped flowers for the nectar.
• A hummingbird will use its tongue to lap up nectar from flowers.
• Their tongue is grooved on the sides to collect nectar which they lap up at the rate of 13 licks per second.
• A hummingbird can visit an average of 1,000 flowers per day for nectar.
• Hummingbirds can eat anywhere from 2/3 to 3 times their body weight in food each day.
• To help conserve energy, hummingbirds enter into a hibernation-like state called torpor.
• A Hummingbird will lower its body temperature by about 20 degrees and up to 50 degrees while in a state of torpor.
• During torpor, the heart rate and rate of breathing are both slowed dramatically.

5 Biggest Misconceptions About Sharks

[Source: AquaViews.net]

Amazing Facts about Honey Badger, The World's Most Fearless Creature

Honey Badger

• Honey Badger a.k.a the ratel, is member of the mustelidae family (weasel family).


• Honey Badger is the only member of the genus Mellivora.


• It can be found in Africa, the Middle East and the Indian Subcontinent.


• This deadly carnivore measure 23 to 28 cm (9.1 to 11 in) in shoulder height and 68–75 cm in body length.


• Honey Badgers have powerful jaws and sharp teeth, which powerful enough to crush tortoise's shell.


• Honey Badgers also have very tough skin.  The skin is very thick and rubbery, which almost impervious to arrow and spears. Even a blow from machete can't scratch the skin. The skin protect them from bites.


• The skin also looseness. It allows them to twist and turn on their attackers when held.


• It said that the only safe grip on Honey Badger is on its back of the neck.


• Honey Badgers hunt at any time of the day, but become nocturnal in places with high human populations.


• A Honey Badger's baby is called a ‘kit’. The females are called ‘sow’ and males ‘boar’. Honey Badger group is called a ‘cete, colony, set or company’.


• Honey Badgers are very intelligent animals and one of the few known to have used tools to its benefit.


• Honey badgers and the greater honey guide have a unique relationship. The little bird leads a honey badger to a beehive, and then waits for the honey badger to open up the hive and eat the honey and bee larvae. Once the honey badger leaves the hive, the honey guide will then feed on the remaining beeswax.


• When there are no bee larvae, the Honey Badger will hunt a variety of other animals including porcupines, insects, meerkats, snakes, young gazelles,tortoises, frogs and even smaller crocodiles. They also eat fruit and vegetables such as berries, roots and bulbs.


• Honey badgers have a distinctive jog-trot.


• When attacked by dogs, Honey Badgers scream like bear cubs.


• Honey Badger is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most fearless creature in the world.

Sources: Wikipedia, Africa Freak, Wild Facts

10 Amazing Bee Facts

[Source: Today I found out]

Amazing facts about Blue Whale

Blue Whale

Blue whales are the largest animal that ever lived on earth. Here are some facts about these amazing creatures.

• Blue whales can weigh up to 200 tons and reach 100 feet ( 30 meters) long.


• Blue whale's heart is as large as a small car.


• The heartbeat can be detected from two miles away.


• A human baby can crawl through the blue whale's main arteries.


• Blue whale's mouth big enough to fit about 100 people.


• Their tongues can weigh as much as an elephant.


• Blue whales have bellybutton.


• Average lifespan of blue whale is estimated at around 80 to 90 years.


• Blue whales have two blowholes.


• The spray from blue whale's blowhole can reach nearly 30 ft (9m) into the air.


• Blue whales can reach speeds of 50 km per hour (31 mph).


• Blue whale can dive up to 1640 feet.


• Blue whales sounds reach 188 dB, louder than a jet engine (which just 140 dB).


• Blue whale can communicate each other up to 1.000 miles (1.600 km).


• Blue whales look true blue underwater, but on the surface their coloring is more a mottled blue-gray.


• Krill is blue whale's main food. Krill is tiny shrimplike animals that is less than 1/1000th blue whale size.


• Adult blue whale eats about 4 tons of krill a day.


• Blue whale is a mammal rather than fish; it gives birth and nurse live young.


• The period of pregnancy is about one year.


• Blue whale calves can weigh up to 3 tons and 23-27 feet in length.


• Blue whale calves drink 380–570 litres of milk a day.


• A blue whale's milk supposedly tastes like a mixture of fish, liver, milk of magnesia, and castor oil.


• Baby whale calves gains about 200 pounds (91 kilograms) every day for its first year.

Video

Sources: National Geographic, Buzzle, Discovery Education

10 Amazing Facts About Animals

Source: Today I found out

8 Animal Myths Dispelled

Source: Misconception Junction

Elephant Facts, Difference Between African and Asian Elephant

Here are some facts about elephants:

• Elephants can live between 50 and 70 years.


• Elephants are not good sleepers; elephants sleep a maximum of four hours per day/night.


• An elephant’s ear helps it keep cool. As the ears flap in the breeze, blood is cooled that runs inside the ear flap. The ears are thin enough to allow the blood to cool inside.


• An elephant use its trunk for variety of purposes, such as picking food or drinking.


• An elephant’s tusk can grow up to 10 feet length and 200 pounds in weight.


• There are three species of elephants live today: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant and the Asian elephant (a.k.a. the Indian elephant).


• The elephant’s brain is larger than any other animal in the world.


• The word "elephant" has its origins in the Greek ἐλέφας, meaning "ivory" or "elephant".


• September 22nd is Elephant Appreciation Day.


• Elephants cannot trot, jump, or gallop.


• Elephants are said to have no natural predators except the humans.


• Elephants’ gestation period is 22 months, the longest pregnancy of any land animal.


• Elephants are good swimmers.


• Elephants live in families. Several families live together in a herd.


• Elephants spend about 16 hours a day eating plants.


• An adult elephant consumes 140–270 kg (300–600 lb) of food a day.

The difference between African Elephant and Asian Elephant

			African Elephant			Asian Elephant
	Latin name		Loxodonta africana			Elephas maximus
	Shoulder height		8.2 to 13 ft (2.5 to 4 m)			6.6 to 9.8 ft (2 to 3 m)
	Weight		5,000 to 14,000 lbs (2,268 to 6,350 kg)			2.25 to 5.5 tons (2,041 to 4,990 kg)
	Head		Rounded heads with a single dome,			Twin domes with an indent in the middle
	Ears		Larger, reaching up and over the neck			Smaller
	Trunk		African elephants have two fingerlike features on the end of their trunk			One fingerlike features on the end of their trunk
	Tusks		Both male and female African elephants have large tusks			Only the males have large tusks, the females have only small tusks or no tusks at all
	Skin		Wrinkles			Smoother, covered with more hair
	Ribs		21			20
	Feet		African elephants have 3 nails on each hind foot, and 4 on each front foot.			Asian elephants have 4 nails on each hind foot and 5 on each front foot
	Highest Point		Shoulder			Back

Baby Animal Names

A cat baby is called kitten, a dog baby is called puppy, but what is elephant baby called? This table below helps you finding the names of your favorite baby animal.

	Name	Male	Female	Young	Group
	Alligator	Bull	Cow	Hatchling	Congregation, pod (of young)
	Ape	Male	Female	Baby	Shrewdness
	Bat	Male	Female	Pup	Colony
	Bear	Boar	Sow	Cub	Sleuth, sloth
	Beaver	-	-	Pup, kitten	Colony
	Bison	Bull	Cow	Calf	Gang, herd,  obstinacy
	Camel	Bull	Cow	Calf	Flock
	Cat	Tomcat	Queen	Kitten	Clutter, clowder, litter, kindle
	Cattle	Bull	Cow	Calf	Drift, drove, herd, mob
	Cheetah	Male	Female	Cub	Coalition
	Chicken	Rooster	Hen	Chick	Flock
	Deer	Buck, stag	Doe	Fawn	Herd, mob
	Dog	Dog	Bitch	Pup	Litter
	Dolphin	Bull	Cow	Pup, calf	Herd, pod, school
	Donkey	Jack, jackass	Jennet, jenny	Colt, foal	Drove, herd
	Duck	Drake	Duck	Duckling	Badelynge, brace, bunch, raft
	Elephant	Bull	Cow	Calf	Herd, parade
	Fox	Reynard, dog,    tod	Vixen	Kit, cub, pup	Skulk, leash
	Giraffe	Bull	Doe	Calf	Herd
	Goat	Buck, billy	Doe, nanny	Kid, billy	Herd, tribe, trip
	Gorilla	Male	Female	Infant	Band
	Guinea pig	Boar	Sow	Pup	Group
	Hamster	Buck	Doe	Pup	Horde
	Hedgehog	Boar	Sow	Piglet, pup	Array
	Hippopotamus	Bull	Cow	Calf	Herd, bloat
	Horse	Stallion, stud	Mare, dam	Foal	Stable, harras, herd
	Kangaroo	Buck, boomer, jack	Doe, flyer, jill,     roo	Joey	Troop, herd, mob
	Koala	Male	Female	Joey	-
	Leopard	Leopard	Leopardess	Cub	Leap, prowl
	Lion	Lion	Lioness	Cub	Pride
	Llama	-	-	Cria	Herd
	Monkey	Male	Female	Infant	Troop, cartload
	Mouse	Buck	Doe	Pup, pinkie,     kitten	Horde, mischief
	Panda	Boar	Sow	Cub	-
	Penguin	Male	Female	Chick	Rookery
	Pig	Boar	Sow	Piglet, shoat,  farrow	Drove, herd, sounder
	Platypus	-	-	Puggle	-
	Rabbit	Buck	Doe	Kitten, bunny,      kit	Colony, drove, leash
	Rhinoceros	Bull	Cow	Calf	Crash
	Seal	Bull	Cow	Pup	Herd, pod, rookery, harem
	Shark	Bull	Female	Pup	School, shiver
	Sheep	Buck, ram	Ewe, dam	Lamb, lambkin, cosset	Drift, drove, flock
	Skunk	-	-	Kit	Surfeit
	Squirrel	Buck	Doe	Pup, kitten, kit	Dray
	Swan	Cob	Pen	Cygnet, flapper	Bevy, herd
	Tiger	Tiger	Tigress	Cub, whelp	Ambush, streak
	Turtle	Male	Female	Hatchling	Bale
	Wolf	Dog	Bitch	Pup, whelp	Pack, rout
	Zebra	Stallion	Mare	Colt, foal	Herd, crossing

42 Facts about Cat

1. A cat has 230 bones, human only has 206 bones
2. A domestic cat’s sense of smell is 14 times stronger than a human,
3. A cat's hearing is more sensitive than human. A cat's hearing range is 45 to 64,000 Hz, compared to 64-23,000 Hz in human.
4. A cat can do about 100 different vocalizations; while a dog only has 10 vocalizations.
5. A cat sees six times better in the low light than human.
6. A cat’s pulse is about 130-240 beats per minute.
7. The normal cat’s temperature is between 38-39 degrees Celsius.
8. The cat’s eyes are the largest among any mammal.
9. The cat's front paw has 5 toes and the back paws have 4.
10. An adult cat has 30 teeth; 12 incisors, 10 premolars, 4 canines, and 4 molars.
11. A cat has about 60,000 hairs per square inch on its back and about 120,000 per square inch on its underside.
12. A cat walks with its toes.
13. The cat’s tail is used to maintain balance, and a cat with no tail would have a hard time landing on its feet because the tail acts as a counter balance against which the cat can pivot in mid air.
14. An indoor-only cat has a longer lifespan than an outdoor-only cat. An indoor-only can live 16 years, while an outdoor-only is about 3-5 years.
15. A cat often eats grass to aid in digestion and to get rid of fur in the stomach.
16. A cat sleeps for 16 hours per day on average.
17. Purring doesn’t always indicate that a cat is happy, but also indicate a cat is distressed or in pain.
18. A cat don’t have true collarbone. Because of this, a cat’s frontal limbs can fold straight inward, allowing a cat to fit through any space large enough for its head to get into.
19. The speed of a domestic cat can reach 30 mph.
20. A cat’s gestation is approximately 9 weeks or between 61-70 days from conception to delivery
21. A cat has 30 vertebrae, more than a human which only has 25 vertebrae.
22. A cat jumps 5 times their height.
23. When your cat rubs against you, the cat is marking you with its scent.
24. The cat’s footpads use to absorb the shocks of landing when a cat jumps.
25. The domestic cat is the only species that can walk while holding its tail vertically.
26. A cat lover called ailurophile, the opposite is ailurophobe, a cat hater.
27. A cat purr at roughly the same velocity of idling diesel engine, around 26 cycles per second.
28. A cat uses their underside tongue for lapping liquid.
29. A cat’s urine glows under a black light.
30. A cat takes 20-40 breaths per minute.
31. Due to the faulty of sweet receptor gene, a cat can’t taste sweet.
32. Most cats don’t have eyelashes.
33. A white cat with blue eye is often prone to deafness.
34. A cat cannot see directly beneath its nose.
35. Cow’s milk can give some cat diarrhea.
36. A cat can get tapeworms from eating mice.
37. “Tom” is a call for a male cat; “queen” is for a female cat.
38. Kindle is a call for a group of kittens, while a group of cats called a clowder.
39. There are about 100 distinct breeds of domestic cat today.
40. The cat flap was invented by Sir Isaac Newton.
41. Abraham Lincoln is cat lover. While he lived in the White House, he had four cats.
42. Napoleon was afraid of cats.