January 2021 Factfile - a bit of news from the past month and more!

Hi Everyone!

Welcome to the first monthly fact file! We are going to share a news article from last month as well as animals and more!

News

You might have heard that the UK has authorised the use of a pesticide harmful to bees. It has been authorised for use on sugar beet with their excuse being to do with the virus yellows disease.
But bees are in serious decline and this is not going to help. It is authorised for emergency use and only in specific conditions but, in our eyes, that doesn't make it okay. Farmers need bees to pollinate crops and now they are killing them with a horrible pesticide. What do you think? We would love your opinions below! For more information on bees in our honey bee post click here.

We have also found an article about some Indonesian monkeys from the island of Bali who steal anything expensive, that tourists have because they know they will get a reward! They know which items have the most value and will often not accept the first offer and will hold out their hands for more!
They steal things like phones and wallets and the people nearby have some of their favourite treats to give in exchange! Sometimes they can negotiate for a long time over holidaymakers' belongings!

Animals of the month

Air animal - European robin

Robins are birds that you have probably all heard of. They are a common sight in gardens and parks, especially at this time of year. European robins are easily identified because of the bright orange-red breasts and faces visible on both male and female birds. However, males have much more distinctively coloured breasts than females. This is so that the females can blend in with the environment and protect the nest and their eggs.
Although robins look quite peaceful and gentle, males will fight and sometimes kill their rivals. Their redbreasts act like red warning flags. Robins do not mate for life. They pair for a single breeding season.
Robins are quite small. They measure about 12-15cm. That's about the width of an A5 book.
Robins are territorial. A breeding pair will own a territory of about 1600 m² to 8300 m² (2000-10000 square yards). In the winter, when the robins are alone, their territories are about 650 m² to 5000 m² (800-6000 square yards) large. That's pretty big for such a small bird. A robin will only attack another robin if the latter is in the first robin's territory. Robins often trespass into the territory of others while feeding.

Land animal - lizard

Lizards are a very widespread group from all around the world, except Antarctica. There are over 6,000 species and they are very different from each other. Some, like geckos, are only a few centimetres long and others, like the Komodo Dragon, can be around three meters long!

They are carnivorous and many have the 'sit and wait' tactic. What they eat also varies hugely from the smaller species eating insects to the large eating mammals as large as a water buffalo! They can regrow their tales and, depending on the species, they can have other interesting skills too, like the use of venom. There are, however, only a few venomous types of lizard.

The common lizard's lifespan is about 5-6 years, but this can vary hugely depending on the breed. They mainly breed in spring and it is like many animals a fascinating season.

A breed of lizard was discovered in the Mojave Desert that gave birth to live young and stayed in a family! Most lizards do not do this and tend to stay away from other lizards when it is not mating season and lay eggs. I find this really interesting and you can read about it all more here!

Lizards are fascinating creatures!

Waterdwelling animal - seal;

Seals can be found on nearly every continent on earth, although most live in cold-water environments. They are carnivores and most rely on eating fish to survive, however, some species like leopard seals eat larger animals and sometimes even other seals. With so much of their time spent in water, some types of seals have evolved to be able to hold their breath for up to 2 and a half hours at one time!

Hunters have targeted seals for hundreds of years for their fur. Due to this many types of seals, like the Caribbean Monk Seal are now extinct. However, climate change is the largest threat to seals, especially the ones who live on sea ice.

Unlike many animals, seals only give birth to one pup at a time. During the mating period, males get very aggressive and fight each other for territory. For this reason, male seals often don't mate until they are eight years old and strong enough to win the fights.

The average lifespan for seals in the wild is 30 years, and some of the largest seals can measure up to 30 feet and weigh 4.4 tons!

Eco Tip Of The Month!

Make the most of your leftovers by reheating food or making sure it goes in the compost for certain things!

Thank you for taking the time to read this post and we will be back soon (hopefully more than in January!) with another post!

Sources:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/09/pesticide-believed-kill-bees-authorised-use-england-eu-farmers
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/jan/14/balis-thieving-monkeys-seek-bigger-ransoms-for-high-value-swag-study
https://animalia.bio/european-robin
https://ebird.org/species/eurrob1
https://www.britannica.com/animal/lizard
https://animalcorner.org/animals/lizards/
https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/seals
https://www.britannica.com/animal/seal-mammal

Images:
Title image: This image is owned by a blog editor.
King Bee, owned by Glyn Humphrey (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Bali Monkeys 2, owned by Rex Boggs (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0.
European Robin, owned by Sergey Yeliseev (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Spiny Lizard, owned by (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Harbor seal, owned by Thomas Haeusler (on flickr.com), is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

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