Hi everyone!
Welcome to the final part in our '50 Incredible Animal series' where you can
find out about animals 46-50. We started this series almost a year ago to
celebrate our 50th post and it feels crazy to think that we are now nearing
our 100th. To read all of the previous posts from this series, click
here. Hope you enjoy it!
46. Spiny bush viper
Spiny bush vipers, Atheris hispida, are a species of venomous snake native to
Central and East Africa in tropical forests and shrubland. They are mostly
solitary creatures but can climb trees, which is where they find the majority
of their prey. Spiny bush vipers are carnivorous and feed on mammals, frogs
and lizards, as well as birds. Independent from birth, Spiny bush vipers can
have up to 12 'snakelets' at a time and are 15cm in length. Currently, there
are no known threats to Spiny bush vipers, and they are categorized as Not
Evaluated on the IUCN Red List.
47. Leafy sea dragon
Leafy sea dragons live in the sea off the coast of South and East Australia
and are closely related to seahorses and pipefish. They are generally
browny-yellow in colour and have a near-perfect camouflage to seaweed. Leafy
sea dragons have no known predators, however, they are classified as Near
Threatened on the IUCN Red List. They suffer from the effects of pollution and
habitat loss, and in the 1990s the Australian government had to place complete
protection on the species due to divers taking so many to have use as pets
that their numbers reduced dramatically!
48. Lilac-breasted roller
These are extremely colourful birds, native to sub-Sahara Africa and the
southern part of the Arabian Peninsula. They live in woodlands and stay away
from treeless areas. They are not frightened of humans but will avoid cities.
They nest in trees and take turns looking after 2 - 4 eggs. Both parents are
very protective and will defend the nest against predators. They mate for life
and often stay in family groups for the winter.
Lilac-breasted rollers often appear in folklore. Many indigenous African tribe
marriage rituals include their feathers and they were also considered the bird
of peace! It is the national bird of Kenya and of Botswana (although not
officially).
49. Mata Mata
They are extremely weird-looking turtles, that live in the leaf debris on the
beds of streams. And no, they are not from the town of Matamata, which is in
New Zealand. They are actually from the Amazon and the Orinoco basins, so in
South America. Their shells and colourings differ slightly depending on which
area they live in.
Mata mara is quite easy, moving a little and waiting for their prey to come to
them. They then suck the fish up like a vacuum cleaner! They grow a lot,
reaching sizes of up to 60 cm (2 feet). They don't even have to move to
breathe! Their necks are actually longer than their backbone and while their
body stays on the stream bed, their head is above water level!
50. Golden turquoise beetle
The golden turquoise beetle is widely distributed in the USA, mainly in
the East. Their eggs can be found attached to the underside of leaves and
stems. They are white. The beetles themselves take on a very beautiful
turquoise-golden colour as they grow older, giving them their name. They are
small in size about 1/4 inch (roughly 6 mm). They feed on sweet potatoes and
bindweed among others. Not much else is known about them.
We hope you enjoyed this post. See you next time!
Your Green World Blog Teamš
Images:
Lilac-Breasted Roller, Maasai Mara, owned by . Ray in Manilla (on flickr.com),
is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Sources:
https://animalia.bio/spiny-bush-viper
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/facts/leafy-sea-dragon
https://ebird.org/species/librol2
https://animalia.bio/mata-mata
https://beetleidentifications.com/golden-tortoise-beetle/
Sources:
https://animalia.bio/spiny-bush-viper
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/facts/leafy-sea-dragon
https://ebird.org/species/librol2
https://animalia.bio/mata-mata
https://beetleidentifications.com/golden-tortoise-beetle/
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