Siberian Tiger

Russia is home to vodka and ice. Living in the ice and snow is the Siberian Tiger. This is my favorite among the tigers because they’re gigantic and overall pretty awesome. Who wouldn’t want to see a striped, huge cat playing in the snow? There are less than 500 left in this world. Tigers in general are all in danger of extinction but this giant might make it there quicker.

Adorableness

The Siberian Tiger is about 5 feet long, less than 6 feet tall. The largest male made a record of 850 pounds but most are about a hundred pounds less. Giant cats are my absolute favorite! In the winter time their fur gets slightly shaggier and can even help cover their ears to stay warm in the arctic like weather. In the summer their fur can become sparser but it’s always silky. In the summer the orange of their coats is usually brighter than in the winter where they take a dull color.

Dinner Time

Being such a large feline, larger than all other tigers and even the lion, requires quite a lot of food. Siberian tigers are known to prey on brown and black bears only when times are really tough. Certain tigers can even imitate bear mating calls to attract a bear to its area. Wolves also take a decrease in population due to the tiger. Tigers feeding on wolves are very rare but the competition for their prey is very intense. The two species can chase each other from their kill and tigers usually win the battle. Preying upon humans is very rare for this breed of tiger but the Bengal and Malayan tigers have many more man hunter cases. Overall Siberian tigers can consume up to 60 pounds of meat in one night! Most of this meat will be deer and wild pigs. Siberian tigers don’t often miss when hunting but will sometimes run/leap 650 feet in order to take down their prey. Some of their prey is so massive that it would take 12 men to move!

Sexy Time

All tigers are very solitary cats so mating can be somewhat difficult for them. Females will leave “calling cards” throughout their territory that will tell a male that she wants to mate. Sometimes the female has to actually be the one who goes out and finds the male, even leaving her own territory. She’s only good to go for 3-7 days and then they have to wait until she is receptive again. This happens throughout the year so summertime and wintertime are all go times!

Kiddos

Waking up in a den 3 to 4 blind cubs are born to their mother who carried them for about three months. It’s not until they’re two weeks old that they can look into the beautiful eyes of their mother and then grow their teeth. Once they’re about three months old the mom can leave the den to bring them back meat until they’re large enough to hunt with her. They will stay with their mom until they reach sexual maturity which is about 3-5 years of age.

Why are they Endangered?

All tigers are being poached for their furs and sometimes even their body parts which are used in many Asian cultures. Although there are now laws that have banned pharmaceuticals containing tiger parts the black market is still full of buyers for tiger. Another large threat to these tigers is habitat loss. Tigers require a very large territory so when the forest decreases and their territories mix fights can ensue and a decrease in available prey occurs.

The Russia Problem

Siberian tigers specifically, as well as Snow Leopards, have a direct competition with many Russians living in post-soviet Russia. The starved cities and forests have left all species dying for food. For a person, taking down one tiger is worth a year’s salary not to mention the amount of meat they would then be able to eat. Tigers however aren’t out killing people; they’re just trying to make a living in the forest. There are very, very few attacks reported of tigers killing people. There is a small amount of hope for the tigers in Russia because they have the Prime Minister on their side, Vladamir Putin. Putin has given deputy director of the Russian Academy of Sciences Institute of Ecology and Evolution 1 million dollars to save the Siberian Tiger. Unfortunately, the money he was given has not been seen to make many large strides other than tagging tigers and rumors of genetic research.

Other World Hope

There are many other programs to help save the Siberian Tiger including the popular Species Survival Plan which takes wild animals and captivates them in order to start breeding and repopulation. There are currently 160 tigers in the program. Personally, I have hope for the Siberian Tiger Project where they have many reserves, the largest being Sikhote-Alin Biosphere Reserve, to save room and space for tigers. Although the space isn’t as big as we all wish it was it’s better than nothing. Here conservation biologists focus on cub mortality, snow depth, conflicts with locals and it also allows for a great training ground for new conservation biologists. Children to even college students can get a more in depth tour of the Siberian Tiger problem. To see certain tigers they've worked with check out this slide show: Siberian Tiger Project

What You Can Do

Donations are greatly appreciated:

http://www.amur-leopard.org/index.php?pg=1271755800

Adopt a tiger!

http://www.worldwildlife.org/gift-center/gifts/Species-Adoptions/Tiger.aspx?sc=AWY1200WC900

Take the Saving a Tiger Pledge

https://support.worldwildlife.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=471

Or help out the Malayan Tigers at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park

http://www.sandiegozoo.org/tigers/

Whatever you do helps so take care and have a heart! 

California Condor

The California condor, a nasty looking bird, but it is the largest bird in North America. It is the last surviving member of a genus. The condor lives in Zion National Park, the Grand Canyon area, and parts of Baja California. Weighing in at 30 pounds with a wing span of 3 meters (nearly 10 feet) this giant bird was almost lost to us. In 1987 there were only 22 wild condors. With the help of the San Diego Safari Park and the Los Angeles Zoo they condors have begun their recovery with a great start.

Ugliness

The condor is all black except for small white stripes under its wings. Since condors eat a lot of dead things they have fewer feathers around their neck to reduce chances of infection. In my opinion, this makes them uglier, yet it also makes them more unique. The skin color can even change color depending on the mood of the bird. Females are actually larger than the males, rare for most animals, except spiders.

Food

As a scavenger, the condor eats carrion. It can engulf up to 3 pounds in one meal! Being a scavenger they have no sense of smell, common among a lot of scavengers. In order to find the meat condors look for other animals already feasting.

Sexy Time

It’s not until the age of 6 that the condor begins looking for a mate. A male has to show off for the female by puffing out, trying to look badass, and it’s not until the female bows her head and accepts him that he can stop looking such a fool to onlookers. The condors are now mates for life! A simple nest will suffice and the egg is laid around February or March. There is a gestation period of 60 days but sometimes the condor baby will take up to a week to actually get out of the egg.

Conservation Efforts

Living in San Diego is the perfect place to help with the condor conservation movement. The San Diego Safari Park (formerly called the Wild Animal Park) has been really successful in breeding condors with the help of their puppets. These puppets are made to feed the hatchlings if the parents are unable to. Also, to help speed the breeding process along sometimes an egg is taken from the nest to induce the parents to lay another egg. This way they get 2 for 1! It was a slow process but the condors’ numbers are definitely growing. There are at least three active release sites in Arizona, California, and Baja California.

How’d They Become So Endangered?

Six years old is a long time that a bird has to manage to stay alive without reproducing. In addition to the long sexual maturity, finding a mate can be difficult. An egg is only laid every other year so the species doesn’t do too great alone. Habitat destruction, lead poisoning doesn’t help either though.

Should We Care

Native Americans have a special place for condors in their culture. In some tribes the condor was thought to bring back humanity and yet others still think that the condor was evil and the only reason why anyone defeated him is because he had to stop and drink some blood. Condor feathers and bones are used for many purposes in their customs. Either way, the condor is part of their story.  

For More Information

San Diego Safari Park's Success Story with Condor Breeding

http://www.sandiegozooglobal.org/success_stories/condors

Also check out their condor cam

http://www.sandiegozooglobal.org/video/condor_cam

Kauai Cave Wolf Spider

Bugs, spiders and fish may seem small but they can also become endangered! The Kauai Cave Wolf Spider from Hawaii lives in only 3 caves. Only 30 counts of the spider have ever been recorded.  Granted, the spider wasn’t discovered until 1973 it seems even worse to me.

Scary or Pretty?

As a spider lover I’m definitely going to go with pretty on this one despite the spider missing eyes. Many locals refer to it as the blind spider.  They’re less than an inch big, easy to miss if I was crazy enough to go looking for them in caves on the Kauai Island.  

Eating and Running

Most spiders catch their prey in a net but wolf spiders actually chase their prey down. These little guys are pretty speedy and they’re venomous. They’re completely harmless to humans but not if you’re a small animal. They feed mostly on the Kauai Cave amphipod which is sort of like a little crab. There aren’t a lot of amphipods either, only 80 have ever been documented. The wolf spider will also prey upon other small crustaceans. This is a true cave hunter since most wolf spiders rely on their eyes to chase down their prey.

Lack of Sexy Time

So little is known about this spider that I don’t know if the female eats the male after she’s had her way with him, as is the case with most spiders, or if he gets to live another day.

Kiddos

Most wolf spiders have larger clutches of eggs but the Kauai Cave Wolf Spider only has about 30 eggs per clutch. This “clutch” is then carried in the female’s mouth until the young hatch. Once they get larger the young can hop on her back and go for a ride until they’re old enough, and large enough, to go hunt on their own.

Why Are They Endangered?

Seeing that these spiders live in caves you wouldn’t think they would have a lot of competition for habitat loss but that is in fact their largest threat. Most of the caves they live in are private lands and most people just don’t care. They use these caves to their own uses, sometimes filling them in or dumping stuff in them. As is the case in other animals already discussed on this blog introducing species to an environment has also hurt the spider. They fall victim to cockroaches and ants. This also brings more competition to eat the amphipods that are also endangered. Droughts and other extreme weather changes also affect the mortality rate of these spiders.

What is Being Done?

Most efforts are focused on protecting habitats and enhancing habitats. Since a lot of the land is private the government cannot force land owners to not dump in their caves. I believe a large portion of focus should be on educating others about the spider. I’m sure half of the people don’t even realize what they’re doing.

Tips You Can Do

Even though this spider is in Hawaii there are certain things to take away from this.

1)  Don’t throw stuff in your caves! You don’t know who lives there.

2) Watch your pets if they go outside. You don’t want your dog to be responsible for eating the last bubuxala flower in the world!

3) Take a few minutes out of your day and learn what lives around you. It can be interesting too!

Numbat

When I first read “numbat” I immediately thought “wombat.” Yes, this is another Australian mammal; Australia really has the unique ones. Not only are they adorable creatures but they are the only species in their family. There was another subspecies of numbat but they have been extinct since the 1960’s. Also, as a marsupial it is actually diurnal (awake during the day) even though most marsupials are all nocturnal. I might just classify the numbat as one of my favorite animals since it is so cute! It’s hard to believe that there are less than 1000 in the wild. They live in Wandoo (a type of Eucalyptus forest) in a very small portion of the southwestern tip of Australia.

Their Cuteness

Cute things usually come in small packages which is exactly the case with the numbat. They are very small, a little bit longer than a foot and half of that is just their bushy tail. They usually carry their tail up and all fluffed out. In my opinion, a numbat is like a cute squirrel with a pointer face. Numbats also have a tongue that is as long as its body! It also has more than 52 teeth that are all different sizes and shapes.

Food

Despite a tongue similar to the anteater the numbat’s diet consists mainly of termites. This is also why the numbat is the only Australian mammal awake during the day. Eating termites would be pretty hard to do in the middle of the night. Numbats need about 20,000 termites a day. They might eat an ant or two if there are any in the mound but their diet consists mostly of termites. They’ve even regulated their schedules to the schedules of termites. You won’t see numbats drinking water very often because they obtain all the water they need from the termites.

Lack of Sexy Time

Eating termites really puts the numbats at a disadvantage for relationships. Termites are small and the numbat isn’t strong enough to break termite mounds. This means that they wait for the termites to move. For this reason numbats are very solitary animals. You just can’t have a crowd waiting for termites to make their “big move.” Numbats will get together around February or March to reproduce and the female is pregnant for only 15 days!

Kiddos

Numbats are a very unique marsupial in that they don’t have a pouch for their young. Instead, the numbat will give birth to its 4 babies and then the babies will crawl up to the mother’s nipples and just hang there until July or August. After that they spend most of their time in a burrow. Slowly picking up the termite diet a month after. Then in December they hit the road.

Why are they Endangered?

Foxes. A lot of people don’t understand the severity of invasive species and what it does to the current population of animals. The fox was introduced to Australia and ever since then the numbats have been declining. In addition to foxes are wild and domestic cats, all predators to the numbats. Being prey is even harder when you don’t have anywhere to hide. Frequent fires turn possible shelters to dust and leave the numbat exposed.

What is there to Do?

Luckily, Australians seem to really care about their endangered species. The numbat is an emblem to them so there are already a lot of conservation efforts in effect. There have been multiple successful reintroductions to protected areas. Breeding programs are also in effect at zoos like Australia’s Perth Zoo. Locals also monitor predators in the area. A great program called Project Numbat has raised over 26,000 dollars for the numbat. Radio collars give researchers a better estimate of where the numbat goes and where they can focus conservation efforts.  Also, add them to your list of favorite animals, share your love of the numbat and maybe the numbats will still be here!

Project Numbat

http://numbat.org.au/

Baby Numbat videos (you know you want to)

http://www.perthzoo.wa.gov.au/animals-plants/australia/australian-bushwalk/numbat/

Galapagos Penguin

I love penguins! I even have one tattooed on my foot so my love for them runs very deep. There are many different types of penguins, not all of them even live in Antarctica. I was heartbroken to discover that there are less than a thousand breeding pairs of Galapagos Penguins in the entire world. These penguins are the smallest in South America and they are on the brink of disappearing forever.

Penguin Basics

Penguins feed on small fish, in this case, extremely small since the penguin here is less than 20 inches tall and about 4 and a half pounds. They are so tiny! The adults are black and white but young penguins have a gray plumage, slowly molting to their adult colors.

Warmer Water Penguins

Living in the warmer waters is totally different from their amigos in Antarctica. These guys have to deal with waters from around 60 to 80 degrees. Not to mention when it’s time for an El Nino.  I took physical geography; most people don’t so I won’t get into the details right now.

Not on Ice but on Rocks

These penguins don’t have ice to live on; they have rocky cliffs and shores. They have adapted differently than most other penguins.  Galapagos Penguins have a very long and narrow bill because sometimes the food they eat is between rocks. The rocky cliffs are also utilized to build their nests which are quite effective against their predators. Not only do they have sharks to deal with but even hawks and rats can take a Galapagos penguin.

Sexy Time

As most people know penguins mate for life, a pebble is sometimes even given to one mate as a token of commitment. What happens to this pebble later? No idea! What’s awesome about living in the warmer climate is that it allows for mating throughout the year because of the change in temperature which in turn brings a change in nutrients available to them in the water (more geography stuff).  Most of the time the mother will lay 2 eggs at a time and 6 weeks later is hatching time. For the first month one of the parents is constantly watching the baby. They switch off to get food for the hatchling and themselves.

What the El Nino Means

Hopefully most of us are somewhat familiar with what the El Nino does. Basically it raises water temperatures by 20 degrees and the nutrients for fish stay in deeper waters which means the fish do as well.  El Nino’s can last for 3 to 7 years and the heat can just be too much for the penguins. Galapagos penguins use their flippers to shade their feet so they don’t get sunburned. Older penguins even turn a brown color from the intense heat. If anyone were to go down and see them at this time then the penguins would be hunched over in a sad attempt to stay cool. The last two El Nino’s reduced their population down 50%. Without establishing an equilibrium point with their environment these penguins are not destined to survive.

Endangered Status

Not only is the El Nino causing major decreases in populations humans haven’t helped either. Most of the predators that have put a damper on their population are domestic animals. Plus, being small leaves them as an easy target. Overall, the increased El Nino cycles that are perhaps caused from global warming is set to bring this species down.

What Can I Do

Unfortunately there isn’t much you can do to help the Galapagos Penguins but there are other penguins that are in need of help. SeaWorld has been successful in many breeding programs and has also established a Conservation Fund that helps penguins and lots of other animals as well. So enjoy the Galapagos Penguins now, but let’s save their cousins!

SeaWorld Conservation Fund

http://www.swbg-conservationfund.org/index.htm

Help the Penguin Project

https://www.washington.edu/giving/make-a-gift?source_typ=3&source=BOERSM

Adopt a Penguin (I want this!)

http://www.seabirds.org/adopt.htm

Komodo Dragon

The Komodo Dragon is the only lizard I like. Maybe its because its the largest one found today but either way it's a pretty amazing creature. I was surprised to learn that they're endangered considering they're such massive reptiles that only live on small islands in Indonesia. The Komodo Islands are a national park specifically for the dragons. There's only about 5700 left in the wild and most of them are males which means they won't be around for a lot longer.

History
A crashed pilot first discovered the species during World War 1 when he swam to Komodo Island. Speaking of such a giant lizard not everyone believed him and it wasn't until 1912 that they were officially called a species. After expeditions to the island inspiration hit many and was the driving force to the movie King Kong.

Just How Big
Komodo Dragons are about ten feet long, and weigh about 150 pounds, however; in zoos they're usually heavier. Its tail is as long as its body and it has over sixty one inch teeth. The poor big guys can't see or hear too well but it can smell meat from about 6 miles away. As with most reptiles it uses its tongue to "smell" and relies on the tongue for most activities. The scales that cover its body even have some that are reinforced with bone!

Food and the Nasty Stuff
You don't need to be terrified of this dragon because most of its meals are carrion. It does eat fresh meat and has been seen charging and then eating its prey. Like a snake it can eat some of its meal whole. Only for larger prey does it tear the meat into smaller pieces to eat. Komodos are not picky when it comes to food, invertebrates, small mammals, buffalo, and even eats smaller komodos. About 10% of their diet are young komodos. Research has been done that speculates that eating so many young komodos help them become the giant lizard later in life. The villagers on the Komodo islands keep their cemetery in a clay base with rocks on top of the bodies because the dragons would come over and feast on the dead corpses. Since these dragons snack on dead things so often their mouths are full of bacteria making their saliva pretty interesting. Researchers have found 57 different strains of bacteria in the mouth of just one dragon. Not only is their saliva covered in bacteria but researchers have also discovered that the komodo dragon has venom glands in its lower jaw. The venom consisted of toxic proteins that would basically knock out its prey.

Sexy Time
About twenty eggs are laid around September, takes about a month for them to develop. As with most animals the males fight for their women, even vomiting and defecating before the big fight. I guess to get it out of the way. The loser gets pinned to the ground and the winner flicks his tongue, signaling to the lady he won. Nothing like sticking your tongue out at the girl you're going to get with. The male that wins the fight has to be tough because if not he could get hurt later from the female. The male has to fully restrain the female or else he could get injured. Sometimes the lizards will form a bond and will stay together which is extremely rare in lizards! Another rarity is the ability for the females to lay eggs without a male fertilization and give birth to male lizards. If you're really interested here is the first documented story of this. http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2006/dec/21/uknews

Being a Kid
Being a young komodo is not easy. After breaking out of its egg its usually too tired to really run and many of them get killed by predators. Once they can make a run for it they spend most of their time in trees where adults can't get to them. In order to eat they often roll themselves in poop or intestines of the dead to hide their scent from adult komodos. Youngsters are on the look out for the first 3 to 5 years of their life. But once they make it that long, they can survive for about fifty years.

Wowzers
Komodo dragons can swim, maybe its just the monitor in them. They sometimes swim to different islands. They run pretty fast for a lizard, 12 mph. Lizards being speedy is probably why most terrify me so badly.

Why are Komodos Endangered?
You're now aware how badass these lizards are, if you don't they could even eat part of you! How are these lizards dying off then? Their prey is hunted not only by them but the local villagers as well. In addition to the villagers eating their food they also make more villages. Before certain laws were implemented poaching for komodo dragons also put a big dent in their population. Now their prey is poached and their habitat is decreasing. In addition to humans, volcanoes can get them too but hey, I think the volcano gets just about everybody.

What Should I Do?
Well, you've already done something because you read this and that means you care at least a little. If you go to this site you can buy a plushie and it helps save a lizard.
http://dragon-komodo.com/
Also go to your zoo, show their Komodo Dragon how you much love them! You can meet Sunny if you go to this link http://kids.sandiegozoo.org/dragons_are_real (warning: it's awesome and cute)
Many people don't know that Komodo Dragons are endangered, just wait until you find out who else is. So take care and have a heart!

Introduction

As a resident of San Diego I am lucky to go to the San Diego Zoo and San Diego Zoo Safari Park on a regular basis. These zoos are famous world wide but not everyone knows why. Conserving wildlife is a very important part of my life and I want to do something more. The San Diego Zoo Global Conservancy has been successful for multiple species and I believe that if people can gain more awareness of this then maybe more steps can be taken to save these critical species.

Make sure to visit their website: http://www.sandiegozooglobal.org/
Here you can see their success stories and other great tips that maybe you hadn't thought of before. A little note about me, I'm not exactly a tree hugger but I do believe there are ways to do your part in conservation. I think these tips are ones that I could follow as well.

My goal is to post at least one story/fact once a day so maybe I can pull some more people into my love for animals and the passion that I have to protect them!

Visit your zoo tomorrow and take a better look at what animals are endangered and worse yet, how many are endangered or threatened.

Take a look and have a heart :) Thanks!