Review and images by stemturtle; edited by bmathison1972
The Sunda slow loris, Nycticebus coucang, was released in 2020 by Eikoh, Miniatureplanet, Vol. 19. This strepsirrhine or prosimian occurs in, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, and Indonesia (Borneo, Java, Sulawesi, Sumatra). It probably shares a distant ancestor with the African potto.
Review and images by JimoAi; edited by bmathison1972
Pufferfish and their close cousins, the porcupinefish, have a particular defense mechanism of swallowing water and thanks to their expandable stomach, it makes them look bigger, rounder and less appetizing for potential predators (One example in popular media is Mrs Puff puffing up when Spongebob fails his driving test for the X amount of times and going ‘Oh, Spongebob.
With Christmas over but winter still here, I wanted to highlight and celebrate this season, starting several reviews on a “Winter Wonderland” series! Each are animals adapted for the ice and snow of the world’s coldest environments, captured in the snow that has recently fallen for my area. We start with some large hunters of the snow, the gray wolf (Canis lupus).
Today I am continuing the 2020 Papo arthropods with the emperor dragonfly, Anax imperator, a species distributed throughout much of Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and west-central Asia. Anax imperator belongs to the family Aeshnidae, which includes the green darner (A. junius), which is common here in North America and is the more-commonly made species of the two.
Review and images by callmejoe3; edited by bmathison1972
This blog managed to cover a wide variety of cetaceans before getting to today’s species, the killer whale (Orcinus orca). The public perception of killer whales has a rather dramatic history compared to most cetaceans. While revered by Indigenous cultures in North America, Europeans viewed killer whales as a malevolent nuisance and threat.
Review and images by suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
The holiday season is upon us once again after what has been a truly difficult and tragic year for everyone on planet Earth. And there are still more hardships lying ahead of us in 2021. We must all stay safe, strong, calm, well-informed, and above all, hopeful.
Review and images by JimoAi; edited by bmathison1972
Sea anemones paralyze their prey with their stinging tentacles with the aid of little harpoons. However, there are a few animals that use these stinging tentacles to their advantage, mainly to seek refuge from predators. But the most famous of these animals to take advantage of these stinging tentacles: the anemonefish.
Well, the holiday season is upon us, and Christmas is just around the corner, so I thought I’d do a review of an animal that is quintessential to the holiday. And I can think of no better than the reindeer (Rangifer tarandus), famous for carrying Santa’s sleigh.
Review and images by JimoAi; edited by bmathison1972
When it comes to dangerous sharks to humans, most people will always think about the great white, the tiger, or the bull shark. However, there is a runner up for the most dangerous shark that not many people have heard of, and it’s the oceanic whitetip shark (Carcharhinus longimanus).
Today I will be continuing the reviews of Papo’s 2020 arthropods with the monarch butterfly, Danaus plexippus. This is one of 5 insects (6 arthropods total) produced by Papo in 2020. Interestingly, it is the only arthropod in their entire collection to-date that is not naturally European, given that Papo is a French company (more on that later).
Review and images by callmejoe3; edited by bmathison1972
Among the various impressive macropredators in the ocean, the tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier), is among the most powerful and strangest. The tiger shark belongs to the Carcharhinidae family, often referred to as the “requiem sharks”. The Galeocerdo genus was once diverse, but the tiger shark remains the only extant species within this clade.
The order Carnivora has had some interesting members over the millennia. From wolves to sabre-toothed cats, they have filled the world with variety, often being apex predators in their regions. They even lay claim to the oceans, becoming adept aquatic agents, capable of chasing and killing prey (hopefully without being caught by even more adapted predators, like sharks and whales).
