#840: Wolverine

The Wolverine is one of the largest mustelid species, and has a wicked reputation. Despite his relatively small size, he has a fierce appetite and vicious nature. Wolverine are known to attack reindeer, and are a bane to the herders in the Lapland and other Arctic regions. He will pounce on the deer as it slogs through snow, ripping out a chunk from its shoulders, a chunk which crushes the spinal column and paralyses the deer. In this manner, the food remains fresh and warm as long as the deer survives, and the wolverine can feed on it. More commonly, his prey consists of smaller animals and carrion.

#838: Wolf Spider

Wolf Spiders are solitary and agile hunters, with various species ranging in size from 1 - 3.4 cm in length. Due to their active lifestyle, Wolf Spiders do not build webs nor nests, instead the female carries her egg sac on her abdomen. Although this appears awkward, she is still capable of hunting. When the spiderlings hatch, they crawl up onto her abdomen, and travel with her.

#794: Velvet Worm

There are 180 species of Velvet Worm, found in tropical and southern temperate habitats. It is thought that he hasn't changed much in 500 million years. Unlike arthropods, he lacks a hard exoskeleton and is instead covered in tiny scales, giving him a velvety look and providing a waterproof covering. He is prone to dessication, and favours moist humid habitats. Carnivorous in diet, the Velvet Worm is an ambush predator, squirting his prey with slime to subdue it, before injecting saliva that dissolves the prey's insides.

#722: Starfish

Starfish are echidnaderms, named for their star-like shape. About 1,500 species can be found worldwide, living on oceanbeds ranging from the frigid polar waters to the tropics. Starfish are predators, feeding on benthic invertebrates. The more primitive species swallow their prey whole, digesting it internally and ejecting out the inedible parts. Advanced species actually evert part of their stomach, forcing it into the bivalve prey, and digesting it from the inside-out, outside its body. In many species, gender is a fluid concept, with some being gendered, others simultaneous hermaphrodites and some being sequential hermaphrodites and changing gender as they age. Like many relatively sessile invertebrates, larvae are free-swimming. Their diet consists of phytoplankton. They are also able to reproduce asexually, by losing one of thier arms, which then sprouts into a new Starfish.

The Northern Pacific seastar (which I might have to draw instead of this one) has been introduced to Australian waters, where it is a voracious predator doing significant damage to the marine environment. It is ranked on the list of Invasive Pests.

#697: Shoebill

The Shoebill is a large and distinctive bird, characterised by his massive, shoe-shaped bill. Omce considered to be a Stork, he is now thought to be related to Pelicans and his closest relative is the Hammerkop. He stands motionless for lengthy periods of time, scanning the water for fish. Patient and generally slow-moving, he strikes quickly when prey is sighted. Given his large bill and wide gape, he is capable of taking quite considerably sized prey - including small mammals, lizards and waterbirds. He is found in parts of eastern, inland Africa, favouring water with low-oxygenated waters, in which the fish must surface to breathe.

#694: Shark

Sharks are cartilaginous fish ranging in size from 17 cm (the Dwarf Lanternshark) to the Whale Shark, the largest fish in the sea, who measures 12 m in length. Sharks can be traced back 420 million years. They favour a salt-water environment, although some species have been found in freshwater. Sharks replace their teeth continuously throughout their life. These grow in rows in their jaw, pushing forward like a conveyor belt. Nearly every species is carnivorous, and some are noted for being voracious predators. A few species feed on plankton.

This fellow is a Great White Shark, probably the most famous species.

Other species in this blog:
Leopard Shark
Nurse Shark
Goblin Shark
Hammerhead
Dogfish

#693: Serval

The Serval is a medium-sized feline, found in the savannahs of Africa. She is characterised by her long legs. These are ideal for helping her find prey in the long grasses. Her elongated foot bones  allow her to attain speeds of up to 80 km/hr and assist her in jumping. She is capable of leaping 3 m vertically, allowing her to snatch birds in flight. Serval are capable predators - about 50% of their hunts result in kills.

They are sometimes kept as exotic pets in America, and have been hybridised with domestic cats to produce the Savannah Cat. Being intelligent and large, Serval and Savannah Cats do not make the most easily handled of pets and are banned in some countries.

#692: Seriema

The Seriema of South America is a long-legged bird that does bear something of a superficial resemblance to yesterday's Secretarybird. His habitat is open grassland and dry woodland, where he occasionally grazes with livestock. Prey ranges from insects and other invertebrates, to small vertebrates, which are caught and beaten against the ground before being torn apart with the sickle-like claw on his second toe. At night, he roosts in trees. There are three species - this is the red-legged - and it is thought that his ancestors may have been related to the giant Terror Birds.

#691: Secretarybird

The Secretarybird is a long legged bird of prey,  rather resembling an eagle on stilts. He can measure up to 1.3 m tall.  Predominantly terrestrial, he makes his home in the savannahs of sub-Saharan Africa. During the night he roosts in acacia trees. His diet is carnivorous and he will eat everything from insects up to small mammals. Whilst noted for killing snakes, these are not a major component of his diet. Prey is pursued on foot, and often kicking into incapacitation. The Secretarybird's claws are sharp, his kick powerful; he can shatter a human's hand with one kick.

#630: Quoll

The Quoll are six species of cat-like marsupials, found in Australia and New Guinea. He is nocturnal in nature, spending the day sleeping in a hollow log and coming out at night to hunt. His prey ranges in size from frogs and reptiles, up to possums, rabbits and hare. Unfortunately, the Northern Quoll has also been known to prey on the poisonous cane toad, with fatal results. Other threats come from foxes and feral cats. Mostly solitary, during the breeding season, all female Quoll come into heat simultaneously. This drives the males into a rampant three-week long, sex frenzy, filled with violent, vigorous mating marathons. During this period they stop eating, deplete their energy reserves and die.

#617: Python

The Pythons are a Family of non-venomous snakes found in Australia, Africa and Asia. Like the boa, to which they are not closely related, Pythons kill by constriction. She is an ambush predator, lying in wait for prey to wander by, then she strikes. Her back-curving teeth grip the unfortunate creature, and she wraps her coils quickly about it. The force is significant, but it is suffocation that kills her victim, not crushing. The animal is then swallowed whole. Unlike boa, Pythons are oviparous and the female even incubates her eggs, her body vibrating to keep temperatures constant. There are many species and many colour-morphs, with some specimen attaining 8m or more in length.

I am not entirely sure what species this is - I suspect the reference image was a colour-morph of the Ball Python. She does bear some resemblance, however, to a Scrub Python.

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Tomorrow we begin on the Qs.
At this rate, I predict that I will be finished the alphabet some time in January.

Creature Feature #585: Philippines Eagle

The Philippines Eagle is one of the largest living eagles, comparable only to the Harpy Eagle. She is endemic to the Philippines, where she can be found on four of the islands. Each breeding pair requires a large plot of land upon which to nest, and she has been heavily affected by deforestation. Now only between 180-500 birds remain and she is classified as Critically Endangered. Sometimes known as the "monkey-eating eagle" she is in fact an opportunistic predator who will eat almost anything she can catch: monkeys, birds, colugo, bats, reptiles and even small pigs. She is a sit-and-wait predator, sometimes moving perches as she scans the canopy around her for appropriate prey.

Once again, she is in black and white for YOU to colour. My coloured version is here:

Creature Feature #555: Owl

The Owls are an Order of birds, consisting of two Families and around 200 species. They are nocturnal predators, superbly adapted for their environment. Large eyes allow them to see, even in very low light levels. Because they are positioned on the front of the face, Owls have excellent distance perception and are far-sighted. Because their eyes are fixed in their sockets, an Owl must turn her head to view what is to the sides - and she can rotate it almost 270 degrees. Her ears are assymetrical, one being positioned higher than the other (do not confuse ears with the feathery "horns"). She can adjust the feathers of her flat facial "disc"  to pinpoint prey with deadly accuracy.

This specimen is a Long-eared Owl. She belongs to the so-called "True" owl Family which contains the majority of the species. The other Family consists of Barn Owls and their ilk.

Creature Feature #521: Nurse Shark

The nocturnal Nurse Shark makes his home in the tropical and subtropical waters of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. He is a sluggish fish, hunting dormant prey. During the day, he returns to his favourite resting spots - often under a submerged ledge or in a crevice. Some have been observed resting on the ocean floor, body suported on his fins. This provides a false shelter for crustaceans, which he can then ambush and eat. Nurse Sharks can grow up to 14m long, and are equipped with strong jaws and serrated teeth. They are not, however, dangerous to humans and will only attack if harrassed.

Creature Feature #427: Lizardfish

The Lizardfish are several species of bony fish, found in shallow coastal waters. He is generally small - although the largest species can grow up to 60 cm - and his head superficially resembles a lizard. An ambush predator, he buries himself in the substrate so that only his eyes are visible, and waits for prey to swim past. He is equipped with many teeth, which even grow upon his tongue.