Cottonmouth Water Moccasin is a viper, and one of the most deadly that roam North America. Extremely dangerous to people and pets, they are aggressive and venomous. The adult water moccasin can be anywhere from 20 inches to as much as 7 feet long. When they swim a great deal of their body rests above
Desert Tortoises are land dwellers of the turtle family, which are reptilian in nature. The Desert Tortoises have brown shells 8-15 inches long with flattened front feet that are well suited for burrowing beneath the earth. The Desert tortoise will live in sandy and wooded areas in the south east and southwestern United States, primarily
Most notable among their characteristics is the yellow, red, and black banding. Several species that are non-venomous have similar coloration, the only difference being the order of the colors. This has spawned many useful rhymes, such as “Red to yellow kills a fellow, red to black, venom lack.” This only applies to species found in
In the wild, large adults tend to weigh around 70 kg (154 lbs). Captive specimens often weigh more. The largest verified wild specimen was 3.13 metres (10 feet 3 inches) long and weighed 166 kg (365 lbs), including undigested food. Komodo dragons have a tail that is as long as the body, as well as
The Mountain Lion, also know as the Puma or Cougar, is a stalk-and-ambush predator that hunts a wide variety of prey. Its primary food is ungulates such as deer, particularly in the northern part of its range, but it hunts species as small as insects and rodents. It prefers habitats with dense underbrush for stalking,
Native to Sumatra and Malaya, the Argus Pheasant enjoys wild regions about 4000 feet above sea level where it eats fruit, grain, and various bugs. Currently they are not listed on the endangered species, but are considered vulnerable since their numbers are currently declining. The Argus pheasant has two subspecies, one the Malaysian and the
Vicuna Are wiuld animals who have evolved and been trained over time to become pack animals. They are longish haired with soft woolen coat, of deep cinnamon or red brown. On the chest, at the base of the neck, is a peculiar, ‘mane’ of silky white hairs which may be 8-12 inches in length. The
There are two types of Anoa, both live in dense forested areas and are in essence miniature water buffalo. They look very similar to a deer and weigh about 300 pounds. Both types are also found on the Island of Sulawesi in Indonesia. They live singly, rather than in herds except during the breeding season
In the United States the Bison is commonly called the Buffalo, however this is not the case. Buffalo are extinct, and although the bison belongs to the same family, they are not the same animal. The Bison is one of the largest land animals in the United States. They are wandering grazing animals that usually
The African Dog is a carnivore and is considered a canid. The African dog is found, coincidentally, only in Africa, particularly on the savannah and in areas of light woods or forest. The wild dogs name in Greek means painted wolf and this is bourne out by the fact that no two animals have the
The white tailed deer ranges over most of the northern United States and is tan or light brown in summertime and darker, gray brown in winter. It has a white neck, white surrounding its eyes and nose and on its abdomen. Males can weigh between 200 and 300 pounds while the female weighs between 80
The Key Deer is a relative of the White tailed deer, that lives in Big Pine Key areas of Florida. The Key deer is the smallest of all white tailed deer, and are not found in any other areas of the world. Key Deer are only 24 inches tall at the shoulder and weigh at
The Kiwi is a very tiny member of an ancient order of birds which are flightless. The kiwi, as difficult as it is to believe, is a member of a family we all know well. The ostrich and emus are related to this tiny bird. The Kiwi got its name from the Maori tribes of
The Civet is a group of nocturnal animals that include the mongoose. Not exactly a mongoose, but not exactly a cat, they have very catlike bodies, very long tails and faces that look rather like a weasel. Their fur is gray or brown and has some patterned markings in several varieties. All civets have glands
The Aardwolf is a very small animal that is reminiscent of the Hyena, but eats insects and flying bugs. Its name means earth wolf in the Afrikaans language and it is also known as a maanhar jackal. It is a very defenseless animal and eats mostly termites and other insets as well as carrion animals.
