Month: September 2010

Goat

The domestic goat is a domesticated hybrid sub-species between the wild goats of Eastern European and Southwest Asian goats. There are over 300 distinct goat breeds in the world. They are one of the oldest domesticated animal species in the world, and they gained popularity as pets in the 20th century. A white goat Historically,

Chicken

As a domesticated sub-species of the Red Jungle Fowl, the chicken is one of the most common domestic animals with a population even larger than China! With a global population of 24 billion in just 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other bird species. A Brazilian rooster (male chicken) It was

Soursop

The soursop is a flowering evergreen tree that is native to Central America, the Caribbean, and the northern part of South America. The sourop is also native to countries in Sub-Saharan Africa that are within the tropics. Today, it also grows in some parts of Southeast Asia and in Florida, USA. Other names that the

Ambarella

Ambrella (aka the Malay Apple or the Golden Apple) is a tropical tree found around the equator. It is known as an edible fruit which contains a fibrous pit. Most people do not know this fruit as “ambrella”, as there are many regional names for it. In Trinidad and Tobago is is called Pomme cythere,

Atlantic Spadefish

Originally described as Chaetodon faber by the Fresh Naturalist, Pierre-Auguste-Marie Brousoonet in 1782, the Atlantic Spadefish was later changed to Chaetodipturus faber. The Atlantic spadefish is the only member of its family, Ephippidae, to reside in the western Atlantic Ocean. Its range is limited to the Atlantic Ocean in Massachusetts to south-eastern Brazil. This also

Marine Angelfish

Marine angelfish are a perciform fish that are found on shallow reefs in the tropical Indian, Atlantic, and western Pacific oceans. There are 7 genera and 86 species in this family, which is the Pomacanthidae. These should not be confused with freshwater angelfish that is found in the Amazon river basin. A colourful angelfish Marine

Pacific Angel Shark

The Pacific Angelshark, also known as a monkfish, was first described by the first Curator of Ichthyology at the California Acadamy of Sciences by William O. Ayres in 1859. They live in the eastern Pacific Ocean, from as far north as southeastern Alaska, to the Gulf of Mexico, Costa Rica, and down so southern Chile.

Angelfish

Pterophyllum is a genus of freshwater fish from the Cichlidae family more commonly known as angelfish. All angelfish species actually originate from the Amazon River, Essequibo River, and Orinoco River basins in South America. There are 3 Pterophyllum species which are known for being laterally compressed round bodies and elongated triangular anal and dorsal fins.

Goldfish

The goldfish is a freshwater fish which can be commonly found in househould aquariums. It was one of the first fish that was domesticated. It is a member of the carp family and is native to east Asia. It was first domesticated in China more than 1000 years ago, and there are several distinct goldfish

Pug

Pugs are a very small breed of dog that is famous for its wrinkly and short-muzzled face. It is also known as a Chinese pug, Dutch bulldog, Dutch mastiff, and a Mini mastiff. Pug puppies are called “puglets”. This dog originated from China, and in ancient China it was called ‘lo-sze’ or ‘foo’. Pug puppies

Cocoa Tree

Also known as the cacao or cocoa tree, Theobroma cacoa is a small, evergreen tree that is native to the deep tropical regions of the Americas. It grows up to only 4 to 8 metres tall, and is famous around the world for its seeds which are used to make chocolate and cocoa powder. Its

Ringstraked Guitarfish

The ringstraked guitarfish is a small inshore guitarfish species found in the Northwest Pacific Ocean. Specifically, it is found in the warm temperate and tropical waters in the Northwest Pacific and is native to China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam. The Ringstraked guitarfish is native to East Asia This species has been studied in China,

Coconut Palm

Coconuts are part of the Arecaceae family (ie palm family) and is the only accepted species in the Cocos genus. The Coconut tree is a large palm tree that can grow up to 30 metres tall, has pinnate leaves that are about 4 to 6 metres long, and pinnae at 60 to 90 cm long.

Carambola

The carambola, also known as the starfruit, is the fruit of the Averrhoa carambola tree. This tree species is native to the Philippines, Indonesia, India, and Sri Lanka. In the Philippines, they are called either ‘saranate’ or ‘balimbing’ depending on how sour it is. This tree is also popular throughout southeast Asia, the South Pacific,

Tangerine

Tangerines are an orange coloured citrus fruit that is a variety of the Mandarin orange. Like mandarins, tangerines are smaller than most oranges and are easier to peel and split into segments. Compared to an orange, it has a sweeter (or less sour or tart) taste. Tangerines growing on a tree This fruit has been