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ǃNara Melon
''Acanthosicyos horridus'' is an unusual melon that is endemic to the Namib desert. In English it is known as Nara, butter-nuts, or butterpips; in one of the Khoisan languages it is locally called or ("!" is pronounced with a click, somewhat like the "tsk" when English people are tutting, tsk-tsk). Description It is a dioecious, leafless, phreatophyte (meaning its roots penetrate deep down to water near the water table) that is found in sandy deserts but not stony plains, in areas with access to ground water such as ephemeral rivers and paleochannels, where sand accumulating in the shelter of its stems can form hummocks up to 1000–1500 m2 in area and 4 meters in height. Its stems may rise more than a meter above the hummocks, while its system of thick taproots can extend up to 50 m downward. The plant is leafless, so modified stems and spines 2–3 centimetres long serve as the photosynthetic "organs" of the plant. The plant can survive many years without water. Ecology ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stipagrostis Sabulicola
''Stipagrostis sabulicola'', the Namib dune bushman grass, is a species of grass endemic to the dunes of the Namib The Namib ( ; ) is a coastal desert in Southern Africa. According to the broadest definition, the Namib stretches for more than along the Atlantic coasts of Angola, Namibia, and northwest South Africa, extending southward from the Carunjamba Ri ... desert. The perennial grass grows up to 200 cm tall and has a wide system of shallow roots, allowing it to catch water in the form of fog and dew, additional to rain. References {{Taxonbar, from=Q15507694 Aristidoideae Flora of Namibia ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gerbillurus
''Gerbillurus'' is a genus of rodent in the family Muridae The Muridae, or murids, are either the largest or second-largest family of rodents and of mammals, containing approximately 870 species, including many species of mice, rats, and gerbils found naturally throughout Eurasia, Africa, and Australia. .... It contains the following species: * Hairy-footed gerbil (''Gerbillurus paeba'') * Namib brush-tailed gerbil (''Gerbillurus setzeri'') * Dune hairy-footed gerbil (''Gerbillurus tytonis'') * Bushy-tailed hairy-footed gerbil (''Gerbillurus vallinus'') References Rodent genera Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Gerbillinae-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hoarding (animal Behavior)
Hoarding or caching in ethology, animal behavior is the storage of food in locations hidden from the sight of both Conspecificity, conspecifics (animals of the same or closely related species) and members of other species.Vander Wall, Stephen B. (1990) Food Hoarding in Animals. University of Chicago Press. Most commonly, the function of hoarding or caching is to store food in times of surplus for times when food is less plentiful. However, there is evidence that a certain amount of caching or hoarding is actually undertaken with the aim of ripening the food so stored, and this practice is thus referred to as ‘ripening caching’. The term hoarding is most typically used for rodents, whereas caching is more commonly used in reference to birds, but the behaviors in both animal groups are quite similar. Hoarding is done either on a long-term basiscached on a seasonal cycle, with food to be consumed months down the lineor on a short-term basis, in which case the food will be cons ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Feces
Feces (also known as faeces American and British English spelling differences#ae and oe, or fæces; : faex) are the solid or semi-solid remains of food that was not digested in the small intestine, and has been broken down by bacteria in the large intestine. Feces contain a relatively small amount of metabolic waste products such as bacterially-altered bilirubin and dead epithelial cells from the lining of the gut. Feces are discharged through the anus or cloaca during defecation. Feces can be used as fertilizer or soil conditioner in agriculture. They can also be burned as dry animal dung fuel, fuel or dried and used for wattle and daub, construction. Some medicinal uses have been found. In the case of human feces, fecal transplants or fecal bacteriotherapy are in use. Urine and feces together are called excretion, excreta. Characteristics The distinctive odor of feces is due to skatole, and thiols (sulfur-containing compounds), as well as amines and carboxylic acids. Sk ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Black-backed Jackal
The black-backed jackal (''Lupulella mesomelas'') is a medium-sized Caninae, canine native to East Africa, eastern and southern Africa. These regions are separated by roughly . One region includes the southernmost tip of the continent, including South Africa, Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe. The other area is along the eastern coastline, including Kenya, Somalia, Djibouti, Eritrea, and Ethiopia. It is listed on the IUCN Red List as least concern due to its widespread range and adaptability, although it is still persecuted as a livestock predator and rabies Vector (epidemiology), vector. Compared to members of the genus ''Canis'', the black-backed jackal is a very ancient species, and has changed little since the Pleistocene, being the most Basal (phylogenetics), basal wolf-like canine. It has a reddish brown to tan coat and a black saddle that extends from the shoulders to the base of the tail. It is a Monogamy in animals, monogamous animal, whose young may remain with the family ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Acanthoproctus Diadematus
''Acanthoproctus diadematus'' (Namibia katydid or Nara cricket) is an armoured katydid, bush-cricket, or ground cricket endemic to the Namib Desert of southern Africa, where it lives in the tall sand dunes along the Kuiseb River The Kuiseb River is an ephemeral river in western-central Namibia. Its source is in the Khomas Highland west of Windhoek. From there it flows westwards through the Namib-Naukluft National Park and the Namib desert to Walvis Bay. Several settlement ... in Namib-Naukluft National Park. The katydid feeds on the !nara melon endemic to the area. References Endemic fauna of Namibia Tettigoniidae Insects described in 1858 Orthoptera of Africa {{tettigoniidae-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tettigoniidae
Insects in the family (biology), family Tettigoniidae are commonly called katydids (especially in North America) or bush crickets. They have previously been known as "long-horned grasshoppers". More than 8,000 species are known. Part of the suborder Ensifera, the Tettigoniidae are the only extant (living) family in the superfamily Tettigonioidea. Many species are Nocturnality, nocturnal in habit, having strident mating calls and may exhibit mimicry or camouflage, commonly with shapes and colours similar to leaves.[] Etymology The family name Tettigoniidae is derived from the genus ''Tettigonia'', of which the Tettigonia viridissima, great green bush cricket is the type species; it was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758. In Latin ''tettigonia'' means a kind of small cicada, leafhopper; it is from the Greek τεττιγόνιον ''tettigonion'', the diminutive of the imitative (onomatopoeic) Ï„Îττιξ, ''tettix'', cicada. All of these names such as ''tettix'' with repeat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thallomys Nigricauda
The black-tailed tree rat, also called black-tailed acacia rat or black-tailed thallomys, (''Thallomys nigricauda''), is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found in Angola, Botswana, Namibia and South Africa, where its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry shrubland. It is both nocturnal and arboreal and makes bulky nests in the trees, often acacias, where it feeds on leaves and buds. Description The black-tailed tree rat is a medium-sized rodent with a head-and body length of about and a tail of about . The sides of the face are grey, and a dark band extends from the muzzle to around the eyes and below the ears. The eyes are large and the whiskers are long. The ears are large, oval, and set at an oblique angle. The dorsal fur is long and woolly, slate grey tinged with yellow. The underparts are white, the limbs are grey and the upper sides of the broad feet are white. The long tail is clad in black scales and black bristles, and tipped with black hairs. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Desmodillus Auricularis
The Cape short-eared gerbil (''Desmodillus auricularis'') is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is the only species in the genus ''Desmodillus''. It is found in Angola, Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa. Its natural habitats are hot desert A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the la ...s and temperate desert. References * Coetzee, N. 2004''Desmodillus auricularis'' Downloaded on 19 July 2007. * Gerbils [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhabdomys Pumilio
The four-striped grass mouse (''Rhabdomys pumilio'') or four-striped grass rat is a species of rodent in the family Muridae. It is found throughout the southern half of Africa up to above sea level, extending as far north as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its natural habitats are savannas, shrublands, Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, hot deserts, arable land, rural gardens, and urban area An urban area is a human settlement with a high population density and an infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas originate through urbanization, and researchers categorize them as cities, towns, conurbations or suburbs. In urbani ...s. References mouse, grass, four-striped Mammals of Southern Africa four-striped grass mouse Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxa named by Anders Sparrman {{Murinae-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
