(The next one will be my tenth...sweet, huh? I'm going to start abbreviating the title to Zoo's A.A.F. I figure 10 installments constitutes a series and every proper series has an abbreviation.  Just a heads up for when that happens...most likely this weekend)   Hey, welcome back.   Time for some more zoological knowledge from yours truly. For this edition I'm going to take one of Kelly's suggestions and go with the....       Caribbean Flamingo (A...

Have no fear, my adoring fans and lovers of animal knowledge!  I return to present more stuff about things and things about stuff.   Sorry about the hiatus, but with break and then 3 exams upon my return I was a tad preoccupied.  Anyway, so here's the next installment...from Foreverserenity's suggestion I now present to you the....       Egyptian Mongoose (AKA Ichneumon)  Herpestes ichneumon  They're from the ol' Family Herpestidae which...

Hey guys, who wants to learn?  What?...Nobody?  What if I promise to teach you about a really cool animal?  Eh, piqued your interest eh?  From the rather vague suggestion that KellyW proposed and her subsequent permission for me to choose a particular species from the order Crocodylia, I now present to you the often unappreciated....     Gharial (AKA gavial, Indian gharial, Indian gavial, Fish-eating crocodile, Long-nosed crocodile) Gavialis gangeticus ...

Woo! It's my fifth Animal Feature article and the community response is awesome!  This time we venture from our mammalian friends and meet an interesting little reptile.  Roy suggested the...   Texas Horned Lizard (AKA horny toad, horned toad, horned frog)  Phrynosoma cornutum Phrynosoma is Greek, meaning "toad bodied" but don't let it fool you, these guys are all reptile. Of the 8 horned lizard species in the United States, the Texas horned lizard is the most...

Well, here we are for another edition of my highly anticipated series. (Well, a man can dream, eh? )  Dr Guy suggested the...   Virginia Opossum (AKA possum)  Didelphis virginiana From the family Didelphidae which includes all Western Hemisphere opossums. Observe the majestic beauty.   Physical Characteristics: Length can vary between 14-22in (~55 cm) and weight between 2-11lbs (0.8~5kg).  So there's a lot variation.  Their fur i...

Wow, three of these already, eh?  Looks like I stumbled onto a pretty good idea here.   Well, I'm glad people are taking such interest.  I've loved animals since I knew what one was...and I'm happy to pass along some knowledge to you and I'm ecstatic that you're all so receptive.  Well, without further rambling we'll move onto the next animal in my series.  ASaxyGirl recommended...   Muennink's Spiny Rat Tokudaia muenninki The Genus Tokudaia also has ...

Well, the first was well received(I got featured, baby. ).  What can I say?  People love animals.  

So we'll continue this little series with Maso's suggestion....

The Bilby! (AKA Rabbit-eared Bandicoot, Greater Bandicoot, Dalgite)  There were two species, the Greater Bilby, Macrotis lagotis  and the Lesser Bilby,  Macrotis leucura.  Unfortunately the Lesser Bilby is now extinct.   The surviving bilby is a threatened species, very threatened. (

The Bilby is part of the family Peramelidae which includes all extant(living) species of bandicoots.

I've been toggling this around in my head for a bit...and you know, I should really focus on animals once in awhile and be true to my screen name, eh?  So I think I'll try starting a series or something...hence the number 1 in the title.  I'm going to give this a shot and see how it turns out, maybe make some adjustments later down the road.  Well, let's give it a shot.   Today's animal is the Common Palm Civet (AKA Musang, Toddy cat, Luwak) Paradoxurus hermaphroditus ...

Can we get a new Category for Environment and Environmental issues?   Join the Wilderness Society and Take Action to save the outdoor places you love.    Wilderness Society http://action.wilderness.org/campaign/russell/85e88ug4fwdjj5m?

I can see it now. Movements saying apes are sentient, and therefore should live in our society with us. Leading to apes should have equal rights. "I can't help it - I was born an ape." Leading to Ape Suffrage. Leading to, what? "You can't marry him, he's an Ape!" "We're running away together!" As Apes continue to learn to communicate with Humans, and interesting question comes to mind. Did Jesus die for Ape's sins, too? Have all Apes sinned? I doubt it, but I'm sure people will...

I have seen this weird bird by the pond by our office a couple mornings.  This morning, I took a couple pictures of it (through my office window).  It looks like some sort of a Loon, but I've never seen a bird like this before.  Anyone know what it is? Here it is with its neck down: Here it is with its neck extended: And here it is once it flew up into a tree:

Different elephant, different day, different temper!

You're walking in the woods or a field and there's a damn biting fly buzzing around your head. It keeps trying to land on your head and you know if you let it, you'll feel a painful chomp.  Those flies are almost malicious in the way they'll follow you around as you're walking. They're evil . These flies are known as deer flies. You've seen them before when you occasionally managed to catch one as its biting you. It turns out, it's not easy to get rid of them. You can't just put...

Macho Mike Face To Face With A Lion In the Wild Macho? Mad Mike more like! Mike gets on his hands and knees and slowly crawls towards the lions resting in the shade of a thorn tree. He does not carry a gun, nor do any of the crew members, if the lions decide to attack, that will be the end of him. He gets right up close and personal with a totally, completely and absolutely wild lion. This man takes risks, he is not unlike the Australian guy Steve Erwin in risk taking and some...

This elephant goes absolutely ape, attacking, humans, other elephants, houses, anything that gets in its way or conveniently close. The commentary is in Hindu or similar language, but you don't need it as the visual is frightening. This elephant really loses it.