Bunnies!

My granddaughter, Coco, asked me why bunnies have floppy ears – specifically, big, floppy ears. What is interesting is that bunnies and rabbits in the wild all have ears that stand up straight. The only one I know of with big ears is the western jack rabbit. All the rest have small or medium size ears. It is important that the ears of wild rabbits stand up straight because they use them like a sound radar to listen for predators. Some can even rotate them slightly to get a better listen of their surroundings.

Domestic bunnies have been intentionally bread for certain traits. Some were bread for meat, others for family pets. The common lop ear was not specifically bread to have floppy ears, it just kind of happened. Their skull is a slightly different shape than other rabbits and causes a gap in between their head and the ear cartilage. This lets them flop over. Because we like the look, breeders keep choosing the beast rabbits with the cutest ears. It doesn’t matter to the rabbits because they us humans to watch out for them. All they have to do is eat and sleep, and hop around looking oh so cute. I mean who could resist such a cute face.

Now before you go out and ask your parents for a bunny, there are a few things to consider. They will take work. They must have food and water daily, and a safe place to get out and play. You will probably have to keep them in a cage or hutch at nice. Bunnies running around the house unsupervised can get
into a lot of mischief. They may stink at times, and you will have to change their bedding. (All that food has to go somewhere!) Some people are even allergic to their fur. Achoo!

Well, that’s all for today. I leave you with a short video of some cute bunnies doing bunny things.

Love Papaw.

Pew! What’s That Smell?

Do you know what a skunk smells like? If you’ve ever smelled one, you won’t forget it. I have never been sprayed by one, but my friends dog got sprayed. It was horrible! Even after several baths with all kinds of crazy shampoos, he still smelled horrible. He was stinky for weeks. Hopefully he will stay far away next time.

Skunk comes from a Native American word that basically means “one who sprays”. Skunks are mammals that come from the "New World" or North and South America. There are several varieties with various colors and stripe patterns. The most common one in North America is the black and white “one stripe” skunk, usually just called the striped skunk. The spotted skunk is usually found in Central and South America.

Skunks like to live in burrows or under sheds and houses. They are omnivores (eating plants & animals) but really love to eat beetles, grubs, grasshoppers, and crickets. They have long claws that they use to break apart rotten logs as they search for food. They will also eat fallen fruits and nuts if they can find them.

Skunks only live for about seven years in the wild. They have a great sense of smell and great hearing, but are really nearsighted and can’t see very far. That is why they often get hit while trying to cross roads.

Mother skunks give birth to four to six babies called “kits”, and raise them on their burrow. She has to take care of them for about eight weeks before they can leave the burrow.

Skunks are most famous for the foul smelling spray that they can shoot from a gland under their tail. They will often do a head stand when they are spraying. They can be accurate up to ten feet! It’s even potent enough to repel a bear.

They only real predator of skunks is the great horned owl. It seems they don’t have much of a sense of smell. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skunk)

Here’s a video of skunks for you.

Until Next Time!

Love Papaw.

When Things Get Mixed Up

In our current unit in Biology we have been studying ecosystems around the world. This week, the topic of species came up. Technically a species is usually defined as: a set of animals or plants in which the members have similar characteristics to each other and can breed with each other. (https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/species) This usually works, but in some cases it is still somewhat artificial. Sometimes we have organisms that could reproduce together, but because of differences in habitat, niche, or major geographical separation they are separated into different species. The dog, the coyote, and the wolf can all reproduce together. They are basically dogs. It is thought that our own domestic dog has been originally bred from a wolf ancestry. Because they usually live in distinctly different habitats that do not usually overlap, they are given different species names. The wolf is Canis lupis, the coyote is Canis lantrans, and the Dog Canis familiaris (often written Canis lupis familiaris).

Most of the odd mash-ups happen because of man’s intervention (truthfully, man’s laziness). They usually happen in collections where animals are not kept separate because of cost cutting decisions. Much of our early knowledge has come from the circus train years. Travelling circuses were notorious for keeping various kinds of animals together. It was only a matter of time.

The animal that results us usually named using the father’s name first. So a lion and a tiger, although they live on separate continents can actually interbreed, given the chance. I guess big cats are just, big cats. If the dad is a lion, it is called a liger. If he is a tiger, you get a tion. You can even add leopards into the mix and get a jaglion (jaguar + lion) or a leopon (leopard + lion). This also can happen between smaller cat species and our own domestic housecat.

Here are some other crazy mixes.

Dog-Wolf-Coyote can give a coywolf or a coydog.

Zebroids: We know from history that horses and donkeys are separate species (mules are sterile) but add a zebra in the mix and you can get all kinds of things. You can get a zorse, a zebrule, a zonkey, a zebonkey, or even a zony.

Bears are not immune. Even in the wild we find grizzly bear + polar bear = grolar bear. If you switch the parents, you get a pizzly bear.

A male camel + female llama = cama. You can get even get a geep (goat + sheep).

Marine park mismanagement has given us wholphins, a bottlenose dolphin + false killer whale. Narwhals and beluga whales can mix into narluga.

 

It just goes to show you that creation still has a lot of tricks up its sleeve. It’s what makes biology so much fun. You can’t make this stuff up. So what’s next? El Chupacabra is sounding more real all the time… 

The Naked Mole-Rat

 Have you ever watched a cartoon called Kim Possible? It was one of Uncle Gideon’s favorites. Her boyfriend had a pet called a naked mole rat. It sounds funny, but there actually is an animal called a mole-rat.

Mole-rats are not rats, nor are they moles either. They are more closely related to hamsters. They live in a country in Africa called Kenya and in a place called the Horn of Africa. Mole-rats live in underground burrows in a group called a colony. Colonies can average around 70-80 individuals. They can be as large as 300! They even have a queen.

They have large teeth which help them dig all their tunnels. Underground you will find the queen mother and lots and lots of babies. Here they find large tubers (kind of like potatoes) that they eat for food. They have a kind of bacteria in their stomach (kind of like a cow) that help them digest the tubers. Scientists call this relationship “symbiosis”.

They have very little hair and tiny eyes and cannot see well. They try to stay hidden underground so they can avoid being eaten by snakes, badgers, and hawk-like birds.

Mole-rats would not make very good pets, but they are kind of cute. Here is a video about them.

That’s all for today. Until next time.

Love Papaw.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naked_mole-rat

Flags at Half-mast?

 

Did you see a flag only half way up the flagpole this September 11^th? Flying the American flag at half-mast (also called half-staff) is a formal sign of respect, mourning, or remembrance. It is used to honor past military heroes. It is used when a past US President passes away. I may be used to commemorate special battles like Pearl Harbor. This time it was in honor of all who died in the September 11^th 2001. I can be Nation-wide when ordered by the President of the United States, or state wide when ordered by the governor.

According Arkadelphian.com, The tradition of flying a flag at half-mast began with a British ship in 1612. The captain of the Heart’s Ease had died, and the crew lowered the flag half-way down the mast as a show of mourning and respect. Other ships throughout the British Empire began following the tradition, including American colonial ships. The lowering of the flag represented symbolically making room for an invisible “flag of death.”  

In the United States, whenever you raise the flag to half-mast, it is proper to raise it all the way to the top and then lower it to the correct spot. It will stay this way until the order which can be only for the day or a few days, is expired. When it is time to lower the flag, it is first raised all the way to the top and then lowered. Each country around the world has its own special rules for flying it’s flags.

Next time you see a flag at half-mast, take some time to think about the reason it is there. Always be respectful to our flag and for what it stands.

Well that’s all for this week. See you soon!

Love Papaw.

Why Do Rabbits Have Claws?

When I was very young, I remember having a lucky rabbit’s foot keychain. I thought it was a cool deal. I’m sure the rabbit did not. It sure wasn’t lucky for him. I do remember that the little foot had claws, but I never really thought about it until now. This week my granddaughter asked me why rabbits have claws. So here’s the scoop.

Rabbits have 4 claws on each hind foot and 5 claws on each of their front feet. The hind feet are webbed to help keep the toes together. This helps them as they run.  The front feet are small. The back feet are longer and help them stand.

The claws are helpful for 4 things.

1.Wild rabbits love to dig. They use their sharp claws to dig out underground houses called “warrens” where a whole family of rabbits can live and be protected. The females also carve out nesting burrows for a place to have their babies.  

2. Claws can be used as defense. A rabbit would rather run away to it safe underground burrow, but when they are cornered, they can sit back on their hind legs and use their front paws to scratch and claw a would-be attacker. They can leave deep scratches that can be very painful.

3. Rabbits love to groom their fur. They use their claws to scratch an itch or to help keep burrs or little twigs out of their fur. Grooming helps keep their fur clean, smooth, and healthy.

4. Claws also help rabbits to run. The claws dig into the ground like a football player’s cleats and give them better traction. They can jump, hop, or make sharp turns without slipping.

For domestic bunnies it is important to keep their claws trimmed. A rabbit in the wild run on enough rough ground to keep them worn down. In a cage or a house, they keep growing and might get too long.

Well, it’s time for me to hop! Hope you liked out bunny talk.

Love, Papaw

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabbit

 

What's Up with Hiccups?

Have you ever had the hiccups? I bet you have. You’re sitting there minding your own business and then, “Hic!”, they start. It makes it hard to swallow and hard to talk. Sometimes they make you feel funny. You might even start to laugh. Most of the time they only last a few minutes. But how do they happen? Hiccups happen when we get sudden involuntary (that means we can’t control it) contractions of the diaphragm. The diaphragm is a muscle that helps us breath. It stretches across your body just under your rib cage. It is a divider between the lungs, and your stomach and intestines. It usually helps you breathe, but when you get hiccups, it kind of just starts doing its own thing.  It jumps every few seconds and causes the funny sound we all know.

 So what causes hiccups? Some common triggers are:

Eating too much or too fast

Drinking carbonated drinks

Swallowing extra air

Feeling excited or stressed.

 If babies swallow to much air when they are drinking from a bottle, they can get hiccups.

What can someone do to stop them? Well, I’m glad you ask. Here are some ways to help get hiccups to stop.

Hold your breath for a short time

Sip a glass of cold water

Breathe into a paper bag

Swallow a small spoon of sugar

Most sources say that breathing in a little more carbon dioxide into your lungs is the best way to get them to stop. That’s why holding your breath or blowing in a paper bag usually helps. For me, just relaxing often helps. The only time you have to worry about them is if it lasts for days. Then you may need to see a doctor. But that’s pretty rare.

I hoped you liked learning about hiccups.

 

Until next time,

Love Papaw

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Source: https://www.womenshealthmag.com/health/a19932525/hiccups