Stoat

Natural Wild Life | Stoat | The stoat is a small sized mammal, closely related to weasels and ferrets. Stoats are also closely related to otters, badgers and wolverines and stoats share similar characteristics with all of these animals. Stoats are found inhabiting a variety of habitats including moorland, woodlands, farms, coastal areas and even mountainous regions across the Northern Hemisphere. Stoats are found across Europe, Asia and North America and stoats are even spotted inside the colder Arctic Circle.

Stoats are relatively small in size ranging from 18cm to 32cm in height and weighing an average of 200 grams. The stoat has an average lifespan of between 4 and 5 years, although some stoat individuals can be much older and others can die at a much younger age. Stoats are solitary animals and are not generally not territorial. The only exceptions for both of these lifestyles are during the breeding season when stoats come together to mate and the female stoats are known to become territorial during this time, probably so that the female stoat is able to protect her young.

The stoat is a carnivorous animal meaning that the diet of the stoat consists only of other animals. Some stoat individuals however, have been known to eat fruit but these cases have all been observed using stoats that are in captivity. Stoats prey on a number of animals including rodents, fish, eggs, insects, small reptiles and amphibians. The stoats favourite meal however is the rabbit despite the fact that the stoat is generally much smaller than a rabbit. It is for this reason that stoats are often introduced to places in order to control rabbit pest problems.

As the stoat is small in size, it is preyed up by a number of larger animals in the wild including foxes, dogs, wild cats and large snakes. The stoat is often able to defend itself against smaller sized predators as the stoat has extremely sharp teeth which can issue a nasty and painful bite. A female stoat rarely has more than one litter of babies in her short lifetime. Stoats breed in the warmer months of May and June but there is a delayed reaction in the uterus of the female stoat meaning that the embryos don't begin to develop for a number of months. After this time, the baby stoats (known as kits) are born within a month, and the female stoat gives birth to a litter of between 5 and 15 stoat kits.

The stoat kits are nursed by the mother stoat until they are just over a month old and the baby stoats then begin to learn to hunt. The stoat kits are independent when they are much bigger by the time they are 3 months of age. Despite the fact that the stoat is today considered to be a species that is not threatened with extinction, there are concerns regarding the decline in stoat populations due to habitat loss. The stoat has also been hunted by humans over the years mainly for it's fur but also for it's meat.

Puma

Natural Wild Life | Puma | Puma is simply another name for a cougar and therefore one of the largest and ruthless members of the cat family in the world. The puma is native to the Americas and can be found from Western Canada, to the Andes mountain range in South America and all along the west coast of North America.

The puma is a solitary mammal and will compete for prey with larger predators such as wolf packs and bears. The puma hunts deer, elk, beavers and other large mammals and the occasional bird. Pumas tend to be tan or brown in colour and their size is often dependent on the area in which they live. 

Those pumas found in Canada and North America are generally slightly larger and have thicker fur than the pumas found in South America, as the uncompromising winters mean that the northern puma must have more defense against the cold. Pumas are highly territorial and tend to be found in mountain ranges and in some areas where there is dense, undisturbed forest. The puma population day is declining mainly due to habitat loss.

Goat

Natural Wild Life | Goat | Goats originated from the mountainous areas of west Asia and eastern Europe, grazing on hillsides and plains. Modern day common goats are known as domesticated goats and are thought to be very closely related to a sheep. For thousands of years goats have been used for their meat, hair, milk and skins. In some countries goats are also used to help with carrying heavy loads.

One of the rarer species of goat is the fainting goat from Tennessee in the United States. These goats literally freeze up, the goats legs go rigid and the goat falls over. The goat will soon get back up and continue grazing until it happens again. Most species of male goats naturally have two horns on the top of their head. The horns of the goat are made out of the substance keratin, from which human fingernails are also made. The male goats mainly use their horns to defend themselves from other dominant male goats and from unwanted predators. Some species of goat also have females that have two horns on the tops of their heads.

Goats are typically found in more barren landscapes and many species of goat tend to prefer mountainous and rocky terrains. The goats that inhabit the mountainous cliff faces are amazingly agile and are able to hold their hold well on small ledges and are very adept at jumping and running around on them. The goat is natural prey to many predators which include leopards, tigers, large reptiles and most commonly humans. Today the goat is also found in parts of South America where the goats are farmed and hunted for their meat and skins. The goat is most closely related to the sheep and there are many similarities between the two species as well as a number of differences which include the tail length of the goat which is noticeably longer than the tail of the sheep.

Lionfish

Natural Wild Life | Lionfish | The lionfish (also known as the turkeyfish, tigerfish, dragonfish, scorpionfish, and butterfly cod) is a poisonous spiky fish found in the warmer waters of the western and central Pacific Ocean. The lionfish is a predatory fish hunting small fish, but it's venom is capable of being fatal to larger creatures. The lionfish is a popular aquarium fish around the world, although the lionfish is better kept in tanks with lots of space and few other fish. The lionfish can live to around 16 years in the wild and lionfish often live longer if looked after well in captivity.

There are around 8 different recognised species of lionfish that are found in the Pacific Ocean. The lionfish is natively found in coastal waters around rocky crevices and coral reefs where there are lots of smaller fish for the lionfish to eat and also places for the lionfish to hide. The lionfish catches it's prey by hiding in a crevice in the rock or coral and then ambushing it as it swims past.The lionfish then corners it's prey with it's large fins before swallowing it whole. Lionfish prey on a wide variety of small fish and crustaceans that inhabit the tropical reefs. The lionfish is prey to few predators due to the large size of the lionfish and the fact that the appearance of the lionfish is intimating to other animals.

The spikes that protrude from the body of the lionfish contain venom that lionfish uses to defend itself if it is being pursued. The main predators of the lionfish are large fish, eels and humans that catch the lionfish to put into a tank. Although the lionfish is a solitary animal and they only really come together to mate, a few lionfish inhabit a certain area of the reef. The lionfish group usually contains one male lionfish and a few female lionfish that he mates with. The male lionfish is highly territorial and protects the area in which by himself and his females live.

The female lionfish releases between 2,000 and 15,000 eggs into the water which are fertilised by the male lionfish. The lionfish pair then quickly hide so that their eggs can float into the ocean before being spotted by predators that eat the eggs. The lionfish eggs hatch in just 2 days and the tiny lionfish fry remain near the surface of the water until they are bigger. When the lionfish fry reach nearly an inch in length, they swim down into the ocean to join the reef community.

The Lionfish is also an invasive species, originally from the Indian and Western Pacific oceans. It was brought into Florida as an aquarium fish, and after a hurricane broke some of the aquariums containing the fish, they started to appear around the lower coast of Florida. They have now spread all the way up to Long Island, New York. When scientists do dives to study the lionfish, sometimes they kill one, and trace it's DNA. The odd thing lately, is that all the fish trace back to an original six or seven Lionfish from the ocean in which they came.

Piranha

Natural Wild Life | Piranha | The piranha is a type of freshwater fish found in the rivers of the South American jungles. The piranha can be found in nearly every country in South America and the piranha have been appearing more recently in the south of the USA. The piranha fish has a single row of razor-sharp teeth with the piranha being most commonly known for their taste for blood. The piranha feeds on fish, mammals and birds alike, with the wholes group of piranhas feeding together in a slight frenzy. Despite the carnivorous nature of the piranha, the piranha is actually an omnivore and will eat almost anything that it can find. Piranhas mainly feed on fish, snails, insects and aquatic plants occasionally eating larger mammals and birds that fall into the water.

Despite it's feared nature, the piranha actually has a number of predators in the wild, including humans that hunt the piranha for food. Piranhas are preyed upon by large predators such as river dolphins (known as botos), crocodiles, turtles, birds and larger fish. The piranha is generally around 30cm long but some piranha individuals have been found measuring nearly 80cm. The piranha is said to be more feared by many humans than even a shark. Piranhas are generally found in fast flowing rivers and streams where there is plenty of food for the piranha to eat. The piranhas lives together in large shoals and constantly compete for food. Feeding frenzies will be triggered when there is a shortage of food or blood in the water.

Piranhas tend to breed in pairs in slower water such as lagoons generally during the rainy season around April to May. The mating pair prepare a nest that the female piranha lays clusters of eggs in. The female piranha lays an average of 5,000 eggs and due to the fact that the male piranha and the female piranha defend their protected eggs so effectively, more than 90% often survive and hatch after just a few days. In August 2009 a 35cm piranha was found in a river in Devon, thousands of miles from it's native home. The team that discovered the piranha were utterly bewildered as to what this tropical fish was going in a river in England but later deduced that this piranha must have been kept as a pet and then released due to the fact that it was eating sweetcorn.

Wrasse

Natural Wild Life | Wrasse | The wrasse is a typically small species of fish, found in the coastal waters of the world's major oceans. The Cleaner wrasse is the most commonly known wrasse species as it is often seen alongside other marine animals, including sharks. There are more than 500 different species of Wrasse found in the shallower coastal waters and coral reefs, of the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic oceans. Wrasse most commonly inhabit areas that have an abundance of both food and places to hide, making coral reefs and rocky shores the perfect home for the wrasse.

Cleaner wrasse are the most well-known wrasse species as they are often seen going into the mouths of large marine animals in order remove the dead material inside. Cleaner wrasse feed on dead tissues, scales and parasites that lurk inside the mouth of the larger animal, and few are actually eaten by the predator that they are assisting. Wrasse come in a variety of colours and sizes depending on the species of wrasse. Wrasse tend to be relatively small in size, with many species of wrasse being less than 20 cm in length. One species of wrasse however is enormous in comparison, growing to more than 2 meters long.

Wrasse are carnivorous animals that have thick lips with a row of teeth that usually face outwards. The mouth of the wrasse is protractile which means that it is capable of extending forwards. Wrasse feeds on a number of small invertebrates, small fish and food particles in the water. Wrasse are also known to follow large predatory fish, eating the trail of left-overs that it leaves behind it. Due to their small size, wrasse have numerous predators in their natural environment including larger fish, such as lionfish, dogfish and barracuda and wrasse are even eaten by some smaller species of shark. Wrasse are known to live for a relatively long-time particularly for their small size. Wrasse mate by releasing their eggs and sperm in to the water, which are fertilised and become part of the plankton until they are big enough to join the reef. Female wrasse lay thousands of eggs at at time so the wrasse population numbers are relatively high.

Squid

Natural Wild Life | Squid | The squid is a marine cephalopod similar to the octopus. Like all other cephalopods, squid have a distinct head, bilateral symmetry, a mantle, and arms. Squid, like cuttlefish, have eight arms and two tentacles arranged in pairs. Some species of squid are known to have 10 arms.

There are around 300 different species of squid found in the oceans worldwide, with squid being one of the few animals that inhabits the freezing waters of the Antarctic, where they mainly feed on krill and plankton although larger species of squid have also been known to hunt larger prey like fish. Most species of squid average at about 20 cm in length when they are fully grown although some species will commonly grow to 60 cm long. The Colossal squid that lives in the deep waters of the Pacific Ocean has been known to grow to 14 metres long!

Squid are an excellent and therefore common food source for a variety a different animal species in the water but also those predators on land. Squid predators include sharks, penguins, seals and humans. Generally squid will only get to a few years old in the wild before being eaten. Some of the bigger species of squid however, have been known to reach ages of 15 years old.

Tiger Salamander

Natural Wild Life | Tiger Salamander | The tiger salamander is a small species of salamander, found inhabiting wetland habitats across North America. The tiger salamander can be easily distinguished from other species of salamander by the dark-coloured markings on the skin of the tiger salamander. An adult tiger salamander is rarely seen out in the open as they spend their lives in burrows about half a meter into the ground. Most adult tiger salamanders live in their burrows on the land, only returning to the water to mate.

The tiger salamander is green, black, brown or grey in colour and has blotchy markings on its skin. The tiger salamander also has sturdy legs and a long tail, all of which the tiger salamander is able to regrow should these limbs become lost or damaged. The tiger salamander is a carnivorous amphibian mainly hunting worms, insects and spiders that crawl into its burrow. Adult tiger salamanders are also known to hunt much larger animals such as baby mice and small frogs. Due to the small size and ground-dwelling nature of the tiger salamander, the tiger salamander has numerous natural predators where it lives in North America. Raccoons, coatis and river turtles are the most common predators of the tiger salamander, along with birds and large reptiles.

Most tiger salamander individuals will only get the chance to breed just once in their up to 15 years lifetime. The larvae of the tiger salamander are aquatic which means that the female tiger salamander lays her eggs in the water, generally on either a log or leaves close to the bottom of the water.The eggs of the tiger salamander hatch into larvae which come in two forms, cannibalistic (meaning that they eat one another ) and non-cannibalistic larvae. The larvae take a varied amount of time depending on the region, to fully metamorphose into an adult tiger salamander.

Tetra

Natural Wild Life | Tetra | The tetra is a small and colourful fish native to the freshwater rivers and streams of South America and Africa. The tetra is one of the most well known and popular freshwater tropical fish kept in tanks and aquariums all around the world. There are around 150 known species of the tetra fish native to the clearwater streams and slow-moving rivers of both Africa South America. There are more than 100 different species of the tetra in Africa alone and even more in South America. The two groups of fish are classified as the characidaes (the tetra of South America) and the alestiidaes (the tetra of Africa).

Tetras are very commonly found in aquariums around the world and due to the hardiness of the tetra, they are easy fish to keep. The neon tetra is among the most commonly bred commercial species of tetra out of all of the tetra species. The tetra is an omnivorous animal eating a mixture of both plant and animal matter. The tetra primarily feeds on algae and brine shrimp and picks out the larger food particles that are part of the plankton in the water. Tetras also eat small invertebrates such as worms. Due to their small size, tetras are prey to many predators in their watery world. Larger fish, eels, crustaceans and invertebrates all prey on the tiny tetra which is often easy to spot due to it's brightly coloured body. When a tetra feels it is in in danger, it will often try to find something to hide in or travel into water that is slightly darker so that the tetra is harder to spot.

Tetras live in schools of many tetra individuals, sometimes in the hundreds, in order to help to protect each other and to find food. Tetras kept in tanks should be kept with at least 6 or 7 other tetras. Male tetras tend to be smaller in size than the female tetras. Tetras breed in pairs that spawn together for about a year. Female tetras lay an average of 130 eggs usually on a leaf in the water, which are then fertilised by the male tetra. The baby tetra are called fry and hatch within a couple of days.

Llama

Natural Wild Life | Llama | The llama (Lama glama) is a South American camelid, widely used as a pack and meat animal by Andean cultures since pre-hispanic times. The llama is thought to have originated in North America around 40 million years ago and the llama is believed to have then migrated to South America and Asia around 3 million years ago, before the American and Asian continents finally separated at Alaska. The llama is thought to have become extinct from North America during the ice age. Today the llama is most commonly found in the Andes mountain region of South America where the llama was kept as a pack animal by the ancient Inca people. Llamas are used for meat, wool, skin and for transporting heavy loads (a little like donkeys).

The llama is thought to have evolved from the old world camel-like animals that inhabited the regions that is today the Middle East. Although the llama has many similarities to the camel, the most noticeable difference between the llama and the camel is that the llama does not have a hump on its back. Llamas are very sociable animals and enjoy being with other llamas in a herd. The llama is also believed to be a particularly intelligent animal as llamas are commonly taught tasks which the llama picks up with only a few repetitions of the task.

Female llamas give birth to baby llamas (known as crias) standing up. The gestation period for a llama is between 11 and 12 months and the birth of the cria is usually over within half an hour. Baby llamas are generally standing up and attempting to walk within an hour of birth. Llama mating takes place throughout the year and baby llamas tend to be born in the morning when the weather is warm. This is believed to increase the fertility rate of the cria.

The llama is a herbivore and gets most of its nutrition from grass, leaves and young shoots. Llamas also do not have the same water retaining properties of their camel cousins, meaning that the llama must drink more often and llamas therefore prefer to be close to water.

Grouse

Natural Wild Life | Grouse | Grouse are a group of birds from the order Galliformes. The grouse is a heavily-built bird that is found in the cold, forested areas of the Northern Hemisphere. The grouse is most closely related to other game birds including chickens, peasants and turkeys and, although not commonly farmed commercially, the grouse is hunted by humans in its natural habitat. The grouse inhabits both hot and cold environments, and can be found in a variety of habitats like forests, moorland, shrub-land and close to rural farms.

In order to survive the bitter Northern winters, the grouse has feathered legs and toes which not only help to keep the grouse warm, but they also give the grouse more grip and stability when it is walking around in the snow. Despite inhabiting areas that often fall within the Arctic Circle, thousands of grouse are hunted as game each year by humans. The grouse population numbers are not drastically effected however as they often lay a large number of eggs so the grouse population is able to increase at a fast rate.

The grouse is an omnivorous animal meaning that it eats both plants and other animals. Despite this though, plant matter makes up the majority of the grouse's diet as the grouse eats grasses, fruits, nuts, berries, shoots, seeds and flowers, along with insects and even rodents. Due to its stocky build and the fact that the grouse is one of the few animals able to exist within the Arctic Circle, that grouse is preyed upon by a number of native predators. Wildcats including lynx, foxes, wolves and large birds of prey all prey upon the grouse, alongside human hunters. Female grouse nests in a dip in the ground, following an elaborate mating display by the male grouse. The female grouse can lay up to 12 eggs at a time which hatch after a month of incubation.

Albatross

True Wild Life | Albatross | Albatrosses, of the biological family Diomedeidae, are large seabirds allied to the procellariids, storm-petrels and diving-petrels in the order Procellariiformes (the tubenoses). The albatross is a large species of sea bird found throughout the Pacific and even the Antarctic oceans. The albatross spends much of its life either fishing at sea or nesting on one of thousands of little islands. There are more than 20 different species of albatross found across the southern seas, but sadly 19 of the different albatross species are said to be threatened with extinction.

The albatross is one of the largest birds in the skies as the wingspan of the male albatross can easily reach 3 meters or more in length. The albatross also has a body that is more than 1 meter long (including the tail). The albatross is thought to be highly efficient when in the air as the albatross is able to cover vast distances with little effort. The albatross also has excellent eyesight as it sees its prey from the sky, swooping down to snap a fish from the surface or sometimes even diving into the water. The albatross is a carnivorous bird as the diet of the albatross solely consists of fish and other aquatic animals.

The albatross feeds on fish, squid, krill, crabs and other crustaceans by either diving, swooping onto the water's surface or from scavenging the kill from another animal or bird. Due to the fact that the albatross is so big and the fact that the albatross nests in such remote places, the albatross has no real predators besides humans who have hunted them in the past, or from tiger sharks who are known to lay in wait when the young albatross chicks are learning how to fly, waiting to snap up any stragglers. The albatross nests in large colonies on islands or in open forest, where there can be thousands of other albatross individuals. The female albatross lays just one egg that can weigh up to half a kilo! The albatross parents take it in turns to incubate the egg for 2-3 months depending on the size of the albatross species. The albatross parents protect and clean their chick until it is able to fly. Albatross chicks can take anywhere from 5 to 10 months to fledge, depending on the size of the albatross species.