What
is a Kangaroo?
A
kangaroo is an animal found only n Australia, although is has a small relative,
called a wallaby, which lives on the Australian island in Tasmania and
also in New Guinea.
Kangaroo
eat grass and plants. They have short front legs, but very long and very strong
back legs and tail. These are that they use for sitting up and for jumping.
Kangaroos have been known to make forward jumps of over eights meters, and leap
across fences more that three meters high. The can also run at speeds over 45
kilometers per hour.
The
largest kangaroos are the Great Gray Kangaroo and the Red Kangaroo. Adults grow
length of 1.60 meter and weigh over 80 kilos.
Kangaroos
are marsupial. This means that the female kangaroo has an external pouch on the
front of her body. A baby kangaroo is very tiny when it is born, and it crawls
at once into pouch where it spends its first five months of life.
The white pelican is one of the most
successful fish eating birds. The success is largely due to its command
hunting behaviour. A group, perhaps two dozens birds, will gather in a
curved are some distance offshore, beating the water furiously with their
wings, driving the fish before them.
When the water is shallow enough for
the birds to reach the fish, the formation breaks up as each bird dip its bill
into the water to scoop up its meal. As the bird lifts its head, the
water drains from its bill leaving the fish which are then swallowed.
Pelicans
are among the oldest group of birds. Fossil of this genus have been
founded dating back 40 millions years.
Seals
August
14, 2008
Seals,
sea lions and walruses live both on land and in the sea. When on dry land or on
ice, they are very clumsy in their movements. But in the water they swim
gracefully. They all leave the water for land or ice fields to give birth to
their young.
The
dolphins and the sea cows are sea mammals. Dolphins and porpoise look alike but
usually the dolphins are larger. These animals are mainly fish eaters.
Experiments show that dolphins are intelligent and can communicate with each
other. They can be trained to perform various kinds of tricks and acts.
The
highly intelligent killer whale belongs to the dolphin family. Despite of its
scary name, it has never been heard to attack human.
Silkwarms
Silkworms live for only two or three
days after laying eggs. About 36.000 to 50.000 eggs are laid, and these are
carefully stored at the silkworm farm until they are ready to hatch. The eggs
hatch into caterpillars, which feed on mulberry leaves. Soon the caterpillars
are ready to spin their cocoons. Not all caterpillars can spin silk cocoons.
Only the caterpillars of a silkworm moth known as ‘Bombyx mori’ can do such
spinning.
This
caterpillar has special glands which secrete liquid silk through its lower lip.
The liquid produced later hardens to form fine strands. The caterpillar makes
its cocoons using these strands. The threads on the outside of the cocoons are
rough, while those inside are soft and smooth.
Some
fully-spun cocoons are heated. This kills the pupa inside. The cocoons are then
put into hot water to loosen the fine threads. Finally, these threads are
reeled off the cocoons.
The
length of unbroken thread produced by a single cocoon measures about one-and
–a-half kilometers. Being twisted together several of these threads make single
woven materials.
Dolphins
For
many years, many people believed that the cleverest animals after man were the
chimpanzees. Now, however, there is proof that dolphins may be even cleverer
than these big apes.
Although
a dolphin lives in the sea it is not a fish. It is a mammal. It is in many
ways, therefore, like a human being.
Dolphins
have a simple language. They are able to talk to one another. It may be
possible for man to learn how to talk to dolphins. But this will not be easy
because dolphins cannot hear the kind of sounds man can make. If man wants to
talk to dolphins, therefore, he will have to make a third language which both
he and the dolphins can understand.
Dolphins
are also very friendly toward man. They often follow ships. There are many
stories about dolphins guiding ships through difficult and dangerous water.
sea-horse
Many
people imagine the sea-horse to be real horse living in the sea. This is not
true at all. The sea-horse is so called because it is a tiny creature with a
horse – liked head which lives in the sea.
Sea – horse
are found mostly in warm seas. They have a long, flexible tail which is used
for wrapping around weeds for support. They swim I upright position, their
movements being helped by a rapidly oscillating fin on their back. The male sea
– horse lays her eggs in this pouch.
The most
remarkable thing about the sea – horse is that part of the process of
reproduction is taken over by the male creature. One the female sea – horse has
laid her eggs in the male creature’s pouch, she leaves. The hatching of the egg
is done by the male fish.
Mating
begins with the male and the female sea – horses doing courtship dance. The
male and female creatures swim around each other in circles. At the end of the
dance, the male appears to bow to its partner; but in actually, the male is
banding to pump water from his pouch. Next, the female fish lays eggs into the
male’s pouch. About two hundred eggs are laid. The pouch, then close up. The
female sea-horse now swims away, leaving the male sea-horse to do hatching.
The eggs are
hatched about a month later. The young sea-horses are ejected from the male
creature’s pouch by means of muscular contractions.
Types of Volcanic Eruptions
Volcanic eruptions have caused some
of the worst disasters in the world. They can wipe out entire cities and kill
thousands of people.
The name of volcano comes from Roman term. It derives from VULCAN which is the name of Roman fire god. Romans believed that Vulcan lived on a volcanic Italian coast. Romans called the island VULCANO.
According to scientists, volcanic eruptions are divided in to four basic groups. They are commonly known as Hawaiian, Strombolian, Vulcanian and Peleean. The term of Hawaiian eruptions are named after the volcanoes in Hawaii. These volcanic eruptions are the least violent type. They produce highly fluid lava which flows quietly. This gradually builds up a shield volcano.
Strombolian eruptions are named after Stromboli. These result from the constant release of gas from the magma. As the gas escapes, it produces tephra that piles up, turning into a cinder cone. Strombolian eruptions happen when sticky magma plugs the central vent. This makes the magmatic gas build up pressure until it blasts. The magma is turned into volcanic dust and bombs.
Vulcanian eruption which comes from the ancient Roman belief, are more violent than the strombolian eruption. Vulcanian eruption happens and brings magma which is more viscous. Vulcanian explosions are usually larger and noisier than the Strombolian eruptions.
Paleean eruptions are famous as the most violent kind of volcanic eruptions. The name of paleean comes from the eruption of Mount Pelee, Martinique in 1902. It killed almost 38 thousands people. A Peleean eruption occurs when the magmatic gas build up tremendous pressure. This causes violent explosions with glowing clouds of hot ash and dust.
The name of volcano comes from Roman term. It derives from VULCAN which is the name of Roman fire god. Romans believed that Vulcan lived on a volcanic Italian coast. Romans called the island VULCANO.
According to scientists, volcanic eruptions are divided in to four basic groups. They are commonly known as Hawaiian, Strombolian, Vulcanian and Peleean. The term of Hawaiian eruptions are named after the volcanoes in Hawaii. These volcanic eruptions are the least violent type. They produce highly fluid lava which flows quietly. This gradually builds up a shield volcano.
Strombolian eruptions are named after Stromboli. These result from the constant release of gas from the magma. As the gas escapes, it produces tephra that piles up, turning into a cinder cone. Strombolian eruptions happen when sticky magma plugs the central vent. This makes the magmatic gas build up pressure until it blasts. The magma is turned into volcanic dust and bombs.
Vulcanian eruption which comes from the ancient Roman belief, are more violent than the strombolian eruption. Vulcanian eruption happens and brings magma which is more viscous. Vulcanian explosions are usually larger and noisier than the Strombolian eruptions.
Paleean eruptions are famous as the most violent kind of volcanic eruptions. The name of paleean comes from the eruption of Mount Pelee, Martinique in 1902. It killed almost 38 thousands people. A Peleean eruption occurs when the magmatic gas build up tremendous pressure. This causes violent explosions with glowing clouds of hot ash and dust.
KOMODO DRAGON
Do you know what is the largest
lizard? This lizard is called komodo. It lives in the scrub and woodland of a few Indonesian
islands.
Komodo dragon is the world's heaviest lizard, weighing 150 pounds or more. The largest Komodo ever measured was more than 10 feet (3 meters) long and weighed 366 pounds (166 kg) but the average size of komodo in the wild is about 8 feet (2.5 meters) long and 200 pounds (91 kg)
Komodo has gray scaly skin, a pointed snout, powerful limbs and a muscular tail. They use their keen sense of smell to locate decaying animal remains from several miles away. They also hunt other lizards as well as large mammals and are sometimes cannibalistic.
The Komodo dragon's teeth are almost completely covered by its gums. When it feeds, the gums bleed, creating an ideal culture for virulent bacteria. The bacteria that live in the Komodo dragon's saliva causes septicemia, or blood poisoning, in its victims. A dragon will bite its prey, then follow it until the animal is too weak to carry on.
This lizard species is threatened by hunting, loss of prey species and habitat loss.
Komodo dragon is the world's heaviest lizard, weighing 150 pounds or more. The largest Komodo ever measured was more than 10 feet (3 meters) long and weighed 366 pounds (166 kg) but the average size of komodo in the wild is about 8 feet (2.5 meters) long and 200 pounds (91 kg)
Komodo has gray scaly skin, a pointed snout, powerful limbs and a muscular tail. They use their keen sense of smell to locate decaying animal remains from several miles away. They also hunt other lizards as well as large mammals and are sometimes cannibalistic.
The Komodo dragon's teeth are almost completely covered by its gums. When it feeds, the gums bleed, creating an ideal culture for virulent bacteria. The bacteria that live in the Komodo dragon's saliva causes septicemia, or blood poisoning, in its victims. A dragon will bite its prey, then follow it until the animal is too weak to carry on.
This lizard species is threatened by hunting, loss of prey species and habitat loss.
HUMAN BODY
Human body is actually a living
machine and is like all other machines. This living machine needs fuel to
supply it with energy. The fuel is provided by the food which we eat. However
do we know how much we need to stay healthy?
The energy value of food is usually measured in calories. A calorie is the amount of heat which is required to raise the temperature of 1 kg of water by 1 degree C. The number of calories which people need per day varies. It depends on the activity which the people are involved in. For example; people will need more calories for standing than for sitting, people need more for running than for walking, etc.
The energy which is provided by food is in the form of three kinds of chemical substances. They are carbohydrate, protein and fat. Carbohydrate provides 8.8 calories per gram (cal/gm) of energy, protein 4.0 cal/gm and fat 8.0 cal/gm. Each food contains different proportion of these substances. These three chemical substances are all important for body staying healthy.
The energy value of food is usually measured in calories. A calorie is the amount of heat which is required to raise the temperature of 1 kg of water by 1 degree C. The number of calories which people need per day varies. It depends on the activity which the people are involved in. For example; people will need more calories for standing than for sitting, people need more for running than for walking, etc.
The energy which is provided by food is in the form of three kinds of chemical substances. They are carbohydrate, protein and fat. Carbohydrate provides 8.8 calories per gram (cal/gm) of energy, protein 4.0 cal/gm and fat 8.0 cal/gm. Each food contains different proportion of these substances. These three chemical substances are all important for body staying healthy.
Halloween
Halloween is a holiday
celebrated on October 31. By tradition, Halloween begins after sunset. Long
ago, people believed that witches gathered together and ghosts roamed the world
on Halloween. Today, most people no longer believe in ghosts and witches. But
these supernatural beings are still a part of Halloween.
The colors black and orange
are also a part of Halloween. Black is a symbol for night and orange is the
color of pumpkins. A jack-o’-lantern is a hollowed-out pumpkin with a face
carved on one side. Candles are usually placed inside, giving the face a spooky
glow.
Dressing in masks and
costumes is a popular Halloween activity. Costumes can be traditional and
scary, such as a witch’s pointy hat and black gown. Costumes may also have a
modern flavor. Many children dress up as movie characters or a favorite
superhero.
But Halloween is not just
for children. Many adults enjoy showing off their costumes at Halloween
parties!
