Interesting Facts about Wolves

An elongated snout, sharp teeth, thick fur, long legs, narrow chests, pliable paws and an expressive furry tail altogether make up a ‘Grey Wolf’. It is known as the largest wild member of the canine family. Designed to hunt for meat, the Grey Wolf spends most of its time roaming tirelessly in search of large prey. Let us learn some interesting facts about this distant relative of the domestic dog.

1. The Grey Wolf (Canis Lupus) is a mammal and has common ancestors with dogs. Grey wolves are mostly found in cold countries. Their bulky, wooly fur protects them from cold weather.

2. Grey wolves stand from 0.6 to 0.9 meters tall and weigh about 25 to 65 kg. Like all other wild animals, they rely on their senses. The wolves use these senses to hunt and communicate with other wolves. They can hear another wolf howling from at least 3 to 4 miles away. Their sense of smell is 100 times keener than a human’s.

3. Capable of running about 35 to 40 miles per hour, the Grey Wolf’s paws provide support in the snow. Grey wolves raise their heads only when alert, and usually carry their heads at the same level as their backs. This meat-eating animal could eat almost anything – from deer, rabbits and rodents to elk, yak, moose and sheep.

4. The Grey Wolf is a social animal. Irrespective of the number of members in one group, wolves will stay together. The group is known as the pack and is ruled by a powerful male wolf. Interestingly, the wolves hunt together, play together and even howl together. Overall, the pack is strongly hierarchically organized.

5. Another significant fact is that the wolves are basically color blind, and their pups are born deaf and blind. They begin to see only after 9 to 12 days. With a fast growth rate, these pups' weight will increase nearly 30 times in their first four months.

Wolves are not yet thought to be at risk of extinction, but their local population is still threatened. Not only are they hunted but they are also gaining popularity as pets. Their hunting should be restricted and we should also try not to damage their habitat, in order to safeguard their future.

Interesting & Amazing Information on Wolves

• A mated wolf pair usually stays committed for life. Only when one of them dies, does the other look for another mate.
• A wolf is opportunistic and will always attempt to catch the easiest and most vulnerable animal.
• Wolves actually have a low hunting success rate.
• A wolf's sense of smell is more than 100 times greater than that of a human.
• Wolves usually mate during the months of January to April; the higher the latitude, the later the mating time.
• All members of a wolf pack take part in caring for the young ones.
• It is common for wolves to be on move eight to ten hours in a day and a pack may cover distances from 30 to 125 miles in a day.
• The coyote is believed to have evolved from the wolf, over 500,000 years ago.
• Wolves have two types of 'fur coat'. The undercoat (closest to the skin) is soft and keeps the wolf warm, while the overcoat is made up of long hair and acts as a weather barrier.

• Wolves shed their hair in the spring and summer season. However, they shed it out in sheets, unlike most dogs.
• The highest ranking member in a wolf is ‘Alpha wolf’, the second ranking one is ‘Beta wolf’, while the one with the lowest rank is called ‘Omega wolf’.
• There are two hierarchies in a wolf pack, a group of wolves, one for females and one for males.
• The jaws of a wolf are extremely powerful and are capable of generating 1,500 psi pressure.
• The mortality rate in case of wolf puppies can be as high as 50 percent.
• The wolf has one of the widest ranges of size, shape and color of any mammal in North America.
• Wolves communicate with each other more by harmony and integration, rather than aggression and submission.
• Wolf is generally a docile animal, with a strong aversion to fighting and aggression.
• Wolves are territorial and use vocalizations and scent marking to defend their territory.
• Wolves communicate through a number of ways, including scent marks, vocalizations, visual displays, facial and body postures and rituals.
• Wolves howl to greet each other, indicate their location, define their territory or call the pack together.
• Lone wolves have no social territory and rarely scent-mark or howl.

PBS Nature 2007 In the Valley of the Wolves

A Man Among Wolves

Salmon Fishing Wolves of Alaska, Very Rare Footage! wolf vs grizzly bear

source: www.environmentalgraffiti.com; lifestyle.iloveindia.com; youtube.com

Interesting Facts about President Jimmy Carter

President Jimmy Carter 39th President of the United States

- He was a peanut farmer
- He was one of 4 US Presidents who never appointed a Supreme Court judge
- He was the first US President in 100 years to have come from the Deep South
- He was the first US President to sign in with his nickname. James Earl Carter may well have done this to avoid being associated with James Earl Ray, the assassin of Martin Luther King
- He was the last Democratic presidential candidate to win the Southern States. Bill Clinton, also a Southerner, only won four
- He was one of the first of a new generation of Southern Governors who rejected segregation as a thing of the past
- He is the only US President to have won the Nobel Peace Prize after leaving office, which he won in 2002
- Carter and his former Vice President Walter Mondale are the longest-surviving former Presidential ticket. Both are alive almost 20 years after they left office

1924 - (October 1) Born in Plains, Ga
1941-1942 - Attended Georgia Southwestern College
1942-1943 - Attended Georgia Institute of Technology
1943-1946 - Attended United States Naval Academy

1946 - (July 7) Married Eleanor Rosalynn Smith
1947 - Graduated United States Naval Academy
1947 - Son John William (Jack) was born
1950 - Son James Earl III (Chip) was born
1952 - Son Donnel Jeffrey (Jeff) was born
1952-1953 - Attended Union College
1967 - Daughter Amy Lynn was born
1977 - Carter is inaugurated as the 39th President of the U.S.
1977 - Carter pardons Vietnam War draft evaders
1978 - Carter invokes the Taft Hartley Act to end a strike of coal miners.
1978 - The Carter administration grants full diplomatic status to the People's Republic of China.
1979 - Carter approves development of the MX missile.
1979 - Iranian students take 66 Americans hostage at the American embassy in Tehran.
1980 - U.S. Olympic Committee votes to boycott the Moscow summer Olympics in support of Carter protesting the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
1980 - Carter loses election to Ronald Reagan

39th President of the United States: Jimmy Carter (1977-1981)

President Jimmy Carter - Address to the Nation on Energy

Jimmy Carter: Crisis of Confidence

President Jimmy Carter - Inaugural Address

source: www.apples4theteacher.com; wiki.answers.com;

Interesting Facts about Seahorse

Did You Know:

• -Seahorses gained international protection on May 15, 2004
• -What do South American Spider Monkeys, Ringtail Opossums and seahorses have in common? They all have prehensile tails.
• -Seahorses are members of the Teleost suborder, or bony fish.
• -Seahorses usually live in the tropics or along temperate coasts.
• -The average height of a full-grown sea horse is 2-8 inches.
• Seahorses also vary in color, including orange, red, yellows, grey, and greens.
• -Seahorses can come in patterns like “zebra stripes” and spots.
• -Seahorses change color to blend in with their surroundings.
• -Seahorses feed on small living animals such as daphnia, cyclops, larvae of water insects, or mysids.
• -Seahorses like to swim in pairs linked by their tales.
• -Seahorses cannot curl their tails backwards.
• -Seahorses belong to the vertabra group, meaning they have an interior skeleton.
• -The small dorsal fins propel it through the water in an upright position, while it beats them back and forth, almost as fast as a humming bird flapping its wings.
• -Seahorses usually mate under a full moon.
• -The pectoral fins control turning and steering. When resting, the seahorse curls its tail around seaweed, to keep it from floating away...
• -Seahorse natural predators are crabs, tuna, skates and rays.
• -Seahorses are loyal and mate for life.
• -During mating, the Seahorses utter musical sounds.
• -The female deposits eggs into the male’s small pouch, and then leaves. Out of the entire animal kingdom, these are the only animals in which the male has babies!
• -Twenty-five million seahorses a year are now being traded around the world - 64 percent more than in the mid-1990s - and environmentalists are increasingly concerned that the booming trade in seahorses is putting the creatures at risk.

Seahorses are truly unique, and not just because of their unusual equine shape. Unlike most other fish, they are monogamous and mate for life. Rarer still, they are among the only animal species on Earth in which the male bears the unborn young.

Found in shallow tropical and temperate waters throughout the world, these upright-swimming relatives of the pipefish can range in size from 0.6 inches (1.5 centimeters) to 14 inches (35 centimeters) long.

Male seahorses are equipped with a brood pouch on their ventral, or front-facing, side. When mating, the female deposits her eggs into his pouch, and the male fertilizes them internally. He carries the eggs in his pouch until they hatch, then releases fully formed, miniature seahorses into the water.

Because of their body shape, seahorses are rather inept swimmers and can easily die of exhaustion when caught in storm-roiled seas. They propel themselves by using a small fin on their back that flutters up to 35 times per second. Even smaller pectoral fins located near the back of the head are used for steering.

They anchor themselves with their prehensile tails to sea grasses and corals, using their elongated snouts to suck in plankton and small crustaceans that drift by. Voracious eaters, they graze continually and can consume 3,000 or more brine shrimp per day.

Population data for most of the world’s 35 seahorse species is sparse. However, worldwide coastal habitat depletion, pollution, and rampant harvesting, mainly for use in Asian traditional medicine, have made several species vulnerable to extinction.

Seahorse gives birth, Seahorse having babies, Seahorse birth

How the seahorse got its shape -- by Nature Video

How To Care For Seahorses

Seahorse Mating Dance

source: animals.nationalgeographic.com; www.iseahorses.com; youtube.com;

Interesting Facts about Jellyfish

Quick Facts

• Jellyfish are made up of an epidermis, gastrodermis and mesoglea. They do not have a central nervous system,a circulatory system, respiratory system, or a osmoregulatory system. They have an incomplete digestive system and therefore use the same orifice for intake of food and expulsion of waste materials.
• The jellyfish don't have a brain or other sensory organs. They have small sensory organs called rhopalia on and around their bell. The rhopalia and nervous system help these fish to identify light and odor. The jellyfish use their 'nerve net' to detect the touch of another organism. This type of simple nervous system is found at the epidermis of these fish.
• A group of jellyfish is called a 'smack'. They feed on small protozoa, large metazoa and other small fish in the sea. They generally trap these in their tentacles. Some of them do not have tentacles at all.
• The male jellyfish releases its sperm into the water, which then travels to the mouth of the female jellyfish. This procedure allows for the fertilization of the ova. Most of these fish lodge the eggs in their oral armpits, forming a brood chamber for fertilization.
• The tentacles of a jellyfish are an important defense mechanism. Each tentacle is covered with stinging cells, known as cnidocytes.
• Jellyfish do not have any water motion, or are not hydrodynamic. This hampers their swimming speeds. It is necessary for them to create water currents which reaches their tentacles. They make this possible by opening and closing their bell shaped bodies in a rhythm.
• Jellyfish swim by contracting and expanding their bodies. They do not have scales or shells. If exposed to the hot sun, they disappear, leaving only a circle of film.
• Jellyfish have a defense mechanism of oral arms or tentacles which are covered with organelles called nematocysts. These nematocysts are paired with a capsule which contains a coiled filament that stings. The filament unwinds and launches into the target, thereby injecting toxins upon contact by foreign bodies.
• Jellyfish are generally not dangerous to humankind. However, some can be very toxic, and cause deaths in humans. Recently, two deaths attributed to these fish were reported in Australia. A sting from these fish is extremely painful and can also cause various allergies in humans.

How jellyfish Work

 

 

 FUNNY FACTS ABOUT THE JELLYFISH

• The Box jellyfish has 64 anuses.
• The Box jellyfish also has 24 eyes, but despite this, it can only see in a blurry fashion.
• Jellyfish do not have a brain, respiratory system, circulatory system, or indeed an excretory system. Because of this, the jellyfish’s ‘mouth’ is also used for waste expulsion.

Did you know ...

... some jellyfish are bigger than a human and others are as small as a pinhead?

... people in some countries eat jellyfish?

... that jellyfish have been on Earth for millions of years, even before dinosaurs?

... jellyfish have no brain but some kinds have eyes?

... that jellyfish are mainly made up of water and protein?

... a group of jellyfish is called a smack?

What is a jellyfish?

The word jellyfish is a common term used to describe animals that are gelatinous or made up of ‘jelly-like’ material. There are many different types of jellyfish, including stinging kinds called medusae and non-stinging kinds called comb jellies or ctenophores. Another type of jelly animal called a salp is even in the same group as humans!

What is a bloom?

When huge numbers of plants or animals appear suddenly, scientists call it a 'bloom'. In some areas of the world, millions of jellyfish can swarm together, and these blooms cause problems for fisheries and tourism. If you've been at the beach or on a boat at some point when it seemed like jellyfish were everywhere – then maybe you have even seen a jellyfish bloom.

How do jellyfish blooms form?

Jellyfish are plankton (from the Greek word planktos, meaning to wander or drift) and are not strong swimmers, so they are at the mercy of the ocean currents. Blooms often form where two currents meet and if there is an onshore breeze thousands of jellyfish can be beached.

GOOD: Attack of the Giant Jellyfish!

Giant jellyfish

Exotic Jellyfish

Jellyfish Lake

Cuttlefish and Jellyfish

source: www.buzzle.com; scienceray.com; www.jellywatch.org

Interesting Facts about Tsunami

• On July 12, 1993 a magnitude 7.8 earthquake in the Sea of Japan produced tsunami that totally destroyed the southern half of Okushiri Island. Waves were greater than 30 feet and some could have been 100 feet. The earthquake was about 50 miles offshore and the tsunami arrived within minutes. 120 people died.
• The states most at risk for Tsunami are California, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington. Hawaii is at greatest risk and they have about 1 tsunami a year and a dangerous tsunami about every 7 years.
• On March 28, 1964 an extremely large earthquake (magnitude 8.4) struck Alaska. It caused tsunami waves that were very destructive in southeastern Alaska, in Vancouver Island, Canada, and in the States of Washington, California and Hawaii. Waves ranged in size from 6 to 21 feet. The tsunami killed more than 120 people and damages costing more than $106 million. It was the costliest tsunami ever to strike the Western United States and Canada.
• Although a large asteroid impact is highly unlikely, scientists studying the possibility have decided that a moderately large asteroid or about 5-6 km in diameter falling in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, would generate a tsunami that would travel all the way to the Appalachian Mountains in the upper two-thirds of the United States. Coastal cities would be wiped out by such a tsunami.
• Nuclear explosions could possible create tsunami but none have ever been generated from testing yet. Furthermore, such testing is currently banned by international treaty.

 What causes a tsunami?

When an undersea earthquake or other major disturbance causes a section of the ocean floor to suddenly rise or sink, the mass of water above the affected area also rises or sinks. This unexpected movement of the water creates a series of powerful waves.

Undersea earthquakes that cause massive changes to the ocean floor and the displacement of a large volume of water are the most common cause of a tsunami.

Tsunami can also be caused by other undersea events such as volcanoes or landslides

A tsunami can also be caused from events above the ocean floor. These events could include a meteorite crashing into the ocean, major landslides near a coastline or material from an erupting volcano forming a landslide. The impacts of tsunami triggered this way tend to be localised.

More than 75 per cent of tsunami are caused by undersea earthquakes.

Where do tsunami occur?

Most tsunami occur in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. The boundary of the Pacific Ocean experiences frequent earthquakes. This boundary is commonly known as the Ring of Fire. There are two major subduction zones in the Indian Ocean that can also generate tsunami.

Subduction zone earthquakes are the most common source of destructive tsunami. These earthquakes are generated when two tectonic plates meet and one goes under the other, usually at a rate measured in centimetres. The sinking (subducting) plate drags against the upper plate, causing flexing. Continued stress on the plate boundary results in the upper plate rebounding to its original position, displacing the sea water above.

The Questacon Tsunami show includes a demonstration of this process (between the 8 and 16 minute mark). 

Sumatra earthquake and tsunami, 26 December 2004

In the case of the December 2004 earthquake off Indonesia, the tsunami was generated 10 minutes after the event when the displaced sea surface spread outward from the epicentre as a tsunami. In this illustration, the red arrows indicate the direction in which the upper plate is deformed due to drag and release of the lower plate. (Copyright Geoscience Australia)

A Tsunami can really move!

In the deep water of the ocean, the waves that are created have a large wavelength but are not usually bigger than one metre tall. A tsunami wave may be hundreds of kilometres in length and it moves at a high speed across great distances without losing much of its energy.

Tsunami waves move out from where a large body of water has been disturbed, similar to the way ripples move away from the place where a rock has been dropped into a pond.

In the open ocean, a tsunami can travel as fast as 950 kilometres per hour, which can be represented by the speed of a passenger jet. It loses speed as it approaches land, but it does not lose much of its energy. As it slows down, the height of the waves build.

How big is a tsunami?

In the open ocean it can be difficult to notice a tsunami wave. However, as a tsunami wave approaches land and moves into more shallow water, the leading edge of the wave slows down but the back of the wave is still travelling at its original speed. This causes the water to bunch up and increase the wave height. This is known as ‘shoaling’. When it reaches land, it may behave like a series of breaking waves or a large, powerful wave.

The tremendous energy of the wave can cause great quantities of water to surge inland, far beyond where even the highest of tides would commonly reach.

Some of the largest tsunami waves have been generated by the volcanic eruption of Krakatoa in 1883. This tsunami reached a height of 37 m. In 1737, a tsunami was estimated to be 64 m high as it struck Cape Lopatka in northeast Russia

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Tsunami waves are different from normal waves

Tsunami are different from normal waves. Normal waves are generated by the wind and it is only the water near the surface that is moving. In a tsunami all the water from surface to sea bed is moving and the movement has been generated by something (usually an earthquake) that has displaced water. In the open ocean, tsunami create little movement and little threat to shipping.

When a tsunami wave reaches the shore, its wavelength might be more than 100 km.  Tsunami can last for several hours or even days depending on location. This is much different to the waves that we are used to seeing at the beach. Typical ocean waves usually last for less than a minute and have a wavelength of 100 m.

The energy behind a tsunami can strip sand off beaches, undermine trees, and crush buildings.

People and boats are powerless against the force of a tsunami. The amount of water carried inland is capable of inundating vast areas of normally dry land.

Case studies

Chile tsunami 27 Feb 2010

This tsunami followed an earthquake measuring 8.8 on the Richter Scale. The epicentre of the earthquake was 115 km NNE of Concepcion. The epicentre of this quake was 230 km north of the largest earthquake ever recorded (9.5 in 1960). This quake was the result of movement between the Nazca Plate on the eastern side of the Pacific Ocean and the South American Plate. The first waves hit about 34 minutes after the earthquake. Properties and businesses were damaged and over 200 lives were lost.

Samoa tsunami 29 September 2009

At 6.49am an earthquake measuring 8.0 on the Richter Scale triggered this tsunami. The earthquake epicentre was located on the Pacific tectonic plate near its boundary with the Australian Plate approximately 200 km south of Samoa. Dozens of magnitude 4 and 5 aftershocks followed the initial earthquake, continuing through the next day. This area, near the Tonga Trench, is one of the most active earthquake regions in the world. The tsunami struck the islands of Savi’i, Upola, and Tutuila minutes later with waves that were approximately 3 m high. Smaller tsunami hit other Pacific islands farther away from the earthquake’s epicentre. The tsunami caused a great amount of damage to property and the natural environment and caused the death of over 100 people.

Solomon Islands tsunami 2 April 2007

On 2 April 2007 an earthquake measuring 8.1 on the Richter Scale had its epicentre 350 km NW of Honiara. The earthquake occurred in shallow water in the early morning and was quickly followed by a tsunami. The waves were up to 10 m high. Over 50 deaths were reported and thousands were left homeless. A tsunami warning was issued for Australia and Alaska 15 minutes after the earthquake. 

Indian Ocean tsunami, 26 December 2004

This event was one of the most devastating caused by a natural hazard in recent years. The earthquake that triggered the tsunami occurred west of the Indonesian island of Sumatra and measured 9.0 on the Richter Scale, making it the largest earthquake worldwide in 40 years. The death toll in March 2005 was over 273 000 people, with many still missing.

Papua New Guinea tsunami 17 July 1998

An earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter Scale just off the northern coast generated a destructive tsunami. Waves up to 10 m high hit the villages in the Aitape region extremely quickly. More than 2000 people were killed and there was great damage to buildings and farmland.

Tsunami Thailand (Koh Phi Phi) - 2004

Japan 2011 Tsunami Video - See The power !!

Khao Lak Tsunami

source: www.ema.gov.au;  library.thinkquest.org; youtube.com

Interesting Facts about the 1950's

• The 1950s was an exciting time to live. Crime was low, children could freely play outside, Elvis was rocking and rolling and kids were going "steady." Here are just a few fun facts about the golden age of the 1950s.
• Dwight D. Eisenhower becomes president in 1953. 
• Gas cost only 20 cents gallon. 
• The color television set was introduced. 
• Smokey the Bear becomes a household name. 
• In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court rules that it is unconstitutional to have racial segregation in public schools. 
• Disneyland opens up in California in 1955. 
• Otis Elevator installs the first self-service elevator in Dallas. 
• Silly Putty was introduced to the world. 
• Alaska & Hawaii become the 49th and 50th states to join the United States of America in 1959. 
• Pogo sticks and hula-hoops were popular toys in the 50's. 
• In 1955, on a public bus in Montgomery, Alabama, a brave woman by the name of Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat. 
• In 1950, "Peanuts" and the Charlie Brown character is born. 
• Dr. Jonas Salk develops a vaccine for polio in 1955. 
• The first modern credit card was introduced. 
• The 1950s were credited with doing the first organ transplant.

Fun Facts 

In 1950 ....

• A House cost: $14,500
• Average income: $3,216
• Ford car: $1339-$2262
• Admiral "home entertainment" TV system: $549.50
• 12" records: $4.85
• 10" records: $2.85
• Milk: .82 cents
• Gas: .20 cents
• Bread .14 cents
• Postage stamp: .03 cents
• Sirloin steak: $.77 lb 

In 1951 

3,823,000 babies were born, and life expectancy was 68.4 years.  

For the month of October we have the following birthdays:

• 10/02      Sting
• 10/03      Dave Winfield
• 10/05      Karen Allen
• 10/07      John "Cougar" Mellencamp
• 10/08      Johnny Ramone
• 10/13      John Ford Coley
• 10/18      Pam Dawber
• 10/18      Terry McMillan
• 10/20      Alan Greenwood
• 10/23      Michael Rupert
• 10/30      Harry Hamlin

In 1951 ....

• A House: $16,000
• Average income: $3,515
• Ford car: $1424-$2253
• Milk: .92 cents
• Gas: .20 cents
• Bread .16 cents
• Postage stamp: .03 cents
• 14 oz. can of Hershey’s Syrup: .17 cents
• Sliced Bacon: .63 cents per lb 
• Coca Cola, 6 bottles: .37 cents
• The ventriloquist dummy for Jerry Mahoney : $14.95

1950's & 60's TV Commercials

How to Date 1950s (Instructional Video)

1950s Housewife in LSD Experiment

Fashion in the 1950's

Dean Martin - That's Amore (1953)

source: thepastisablast.com; voices.yahoo.com; youtube.com;