Big brown bat
The big brown bat is native to North America, Central America, the Caribbean, and extreme northern South America. This medium-sized bat ranges from 10–13 cm in length, with an 28–33 cm wingspan. The fur is long and shiny brown. The wing membranes, ears and face are dark brown to blackish in color, big brown bats navigate through the night skies by use of echolocation, producing ultrasonic sounds through the mouth or nose. They are known to produce audible sound during flight, a click or a sound like escaping steam, big brown bats are insectivorous, eating many kinds of night-flying insects including moths and wasps which they capture in flight. This causes the sudden, frequent changes in direction, big brown bats hibernate during the winter months, often in different locations from their summer roosts. Winter roosts tend to be natural subterranean locations such as caves and underground mines where temperatures remain stable, if the weather warms enough, they may awaken to seek water, and even breed.
Big brown bats mate sporadically from November through March, after the breeding season, pregnant females separate themselves into maternity colonies. In the eastern United States, twins are commonly born sometime in June, in western North America, the subspecies E. f. fuscus occurs in the entire eastern half of the U. S. except Florida. The subspecies E. f. pallidus occurs in Utah, Bats of Canada Bats of the United States Readers Digest North American Wildlife Mammals and Amphibians. Eptesicus fuscus Echolocation Lab at Brown University NewScientist
White-footed mouse
The white-footed mouse is a rodent native to North America from Ontario, Quebec and the Maritime Provinces to the southwest United States and Mexico. In the Maritimes, its location is a disjunct population in southern Nova Scotia. It is known as the woodmouse, particularly in Texas, adults are 90–100 mm in length, not counting the tail, which can add another 63–97 mm. A young adult weighs 20–30 g, while their maximum lifespan is 96 months, the mean life expectancy for the species is 45.5 months for females and 47.5 for males. In northern climates, the life expectancy is 12–24 months. White-footed mice are omnivorous, and eat seeds and insects and it is timid and generally avoids humans, but they occasionally take up residence in ground-floor walls of homes and apartments, where they build nests and store food. This species is similar to Peromyscus maniculatus, like the deer mouse, it may carry hantaviruses, which cause severe illness in humans. It has found to be a competent reservoir for the Lyme disease-causing spirochete.
Monongahela virus Anderson JF, Johnson RC, Magnarelli LA Seasonal prevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi in natural populations of white-footed mice, Peromyscus leucopus. Ecology and Evolution 3,7, 2075-2088, mis en ligne 1er juillet 2013 Barthold, SW, Persing, DH, Armstrong, AL, kinetics of Borrelia burgdorferi dissemination and evolution of disease after intradermal inoculation of mice. Am J Pathol,139, 263–273 Bunikis J, Tsao J, Luke CJ, Borrelia burgdorferi infection in a natural population of Peromyscus leucopus mice, a longitudinal study in an area where Lyme borreliosis is highly endemic. J Infect Dis,189, 1515–1523 Brunner JL, LoGiudice K & Ostfeld RS Estimating reservoir competence of Borrelia burgdorferi hosts and infectivity, sensitivity, J Med Entomol,45, 139–147 Burgess EC, French JrJB & Gendron-Fitzpatrick A. Systemic disease in Peromyscus leucopus associated with Borrelia burgdorferi infection, am J Trop Med Hyg,42, 254–259 Goodwin BJ, Ostfeld RS & Schauber EM Spatiotemporal variation in a Lyme disease host and vector, black-legged ticks on white-footed mice.
Vector Borne and Zoonotic Diseases,1, 129-138, hofmeister EK, Ellis BA, Glass GE & Childs JE Longitudinal study of infection with Borrelia burgdorferi in a population of Peromyscus leucopus at a Lyme disease-enzootic site in Maryland. Int J Med Microbiol,299, 373–380 Martin LB, Weil ZM, Kuhlman JR & Nelson RJ Trade-offs within the systems of female white-footed mice. Martin LB, Weil ZM & Nelson RJ Immune defense and reproductive pace of life in Peromyscus mice, ecology,88, 2516–2528 Ostfeld RS, Miller MC & Hazler KR Causes and consequences of tick burdens on white-footed mice. Ostfeld RS, Schauber EM, Canham CD, Keesing F & al, effects of acorn production and mouse abundance on abundance and Borrelia burgdorferi infection prevalence of nymphal Ixodes scapularis ticks. Vector Borne Zoonot Dis,1, 55–63 Pederson AB, Grieves TJ The interaction of parasites, J Anim Ecol,77, 370–377 Schwan, TG, Burgdorfer, W, Schrumpf, ME, Karstens, RH
Nematode
The nematodes or roundworms constitute the phylum Nematoda. They are an animal phylum inhabiting a broad range of environments. Nematodes are classified along with insects and other moulting animals in the clade Ecdysozoa, Nematodes have successfully adapted to nearly every ecosystem from marine to fresh water, to soils, and from the polar regions to the tropics, as well as the highest to the lowest of elevations. They are found in part of the earths lithosphere, even at great depths below the surface of the Earth in gold mines in South Africa. They represent 90% of all animals on the ocean floor, the many parasitic forms include pathogens in most plants and animals. The location of towns would be decipherable, since for every massing of human beings there would be a corresponding massing of certain nematodes, trees would still stand in ghostly rows representing our streets and highways. In 1758, Linnaeus described some nematode genera, included in Vermes, the name of the group Nematoda, informally called nematodes, came from Nematoidea, originally defined by Karl Rudolphi, from Ancient Greek νῆμα and -eiδἠς.
It was treated as family Nematodes by Burmeister, at its origin, the Nematoidea erroneously included Nematodes and Nematomorpha, attributed by von Siebold. Along with Acanthocephala and Cestoidea, it formed the obsolete group Entozoa and they were classed along with Acanthocephala in the obsolete phylum Nemathelminthes by Gegenbaur. In 1861, K. M. Diesing treated the group as order Nematoda, in 1877, the taxon Nematoidea, including the family Gordiidae, was promoted to the rank of phylum by Ray Lankester. In 1919, Nathan Cobb proposed that nematodes should be recognized alone as a phylum and he argued they should be called nema in English rather than nematodes and defined the taxon Nemates, listing Nematoidea sensu restricto as a synonym. Since Cobb was the first to all but nematodes from the group, some sources consider the valid taxon name to be Nemates or Nemata. The phylogenetic relationships of the nematodes and their close relatives among the protostomian Metazoa are unresolved, they were held to be a lineage of their own but in the 1990s, they were proposed to form the group Ecdysozoa together with moulting animals, such as arthropods.
The identity of the closest living relatives of the Nematoda has always considered to be well resolved. Morphological characters and molecular phylogenies agree with placement of the roundworms as a taxon to the parasitic Nematomorpha. Together with the Scalidophora, the Nematoida form the clade Cycloneuralia, the Cycloneuralia or the Introverta—depending on the validity of the former—are often ranked as a superphylum. Due to the lack of knowledge regarding many nematodes, their systematics is contentious, an earliest and influential classification was proposed by Chitwood and Chitwood—later revised by Chitwood—who divided the phylum into two—the Aphasmidia and the Phasmidia. These were renamed Adenophorea and Secernentea, the Secernentea share several characteristics, including the presence of phasmids, a pair of sensory organs located in the lateral posterior region, and this was used as the basis for this division
Little brown bat
The little brown bat is a species of the genus Myotis, one of the most common bats of North America. The little brown bat has been an organism for studying bats. As suggested by the name, its fur is uniformly dark brown and glossy on the back and upper parts with slightly paler. Wing membranes are brown on a typical wingspan of 22–27 cm. Ears are small and black with a short, rounded tragus, adult bats are typically 6–10 cm long and weigh 5–14 grams. Females tend to be larger than males, the fore and hind limbs have five metapodials. The skull of the bat lacks a sagittal crest. Its rostrum is shortened and has upslope profile of the forehead and its braincase flattened and sub-circular when observed dorsally. The bat has 38 teeth all of which including molars are relatively sharp, as is typical for an insectivore, and canines are prominent to enable grasping hard-bodied insects in flight. The little brown bat can be distinguished from the Indiana bat by the absence of a keel on the caclar and long hairs on the hind feet that stretch longer than the toes.
Compared to the bat, the brown bat has a shorter tibia. The little brown bat is found much of North America. It is most common in the half of the continental United States. Most specimens from the edge of its range are males although nursery roosts have been found in the Yukon. Brown bats have been found in Iceland and Kamchatka, the little brown bat lives in three different roosting sites, day roosts, night roost and hibernation roosts. Bats use day and night roosts during spring, day roosts are usually found in buildings or trees, under rocks or wood piles and sometimes in caves. Nursery roosts are found in natural hollows and in buildings. Nursery roosts have found under the sheet metal roofs of trappers caches
Allegheny woodrat
The Allegheny woodrat, is a species of pack rat in the genus Neotoma. Once believed to be a subspecies of the woodrat, extensive DNA analysis has proven it to be a distinct species. The Allegheny woodrat is a medium-sized rodent almost indistinguishable from the related eastern woodrat, although slightly larger on average. Adults typically range from 31 to 45 cm in total length, males weigh 357 g on average, while females are slightly smaller, weighing an average of 337 g. It is the second-largest member of the native North American rats, the fur is long and brownish-gray or cinnamon in color, while the undersides and feet are white. They have large eyes, and naked ears, the whiskers are unusually long, typically over 5 cm in length. About 50 whiskers are found on side, consisting of a mixture of stiff black hairs. Allegheny woodrats prefer rocky outcrops associated with mountain ridges such as cliffs, talus slopes and this is mostly true for Pennsylvania and Maryland. In Virginia and West Virginia, woodrats are found on ridges, the surrounding forest is usually deciduous.
Throughout their range, they are found in mixed pine-oak forest and their diets primarily consist of plant materials including buds, stems, seeds and other nuts. They store their food in caches and eat about 5% of their body weight a day, predators include owls, weasels, raccoons, large snakes, and humans. At one point, the Allegheny rat was hunted for food, Allegheny woodrats spend their nights foraging, collecting food and nesting materials. They are most active during the part of the night, from about a half hour after sunset. During the summer, males have ranges of about 6.5 ha. However, these contract dramatically in the fall and winter, when little fresh food is available. At such times, home ranges may shrink to as little as 0.65 ha, individuals are generally aggressive towards each other, especially when competing for nest sites, while home ranges may overlap, each actively defends its own den. They are generally quiet animals, but have been reported to make squeaking and whimpering noises in captivity and they very rarely travel more than 150 feet from their home ranges.
They collect and store various items such as bottle caps, snail shells, gun cartridges, feathers
Kentucky
Kentucky, officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state located in the east south-central region of the United States. Kentucky is one of four U. S. states constituted as a commonwealth, originally a part of Virginia, in 1792 Kentucky became the 15th state to join the Union. Kentucky is the 37th most extensive and the 26th most populous of the 50 United States, Kentucky is known as the Bluegrass State, a nickname based on the bluegrass found in many of its pastures due to the fertile soil. One of the regions in Kentucky is the Bluegrass Region in central Kentucky. In 1776, the counties of Virginia beyond the Appalachian Mountains became known as Kentucky County, the precise etymology of the name is uncertain, but likely based on an Iroquoian name meaning the meadow or the prairie. Kentucky is situated in the Upland South, a significant portion of eastern Kentucky is part of Appalachia. Kentucky borders seven states, from the Midwest and the Southeast, West Virginia lies to the east, Virginia to the southeast, Tennessee to the south, Missouri to the west and Indiana to the northwest, and Ohio to the north and northeast.
Only Missouri and Tennessee, both of which border eight states, touch more, Kentuckys northern border is formed by the Ohio River and its western border by the Mississippi River. The official state borders are based on the courses of the rivers as they existed when Kentucky became a state in 1792, for instance, northbound travelers on U. S.41 from Henderson, after crossing the Ohio River, will be in Kentucky for about two miles. Ellis Park, a racetrack, is located in this small piece of Kentucky. Waterworks Road is part of the land border between Indiana and Kentucky. Kentucky has a part known as Kentucky Bend, at the far west corner of the state. It exists as an exclave surrounded completely by Missouri and Tennessee, Road access to this small part of Kentucky on the Mississippi River requires a trip through Tennessee. The epicenter of the powerful 1811–12 New Madrid earthquakes was near this area, much of the outer Bluegrass is in the Eden Shale Hills area, made up of short and very narrow hills.
The Jackson Purchase and western Pennyrile are home to several bald cypress/tupelo swamps, located within the southeastern interior portion of North America, Kentucky has a climate that can best be described as a humid subtropical climate. Temperatures in Kentucky usually range from daytime summer highs of 87 °F to the low of 23 °F. The average precipitation is 46 inches a year, Kentucky experiences four distinct seasons, with substantial variations in the severity of summer and winter. The highest recorded temperature was 114 °F at Greensburg on July 28,1930 while the lowest recorded temperature was −37 °F at Shelbyville on January 19,1994, due to its location, Kentucky has a moderate humid subtropical climate, with abundant rainfall
Meta menardi
The European cave spider, Meta menardi, is a long-jawed orb-weaving spider it is known as the orbweaving cave spider, the cave orbweaver and simply the cave spider. They have a range extending from Scandinavia to North Africa and from Europe to Korea, there are transplanted populations as far apart as Japan. They are often found in areas that are frequented by bats, the spiders are most often observed in railway tunnels and mines since these are more likely to be visited by humans. The young spiders are, after several instars, strongly attracted to light—probably an evolutionary adaptation which ensures the spread of the species to new areas, the giant house spider, cardinal spider and the raft spider are larger. It is widespread and locally abundant, although rarely noticed due to its habits and they are neither endangered nor protected in the UK. Meta menardi closely resembles Meta bourneti, which sports a fainter mark on its abdomen, the ecology of the two species is very similar. Cave spiders feed on invertebrates, most frequently myriapods and slugs.
The European cave spider is not dangerous to humans and although they have venom and they are unlikely to bite if carefully handled but if sufficiently provoked they are capable of inflicting an unpleasant nip. They are non-aggressive and generally slow moving and are regarded as gentle giants, after mating, female produce a drop-shaped Egg sacs. Egg sacs are tear shaped white pendants usually hanging from the roof of the habitat by a silk thread approximately 20 mm long. Egg sacs are usually laid in the vicinity of the cave entrance, the cocoon contains an average of 200/300 eggs and is laid near the cave entrance at the end of the summer. After hatching, the remain in the cocoon until the first molt. They leave the cocoon in spring, move towards the cave entrance, a media frenzy was caused when British Telecom engineers working in the grounds of Windsor Castle discovered a colony living in conduits and manholes. These were incorrectly described as swarms of spiders, up to 9 cm in size. The initial incident was reported but when the species was properly identified the matter received little publicity.
The diet of the cave spider Meta Menardi, pictures of Meta menardi at Nicks Spiders Photos of Meta menardi living in Norway
Largemouth bass
The largemouth bass is a freshwater gamefish in the sunfish family, a species of black bass native to North America. The largemouth bass is the fish of Georgia and Indiana, the state freshwater fish of Florida and Alabama. The upper jaw of a largemouth bass extends beyond the margin of the orbit. In comparison to age, a bass is larger than a male. The largemouth is the largest of the basses, reaching a maximum recorded overall length of 29.5 in. The fish lives 16 years on average, the juvenile largemouth bass consumes mostly small bait fish, small shrimp, and insects. Adults consume smaller fish, snails, frogs, salamanders and even small birds, mammals. It consumes younger members of larger species, such as pike, trout, white bass, striped bass. Prey items can be as large as 50% of the body length or larger. Studies of prey utilization by largemouths show that in weedy waters, less weed cover allows bass to more easily find and catch prey, but this consists of more open-water baitfish. With little or no cover, bass can devastate the prey population, fisheries managers must consider these factors when designing regulations for specific bodies of water.
Adult largemouth are generally apex predators within their habitat, but they are preyed upon by animals while young. Notably in the Great Lakes Region, Micropterus salmoides along with other species of native fish have been known to prey upon the invasive round goby. Remains of said fish have been found inside the stomachs of largemouth bass consistently and this feeding habit may impact the ecosystem positively, but more research must be conducted to verify this. Note that it is illegal to use Neogobius melanostomus as bait in the Great Lakes Region, largemouth bass are keenly sought after by anglers and are noted for the excitement of their fight. The fish will become airborne in their effort to throw the hook, but many say that their cousin species. Anglers most often fish for bass with lures such as plastic worms, jigs. A recent trend is the use of large swimbaits to target trophy bass that often forage on juvenile rainbow trout in California, fly fishing for largemouth bass may be done using both topwater and worm imitations tied with natural or synthetic materials
Nature reserve
Nature reserves may be designated by government institutions in some countries, or by private landowners, such as charities and research institutions, regardless of nationality. Nature reserves fall into different IUCN categories depending on the level of protection afforded by local laws, early reservations often had a religious underpinning, such as the evil forest areas of West Africa which were forbidden to humans, who were threatened with spiritual attack if they went there. Sacred areas taboo from human entry to fishing and hunting are known by ancient cultures worldwide. The worlds first modern nature reserve was established in 1821 by the naturalist and explorer Charles Waterton around his estate in Walton Hall and he spent £9000 on the construction of a 3 mile long,9 ft tall wall to enclose his park from poachers. He tried to encourage birdlife by planting trees and hollowing out trunks for owls to nest in and he invented artificial nest boxes to house starlings and sand martins and unsuccessfully attempted to introduce little owls from Italy.
Drachenfels was protected as the first state-designated nature reserve in modern-day Germany, in Australia, a nature reserve is the title of a type of protected area used in the jurisdictions of the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales and Western Australia. The term “nature reserve” is defined in the relevant statutes used in those states and territories rather than by a national statute. As of 2014,1767 out of a total of 10339 protected areas listed within the Australian National Reserve System used the term “nature reserve in their names, in Brazil, nature reserves are classified as ecological stations or biological reserves by the National System of Conservation Units. Their main objectives are preserving fauna and flora and other natural attributes, visits are allowed only with permission, and only for educational or scientific purposes. Changes to the ecosystems in both types of reserve are allowed to restore and preserve the balance, biological diversity. Ecological stations are allowed to change the environment within strictly defined limits for the purpose of scientific research.
A wildlife reserve in Brazil is protected, and hunting is not allowed, there are 30 nature reserves in Egypt which cover 12% of Egyptian land. Those nature reserves were built according to the laws no, 102/1983 and 4/1994 for protection of the Egyptian nature reserve. Egypt announced a plan from to build 40 nature reserves from 1997 to 2017, to protect the natural resources. The largest nature reserve in Egypt is Gebel Elba in the southeast, denmark has three national parks and several nature reserves, some of them inside the national park areas. The largest single reserve is Hanstholm Nature Reserve, which covers 40 km2 and is part of Thy National Park, in Sweden there are 29 national parks. The first of them were established in 1909, in fact, Sweden was the first European country that established 9 national parks. There are almost 4,000 nature reserves in Sweden and they comprise about 85% of the surface that is protected by the Swedish Enironmental Code
