1.
Pleistocene
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The Pleistocene is the geological epoch which lasted from about 2,588,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the worlds most recent period of repeated glaciations. The end of the Pleistocene corresponds with the end of the last glacial period, the Pleistocene is the first epoch of the Quaternary Period or sixth epoch of the Cenozoic Era. In the ICS timescale, the Pleistocene is divided into four stages or ages, all of these stages were defined in southern Europe. In addition to this subdivision, various regional subdivisions are often used. Charles Lyell introduced the term pleistocene in 1839 to describe strata in Sicily that had at least 70% of their molluscan fauna still living today and this distinguished it from the older Pliocene Epoch, which Lyell had originally thought to be the youngest fossil rock layer. The Pleistocene has been dated from 2.588 million to 11,700 years before present and it covers most of the latest period of repeated glaciation, up to and including the Younger Dryas cold spell. The end of the Younger Dryas has been dated to about 9640 BC, the IUGS has yet to approve a type section, Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point, for the upper Pleistocene/Holocene boundary. The proposed section is the North Greenland Ice Core Project ice core 75°06 N 42°18 W, the lower boundary of the Pleistocene Series is formally defined magnetostratigraphically as the base of the Matuyama chronozone, isotopic stage 103. Above this point there are notable extinctions of the calcareous nanofossils, Discoaster pentaradiatus, the Pleistocene covers the recent period of repeated glaciations. The name Plio-Pleistocene has, in the past, been used to mean the last ice age. The revised definition of the Quaternary, by pushing back the date of the Pleistocene to 2.58 Ma. Pleistocene climate was marked by repeated glacial cycles in which continental glaciers pushed to the 40th parallel in some places and it is estimated that, at maximum glacial extent, 30% of the Earths surface was covered by ice. In addition, a zone of permafrost stretched southward from the edge of the sheet, a few hundred kilometres in North America. The mean annual temperature at the edge of the ice was −6 °C, during interglacial times, such as at present, drowned coastlines were common, mitigated by isostatic or other emergent motion of some regions. The effects of glaciation were global, antarctica was ice-bound throughout the Pleistocene as well as the preceding Pliocene. The Andes were covered in the south by the Patagonian ice cap, there were glaciers in New Zealand and Tasmania. The current decaying glaciers of Mount Kenya, Mount Kilimanjaro, glaciers existed in the mountains of Ethiopia and to the west in the Atlas mountains. In the northern hemisphere, many glaciers fused into one, the Cordilleran ice sheet covered the North American northwest, the east was covered by the Laurentide
2.
Conservation status
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The conservation status of a group of organisms indicates whether the group still exists and how likely the group is to become extinct in the near future. Various systems of conservation status exist and are in use at international, multi-country, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is the best known worldwide conservation status listing and ranking system. Also included are species that have gone extinct since 500 AD, when discussing the IUCN Red List, the official term threatened is a grouping of three categories, critically endangered, endangered, and vulnerable. Widespread and abundant taxa are included in this category, Data deficient – Not enough data to make an assessment of its risk of extinction Not evaluated – Has not yet been evaluated against the criteria. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora aims to ensure that trade in specimens of wild animals. Many countries require CITES permits when importing plants and animals listed on CITES, in the European Union, the Birds and Habitats Directives are the legal instruments that evaluate the conservation status within the EU of species and habitats. NatureServe conservation status focuses on Latin America, United States, Canada, and it has been developed by scientists from NatureServe, The Nature Conservancy, and the network of natural heritage programs and data centers. It is increasingly integrated with the IUCN Red List system and its categories for species include, presumed extinct, possibly extinct, critically imperiled, imperiled, vulnerable, apparently secure, and secure. The system also allows ambiguous or uncertain ranks including inexact numeric ranks, NatureServe adds a qualifier for captive or cultivated only, which has a similar meaning to the IUCN Red List extinct in the wild status. The Red Data Book of the Russian Federation is used within the Russian Federation, in Australia, the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 describes lists of threatened species, ecological communities and threatening processes. The categories resemble those of the 1994 IUCN Red List Categories & Criteria, prior to the EPBC Act, a simpler classification system was used by the Endangered Species Protection Act 1992. Some state and territory governments also have their own systems for conservation status, in Belgium, the Flemish Research Institute for Nature and Forest publishes an online set of more than 150 nature indicators in Dutch. In Canada, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada is a group of experts that assesses and designates which wild species are in danger of disappearing from Canada. Under the Species at Risk Act, it is up to the federal government, in China, the State, provinces and some counties have determined their key protected wildlife species. There is the China red data book, in Finland, a large number of species are protected under the Nature Conservation Act, and through the EU Habitats Directive and EU Birds Directive. In Germany, the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation publishes red lists of endangered species, india has the Wild Life Protection Act,1972, Amended 2003 and the Biological Diversity Act,2002. In Japan, the Ministry of Environment publishes a Threatened Wildlife of Japan Red Data Book, in the Netherlands, the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality publishes a list of threatened species, and conservation is enforced by the Nature Conservation Act 1998. Species are also protected through the Wild Birds and Habitats Directives, in New Zealand, the Department of Conservation publishes the New Zealand Threat Classification System lists
3.
Least Concern
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A least concern species is one which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as evaluated but not qualified for any other category. As such they do not qualify as threatened, near threatened, species cannot be assigned the Least Concern category unless they have had their population status evaluated. That is, adequate information is needed to make a direct, or indirect, since 2001 the category has had the abbreviation LC, following the IUCN2001 Categories & Criteria. However, around 20% of least concern taxa in the IUCN database use the code LR/lc, prior to 2001 least concern was a subcategory of the Lower Risk category and assigned the code LR/lc or. While least concern is not considered a red listed category by the IUCN, the number of animal species listed in this category totals 14033. There are also 101 animal subspecies listed and 1500 plant taxa, there are also two animal subpopulations listed, the Australasian and Southern African subpopulations of spiny dogfish. No fungi or protista have the classification, though only four species in those kingdoms have been evaluated by the IUCN, humans qualify for this category, and in 2008 were formally assessed as such by the IUCN
4.
IUCN Red List
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The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, founded in 1964, is the worlds most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biological species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature is the main authority on the conservation status of species. A series of Regional Red Lists are produced by countries or organizations, the IUCN Red List is set upon precise criteria to evaluate the extinction risk of thousands of species and subspecies. These criteria are relevant to all species and all regions of the world, the aim is to convey the urgency of conservation issues to the public and policy makers, as well as help the international community to try to reduce species extinction. Major species assessors include BirdLife International, the Institute of Zoology, the World Conservation Monitoring Centre, collectively, assessments by these organizations and groups account for nearly half the species on the Red List. The IUCN aims to have the category of every species re-evaluated every five years if possible, the 1964 IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants used the older pre-criteria Red List assessment system. Plants listed may not, therefore, appear in the current Red List, IUCN advise that is best to check both the online Red List and the 1997 plants Red List publication. The 2006 Red List, released on 4 May 2006 evaluated 40,168 species as a whole, plus an additional 2,160 subspecies, varieties, aquatic stocks, on 12 September 2007, the World Conservation Union released the 2007 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Russ Mittermeier, chief of Swiss-based IUCNs Primate Specialist Group, stated that 16,306 species are endangered with extinction,188 more than in 2006, the Red List includes the Sumatran orangutan in the Critically Endangered category and the Bornean orangutan in the Endangered category. The study shows at least 1,141 of the 5,487 mammals on Earth are known to be threatened with extinction, and 836 are listed as Data Deficient. The Red List of 2012 was released 19 July 2012 at Rio+20 Earth Summit, nearly 2,000 species were added, the IUCN assessed a total of 63,837 species which revealed 19,817 are threatened with extinction. With 3,947 described as endangered and 5,766 as endangered. At threat are 41% of amphibian species, 33% of reef-building corals, 30% of conifers, 25% of mammals, the IUCN Red List has listed 132 species of plants and animals from India as Critically Endangered. Extinct – No known individuals remaining, extinct in the wild – Known only to survive in captivity, or as a naturalized population outside its historic range. Critically endangered – Extremely high risk of extinction in the wild, Endangered – High risk of extinction in the wild. Vulnerable – High risk of endangerment in the wild, near threatened – Likely to become endangered in the near future. Does not qualify for a more at-risk category, widespread and abundant taxa are included in this category. Data deficient – Not enough data to make an assessment of its risk of extinction, Not evaluated – Has not yet been evaluated against the criteria
5.
Taxonomy (biology)
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Taxonomy is the science of defining groups of biological organisms on the basis of shared characteristics and giving names to those groups. The exact definition of taxonomy varies from source to source, but the core of the remains, the conception, naming. There is some disagreement as to whether biological nomenclature is considered a part of taxonomy, the broadest meaning of taxonomy is used here. The word taxonomy was introduced in 1813 by Candolle, in his Théorie élémentaire de la botanique, the term alpha taxonomy is primarily used today to refer to the discipline of finding, describing, and naming taxa, particularly species. In earlier literature, the term had a different meaning, referring to morphological taxonomy, ideals can, it may be said, never be completely realized. They have, however, a value of acting as permanent stimulants. Some of us please ourselves by thinking we are now groping in a beta taxonomy, turrill thus explicitly excludes from alpha taxonomy various areas of study that he includes within taxonomy as a whole, such as ecology, physiology, genetics, and cytology. He further excludes phylogenetic reconstruction from alpha taxonomy, thus, Ernst Mayr in 1968 defined beta taxonomy as the classification of ranks higher than species. This activity is what the term denotes, it is also referred to as beta taxonomy. How species should be defined in a group of organisms gives rise to practical and theoretical problems that are referred to as the species problem. The scientific work of deciding how to define species has been called microtaxonomy, by extension, macrotaxonomy is the study of groups at higher taxonomic ranks, from subgenus and above only, than species. While some descriptions of taxonomic history attempt to date taxonomy to ancient civilizations, earlier works were primarily descriptive, and focused on plants that were useful in agriculture or medicine. There are a number of stages in scientific thinking. Early taxonomy was based on criteria, the so-called artificial systems. Later came systems based on a complete consideration of the characteristics of taxa, referred to as natural systems, such as those of de Jussieu, de Candolle and Bentham. The publication of Charles Darwins Origin of Species led to new ways of thinking about classification based on evolutionary relationships and this was the concept of phyletic systems, from 1883 onwards. This approach was typified by those of Eichler and Engler, the advent of molecular genetics and statistical methodology allowed the creation of the modern era of phylogenetic systems based on cladistics, rather than morphology alone. Taxonomy has been called the worlds oldest profession, and naming and classifying our surroundings has likely been taking place as long as mankind has been able to communicate
6.
Animal
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Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdom Animalia. The animal kingdom emerged as a clade within Apoikozoa as the group to the choanoflagellates. Animals are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously and independently at some point in their lives and their body plan eventually becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later in their lives. All animals are heterotrophs, they must ingest other organisms or their products for sustenance, most known animal phyla appeared in the fossil record as marine species during the Cambrian explosion, about 542 million years ago. Animals can be divided broadly into vertebrates and invertebrates, vertebrates have a backbone or spine, and amount to less than five percent of all described animal species. They include fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals, the remaining animals are the invertebrates, which lack a backbone. These include molluscs, arthropods, annelids, nematodes, flatworms, cnidarians, ctenophores, the study of animals is called zoology. The word animal comes from the Latin animalis, meaning having breath, the biological definition of the word refers to all members of the kingdom Animalia, encompassing creatures as diverse as sponges, jellyfish, insects, and humans. Aristotle divided the world between animals and plants, and this was followed by Carl Linnaeus, in the first hierarchical classification. In Linnaeuss original scheme, the animals were one of three kingdoms, divided into the classes of Vermes, Insecta, Pisces, Amphibia, Aves, and Mammalia. Since then the last four have all been subsumed into a single phylum, in 1874, Ernst Haeckel divided the animal kingdom into two subkingdoms, Metazoa and Protozoa. The protozoa were later moved to the kingdom Protista, leaving only the metazoa, thus Metazoa is now considered a synonym of Animalia. Animals have several characteristics that set apart from other living things. Animals are eukaryotic and multicellular, which separates them from bacteria and they are heterotrophic, generally digesting food in an internal chamber, which separates them from plants and algae. They are also distinguished from plants, algae, and fungi by lacking cell walls. All animals are motile, if only at life stages. In most animals, embryos pass through a stage, which is a characteristic exclusive to animals. With a few exceptions, most notably the sponges and Placozoa and these include muscles, which are able to contract and control locomotion, and nerve tissues, which send and process signals
7.
Chordate
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Chordates are deuterostomes, as during the embryo development stage the anus forms before the mouth. They are also bilaterally symmetric coelomates, in the case of vertebrate chordates, the notochord is usually replaced by a vertebral column during development, and they may have body plans organized via segmentation. There are also additional extinct taxa, the Vertebrata are sometimes considered as a subgroup of the clade Craniata, consisting of chordates with a skull, the Craniata and Tunicata compose the clade Olfactores. Of the more than 65,000 living species of chordates, the worlds largest and fastest animals, the blue whale and peregrine falcon respectively, are chordates, as are humans. Fossil chordates are known from at least as early as the Cambrian explosion, Hemichordata, which includes the acorn worms, has been presented as a fourth chordate subphylum, but it now is usually treated as a separate phylum. The Hemichordata, along with the Echinodermata, form the Ambulacraria, the Chordata and Ambulacraria form the superphylum Deuterostomia, composed of the deuterostomes. Attempts to work out the relationships of the chordates have produced several hypotheses. All of the earliest chordate fossils have found in the Early Cambrian Chengjiang fauna. Because the fossil record of early chordates is poor, only molecular phylogenetics offers a prospect of dating their emergence. However, the use of molecular phylogenetics for dating evolutionary transitions is controversial and it has also proved difficult to produce a detailed classification within the living chordates. Attempts to produce family trees shows that many of the traditional classes are paraphyletic. While this has been known since the 19th century, an insistence on only monophyletic taxa has resulted in vertebrate classification being in a state of flux. Although the name Chordata is attributed to William Bateson, it was already in prevalent use by 1880, ernst Haeckel described a taxon comprising tunicates, cephalochordates, and vertebrates in 1866. Though he used the German vernacular form, it is allowed under the ICZN code because of its subsequent latinization, among the vertebrate sub-group of chordates the notochord develops into the spine, and in wholly aquatic species this helps the animal to swim by flexing its tail. In fish and other vertebrates, this develops into the spinal cord, the pharynx is the part of the throat immediately behind the mouth. In fish, the slits are modified to form gills, a muscular tail that extends backwards behind the anus. This is a groove in the wall of the pharynx. In filter-feeding species it produces mucus to gather food particles, which helps in transporting food to the esophagus and it also stores iodine, and may be a precursor of the vertebrate thyroid gland
8.
Mammal
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Mammals are any vertebrates within the class Mammalia, a clade of endothermic amniotes distinguished from reptiles by the possession of a neocortex, hair, three middle ear bones and mammary glands. All female mammals nurse their young with milk, secreted from the mammary glands, Mammals include the largest animals on the planet, the great whales. The basic body type is a quadruped, but some mammals are adapted for life at sea, in the air, in trees. The largest group of mammals, the placentals, have a placenta, Mammals range in size from the 30–40 mm bumblebee bat to the 30-meter blue whale. With the exception of the five species of monotreme, all modern mammals give birth to live young, most mammals, including the six most species-rich orders, belong to the placental group. The largest orders are the rodents, bats and Soricomorpha, the next three biggest orders, depending on the biological classification scheme used, are the Primates, the Cetartiodactyla, and the Carnivora. Living mammals are divided into the Yinotheria and Theriiformes There are around 5450 species of mammal, in some classifications, extant mammals are divided into two subclasses, the Prototheria, that is, the order Monotremata, and the Theria, or the infraclasses Metatheria and Eutheria. The marsupials constitute the group of the Metatheria, and include all living metatherians as well as many extinct ones. Much of the changes reflect the advances of cladistic analysis and molecular genetics, findings from molecular genetics, for example, have prompted adopting new groups, such as the Afrotheria, and abandoning traditional groups, such as the Insectivora. The mammals represent the only living Synapsida, which together with the Sauropsida form the Amniota clade, the early synapsid mammalian ancestors were sphenacodont pelycosaurs, a group that produced the non-mammalian Dimetrodon. At the end of the Carboniferous period, this group diverged from the line that led to todays reptiles. Some mammals are intelligent, with some possessing large brains, self-awareness, Mammals can communicate and vocalize in several different ways, including the production of ultrasound, scent-marking, alarm signals, singing, and echolocation. Mammals can organize themselves into fission-fusion societies, harems, and hierarchies, most mammals are polygynous, but some can be monogamous or polyandrous. They provided, and continue to provide, power for transport and agriculture, as well as commodities such as meat, dairy products, wool. Mammals are hunted or raced for sport, and are used as model organisms in science, Mammals have been depicted in art since Palaeolithic times, and appear in literature, film, mythology, and religion. Defaunation of mammals is primarily driven by anthropogenic factors, such as poaching and habitat destruction, Mammal classification has been through several iterations since Carl Linnaeus initially defined the class. No classification system is accepted, McKenna & Bell and Wilson & Reader provide useful recent compendiums. Though field work gradually made Simpsons classification outdated, it remains the closest thing to a classification of mammals
9.
Rodent
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Rodents are mammals of the order Rodentia, which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all species are rodents, they are found in vast numbers on all continents except Antarctica. They are the most diversified mammalian order and live in a variety of terrestrial habitats, Species can be arboreal, fossorial, or semiaquatic. Well-known rodents include mice, rats, squirrels, prairie dogs, porcupines, beavers, guinea pigs, hamsters, and capybaras. Other animals such as rabbits, hares, and pikas, whose incisors also grow continually, were included with them, but are now considered to be in a separate order. Nonetheless, Rodentia and Lagomorpha are sister groups, sharing a most recent common ancestor, most rodents are small animals with robust bodies, short limbs, and long tails. They use their incisors to gnaw food, excavate burrows. Most eat seeds or other plant material, but some have more varied diets and they tend to be social animals and many species live in societies with complex ways of communicating with each other. Mating among rodents can vary from monogamy, to polygyny, to promiscuity, many have litters of underdeveloped, altricial young, while others are precocial at birth. The rodent fossil record back to the Paleocene on the supercontinent of Laurasia. Rodents greatly diversified in the Eocene, as spread across continents. Rodents reached both South America and Madagascar from Africa, and were the only placental mammals to reach. Rodents have been used as food, for clothing, as pets, some species, in particular the brown rat, the black rat, and the house mouse, are serious pests, eating and spoiling food stored by humans, and spreading diseases. The distinguishing feature of the rodents is their pairs of continuously growing and these incisors have thick layers of enamel on the front and little enamel on the back. Because they do not stop growing, the animal must continue to wear them down so that they do not reach and pierce the skull. As the incisors grind against each other, the softer dentine on the rear of the teeth wears away, most species have up to 22 teeth with no canines or anterior premolars. A gap, or diastema, occurs between the incisors and the teeth in most species. This allows rodents to suck in their cheeks or lips to shield their mouth and throat from wood shavings and other inedible material, chinchillas and guinea pigs have a high-fiber diet, their molars have no roots and grow continuously like their incisors
10.
New World porcupine
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The New World porcupines, family Erethizontidae, are large arboreal rodents, distinguished by their spiny coverings from which they take their name. They inhabit forests and wooded regions across North America, and into northern South America, although both the New World and Old World porcupine families belong to the Hystricognathi branch of the vast order Rodentia, they are quite different and are not closely related. New World porcupines are stout animals, with blunt, rounded heads, fleshy, mobile snouts, the spines are mixed with long, soft hairs. They are distinguished from the Old World porcupines in that they have rooted molars, complete collar bones, entire upper lips, tuberculated soles, no trace of first front toes, and four teats. They are less strictly nocturnal than Old World species in their habits and their long and powerful prehensile tails help them balance when they are in the tree tops. Their diets consist mainly of bark, leaves, and conifer needles, but can also include roots, stems, berries, fruits, seeds, nuts, grasses, some species also eat insects and small reptiles. Their teeth are similar to those of Old World porcupines, with the dental formula 1.0.1.31.0.1.3 Solitary offspring are born after a period of up to 210 days. The young are fully developed, with open eyes, and are able to climb trees within a few days of birth. It is a native of the part of Canada and the United States. The tree porcupines contain 16 species and they are found throughout tropical South America, with two extending into Mexico. They are of a lighter build than the ground porcupines, with short, close, many-coloured spines, often mixed with hairs and these three genera are often united into a single genus Coendou. Genus Chaetomys, distinguished by the shape of its skull and the complexity of its teeth, contains C. subspinosus. This animal is considered a member of Echimyidae on the basis of its premolars
11.
Erethizontinae
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Porcupines are rodentian mammals with a coat of sharp spines, or quills, that protect against predators. The term covers two families of animals, the Old World porcupines of family Hystricidae, and the New World porcupines of family Erethizontidae, the Old World porcupines live in southern Europe, Asia, and most of Africa. They are large, terrestrial, and strictly nocturnal, in taxonomic terms, they form the family Hystricidae. The New World porcupines are indigenous to North America and northern South America and they live in wooded areas and can climb trees, where some species spend their entire lives. They are less strictly nocturnal than their Old World relatives, in taxonomic terms, they form the family Erethizontidae. Porcupines are the third-largest of the rodents, behind the capybara, most porcupines are about 60–90 cm long, with an 20–25 cm long tail. Weighing 5–16 kg, they are rounded, large, and slow, Porcupines occur in various shades of brown, gray, and white. Porcupines spiny protection resembles that of the unrelated erinaceomorph hedgehogs and Australian spiny anteaters or monotreme echidnas, the name porcupine comes from Latin porcus pig + spina spine, quill, via Old Italian—Middle French—Middle English. A regional American name for the animal is quill pig, similarly, the German name, Stachelschwein, means thorn-swine and the Afrikaans name, ystervark, means iron pig. Fossils belonging to the Hystrix genus date back to the late Miocene of Africa, a porcupine is any of 29 species of rodents belonging to the families Erethizontidae or Hystricidae. The two families of porcupines are quite different, and although both belong to the Hystricognathi branch of the vast order Rodentia, they are not closely related, the 11 Old World porcupines tend to be fairly large, and have spikes grouped in clusters. The two subfamilies of New World porcupines are mostly smaller, have their quills attached singly rather than grouped in clusters, the New World porcupines evolved their spines independently and are more closely related to several other families of rodents than they are to the Old World porcupines. The North American porcupine is a herbivore, it leaves, herbs, twigs. In the winter, it may eat bark and it often climbs trees to find food. The African porcupine is not a climber and forages on the ground and it is mostly nocturnal, but will sometimes forage for food in the day. Porcupines have become a pest in Kenya and are eaten as a delicacy, Porcupines quills, or spines, take on various forms, depending on the species, but all are modified hairs coated with thick plates of keratin, and embedded in the skin musculature. Old World porcupines have quills embedded in clusters, whereas in New World porcupines, single quills are interspersed with bristles, underfur, quills are released by contact or may drop out when the porcupine shakes its body. New quills grow to replace lost ones, Porcupines were long believed to have the ability to project their quills to a considerable distance at an enemy, but this has since been proven to be untrue
12.
Binomial nomenclature
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Such a name is called a binomial name, a binomen, binominal name or a scientific name, more informally it is also called a Latin name. The first part of the name identifies the genus to which the species belongs, for example, humans belong to the genus Homo and within this genus to the species Homo sapiens. The formal introduction of system of naming species is credited to Carl Linnaeus. But Gaspard Bauhin, in as early as 1623, had introduced in his book Pinax theatri botanici many names of genera that were adopted by Linnaeus. Although the general principles underlying binomial nomenclature are common to these two codes, there are differences, both in the terminology they use and in their precise rules. Similarly, both parts are italicized when a binomial name occurs in normal text, thus the binomial name of the annual phlox is now written as Phlox drummondii. In scientific works, the authority for a name is usually given, at least when it is first mentioned. In zoology Patella vulgata Linnaeus,1758, the original name given by Linnaeus was Fringilla domestica, the parentheses indicate that the species is now considered to belong in a different genus. The ICZN does not require that the name of the person who changed the genus be given, nor the date on which the change was made, in botany Amaranthus retroflexus L. – L. is the standard abbreviation used in botany for Linnaeus. – Linnaeus first named this bluebell species Scilla italica, Rothmaler transferred it to the genus Hyacinthoides, the ICN does not require that the dates of either publication be specified. Prior to the adoption of the binomial system of naming species. Together they formed a system of polynomial nomenclature and these names had two separate functions. First, to designate or label the species, and second, to be a diagnosis or description, such polynomial names may sometimes look like binomials, but are significantly different. For example, Gerards herbal describes various kinds of spiderwort, The first is called Phalangium ramosum, Branched Spiderwort, is aptly termed Phalangium Ephemerum Virginianum, Soon-Fading Spiderwort of Virginia. The Latin phrases are short descriptions, rather than identifying labels, the Bauhins, in particular Caspar Bauhin, took some important steps towards the binomial system, by pruning the Latin descriptions, in many cases to two words. The adoption by biologists of a system of binomial nomenclature is due to Swedish botanist and physician Carl von Linné. It was in his 1753 Species Plantarum that he first began using a one-word trivial name together with a generic name in a system of binomial nomenclature. This trivial name is what is now known as an epithet or specific name
13.
Carl Linnaeus
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Carl Linnaeus, also known after his ennoblement as Carl von Linné, was a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, who formalised the modern system of naming organisms called binomial nomenclature. He is known by the father of modern taxonomy. Many of his writings were in Latin, and his name is rendered in Latin as Carolus Linnæus, Linnaeus was born in the countryside of Småland, in southern Sweden. He received most of his education at Uppsala University. He lived abroad between 1735 and 1738, where he studied and also published a first edition of his Systema Naturae in the Netherlands and he then returned to Sweden, where he became professor of medicine and botany at Uppsala. In the 1740s, he was sent on journeys through Sweden to find and classify plants. In the 1750s and 1760s, he continued to collect and classify animals, plants, and minerals, at the time of his death, he was one of the most acclaimed scientists in Europe. The philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau sent him the message, Tell him I know no man on earth. The German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote, With the exception of Shakespeare and Spinoza, Swedish author August Strindberg wrote, Linnaeus was in reality a poet who happened to become a naturalist. Among other compliments, Linnaeus has been called Princeps botanicorum, The Pliny of the North and he is also considered as one of the founders of modern ecology. In botany, the abbreviation used to indicate Linnaeus as the authority for species names is L. In older publications, sometimes the abbreviation Linn. is found, Linnæus was born in the village of Råshult in Småland, Sweden, on 23 May 1707. He was the first child of Nicolaus Ingemarsson and Christina Brodersonia and his siblings were Anna Maria Linnæa, Sofia Juliana Linnæa, Samuel Linnæus, and Emerentia Linnæa. One of a line of peasants and priests, Nils was an amateur botanist, a Lutheran minister. Christina was the daughter of the rector of Stenbrohult, Samuel Brodersonius, a year after Linnæus birth, his grandfather Samuel Brodersonius died, and his father Nils became the rector of Stenbrohult. The family moved into the rectory from the curates house, even in his early years, Linnæus seemed to have a liking for plants, flowers in particular. Whenever he was upset, he was given a flower, which calmed him. Nils spent much time in his garden and often showed flowers to Linnaeus, soon Linnæus was given his own patch of earth where he could grow plants
14.
10th edition of Systema Naturae
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The 10th edition of Systema Naturae is a book written by Carl Linnaeus and published in two volumes in 1758 and 1759, which marks the starting point of zoological nomenclature. In it, Linnaeus introduced binomial nomenclature for animals, something he had already done for plants in his 1753 publication of Species Plantarum, before 1758, most biological catalogues had used polynomial names for the taxa included, including earlier editions of Systema Naturae. The first work to consistently apply binomial nomenclature across the kingdom was the 10th edition of Systema Naturae. Names published before that date are unavailable, even if they would otherwise satisfy the rules, during Linnaeus lifetime, Systema Naturae was under continuous revision. The Animal Kingdom, Animals enjoy sensation by means of an organization, animated by a medullary substance, perception by nerves. They have members for the different purposes of life, organs for their different senses and they all originate from an egg. Their external and internal structure, their anatomy, habits, instincts. The list has been broken down into the six classes Linnaeus described for animals, Mammalia, Aves, Amphibia, Pisces, Insecta. These classes were created by studying the internal anatomy, as seen in his key. Warm, red blood Viviparous, Mammalia Oviparous, Aves Heart with 1 auricle,1 ventricle, cold, red blood Lungs voluntary, Amphibia External gills, Pisces Heart with 1 auricle,0 ventricles. Linnaeus described mammals as, Animals that suckle their young by means of lactiferous teats, in external and internal structure they resemble man, most of them are quadrupeds, and with man, their natural enemy, inhabit the surface of the Earth. The largest, though fewest in number, inhabit the ocean and they are areal, vocal, swift and light, and destitute of external ears, lips, teeth, scrotum, womb, bladder, epiglottis, corpus callosum and its arch, and diaphragm. They breathe by means of gills, which are united by a bony arch, swim by means of radiate fins. Many of them are without a head, and most of them without feet. They are principally distinguished by their tentacles, by the Ancients they were not improperly called imperfect animals, as being destitute of ears, nose, head, eyes and legs, and are therefore totally distinct from Insects. In addition to repeating the species he had listed in his Species Plantarum. The species from Species Plantarum were numbered sequentially, while the new species were labelled with letters, new plant species described in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae include, The original 1758 Systema Naturae Linnaeus 1758 Classification of Animals on the Taxonomicon
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Synonym (taxonomy)
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For example, Linnaeus was the first to give a scientific name to the Norway spruce, which he called Pinus abies. This name is no longer in use, it is now a synonym of the current scientific name which is Picea abies, unlike synonyms in other contexts, in taxonomy a synonym is not interchangeable with the name of which it is a synonym. In taxonomy, synonyms are not equals, but have a different status, for any taxon with a particular circumscription, position, and rank, only one scientific name is considered to be the correct one at any given time. A synonym cannot exist in isolation, it is always an alternative to a different scientific name, given that the correct name of a taxon depends on the taxonomic viewpoint used a name that is one taxonomists synonym may be another taxonomists correct name. Synonyms may arise whenever the same taxon is described and named more than once, independently. They may also arise when existing taxa are changed, as when two taxa are joined to one, a species is moved to a different genus. To the general user of scientific names, in such as agriculture, horticulture, ecology, general science. A synonym is a name that was used as the correct scientific name but which has been displaced by another scientific name. Thus Oxford Dictionaries Online defines the term as a name which has the same application as another. In handbooks and general texts, it is useful to have mentioned as such after the current scientific name. Synonyms used in this way may not always meet the strict definitions of the synonym in the formal rules of nomenclature which govern scientific names. Changes of scientific name have two causes, they may be taxonomic or nomenclatural, a name change may be caused by changes in the circumscription, position or rank of a taxon, representing a change in taxonomic, scientific insight. A name change may be due to purely nomenclatural reasons, that is, based on the rules of nomenclature, the earliest such name is called the senior synonym, while the later name is the junior synonym. One basic principle of zoological nomenclature is that the earliest correctly published name, synonyms are important because if the earliest name cannot be used, then the next available junior synonym must be used for the taxon. Objective synonyms refer to taxa with the type and same rank. For example, John Edward Gray published the name Antilocapra anteflexa in 1855 for a species of pronghorn, however, it is now commonly accepted that his specimen was an unusual individual of the species Antilocapra americana published by George Ord in 1815. Ords name thus takes precedence, with Antilocapra anteflexa being a subjective synonym. Objective synonyms are common at the level of genera, because for various reasons two genera may contain the type species, these are objective synonyms
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American Beaver
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The North American beaver is one of two extant beaver species. It is native to North America and introduced to Patagonia in South America, other vernacular names, including American beaver and Canadian beaver, distinguish this species from the other extant beaver species, Castor fiber, which is native to Eurasia. The North American beaver is an animal symbol of Canada. Adults usually weigh from 11 to 32 kg, with 20 kg being typical, the head-and-body length is 74–90 cm, with the tail adding a further 20–35 cm. Very old individuals can exceed normal sizes, weighing more than 40 kg or even as much as 50 kg. Like the capybara, the beaver is semiaquatic, the beaver has many traits suited to this lifestyle. It has a large, flat, paddle-shaped tail and large, the unwebbed front paws are smaller, with claws. The eyes are covered by a membrane which allows the beaver to see under water. The nostrils and ears are sealed while submerged, a thick layer of fat under its skin insulates the beaver from its coldwater environment. The beavers fur consists of long, coarse hairs and short. The fur has a range of colours, but usually is dark brown, scent glands near the genitals secrete an oily substance known as castoreum, which the beaver uses to waterproof its fur. Physician naturalist Edgar Alexander Mearns 1907 report of beaver on the Sonora River may be the southernmost extent of the range of this North American aquatic mammal. However, beavers have also been reported both historically and contemporaneously in Mexico on the Colorado River, Bavispe River, and San Bernardino River, beavers are active mainly at night. They are excellent swimmers and may remain submerged up to 15 minutes, more vulnerable on land, they tend to remain in the water as much as possible. They use their flat, scaly tail both to signal danger by slapping the surface of the water and as a location for fat storage. They construct their homes, or lodges, out of sticks, twigs, rocks, and mud in lakes, streams and these lodges may be surrounded by water, or touching land, including burrows dug into river banks. Beavers are well known for building dams across streams and constructing their lodges in the ponds which form. When building in a pond, the beavers first make a pile of sticks and then eat out one or more underwater entrances, the first is used for drying off
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North America
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North America is a continent entirely within the Northern Hemisphere and almost all within the Western Hemisphere. It can also be considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the west and south by the Pacific Ocean, and to the southeast by South America and the Caribbean Sea. North America covers an area of about 24,709,000 square kilometers, about 16. 5% of the land area. North America is the third largest continent by area, following Asia and Africa, and the fourth by population after Asia, Africa, and Europe. In 2013, its population was estimated at nearly 565 million people in 23 independent states, or about 7. 5% of the worlds population, North America was reached by its first human populations during the last glacial period, via crossing the Bering land bridge. The so-called Paleo-Indian period is taken to have lasted until about 10,000 years ago, the Classic stage spans roughly the 6th to 13th centuries. The Pre-Columbian era ended with the migrations and the arrival of European settlers during the Age of Discovery. Present-day cultural and ethnic patterns reflect different kind of interactions between European colonists, indigenous peoples, African slaves and their descendants, European influences are strongest in the northern parts of the continent while indigenous and African influences are relatively stronger in the south. Because of the history of colonialism, most North Americans speak English, Spanish or French, the Americas are usually accepted as having been named after the Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci by the German cartographers Martin Waldseemüller and Matthias Ringmann. Vespucci, who explored South America between 1497 and 1502, was the first European to suggest that the Americas were not the East Indies, but a different landmass previously unknown by Europeans. In 1507, Waldseemüller produced a map, in which he placed the word America on the continent of South America. He explained the rationale for the name in the accompanying book Cosmographiae Introductio, for Waldseemüller, no one should object to the naming of the land after its discoverer. He used the Latinized version of Vespuccis name, but in its feminine form America, following the examples of Europa, Asia and Africa. Later, other mapmakers extended the name America to the continent, In 1538. Some argue that the convention is to use the surname for naming discoveries except in the case of royalty, a minutely explored belief that has been advanced is that America was named for a Spanish sailor bearing the ancient Visigothic name of Amairick. Another is that the name is rooted in a Native American language, the term North America maintains various definitions in accordance with location and context. In Canadian English, North America may be used to refer to the United States, alternatively, usage sometimes includes Greenland and Mexico, as well as offshore islands
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Caviomorpha
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Caviomorpha is the rodent infraorder or parvorder that unites all New World hystricognaths. It is supported by both fossil and molecular evidence, the Caviomorpha was for a time considered to be a separate order outside the Rodentia, but is now accepted as a genuine part of the rodents. By the late Oligocene, all superfamilies and most families of caviomorphs are present in the fossil record, during this time, South America was isolated from all other continents. Several hypotheses have proposed as to how hystricognath rodents colonized this island continent. Most require that a group of these rodents traveled across ocean bodies atop a raft of mangroves or driftwood. The most common hypothesis suggests that the ancestor to all modern caviomorphs rafted across the Atlantic Ocean from Africa and this is supported by molecular results, which suggest that the Phiomorpha are sister taxa to the Caviomorpha. In fact, until the discovery of the Laotian rock rat, all modern hystricognath families were restricted to South America, Africa, the principal alternative hypothesis is that the caviomorph ancestor arose in Asia and migrated to South America through another continent. Fossil evidence suggests the Entodacrya may have originated in Asia and this is cited as evidence for an Asian origin for Caviomorpha as well. Likewise, Jenkins et al. argue that their discovery of a rodent family exclusive to Asia may be further evidence for an Asian origin of caviomorphs. Alternatively, the caviomorphs may have originated in Asia, but traveled through Africa, Australia and Antarctica, alternatively they may have originated in Africa and traveled to South America via Antarctica. New World monkeys appear to have colonized South America from Africa at a similar time, caviomorphs went on to colonize the West Indies as far as the Bahamas, reaching the Greater Antilles by the early Oligocene. This is commonly viewed as another example of oceanic dispersal, although a role for a land bridge has also been considered. Caviomorph rodents underwent an explosive diversification upon arrival into South America and they managed to outcompete other animals in rodent-like niches such as certain South American marsupials. Retaining predominantly herbivorous diets, they expanded their sizes to encompass a range from rat-sized echimyids to the bison-sized Phoberomys, habitats range from grasslands, high mountains, forest edges and dense tropical forests. The nutria has been introduced into North America and has proven a successful invasive species there. The Dinomyidae may belong to the Chinchilloidea, the Abrocomidae may belong to the Octodontoidea, huchon, D. E. J. P. Douzery. From the Old World to the New World, A molecular chronicle of the phylogeny, Jenkins, P. D. C. W. Kilpatrick, M. F. Robinson, and R. J. Timmins. Morphological and molecular investigations of a new family, genus and species of rodent from Lao PDR, la systématique des rongeurs hystricomorphes et la dérive des continents
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Oceanic dispersal
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Oceanic dispersal is a type of biological dispersal that occurs when terrestrial organisms transfer from one land mass to another by way of a sea crossing. Often this occurs via large rafts of floating vegetation such as are seen floating down major rivers in the tropics and washing out to sea. Dispersal via such a raft is sometimes referred to as a rafting event, colonization of land masses by plants can also occur via long-distance oceanic dispersal of floating seeds. Both land masses, for example, appear to have received their primates by this mechanism, according to genetic evidence, the common ancestor of the lemurs of Madagascar appears to have crossed the Mozambique Channel by rafting between 50 and 60 Ma ago. Likewise, the New World monkeys are thought to have originated in Africa and rafted to South America by the Oligocene, Madagascar also appears to have received its tenrecs, nesomyid rodents and euplerid carnivorans by this route and South America its caviomorph rodents. Simian primates and hystricognath rodents are believed to have rafted from Asia to Africa about 40 Ma ago. Among reptiles, several species in the South Pacific have been hypothesized to be descended from iguanas that rafted 10,000 kilometres from Central or South America. Similarly, a number of clades of American geckos seem to have rafted over from Africa during both the Paleogene and Neogene. Skinks of the related genera Mabuya and Trachylepis also apparently both floated across the Atlantic from Africa to South America and Fernando de Noronha, respectively, skinks from the same group have also rafted from Africa to Cape Verde, Madagascar, the Seychelles, the Comoros and Socotra. Surprisingly, even burrowing amphisbaenians and blind snakes appear to have rafted from Africa to South America, an example of a bird that is thought to have reached its present location by rafting is the weak-flying South American hoatzin, whose ancestors apparently floated over from Africa. Colonization of groups of islands can occur by an iterative rafting process sometimes called island hopping, such a process appears to have played a role, for example, in the colonization of the Caribbean by mammals of South American origin. A remarkable example of iterative rafting has been proposed for spiders of the genus Amaurobioides, members of this genus inhabit coastal sites and build silken cells which they seal at high tide, however, they do not balloon. However, oceanic dispersal of species may not always take the form of rafting, in some cases. South American tortoises then went on to colonize the West Indies, the dispersal of anthracotheres from Asia to Africa about 40 Ma ago, and the much more recent dispersal of hippos from Africa to Madagascar may have occurred by floating or swimming. The first documented example of colonization of a mass by rafting occurred in the aftermath of hurricanes Luis. A raft of uprooted trees carrying fifteen or more green iguanas was observed by fishermen landing on the east side of Anguilla – an island where they had never before been recorded. The iguanas had apparently caught on the trees and rafted two hundred miles across the ocean from Guadeloupe, where they are indigenous. Examination of the patterns and ocean currents indicated that they had probably spent three weeks at sea before landfall
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Great American Interchange
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The migration peaked dramatically around three million years ago during the Piacenzian age. It resulted in the joining of the Neotropic and Nearctic ecozones definitively to form the Americas, the interchange is visible from observation of both biostratigraphy and nature. Its most dramatic effect is on the zoogeography of mammals but it gave an opportunity for reptiles, amphibians, arthropods, weak-flying or flightless birds. The occurrence of the interchange was first discussed in 1876 by the father of biogeography, Wallace had spent 1848–1852 exploring and collecting specimens in the Amazon basin. Others who made significant contributions to understanding the event in the century that followed include Florentino Ameghino, W. D. Matthew, scott, Bryan Patterson, George Gaylord Simpson and S. David Webb. Analogous interchanges occurred earlier in the Cenozoic, when the formerly isolated land masses of India and Africa made contact with Eurasia c.50 and 30 Ma ago, respectively. Its endemic mammals initially consisted primarily of metatherians, xenarthrans, and a group of native ungulates, notoungulates, litopterns, astrapotheres. Marsupials appear to have traveled via Gondwanan land connections from South America through Antarctica to Australia in the late Cretaceous or early Tertiary, a 61-Ma-old platypus-like monotreme fossil from Patagonia may represent an Australian immigrant. Paleognath birds may have migrated by this route around the same time, other taxa that may have dispersed by the same route are parrots, chelid turtles and meiolaniid turtles. Marsupials present in South America included didelphimorphs and several small groups, larger predatory relatives of these also existed, like the borhyaenids. Metatherians were the only South American mammals to specialize as carnivores, sparassodonts shared the ecological niches for large predators with fearsome flightless terror birds, whose closest extant relatives are the seriemas. Terrestrial ziphodont sebecid crocodilians were also present at least through the middle Miocene, some of South Americas aquatic crocodilians, such as Gryposuchus, Mourasuchus and Purussaurus, reached monstrous sizes, with lengths up to 12 m. They shared their habitat with one of the largest turtles of all time, xenarthrans are a curious group of mammals that developed morphological adaptations for specialized diets very early in their history. The notoungulates and litopterns had many forms, like Macrauchenia. Both groups started evolving in the Lower Paleocene, possibly from condylarth stock, diversified, dwindled before the great interchange, the pyrotheres and astrapotheres were also strange but were less diverse and disappeared earlier, well before the interchange. The North American fauna was a typical boreoeutherian one, the invasions of South America started about 40 Ma ago, when caviomorph rodents arrived in South America. Their subsequent vigorous diversification displaced some of South Americas small marsupials and gave rise to – among others – capybaras, chinchillas, viscachas and this invasion most likely came from Africa. The crossing from West Africa to the northeast corner of Brazil was much shorter then, due to continental drift, crossings of the ocean were accomplished when at least one fertilised female accidentally floated over on driftwood or mangrove rafts
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Isthmus of Panama
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The Isthmus of Panama, also historically known as the Isthmus of Darien, is the narrow strip of land that lies between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, linking North and South America. It contains the country of Panama and the Panama Canal, like many isthmuses, it is a location of great strategic value. The isthmus was formed 12 to 15 million years ago and this major geological event separated the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and caused the creation of the Gulf Stream. Vasco Núñez de Balboa heard of the South Sea from natives while sailing along the Caribbean coast, on 25 September 1513 he saw the Pacific. In 1519 the town of Panamá was founded near a small settlement on the Pacific coast. After the discovery of Peru, it developed into an important port of trade, in 1671 the Welsh pirate Henry Morgan crossed the Isthmus of Panamá from the Caribbean side and destroyed the city. The town was relocated some kilometers to the west at a small peninsula, the ruins of the old town, Panamá Viejo, are preserved and were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. Silver and gold from the viceroyalty of Peru were transported overland across the isthmus to Porto Bello, Lionel Wafer spent four years between 1680 and 1684 among the Cuna Indians. Scotland tried to establish a settlement in 1698 through the Darien scheme, the California Gold Rush, starting in 1849, brought a large increase in the transportation of people from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Steamships brought gold seekers from eastern US ports who trekked across the isthmus by foot, horse, on the Pacific side, they boarded Pacific Mail Steamship Company vessels headed for San Francisco. Ferdinand de Lesseps, the man behind the Suez Canal, started a Panama Canal Company in 1880 that went bankrupt in 1889 in a scandal. In 1902–4, the United States forced Colombia to grant independence to the department of the isthmus, bought the assets of the Panama Canal Company. A significant body of water separated the continents of North and South America. Beneath the surface, two plates of the Earths crust were slowly colliding, forcing the Cocos Plate to slide under the Caribbean Plate. The pressure and heat caused by this led to the formation of underwater volcanoes. Meanwhile, movement of the two plates was also pushing up the sea floor, eventually forcing some areas above sea level. Over time, massive amounts of sediment from North and South America filled the gaps between the newly forming islands, over millions of years, the sediment deposits added to the islands until the gaps were completely filled. By no later than 4.5 million years ago, an isthmus had formed between North and South America and that warm currents can lead to glacier formation may seem counterintuitive, but heated air flowing over the warm Gulf Stream can hold more moisture
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Latin
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Latin is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. The Latin alphabet is derived from the Etruscan and Greek alphabets, Latin was originally spoken in Latium, in the Italian Peninsula. Through the power of the Roman Republic, it became the dominant language, Vulgar Latin developed into the Romance languages, such as Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, French, and Romanian. Latin, Italian and French have contributed many words to the English language, Latin and Ancient Greek roots are used in theology, biology, and medicine. By the late Roman Republic, Old Latin had been standardised into Classical Latin, Vulgar Latin was the colloquial form spoken during the same time and attested in inscriptions and the works of comic playwrights like Plautus and Terence. Late Latin is the language from the 3rd century. Later, Early Modern Latin and Modern Latin evolved, Latin was used as the language of international communication, scholarship, and science until well into the 18th century, when it began to be supplanted by vernaculars. Ecclesiastical Latin remains the language of the Holy See and the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church. Today, many students, scholars and members of the Catholic clergy speak Latin fluently and it is taught in primary, secondary and postsecondary educational institutions around the world. The language has been passed down through various forms, some inscriptions have been published in an internationally agreed, monumental, multivolume series, the Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum. Authors and publishers vary, but the format is about the same, volumes detailing inscriptions with a critical apparatus stating the provenance, the reading and interpretation of these inscriptions is the subject matter of the field of epigraphy. The works of several hundred ancient authors who wrote in Latin have survived in whole or in part and they are in part the subject matter of the field of classics. The Cat in the Hat, and a book of fairy tales, additional resources include phrasebooks and resources for rendering everyday phrases and concepts into Latin, such as Meissners Latin Phrasebook. The Latin influence in English has been significant at all stages of its insular development. From the 16th to the 18th centuries, English writers cobbled together huge numbers of new words from Latin and Greek words, dubbed inkhorn terms, as if they had spilled from a pot of ink. Many of these words were used once by the author and then forgotten, many of the most common polysyllabic English words are of Latin origin through the medium of Old French. Romance words make respectively 59%, 20% and 14% of English, German and those figures can rise dramatically when only non-compound and non-derived words are included. Accordingly, Romance words make roughly 35% of the vocabulary of Dutch, Roman engineering had the same effect on scientific terminology as a whole
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Chipewyan language
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Chipewyan /tʃɪpəˈwaɪən/, ethnonym Dënesųłiné IPA, is the language spoken by the Chipewyan people of northwestern Canada. It is categorized as part of the Northern Athabaskan language family, Dënesųłiné has nearly 12,000 speakers in Canada, mostly in Saskatchewan, Alberta, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories. It has official status only in the Northwest Territories, alongside 8 other aboriginal languages, Cree, Dogrib, Gwich’in, Inuktitut, Inuinnaqtun, Inuvialuktun, North Slavey and South Slavey. Most Chipewyan people now use Dené and Dënesųłiné to refer to themselves as a people and to their language, the Saskatchewan communities of Fond-du-Lac, Black Lake, Wollaston Lake and La Loche are among these. The 39 consonants of Dënesųłiné, The velar fricatives are actually uvular, Dënesųłiné has vowels of 6 differing qualities. Most vowels can be oral or nasal short or long As a result, Dënesųłiné has 18 phonemic vowels. Dënesųłiné has two tones, high low In the 2011 Canada Census 11,860 people chose Dene as their mother tongue,70. 6% were located in Saskatchewan and 15. 2% were located in Alberta. The communities within the Dene/Chipewyan traditional areas are shown below, The Dene speaking communities of Saskatchewan are located in the half of the province. Prince Albert had 265 residents who chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011, Saskatoon had 165, the La Ronge Population Centre had 55 and Meadow Lake had 30. 3,050 were in the Lake Athabasca-Fond du Lac River area including Black Lake and Wollaston Lake in the communities of, stony Rapids 140 out of 243 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011. Black Lake 1040 out of 1070 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011, uranium City Camsell Portage Wollaston Lake Wollaston Post 1165 out of 1251 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011. Clearwater River 720 out of 778 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011, Black Point Bear Creek Garson Lake Descharme Lake Turnor Lake Turnor Lake 70 out of 419 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011. Dillon 330 out of 764 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011, st. Georges Hill, Saskatchewan 85 out of 100 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011. Michel Village 55 out of 66 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011, buffalo Narrows 35 out of 1153 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011. Patuanak 35 out of 64 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011, patuanak 265 out of 482 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011. Beauval 25 out of 115 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011, two isolated communities are in northern Manitoba. Lac Brochet 720 out of 816 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011, tadoule Lake 170 out of 321 residents chose Dene as their mother tongue in 2011. The Wood Buffalo-Cold Lake Economic Region in the eastern portion of Alberta from Fort Chipewyan to the Cold Lake area has the following communities
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Hystricomorpha
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The term Hystricomorpha has had many definitions throughout its history. In the broadest sense, it refers to any rodent with a hystricomorphous zygomasseteric system and this includes the Hystricognathi, Ctenodactylidae, Anomaluridae, and Pedetidae. Molecular and morphological results suggest the inclusion of the Anomaluridae and Pedetidae in Hystricomorpha may be suspect, based on Carleton & Musser 2005, these two families are treated here as representing a distinct suborder Anomaluromorpha. The modern definition of Hystricomorpha, also known as Entodacrya or Ctenohystrica, is a taxonomic hypothesis uniting the gundis with the hystricognath rodents, considerable morphological and strong molecular support exists for this relationship. If true, this renders the traditional view of Sciurognathi invalid. The hystricomorph rodents, or at least members of Caviomorpha, are not regarded as rodents. Most molecular and genetic research, however, confirms the monophyly of rodents, support for rodent polyphyly appears to be a product of long branch attraction. Hystricomorph rodents appeared in South America in the Eocene, a continent which previously had metatherians, xenarthrans and they apparently arrived by rafting across the Atlantic from Africa. The same type of migration may have occurred with primates, which appeared in South America in the Eocene when it was an isolated continent. All of this is controversial, and new scientific discoveries on this subject are published regularly. Their results rendered the suborder Sciuravida as defined by McKenna & Bell 1997 to be polyphyletic, the symbol † is used to indicate extinct groups
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Oligocene
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The Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present. As with other geologic periods, the rock beds that define the epoch are well identified but the exact dates of the start. The name Oligocene comes from the Ancient Greek ὀλίγος and καινός, the Oligocene is preceded by the Eocene Epoch and is followed by the Miocene Epoch. The Oligocene is the third and final epoch of the Paleogene Period, the Oligocene is often considered an important time of transition, a link between the archaic world of the tropical Eocene and the more modern ecosystems of the Miocene. Major changes during the Oligocene included an expansion of grasslands. By contrast, the Oligocene–Miocene boundary is not set at an easily identified worldwide event, Oligocene faunal stages from youngest to oldest are, The Paleogene Period general temperature decline is interrupted by an Oligocene 7-million-year stepwise climate change. A deeper 8.2 °C,400, 000-year temperature depression leads the 2 °C, the stepwise climate change began 32.5 Ma and lasted through to 25.5 Ma, as depicted in the PaleoTemps chart. The Oligocene climate change was a increase in ice volume. The 7-million-year depression abruptly terminated within 1–2 million years of the La Garita Caldera eruption at 28–26 Ma, a deep 400, 000-year glaciated Oligocene Miocene boundary event is recorded at McMurdo Sound and King George Island. During this epoch, the continued to drift toward their present positions. Antarctica became more isolated and finally developed an ice cap, a brief marine incursion marks the early Oligocene in Europe. Marine fossils from the Oligocene are rare in North America, there appears to have been a land bridge in the early Oligocene between North America and Europe, since the faunas of the two regions are very similar. Sometime during the Oligocene, South America was finally detached from Antarctica and it also allowed the Antarctic Circumpolar Current to flow, rapidly cooling the Antarctic continent. Angiosperms continued their expansion throughout the world as tropical and sub-tropical forests were replaced by deciduous forests. Open plains and deserts became more common and grasses expanded from their habitat in the Eocene moving out into open tracts. However, even at the end of the period, grass was not quite enough for modern savannas. In North America, subtropical species dominated with cashews and lychee trees present, and temperate trees such as roses, beeches, the legumes spread, while sedges, bulrushes, and ferns continued their ascent. Even more open landscapes allowed animals to grow to larger sizes than they had earlier in the Paleocene epoch 30 million years earlier, marine faunas became fairly modern, as did terrestrial vertebrate fauna on the northern continents
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Aguascalientes
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Aguascalientes, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Aguascalientes, is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 11 municipalities and its capital city is Aguascalientes and it is located in North-Central Mexico. It is bordered by the states of Zacatecas to the north and its name means hot waters in Spanish and originated from the abundance of hot springs in the area. The corresponding demonym for the state and its inhabitants is hidrocálido or aguascalentense, later in the colony, Pedro Almíndez Chirino was the first Spaniard who entered the territory, perhaps by the end of 1530 or the beginning of 1531, following the instructions given by Nuño de Guzmán. Before the arrival of the Spaniards, the territory of what is now the State of Aguascalientes was inhabited by Chichimecas, in fact, the total occupation of the lands of El Bajio was a task that would take about two centuries. With respect to this, Viceroy Luis de Velasco offered municipal benefits to those who established settlements to confront the Chichimeca, and for his part, Viceroy Gaston de Peralta decided to confront them directly, which did not give good results. It was in order to be in the territory that is presently the state inhabited by Chichimecas, the so-called Guachichiles and this was a system devised by Martín Enríquez de Almanza following the strategy that had been developing in Spain throughout the Reconquista period. The latter was located on what are now Moctezuma and Victoria Streets, although some place it on the Calle 5 de Mayo at Moctezuma. This was a fortress whose purpose was the protection of the Valle de los Romero, geronimo de Orozco, following that order, looked for someone who would accept the kings order and found a man named Juan de Montoro in the city of Santa Maria de los Lagos. He accepted the assignment and, accompanied by other people, headed to the territory. It has been noted that it was called San Marcos originally, and finally, from June 2,1875, it was called the Villa of Our Lady of the Assumption of Aguas Calientes, later changing to the city of Aguascalientes, which remains its name today. In the act of its establishment, the Villa de San Marcos was awarded the highest mayoral jurisdiction under the Kingdom of New Galicia, as of December 4,1786, on the occasion of the issuance of the Ordinance of Mayors, it became a quartermaster sub-delegation. On April 24,1789, by order of the Superior Board of Royal Property, confusion has arisen regarding the exact date when Aguascalientes formally separated from the territory of Zacatecas. The second requirement not being completed, the constitutional congress convened again to develop the centralized constitution that would be known later as the Seven Laws, what can be said, since in the local constitution of Zacatecas of 1825, Aguascalientes was contemplated as a member of said state. Subsequently, on May 18,1847, amendments were approved to the Constitution of 1824 and that brought about a war between Aguascalientes and Zacatecas, bringing as a consequence that Zacatecas would strengthen the partitions, now municipalities, of Cavillo and Rincon de Romos. In July 1848, Aguascalientes accepted the annexation to Zacatecas. Entering on the strength of constitution, on September 16,1857. Jesús Terán Peredo reclaimed his post as governor of the state
27.
Ottawa
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Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It stands on the bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of southern Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, the two form the core of the Ottawa–Gatineau census metropolitan area and the National Capital Region. The 2016 census reported a population of 934,243, making it the fourth-largest city in Canada, the City of Ottawa reported that the city had an estimated population of 960,754 as of December 2015. Founded in 1826 as Bytown, and incorporated as Ottawa in 1855, the city name Ottawa was chosen in reference to the Ottawa River nearby, the name of which is derived from the Algonquin Odawa, meaning to trade. The city is the most educated in Canada, and is home to a number of post-secondary, research, and cultural institutions, including the National Arts Centre, Ottawa also has the highest standard of living in the nation and low unemployment. It ranked second out of 150 worldwide in the Numbeo quality of life index 2014–2015, with the draining of the Champlain Sea around ten thousand years ago the Ottawa Valley became habitable. The area was used for wild harvesting, hunting, fishing, trade, travel. The Ottawa river valley has archaeological sites with arrow heads, pottery, the area has three major rivers that meet, making it an important trade and travel area for thousands of years. The Algonquins called the Ottawa River Kichi Sibi or Kichissippi meaning Great River or Grand River, Étienne Brûlé, the first European to travel up the Ottawa River, passed by Ottawa in 1610 on his way to the Great Lakes. Three years later, Samuel de Champlain wrote about the waterfalls of the area and about his encounters with the Algonquins, the early explorers and traders were later followed by many missionaries. The first maps of the area used the word Ottawa to name the river, philemon Wright, a New Englander, created the first settlement in the area on 7 March 1800 on the north side of the river, across from Ottawa in Hull. He, with five other families and twenty-five labourers, set about to create a community called Wrightsville. Wright pioneered the Ottawa Valley timber trade by transporting timber by river from the Ottawa Valley to Quebec City, the following year, the town would soon be named after British military engineer Colonel John By who was responsible for the entire Rideau Waterway construction project. Colonel By set up military barracks on the site of todays Parliament Hill and he also laid out the streets of the town and created two distinct neighbourhoods named Upper Town west of the canal and Lower Town east of the canal. Similar to its Upper Canada and Lower Canada namesakes, historically Upper Town was predominantly English speaking and Protestant whereas Lower Town was predominantly French, Irish, bytowns population grew to 1,000 as the Rideau Canal was being completed in 1832. In 1855 Bytown was renamed Ottawa and incorporated as a city, William Pittman Lett was installed as the first city clerk guiding it through 36 years of development. On New Years Eve 1857, Queen Victoria, as a symbolic, in reality, Prime Minister John A. Macdonald had assigned this selection process to the Executive Branch of the Government, as previous attempts to arrive at a consensus had ended in deadlock
28.
Ontario
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Ontario, one of the 13 provinces and territories of Canada, is located in east-central Canada. It is Canadas most populous province by a margin, accounting for nearly 40 percent of all Canadians. Ontario is fourth-largest in total area when the territories of the Northwest Territories and it is home to the nations capital city, Ottawa, and the nations most populous city, Toronto. There is only about 1 km of land made up of portages including Height of Land Portage on the Minnesota border. Ontario is sometimes divided into two regions, Northern Ontario and Southern Ontario. The great majority of Ontarios population and arable land is located in the south, in contrast, the larger, northern part of Ontario is sparsely populated with cold winters and is heavily forested. The province is named after Lake Ontario, a thought to be derived from Ontarí, io, a Huron word meaning great lake, or possibly skanadario. Ontario has about 250,000 freshwater lakes, the province consists of three main geographical regions, The thinly populated Canadian Shield in the northwestern and central portions, which comprises over half the land area of Ontario. Although this area mostly does not support agriculture, it is rich in minerals and in part covered by the Central and Midwestern Canadian Shield forests, studded with lakes, Northern Ontario is subdivided into two sub-regions, Northwestern Ontario and Northeastern Ontario. The virtually unpopulated Hudson Bay Lowlands in the north and northeast, mainly swampy. Southern Ontario which is further sub-divided into four regions, Central Ontario, Eastern Ontario, Golden Horseshoe, the highest point is Ishpatina Ridge at 693 metres above sea level located in Temagami, Northeastern Ontario. In the south, elevations of over 500 m are surpassed near Collingwood, above the Blue Mountains in the Dundalk Highlands, the Carolinian forest zone covers most of the southwestern region of the province. A well-known geographic feature is Niagara Falls, part of the Niagara Escarpment, the Saint Lawrence Seaway allows navigation to and from the Atlantic Ocean as far inland as Thunder Bay in Northwestern Ontario. Northern Ontario occupies roughly 87 percent of the area of the province. Point Pelee is a peninsula of Lake Erie in southwestern Ontario that is the southernmost extent of Canadas mainland, Pelee Island and Middle Island in Lake Erie extend slightly farther. All are south of 42°N – slightly farther south than the border of California. The climate of Ontario varies by season and location, the effects of these major air masses on temperature and precipitation depend mainly on latitude, proximity to major bodies of water and to a small extent, terrain relief. In general, most of Ontarios climate is classified as humid continental, Ontario has three main climatic regions
29.
Tail
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The tail is the section at the rear end of an animals body, in general, the term refers to a distinct, flexible appendage to the torso. It is the part of the body that corresponds roughly to the sacrum and coccyx in mammals, reptiles, tailed objects are sometimes referred to as caudate and the part of the body associated with or proximal to the tail are given the adjective caudal. Animal tails are used in a variety of ways and they provide a source of locomotion for fish and some other forms of marine life. Many land animals use their tails to brush away flies and other biting insects, tails are also used for social signaling. Some species tails are armored, and some, such as those of scorpions, some species of lizard can detach their tails from their bodies. This can help them to escape predators, which are either distracted by the wriggling, tails cast in this manner generally grow back over time, though the replacement is typically darker in colour than the original. Most birds tails end in long feathers called rectrices and these feathers are used as a rudder, helping the bird steer and maneuver in flight, they also help the bird to balance while it is perched. In some species—such as birds of paradise, lyrebirds, and most notably peafowl—modified tail feathers play an important role in courtship displays, the extra-stiff tail feathers of other species, including woodpeckers and woodcreepers, allow them to brace themselves firmly against tree trunks. The tails of grazing animals, such as horses, are used both to sweep away insects and positioned or moved in ways that indicate the physical or emotional state. Human embryos have a tail measures about one-sixth of the size of the embryo itself. As the embryo develops into a fetus, the tail is absorbed by the growing body, humans have a tail bone attached to the pelvis, formed of fused vertebrae, usually four, at the bottom of the vertebral column. Rump Empennage, the tail of an aircraft
30.
American beaver
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The North American beaver is one of two extant beaver species. It is native to North America and introduced to Patagonia in South America, other vernacular names, including American beaver and Canadian beaver, distinguish this species from the other extant beaver species, Castor fiber, which is native to Eurasia. The North American beaver is an animal symbol of Canada. Adults usually weigh from 11 to 32 kg, with 20 kg being typical, the head-and-body length is 74–90 cm, with the tail adding a further 20–35 cm. Very old individuals can exceed normal sizes, weighing more than 40 kg or even as much as 50 kg. Like the capybara, the beaver is semiaquatic, the beaver has many traits suited to this lifestyle. It has a large, flat, paddle-shaped tail and large, the unwebbed front paws are smaller, with claws. The eyes are covered by a membrane which allows the beaver to see under water. The nostrils and ears are sealed while submerged, a thick layer of fat under its skin insulates the beaver from its coldwater environment. The beavers fur consists of long, coarse hairs and short. The fur has a range of colours, but usually is dark brown, scent glands near the genitals secrete an oily substance known as castoreum, which the beaver uses to waterproof its fur. Physician naturalist Edgar Alexander Mearns 1907 report of beaver on the Sonora River may be the southernmost extent of the range of this North American aquatic mammal. However, beavers have also been reported both historically and contemporaneously in Mexico on the Colorado River, Bavispe River, and San Bernardino River, beavers are active mainly at night. They are excellent swimmers and may remain submerged up to 15 minutes, more vulnerable on land, they tend to remain in the water as much as possible. They use their flat, scaly tail both to signal danger by slapping the surface of the water and as a location for fat storage. They construct their homes, or lodges, out of sticks, twigs, rocks, and mud in lakes, streams and these lodges may be surrounded by water, or touching land, including burrows dug into river banks. Beavers are well known for building dams across streams and constructing their lodges in the ponds which form. When building in a pond, the beavers first make a pile of sticks and then eat out one or more underwater entrances, the first is used for drying off
31.
Skunk
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Skunks are mammals known for their ability to spray a liquid with a strong odor. Different species of skunk vary in appearance from black-and-white to brown or cream colored, 1630s, squunck, from a southern New England Algonquian language seganku, from Proto-Algonquian */šeka, kwa/, from */šek-/ to urinate + */-a, kw/ fox. Skunk has historic use as an insult, attested from 1841, skunk cabbage is attested from 1751, earlier skunkweed. In 1634, a skunk was described in the Jesuit Relations, The other is a low animal, I mention it here, not on account of its excellence, but to make of it a symbol of sin. I have seen three or four of them and it has black fur, quite beautiful and shining, and has upon its back two perfectly white stripes, which join near the neck and tail, making an oval which adds greatly to their grace. The tail is bushy and well furnished with hair, like the tail of a Fox and it is more white than black, and, at the first glance, you would say, especially when it walks, that it ought to be called Jupiters little dog. But it is so stinking, and casts so foul an odor, no sewer ever smelled so bad. I would not have believed it if I had not smelled it myself, I believe the sin smelled by Saint Catherine de Sienne must have had the same vile odor. Skunk species vary in size from about 15.6 to 37 in long and they have moderately elongated bodies with relatively short, well-muscled legs and long front claws for digging. Although the most common fur color is black and white, some skunks are brown or grey, all skunks are striped, even from birth. They may have a thick stripe across back and tail. Some also have stripes on their legs, skunks are omnivorous, eating both plant and animal material and changing their diets as the seasons change. They eat insects and larvae, earthworms, grubs, rodents, lizards, salamanders, frogs, snakes, birds, moles and they also commonly eat berries, roots, leaves, grasses, fungi and nuts. In settled areas, skunks also seek garbage left by humans, less often, skunks may be found acting as scavengers, eating bird and rodent carcasses left by cats or other animals. Pet owners, particularly those of cats, may experience a skunk finding its way into a garage or basement where pet food is kept, skunks commonly dig holes in lawns in search of grubs and worms. Skunks are one of the predators of the honeybee, relying on their thick fur to protect them from stings. The skunk scratches at the front of the beehive and eats the guard bees that come out to investigate, mother skunks are known to teach this behavior to their young. Skunks are crepuscular and solitary animals when not breeding, though in the parts of their range
32.
Enantiomer
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A single chiral atom or similar structural feature in a compound causes that compound to have two possible structures which are non-superposable, each a mirror image of the other. Each member of the pair is termed an enantiomorph, the property is termed enantiomerism. The presence of multiple features in a given compound increases the number of geometric forms possible. Enantiopure compounds refer to samples having, within the limits of detection and they are sometimes called optical isomers for this reason. Enantiomer members often have different chemical reactions with other enantiomer substances, since many biological molecules are enantiomers, there is sometimes a marked difference in the effects of two enantiomers on biological organisms. Owing to this discovery, drugs composed of one enantiomer can be developed to enhance the pharmacological efficacy. An example is eszopiclone, which is enantiopure and therefore administered in doses that are exactly 1/2 of the older, in the case of eszopiclone, the S enantiomer is responsible for all the desired effects, while the other enantiomer seems to be inactive. A dose of 2 mg of zopiclone must be administered to produce the therapeutic effect as 1 mg of eszopiclone. In chemical synthesis of enantiomeric substances, non-enantiomeric precursors inevitably produce racemic mixtures, in the absence of an effective enantiomeric environment, separation of a racemic mixture into its enantiomeric components is impossible. The R/S system is an important nomenclature system for denoting distinct enantiomers, another system is based on prefix notation for optical activity, - and - or d- and l-. The Latin for left and right is laevus and dexter, respectively, left and right have always had moral connotations, and the Latin words for these are sinister and rectus. The English word right is a cognate of rectus and this is the origin of the D, L and S, R notations, and the employment of prefixes levo- and dextro- in common names. Most compounds that one or more asymmetric carbon atoms show enantiomerism. There are a few compounds that do have asymmetric carbon atoms. An example of such an enantiomer is the sedative thalidomide, which was sold in a number of countries across the world from 1957 until 1961 and it was withdrawn from the market when it was found to cause of birth defects. One enantiomer caused the desirable effects, while the other, unavoidably present in equal quantities. The herbicide mecoprop is a mixture, with the --enantiomer possessing the herbicidal activity. Another example is the antidepressant drugs escitalopram and citalopram, citalopram is a racemate, escitalopram is a pure enantiomer
33.
Alaska
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Alaska is a U. S. state located in the northwest extremity of North America. To the north are the Chukchi and Beaufort seas–the southern parts of the Arctic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean lies to the south and southwest. Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area, the 3rd least populous, approximately half of Alaskas residents live within the Anchorage metropolitan area. Alaskas economy is dominated by the fishing, natural gas, military bases and tourism are also a significant part of the economy. The United States purchased Alaska from the Russian Empire on March 30,1867, the area went through several administrative changes before becoming organized as a territory on May 11,1912. It was admitted as the 49th state of the U. S. on January 3,1959, the name Alaska was introduced in the Russian colonial period when it was used to refer to the peninsula. It was derived from an Aleut, or Unangam idiom, which refers to the mainland of Alaska. Literally, it means object to which the action of the sea is directed, Alaska is the northernmost and westernmost state in the United States and has the most easterly longitude in the United States because the Aleutian Islands extend into the Eastern Hemisphere. Alaska is the only non-contiguous U. S. state on continental North America and it is technically part of the continental U. S. but is sometimes not included in colloquial use, Alaska is not part of the contiguous U. S. often called the Lower 48. The capital city, Juneau, is situated on the mainland of the North American continent but is not connected by road to the rest of the North American highway system. Alaskas territorial waters touch Russias territorial waters in the Bering Strait, as the Russian Big Diomede Island, Alaska has a longer coastline than all the other U. S. states combined. Alaska is the largest state in the United States by total area at 663,268 square miles, over twice the size of Texas, Alaska is larger than all but 18 sovereign countries. Counting territorial waters, Alaska is larger than the area of the next three largest states, Texas, California, and Montana. It is also larger than the area of the 22 smallest U. S. states. Also referred to as the Panhandle or Inside Passage, this is the region of Alaska closest to the rest of the United States, as such, this was where most of the initial non-indigenous settlement occurred in the years following the Alaska Purchase. The region is dominated by the Alexander Archipelago as well as the Tongass National Forest and it contains the state capital Juneau, the former capital Sitka, and Ketchikan, at one time Alaskas largest city. The Alaska Marine Highway provides a vital transportation link throughout the area. The Interior is the largest region of Alaska, much of it is uninhabited wilderness, Fairbanks is the only large city in the region
34.
Conifer
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The Pinophyta, also known as Coniferophyta or Coniferae, or commonly as conifers, are a division of vascular land plants containing a single class, Pinopsida. They are gymnosperms, cone-bearing seed plants, all extant conifers are perennial woody plants with secondary growth. The great majority are trees, though a few are shrubs, examples include cedars, Douglas firs, cypresses, firs, junipers, kauri, larches, pines, hemlocks, redwoods, spruces, and yews. As of 1998, the division Pinophyta was estimated to contain eight families,68 genera, although the total number of species is relatively small, conifers are ecologically important. They are the dominant plants over large areas of land, most notably the taiga of the Northern Hemisphere, boreal conifers have many wintertime adaptations. The narrow conical shape of northern conifers, and their downward-drooping limbs, many of them seasonally alter their biochemistry to make them more resistant to freezing. While tropical rainforests have more biodiversity and turnover, the conifer forests of the world represent the largest terrestrial carbon sink. Conifers are of economic value for softwood lumber and paper production. The earliest conifers in the record date to the late Carboniferous period, possibly arising from Cordaites. Pinophytes, Cycadophytes, and Ginkgophytes all developed at this time, an important adaptation of these gymnosperms was allowing plants to live without being so dependent on water. Other adaptations are pollen and the seed, which allows the embryo to be transported and developed elsewhere, Conifers appear to be one of the taxa that benefited from the Permian–Triassic extinction event, and were the dominant land plants of the Mesozoic. They were overtaken by the plants, which first appeared in the Cretaceous. They were the food of herbivorous dinosaurs, and their resins and poisons would have given protection against herbivores. Reproductive features of modern conifers had evolved by the end of the Mesozoic era, Conifer is a Latin word, a compound of conus and ferre, meaning the one that bears cone. A descriptive name in use for the conifers is Coniferae. Alternatively, descriptive botanical names may also be used at any rank above family and this means that if conifers are considered a division, they may be called Pinophyta or Coniferae. As a class they may be called Pinopsida or Coniferae, as an order they may be called Pinales or Coniferae or Coniferales. Conifers are the largest and economically most important component group of the gymnosperms, the division Pinophyta consists of just one class, Pinopsida, which includes both living and fossil taxa
35.
Tundra
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In physical geography, tundra is a type of biome where the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons. The term tundra comes through Russian тундра from the Kildin Sami word tūndâr uplands, there are three types of tundra, Arctic tundra, alpine tundra, and Antarctic tundra. In tundra, the vegetation is composed of shrubs, sedges and grasses, mosses. Scattered trees grow in tundra regions. The ecotone between the tundra and the forest is known as the line or timberline. Arctic tundra occurs in the far Northern Hemisphere, north of the taiga belt, the word tundra usually refers only to the areas where the subsoil is permafrost, or permanently frozen soil. Permafrost tundra includes vast areas of northern Russia and Canada, the polar tundra is home to several peoples who are mostly nomadic reindeer herders, such as the Nganasan and Nenets in the permafrost area. Arctic tundra contains areas of landscape and is frozen for much of the year. The soil there is frozen from 25–90 cm down, and it is impossible for trees to grow, instead, bare and sometimes rocky land can only support low growing plants such as moss, heath, and lichen. There are two seasons, winter and summer, in the polar tundra areas. During the winter it is cold and dark, with the average temperature around −28 °C. However, extreme temperatures on the tundra do not drop as low as those experienced in taiga areas further south. During the summer, temperatures rise somewhat, and the top layer of seasonally-frozen soil melts, the tundra is covered in marshes, lakes, bogs and streams during the warm months. Generally daytime temperatures during the rise to about 12 °C. Arctic tundras are sometimes the subject of conservation programs. In Canada and Russia, many of areas are protected through a national Biodiversity Action Plan. Tundra tends to be windy, with winds often blowing upwards of 50–100 km/h, however, in terms of precipitation, it is desert-like, with only about 15–25 cm falling per year. Although precipitation is light, evaporation is also relatively minimal, there is a natural pattern of accumulation of fuel and wildfire which varies depending on the nature of vegetation and terrain
36.
Desert
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A desert is a barren area of land where little precipitation occurs and consequently living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to the processes of denudation, about one third of the land surface of the world is arid or semi-arid. This includes much of the regions where little precipitation occurs. Deserts can be classified by the amount of precipitation falls, by the temperature that prevails. Deserts are formed by weathering processes as large variations in temperature between day and night put strains on the rocks which consequently break in pieces, although rain seldom occurs in deserts, there are occasional downpours that can result in flash floods. Rain falling on hot rocks can cause them to shatter and the resulting fragments and this picks up particles of sand and dust and wafts them aloft in sand or dust storms. Wind-blown sand grains striking any solid object in their path can abrade the surface, rocks are smoothed down, and the wind sorts sand into uniform deposits. The grains end up as level sheets of sand or are piled high in billowing sand dunes, other deserts are flat, stony plains where all the fine material has been blown away and the surface consists of a mosaic of smooth stones. These areas are known as desert pavements and little further erosion takes place, other desert features include rock outcrops, exposed bedrock and clays once deposited by flowing water. Temporary lakes may form and salt pans may be left when waters evaporate, there may be underground sources of water in the form of springs and seepages from aquifers. Where these are found, oases can occur, plants and animals living in the desert need special adaptations to survive in the harsh environment. Plants tend to be tough and wiry with small or no leaves, water-resistant cuticles, some annual plants germinate, bloom and die in the course of a few weeks after rainfall while other long-lived plants survive for years and have deep root systems able to tap underground moisture. Animals need to cool and find enough food and water to survive. Many are nocturnal and stay in the shade or underground during the heat of the day and they tend to be efficient at conserving water, extracting most of their needs from their food and concentrating their urine. Some animals remain in a state of dormancy for long periods and they then reproduce rapidly while conditions are favorable before returning to dormancy. People have struggled to live in deserts and the surrounding lands for millennia. Nomads have moved their flocks and herds to wherever grazing is available, the cultivation of semi-arid regions encourages erosion of soil and is one of the causes of increased desertification. Many trade routes have been forged across deserts, especially across the Sahara Desert, large numbers of slaves were also taken northwards across the Sahara
37.
Hibernation
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Hibernation is a state of inactivity and metabolic depression in endotherms. Hibernation refers to a season of heterothermy that is characterized by low temperature, slow breathing and heart rate. Many experts believe that the processes of daily torpor and hibernation form a continuum, the equivalent during the summer months is known as aestivation. Some reptile species are said to brumate, or undergo brumation, some insects, such as the wasp Polistes exclamans, hibernate by aggregating together in groups in protected places called hibernacula. Often associated with low temperatures, the function of hibernation is to conserve energy during a period when sufficient food is unavailable, to achieve this energy saving, an endotherm will first decrease its metabolic rate, which then decreases body temperature. Hibernation may last several days, weeks, or months depending on the species, ambient temperature, time of year, before entering hibernation, animals need to store enough energy to last through the entire winter. Larger species become hyperphagic and eat a large amount of food, in many small species, food caching replaces eating and becoming fat. Some species of mammals hibernate while gestating young, which are born while the mother hibernates or shortly afterwards. For example, the polar bear goes into hibernation during the cold winter months to give birth to her offspring. She loses 15–27% of her weight and uses stored fats for energy during times of food scarcity. It is evident that pregnant female polar bears significantly increase body mass prior to hibernation, the fat accumulation prior to hibernation in female polar bears enables them to provide a sufficient and warm, nurturing environment for their newborns. Malagasy winter temperatures sometimes rise to over 30 °C, so hibernation is not exclusively an adaptation to low ambient temperatures, dausmann found that hypometabolism in hibernating animals is not necessarily coupled to a low body temperature. Hibernating bears are able to recycle their proteins and urine, allowing both to stop urinating for months and to avoid muscle atrophy. Obligate hibernators are animals that spontaneously, and annually, enter hibernation regardless of ambient temperature and these undergo what has been traditionally called hibernation, the physiological state where the body temperature drops to near ambient temperature, and heart and respiration rates slow drastically. The cause and purpose of these arousals is still not clear, the question of why hibernators may experience the periodic arousals has plagued researchers for decades, and while there is still no clear-cut explanation, there are myriad hypotheses on the topic. One favored hypothesis is that hibernators build a sleep debt during hibernation and this has been supported by evidence in the Arctic ground squirrel. Another theory states that the periods of high body temperature during hibernation are used by the animal to restore its available energy sources. Yet another theory states that the frequent returns to high body temperature allow mammals to initiate an immune response, historically there was a question of whether or not bears truly hibernate, since they experience only a modest decline in body temperature compared with what other hibernators undergo
38.
Aposematism
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Aposematism was a new term coined by Edward Bagnall Poulton for Alfred Russel Wallaces concept of warning coloration. It describes a family of antipredator adaptations in which a signal is associated with the unprofitability of a prey item to potential predators. Aposematism always involves an advertising signal, the warning signal may take the form of conspicuous animal coloration, sounds, odours or other perceivable characteristics. Aposematic signals are beneficial for both the predator and prey, since both avoid potential harm, aposematism is exploited in Müllerian mimicry, where species with strong defences evolve to resemble one another. By mimicking similarly coloured species, the signal to predators is shared. Warning signals do not necessarily require that a species actually possesses chemical or physical defences to deter predators, the evolution of a warning signal by a mimicking species that resembles a species that possesses strong defences is known as Batesian mimicry. The term aposematism was coined by the English zoologist Edward Bagnall Poulton in his 1890 book The Colours of Animals and he based the term on the Ancient Greek words ἀπό apo away, ση̑μα sēma sign, referring to signs that warn other animals away. The function of aposematism is to prevent attack, by warning potential predators that the animal has defences such as being unpalatable or poisonous. The easily detected warning is a defence mechanism, and the non-visible defences are secondary. Aposematic signals are primarily visual, using bright colours and high-contrast patterns such as stripes, Warning signals are honest indications of noxious prey, because conspicuousness evolves in tandem with noxiousness. Thus, the brighter and more conspicuous the organism, the more toxic it usually is, the most common and effective colours are red, yellow, black and white. These colours provide strong contrast with green foliage, resist changes in shadow and lighting, have strong contrast, are highly chromatic, Warning colouration evolves in response to background, light conditions, and predator vision. Visible signals may be accompanied by odours, sounds or behaviour to provide a signal which is more effectively detected by predators. Unpalatability, broadly understood, can be created in a variety of ways, tiger moths advertise their unpalatability by either producing ultrasonic noises which warn bats to avoid them, or by warning postures which expose brightly coloured body parts, or exposing eyespots. Velvet ants such as Dasymutilla occidentalis both have bright colours and produce audible noises when grabbed, which serve to reinforce the warning, among mammals, predators can be dissuaded when a smaller animal is aggressive and able to defend itself, as for example in honey badgers. Aposematism is widespread in insects, but less so in vertebrates, being confined to a smaller number of reptile, amphibian. Perhaps the most numerous aposematic vertebrates are the dart frogs. Some plants are thought to employ aposematism to warn herbivores of unpalatable chemicals or physical defences such as prickled leaves or thorns, many insects, such as cinnabar moth caterpillars, acquire toxic chemicals from their host plants
39.
Fisher (animal)
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The fisher is a small carnivorous mammal native to North America. It is a member of the family and a part of the marten genus. The fisher is closely related to but larger than the American marten, the fisher is a forest-dwelling creature whose range covers much of the boreal forest in Canada to the northern United States. Names derived from aboriginal languages include pekan, pequam, wejack and it is also called a fisher cat, although it is not a feline. Adult males are 90 to 120 cm long and weigh 3.5 to 6 kilograms, adult females are 75 to 95 cm long and weigh 2 to 2.5 kg. The fur of the fisher varies seasonally, being denser and glossier in the winter, during the summer, the color becomes more mottled, as the fur goes through a moulting cycle. The fisher prefers to hunt in full forest, though an agile climber, it spends most of its time on the forest floor, where it prefers to forage around fallen trees. An omnivore, the fisher feeds on a variety of small animals and occasionally on fruits. It prefers the snowshoe hare and is one of the few able to prey successfully on porcupines. Despite its common name, the fisher seldom eats fish, the reproductive cycle of the fisher lasts almost a year. Female fishers give birth to a litter of three or four kits in the spring and they nurse and care for their kits until late summer, when they are old enough to set out on their own. Females enter estrus shortly after giving birth and leave the den to find a mate, implantation of the blastocyst is delayed until the following spring, when they give birth and the cycle is renewed. Fishers have few predators besides humans and they have been trapped since the 18th century for their fur. Their pelts were in demand that they were extirpated from several parts of the United States in the early part of the 20th century. Conservation and protection measures have allowed the species to rebound, in the 1920s, when pelt prices were high, some fur farmers attempted to raise fishers. However, their unusual delayed reproduction made breeding difficult, when pelt prices fell in the late 1940s, most fisher farming ended. While fishers usually avoid human contact, encroachments into forest habitats have resulted in some conflicts, There are anecdotal reports of fishers attacking pets and, in a 2009 case in Rhode Island, a 6-year-old boy. In 2014, a 12-year-old boy was attacked by what was believed to be a fisher in Massachusetts, despite the name fisher, the animal is not known to eat fish
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Cat
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The domestic cat is a small, typically furry, carnivorous mammal. They are often called house cats when kept as pets or simply cats when there is no need to distinguish them from other felids. Cats are often valued by humans for companionship and for their ability to hunt vermin, there are more than 70 cat breeds, though different associations proclaim different numbers according to their standards. Cats are similar in anatomy to the felids, with a strong flexible body, quick reflexes, sharp retractable claws. Cat senses fit a crepuscular and predatory ecological niche, cats can hear sounds too faint or too high in frequency for human ears, such as those made by mice and other small animals. They can see in near darkness, like most other mammals, cats have poorer color vision and a better sense of smell than humans. Cats, despite being solitary hunters, are a species and cat communication includes the use of a variety of vocalizations. Cats have a high breeding rate, under controlled breeding, they can be bred and shown as registered pedigree pets, a hobby known as cat fancy. Failure to control the breeding of pet cats by neutering, as well as the abandonment of former household pets, has resulted in numbers of feral cats worldwide. In certain areas outside cats native range, this has contributed, along with destruction and other factors. Cats have been known to extirpate a bird species within specific regions, a genetic study in 2007 concluded that domestic cats are descended from Near Eastern wildcats, having diverged around 8,000 BC in the Middle East. As of a 2007 study, cats are the second most popular pet in the US by number of pets owned, in a 2010 study they were ranked the third most popular pet in the UK, after fish and dogs, with around 8 million being owned. The domestic cat is believed to have evolved from the Near Eastern wildcat, the felids are a rapidly evolving family of mammals that share a common ancestor only 10–15 million years ago and include lions, tigers, cougars and many others. Within this family, domestic cats are part of the genus Felis, members of the genus are found worldwide and include the jungle cat of southeast Asia, European wildcat, African wildcat, the Chinese mountain cat, and the Arabian sand cat, among others. The domestic cat was first classified as Felis catus by Carl Linnaeus in the 10th edition of his Systema Naturae published in 1758, because of modern phylogenetics, domestic cats are usually regarded as another subspecies of the wildcat, F. silvestris. This has resulted in mixed usage of the terms, as the cat can be called by its subspecies name. Wildcats have also referred to as various subspecies of F. catus, but in 2003. The most common name in use for the cat remains F. catus
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Mustelidae
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The Mustelidae are a family of carnivorous mammals, including the weasel, badger, otter, marten, ferret, mink, stoat, and wolverine. Mustelids are diverse and the largest family in the order Carnivora, the internal classification is still disputed, with rival proposals containing between two and eight subfamilies. One study, published in 2008, questions the long-accepted Mustelinae subfamily, mustelids vary greatly in size and behaviour. The least weasel is not much larger than a mouse, while the giant otter can measure up to 1.7 m in length and sea otters can exceed 45 kg in weight. The wolverine can crush bones as thick as the femur of a moose to get at the marrow, the sea otter uses rocks to break open shellfish to eat. The marten is largely arboreal, while the badger digs extensive networks of tunnels, some mustelids have been domesticated, the ferret and the tayra are kept as pets, or as working animals for hunting or vermin control. Others have been important in the fur trade—the mink is often raised for its fur, as well as being one of the most species-rich families in the order Carnivora, the family Mustelidae is one of the oldest. Mustelid-like forms first appeared about 40 million years ago, roughly coinciding with the appearance of rodents, the direct ancestors of the modern mustelids first appeared about 15 million years ago. Within a large range of variation, the mustelids exhibit some common characteristics and they are typically small animals with short legs, short, round ears, and thick fur. Most mustelids are solitary, nocturnal animals, and are active year-round, with the exception of the sea otter, they have anal scent glands that produce a strong-smelling secretion the animals use for sexual signaling and for marking territory. Most mustelid reproduction involves embryonic diapause, the embryo does not immediately implant in the uterus, but remains dormant for some time. No development takes place as long as the embryo remains unattached to the uterine lining, as a result, the normal gestation period is extended, sometimes up to a year. This allows the young to be born under more favorable environmental conditions, reproduction has a large energy cost and it is to a females benefit to have available food and mild weather. The young are likely to survive if birth occurs after previous offspring have been weaned. Mustelids are predominantly carnivorous, although some eat vegetable matter at times, while not all mustelids share an identical dentition, they all possess teeth adapted for eating flesh, including the presence of shearing carnassials. With variation between species, the most common formula is 3.1.3.13.1.3.2. Several members of the family are aquatic to varying degrees, ranging from the semiaquatic mink, to the river otters, the sea otter is one of the few nonprimate mammals known to use a tool while foraging. It uses anvil stones to open the shellfish that form a significant part of its diet
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Wolverine
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The wolverine, Gulo gulo, also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, skunk bear, or quickhatch, is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a stocky and muscular carnivore, more resembling a small bear than other mustelids. The wolverine, an animal, has a reputation for ferocity and strength out of proportion to its size. Its population has declined since the 19th century owing to trapping, range reduction. The wolverine is now absent from the southern end of its European range. Genetic evidence suggests that the wolverine is most closely related to the tayra and martens, within the Gulo genus, a clear separation occurs between two subspecies, the Old World form Gulo gulo gulo and the New World form G. g. luscus. Some authors had described as many as four additional North American subspecies, including ones limited to Vancouver Island, however, the most currently accepted taxonomy recognizes either the two continental subspecies or recognize G. gulo as a single Holarctic taxon. Anatomically, the wolverine is a stocky and muscular animal, with short legs, broad and rounded head, small eyes and short rounded ears, it more closely resembles a bear than it does other mustelids. Though its legs are short, its large, five-toed paws with claws and plantigrade posture enable them to climb up and over steep cliffs, trees. The males are as much as 30% larger than the females, shoulder height is reported from 30 to 45 cm. Wolverines have thick, dark, oily fur which is highly hydrophobic and this has led to its traditional popularity among hunters and trappers as a lining in jackets and parkas in Arctic conditions. A light-silvery facial mask is distinct in some individuals, and a buff stripe runs laterally from the shoulders along the side. Some individuals display prominent white patches on their throats or chests. Like many other mustelids, it has potent anal scent glands used for marking territory, the pungent odor has given rise to the nicknames skunk bear and nasty cat. Wolverines, like other mustelids, possess a special upper molar in the back of the mouth that is rotated 90 degrees and this special characteristic allows wolverines to tear off meat from prey or carrion that has been frozen solid. Wolverines are considered to be primarily scavengers, a majority of the wolverines sustenance is derived from carrion, on which they depend almost exclusively in winter and early spring. Wolverines may find themselves, feed on it after the predator is done feeding or simply take it from another predator. Wolverines are also known to follow wolf and lynx trails, purportedly with the intent of scavenging the remains of their kills, whether eating live prey or carrion, the wolverines feeding style appears voracious, leading to the nickname of glutton
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Coyote
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The coyote is a canid native to North America. It is smaller than its relative, the gray wolf, and slightly smaller than its other close relatives, the eastern wolf. It fills much of the ecological niche as the golden jackal does in Eurasia, though it is larger. The species is versatile and able to adapt to environments modified by humans, as human activity has altered the landscape, the coyotes range has expanded. In 2013, coyotes were sighted in eastern Panama for the first time, the coyote is more closely related to the common ancestor of wolves and other canids than the gray wolf. As of 2005,19 coyote subspecies are recognized, the average male coyote weighs 8 to 20 kg and the average female 7 to 18 kg. Their fur color is light gray and red or fulvous interspersed with black and white. It is highly flexible in organization, living either in a family unit or in loosely knit packs of unrelated individuals. The coyotes characteristic vocalization is a made by solitary individuals. Humans aside, cougars and gray wolves are the only serious enemies. Nevertheless, coyotes do sometimes mate with gray, eastern, or red wolves, Most recent studies show that most wolves contain some level of coyote DNA. As with other figures, the coyote uses deception and humor to rebel against social conventions. The animal was especially respected in Mesoamerican cosmology as a symbol of military might, after the European colonization of the Americas, it was reviled in Anglo-American culture as a cowardly and untrustworthy animal. Unlike wolves, which have undergone an improvement of their public image, Coyote males average 8 to 20 kg in weight, while females average 7 to 18 kg, though size varies geographically. Northern subspecies, which average 18 kg, tend to larger than the southern subspecies of Mexico. Body length ranges on average from 1.0 to 1.35 m, the largest coyote on record was a male killed near Afton, Wyoming, on November 19,1937, which measured 1.5 m from nose to tail, and weighed 34 kg. Scent glands are located at the side of the base of the tail and are a bluish-black color. The color and texture of the fur varies somewhat geographically
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Gray wolf
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The gray wolf or grey wolf, also known as the timber wolf or western wolf, is a canine native to the wilderness and remote areas of Eurasia and North America. It is the largest extant member of its family, with males averaging 43–45 kg, like the red wolf, it is distinguished from other Canis species by its larger size and less pointed features, particularly on the ears and muzzle. Its winter fur is long and bushy, and predominantly a mottled gray in color, although pure white, red. As of 2005,37 subspecies of C. lupus are recognised by MSW3 and it is nonetheless closely related enough to smaller Canis species, such as the eastern wolf, coyote, and golden jackal to produce fertile hybrids. It is an animal, travelling in nuclear families consisting of a mated pair. The gray wolf is typically an apex predator throughout its range, with only humans and it feeds primarily on large ungulates, though it also eats smaller animals, livestock, carrion, and garbage. The gray wolf is one of the worlds best known and well researched animals, although the fear of wolves is pervasive in many human societies, the majority of recorded attacks on people have been attributed to animals suffering from rabies. The English wolf stems from the Old English wulf, which is thought to be derived from the Proto-Germanic *wulfaz. The Latin lupus is a Sabine loanword, both derive from the Proto-Indo-European root *wlqwos/*lukwos. The species Canis lupus was first recorded by Carl Linnaeus in his publication Systema Naturae in 1758, the thirty-seven subspecies of Canis lupus are listed under the designated common name of wolf in Mammal Species of the World third edition that was published in 2005. The nominate subspecies is the Eurasian wolf, also known as the common wolf, the subspecies includes the domestic dog, dingo, eastern wolf and red wolf, but lists C. l. italicus and C. l. communis as synonyms of C. l. lupus. However, the classification of several as either species or subspecies has recently been challenged, ecological factors including habitat type, climate, prey specialization and predatory competition will greatly influence the wolfs genetic population structure and cranio-dental plasticity. The domestic dog is the most widely abundant large carnivore and a descendant from one of those now-extinct wolf populations, in 2013, a genetic study found that the wolf population in Europe was divided along a north-south axis and formed five major clusters. Three clusters were identified occupying southern and central Europe in Italy, the Carpathians, another two clusters were identified occupying north-central Europe and the Ukrainian steppe. The Italian wolf consisted of a population with low genetic diversity. Wolves from Croatia, Bulgaria, and Greece formed the Dinaric-Balkans cluster, the wolves from the Carpathians were more similar to the wolves from the Pontic-Caspian Steppe than they were to wolves from north-central Europe. These clusters may have been the result of expansion from glacial refugia, an adaptation to environments, and landscape fragmentation. These six wolf ecotypes were named West Forest, Boreal Forest, Arctic, High Arctic, Baffin, the studies found that precipitation and mean diurnal temperature range were the most influential variables
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Bear
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Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. Bears are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans, although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Northern Hemisphere and partially in the Southern Hemisphere. Bears are found on the continents of North America, South America, Europe, common characteristics of modern bears include large bodies with stocky legs, long snouts, small rounded ears, shaggy hair, plantigrade paws with five nonretractile claws, and short tails. While the polar bear is mostly carnivorous, and the giant panda feeds almost entirely on bamboo, with the exception of courting individuals and mothers with their young, bears are typically solitary animals. They may be diurnal or nocturnal and have an excellent sense of smell, despite their heavy build and awkward gait, they are adept runners, climbers, and swimmers. Bears use shelters, such as caves and logs, as their dens, most species occupy their dens during the winter for a period of hibernation. Bears have been hunted since prehistoric times for their meat and fur, they have used for bear-baiting and other forms of entertainment. With their powerful physical presence, they play a prominent role in the arts, mythology, in modern times, bears have come under pressure through encroachment on their habitats and illegal trade in bear parts, including the Asian bile bear market. The IUCN lists six species as vulnerable or endangered, and even least concern species. The poaching and international trade of these most threatened populations are prohibited, Bear taxon names such as Ursidae and Ursus come from Latin Ursus/Ursa, he-bear/she-bear. The female first name Ursula, originally derived from a Christian saints name, in Switzerland, the male first name Urs is especially popular, while the name of the canton and city of Bern is derived from Bär, German for bear. The Germanic name Bernard means bear-brave, bear-hardy, or bold bear, the Old English name Beowulf is a kenning, bee-wolf, for bear, in turn meaning a brave warrior. The family Ursidae is one of nine families in the suborder Caniformia, or doglike carnivorans, Bears closest living relatives are the pinnipeds, canids, and musteloids. Modern bears comprise eight species in three subfamilies, Ailuropodinae, Tremarctinae, and Ursinae, the earliest members of Ursidae belong to the extinct subfamily Amphicynodontinae, including Parictis and the slightly younger Allocyon, both from North America. These animals looked very different from bears, being small and raccoon-like in overall appearance. Parictis does not appear in Eurasia and Africa until the Miocene, european genera morphologically are very similar to Allocyon, and to the much younger American Kolponomos, are known from the Oligocene, including Amphicticeps and Amphicynodon. The raccoon-sized, dog-like Cephalogale is the member of the subfamily Hemicyoninae. The subfamily includes the younger genera Phoberocyon, and Plithocyon, a Cephalogale-like species gave rise to the genus Ursavus during the early Oligocene, this genus proliferated into many species in Asia and is ancestral to all living bears
