• Interesting Facts about Amphibians (3)
• Interesting Facts about Birds (22)
• Interesting Facts about Fishes (9)
• Interesting Facts about Mammals (48)
• Interesting Facts about Reptiles (16)

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Leafy Sea Dragon

DESCRIPTION: Particularly well camouflaged withelaborate, ornate skin filaments that hang from the head, body and tail makingthis animal virtually indistinguishable from the floating sea weed in which itlives. Usually green to yellow in color. The body is covered in protectivejointed plates instead of scales and long, sharp spines line its dorsal edge. FUN FACTS: The male sea dragon incubates thefertilized eggs in a specialized spongy textured brood patch on the ventralsurface of his tail. This area is composed of small cup-like indentations whicheach hold a single egg layed there by the female. It is during the transfer ofthe eggs from the female to the male that they are fertilized. Theapproximately 250 eggs remain attached until they hatch 4 to 6 weeks later. Seadragons are completely independent upon hatching. The young feed on the remainingyolk sac and then graduate to consuming zooplankton. Seadragons do not have any predators. Their combination of excellent camouflage,tough jointed plates and sharp dorsal spines offer adequate protection.Researchers have even observed sea dragons curling up to present predators withthe row of menacing spines.

Lizards

DESCRIPTION: Long reptile; most have legs (thoughthere are legless lizards); tail length and shape varies SIZE: Ranges from the 40 mm. Brookesia minima tothe 3 m long WEIGHT: Varies between species FUN FACTS: Their legs are not positioned like amammals, they stick out on each side and push the body along, undulating orwriggling. Of course the legless lizards move entirely by undulating movements,just as a snake does. Some lizards have a tail with weakenedvertebrae so it can break free and escape if caught by the tail. The tail canregenerate, though usually not to the same length and look of the originaltail. Geckoes are small lizards withflattened bodies and pads on their toes, enabling them to run on vertical andeven overhanging surfaces. The flying lizards of SoutheastAsia have extended ribs that support a membrane of skin. Byspreading the membranous skin out, the lizard is able to glide from one tree toanother. Chameleons are known for their abilityto change color. Communication is an important reason behind these colorchanges. Chameleons cannot display limitless colors and do not change colors ina camouflage response to their surroundings. Instead, their skin changes inresponse to temperature, light, and mood. TheGila monster and its close relative, the Mexican beaded lizard, are the onlytwo venomous lizards in the world. The venom glands are located in the lowerjaw. The venom is secreted through grooved teeth. Currently, there is notanti-venom for the Gila monster bite.

Nile Crocodiles

WEIGHT: Average of 148.5 kg DESCRIPTION: Large, lizard-shaped reptile with fourshort legs and a long muscular tail. The hide is rough and scaled. Juvenile Nile crocodiles are dark olive to brown with darkercrossbands on tail and body. Adults are uniformly dark with darker crossbandson tail. SIZE: Averaging approximately 5 m with maximum size ofroughly 6 m WEIGHT: Adults of both sexes may easily exceed 225 kg. FUN FACTS: A crocodile's ectothermic metabolism isextremely efficient. A large crocodile, which may weigh more than 900 kg (2000 lb.), can survive forlong periods of time between meals! If baby crocodiles are in danger, theadult female may pick them up and flip them into her mouth or gular (throat)pouch for protection. When fish are migrating, crocs may huntcooperatively by forming a semi-circle across the river and herding the fish.They then eat the fish that are closest to them. Whenyoung crocodiles are hatching, either parent may help them out of the egg byrolling it between their tongue and palate. This cracks the shell allowing foran easier escape.

Royal Pithon

DESCRIPTION: Small-sized, heavy-bodied python withbeige blotches on a dark brown background SIZE:   Adults 1-2 m in length; hatchlings 30 cm FUN FACTS: These snakes are called ball pythonsbecause of their defensive posture of coiling into a tight ball with theirheads protected in the center of the coil.2.         The name royal python is believed to bederived from the fact that many African rulers were known to have worn livepythons as jewelry. Ball pythons are believed to live thelongest of snakes species in managed situations, with some individuals livinginto their forties. Pythons are considered a primitivesnake, differing from many other species by having two functioning lungs andvestigial, or left over, hind limbs. These vestigial limbs appear as spurs oneither side of the cloaca. Pythonsshow a degree of parental care above many other reptiles by actually incubatingthe eggs using heat generated by muscle twitches.

Sea Snakes

DESCRIPTION: Sea snakes can be identified by theirflattened and oar-like tail. This adaptation allows sea snakes to propelthemselves through the water more effectively. Other aquatic adaptationsinclude salt glands and nostrils located at the top of their snouts to breathemore efficiently. SIZE: They vary in length, with the smallest adultsbeing 50 cm long, to the largest, which may exceed 2 m. FUN FACTS: Sea snakes are front-fanged and highlyvenomous. Afold in the gums of a sea snake hides the fangs, and the fangs quickly emergewhen biting. Sea snake fangs are fragile and may break off and remain in thewounds of their victims. To counter the problem of having weak fangs, seasnakes have potent venom that can easily paralyze, kill, and begin thedigestive process of the fish they target.

SeaTurtles

DESCRIPTION: Sea turtles are characterized by along, streamlined shell. Depending on the species, sea turtles color range canbe olive-green, yellow, greenish-brown, reddish-brown, or black. Limbs andflippers are adapted for swimming. Adult male and female sea turtles are equalin size. MALE: The tail may extend beyond the hind flippers.The claws on the foreflippers of sea turtle males (except leatherbacks) areelongated and curved, which may help them grasp a female's shell during mating. SIZE:   Most sea turtles are 53-114 cm. The largest species,the leatherback, can reach 1.2-1.9m. 2.9m was the largest leatherback recorded. Significantdifferences in size are not exhibited between the sexes. WEIGHT:  27 to 186 kg for smallerspecies.Leatherbackscan weigh 200 to 660 kg,with reported weights up to 870kg. FUN FACTS: Most scientists recognize eight speciesof these marine reptiles. Experts can identify each by the number and pattern ofscutes (horny plates) on the carapace (top shell). A leatherback turtle is covered withleathery skin, not scutes (horny plates) like other sea turtles. It is the onlymarine turtle whose backbone is not attached to the inside of its shell. Sea turtles are found in tropical andtemperate seas throughout the world. Adults of most species inhabit shallowcoastal waters. Some species migrate great distances form winter feedinggrounds to summer nesting areas. Typically, the only time sea turtlesleave the sea is when females haul out to lay eggs. On some uninhabited orsparsely-inhabited beaches, turtles of either sex have been observed basking onland. Once sexually mature, female seaturtles will typically return to the beach area from which they originallyhatched. Season after season, the females ascend their ancestral beach todeposit their own clutch. A female turtle digs a pit in the sand using her hindflippers, and deposits dozens of eggs the size of ping pong balls. These eggs thenincubate beneath the sand from roughly 1.5 to 2.5 months, at the end of whichtime the eggs hatch in approximate unison. The newly hatched turtles attempt toscramble to the surface, down the beach, and past the shoreline - with thesurvivors continuing the cycle of birth, growth, and return. During the first year after hatching,many species of sea turtles are rarely seen. This first year is known as the"lost year". Researchers generally agree that most hatchlings spendtheir first few years living an oceanic existence before appearing in coastalareas. Although the migratory patterns of the young turtles during the firstyear has long been a puzzle, most researchers believe that they ride prevailingsurface currents, situating themselves in floating seaweed where they are canfind food. Diets vary greatly among sea turtlespecies. Green and black sea turtles feed on seagrasses and algae. Loggerheads'and ridleys' strong jaws can crush crabs, shrimps, and molluscs. Leatherbacksprey only on jellyfish and other soft-bodied animals. The green sea turtle gets its name fromthe color of its body fat. A sea turtle cannot retract its limbs,head or neck under its shell like a land turtle. The shell adaptationsnecessary for retractile limbs would impede rapid swimming. Sea turtles' long, paddlelike flippersare adapted to locomotion in the water. Sea turtles are strong swimmers anddivers. Green sea turtles can stay under waterfor as long as five hours. Their heart rate slows to conserve oxygen: nineminutes may elapse between heartbeats. Alleight sea turtle species are listed as either endangered or threatened. Despiteseveral management measures to preserve sea turtles, their future is still inquestion, due to a number of natural and human-induced factors.

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