Northern Elephant Seal – Big with Big Schnozzle
Fact Files
Flightless Birds – Ratites, Running to Survive
Birds evolved a long, long time ago on this earth. Some of them have remained more like dinosaurs or lizards with feathers than birds, or else somewhere in between. These are the flightless birds or ratites. But the ratite group doesn’t include the penguins who don’t run as much as swim.
These flightless birds do have wings but they are only used to flap around some to cool off or to splash a little water. The muscles in the wings are not strong enough to support flying. They do have strong legs and bones for running quickly. They live only in the Southern Hemisphere.
Cats – Felidae, Ideal Predator Bodies
Caracal – South Africa
Estimates vary by source but there are approximately 40 species in the cat family (Felidae). There has been considerable disagreement as to the organization of the cat family, living and extinct, but genetic study is now allowing scientists to more firmly define which species are mostly closely related.