7 day challenge: Day 5 Bat-eared Fox for @etherealwhisper89
Like the gray fox, the Bat-eared Fox is not a “true” vulpes genus fox and is instead in the genus Octocyon (it is also the sole member of this genus). It lives in Africa and, like the fennec fox, its ears help emit heat from its body. Those big ears also help the Bat-eared fox find its favorite food termites that make up 70% of its diet! It is mostly an insectivore eating dung beetles, their larvae, and grasshoppers. They also eat scorpions, spiders, millipedes, rodents, lizards, fruits, and eggs.
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7 day challenge: Day 4 Gray Fox for @etherealwhisper89
Even though they are mistaken for red foxes, gray foxes are surprisingly not a “true” vulpes genus fox. This fox is in the genus Urocyon along with Island Foxes. The gray fox is the only American member of the dog family that climbs trees. 7 day challenge: Day 3 Tibetan Sand Fox for @etherealwhisper89
Another “true” vulpes genus fox found in the high altitudes of Nepal and Tibet. Planet Earth in 2006 was the first time the Tibetan Sand Fox was filmed. 7 day challenge Day 2: Fennec fox for @etherealwhisper89 on Instagram
The smallest of the “true” vulpes genus foxes, the fennec fox live in Northern Africa’s Sahara desert and keep cool with a nocturnal sleep schedule, fur on the bottom of their paws to protect from hot sand, and those 6 inch log ears that emit heat from their body. This is for @etherealwhisper89 on Instagram who gave me a 7 day challenge a few months ago. I finally finished!
The first time I tried, I got way too complicated 😅(which is not uncommon for me). The third day into the challenge, I did the Southern Hognose snake whose scales took me more than one day to work on (completely worth it though to get it to come out right). This time, I went back to the basics with a fox family series with no hidden images (unless you want to count my signature). This is Day 1: Red Fox (winter coat). The largest of the “true” foxes or vulpes genus. They live around the world adapting to many types of habitats. Red foxes come in various colors including but not limited to black, brown, and silver. The final close up of my Luna moth for Moth Awareness Week! When threatened, Luna moth caterpillars go into a sphinx position, make a clicking noise and regurgitate fluids with smells that disgust their predators. As an adult, Luna moths have no mouth so they use a different defensive tactic. When being pursued in the air by a predator such as a bat, the Luna Moth will spin making the long wingtips circle which is believed to confuse the bat’s echolocation. While on a walk near Wachusett Reservoir Dam, I found a beautiful Luna Moth in the grass. The pictures I took inspired the pose and left wing design of my Luna Moth. My sources for my Luna Moth facts:
http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/misc/moths/luna_moth.htm https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Actias-luna https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/invertebrates/insects/luna-moth/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atOSro3_W7c https://6legs2many.wordpress.com/2012/03/30/so-i-got-some-luna-moth-eggs/ I’m posting a close up earlier than usual in celebration of Moth Awareness Week!
Why are moths important? Probably not a fun fact for moths but moths as adults and caterpillars are a tasty treat for many animals including birds, bats, frogs, hedgehogs, toads, lizards, etc. Moths are pollinators with some species on the night shift and some on the day shift. The flowers moths help to pollinate usually are clustered together (which helps for landing), white or dull in color, opening late in the day/at night, and produce lots of nectar. Moths are indicator species. They are found in so many habitats and are numerous but, if there is a change in the environment, they are the one of the first species to die. Importance of moths http://www.mothscount.org/text/16/importance_of_moths.html https://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/pollinators/animals/moths.shtml http://nationalmothweek.org/ Happy Moth Awareness week! This is my Luna Moth.
There are an estimated 150,000 to 500,000 species of moths out in the world. Keeping track or even finding and counting all these moths is a seemingly impossible task to accomplish. This week people around the world can register to become citizen scientists who collect data and photograph moths in their area. They can send their data to one or more of the organizations found at this website: http://nationalmothweek.org/how-to-submit-data/ If you are interested in participating, this is their site: http://nationalmothweek.org/ Another surprise Instagram post for @WildlifeWednesdayChallenge! This is the Masai Giraffe. With a photo reference from @kajacana on Instagram. There are so many interesting facts about giraffes!
The whistling thorn acacia tree's leaves are one of the Masai giraffe's favorite foods. As their name implies, this acacia tree has thorns and that sounds like a painfully long swallowing process. However, a giraffe's bluish black tongue is very tough and their saliva covers the thorns creating a protective layer to help the food be swallowed.
If you would like to learn more, check out my links below.
The Giraffe Conservation Foundation collected the samples for the DNA studies that identified giraffes having 4 separate species. They continue to spearhead the research of these beautiful creatures. You can find them on Instagram: @giraffe_conservation and their website https://giraffeconservation.org/
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2019/07/masai-giraffes-subspecies-declared-endangered/ https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2019/07/masai-giraffes-subspecies-declared-endangered/ https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/mammals/giraffe/index.html https://www.racinezoo.org/masai-giraffe-fact-sheet https://www.zoonewengland.org/franklin-park-zoo/our-animals/mammals/hoofed/masai-giraffe/ https://www.giraffeworlds.com/masai-giraffe/ https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-37311716 https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/one-largest-subspecies-giraffes-declared-endangered-180972647/ Acacia Tree https://www.softschools.com/facts/plants/acacia_facts/1047/#:~:text=Acacia%20is%20a%20type%20of,in%20dry%20and%20sunny%20habitats. https://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/whistling_thorn.php Hi all,
I entered the SaveTheManatee.org Art Contest a few months ago. Below is my West Indian Manatee entry. The winners were picked yesterday. Although I did not win, I want to say congratulations to the winners of the SaveTheManatee contest! I'm happy I was able to participate in this contest with this wonderful organization! Thank you to all my friends, followers, and everyone else who voted with your likes! I hope you all enjoyed seeing some beautiful manatee art! This is a wonderful organization actively conserving manatees so please check out these links below. Their Save the Manatee Website: https://www.savethemanatee.org/ The Save the Manatee Club Facebook page with many updates on Manatee Conservation: https://www.facebook.com/savethemanateeclub The contest entries can be seen here in the Facebook: The Manatee Art Contest: General Category: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=savethemanateeclub&set=a.10158537371247300 |
Artist and Blogger
I'm just a doodling artist. My current style started in a lecture class at MCLA where I began doodling in my notebooks. Now I've started a new series focusing on animals. Archives
April 2021
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