Habitat: Mainly near shorelines; adults will stray further and individual seals even foray into inland rivers and even lakes
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Food: Fish, shellfish, crustaceans
The Most Common Marine Mammal in the World
Whales and dolphins get all the publicity. After all, cetaceans are clever, fascinating animals. But Pinnipeds are pretty interesting mammals of the marine world, too. And for the naturalist they present observational opportunities no dolphin will give you. To begin with seals and sea lions are a lot more accessible than their echo locating cousins and they aren’t under water ninety percent of the time. And they are one of the few wild animals I know that seem to like watching humans as much as we like to watch them.
There are also a lot more of them. Harbor Seals, in fact, are the most plentiful marine mammal in the world. Up and down the northern parts of the US East and West coasts, into Asia, and all along northern European oceans you can find one or more of the five sub species of Harbor Seals. The world wide population is estimated at up to half a million, with 350,000 of them found along the Pacific Coast. This is hardly an endangered animal. Which is probably the reason they don’t get star billet on the big nature shows – there’re just so danged many of them.
Reindeer or Caribou? Dolphin or Whale? What’s the Difference?
Fall is here and that means Christmas is not far behind. Soon we’ll be awash in symbols and images of the season. In the world of advertising few animals represent the holidays more completely than reindeer. But Santa’s antlered ambassadors look an awful lot like the caribou that traipse about the northern wilderness don’t they? And come to think of it – porpoises, dolphins, and whales look a lot alike, too. Is there a difference and what is it? The world of wildlife is filled with many such similarities that we actually see or hear about every day, but give little thought – until some precocious offspring poses the challenge. This article examines that critical issue. Well, alright, perhaps it’s not exactly critical. But won’t you look smart when you answer with great authority the question, “Daddy, what’s the difference between a seal and a sea lion?”
Reindeer or Caribou?
They are actually the same animal. Caribou are members of the deer family; the only member of that family in which both males and females grow antlers. The difference in the names stemmed from the native human population where they reside. Northern Europeans and Asians who have been hunting and even domesticating these animals for many years call them Reindeer and even today use them to pull sleds. Over here we call them Caribou, a Canadian French pronunciation of “kahlibu” or “yahlibu,” the label given to the animal by Native Americans of northeastern North America.
Porpoise, Dolphin, or Whale?”
Actually they are all whales and all belong to an order of mammals called Cetaceans. Dolphins and porpoises just happen to be smaller. In general dolphins have a beak like nose and are more streamlined in body shape than their porpoise brethren which tend to a blunter snout and stockier body.
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Seal or Sea Lion?
Although the common names are sometimes used interchangeably (the northern fur seal, for example is actually a sea lion) there are definite differences in the classification of these Pinnipeds. The best way to distinguish a seal from a sea lion is to compare the front and the back of the animal. Sea Lions have external ears and are able to turn their rear flippers inward. This allows them to propel themselves forward on land using all four flippers. Because of this ability they are the animals you nearly always see as performers. The true seals do not have external ears. They also lack the ability to fold the rear flippers forward, thus making progress on land difficult.
Rabbit or Hare?
You might think this is just another example of a name simply based on size, but that is only part of the story. It is true that hares and jackrabbits are larger than rabbits; their ears and hind legs are considerably longer and they tend to be longer and lankier in the body. Another important difference, however, is one that most of us will never see. Rabbits give birth to babies that are totally helpless. They are born blind and naked; totally without fur. Hares and jackrabbits on the other hand come into the world with eyes wide open and a complete covering of fur.
Groundhog, Marmot, Woodchuck?
No other order of mammals boasts more different species than the Rodents. From the largest rodent in the world, the one hundred pound Capybara of South America to the three inch Pygmy Jerboa of Central Asia, there are literally thousands of different species. They take up volumes and volumes of zoological treatises. Most folks have no trouble distinguishing beavers from porcupines or chipmunks from squirrels, but there is one particular rodent that does confuse people. So let’s clear this up. The Groundhog, marmot, and woodchuck is the same animal going by a different name depending on what part of the country you live in. In the west and northwest they’re called marmots or “whistlers” while out on the east coast folks called them woodchucks or groundhogs, especially on a particular day in February. Marmots, Woodchucks, and Groundhogs are, surprisingly, members of the squirrel family.
If they weren’t such ferocious predators you might compare these guys to Laurel and Hardy. Common freshwater insects of ponds, marshes, and lakes these guys represent the big and tall end of invertebrate predators. But don’t look for laughs. Neither has a particularly comical side to its personality.
Nicknamed “Toe Biter” the Giant Water Bug is a master predator.
The long, narrow shape of the Water Scorpion makes it nearly impossible to see – until it’s too late.
Water Scorpions and Giant Water Bugs have something else in common – at either end of their fascinating bodies. Both insects are considered “Piercer Predators.” As the name implies they have a hardened beak at the end of their head which they use to pierce and kill prey. The giant water bug actually has the ability to inject enzymes similar to that of spiders for pre-digestion. Both use long forelegs to grasp their victims. And since both the water scorpion and the giant water bug have a tendency to hang upside down and wait for prey, each has a specialized breathing apparatus at the tip of the abdomen which extends just above the water surface.
You’d think with all the water we have in our Northwest clime we’d see a lot more representatives of Testudinae here. Unfortunately this is not the case. Our abundance of H20 comes at a cost, well known to us natives, in sunshine. Turtles may love water, but they adore sunlight almost as much, a quality we definitely lack for a good portion of the year. Basically, we have three species: the Red Eared Pond Slider, the Painted Turtle, and the endangered Western Pond Turtle. Snapping Turtles have reportedly been introduced and are found in isolated pockets in Oregon and Washington. But there is one surprise. According to the Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians the giant, half ton Leatherback Turtle is seen along our coast as far north as British Columbia. Now that would be a sight to behold!
The Painted Turtle on the left displays the distinctive red and orange blend that give it its name. In the middle is the unmistakable red ear of the Red Eared Slider. And on the right is the speckled and exceedingly rare Western Pond Turtle. This particular specimen was brought to the Northwest Trek Park after being found wandering around a convenience store parking lot.
But unless you have special equipment, time, and a lot of luck you are far more likely to see our three most common representatives: the Red Eared Slider, the Painted Turtle, and the endangered Western Pond turtle. These three chelonians are collectively grouped in the family Emydidae, a very diverse, worldwide gang of shelled reptiles that includes the box turtles as well. Sliders and Painted turtles are by far the most common of the lot, sort of like the garter snakes of the turtle world and subspecies of them are found throughout the US. The Western Pond turtle is a much rarer commodity. The Peterson Field guide even opines that it is probably extinct in western Washington. I have seen proof (see photo) that this is not the case, but the turtle is exceedingly rare.
Sometimes the solution to a problem is so obvious it escapes attention.Take the case of animal whiskers.Do you realize how many animals have them?In the mammal world, in fact, the with whiskered far outweigh the whiskerless.Consider for a moment how many mammals are whiskerless:Primates, elephants, whales, dolphins…Not too many more than that.Sloths and most bats seem to get along without them, but the list gets pretty thin after that.Now think how many mammal species have them – just about every other mammal on earth.Forget humans, by the way.That stylish thing we call a moustache is utterly useless in the realm of real world survival.
By the way, animals are VERY good for your health. Find the proof here: Positive Health Wellness
The wonderful world of whiskers. From Beavers to Squirrels and Sea Lions just about every mammal has them. Marine mammals boast the most sensitive.
With that many whiskers sprouting out in the animal kingdom there must be some very useful function associated with them and of course there is.These particular tactile hairs are called vibrissae.That they have a special name is really not all that special.The hair itself, although distinctly different than mammal fur, is no more alive than the hair on your own head.Vibrissae, despite the exotic name, essentially do nothing more than wave around in the air and bump into things.The real story is on the other end of the whisker, the sensitive follicle at its base. Loaded with nerve endings the follicle is sensitive to the slightest movement of the whisker.
It’s one of those things you read about and hear about all the time but seldom see. Then one day you happen to notice an odd discoloration on plant such as a sunflower. You look a bit closer and notice something even more odd – the discoloration is moving.
So you look closer. And there they are herding and milking aphids in the same way we humans herd dairy cows.
In this case a species of harvester ants tends to a herd of root aphids common throughout North America. It’s a real bargain for both the insect and the tiny invertebrates that belong to the Aphidae family.
Ants protect their herd as fearlessly as sheep dogs and reap a reward of sweet nectar by a specialized tapping of their antenna against the rear of the aphid. This nectar, called honey dew, is produced from the anus of the aphid. Despite the fact that aphids are a major agricultural pest this unique invertebrate relationship is fascinating to observe.
The big serpents loose in the Florida swamplands have been in the news lately and people down south are understandably concerned about these big constrictors ( please see note below). They are a real hazard.Now I doubt that any of these big snakes could survive one of our Northwest winters (or even summer for that matter) but it is worth noting that we have a very interesting constrictor of our own – the Rubber Boa, Charina bottae.
At a maximum length of less than three feet our boa constrictor is hardly a threat to anything but mice and other very small animals. They are, however, true constrictors and member or the Boidae family of snakes that include the giant pythons and boas of the world.As you may suspect our representative gets its name from the rubbery feel of its scales and body. As you can see from the photographs the scales of this snake are large, quite smooth and glossy. Compare this to the rough keeled scales of the garter snake and the difference in texture is obvious.
Due to the large number of subscriber fleas I have shut down unrestricted subscription to this website. If you like to subscribe, and I sincerely wish you would, kindly refer to the Subscriber/Comment Policy page.
If you happen to be in the Seattle/Tacoma area on 31 August I’ll be giving a presentation at the Federal Way Library on the people of Afghanistan that Monday night beginning at 6:30 pm. Details are in the poster found at the link below. I do a couple of these prsentations from my time over there; the other is about Afghan wildlife.
Federal Way Library • 34200 1st Way S • 253.838.3668 Monday-Thursday, 10am-9pm • Friday, 10am-6pm • Saturday, 10am-5pm • Sunday, Noon-8pm
Perhaps it is better to describe these people as vermin instead of just plan fleas. For some reason they subscribe to my website numerous times under different usernames and slightly modified email accounts. I have no idea what the purpose of this foolishness is, so just as I would get rid of any annoying pest I fumigate them from the site. For those of you who are honest bloggers out there here are the email addresses of several of the biggest fleas on my site:
If you belong to one of these email addresses or any variation thereof maybe you can explain your reasoning. I’ve dealt with animals from ants to elephants so I am sure I’ll be able to understand you. Meanwhile I’ll just keep deleting you from the site. Perhaps someone else out there would like to send these folks a note.
