Sunday, April 14, 2019

Resting Critters

A habitat area here features an animal that was having a bit of a doze, as it tends to be nocturnal. The American Barn Owl ranges through North America and into northern South America. Its prey includes small mammals and lizards. Focusing on high energy prey allows the bird to eat proportionately less than those birds who might rely on lower energy foods, and thus use up less energy.


A hammock is slung up here for a mammal that sleeps eighteen or so hours a day (I'm jealous). The light furred Linneus's two toed sloth is an omnivore that is mostly nocturnal, curled up comfortably in a ball and totally oblivious to visitors.


This is a Massassauga rattlesnake, a resident of North America. Another one of those sit and wait predators, this one features venom that does the work of killing the prey with one bite- the snake doesn't have to spend energy chasing what it's already bitten, just follow the scent and consume at their leisure.


Straw coloured fruitbats are from sub-Saharan Africa. A group of them were clustered together and hanging upside down. I came back a few minutes later and they were more active, as we'll see in a coming post.


For today I finish with this critter. The veiled chameleon is native to the Arabian peninsula. Mostly it goes after insects and spiders, but does eat plant matter too. This one was gracefully crossing from one branch to another as I photographed.

36 comments:

  1. It is spring and the Rattlers are out. Mums are hungry and the babies are "bat shit crazy" and strike at everything. Danger Danger Danger !
    You have to be careful.

    cheers, parsnip

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  2. I love owls, they have the same big round eyes as my cat Rosie ! Snakes don't bother me, I only prefer pets I can pet !

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  3. I think the owl is my girlfriend in this series ... :) Though I think the veiled chameleon is not bad ... he eats plants ... and spiders! :))

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  4. I´m reading about about a barn owl called Wesley (non-fiction). Awesome, intelligent animals.

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  5. I remember always being very disappointed with the owls when visiting wildlife sanctuaries and zoos when I was a child. Modern nocturnal houses have made the experience rather more interesting for today's generation.

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  6. ...an owl is a critter that I've never seen, we are on two different schedules.

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  7. I’m not a fan of reptiles but I enjoy them from a distance. This distance is good.

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  8. At first I thought it was a stuffed owl, until it looked the other direction! It's great to have displays with lighting that fools nocturnal creatures so us daytime folks can meet them.

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  9. @Parsnip: thank you.

    @Gattina: this owl fascinated me.

    @Ella: I found the chameleon fascinating.

    @Iris: that they are.

    @John: that is true.

    @Tom: I have seen them.

    @Francisco: thank you.

    @Anvilcloud: I agree.

    @Marie: thank you.

    @Barbara: I was glad it moved.

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  10. love the owl ... cool coloring. happy Sunday. ( ;

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  11. amazing display! Thanks for sharing this,, I'm glad I'm too far north for the snakes to live lol,,yes,, I don't miss those!!

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  12. Love the owl William, the chameleon is a fascinating creature ✨

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  13. My favourite is absolutely the Barn Owl!

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  14. How cool. It is so lush and AAAAAAGGGGGGGGHHHHHHH. A snake!

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  15. There are some very interesting critters to see in this world. We don't have barn owls in this area.

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  16. The owl was cranky, William. What fun rumping with you today

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  17. I would love to spot a barn owl in the wild!

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  18. I love that veiled chameleon. He's really kind of cute. :-)

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  19. To say I really like them is a little too much, but the rattlesnake and the chameleon are my favorietes.

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  20. Owls are always a pleasure to see.

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  21. There is something very intense about the look of an owl.

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  22. @Beth: thank you.

    @Laurie: you're welcome.

    @Grace: yes, I liked that chameleon.

    @Italiafinlandia: it's quite a bird.

    @Sandi: awww, it's just a harmless little snake! :)

    @Red: we have them here.

    @Cloudia: the owl seemed quite zen to me.

    @RedPat: they're amazing animals.

    @DJan: I think so too.

    @Jan: thanks!

    @Bill: they are!

    @Sharon: true!

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  23. We don't have rattlers here, thankfully. I love the critters.

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  24. How wonderful to have environment for these critters look so natural and good ~ Great photos!

    Happy Days to you,
    A ShutterBug Explores,
    aka (A Creative Harbor)

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  25. Barn owls are really beautiful. I unexpectedly encountered a young rattler once in the wild. I think I must have jumped six feet and didn't have a normal heartbeat for hours.

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  26. Really nice exhibits so natural. I wouldn’t really want to sleep that many hours, but I wish I had that creatures ability to fall asleep easily!

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  27. Interesting. The snake makes me shudder! Once I came across a rattler near a trail. He made his sound and I saw him. Resisted the temptation to take his picture and gave him a wide berth.

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  28. Owls would be interesting but not the snakes. Never, never like snakes.

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  29. I'll be pleased when you move out of the snake and lizard department!

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  30. Oh those snakes give me the jibes.

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  31. Owls are one of my favourite critters.

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  32. @Jennifer: they tend to be confined to areas further north and west.

    @Carol: thank you.

    @Mari: thanks.

    @Kay: this owl seemed quite zen.

    @Sallie: I have nights where sleep is elusive.

    @Linda: snakes fascinate me.

    @Nancy: I think it's important to respect their space, but they have an important part to play.

    @Jeanie: I know some don't care for either of them!

    @Carol: I've never had an issue with them.

    @Jan: thank you.

    @Klara: me too.

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