fact or fiction
Is it fact or merely fiction? Fact or Fiction explores the myths and beliefs we hold about our pets, like why dogs wag their tails and cats purr.
The Sweet Danger: Why Chocolate is a No-Go for Cats
Cats are beloved companions known for their curious nature and unique dietary preferences. However, when it comes to chocolate, caution must be exercised. It is crucial for cat owners and enthusiasts to be aware of the potential dangers associated with cats consuming chocolate.
By Pen journey 11 months ago in Petlife
Why Over 600,000 Bird Specimens Are Preserved At The Smithsonian
The smithsonian herbal records museum homes over six hundred 000 bird specimens from the closing 2 hundred years and new specimens are added each month way to the precise work of specialists who preserve pores and skin and hold every chicken in the collection but most of these birds never see the museum ground so why do they need to be flawlessly preserved the solution research whether it's figuring out birds killed by airplanes or coming across evolutionary modifications in duck payments we are not just preparing this bird to be used day after today we're getting ready this hen for use for loads of years now we went to the smithsonian to look how one specimen inside the skins series is added prepared and used for generations to come it starts offevolved with acquisition it says right here at the label that this ostrich was sent by king mendelek as a gift to president roosevelt specimens are commonly donated by way of people or organizations this california condor became donated with the aid of the usafish and natural world carrier this chook came from president theodore roosevelt's non-public series and this cooper's hawk died while crashing into a constructing window it was donated lower back in 2017 and is set to get its highlight in an upcoming show off however it changed into to begin with stored on this freezer so it's on a left shelf from there our hawk is taken up to the prep lab into the skilled arms of museum specialists like christina and her husband brian brian did you do that yes i did put the cotton inside the mouth married couples fat this specimen is 9926 so i prepared at the least that many birds and mammals whilst you're at approximately 10 000 it shows that you've been doing it for at least probably twenty years or so and you could do it it was a amusing fun exercising and it virtually worked blindfolded or not the experts first thaw weigh and measure the hawk after which they choose up a scalpel to start isolating the skin from the muscle mass and fat because these are going to be stored as dried specimens we need to remove as a great deal of the muscle from the specimen that we can brian removes the pores and skin from the body of the chicken discarding the tender tissues and oil glands which would purpose the specimen to rot and it is essential to get every piece of fats out without unfavourable the skin seeing that those specimens are intended to ultimate for future years that is where gentler tools like his arms end up beneficial you have to move very sluggish methodical to get the skin off without ripping it i am pushing the skin in preference to pulling it so i'm no longer stretching it brian additionally makes use of corn cob dust all through the technique to soak up any body fluids so the specimen is stored clean new humans use lots much less dirt and greater skilled human beings simply cover it with dirt whilst disposing of the smaller components of the hen like the head or the eyes the attitude of the scalpel additionally makes a huge distinction you observe i'm cutting far from the pores and skin there's been instances where whilst you seize the eye it squirts at you now and again birds which have more fat on their pores and skin want to go through additional cleaning all this white goopy stuff that is all fats that wishes to come back off otherwise it'll get rancid after which it's going to acidify and it'll actually simply ooze out of the skin they use this fats wheel device to get rid of all of the fat until you may see the feather music this is uh takes a touch bit of practice because in case you press too tough you may rip the skin once the fat is cleared greater corncob dirt is used to take in the moisture and then the specimen is washed and dried you want to peer me blow the sawdust off okay all proper so with this we do it in the fume hood due to the fact as you believe i'm gonna blow a lot of dirt anywhere christina makes use of a compelled air dryer to blow off the sawdust and a hair dryer to fluff up the feathers including a pleasant sheen to them to get the fowl presentation geared up brian will first tie the wings together to create a confined variety of movement he approximates how far a cooper's hawk could have clearly unfold their wings so inside the future if somebody grabs the bird and opens up the wing to see the beneath aspect of the wing by using tying it it'll make it the specimen stronger now the specimen is ready to be filled with cotton recreating its unique form we are trying to make a specimen that lasts forever and robust so i am no longer a tailor or seamstress however you may sew up a bird pretty suitable we get the feathers ensure that they may be organized nicely inside the proper order in order that'll help researchers later the ultimate step is pinning the hen onto a board to dry into its permanent position however i become pinning it that is the way it'll appearance the rest of its career at the smithsonian it takes in all likelihood close to one hundred birds earlier than someone can pass at it by myself once they reach one thousand birds then we say that that character is usually an experienced preparator and they are able to educate different human beings thoroughly after 10 or so days this cooper's hawk may be absolutely dried and equipped to debut on the exhibit ground the hawk can be simply one in every of 20 specimens on display for the lighting out exhibit all birds who've died from flying into skyscraper home windows and they'll eventually be part of the bigger skins series with over 470 000 specimens supporting researchers from all around the world like lauren and joshua learning how mating among home and wild ducks has changed the dimensions and structure of their bills or jim with the feather identification lab crew he works with government agencies to identify birds killed during air strikes we get about 10 000 moves a yr the busiest times are within the fall and the spring and this vicinity the division of birds is the proper vicinity for us to be due to the fact we've got 80 percent of the arena's chicken species represented on this series so if there's a chicken strike that occurs inside the world we possibly have a specimen to healthy it up to this is a fowl strike sample the remnants of a chicken aircraft collision that has been sent to us for us to pick out so i'm able to see that we've got got a pair wing feathers here we have were given a tail feather we have were given some body feathers so we will really take this feather out and healthy up those tail feathers quite properly to the barn swallow and we have were given even these great little peachy feathers that we are doing this his findings are sent to airfield biologists and engine manufacturers to modify aircrafts and decrease accidents this chook was accumulated returned in 1878 and so this chicken changed into collected before airplanes had been even imagined and put into this collection and now we are the use of it to pick out a fowl aircraft collision so we by no means know what these specimens are going to get used for however that is honestly why it's essential to hold them all the time a separate wings series additionally allows for deeper evaluation of feathers again in the vintage days they did not make too many spread wings or flat skins and us within the feather lab truly like that as it allows us get entry to to feathers that arise underneath the wing and access in one-of-a-kind regions of the chicken where we'd get a feather to but it is very tough to get into a conventional museum skin other researchers might be exploring the microbiomes discovered in the wings like gary he discovered that vulture wings have a bacterial institution called dinococcus one of the toughest organisms which could face up to high radiation so while i've exposed this wing into full solar the temperature on a day like nowadays will be ninety stages outdoor and about three mins the temperature on the floor of this wing heats as much as over one hundred sixty and that probable explains why dinococcus is so dominant as it's one of the few bacterial organizations which can surely reproduce at the smithsonian these are just of the collections within the chicken division there's additionally the organ series soaked in ethanol for upkeep the skeletons with every bone meticulously numbered and set up birds that retired from being at the show off floor all of these are time stamps of the existing chook population growing a file for destiny generations of researchers while the primary hen preparators organized birds they'd no idea what dna changed into even though they didn't understand that by means of doing a regular chook prep it has enabled future researchers to conduct studies on birds and you realize i want i had a time tablet to enter the future to peer what our birds are going for use for a hundred years from now
By Pancy Stiles11 months ago in Petlife
The World Seen Through Animals' Eyes
Did you know that animals see their surroundings differently than we do? For example, pigeons have better vision than humans. Crazy, right? Let's try to see the world through the eyes of some animals. Let's start with snakes. Snakes see the world in a totally different way than we do. Their snouts have special infrared receptors that let them see the heat given off by warm-blooded mammals. These big guys don't see colours as well as humans do. They can't see the colour red since they don't have the right receptors in their retinas. Instead, they only see different shades of blue and green. They don't enjoy it when someone comes up behind them. They have a near-panoramic view; the only place they can't see is directly behind them. Because of where their eyes are, horses can't see things right in front of them. They also don't see as many colours as we do. Like cows, their world is primarily greens, yellows, and blues. Bad guys Fish eyes have UV receptors as well as a more spherical lens than ours. This gives them almost 360-degree vision. They can see all the same colours we can, but because light works differently underwater, they need help figuring out what things are. Seeing the different shades of red, deep sea fish can discern well in the dark. Sharks on the other hand cannot distinguish colors at all yet they seem a lot clearer under the the water than we do birds have a few pretty distinctive ways of seeing the world unlike people birds can see ultraviolet light this assists them differentiate among males and females of their possess species as well as more effectively navigate in their environment also they are very good at concentrating for example Falcons as well as Eagles can focus on a small Mouse in the growing up to a distance of one mile a pigeon may see all the tiny information so if you ever require to find a crack in the pavement simply ask a pigeon alongside by the way it has a 340 degree field of sight and generally their vision is thought about twice as good as a human's there you possess it I'm envious of a pigeon insects possess some weird Vision structures too flies for instance have thousands of little eye receptors that operate together to provide them a big picture of what's heading on within them and get this they observe everything in slow-mo in addition to they can see ultraviolet light it assists them with communication Bees have problems of their own. These guys cannot identify the colour red because it looks dark blue to them. How weird is it that now rats can't see red? But that's not the most bizarre thing. The strangest thing is that their eyes move independently, so they always see double. It's amazing that they aren't running into more walls. Cats can't see shades of red or green, but they can see shades of brown, yellow and blue like a boss. They also have a wider field of vision than we do, so they can see more things on the size than we can. When it's dark outside, cats can see six times more effectively than we can. Now, let's talk about dogs. These furry pals can't see red or orange, but they can see rocket blue and violet. They can also tell the difference between 40 shades of grey, which isn't 50 but still impressive. On a similar note, frogs are very picky eaters. They will not even bother with food that doesn't keep them moving. A buffet of tasty bugs might surround them, but frogs won't bat an eye if they don't wiggle. They're also not the most observant animals. If something isn't significant to them, like a shadow, they won't even bother looking at it.
By Ian Sankan11 months ago in Petlife
End Violence Against Animals
End Violence Against Animals Every time you go to watch a horse race, the aquarium, the circus, or even the zoo, you are becoming part of a huge mistake made by humanity. Abuse of animals. Just because we are the most advanced species on Earth, we simply cannot forget, we aren’t the only species on Earth. The animals we capture and use for entertainment and pleasure are being deprived everyday of their freedom and happiness. They are separated from their families, tortured and abused, and even shut up in cages barely big enough for them. In this essay I will be explaining why using animals for our entertainment is cruel and must be banned.
By Aashini Rastogi11 months ago in Petlife
Cracking the Code: What Your Dog's Sleeping Position Really Means
Did you know that the way your dog sleeps can reveal a wealth of information about their personality, health, and overall well-being? It's true! In this comprehensive guide, we'll break down the most common dog sleeping positions and delve into the science behind why dogs sleep in certain ways. So let's dive in and unlock the mysteries of our canine companions' sleeping habits.
By Harvind Selva11 months ago in Petlife
The Curious Kitten: Luna's Adventures in Discovery
Once upon a time, there was a curious cat named Luna. Luna was a beautiful black and white cat, with big green eyes and a bushy tail. Luna loved to explore, and she was always curious about everything around her.
By davenumber57611 months ago in Petlife
15 Ways to Show Your Dog You Love Them
Introduction: Our canine companions hold a special place in our hearts, offering unconditional love and unwavering loyalty. As pet owners, it's essential to reciprocate this affection and demonstrate to our furry friends just how much they mean to us. Beyond the typical belly rubs and tasty treats, there are numerous heartfelt ways to express love to your dog and deepen the bond between you. In this blog post, we'll explore 15 of the best ways to show your dog that you love them.
By Timothy A Rowland11 months ago in Petlife
Mysterious Lioness Roams Berlin: Authorities Launch Search, Urging Residents to Stay Indoors.. Content Warning.
Berlin, Germany - A sense of awe and trepidation swept through the streets of Berlin as reports of a lone lioness wandering the city emerged. Authorities have launched an intense search operation to locate the elusive big cat, urging residents to remain indoors until the situation is resolved. The captivating yet unnerving spectacle has left experts and citizens alike speculating on the origin and intentions of this enigmatic creature.
By Mark Johnson11 months ago in Petlife
How to Eliminate Flies Inside Your Home. Content Warning.
Do you wish you could get rid of the house flies that keep appearing in your home? There are a number of efficient strategies that may be used in order to get rid of house flies, which can be a bothersome problem. We have done our research and compiled the most helpful tips and natural remedies to use in order to assist you in protecting your home from house flies.
By Jacob Damian12 months ago in Petlife