Timeline

The animals that I have posted about in my blog are all unique.
The animals are in this order:

1. The Axolotl (which is yours and my favourite animal in the blog)
2. Leafy Sea-Dragon
3. Coconut Crab
4. Firefly Squid (this is my 2nd favourite)
5. Frogfish
6. Sea Slug
7. Cuttlefish
8. Mudpuppy
9. Axolotl (my personal view this time)
10. Blobfish

They are very special even if they don't look pleasant or discust you. We need to preserve their habitats so they can live longer on the earth and the next generations of people can enjoy them just like us.

My experience

This is the last day that I'll be posting something on this blog in I.S.T. I have learnt a lot more about animals all over the world that I'd never thought I'd learn. It has been an amazing experience and I certainly think animals are all unique and special in their own ways. God has done an outstanding job of creating this universe and the creatures in the earth. I think animals are precious and we should cherish and look after them all our lives.

Blobfish

I think the Blobfish would be a bad animal to have as a pet because it looks miserable and discusting. Having a blobfish as a pet would creep me out, having to look at a fish that looks sad and miserable all the time. It's depressing.

Even though the Blobfish isn't very pleasant to look at, I feel sorry for their speices. Blobfish are rarely seen because they live around the depths of the sea. They live around 800m deep. But they are also endangered because fishermen accidentally catch them in their nets without knowing. Blobfish cannot survive too long out of water.

I personally don't like the physical appearance of the Blobfish, but I feel sorry for it.

Axolotl

Out of all the posts of Strange Animals I've made, I have to say my favourite animal has got to be the Axolotl definitely!

Axolotls are one of the cutest animals ever, and I may have never known what they are if I didn't keep this blog. They are absolutely adorable, in my opinion anyway.

I think that the pink ones are the best.

Here is a youtube link of an axolotl video but the quality isn't as great as I'd hope - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCqu_PKH1nc

Mudpuppy

I think Mudpuppies are very unusual, especially its name.What do you think a Mudpuppy is? A dog? Well if you thought a dog you're wrong! When I first saw the Mudpuppy on the National Geographic website and expected a cute dog that was brown to come up. But to my surprise I saw a salamander... It's brown though. I then read that the Mudpuppy can bark.. like a dog!

It's name is very misleading and it looks nothing like a puppy. But I guess it's name does fit because Mudpuppies do bark like dogs.

Pets

If I could have any animal as a pet in the world, I would choose...

A Red Panda, because they are so cute and adorable, it's just so cuddly looking :)

 Or any animal that is cuddly and adorable.

I love cute animals, they are just so sweet and innocent looking. They are soft and furry too. I have 2 puppies and they are cute too.

Cuttlefish

A Cuttlefish is a small mollusc which is found throughout the ocean. They are found in large groups in both warm, tropical and cold, deep waters.

There are 120 species of cuttlefish. They come in a range of different sizes and weight. They start roughly at 15 cm long to 50cm.

The biggest cuttlefish is the Australian Giant Cuttlefish.



When I first saw the cuttlefish, it wasn't quite what I expected. I was expecting a fish that looked like any other fish. I think it is pretty unique how the cuttlefish can change its colour according to its surroundings to camoflage with the surrounding.

They can examine and evaluate their environment and match the colour, contrast and texture of it and camoflage.

Their ability to camoflage in with their environment is a great skill and I never knew that an animal had that ability. At first I wouldn't even think the Cuttlefish had that ability.

For more information you can go to http://a-z-animals.com/animals/cuttlefish/ or http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuttlefish

Sea Slug- Ceratosoma amoenum

Ceratosoma anoenum is a sea slug that is found in Southern Australian and New Zealand oceans.

Animal Facts

• Hippos can out run humans
• Jellyfish are 95% water
• Shrimps are born males then later on in life turn into females
• A bumble bee can pull 300 times its weight
• Starfish can turn their stomachs inside out
• Kiwi birds lay eggs that are the same size of itself
• Polar bears are left handed
• Porcupines float in water
• Hippo milk is pink
• Female mosquitos bite not the males

Frogfish

The Frogfish is a marine animal that is also known as an Anglerfish that is located in: Africa, Asia, Australia and South America. Their habitats are: sea beds, breakish waters, reefs and estuaries (an estuary is an inlet of the sea that is at the lower end of a river).

They are carnivores and eat crustaceans and other fish, sometimes even frogfish. When they feel threatened they can inflate like a pufferfish. Their skin also helps them to camoflage with their surroundings. Frogfish can also jet propel themselves across the sea floor, they use their pelvic fins to
 walk across the sea floor too. They have this wriggling lure that enables them to draw in its prey, the lure resemebles a worm or a shrimp, and if the lure gets eaten the frogfish can regenerate a new one.

Random animal facts

Did you know...

• Gorillas sleep as much as 14 hours each day
• Sloths take 2 weeks to digest their food
• Male ostriches can roar like lions
• Cats have 32 muscles in each ear
• Snails can grow a new eye if they loose one
• Millions of trees are 'accidentally' planted by squirrels when they bury nuts and forget where they hid them
• Seahorses are the slowest fish, they move 0.01 miles per hour
• Humming birds can fly backwards
• Underneath all the white fur Polar Bears actually have black skin.
• Sheep have 4 stomachs

Firefly Squid

The Firefly Squid ( also known as Watasenia scintillans(scientific name)) is a squid that can be found in the Western Ocean around Japan. Firefly Squids live up to roughly 1 year. They grow roughly 7cm-8cm long. They are carnivores and eat fish, zooplankton, aquatic crustaceans and other marine inverterbrates. One of their predators is the Northern fur Seal but the Firefly Squid uses the light from their photophores to communicate with other squids, frighten away predators or as counter illumination camoflage. During the day the Firefly Squid stay in the deep but during the night they come up to the surface to feed.

I think it is amazing how the Firefly Squid (at night) use light from their photophores to turn blue and frighten away predators or to use this ability to camoflage. I also think the Firefly Squid is an interesting sea creature that is very unique.

Coconut Crab

The Coconut Crab is the biggest land-living arthropod, it can grow up to roughly 1m from one leg to the other and can weigh roughly 4kg. Between the ages of 40-60 is when they grow to their full size; stop growing.

It can be found on islands in the South Pacific and Indian Oceans.They like to spend most of their time on land. Coconut crabs cannot swim except as larvae. To locate its food, it uses their sense of smell. It is threatened by animals such as: pigs, rats, monitor lizards and monkeys and also by humans. People like to cook them and eat them, apparently they taste like coconuts because they eat coconuts (that's what my teacher told me anyway). 

I think it is pretty weird how coconut crabs cannot last more than 1 hour underwater! I also like it how they are blue and white or orange and white. When I first saw the Coconut Crab I did not think it was real, neither did some of my I.S.T classmates (well, one still thinks they're not real) but with some research I finally belived it exists.

Leafy Sea Dragon- Fast facts

The Leafy Sea Dragon is a sea dragon that is found only within Australia's Southern waters. They are called "Leafy" Sea Dragons because of their appearance, they have leaf-like appendages which helps them camouflage in their natural habitat from predators and even divers. Most of the adult leafy sea dragons are green to a yellowish-brown with thin stripes across their body.

(They live around the yellow area)












Leafy Sea Dragons are threatened by pollution, excessive run-off of fertiliser and loss of sea grass from their habitat. Also since they are such fascinating creatures some diver illegally catch them to put into aquariums. But some times a short time later they die because they weren't fed right.

I think the Leafy Sea Dragon is a very unique and interesting sea dragon. I also like it how they have leaf-like appendages to protect them by using camouflage. If you would like to learn more about the Leafy Sea Dragon, go to http://www.marineparks.wa.gov.au/fun-facts/34-leafy-sea-dragon.html

Axolotl-Fast facts

The Mexican Axolotl is an endangered amphibian. It is also known as the Mexican Walking Fish, which is ironic because the axolotl isn't a fish. The axolotl is a carnivore and it likes worms. They are found in lakes close to Mexico City such as Lake Xochimilco. They can grow up to 30 cm (12 inches) and weigh from about 60 g to 227 g. Axolotls can also regenerate body parts that they loose. 

I think the Mexican Axolotl is a pretty unique and interesting animal. It is also pretty cool how they can regenerate body parts that they loose. At first I thought the axolotl was a pretty weird and strange animal but since I've been researching and learning more about them I have developed an interest in them.

Introducing Me

Hi I'm Drusilla,

I like to play sports, hang out with friends and do heaps of other activities. 

I chose I.S.T as an elective subject and 1 of our tasks is to keep a blog for 4 weeks. 

I chose the topic "Strange and Interesting Animals" because animals are very interesting and I'd like to get to know about some more unique ones. Ones that aren't as well known as animals in the zoo or aquarium.