Friday, March 9, 2012

Sharks


Sharks are dangerous wild and big animals.
They have got sharp and big teeth.
They live in the water.
They eat small fish.
They sometimes attact people.

Rabbits


Rabbits are lovely small animals.
They are write , black or brown.
They have got very small tails whiskers and long ears.
They like carrots.
They can live for 7-8 years.


Ants


Ants are small insects.
They have got six legs.
They are very hard-working.
They work all summer very hard and rest in winter.
They live maximum for 1-2 years.

Cheetahs


Cheetahs are big cats.
They can run very fast.
They are very strong.
They live for 15-20 years.
They have got very nice fur.
People hunt them for their fur.
It's a pity.

Crocodiles


Crocodiles are wild and big animals.
They have got very big mouths and very strong tails.
Their teeth are very big and sharp.
They are dangerous animals.
They live for 60-70 years.

Squirrels


Squirrels are lovely small animals.
They Are red or grey.
They have got very nice big tails.
They live in the trees and like eating nuts.
They can live for 7-8 years.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Giant Isopod


Giant Isopods are just like some kind of little insects (see picture below), but only in a bigger format. These creatures are crustaceans (a mix between a crab and a shrimp). The Giant Isopod also called Bathynomus giganteus is one of the nine species of the genus Bathynomus. That live in the deep and cold waters of the Atlantic ocean. The Giant Isopod isn't a very lucrative business for fishing industries, because they are hard to catch and when they're brought to the surface they have already been scavenged by other fishes. However in Taiwan where they live much closer in shallow waters they're served in restaurants.

The Giant Isopod can reach a length between 19 cm and 37 cm with a maximum weight of 1.7 kg which isn't so great to be called gigantic, but if we compare these with other normal Isopods, then they are just enormous. The Giant Ispod has a kind of shield on his back with two antennas close to its head. It has 7 pair of legs also called (pereiopods) and one pair of these legs has as function to bring food to its jaws.

Giant Isopods are deep sea creatures that scavenge at depths of 170m to depths or even 2200 meters. However they prefer to stay at middle depths of 300m to 700m. They love to scavenge dead whales, fish and even squids. It isn't only a scavenger, if its spots a sea cucumber, spunge or another little creature, then he won't hesitate and eat this creature. Living on these depths isn't a paradise. Therefore they could stay for more then eight weeks without any food. The deeper we go the bigger that these Giant Isopods are. Giant Isopods are living fossils, they haven't evolved for over 130 million years.

Giant Isopods lay eggs, the mature female develops a marsupium (brood punch) when she becomes sexually active. The eggs that have been fertilized by the male Isopod will be stored in the marsupium for an unknown time and when the eggs hatch, then the miniature Isopods emerge from the marsupium as little clones.

Did you know that the eggs of the giant Isopod are the biggest ones of all the invertebrates?