Hi everybody! There are 5 animals which I find interesting. They are the chameleon, rabbit, star-nosed mole, polar bear and the elephant. I hope you will enjoy reading this posting.
The Chameleon
Scientific name:Chamaeleo parsonii
Life span: 7 years
Physical Description
Chameleons are masters of disguise and they vary greatly in size and body structure. The male chameleon is slightly larger than the female chameleon,reaching up to 25 cm in length. They have bulging eyes which allows them to see up to 360 degrees around them. Chameleons also have rough skin and the colour of their skin changes along with the surroundings. They camouflage in order to hide from their enemies.
Reproduction
Reproduction occurs once every two years and the female produces 20 to 25 eggs per clutch. Incubation for this species takes longer than a year. As with other chameleons, once the babies are hatched from the egg, they are on their own.
Fun facts
Did you know that:
~ A chameleon's tongue can be shot out to an extraordinary length: in some species the tongue is longer than is body!
~Chameleons seem to prefer running water to still water.
~The chameleon can rotate and focus its eyes separately to look at two different objects.
The Rabbit
Scientific name: Oryctolagus cuniculus
Life span: 6 years
Physical Description
Long ears and long hind legs are the physical characteristics by which rabbits are recognise.Their large ears help them detect danger and their eyes are adapted to nighttime activities. Rabbits may be adorable and fluffy but they are also adapted to quick movement and hopping.
Reproduction
Female rabbits usually have 2 to 10 babies in the litter. Rabbits also produce several litters per year. The babies are born helpless and blind so their mother takes care of them in the fur-lined nest for the first five days of their life.
Fun facts
Did you know that:
~Rabbits' tongue contains 17 000 taste buds!
~Rabbits' teeth are always growing to cope with all that gnawing.
~A rabbit's eyes protrude from the side of its head which gives them near 360 degrees vision - the one area they can't see is right in front of their own nose!
The Star-nosed mole
Scientific name: Condylura cristata
Life span: 3 to 4 years
Physical Description
Its nose is hairless and is ringed by a unique "star" of 22 pink, fleshy tentacles. Like other moles, it has a stout, roughly cylindrical body with heavily-built forelimbs, broad feet and large claws. Its hair is short, dense and coarser than that of other moles.
Reproduction
Females produce one litter of offspring per year of between 2 and 7 young, though 5 is a typical litter size. At birth, the young are hairless, are approximately 49mm long and weigh about 1.5g. The eyes and ears are closed and the tentacles of the star are folded back along the rostrum. Eyes,ears and star become functional after about 2 weeks. Young are independent at 30 days and reach maturity at 10 months.
Fun facts
Did you know that:
~It uses its fleshy nose for hunting.
~The Star-nosed mole has 100,000 nerve fibers that run from star to the brain. This is almost six times more than the touch receptors in the human hand!
The Polar Bear
Scientific name: Ursus maritimus
Life span: 15 to 18 years
Physical Description
A polar bear has an elongated body, with low, well-developed shoulders. They have a long thin but well developed neck, highly developed hindquarters and a straight profile.
Reproduction
Females usually breed for the first time when they are 4 years of age and usually breed once every 3 years. The cubs' eyes are closed at birth and Male cubs are usually larger than the female cubs. During the first 2 months, cubs have an unsteady walk.
Fun facts
Did you know:
~Though polar bears appear white, their skin is actually black in colour!
~All polar bears are left-handed!
~They are one of the very few mammals that have fur on the soles of their feet.
The Elephant (African Elephant)
Scientific name: Loxodonta africana
Life span: 40 to 60 years
Physical Description
They have four toes on the forefeet and five toes on the hind feet. African elephants have larger ears and tusks than Asian elephants. Females are smaller and have shorter tusks than males. The skin is grey, with a little covering of hair.
Reproduction
Females and usually breed by age ten and they breed every four years and are only receptive for between 3-6 days, so bulls in must need to be alert to the location of receptive females. They listen for the females tummy-rumbles that can be heard from many kilometres. The gestation period is 22 months long and usually only one calf is born.
Fun facts
Did you know that:
~The African elephant has the biggest brain of any land mammal!
~Man is the only real enemy of elephants!
~Both male and female elephants have ivory tusks.
CREDITS:
http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/amaze.html
http://www.indyzoo.com/content.aspx?cid=505
http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Condylura_cristata.html
http://www.bear.org/Polar/Polar_Bear_Facts.html
http://biology.about.com/library/bldyknow091099.htm
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Monday, February 4, 2008
Posting 2
My autobiography:
In 1996, I was born on 8 February along with my twin sister, Angeline. The next year, I started to crawl and grab things in my own without anyone's help. My mother also read to me stories and taught me how to recognise alphabets. When I was two years old, I started to read sentences aloud and I also started to walk. In 1999, I could talk in full sentences and I also developed a liking to music after my mother bought some songs for me to hear.
When I was four years old, I started to learn how to play the piaono at Yamaha. There my teachers taught me how to sing songs and to play the piano. The next year, I went to K1 with Angeline and as it was my first time going to school and my parents were not by my side, Iwas quite scared but soon I had made good friends.
In 2002 I went to K2 in Maris Stella and my class was called : Tulip. I went to meet the principal there and when I went home to look at my pictures I realised that the principal knew me since I was a baby. Angeline and I made many good friends and we enjoyed going to school. I still rembered that my favourute time of the day was when my teacher brought us top the playground to play and I loved to play in the sand pit with my friends.
The next year, I started to go to Henry park Primary School and I entered P1 with Angeline.
When I was 8 years old, I got into 2B. I made new friends in the class as well as from the other classes. In 2005, I went into 3B and I got second in class and best in English. That was my first award since I went to Primary school so I was quite excited and nervous especially when I went on stage to receive my certificate.
In 2006, I went into 4A and made more new friends but I was quite sad because Angeline went into 4C. In that year, I learnt a new subject- Science. I also got my first model pupil badge!
In 2007, I went into 5B, the same class as Angeline. In that same year, I went to China for the Exchange Programme and entered a competition with a few students from our school aand we won Champions!
In 2008, I went to 6I swith Angeline. Yeah! My form teacher was Minnie Yit . This year I am going to take PSLE and I am studying very hard!
In 1996, I was born on 8 February along with my twin sister, Angeline. The next year, I started to crawl and grab things in my own without anyone's help. My mother also read to me stories and taught me how to recognise alphabets. When I was two years old, I started to read sentences aloud and I also started to walk. In 1999, I could talk in full sentences and I also developed a liking to music after my mother bought some songs for me to hear.
When I was four years old, I started to learn how to play the piaono at Yamaha. There my teachers taught me how to sing songs and to play the piano. The next year, I went to K1 with Angeline and as it was my first time going to school and my parents were not by my side, Iwas quite scared but soon I had made good friends.
In 2002 I went to K2 in Maris Stella and my class was called : Tulip. I went to meet the principal there and when I went home to look at my pictures I realised that the principal knew me since I was a baby. Angeline and I made many good friends and we enjoyed going to school. I still rembered that my favourute time of the day was when my teacher brought us top the playground to play and I loved to play in the sand pit with my friends.
The next year, I started to go to Henry park Primary School and I entered P1 with Angeline.
When I was 8 years old, I got into 2B. I made new friends in the class as well as from the other classes. In 2005, I went into 3B and I got second in class and best in English. That was my first award since I went to Primary school so I was quite excited and nervous especially when I went on stage to receive my certificate.
In 2006, I went into 4A and made more new friends but I was quite sad because Angeline went into 4C. In that year, I learnt a new subject- Science. I also got my first model pupil badge!
In 2007, I went into 5B, the same class as Angeline. In that same year, I went to China for the Exchange Programme and entered a competition with a few students from our school aand we won Champions!
In 2008, I went to 6I swith Angeline. Yeah! My form teacher was Minnie Yit . This year I am going to take PSLE and I am studying very hard!
Monday, January 21, 2008
Elizabeth Choy
Elizabeth Choy was a war heroine. She had sacrificed a lot for Singapore and she is also very forgiving. When the Japanese soldiers attacked Singapore, Elizabeth Choy's husband was captured by the Japanese soldiers and as she wanted to see her husband, she followed the Japanese soldiers and got captured too. She was tortured with electrodes on her bare back in front of her husband . She stayed in a jail cell with 20 other prisoners, mostly men. The Japanese soldiers kept interrogating her and asking her for names of those who betrayed the Japanese but she refused to tell them. Finally, after 193 days, Elizabeth Choy was finally released from the Japanese.
After the war, Elizabeth Choy and a British soldier found her husband who was badly sick and injured. The Red Cross gave her an opportunity to go to Britain as her house was damaged during the war. There she was awarded the Order of the British Empire. Even when she was asked to tell the names of the Japanese soldiers who tortured her, she refused to say their names.
Elizabeth Choy is a courageous and extrodinary lady who has done so much for Singapore. She passed away on 14 September 2006 at the age of 95 as she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer but she will always be remembered as more than a war heroine.
After the war, Elizabeth Choy and a British soldier found her husband who was badly sick and injured. The Red Cross gave her an opportunity to go to Britain as her house was damaged during the war. There she was awarded the Order of the British Empire. Even when she was asked to tell the names of the Japanese soldiers who tortured her, she refused to say their names.
Elizabeth Choy is a courageous and extrodinary lady who has done so much for Singapore. She passed away on 14 September 2006 at the age of 95 as she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer but she will always be remembered as more than a war heroine.
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